November 7, 2015
Mt. Index Riversites Community Club, Inc.
Board of Directors Meeting
Board members present: Julia Akin, Mark Bollman, Carrie Byrne, Tom Grenier, Patty Harbaugh, CJ Holmes, Gary Johnson, Mark Haenlein, Don Larsen, David MacFarlane, Earl Van Buskirk, Mat Williams
Guests & Owner Attendees: Brent Corey, Melissa Bailey, Ellie Anderson, Shirley Heintz, Ben Keith, Jim Blair, Bill Stehl, Ron Sims, Gary Hubbard, Alina Rush, Cameron Elias, Kim Elias, Jay & Virginia Helt, Kris Johnson, Rick McGarvey, Randy McGarvey, Mike Herman
Early departures:
Brent Corey, Ron Sims, Bill Stehl left the meeting before New Business and Other Comments and Discussion Topics.
Opening Remarks
October Meeting Minutes
Carrie Byrne, seconded by Gary Johnson: “Move to approve the October meeting minutes.” Approved: 9 – Yes; Abstained: 2 (Harbaugh and Larsen
– both were not present at October meeting)
Committee Reports and Information
Executive Committee
Collections efforts reported that two more liens are out for filing (one parcel for Harvey and two parcels for Russek).
MIRCC’s lien against Harding was found to be second in line so the corporation is not able to collect on it. Further investigation is needed to determine if there were unpaid road dues that occurred chronologically prior to the first lien for MIRCC to have a case to collect past due assessments.
The following foreclosure updates were provided:
• The three foreclosures that have not been able to be served because they cannot be reached (Peterson, Olson, Shiotani) are in the process of getting document affidavits ready for public filing.
• Summary judgment motions will be ready this week to file against Cruden and Parks. Hearings will be scheduled after the motions are filed.
Budget Status Report: Earl Van Buskirk presented the October 31st Balance Sheet and Profit & Loss statements. Total bank balances = $141,521.
Several financial highlights were reviewed:
• 97% of owners expected to pay in E-Section have paid 2015 assessments
• 82.5% of owners expected to pay in A-Section have paid 2015 assessments
• $2406 in deposits have been received from E-Section owners for cards and clickers
• $2327 has been recouped in attorney fees and filing fees from foreclosure settlement
Collections Committee
Mark Bollman, MIRCC President, sent intent to file lien notices to owners who have not paid assessments for both 2014 and 2015. Many have responded with payment or payment plans. Liens for the others will be filed soon.
E-Section Roads
No road work on E-Section roads has been performed in the last month except pothole filling by volunteers. Mark Haenlein reported that he is going to order two loads of pothole filling materials before winter to address E-Section roads. Potholes will continue to be filled by volunteers. There are no plans for grading, as there is not enough money to do so.
Mitigation in the form of shoreline plantings is required by Snohomish County for the Canyon Falls Bridge shoreline permit. MIRCC needs to plant ~60 one-gallon plants around the base of the bridge. Volunteers were invited to participate in planting after the Board meeting.
Canyon Falls to US-2
Earl Van Buskirk provided a gate update. The night before the Board meeting, there was a collision between the gate and a vehicle. The vehicle was traveling too close to the gate as it was closing and it collided with the car. The community is reminded to please only allow one car to pass through the gate at a time and provide ample room for the gate’s opening and closing.
As of the Board meeting, the gate is reported to be working well and new codes, clickers, and keycards are working well. Old codes were terminated effective October 31.
A-Section & USFS 6020 Roads
Mat Williams reported that pothole filling with 1 ¼” minus is working well—it packs in well and adds structure to the pothole.
Forest Service has granted MIRCC permission to put a sign out by the rafting area that states there is a private community ahead and that there is no public access past Lake Serene. The relationship with USFS has been going well.
Bylaws, Ethics, Legal
Gary Johnson reported that the MIRCC attorney received a letter from another attorney. It would be discussed under Other Comments and Discussion Topics later in the meeting agenda.
