2017 Annual Meeting Minutes

The Annual Meeting of the West Park Community Association was called to order at 7:01 p.m. on 26 October 2017 by president Jim Emery.

Attendees: Jim Emery, Lauren Crum, Ken Burns, Cindy Sanzotta, Jeff Peters, and 17 others.

READING OF THE MINUTES

The minutes of the WPCA annual meeting of 26 October 2016 were read by secretary Cindy Sanzotta. A question was asked relative to the pipestem repair item to clarify what to do about curb repair. President Jim Emery confirmed that the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) owns all of the property between our sidewalks and the street and are responsible for any maintenance issues. Property owners should contact VDOT. A motion was made to approve the minutes as read, seconded, and passed unanimously.

TREASURER'S REPORT

Treasurer Lauren Crum reported the status of WPCA financials for 2017 and presented the proposed 2018 budget (attached).

There were a number of large expenses this year - asphalt path work, work on the playground to include contracted painting, and tree maintenance. There were no legal fee expenses this year. Insurance costs have gone up, but after a survey of options, we are still getting a good deal. All assessments were collected for 2017.

The projected deficit for 2017 was lower than anticipated due to cost saving measures such as free labor; however the year did still see a deficit driven by common area and tree maintenance.

The proposed budget for 2018 includes an increase in our annual assessment. Treasurer Lauren Crum noted a 55% increase in the cost of tree work in the last three years. Due to this increase, the board approved a $5 increase in WPCA assessment for 2018 at its 13 September 2017 Board Meeting bringing the dues to $70 per year.

Discussion about the Treasurer's report encompassed clarification of the Robinson asphalt path and the fact that it is owned by Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), not WPCA. Therefore, the Robinson path is maintained by them. Residents should call FCPS if there is repair required.

There are some limited administrative costs and website expenses (due in November) which are not yet accounted for in the report. Some of the 2018 estimates are conservative as the board can only exceed line item expenditures by $200 before a general meeting must be held to approve additional expenses.

A question was asked about the Total Assets held in the savings account. The treasurer clarified that a large portion of the amount is the pipestem escrow accounts.

A motion was made to accept the treasurer's report including the 2018 budget. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS

President Jim Emery introduced Cindy Sanzotta as the secretary and opened the floor for any nominations for any of the board positions. No one volunteered. The current slate of officers offered to serve in 2018 including:

President: Jim Emery
Vice President: Mike Yang
Secretary: Cindy Sanzotta
Treasurer: Lauren Crum
Member At-Large: Jeff Peters

A motion was made to accept this slate of officers, seconded, and passed unanimously.

Ken Burns, Mike Cleary, and Pandu Balaram were appointed to serve a one-year term on the Architectural Control Committee for the next year.

Jim Emery will continue serving as the Webmaster for the Association's website.

OLD BUSINESS

Formal Complaint Policy. President Jim Emery reminded the members of the formal complaint policy and process that was established in 2012. He presented a summary of the process that is detailed in the Complaint Policy on the Association's website.

NEW BUSINESS

Solar Panels.. Ken Burns of the Architectural Control Committee noted that there have been no issues concerning solar panels. Only one home in WPCA has them at this time and they were installed years ago. The committee, at their sole discretion, may grant or deny permission to install solar panels.

Parking Concerns. Concern was voiced about the currently permitted parking close to the intersection of Braddock Road and Sideburn Road and the hazard it presents. A member sent a notice to Supervisor Cook's office about this safety concern. Supervisor Cook has not responded. Parking on Headly Court by students of George Mason University (GMU) has also become more of an issue. GMU parking permits cost approximately $500 a year. It was also clarified that Fairfax County allows up to four unrelated individuals to live in one dwelling. None of our rental properties in WPCA are currently exceeding this limit. Headly Court residents present discussed the issue and president Jim Emery discussed options from calling Fairfax County Police when parking is too close to driveways and mailboxes to requesting residential permit parking status for the street and what it would mean for residents. Residential parking complaints may be addressed to https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/complaints/ or to the Fairfax County Police non-emergency number: 703-691-2131. For information on Fairfax County's Residential Permit Parking District Program, go to https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/fcdot/parking/rppd.htm. A member offered to contact the county about permit parking status for Headly Court. President Jim Emery offered to assist him.

Trash Collection. Ken Burns commented about the county trash collection policy that does not allow collection until 6 a.m. American trash trucks have been parked in the neighborhood ahead of time to await active collection beginning at 6 a.m. There is no policy prohibiting this prepositioning of trash trucks.

Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). Mrs. Emery presented information about the Fairfax County CERT program. She and president Jim Emery are now certified in the training which is aimed at neighborhood disaster response. She offered to explain the program to anyone interested in more details, recommended searching online for the program (https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/fr/cert/cert.htm), and noted there will be a November 4th disaster exercise that anyone over 16 years of age can volunteer to participate in. It was also noted that the FCPS maintenance building across from Robinson Secondary School is a designated Federal Emergency Management Agency emergency center and backup command center for FCPS.

At 7:49 p.m., a motion to adjourn was made, seconded, and passed unanimously.

Respectfully submitted,
Cindy Sanzotta
WPCA Secretary

Note: These minutes were edited in accordance with the WPCA Privacy Policy and were posted 30 October 2017. The full text of the official copy of the minutes may be reviewed or obtained by request by any WPCA member by contacting the WPCA president, president@kpwwpca.org.