David's Anthem Journal

The activity at the entrance to Freedom Hall for the September 27 Board of Directors meeting was a clear signal that this meeting would be unique, as supporters of Bob Frank dispensed labels reading "F.O.B." (Friends of Bob) for Bob Frank's supporters to wear in anticipation of a vote to remove him as Vice President of the Board.

An interesting element in this meeting was that Board member Bob Berman participated by telephone, as legally permitted. This led to some light moments during the meeting when Berman, unseen but loudly heard, cast his votes.

MEMBER COMMENT PERIOD (not complete because I couldn't hear all the comments and some speakers did not give their names):

Rivka Wolf asked how dues can be raised without the Board having a clear picture of Association finances. Board President Mike Dixon said residents should try to attend the important meeting on Oct. 5 when the Finance Committee will present a budget overview. Treasurer Roz Berman added that an additional opportunity to discuss the budget will occur at an October 16 Finance Committee/Board workshop.

Norman McCullough commended the Board for including an item on the agenda to do a follow-up with a reserve specialist to work back in time to validate the Reserve funding required from the developer as of transition on May 31, 2005. He added that it is not right to exclude a study of the Neighborhood reserves as part of this process.

Roger Cooper expressed concern, on behalf of the Community Service Club that some locks had been changed at the Community Service Building without advance notice. He said he wanted to know why no notice was given.

Joan Patrick complained of "selective enforcement of the Code of Conduct." She criticized Board member Kay Dwyer for signing the Villas settlement agreement that memorialized the developer's contribution to the Neighborhoods' reserve funds. She asked why no punitive action was taken against Board member Dwyer, and she said she wants such action to be taken. Mike Dixon responded that the Association attorney participated in a meeting with Villas owners. Kay Dwyer also commented, stating that she received a legal opinion that her actions were correct in signing the Villas agreement.

Linda Krivec asked where the Board stands with regard to any plans to replace John Leach as Association attorney, and Mike Dixon replied that there is no current timetable for doing this.

Eunice Bohannon said that the new member account numbers on billing statements issued by RMI don't make any sense, and she expressed concern about the changing of the numbers.

Marilyn Doran (sp?) said she wanted clarification about the $1.00 fee charged for certain events where food is served, and she asked for clarification of the difference between a catered event and a pot luck. Mike Dixon said the fee is provided for in Appendix K of the Community-Wide Standards. Kathy Matson, incoming co-president of the Women's Club, said a proposed rule change to do away with the fee and charge clubs for cleanups when needed is a fairer way to deal with the problem.

Donna Dickey spoke against the pending proposal to impose a $10.00 maximum fee for the inspection of certain Association documents that have been requested by residents.

Joe Madrid introduced himself as an elected co-leader of the ACE organization and commended the Board for its work on issues identified and advocated by ACE during the most recent election campaign.

A Mr. Dickey, who apparently resides in Pinnacle Village, commented on an ACE candidates' campaign pledge to give the Neighborhoods representation to the Board, and he asked what has been done in that regard. Mike Dixon said he had met with some Pinnacle residents to invite them to deal with the Board. Mr. Dickey asked for the names of these residents, and Dixon replied that he didn't have them with him but would respond to Mr. Dickey with the names.

Curtis Patrick commented on the agenda item to Remove Bob Frank as Vice President of the Board. He urged audience members to turn their backs to the Board if and when the vote was taken, and he expressed his belief that David Berman was the catalyst for the post-meeting confrontations after the August Board meeting.

Rana Goodman commented on the shredding of Association documents, saying that statute requires 10-year document retention. She said she has complained to the Ombudsman about this, and she said that opinions from Association attorney John leach on such matters should be given in writing. Board Secretary Elaine Berg, who has been working on the project to organize old documents that had been found, responded that nothing she has worked on has been shredded.

Mark Cook challenged Elaine Berg, saying that he had seen a shredding truck at SCA. Community Manager Terry DaSilva stated that a shredding truck comes to SCA regularly for the shredding of sensitive documents involving matters of individual privacy, primarily to protect against identity theft, and that all shredding done in this manner is standard and is done periodically by all HOAs.