Community Development
Julia Akin reported that the Community Development Committee would like to have a meeting soon. The committee is evaluating having a “beaches and trails club” and potentially may recommend a $25 annual fee to improve beaches, trails, and to offset road maintenance costs. Julia plans to have a presentation ready at the annual meeting in May.
Priority Business
Mark Haenlein, seconded by Gary Johnson: “Move to approve Check Detail Report for October expenditures.” Approved: 11 – Yes
Charges and Invoices to be paid: -E-Section Checks:
• o $4736.17 – Acrow Corporation (bridge payment)
• o $1255.41 – Canyon Falls HOA (access road work)
• o $868.80 – Canyon Falls HOA (access road work)
• o $675.20 – Canyon Falls HOA (access road work)
• o $2762.50 – Carney-Badley-Spellman Law Offices (easement attorney consulting)
• o $798.43 – Earl Van Buskirk (gate clickers)
• o $559.55 -Earl Van Buskirk (gate keycards)
• o $200.10 -Earl Van Buskirk (plantings required for shoreline permit)
• o $71.66 -Earl Van Buskirk (QuickBooks cloud access fee)
• o $2535 – Mitigation Banking Services (shoreline mitigation fee)
• o $9.79 – PUD (street lights)
• o $8.87 – PUD (street lights)
• o $8.20 – PUD (street lights)
• o $354 – SLK Accounting (monthly bookkeeping)
• o $2206.30 – Tierra Right of Way (shoreline archaeological study required for shoreline permit)
A-Section Checks:
• o $25 – Brent Corey (roadwork on USFS road)
• o $49 – CJ Holmes (postage)
• o $47.78 – Earl Van Buskirk (QuickBooks cloud access fees)
• o $233.44 – Julia Schwarts (refund for overpayment of assessments)
• o $53.45 – Mat Williams (roadwork on USFS road)
• o $6.53 – PUD (street lights)
• o $5.92 – PUD (street lights)
• o $14.94 – PUD (street lights)
• o $216 – SLK Accounting (montly bookkeeping)
• o $600 – Terry/Mat Williams (A-Section roadwork)
• o $150.48 – Terry/Mat Williams (signs for A-Section roads)
New Business
Carrie Byrne, seconded by Gary Johnson: “Move to adopt MIRCC Green Gate Policies & Procedures as revised 11/5/15.” Approved: 10 -Yes, 1 -No (Akin)
After review and discussion among the Executive Committee, Carrie Byrne presented a recommended set of policies and procedures for the green gate. Following are highlights reviewed at the meeting:
• The goals and objectives of the policies and procedures are primarily to comply with the terms of the temporary easement over the road from US-2 to the Canyon Falls Bridge and to provide the community a means to ensure
owners and their guests can access their property
• Definitions, responsibilities, and usage are outlined for management & oversight, residential users, and commercial users of the green gate
• Current management & oversight of the green gate is provided by the US-2 to Canyon Falls Road Committee; the Committee is responsible for keeping the Policies & Procedures up to date. Changes to the Policies
& procedures must be brought in a motion to a MIRCC BOD meeting; approved changes are to be distributed to all Owners.
• Use of Access Devices (keypad codes, keycards, or clickers) is subject to the green gate Terms & Conditions for residential and/or commercial users. These include acknowledging that all Owners have a responsibility to pay
their past, current and future road assessments.
• It was further emphasized that the green gate is not a means for MIRCC to collect assessments, but rather it is a mechanism to ensure only Owners and their guests are provided access.
The Green Gate Policies & Procedures as approved at the Board meeting will be published to the MIRCC website.
Other Comments and Discussion Topics
Gravel & Grading for E-Section
Mark Haenlein invited all attendees to join in pothole filling along E-Section roads after the meeting. Volunteers are asked to help fill potholes with materials provided by the Road Committee.
Snow Plow Options
Mark Haenlein reported that the BOD is looking into all options for snow plowing for the winter. Mat Williams mentioned that the Forest Service does not want a grader used to grade snow on the USFS road and A-Section is obliged to conform with USFS requests.
