Merifield Acres Landowners’ Association
Oak Park
27th Annual Meeting Minutes
September 28, 2003
Association President Phil Hart called the 27th Annual Meeting of the Merifield Acres Landowners’ Association (MALA) to order at 1:10 PM. He welcomed the attendees and asked those Association members who were attending their first Annual Meeting to stand and identify themselves.
The minutes of the 26th Annual Meeting and the Special General Membership meeting held on February 11, 2003 had been distributed previously to the members and posted on the Association Web site. There having been no comment or correction received and in the absence of objection, the minutes are approved as written.
Treasurer’s Report: Garry Wilburn reported that the Association’s current fiscal assets total $62,304.37 (Money Market $17,400 and Fidelity Mutual Funds $44,904.37). He reported that the Association Certificates of Deposit had matured this past year and that those resources were reinvested in the Fidelity mutual funds. He also noted that the large surplus carried over from last fiscal year resulted from the road maintenance planned for 2002 not being accomplished because of weather and deferred to 2003. There were no comments from the floor and the report was approved as submitted.
President’s Report:
Board Vacancies. Two vacancies occurring on the MALA Board of Directors this year were filled by Skip Norcross and Sharon Sinkiewicz
Fielding Covenants. The President reviewed the history of the Fielding Covenant vis-a-vis the Merifield Inc. Covenants that resulted in the Association rescinding its September 2001 action of substituting the Merifield Inc. Covenants for the Fielding Covenants in RP sections 1, 3, 4, and 5. In return for this action on the part of the Association, the Fielding property owners involved agreed to encourage property owners to become members of the Association by voluntarily contributing to the support of the Association. He noted that these actions were largely ineffective in that the number of Fielding area property owners voluntarily contributing decreased from a high of 49 in 2001 to 38 (out of 69) in 2003. The amount actually contributed did increase by $340 over the same period.
Oak Park. Because of vandalism at Oak Park and use by non-residents, we have commenced locking the entrance at sunset. If any Association member wishes to use the facility after sunset, they have only to contact Dennis Hayes, the Resident Manager, to arrange access.
Road Use By Unlicensed Vehicles. The use of MALA roads by unlicensed vehicles, principally ATVs, continues to be a problem. Our roads are subject to the same traffic law enforcement as state and county roads. Violators can expect to be cited.
Deer Population Reduction Program. MALA’s deer population reduction program inaugurated this past year was only marginally successful, resulting in 8 deer being taken. Our goal was to reduce our herd by 25. The limited take was the result of adverse weather and limited hunting areas. More on this subject when we receive the Deer Committee report.
MALA Rules and Regulations. The Board of Directors is currently considering publishing a condensed summary of MALA’s rules and regulations extracted from the Merifield Inc. covenants and other approved policy statements. When developed, this summary will be included in the Disclosure Packets that are provided to new property owners. The summary will also be distributed to all current property owners to facilitate a better common understanding of permissible/impermissible activity.
Impact Fees. Because of the damage to our roads caused by heavy vehicles incident to house construction, land clearing, riprap installation, etc., the Board is considering establishing a schedule of impact fees to be assessed. The details of this proposal have not yet been developed.
Budget Limitations and its Impact on Road Maintenance. In each of the past four budget years, the funds allocated to road maintenance has had to be reduced substantially from the amount requested. This action was necessary in order to present a balanced budget to the membership for its approval. In order to ease the short term impact of these actions, the Board is considering asking Merifield Acres property owners for a voluntary contribution in addition to the regular annual assessment. This request will be included with the annual assessment statements distributed in January. The President asked the attendees for a show of hands indicating support/opposition to such a practice. There was unanimous support for a voluntary contribution for road maintenance.
Road Speed. Excessive road speed continues to be a threat to the safety of our residents. Last year the Board considered the installation of speed bumps on our roads. No one is in favor of this approach to ensuring the safety of our residents. The speed bump proposal has been tabled without action. We are encouraging the enforcement of our speed limits by state and county authorities. A number of traffic citations have been issued to violators. When challenged in court, these citations have been upheld. The maximum speed cited to date is 56 miles per hour.
