Merifield Acres Landowners’ Association

February 7, 2017

Board of Directors’ Meeting Minutes

The meeting was called to Order at 7 pm.  The meeting was originally scheduled for Valentine’s Day, and when one of the young ladies on the Board pointed that out, we decided that in order to keep our wives happy and to keep the men out of trouble, we immediately rescheduled. We thank her for pointing that out.

Attendees

BoD Members:  Butch Cheatham, Susan Warren, Annie Hensley, Kevin Hensley, Cindy Meadows, Dave Hammer, Kent Galvin, Chris Crouse, FJ Hale, John Stinson, Rusty Bishop, Alan Weyman, Emily Howie, Kim Fuller, Carolyn Ferguson, Rick Baldwin, Phil Beck.

Guests: Nola Adler, Hal Norman, Scott Diamond, Sambo Lewis, Carolle Stinson.

Treasurer’s Report: – Chair Annie Hensley reported there is $117,437.55 in the Carter’s Bank checking account and $151,964.65 in the Merrill Edge Account.  She also provided the latest P&L Statement.  A motion was made, seconded and passed without dissent to accept the report. 

Old Business

Minutes:  A motion for approval of Minutes from the December 13 Board meeting was seconded and passed.  

Lien Procedure:  Discussions regarding our lien procedure resulting from questions raised by a MALA resident last year are ongoing.  MALA recently received confirmation by our attorney that recommends that we should continue to use the lien procedure we have used for years. 

Committee Reports

Appearance and Beautification – Chair Chip Overton was not present.  Thanks to all who help MALA by picking up litter around their properties.  Chip and Carolyn did a great job with the Christmas lights at the entrance and the decorations they put up at the West Point Drive Sign.  

Architectural Committee Report Chair Kevin Hensley reported there was one request for a shed on Lakepoint Drive.  No other requests or complaints are under review at this time.

Aviation – Chair F.J. Hale reported that the west side of the runway has been cleaned and the runway was also widened.  In order to cut certain tress there will need to be a permit obtained from the Corps of Engineers, which he will obtain.

Common Areas and Facilities – Chair Alan Weyman had nothing to report at this time.

Deer Control – Chair Scott Diamond reported that a permit has been obtained to begin hunting season.

Roads and Maintenance:  Chair Mike Gupton (Kent Galvin is standing in for Mike)  – In order to remove obstructions to fire trucks on Meriwether Drive, the low hanging limbs on that road were cut back by MALA volunteers and Mike Hite, who spent two Saturdays cutting, removing and burning the limbs. Thanks to all who participated, especially Rick Baldwin, Kevin Hensley, Sambo Lewis, Phil Beck, and Kent Galvin.  Kent, who is recovering from hand surgery, impressed us with what a one-handed marine can do.  Sambo and Rick cut back some of the trees in the common area beside the airstrip to improve the safety for airplanes landing and taking off.  We still have more work to do at the airstrip. Volunteers will be welcomed.  

Security – Chair David Hammer had nothing to report at this time.

Welcoming / Email – Chair Cindy Meadows requested to have a list of new residents given to her in a timely manner.  Chris Crouse offered to run her a list on a monthly basis.

Directory – Chair Susan Warren reported the directory is currently up to date.

Website – Chair Susan Warren: We thank Hal Norman for his work on our website.

New Business

Virginia’s 4 p.m. Burn Law:

From February 15 through April 30 of each year, no outdoor burning before 4:00 p.m. is permitted if the fire is in or within 300 feet of woodland, brush land or fields containing dry grass or other flammable material.  More information is at:

http://www.dof.virginia.gov/laws/outdoor-fire-laws.htm

The proper use of a burn barrel is currently allowed in Merifield for burning clean waste (100% mixture of any combination of wood waste, clean lumber, clean wood or yard waste only). 

Traffic Accident:  We received a call from a concerned resident to inform me about a traffic accident that occurred early in the morning on January 31 at the blind intersection at the intersection of Lake Point and  Merifield Drives. A driver lost control and caused some property damage. Thankfully it was early in the morning, and no one else was involved or injured.  It reinforces the need for our residents to drive responsibly to help keep our neighborhood safe. The Sheriff will continue to patrol Merifield, especially at that intersection, for speeders and reckless drivers.

MALA Mailing: Thanks to Annie Hensley, Kim Fuller, Nola Adler and my wife Shar for all of their time and work to produce the mass mailing to the MALA residents in January.  Your work is certainly appreciated.

Estate Sale:  Some residents have requested that we allow a yard sale for our residents in April, in order for them to sell large, heavy items so that they don’t have to cart them off site.  Yard sales are not allowed in Merifield, however the Board passed a motion to allow a MALA estate sale on Friday, Saturday and Sunday on April 28, 29, and 30.  Anyone interested in participating should contact Barb Tierney at 374-8020, who is coordinating the event. Once the details are worked out, she will handle any advertising and will send the information to Cindy Meadows for inclusion in the MALA newsletter.      

  • All sale items must be inside the garage or the house (not in the yard or driveway), therefore a rain date is not required. 
  • Technically, signs are not allowed, however, for this one event, they will be allowed only for the day(s) of the sale at the front entrance, at the street, and at the houses that are participating. All signs must be removed immediately after the sale.
  • The advertising and scheduling for that event will be the responsibility of the resident(s) coordinating the event. 

Hazards

The MALA Board members are not firemen, policemen, or EMT’s.  We are your neighbors who have volunteered to help keep Merifield a good place to live.  We do not man our phones 24/7.  

For emergencies, always call 911 first.  I recommend saving the following telephone numbers in your cell phone, especially in case of emergencies:

Speeding: Call the county Sheriff at 434-738-6171 if you see someone driving recklessly and endangering our residents.  Provide their license number, or at least a description of the vehicle.  They may already have had complaints about that driver.

Trains Blocking the Roads:  We will see more of this due to increased activity at the old Burlington Plant.  Again, for emergencies, always call 911 first.

 * Buckingham Branch RR: Emergency #: 866-244-4529 / Non Emergency #: 434-983-3300 They      own most of the railroad tracks in our neighborhood.

      Norfolk Southern RR:  Emergency #: 800-453-2530  / Non Emergency #: 864-255-4210

      CSX RR Emergency #: 877-835-5279

Open Burning:  Open burning of any kind, including yard debris, is not allowed in Merifield.  Some of our Board members, upon returning home from an out of town trip, have received voice messages about open burning.  I am not joking. If you see someone doing open burning (not in a burn barrel) within Merifield, and if you perceive that there is a danger of it spreading, call 911 and they will dispatch the fire department.  Leaving a voice message for a Board member, who may be out of town, is not a good idea. We do not want dangerous, unattended fires in Merifield.  If MALA volunteers are doing an open burn of tree debris, you will see someone managing the fire and the Hensley Well Drilling water truck standing by.

Trees Endangering or Blocking Our Roads

The Roads Committee volunteers are as follows: Kent Galvin (Standing in for Chair Mike Gupton) 504-842-8902, Phil Beck (374-4754), Rick Baldwin (919-846-8001), and Scott Diamond (374-5887).  My cell # is 919-618-1917.

State Road Conditions:  Contact VDOT 24/7 (800-367-7623) for issues with unsafe and hazardous state road conditions or to report work requests for state-maintained roads.

The MALA Board members thank each of you for supporting the Board, and for volunteering your time to help when needed.

Adjournment was at 7:45 PM.