There may be value in coordinating A-Section and E-Section plowing with one contractor. A recommendation will be provided for a snow plowing solution at the December BOD meeting.
Road Failure past railroad overpass
Ben Keith has asked the Board to look into repairing the road between the mudslide and the railroad overpass. This section of road was once a part of the primary MIRCC road but is now technically a side road. Per Judge Wynne’s decision, side road maintenance is to be shared by owners whose property is on the side road. Ben acknowledged that only 3 property owners regularly use the road and the expense shared among them for a repair would be prohibitively expensive.
The BOD recognizes that the road is in a state of disrepair, although it is a side road. After the mudslide, community members traversed that part of the road on foot and by vehicles they parked above the slide. Despite community use, no road maintenance was performed on this section of road after the slide occurred.
In recognition of road use without maintenance, Mark Haenlein suggested a one-time repair using carryover funds from 2013 during the mudslide period when no monies were spent past the slide. The BOD will look at the cost and approach to a one-time repair. It was suggested that Burlington Northern, Frontier, and PUD may be approached to share repair costs or even perform repairs because their vehicles also use the road. The BOD will keep Ben and the community updated on a suggested approach, although no timeline was provided.
Board Vacancies
Tom Lange has resigned from the Board due to work obligations. Patty Harbaugh brought up the discussion topic of filling BOD vacancies mid-term. After thoughtful discussion and a straw vote was taken, the BOD determined that it will not pursue filling vacancies at this time in favor of waiting until the annual meeting.
Letter from Bret Sachter
Gary Johnson reported that the MIRCC attorney for liens and foreclosures (Adams & Duncan) received a letter from another attorney, Bret Sachter. The letter stated concerns and complaints related to various MIRCC business. Sachter has been retained by an unnamed MIRCC property owner and member.
The Board has not retained Adams & Duncan to respond to the complaint and has asked Adams & Duncan to refer Sachter to the Board directly. The Bylaws, Ethics, and Legal committee is reviewing the letter and will report back to the Board at the December meeting with recommended next steps.
Closing Remarks
Next meeting scheduled for Saturday, December 5th at 9:00 a.m. at the Index Fire Station.
Respectfully submitted by
Carrie Byrne MIRCC Secretary
Guests & Owner Attendees: Brent Corey, Melissa Bailey, Ellie Anderson, Shirley Heintz, Ben Keith, Jim Blair, Bill Stehl, Ron Sims, Gary Hubbard, Alina Rush, Cameron Elias, Kim Elias, Jay & Virginia Helt, Kris Johnson, Rick McGarvey, Randy McGarvey, Mike Herman
Early departures:
Brent Corey, Ron Sims, Bill Stehl left the meeting before New Business and Other Comments and Discussion Topics.
Opening Remarks
October Meeting Minutes
Carrie Byrne, seconded by Gary Johnson: “Move to approve the October meeting minutes.” Approved: 9 – Yes; Abstained: 2 (Harbaugh and Larsen
– both were not present at October meeting)
Committee Reports and Information
Executive Committee
Collections efforts reported that two more liens are out for filing (one parcel for Harvey and two parcels for Russek).
MIRCC’s lien against Harding was found to be second in line so the corporation is not able to collect on it. Further investigation is needed to determine if there were unpaid road dues that occurred chronologically prior to the first lien for MIRCC to have a case to collect past due assessments.
The following foreclosure updates were provided:
• The three foreclosures that have not been able to be served because they cannot be reached (Peterson, Olson, Shiotani) are in the process of getting document affidavits ready for public filing.
• Summary judgment motions will be ready this week to file against Cruden and Parks. Hearings will be scheduled after the motions are filed.
Budget Status Report: Earl Van Buskirk presented the October 31st Balance Sheet and Profit & Loss statements. Total bank balances = $141,521.
