Santa Fe Trail Ranch POA
BOARD MEETING
February 17, 2001
Trinidad State Junior College, Sullivan Room

1. CALL TO ORDER – Harriet Vaugeois called the meeting to order at 9:06 a.m. and then turned the facilitation of the agenda over to Bill Quigley.
2. PROOF OF NOTICE – BILL QUIGLEY gave proof of notice.
3. INTRODUCTION AND ROLL CALL – The Board Members present were Bill Bumstead, Richard Johnson, Paul Miner, Carol Rawle, Robert Walton, Bill Wenstrom, and Harriet Vaugeois. The Board Members absent were Jim Davis and Michael Hughes. The guests were Bill Quigley, Lisa Stigall, Vaughn Roundy, Fred Vaugeois, and Gene Downs.
4. DETERMINATION OF QUORUM – It was determined that a quorum was present.
5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING OF DECEMBER 16, 2000 – A correction to the 12/16/00 minutes was requested that indicated Cris Quigley should not be listed as a Board Member. Bill Wenstrom motioned to approve the minutes as corrected. Richard Johnson seconded the motion. There was no opposition and the motion carried.
6. OLD BUSINESS –
   1. Committee Reports –
      1. Budget/Financial - Bill Quigley reviewed the financials. At the request of Bill Wenstrom two changes were made to the financials: 1) Donation Income is now a separate line item. 2) The CBIZ fee, which was actually paid in January, was backed out of January and placed back into the December financials. Bill Quigley reviewed agenda items 6.3 and 7.1. Overall, between the tax refund and new insurance savings, the POA will receive/save close to $12,000.00. In addition, it was noted that 73% of POA dues had been received so far this year. An addition to the payables was a $58.26 bill from Bill Wenstrom for Federal Express charges related to obtaining information about a radio license for the ranch.
      2. Combined Emergency Services Committee – Richard Johnson requested “Combined” be removed from the Emergency Services Committee’s name. Richard Johnson reviewed the committee report (click here to view ). Either before or in conjunction with the “mock” evacuation, the Committee would like to schedule the forest service and/or fire department to come up and talk to residents about how to prepare their property for the fire season. The official(s) will be invited to attend the six (6) area meetings prior to the evacuation and then give a debriefing session immediately following the evacuation. The leaders, backups and area boundaries are listed on the web site. Harriet Vaugeois noted the high attendance, participation and dedication of the ranch members to this committee. The medical packs have been updated as well.
      3. Covenant Review – Discussion of this topic was tabled until the April meeting due to Jim Davis’ absence. Harriet Vaugeois recommended the Covenant Review prepare a report for the April meeting.
      4. Common Area – Vaughn Roundy reported in Michael Hughes’ absence. A great deal of progress is being made on the roads. The snow plowing has progressively improved with each removal and the committee is very pleased with the last snow removal efforts. (Click here to see the Road Sub-Committee report. ) Problem culverts at the shoulder of some of the roads have been identified and will need to be repaired/replaced. There will be gravel dumped in some of the particularly muddy areas. A big concern for the road committee is the speed in which some owners and particularly, contractors drive. The high speeds will cause the new road surface to deteriorate rapidly. Resurfacing the road costs $12,000-$14,000 per mile. The Board urges everyone to adhere to the 25mph speed limit throughout SFTR. Harriet Vaugeois volunteered to be the contact person for contacting contractors whose trucks are in violation of the speed limit and recommended that this issue be referred back to the Committee and have the Board provide support. It was noted that the Appearance Plan concept and budget was approved in the 12/16/00 Board Meeting. The Board also wanted to remind property owners to review the published maintenance schedule. Bill Bumstead commended the efforts of the Common Area Committee.
      5. Communications – There were no modifications to the Communications Committee Report . Bill Wenstrom requested reimbursement of $58.26 for Federal Express charges for documents/communications regarding the pursuit of a radio license for the ranch, as discussed in the December Board Meeting. The Board was under the impression that there weren’t any expenses associated with obtaining the radio license and voiced their concerns in retroactively paying this bill. Bill Wenstrom explained to the Board that the charges were for expeditiously sending and receiving information about the radio license to bring himself up to speed with the requirements and process involved, and not directly related to obtaining the license. Bill Bumstead motioned to accept the bill from Bill Wenstrom for $58.26. Robert Walton seconded the motion. Bill Wenstrom abstained. There was no opposition and the motion carried. Harriet Vaugeois questioned the approval of the radio license proceedings since the topic was never discussed officially in a Board Meeting. It was her understanding that Todd Nathan was to give a proposal to the Communications Committee, which would then be officially discussed and voted upon at a Board Meeting. Bill Bumstead motioned that all future discussions and actions regarding the pursuit of a radio license go through the Communications Committee. Harriet Vaugeois seconded the motion. There was no opposition and the motion carried.