Proposed Real Estate Purchase. For the past several years MALA has been interested in purchasing a strip of land reaching from the Merifield Acres entrance approximately 1000’ to where the yellow and black curve warning sign is located. This land is currently owned by David Wilson, the owner of the adjacent trailer park. MALA wants to establish this 15’ wide strip as a visual buffer between our community and the adjacent development. The owner does not wish to sell this parcel until he has a firm commitment on the remaining 23 acres.
Motions from the Floor. The President requested that motions presented from the floor be written to ensure record accuracy.
Welcoming Committee. MALA is attempting to revitalize our Welcoming Committee. Martha Day has volunteered to lead this effort.
E-Mail. E-Mail is increasingly important to our Association because of the ease and timeliness of communications and the significant savings in terms of postage and volunteer effort. Please keep us informed of your address and any changes in your server.
MALA Telephone Directory. MALA’s telephone directory contains addresses, phone numbers, E-mail addresses, lot number and unit as well as our internal districts. The directory is maintained by Paul Lautermilch on a continuing basis. Please let him or MALA know of any corrections or changes. We normally distribute a new directory shortly after the first of the year.
Signs. We have had several instances of property owners displaying election campaign signs in Merifield. Under our covenants, these are not permitted.
Election Results:
The President announced the results of the voting to approve the MALA Budget for FY 2004, election of members to seats on the Board of Directors for three year terms, and election of a member to the Architectural Committee.
The FY 2004 Budget was approved by a vote of 103 to 0.
The following members were elected to 3 year terms on the Board of Directors:
Richard Allen
Mike Cottrell
Martha Day
Matt Dillon
John Stinson
Dewitt VanArsdale
Don Szalkowski was elected to a 3 year term on the Architectural Committee.
The President congratulated the newly elected and thanked the off-going Board and Architectural Committee members.
Committee Reports:
Architectural Committee. There are currently 249 houses in Merifield, 3 under construction and 4 approved for construction. In the past year 9 houses, 4 smaller detached structures, and 5 additions were approved.
Aviation. No report.
Common Facilities. The Chair thanked Brenda Mould, Midge Morgan, and Beverlyn Scheidt for their entrance beautification efforts during the past years, and to Eva Madura, Agatha Szalkowski, and Carolyn Wood for volunteering to ensure that the entrance remains attractive. For details, see attached report.
Hangar – The hangar continues to be a “hot” topic in our community. The sheet metal on the sides and roof is loose in several places and we have nailed it back as well as possible, but to some of our residents, it continues to be an eyesore. The Board has voted to remove the exiting structure, leaving the concrete slabs in place for future use. Estimates to do this work averaged $1500. This removal will be done by volunteers at little or no cost, once the weather turns cooler.
Tennis Court – Except for some cracks in the surface which allowed weeds to grow through, the court is in good condition.
Park and Stable – “No Trespassing” sign and locked entrance gate installed to deter unauthorized users and vandalism.
Community Dock – Dock is in usable condition, if anyone desires to use it. There are monies set aside repair or replace the dock when necessary.
Deer Control. While our first attempt at controlling our Merifield deer problem by bow and arrow hunting was moderately successful we were able to have the hunt with little disruption in the neighborhood. There were no safety incidents and no known problems with hunters being disrespectful of Merifield residents and/or their property.
Based on the above success the MALA Board of Directors approved the recommendation of the Deer Control Committee for a second hunt to be held from September 1, 2003 thru January 3, 2004 with an extension to March 31, 2004 if the MALA Board deems it advisable.
There will be minor changes in the hunt – only antlerless deer may be taken out of the regular Virginia deer hunting seasons and no aging data has to be taken. Also some additional areas will be hunted with landowner permission.
Please feel free to contact me (Felix Anderson) if there are any questions, recommendations or constructive comments.
Finance. Contained in the Treasurer’s Report.
Political and Environmental Liaison. Margaret White reported that the county supervisor representing Merifield is Jack Smith who replaced John Massingill.
