We need 32 homeowners represented to have our annual meeting and I'm happy to report that we had 35 either in person or via proxy. Thanks very much to everyone who sent in their proxy or attended. 

All board positions are a three year term with the positions staggered. In addition to the two full term positions we had a position open for the remainder of our past president's term. This position will finish out the last year of that term. We had exactly three nominees and all three were unanimously elected. Russell Hackworth will serve another three year term. Ryan Steans joins the board for the first time for the other three year term. Lastly Ellen Ward will join the board for the first time as well and will complete the final year of a term. Congratulations and thank you to all three of them. Likewise, we'd like to thank Brian Everett for accepting the appointment and serving until the election.

We ended the meeting with an open discussion. Some years this can be quite lengthy and others it goes quickly. This year, it was quick. There were no real questions, but a few comments. Notably, one homeowner let us know the city had removed a tree on his property that was close to the road and rotting. It turns out that D.R. Horton had "buried" the trees on his property when they were built. Burying a tree is when you raise the ground level above the flare of a tree. Our own Russell Hackworth has a degree in horticulture and gave us all a quick overview of this. If you think your tree may be in the same situation, I'd encourage you to consult with an arborist. 

First, a sincere thank you to all the homeowners who came out to the board meeting. With only a week between this board meeting and our annual membership meeting we were thrilled to see so many in attendance.

And yes, our annual meeting is next week.  If you can't make it please do fill out a proxy and send with someone who is going or email it to info@camanagers.com.

If you're not familiar with how proxies work, it's pretty straight-forward. As a home owner you can grant your vote to anyone you would like. The proxy form has the two board members who are not up for election or a write-in.  You do not have to give your proxy to Morgan Witthoft or Bryan Phillips. You can write anyone's name that can attend the meeting.  That last part is important. The person you give your proxy to must attend the meeting for it to count. Your attendance (or proxy) is important as we must have at least 10% of the HOA to hold the annual meeting.

We have three positions open on the board; those positions will be elected at the meeting. The first position is to fulfill the remainder of our past president's term.  It has one year left on it. The other two are three-year terms. If you're interested in running email info@camanagers.com and they'll put you in touch with Rusty Ulrich who is the chair of our nominations committee.
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The major topic of conversation tonight was the 2020 budget. Our starting point was a balanced budget that maintained the current assessments rate, roughly the same expenses, and set aside the necessary money for our reserves (known maintenance in the future). There were a few places where expenses went up or down, but there was a net zero affect on the total.

​The conversation focused on whether we wanted to continue with the status quo or put more money into the maintenance and upkeep.  After a lengthy and fruitful conversation with both the board and the attending members the board approved an increase of $35 per year (or $8.75 per quarter) for the purpose of maintaining the neighborhood. Assuming 100% collection, we'll have an additional $10,500 that is going to be placed in a budget line item for "General Maintenance". That money will go towards much needed upkeep in the neighborhood and be allocated to various projects over the next year. Examples of potential projects include addressing the exposed pipe at the park, additional trail maintenance, and xeriscaping additional common areas.

​A full copy of the budget will be available at the annual meeting and mailed out to each homeowner.

Our current landscaping company (Brightview) has 8 more visits left on their contract. We're currently taking proposals on the 2020 contract. Below are the service dates for the remaining contract.

• Wed, November 13 
• Wed, November 27
• Wed, December 11
• Wed, December 23 (this one may move)
• Wed, January 8
• Wed, January 22
• Wed, February 5
• Wed, February 19

Much of this month's board meeting was spent talking about landscaping. As you all may have noticed, the trees above the sidewalks in common areas have been trimmed. A meeting was recently held with our landscaping company (Brightview) to put them on notice due to nonperformance. Since then they have rectified the issues that were brought up including trimming trees above sidewalks and clearing along the trail. Our contract is up in Q1 of 2020 and we are currently drafting an RFP (Request for Proposal) to be sent out.  We'll be sending it out to various landscape companies so if you have a recommendation please let CAM know.

In addition, if you see anything in the neighborhood that needs attention also report that to CAM (our association management company). As part of their management duties they hold our vendors accountable, but we need to make sure they are aware when the duties aren't being performed.

Due to legal advice from the HOA law firm, past due assessments can no longer be charged a "late fee" of $25, but can be charged a "collection fee". The amount of the collection fee will likewise be $25.

UPDATE: The legal documents have been updated so that the late fee may continue to be assessed and does not need to be reclassified as a collection fee.

During the owner requested topics Ryan Steans updated the board on the work he's been doing regarding parking. Ryan has put together some great information on parking in the neighborhood as it pertains to both the CCRs (Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions) as well as city regulations. Look for more info on parking to go out as it is finalized.  