Mr. Cook also stated that he had sent a letter dated Sept. 4 to Association management, outlining many complaints and asking for a response which should have been received by this date. Mike Dixon and Roz Berman replied that the Association has 14 days to respond, not the 10 days cited by Mr. Cook, and Dixon said that a response is being prepared.

Tim Stebbins, who had previously stated that Board Secretary Berg owed him an apology for what he considered to be intemperate comments she directed at him, stated that Mrs. Berg had apologized in writing and by phone. He commended her for this and said he considers the matter closed.

Dave Green asked if the money designated for cogen is going to go into the Association reserves. Mike Dixon said that he is working with Pulte on this issue.

Nelson Orth said that this is the third month without a financial report being presented to the residents. He also said he would provide Board members with contact information so they could research an apparent lawsuit by Anthem Country Club for underfunding its reserves, and he said he is waiting for any Board member to respond to him on the subject.

BOARD PRESIDENT'S REPORT:

Using projected slides, Mike Dixon gave a summary of how RMI is paid its fees for the services it provides. He said the total 2007 payroll is $2,318,046, and added that the administrative fee we pay for RMI bumps this up to a total of about $2.5 million.

Dixon reported that the Process and Planning Work Group has had several meetings, noting that Group leader Roy Montambeau would give a report later in the meeting.

Mike said that our counterclaim in the Trumpets lawsuit has been filed and will soon be available on the SCA website, adding that S&D Cafe LLC has filed a response to the counterclaim. He also said that the Association insurer has agreed to pay most of our legal fees related to the litigation. Also regarding Trumpets, he noted that an agenda item called for the spending of up to $15,000 for Trumpets cleanup if it is determined as a result of the Trumpets inventory planned for Oct. 1 that such a cleanup is needed. Anything the Association spends on cleanup will be added to our claims in the lawsuit, he said.

Concluding his report, Dixon said the hiring of an interior-design consultant is already paying dividends in the form of recommendations she is making to avoid having to replace all carpeting in Anthem Center spaces.

VOTE TO REMOVE BOB FRANK AS VICE PRESIDENT:

Shortly before this item was heard on the agenda, Bob Frank's wife Kay left the auditorium and brought in a young man in a dark suit and tie who sat next to her in the audience, and I was later told by two reliable sources that her companion was an attorney.

Apparently due to concerns some residents expressed about a deliberate intent in making the Bob Frank removal item the last item on the agenda, the Board moved the item up to be heard immediately after approval of the August meeting minutes. When the motion was made by Kay Dwyer and seconded by Elaine Berg, many in the audience booed loudly. A resident yelled out that a factual basis for the removal vote should be given. Bob Frank asked for time to make a statement, and he was allowed to do so. He said that he considered the pending Board action to be uncalled for and illegal, and for the first time he stated that the reason he would not read or permit the reading of the letter the Board sent him to outline its charges against him is that he considered the letter's contents to be libelous.

A comment made by Bob Frank, if I understood what he said correctly, indicated that a complaint against him has been filed with the Ombudsman's office by the Board.

The vote was then taken, with the result being 6-1 in favor of removal of Frank as Vice President, with Bob Frank voting against. As soon as the vote was taken, Bob Frank made a statement that he could no longer participate in the meeting, and he then left the stage and the auditorium. He was followed out by more than half of those in attendance, many muttering loudly about what they considered to be an injustice. By my best count, there were about 200 people in the audience at the start of the meeting, with about 85 remaining after about 115 left the hall.

COMMUNITY MANAGER'S REPORT:

Among other items in her report, Terry DaSilva said the Sun City Anthem Sales Pavilion will soon be demolished and the final SCA homes will be constructed on that site. Terry also said that the painting of Anthem Center will continue well into October.

FINANCIAL REPORT:

Board Treasurer Roz Berman reported that RMI controller Mary Ann Hubbard is no longer with the company. She said that Kregg Hale. RMI senior vice president of operations, is currently acting as controller, with a new controller soon to come on board. She said a budget dry run will be presented on Oct. 5, meeting details to be announced.

