Hiller Highlands Association Board Meeting Minutes Remote meeting: 11/14/2022
Board members present:
Gary Firestone, President Steven Cobbledick, Treasurer Chuck Scurich, Secretary
Spyglass Hill residents joining the meeting remotely:
Aleen Colitz (#61)
Steve Colitz (#61)
Margaret Wotkyns (#40)
Meeting called to order: 7:06 pm
Welcome and Opening Remarks: Gary welcomed everyone to the board meeting,
including the new homeowners of unit 61, Aleen Colitz and Steve Colitz.
Agenda Review: No adjustments to the proposed agenda.
HOA board meeting minutes: The board minutes from September 29, 2022 were approved. Minutes are available on our website.
Homeowners’ Forum:
Margaret Wotkyn reported a leak from the ceiling in the laundry room adjacent to the car port below unit 42. The leak seems to be coming from the shower in unit 42. The Homeowner Association is not involved because this is a maintenance issue, but the Board members all hope that it is solved soon. Gary did say that he will call our insurance broker to see if we can get something in writing from them to help explain the determination of the responsible party. Gary will be sharing this information with both parties.
Treasurer’s Report (Steve Cobbledick):
Operating Account (Union Bank): $412.96 Reserve Account (Union Bank): $284,945.44 Total: $285,358.40
Steve reported an unforeseen expense this year. What the Board expected to be a simple matter of trying to resolve a noise complaint, has grown into a lawsuit by a homeowner. The Homeowner Association is now facing a lawsuit. Our insurance policy (Farmers Insurance) covers this situation, and our insurance company has assigned attorneys to handle the lawsuit. Farmers will be paying legal fees and damages, should they arise from this case. Therefore, there should not be any extra expenses for us.
Update on Insurance:
Gary presented information on the large increase of the premium for our property insurance (Fire Insurance) for next year, from about $38,000 to $54,000.
He also presented information about the Board’s plan to eventually phasing out our Earthquake insurance. One way to step it down gradually is to use the Motus Program beginning next year. The Motus Program has been discussed and considered by the Board with for many months. The HOA would pay the Motus program a certain amount per unit and the individual homeowners could increase their coverage independently, if they choose to raise their coverage. This plan has not yet been implemented, but it will be decided this year during the budget creation process for next year.
There was further discussion about our insurance among board members and homeowners present at the meeting.
Landscaping:
Several irrigation pipes have recently been cracked and broken and were fixed quickly.
Trimacs, our Landscape contractor, will be raising the monthly contract price by $100 a month.
We have spent our budgeted amount for cutting trees this year, but we will be cutting more trees in 2023.
The project committee for beautifying the North Entrance is looking for bids from landscapers. The Board has agreed to spend up to $5,000.00 on this project. The committee is also seeking donations from homeowners.
The owner of #59 Spyglass Hill has made a request to beautify the south end of the street. Gary will be contacting the homeowner at #59 and #61 to encourage them to submit a plan for landscaping that area. The Board will be willing to spend some money on that project.
Other Items:
The Board has approved the installation of a solar roof at #9 Spyglass Hill. The Board also approved the exterior painting plan of #20 Spyglass Hill.
It was announced at the meeting that our street, Spyglass Hill, since it is a private street, is not subject to the City of Oakland’s “sidewalk ordinance.”
A car recently hit the fire hydrant near unit #20 which caused a large geyser of water. The City of Oakland came out, stopped the flow, and replaced the fire hydrant.
Meeting adjournment and Executive Session opening: 7:44 pm
Respectfully submitted by Chuck Scurich, Secretary