The dead tree on Sweet Clover (just East of Empress) will be removed as soon as the tree removal service can schedule it. We expect it will be removed within a couple of weeks.

The annual meeting is coming up on November 14. To prepare for the meeting a few things will happen in the coming months. First, everyone will receive a postcard in the mail with the date of the meeting and details on what to do if you're interested in running for one of the three open board positions. Second, the existing board will be working on finalizing the 2020 budget for presentation during the annual meeting. Lastly, the board will finalize the agenda ahead of the "packet" that gets mailed to the owners in mid-October.

Please join me in thanking Brian Everett in accepting the appointment to the Board of Directors. With Doug Matthews resigning the board is responsible for appointing a replacement until the next election. During our last meeting we unanimously selected Brian to be his successor.  That means at this years annual meeting we will have three seats up for vote: Brian Everett's interim position, Russel Hackworth's position, and Jocelyn Depatie's position.

The board has also began the nomination process for these three positions. Rusty Ulrich has agreed to head up the process for finding potential members (homeowners) to fill the positions. If you're interested in either helping Rusty with the nomination committee or running for one of the positions please reach out to CAM using the Contact form.

By now you've likely noticed the parking lot at the park has been resurfaced. This is part of the ongoing upkeep of Grand Oaks using our reserve funds. Be on the looking for more information on both the state of our reserves and our reserve funding/spending plan later this year.

Please accept this as notice that the Grand Oaks Owners Association Board of Directors will meet on Thursday, July 25th, at 7:00 p.m.

Location: 
Austin Community College – Stassney Campus, Room 1202
1820 W. Stassney Lane, Austin, TX 78745.

Topics may include general association business, including unfinished business and new business, covenant enforcement, budgeting, and assessment collection. Executive session matters may include personnel matters, litigation, contract negotiations, enforcement actions, confidential attorney communications, matters involving the invasion of owners’ privacy, or matters involving parties who have requested confidentiality and the Board has agreed to honor that request.

From Monday, July 15 – Tuesday, July 16 the playground parking lot will be closed for repaving. A sign will be posted on July 10 as a reminder. During this time no cars will be allowed to park at the playground. The chunk of missing pavement will be fixed, the car stops will be replaced, and the whole lot will be repaved.

Grills
A few weeks back the grills at the park were replaced. The old ones were rusted through on the bottom. We hope the new grills see as much friendship, community building, and fun as the old ones.

Financials
Thanks to our association management company, CAM, we were able to actually work with the bank to increase our interest rate on our savings account at BB&T to 1.73%.  Now is a good time to remind you that if you love finances there is an opening on the Board of Directors.

Reserve Study
We will have more information to follow soon, but a reserve study was done and the report is finalized. We mentioned the reserves in relation to the trail maintenance, but as a quick primer, the reserves are a special set aside of our financials to do large maintenance items such as retaining walls, private road maintenance, etc.

Parking Lot at Playground
The board approved maintenance on the parking lot. The maintenance will include replacing the concrete car stops, repairing the approximately 500 sq. ft. of damaged surface, and seal coating. The work is yet to be scheduled, but we will let everyone know when it will occur.  The company that will be doing the maintenance is Integrating Paving & Coatings. They estimate that the lot will be unavailable for a day.
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Dirt Bikes on the Trail/Easement
A homeowner requested that we discuss a recent issue with a dirt bike rider on the trail and in the easement. We are looking into options for signage that are both affordable and non-obtrusive on the aesthetics of the trail. Unless the rider is a homeowner and we can prove such, the HOA has no standing to enforce anything. As such, there are really only two courses of actions should you see someone on the trail. Assuming you feel comfortable you can approach the person and let them know it’s not allowed. It’s possible they were unaware and will stop. You can also call 311 for the non-emergency police line to report them.

Today (May 15, 2019) started a two-day project to improve three key areas of the trail. We are having LoneStar Ranchscapes install TRUGRID pervious pavers to help with erosion.

The pavers will be installed at the ramp leading from the sidewalk to the playground, just east of the concrete by the pond, and finally on the steep portion of the trail that runs parallel with Manchaca Road. See the map below for the markers the correspond to the locations.

The pavers are meant to help with erosion and make those areas more accessible. The ramp has become eroded to the point of a drop-off, the area near the pond has become so muddy it's not passable after a rain, and the steepest portion of our trail has been plagued by ruts and runoff.

Anyone who has attended a Board meeting recently knows that we would love to invest more money into the trail to create long-term sustainable solutions for erosion, but our reserves and operating budget simply do not allow it at this time. These were defined as the most critical areas that could fit within the budget available to us for this year.

Our hope that this project creates forward momentum that we can build upon. Any and all feedback is welcome.  You can either attend a meeting or contact us via the Contact page.