Roz Berman then introduced the aforementioned Mr. Hale, who provided a status report regarding RMI efforts to resolve all outstanding questions received from the Finance Committee. These efforts include restating the December 2006 financial reports and the June 2007 financial reports, and providing the July 2007 and August 2007 financial reports, all for review by the Finance Committee.

Mr. Hale said that the new, lengthier billing account numbers have a logic to them, but he was not in a position to explain exactly what the numbers mean. He said it was an oversight to have not printed the residential addresses on the dues billing coupons and this is being corrected. He said the matter of splitting out Villas assessments on the bills is being addressed so that Villas owners can know what each part of their bill represents. Finally, Mr. Hale did a mea culpa by acknowledging RMI error in not advising homeowners in advance about the account-number changes, adding that explanatory letters are now being sent.

PROCESS & PLANNING WORK GROUP

Group leader Roy Montambeau presented a report describing the work of the team, stating that a final report and proposals should be presented in January.

COMMITTEE REPORTS (by this time, Elaine Berg had left the meeting for a medical appointment):

Properties & Grounds --

In its report to the Board, the P&G Committee expressed pride that its work has probably reduced anticipated and actual expenditures on various projects "to the tune of well over $600,000."

The following P&G action items were acted on by the Board:

Request that the Board modify the P&G Charter to allow an increase in total Committee membership to a maximum of nine from the current maximum of seven. Approved unanimously.

Request for an exception to Association policy that will allow P&G chair Carl Weinstein and vice chair Joe Famulare to extend their committee membership to December 30, 2008 (to avoid disruption due to appointment of so many new Committee members). Approved unanimously.

Request that the Board direct RMI to develop terms and conditions statements to be included on the back of all contracts with vendors to SCA. Approved unanimously.

Rescind the requirement for a parking-lot lighting consultant with a $5,000 limit and authorize the Facilities Manager to receive proposals and bids from licensed lighting contractors for corrections to parking-lot lighting, and to submit such documentation to P&G for evaluation and recommendations to the Board. Approved unanimously.

Request for approval of revised P&G Mission Statement and Responsibilities Statement. Approved unanimously.

Lifestyle --

The Committee reported that it has begun looking at the issues of charging a fee for events at which food is served, regardless of whether any damage is caused due to the event. Examination of this issue will continue at their October workshop.

The Board voted on a Lifestyle Committee proposal to rent Association facilities to residents only for social, non-profit purposes. Approved unanimously.

The Board voted on a LSC proposal to rent our facilities for Anthem Highlands meetings four times per year on a quarterly basis. Approved unanimously.

Finance Committee --

There were no Finance Committee action items requiring a vote. Among other things it was reported that the management letter from the Association CPA has been received for the 2006 audit of the SCA financial statements. It was also stated that development of the 2008 budgets required a major commitment of time by the Finance Committee and RMI management. A final budget review will occur at the Committee's Oct. 16 meeting.

Security Patrol --

The Security Patrol asked the Board to authorize the Patrol to initiate a walking and biking patrol pursuant to and in accordance with existing Patrol Guidelines and Procedures and consistent with the recently distributed Biking and Walking Patrol Guidelines and Procedures Manual. Approved unanimously.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

Renewal of the lease for the Serenity Spa has been pending. Because review of the lease has not been completed by the SCA attorney, the Board voted unanimously to extend the existing lease for an additional month.

The agenda contained the following item: "Terminating the P&G Committee Painting Project for Metal Fences Installed on Walls Between Community Property and Residential Property." Because Bob Frank was not present, he was not heard on the resolution he submitted to accompany the item, the resolution starting out as follows: "Whereas: Against my advice ...." The resolution also contained an allegation that the CC&Rs provision regarding the fence painting is "in error and not legally enforceable." The resolution received no motion or second, so it was, in effect, rejected. The Board then voted unanimously to approve the award of a $197,000 contract for painting the fences.