      6. Water – Richard Johnson reported that we are moving ahead with the repairs. Torres was given the contract to do the repairs but will have to modify his bid slightly to include a bid to repair the damage caused by the pipes freezing a couple of weeks ago. The heaters have been installed and all but two of the pressure valves have now been insulated. There is an ADHOC Water Committee that meets every 3-4 weeks. The members are Richard Johnson, Harriet Vaugeois, Jim Davis, Michael Hughes, John Woods, Dave Schreopfer and occasionally Tom Stevens. The Board voiced significant concerns about the progression of the water system. It was suggested the Board take aggressive action on this issue. Previously, it was decided to wait to form the committee but this issue becomes more pressing as time passes. There needs to be a way to officially establish a committee that will provide goals, due dates, and progress reports. The Water Committee is the only committee that does not submit minutes for public record and it was suggested that a report be submitted to be mailed with the minutes. To protect the interests of the property owners, Carol Rawle suggested the water system be treated as the budget and have the Board itself serve as the Water Committee just as the Board is the Budget Committee. Harriet Vaugeois voiced her concern that if we continue to wait to take action the system will only deteriorate beyond repair.
         • Summit Meeting - Bill Wenstrom motioned to draft a letter to request a joint meeting between the SFTR Board of Directors and the Metro District Board of Directors, on March 17, at 9:30 a.m. at TSJC Sullivan Room for a work session to discuss actions that need to be taken to get the water system up and running. SFTR Board of Directors will provide the agenda. A reply will be requested. Jim Davis will be asked to step down as President of the POA just for the purpose of this meeting. Bill Quigley will facilitate the agenda. Harriet Vaugeois seconded the motion. There was no opposition and the motion was carried. Harriet Vaugeois and Richard Johnson will sign the letter. Bill Wenstrom will draft the agenda. Bill Quigley will post the notices.
         • On-going operation of the system and an employee to maintain - Bill Bumstead is of the opinion that the water system cannot be run by committee but rather, it requires an employee who is qualified, authorized and paid to manage/maintain a running water system on a daily basis. This person would report to the governing body of the system. It was determined that this discussion will be tabled until some of the more pressing issues related to the water system can be resolved.
         • Sale of the equipment - $3000.00 of the equipment inventory was sent to Denver about two weeks ago to a company interested in purchasing it. Jim Davis found a web site that will only take a 1% commission on any sale and John Woods will list the remaining inventory on the site.
      7. Updated Reports - none
   2. Review & Acceptance of Proposed Greenland Conservancy Contract – All Board Members have given their comments to Jim Davis. Fred Vaugeois is the chairman of this committee. Bill Bumstead motioned that all conservancy issues go through the Conservancy Committee and then brought to the Board. Bill Wenstrom seconded the motion. There was no opposition and the motion carried.
   3. Review of Non-Profit Status - The previously filed tax returns were incorrectly filed showing SFTR POA as an 1120H, which takes a 30% flat tax. Bill Quigley filed six (6) amended returns showing SFTR as a domestic non-profit corporation (1120C). This correction will bring the POA $10,680.00 back from the government. Bill Quigley is also looking into recovering over $600.00 in lost interest income due to the error made by the previous tax preparer. Bill Quigley noted that the POA is still required to pay property taxes.
   4. From the Floor –
      1. Gene Downs commented that only 50% of the petitions for inclusion of lands into the fire district have been received to date and the effort is struggling. Phone calls are being made to residents from the Southeast quadrant who have not responded. This effort is extremely important. The cost to the property owner to be included in the Fire District is less than $11.00 per year. Bill Bumstead offered to write a letter to the residents in the SE quadrant and the previous cover letter will be posted on the web site.
      2. The Board welcomed Fred Vaugeois, Gene Downs and Vaughn Roundy.
7. NEW BUSINESS -
   1. Presentation of Hix Insurance Company – Mr. Hix was not able to attend the meeting today. Bill Quigley briefly explained the new insurance policy for the POA. The POA will save almost $1200.00 annually with the new insurance policy. The deductible is the same at $250 per claim. The overall coverage went from $1,000,000 to $2,000,000. The coverage includes D&O (directors and officers), committee members and authorized volunteers. It also provides $10,000.00 in medical payments and $5,000.00 legal benefit as well. The Board asked Bill Quigley to find out what the exact definition of “Authorized Volunteer” means as it pertains to the insurance policy, as well as who gives the “authorization”. Because the current insurance policy was about to expire, Bill Quigley completed the necessary paperwork to enroll the POA with Hix Insurance prior to this Board Meeting. In addition, the Greenland Conservancy lease requires they are named as co-insured. Bill Quigley will research what that statement entails. Bill Bumstead moved to confirm Bill Quigley’s actions. Harriet Vaugeois seconded the motion. There was no opposition and the motion carried.
   2. 911 Compliance – Harriet Vaugeois motioned to create a committee for a two-month period to investigate 911 compliance on the ranch and report the findings at the April meeting. Jim Davis, Michael Hughes, and Richard Johnson will be on the committee. Bill Wenstrom seconded the motion. There was no opposition and the motion carried.
8. FROM THE FLOOR -
9. DATE OF THE NEXT MEETINGS – The next Budget meeting will be held at 8:00 a.m. on March 17, 2001 at the TSJC Sullivan Room. The Joint Board meeting will be held at 9:30 a.m. on March 17, 2001 at the TSJC Sullivan Room. The April Board Meeting will be held on April 21, 2001 at 9:00 a.m. at the TSJC Sullivan Room.
10. ADJOURNMENT – Richard Johnson motioned to adjourn the meeting at 11:10 a.m. Bill Wenstrom seconded the motion. There was no opposition and the motion was carried.