Minutes of Board Meeting 11-13-2007
The fall 2007 meeting of the MSCA Board of Directors was held November 13, 2007, at the home of Steve Schuck, who was approved by Board to fill the vacancy as Vice President.
The President, Bob Gross, opened the meeting at 7:30. He welcomed the new Vice President, particularly as an additional representative of the northern half of the community, with hope for expanding participation and interest in that area.
Topics discussed and conclusions were as follows.
Membership dues for 2008 will stay the same as the previous year, $50. While there may be more projects the association could undertake with more revenue, $50 is adequate for landscaping upkeep and a few social activities. With an active Improvements Chair, the association could entertain more ideas.
The President plans to get out our newsletter, The Tetragon, at the end of December. The Tetragon of this season includes the request for homeowner dues and directory updates. The Board discussed ideas for better communications, using e-mail. The directory does not have all members’ e-mail addresses, but we can pursue the idea of self-registration on a “moderated” listserv, such as at Yahoo Groups. Secretary Tom Hall volunteered to investigate.
The need for an updated paper directory was also discussed. Anne Stadnicki, who has volunteered most of the effort for the last few directories, would be able to help, but needs more help this time around. New Vice President, Steve Schuck, will take a look at the underlying data and see if he can get a publishing package to work with it.
Bob discussed the status of projects in the area, specifically the Potomac Sidewalk and Bikeway program. This program has proceeded to its next phase in the County’s capital project planning cycle, which will provide a design and cost information. This project is generally welcomed by MSCA since it will greatly improve the look and utility of Seven Locks Road for pedestrians and cyclists. However, several property owners are impacted by some of the designs, so continued vigilance in following the planning is required. Bob met with the County’s planning lead, Aruna Miller and the County’s contractor during the preliminary planning phase and had some impacts on the process. Steve will see if he can draft an article for the newsletter on this subject for Bob. The idea of putting some sort of “sense of the community” ballot in the newsletter was discussed, but the association has more need for someone to track the issue and volunteer as Roads Chair to work this.
On the subject of landscaping, the Treasurer, David Grossman reported that we had funds of about $12,000, and expected landscaping bills that would take two thirds of that. The Board remains concerned that bills are not submitted quickly to the Treasurer, and this will be addressed with the contractors.
The Board again discussed possible mergers with neighboring associations, in part because of the difficulty in recruiting active volunteers from within MSCA. The members noted significant differences in funding models and expenses between the various community associations, which would have to be addressed. Previous discussions with Regency Estates were cordial, but ended with a recommendation to cooperate and share where appropriate. Steve Schuck was asked to contact an officer from Potomac Woods Citizens Association to see what their opinions would be on this subject. The idea of polling the MSCA membership was discussed but deferred since we have no concrete plans on the table to choose from anyway. Merger remains an option if an adequate level of participation in MSCA leadership positions cannot be sustained.
In closing, the President thanked everyone for coming.
Meeting was adjourned.
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