Due to the absence of Elaine Berg for medical reasons, Kay Dwyer read Board Secretary Berg's report on the status of the document project that has been underway in the Greene Room at Anthem Center. Mrs. Berg reported that absolutely no documents her volunteers have sorted and organized have been shredded, adding that the only items removed from the room and disposed of were old, empty boxes after their contents and been removed and organized. She gave credit to, and named, 11 volunteers who have provided assistance during the project, and she said that she and Tina Dixon have each put in about 250 hours on it. She called for more volunteers and said that the project is at the stage where people with specific skill sets, such as accountants and auditors, would be needed to do the detailed review and analysis of the documents. She concluded by noting that many hours of work had been required  to comply with homeowner requests to examine them, adding that two homeowners who had requested documents never came in to examine them, including one collection of documents that was seven inches thick.

A resolution requesting termination of the Association's $1.00 per person cleanup rule for Club events at which food is served was approved on a Board vote of 4-1, with Kay Dwyer voting against. (My understanding is that Ms. Dwyer was not opposed to the fee removal in principle but wanted it considered by the Lifestyle Committee as part of its overall review of event-related fees charged to clubs).

NEW BUSINESS:

In a standard procedure that takes place every year to limit SCA's tax obligations, the Board voted unanimously to approve a resolution regarding excess income applied to the following year's assessments and transfers to the Reserve Fund as recommended by the Association's CPA.

The Board voted unanimously to approve formation of the Trumpets Work Group to study possible usage of the Trumpets space. Incorporated into the vote was a requirement that any participant in the Work Group will be restricted from submitting a proposal to rent the Trumpets space.

The Board unanimously approved a recommendation to obtain a bid from Diversified Facility Services, Inc., to take the 2006 Reserve Study and work back in time to validate the funding of Association reserves (not neighborhood reserves) required from the developer at Transition on May 31, 2005. It is expected that results of this project will influence a determination of whether the developer contributed the proper amount.

The Board unanimously approved a recommendation that the Lifestyle, Properties & Grounds, and Finance Committees each appoint a liaison to the other two committees.

Pending more information from the Association auditor, the Board voted unanimously to table a recommendation for permission to shred certain categories of outdated documents that could possibly be used for identify theft.

The Board voted unanimously, as recommended by the Finance Committee, to allocate up to $15,000 from the Maintenance Budget, if necessary, to clean the Trumpets facilities after S&D vacates the premises.

A resolution to establish a Code of Conduct for Board members was defeated on a unanimous vote. Various Board members noted that the language of the proposed Code of Conduct was nothing more than a statement of common sense expectations and that there was no enforcement mechanism. It was also noted that we already have an Association Members Code of Conduct that applies to all residents, including Board members.

A resolution -moved from Unfinished Business- to charge a fee of $10.00 per hour as allowed by NRS 116.31175.5, for homeowner review of books, records, contracts, or other papers of the Association was passed unanimously. The fee would be imposed for the presence of a staff employee during such reviews, and would not apply to routine procedures such as reviewing the monthly Board book. In support of the resolution,  a projected slide described hundreds of man hours spent by the staff to research and compile requested documents, some groups of documents running to as much as 800 or 900 pages. In several cases, he said, the homeowners requesting the documents did not come to the office to review them after being advised that they were ready for review.

Because the Board meeting ended in little more than two hours, Mike Dixon invited additional questions and comments from the audience.

Nancy Schnair asked if final decisions on the 2008 budget could be delayed while financial issues described earlier by RMI's Kregg Hale could be researched, as the outcome might have a positive impact on the budget. Mike Dixon replied that legal deadline requirements for approving the next year's budget would not allow the time frame to be stretched. Mr. Hale added that the types of issues he was referring to do not involve monetary shortfalls but are primarily related to funds being recorded in one account rather than in another.

Anita De Souza, a Villa owner, expressed her concern that the proposed Reserve specialist's review of Association Reserves at transition wold not also include taking a look at the Villas reserves as of the same date. Roz Berman replied that the Villas reserves are now properly funded and that the focus for now has to be strictly on the overall Association reserves. She added that there may still be opportunities to revisit the Villas reserves after the Association reserves have been addressed.

So ended another unique Board meeting in the history of Sun city Anthem.