Several financial highlights were reviewed:
• 97% of owners expected to pay in E-Section have paid 2015 assessments
• 82.5% of owners expected to pay in A-Section have paid 2015 assessments
• $2406 in deposits have been received from E-Section owners for cards and clickers
• $2327 has been recouped in attorney fees and filing fees from foreclosure settlement
Collections Committee
Mark Bollman, MIRCC President, sent intent to file lien notices to owners who have not paid assessments for both 2014 and 2015. Many have responded with payment or payment plans. Liens for the others will be filed soon.
E-Section Roads
No road work on E-Section roads has been performed in the last month except pothole filling by volunteers. Mark Haenlein reported that he is going to order two loads of pothole filling materials before winter to address E-Section roads. Potholes will continue to be filled by volunteers. There are no plans for grading, as there is not enough money to do so.
Mitigation in the form of shoreline plantings is required by Snohomish County for the Canyon Falls Bridge shoreline permit. MIRCC needs to plant ~60 one-gallon plants around the base of the bridge. Volunteers were invited to participate in planting after the Board meeting.
Canyon Falls to US-2
Earl Van Buskirk provided a gate update. The night before the Board meeting, there was a collision between the gate and a vehicle. The vehicle was traveling too close to the gate as it was closing and it collided with the car. The community is reminded to please only allow one car to pass through the gate at a time and provide ample room for the gate’s opening and closing.
As of the Board meeting, the gate is reported to be working well and new codes, clickers, and keycards are working well. Old codes were terminated effective October 31.
A-Section & USFS 6020 Roads
Mat Williams reported that pothole filling with 1 ¼” minus is working well—it packs in well and adds structure to the pothole.
Forest Service has granted MIRCC permission to put a sign out by the rafting area that states there is a private community ahead and that there is no public access past Lake Serene. The relationship with USFS has been going well.
Bylaws, Ethics, Legal
Gary Johnson reported that the MIRCC attorney received a letter from another attorney. It would be discussed under Other Comments and Discussion Topics later in the meeting agenda.
Community Development
Julia Akin reported that the Community Development Committee would like to have a meeting soon. The committee is evaluating having a “beaches and trails club” and potentially may recommend a $25 annual fee to improve beaches, trails, and to offset road maintenance costs. Julia plans to have a presentation ready at the annual meeting in May.
Priority Business
Mark Haenlein, seconded by Gary Johnson: “Move to approve Check Detail Report for October expenditures.” Approved: 11 – Yes
Charges and Invoices to be paid: -E-Section Checks:
• o $4736.17 – Acrow Corporation (bridge payment)
• o $1255.41 – Canyon Falls HOA (access road work)
• o $868.80 – Canyon Falls HOA (access road work)
• o $675.20 – Canyon Falls HOA (access road work)
• o $2762.50 – Carney-Badley-Spellman Law Offices (easement attorney consulting)
• o $798.43 – Earl Van Buskirk (gate clickers)
• o $559.55 -Earl Van Buskirk (gate keycards)
• o $200.10 -Earl Van Buskirk (plantings required for shoreline permit)
• o $71.66 -Earl Van Buskirk (QuickBooks cloud access fee)
• o $2535 – Mitigation Banking Services (shoreline mitigation fee)
• o $9.79 – PUD (street lights)
• o $8.87 – PUD (street lights)
• o $8.20 – PUD (street lights)
• o $354 – SLK Accounting (monthly bookkeeping)
• o $2206.30 – Tierra Right of Way (shoreline archaeological study required for shoreline permit)
A-Section Checks:
• o $25 – Brent Corey (roadwork on USFS road)
• o $49 – CJ Holmes (postage)
• o $47.78 – Earl Van Buskirk (QuickBooks cloud access fees)
• o $233.44 – Julia Schwarts (refund for overpayment of assessments)
• o $53.45 – Mat Williams (roadwork on USFS road)
• o $6.53 – PUD (street lights)
• o $5.92 – PUD (street lights)
• o $14.94 – PUD (street lights)
• o $216 – SLK Accounting (montly bookkeeping)
• o $600 – Terry/Mat Williams (A-Section roadwork)
• o $150.48 – Terry/Mat Williams (signs for A-Section roads)
New Business
Carrie Byrne, seconded by Gary Johnson: “Move to adopt MIRCC Green Gate Policies & Procedures as revised 11/5/15.” Approved: 10 -Yes, 1 -No (Akin)
After review and discussion among the Executive Committee, Carrie Byrne presented a recommended set of policies and procedures for the green gate. Following are highlights reviewed at the meeting:
• The goals and objectives of the policies and procedures are primarily to comply with the terms of the temporary easement over the road from US-2 to the Canyon Falls Bridge and to provide the community a means to ensure
owners and their guests can access their property
• Definitions, responsibilities, and usage are outlined for management & oversight, residential users, and commercial users of the green gate
• Current management & oversight of the green gate is provided by the US-2 to Canyon Falls Road Committee; the Committee is responsible for keeping the Policies & Procedures up to date. Changes to the Policies
& procedures must be brought in a motion to a MIRCC BOD meeting; approved changes are to be distributed to all Owners.
