Annual Meeting Estate Chocolate Hole Land Owners Association

Thursday, March 28, 2019

President Kevyn Salsburg opened the meeting with an introduction of the Board members & ECHLA attorney, Raf Muilenburg.

Minutes from the 2018 Annual Meeting were approved. Vice President Susan Stair stated there were 31 member votes attending & 55 proxies totaling 86, which provided a quorum.

The President addressed the Agenda:

2018 was a year of transition for the Board, many new practices are now in place. Accounting: After many years of serving the Board as Secretary/Treasurer and bookkeeper, Paula Lambert has resigned as she has moved to the states. Tammy Cummings has been hired as bookkeeper and Abby Schnell O’Connell is Treasurer. The accounting system has been reviewed and updated for a better understanding of all accounts, road assessments, legal assessments, and balances.

Most of the older files of years of data from ECHLA were stored at the Lambert home. ECHLA now has a storage facility and all of the files, plans, maps, etc have been moved there. Plans are to organize and categorize these in the future.

New owners: Over 30 lots/homes were sold and titles transferred this past year and a half. The goal of the Board is to make certain all new owners get copies of our Codes and Restrictions. It is important that all owners understand that ECHLA has building codes, courtesy codes, and restrictions. Efforts will continue to enforce the Codes and Restrictions.

The Lawsuit: In 2015, ECHLA was sued by an owner of lots 501 and 197. Because ECHLA had to respond to this lawsuit, it has involved major legal fees over the past years. The suit for lot 197 was settled. The case for lot 501 went to trial before the judge in May, 2018, but still has not been decided.

Because there were no funds available in the ECHLA accounts for legal services, payment of some of the early legal fees was borrowed from the Road Funds. There has been a legal assessment for the past two years of $300/owner for payment of fees and for repayment of funds into the Roads. This assessment will be reduced to $200 for this next year. When the lawsuit is decided and ECHLA prevails, it is hoped that the legal fees will be paid by the owner of lot 501 as part of the judgment. Since November 2016, ECHLA’s legal insurance has paid some of the legal fees.

Treasurer Report: Treasurer Abby Schnell O’Connell discussed the P&L which was handed out to all members. See attached. The change in the Accounting system has been excellent for updating all records.

There are 269 members and at this time, 64 members still owe outstanding dues and assessments, totaling over $169,000. The Board is committed to working on collecting these funds and will be putting liens on property if payment is not received. A motion move was made & seconded and the Treasurer’s report was approved.

Email addresses and contact information is still needed on some members. Please email echlahoa@gmail.com to update your contact information. Future billings and communications will be sent via email.

Pathos Bay AKA Pond Bay Club: Representatives of the Pathos Bay (former Pond Bay Club) were invited to attend and address the meeting, but were unavailable. They are committed to fixing broken fencing and clearing the areas around the roadways. Andy Arnold is Road Committee Chairman for West roads and works with them on issues.

A question arose concerning all the BBC equipment and materials being stored at the site. It is understood that the PBC is renting the space to BBC because it needed a staging area for all the work being done on island. There was some discussion about noise from the site and this will be addressed with Pathos Bay.

Road Caucuses: The meeting adjourned in to 3 Road Caucuses. Reports as follows:

WEST Roads: Road fees were voted on to be $500 for 2019/2020. West Roads were all graded with swales dug along each road to mitigate damage from rain runoff. The brush was cut and removed along the roadsides as needed. A joint paving project was completed on Laughing Gull Lane. New road signs were purchased, posts were installed, and hardware brackets were prepared for reuse. Plans to continue road improvements were to pave swales, and pave the areas with the most erosion, safety issues, or traffic necessity. The entrances of Mary Holter and Great Cruz Bay were suggested for paving.

NORTH Roads: The North Road fee will stand at $400 per lot. Due to the deficit carryover from 2017, no road improvements were made in 2018; only efforts to clear the bush to allow passage. Although still in a deficit (~$5,300), there are plans to move forward with some critical road improvements for 2019, as we should be back in the "black" once 2019 dues are collected.

EAST Roads: Assessment will continue at $500 per lot. Goals of preceding year were reviewed and 2 of 3 were met/ accomplished. Waiting on VIYA or WAPA to remove spare pole at intersection of 104 & Choc East Road. Roadsides cleared and drainage swales maintained. Main focus for upcoming year is Iguana Road when owners organize to allow road blockage for 4 days at a time for paving work. Fall is best time for this.

ELECTION OF BOARD & OFFICERS: Slate for 2018: President -Kevyn Salsburg, Vice President – Susan Stair, Secretary/Treasurer – Abby Schnell O’Connell Board: North -Jennifer Troisi, Larry Best East –John Hill, Kathy McLaughlin West – Andy Arnold, Andretti Williams.

The slate was accepted by acclimation.