MINUTES OF
THE BOARD MEETING OF THE
555 ESPLANADE CONDOMINIUM OWNERS ASSOCIATION
June 21, 2010
CALL TO ORDER
The following are the Minutes of the Meeting of the Board of Directors of the Casa Bahia Condominium Owners Association, held on Monday, June 21, 2010, in the 535 Building Lobby, 535 Esplanade, Redondo Beach, California 90277. A quorum of Board Members was established and Dianne Merzel called the meeting to order at 6:41 PM.
BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT
Betty Schneider, Treasurer; Dianne Merzel, Secretary; Frank Parker, Member-at-Large.
BOARD MEMBERS ABSENT
Joe Engle, President; Jake Murray, Vice President.
MANAGEMENT COMPANY REPRESENTATIVE(S) PRESENT
Ellona Hess of Scott Management Company (SMC)
EARTHQUAKE INSURANCE PRESENTATIONS
6:30 PM – Agent Zach Miller of LaBarre Oksnee Insurance
7:30 PM – Agent Larry Lindberg of Lindberg Insurance Agency
Agents Zach Miller of LaBarre Oksnee Insurance and Agent Larry Lindberg of Lindberg Insurance Agency attended the meeting and made brief presentations to the Board and Homeowners present on their agency’s proposal(s) for the 2010-2011 earthquake insurance policy renewal. Board Members and Homeowners were given the opportunity to ask any questions they had on the insurance policy/coverage.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA/MEETING MINUTES
Betty Schneider made a motion to approve the May 2010 minutes. Frank Parker made a second to the motion. The motion carried and the minutes were approved. A copy of the approved minutes will be mailed to all Homeowners.
TREASURERS REPORT
Mrs. Schneider advised that the Association’s expenditures are now more in line with the budget as a result of the recently approved special assessment. Mrs. Schneider listed some of the repair expenditures for the month, including remediation in the Units that were affected by the water intrusion in January/February 2010, drywall repair in a couple of Units caused by a common area leaking pipe, and the removal of a portion of the cinderblock wall at the Northwest side of the property.
HOMEOWNERS FORUM
· Unit #108 – Sheri Nielsen: Mrs. Nielsen advised all that she and her husband will be moving and will be selling their Unit. Mrs. Nielsen requested permission from the Board to store some boxes in the garage, by her parking space, for about a week before they move out of the Unit. Mrs. Nielsen requested that Mrs. Hess send her another copy of the new rules and regulations regarding move in/outs. Mrs. Nielsen made note that residents at the property are disposing of large items in the trash rooms; Mrs. Nielsen will make sure not to do the same. Mrs. Nielsen asked whether or not there was an anticipated date for the completion of the Northwest balcony project. Mrs. Nielsen reported that the emergency light fixtures worked great during the most recent outage and also stated how much she enjoys the Association’s new website.
· Unit #620 – Edna Marinella: Mrs. Marinella voiced her concerns regarding the ballot sent to all Homeowners for proposed revision to the CC&Rs.
· Unit #109 – Mary Lee Coe: Mrs. Coe expressed her concerns regarding the ballot sent to all Homeowners for the proposed revision to the CC&Rs.
· Unit #302 – Dot Lee: Mrs. Lee stated that she was confused about the ballot and requested more information and clarity on the proposed revision to the CC&Rs.
· Unit #403 – Janet Johnson: Mrs. Johnson questioned where she should send in payments for the special assessment. Mrs. Johnson advised that a shopping cart is missing from G1 and that damage has been done to one of the shopping carts on G4.
OLD BUSINESS
· Annual Fire Alarm Test – Status Update: The Board reviewed the list of deficiencies reported by Southland Fire Alarm, per the test findings. Mrs. Schneider made a motion to move forward with the repair of all deficiencies items, per the proposal submitted by Southland Fire Alarm, and bid to be submitted by Fire Safe, with the condition that Mr. Schneider will contact TRE Elevator and ask for a rebate to be applied towards the cost to connect the newly installed elevator fire alarm systems with the fire alarm panel. Mr. Parker made a second to the motion. The motion carried with all in favor.
· Annual Flow Test of Area Drains – Review Quotes: At the May 2010 meeting Mrs. Schneider advised the Board of Bert Meli Plumbing’s recommendation on how to perform a flow test of the area drains, in the common areas and on individual patios. The idea suggested was to pour water down the drain to ensure that the water flows as it should. If the water does not flow, then the cover would be removed and the drain would need to be cleaned out. The Board reviewed the estimate provided by Bert Meli Plumbing to perform this flow test. The Board would like additional bids to be collected for this service. The Board would also like to entertain the idea of dividing this project up into different areas.
· Garage Driveway Entrance/Exit – Repairs: The Board has received multiple bids for this project. The Board requested that an additional bid be collected from Ewell Construction. Ewell Construction has declined to bid on the project. Additional bids from two other companies are forthcoming.
· Handrail Replacements – Review Quotes: Bids for the replacement of the front entryways handrail replacements are forthcoming. The bids will include different recommended replacement materials.