• Use of Access Devices (keypad codes, keycards, or clickers) is subject to the green gate Terms & Conditions for residential and/or commercial users. These include acknowledging that all Owners have a responsibility to pay
their past, current and future road assessments.
• It was further emphasized that the green gate is not a means for MIRCC to collect assessments, but rather it is a mechanism to ensure only Owners and their guests are provided access.
The Green Gate Policies & Procedures as approved at the Board meeting will be published to the MIRCC website.
Other Comments and Discussion Topics
Gravel & Grading for E-Section
Mark Haenlein invited all attendees to join in pothole filling along E-Section roads after the meeting. Volunteers are asked to help fill potholes with materials provided by the Road Committee.
Snow Plow Options
Mark Haenlein reported that the BOD is looking into all options for snow plowing for the winter. Mat Williams mentioned that the Forest Service does not want a grader used to grade snow on the USFS road and A-Section is obliged to conform with USFS requests.
There may be value in coordinating A-Section and E-Section plowing with one contractor. A recommendation will be provided for a snow plowing solution at the December BOD meeting.
Road Failure past railroad overpass
Ben Keith has asked the Board to look into repairing the road between the mudslide and the railroad overpass. This section of road was once a part of the primary MIRCC road but is now technically a side road. Per Judge Wynne’s decision, side road maintenance is to be shared by owners whose property is on the side road. Ben acknowledged that only 3 property owners regularly use the road and the expense shared among them for a repair would be prohibitively expensive.
The BOD recognizes that the road is in a state of disrepair, although it is a side road. After the mudslide, community members traversed that part of the road on foot and by vehicles they parked above the slide. Despite community use, no road maintenance was performed on this section of road after the slide occurred.
In recognition of road use without maintenance, Mark Haenlein suggested a one-time repair using carryover funds from 2013 during the mudslide period when no monies were spent past the slide. The BOD will look at the cost and approach to a one-time repair. It was suggested that Burlington Northern, Frontier, and PUD may be approached to share repair costs or even perform repairs because their vehicles also use the road. The BOD will keep Ben and the community updated on a suggested approach, although no timeline was provided.
Board Vacancies
Tom Lange has resigned from the Board due to work obligations. Patty Harbaugh brought up the discussion topic of filling BOD vacancies mid-term. After thoughtful discussion and a straw vote was taken, the BOD determined that it will not pursue filling vacancies at this time in favor of waiting until the annual meeting.
Letter from Bret Sachter
Gary Johnson reported that the MIRCC attorney for liens and foreclosures (Adams & Duncan) received a letter from another attorney, Bret Sachter. The letter stated concerns and complaints related to various MIRCC business. Sachter has been retained by an unnamed MIRCC property owner and member.
The Board has not retained Adams & Duncan to respond to the complaint and has asked Adams & Duncan to refer Sachter to the Board directly. The Bylaws, Ethics, and Legal committee is reviewing the letter and will report back to the Board at the December meeting with recommended next steps.
Closing Remarks
Next meeting scheduled for Saturday, December 5th at 9:00 a.m. at the Index Fire Station.
Respectfully submitted by
Carrie Byrne MIRCC Secretary