BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING MINUTES
August 15, 2023
BOARD MEMBER ATTENDANCE
Present: Joe Engle, President; Victor Blanc, Vice-President (arrived at 10:43 AM); Betty Schneider, Treasurer; Sandy Bagley; Secretary; Steve Chipman, Member-at-Large. Absent: None.
MANAGEMENT COMPANY REPRESENTATIVE(S) PRESENT
Ellona Hess of Scott Management Company (SMC)
CALL TO ORDER
These are the minutes of the 555 Esplanade Condominium Owners Association Board of Directors open session meeting, held on Tuesday, August 15, 2023, via Zoom. A quorum of Board Members was established, and Mr. Engle called the meeting to order at 10:05 AM.
HOMEOWNERS FORUM
Homeowners were provided with the opportunity to address the Board regarding items of interest or concern, in accordance with the open meeting act, CA Civil Code 4925(b).
APPROVAL OF BOD MEETING MINUTES
MOTION Mr. Engle made a motion to approve the June 20, 2023 meeting minutes. Ms. Schneider made a second to the motion, which carried unanimously.
APPROVAL OF MONTHLY FINANCIAL REPORT
The July financial report was reviewed.
MOTION Ms. Bagley made a motion to accept the July financial report as submitted. Ms. Schneider made a second to the motion, which carried unanimously.
OLD BUSINESS
1. Sundeck Resurface – Project Update The project began on July 10. Pacific Construction Associates (PCA) are serving as project managers. A meeting will take place tomorrow morning with the contractor (WICR), Westcoat, PCA, the Committee and Board Members to discuss options for the resurfacing the deck (based on conditions discovered during the demolition process). The Board anticipates at this time that the project will be complete by the end of September.
2.Structural Integrity Analysis of the Building, Garages (3 Phase Effort) The Board commenced a 3 phase project to have the structural integrity of the building analyzed. The first focused on the structural integrity of the 4 garage concrete and steel levels. The second was for the analyzing of the settling of the building, i.e., manometer surveying. The second phase is complete. The third is for inspecting the elevated structures, i.e., balconies, in compliance with Senate Bill 326 (SB326).
Phase I On August 25, 2021, Ficcadenti Waggoner and Castle (FWC) conducted a site visit to view the concrete and masonry parking structure. Some damage to the concrete and masonry within the parking structure was observed; most was relatively minor or already being addressed by the HOA. FWC recommended assessing/repairing 4 different areas.
a) FWC also recommended the structural investigation and analysis of the G1 level slab. These further examinations were performed. FWC’s report, for their “top of slab structural assessment” was published on April 12, 2022. FWC prepared repair plans based on their findings for that assessment. The Board accepted the proposal issued by Structural Preservation Systems, LLC (“Structural”). The project is complete.
b) FWC also issued concrete repair plans for the garage slab damage observed through invasive testing on October 22. A to Z Construction (A to Z) was engaged to perform these repairs. They were performed May 25 – June 3, 2022. Repairs to the (superficial) cracks on the concrete floor were assigned to ProTec. Ms. Schneider reported that these repairs are still in progress. They are about 50% complete.
Phase III The Board accepted the proposal by Balcony1. The first round of inspections took place on May 17 and May 18. They returned on July 7 to inspect a couple of Units that were missed, and to perform borehole inspections at the balconies flagged for possible damage. They are planning to return on August 25 to inspect 1 Unit that they haven’t seen yet, and to perform borehole inspections for 3 additional flagged balconies.
3.404/504 Balcony Repairs FWC and Ewell Construction (Ewell) met on-site April 5, 2022, for an initial inspection of these decks that were showing signs of distress. Based on that visit, Ewell presented a proposal for an invasive inspection. The invasive testing, which included the removal of stucco along the bottom and sides of the balconies to expose the underlying framing, was performed on May 31, 2022. FWC was onsite that day to evaluate the exposed conditions. Based on what was found, proposals for the repair work were issued by Ewell. They were presented to FWC for feedback. Considering that feedback, Ewell had to return for another visit, to take a closer look at the flashing and doors on both Units to narrow down what the needs are for each. That visit was performed on October 13. The Board considered the supplementary proposal Ewell issued, based on the findings from that follow-up visit. The Board accepted Unit 404’s (updated) submissions concerning the replacement of their windows/sliding glass door. The Board also accepted A to Z’s proposal for balcony repairs (excluding waterproofing, which is the Owner’s responsibility). All work for 404 is complete. The submission for slider repairs by the Owner of Unit 504 is still pending.
4. 2024 Reserve Study Update with Site Visit The 2024 reserve study published by Association Reserves on June 12 was reviewed. The target date for the completion of the review is September 19.
5. Door Alarms (with Remote Monitoring Capabilities) The door alarms were turned off, in response to repeated instances of the alarms being activated. Mr. Schneider presented hardware to alarm the doors with sensors that will notify the Board on the phone when 1 or more of the doors is opened. The information is being reviewed.
6. G4 N Wall Water Intrusion (Urethane Injection) Ms. Schneider reported evidence of water intrusion at the north wall of G4 below Unit 105, adjacent to the planter between the Unit’s 2 patios. The water is coming through the wall and onto the floor.
MOTION Ms. Schneider made a motion to accept the proposal by Structural for Option 1 20 LF for $9,645. Ms. Bagley made a second to the motion, which carried unanimously.
7. Chimney & Vent Cap(s) Replacements & Rehabilitation Griffin Pest Control was on-site in May to investigate the “bird sounds” reported by the Owner of 420. While the technician could not get right up to the chimney caps because they are on a tiled portion of the roof, he did go up to the flat roof to check them. He found that some of the chimney caps were damaged, but there were no nests there. Proposals for this project were considered. An additional proposal is pending submission.
NEW BUSINESS
1. Dryer Duct Cleaning The Board considered the proposal by Action Duct Cleaning Company to clean dryer ducts.
MOTION Mr. Engle made a motion to accept the proposal by Action Duct at a rate of $48 per duct. Ms. Schneider made a second to the motion, which carried unanimously.
Action Duct will be asked to write on vents to indicate which Unit(s) they are connected to. Ms. Schneider and Ms. Bagley will oversee this project.
2. Irrigation Timer Replacement The Board reviewed the proposal issued by Rancho California Landscaping to replace an old, malfunctioning irrigation timer. MOTION Ms. Schneider made a motion to accept the proposal for $1,193. Ms. Bagley made a second to the motion, which carried unanimously.
3. ProTec 2024 Rate Change for Building Maintenance Agreement The Board considered the January 1, 2024 rate increase issued by ProTec.
MOTION Ms. Bagley made a motion to accept the rate increase. Ms. Schneider made a second to the motion, which carried unanimously.
ADJOURNMENT | CONFIRM NEXT MEETING DATE
The meeting was adjourned at 11:39 AM. The next meeting of the Board is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, September 19, 2023, 10 AM via Zoom.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
An executive session was called to order at 11:40 AM to review the executive session meeting minutes, the aging report, and governing document enforcement matter(s). The meeting was adjourned at 11:53 AM.