Highlights of the March Meeting of the Deercreek Board of Directors

Submitted by Len Fritz

A quorum of the DCCOA Board of Directors convened March 22 for its regularly scheduled meeting. The Board was called to order and two motions were immediately heard and unanimously passed; one for this meeting's agenda, the other for the minutes from the February 28th meeting.

This month's meeting started with hearing from the President of the Edgewater Home Owners Association (EHOA). He discussed various issues they have been having with May Management and was asking for the Board's support on having their own management company. A motion was made and passed to support this request. There was one proviso. The Board asked that the EHOA spend some time working directly with May Management to try and work out their differences. Should this result in no significant change and the EHOA chooses to move forward with seeking another company, the Board asked to be informed at that time.

May Management presented the Property Manager's Report. Condition of roofs was a trend found in this last state of the property review.   There are five homes recommended for the April hearing with two homeowners requesting a re-inspection after having their roofs cleaned. A letter regarding lawns, notices will start being sent for any lawn issues. In an effort to streamline our processes and insure more prudent cost control, all bids for a specific project will be collected and sent together at the same time to the common grounds and finance committees. This will allow both committees to look at the bids concurrently and make sure that funds are available for the project. The water bills for February and March showed significant improvement. It was reported that there are a few irrigations heads that need to be readjusted as they are spraying into the street. Connors Landscape is responsible for inspections and making repairs as needed.   A managers' report will be emailed each Friday to the board. Finally, a motion was made to send five properties to the April Hearing. The motion was passed.

Committee reports started with Finance. Repairs and maintenance expenses were high due to the three controllers that were replaced. A portion of the Gateworks one time fees ($2,300) was to be expensed in 2011, which was discussed at the August board meeting. There is approximately $200 increase in the monthly fees. A recommendation from the finance committee was to increase the fees for purchasing barcodes.   No action was had on this recommendation.   Two bad debts were collected which lowered the 90 day delinquency amount. Two homes have been foreclosed on and we're awaiting contact from the mortgage companies on the outstanding obligations. February's financials showed a $4,000 surplus and the reserve fund balance is $252,000. There is $15,617 transferred to the reserve fund monthly.

Access Control and Covenant Enforcement reported Gateworks is doing the Beta testing to work out software glitches and an Allegiance guard was relieved of his post for performance issues.   Home owners attended the meeting to appeal a "running a stop sign" citation. Also there was one appeal for speeding and it was waived.

The Architectural Review Board (ARB) and Common Property covered a request for a kitchen addition and lanai, a family room extension, pavers, tree removal and exterior painting. With the departure of a long standing member of the Common Property committee each member on the committee has been assigned to certain area in the community i.e., landscaping, lakes, fountains etc. It was also determined that the Common Property committee would have bid control for those bids at $3,000 or less.   A motion was made and passed to add Ken Brown as a new member to Common Property committee.

Old Business discussion revolved around sidewalk repair. A discussion took place about replacing/repairing the sidewalks when tree roots will eventually damage it again. Should the trees be removed to alleviate the problem? This is a problem for not only the homeowners, but also for Common Property. Should a tree be on homeowner's property, and the owner wishes to remove the tree, the owner must advise the ARB. In order to streamline the process and amortize the cost, the Board wants to give the homeowners an option to piggy back with the Common Property vendor doing the sidewalks. Should homeowners wish to do this, they need to contact the Common Property Chairman.

New Business discussion was about roof mildew. A discussion took place on whether mandating the roof cleaning would/could void any warranties on the roofs and if so, then there may be some type of liability against the association.   A recommendation was made that a letter should only be sent if 50% or more of the roof shows signs of mildew.   If the cleaning company uses the right treatment, there will be no damage or wear to the shingles. An article will be written with recommendations on how to properly clean the roof.

Gate Works      

Submitted by Carol D'Onofrio

Did you know that as of April 12 only 37.6 % of the residents have logged in using the new software system?