· Leak into 6th Floor Hallway – Review Quote: There is a leak by the elevator on the 555 side, 6th floor, east of the elevator shaft. Barnett Roofing submitted a bid to address this leak. Mrs. Schneider made a motion to approve the bid as submitted. Mr. Parker made a second to the motion. The motion carried with all in favor.
· Review and Revision of Association CC&Rs – Status Update: The CC&R amendment (regarding percentage required to pass any CC&R amendment) approved ballot was sent to all Homeowners. The ballots will be opened at the July 12, 2010 meeting, provided that quorum is met.
· Spa – Bring into Compliance with VGB Act – Status Update: The Board approved the bid submitted by Browning’s Pool Service to bring the spa into compliance with the VGB Act at the May Meeting. Browning’s Pool Service is working on obtaining the required permits to complete the job. The integrity of the spa surface will be evaluated once the water has been drained from the spa.
· Sump Pump for Water Intrusion into G-2: Bids to install a sump pump to address the water intrusion into G2/G3 are forthcoming.
· Unit #517 Deck (Drain); Interior Repair to Damaged Units: Mrs. Hess reported that to date, multiple contractors have been requested to submit bids for the asbestos removal in the Units that were affected by water intrusion in January/February 2010. Two bids have been received so far. Mrs. Hess will continue to try and obtain additional estimates. Mrs. Schneider made note that the asbestos removal contractors should not bid on drywall work as there is no asbestos in the drywall, only in the ceilings.
· Vertical Drain Cleaning by Bert Meli – Update: The hydro-jetting of the kitchen and lavatory lines continues as scheduled.
· Special Assessment Projects - Update: The following updates were given regarding The Garage Area – Power-wash/Re-stripe/Replace Trash Room Doors:
§ Bids to power wash and re-stripe the garage areas have been collected. The project was on hold until the special assessment passed. Mrs. Hess will prepare a matrix of the bids submitted. The matrix and bids will be reviewed/voted on by the Board.
§ The Board reviewed the idea/recommendation suggested by a representative of Commercial Door of Los Angeles, Inc. on a way to possibly protect the trash room doors from being so badly damaged from the trash bins being brought in and out of the rooms. A bid was submitted to “furnish and install two pair of 48” high steel angle ‘Door Track Guards’ painted safety yellow.” After installing these guards, the doors would be painted so that the effectiveness or non-effectiveness of the frames would be obvious. Mr. Schneider was volunteered to contact the company and see if they can provide a warranty of some sort which would go into effect if the frames did not prove to be a success in protecting the doors.
The following report was given regarding The Northwest Balconies Project:
§ A change order was submitted by CMS for the replacement of door flashings and a number of new sliding doors. Mrs. Hess will review this change order with legal counsel and obtain advice as to how the Association should correctly and legally proceed.
The following report was given regarding The Security Equipment Project:
§ At the May meeting, the Board approved the security equipment bid provided by Surveil Aware, and the running of the cables bid from Moffitt Electric. Surveil Aware will order the cable, once they receive the deposit check. Moffitt will then be asked to come out and run the cables. The equipment can then be ordered and installed.
§ The Board reviewed the proposal submitted by Rancho CA for the planting of thorny bushes underneath the windows of Unit #s 302 and 320. Ms. Merzel made a motion not to move forward with the planting at this time. Mr. Parker made a second to the motion. The motion carried.
The following report was given regarding The Street-Side Retaining Wall Replacement Project:
§ Bids for the replacement of the street side retaining wall are forthcoming.
NEW BUSINESS
· Elevator Emergency Backup Battery – Review Quote: The Board reviewed the proposal submitted by TRE to provide and install a battery lowering device for each elevator controller, which would bring the elevator down to G4 in the event of an outage. The Board unanimously agreed to table this bid, provided that the telephone lines in the elevators will continue to work in an outage. Mrs. Hess will contact TRE Elevator to confirm that that is true.
· Sprinkler System Conversion: A quote was submitted by Rancho CA to convert the sprinkler system on the ocean side slope to a drip system. Mr. Schneider reviewed the proposal and submitted a couple of questions to Rancho CA. The questions have not yet been answered by Rancho. Mrs. Schneider requested that Mrs. Hess send Rancho CA a copy of the Association’s most recent water bill, per Rancho’s request.
· Website Announcement: An announcement regarding the Association’s new website was posted in the lobby areas and was mailed to all Owners as an insert with the July statements.
NEXT MEETING
Monday, July 12, 2010, 6:30 P.M.
ADJOURNMENT
Meeting was adjourned at 8:56 PM.
Submitted by: Ellona Hess
EXECUTIVE SESSION
The Board of Directors held an executive session to discuss pending violations. The Board also reviewed the proposals submitted by the two different insurance agencies for the 2010-2011earthquake insurance renewal policy. The Board approved the proposal submitted by LaBarre Oksnee Insurance.
PLEASE NOTE: Any grievance or clarification on issues can be addressed by: (1) Airing the issue at the next scheduled Public Board meeting, or (2) contacting Ellona Hess at Scott Management Company (Phone: 310-370-2696 ext. 21; Email: [email protected]; Mail: Scott Management Company, PO Box 3159, Torrance CA 90510-3159). Calls/correspondence should reference 555 Esplanade/Casa Bahia.