There will be an Election Candidate Forum sponsored by the Ruritan Club in the Fine Arts Center at 7 PM on Thursday, Oct. 9, 2003. A new supervisor, School Board member and other officials will be chosen in the November elections.
Property reassessments will be completed by January 2004.
The demand for water from the Roanoke River Basin continues. The Roanoke River Basin Association is representing our interests in ensuring that excessive demands do not damage our local lake environment. They and our local representatives are pressing for the construction of water reservoirs in lieu of direct water withdrawals from the lake and its feeders.
Roads. Matt Dillon, Roads Committee Chair reported that Merifield roads during the past year had excessive damage due to the wet conditions throughout the year. Paving planned for 2002 was delayed until this year due to the wet conditions. All the repairs and the scheduled paving for years 2002 & 2003 have been completed. This included the following:
Tar & gravel all of West Point
Tar & gravel from main entrance to the Y
Complete T&G Cedar Lane
Replace culvert at Y with concrete 15” pipe
Asphalt strips and tar/gravel patching.
Total repairs: 2002 $15,608.00
2003 $13,665.00
All roads are in good condition at this time.
- Installation of seven new speed limit signs (DOT standard) were completed during the year. Five of these signs were donated by residents.
- Our long-range road projection continues to exceed our financial capability. When our covenants were written some 30 years ago and a cap was established at $160.00 to meet the road needs, that was acceptable. But with the higher cost today and what is expected in the future we won’t even come close to meeting our road expenses.
- Current cost for Tar and Gravel is $ 2.20/running ft. vs $1.00 in 1989 and asphalt is $ 9.00/running ft. vs $ 2.00 in 1989.
- Planned contract paving tasks for 2004 are as follows:
T/G Ridge Drive ~2290 ft. @ $2.20 $5,038
T/G Maplewood Ct. 815 ft. @ $2.20 $1,793
T/G Eagle Perch 600 ft. @ $2.20 $1,320
Replace culvert at the bottom on Lakepoint ~ $3000
- Our budget for 2004 is set at $ 13,059
- Many thanks to Dennis Hayes (Maintenance Manger) for his support and work during the year.
Security. President Hart reported that he has assumed the duties of Security Committee chair. The past year marked the development of a MALA security policy statement outlining the duties of the Security Committee. The most prevalent complaint continues to be dogs – 9 formal complaints; the brick column at the entrance was struck by a vehicle during an ice storm; two reports of minor tampering of aircraft parked in the MALA Hangar; damage to grassy areas at Oak Park and on the air strip by vehicles;
Youth and Schools. Cindy Carter reported on the successful Easter Egg hunt and hay ride last Fall. Plans are being made for a hay ride in early November. Volunteers are needed to assist.
New Business.
The Chair recognized Margaret White who observed that there were at least two properties that had camping trailers parked on undeveloped lots and that this gives the appearance of a trailer court and thereby lessens the attractiveness of our community to visitors and prospective buyers. She offered a motion:
“That the incoming Board of Directors address the question of parking camping trailers on unimproved lots in Merifield, a practice that appears to be in violation of Sect. 4 of the Restrictive Covenants.”
The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.
The Chair recognized Ed Mazur who addressed the road maintenance question in light of the resource limitations imposed by the restrictive covenants and the failure of some restrictive covenants to require mandatory annual assessments for maintenance and other Association expenses. He offered the following motion:
“WHEREAS the President of MALA reported to the membership at its annual meeting on September 28, 2003 that our roads are not being adequately maintained because of covenant-related restrictions that inhibit the raising of adequate sums from the membership, and
“WHEREAS a majority of the membership had previously authorized the Board to seek approval of a formal Service District, which they did on our behalf.
“THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the membership authorize and encourage the Board to effectively pursue creation of the previously approved Service District using all means to ensure that the Service District is approved and established.”
The motion was seconded. Subsequent discussion addressed the reasons the Board of Supervisors rejected MALA’s earlier petition, the likelihood of future success, and the alternatives to establishing the Service District in the absence of Board of Supervisor approval. After discussion the motion was passed unanimously.
There being no further business, the 27th Annual Meeting of the Merifield Acres Landowners’ Association was adjourned at 2:50PM.