Okay, we need the balance of the community to implement the log in process and start using the Gate Works system. For residents without a computer please continue to call the gate. These people are very few in the community.

If more residents would use the online guest access, the guards would be able to process guests through the gate faster. When you don't pre-authorize your guests, this forces the guard to make a call to your home and leave a message. If there are six cars in line and no one has pre-authorized the guest, this means six calls, a back-up and a longer wait time for each guest.

If you have not logged in yet and updated your personal information, please take a moment to do so. You can now take responsibility for your personal and property information. The Deercreek web site www.deercreekcc.com has an icon on the top that will take you to the Deercreek Gate Works home page if you have not created your own shortcut.

Once on the Gate Works home page you will see other pages that will help manage your information. For example if you have a large party during the holidays you can build the list and it will remain on your personal party list file. If you have another party, you can easily access your original list without having to re enter all guest information.

If you have a maintenance company that visits every other month, under the visitor section you can use the visitor drop down bar to locate the company, (no more individual typing of the company each time they visit) or you can choose to put them on your permanent list.

Pet information: You can list all specifics about your pets. In the event your pet is lost, any resident who finds a dog or cat can call the guard gate and through the Gate Works system the guard can do a search on the specific type of dog or by name. So don't overlook this section. Over the years we have had many lost pets and for the most part we don't know who they belong to when found or turned in.

Most pages on the Gate Works web site also link back to the Deercreek web site for information regarding forms, covenants, rules, as well as a link to the country club.

Gate Works is a great new system so if you are not part of the 37.6% using the system, you are in the 62.4% that are not using the system. Most importantly, please use the online Gate Works software program to expedite your visitors through the gate. Use of the system prevents long wait lines at the gate for all visitors.

Common Property Committee Update    

Submitted by Chris Phillips

The committee is still in need of a new chair person. We would urge anyone in the community who has an interest in maintaining the beauty and charm of our neighborhood to please step forward. You may wish to join as a member of the committee first to see if you have interest in becoming the chair. Please contact Chris Phillips at 519-2909 or by email at cphillipsjax@gmail.com.

Ken Brown, a resident who lives on Rittenhouse Lane, has joined the committee and will be the committee's person to keep an eye on all of our street and stop signs. Please email him with any sign issues at kenbrown@bcbsfl.com.

At the last meeting on April 12 there was a discussion of the role and operation procedures of the Committee and its interaction with the Board of Directors. Danny Becton, a Board member, was present and provided many helpful insights that should lead to a smoother interaction between the Committee and the Board.  

The Board discussed several old and new projects to help maintain the common property and is forwarding several recommendations for the Board's consideration.  

The next Board meeting is scheduled for Thursday May 10 at 6pm at the club. Residents are welcome to attend if they have any interest in issues related to our common property.

Access Control Committee Update    

Submitted by Tommy Walter

Safety and Access Reminders

• Walkers: Please use the sidewalks for walking. If you must walk in the street, especially after total daylight, wear light colored clothing. Walk against the traffic near the side of the road in single file.
• Bikers: Please ride single file with the traffic. Bikes are moving vehicles and do not necessarily have the right of way. A contest between a car and a bike will not end happily for the bike and its rider.
• Motorized vehicles: All motorized vehicles of any kind can be operated ONLY by licensed drivers in Deercreek. Unlicensed drivers will be given citations.
• We have a new gate system. Be sure to update your visitor and permanent guest information as quickly as possible.
• Graduation Parties are fast approaching. Please help the gate help you by letting the guards know the dates, times and guests at all parties. Gate access will be much faster that way.
• There have been incidents of theft from cars and open garages in Deercreek in the past. Deercreek is not a secure community, but a limited access community; therefore, basic security practices should always be followed.
  • Car doors and windows closed and cars locked
  • Nothing left out in the open in cars regardless if they are locked or not
  • All doors and windows in homes closed and locked, especially garage doors
  • Be vigilant. If something doesn't look right, call the guardhouse immediately 

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