Call to Order

Board Pres. Marvin McNabb, lot 28, called the meeting to order, held in the upper level of the

Clubhouse, at 2:00pm. Board members present were:  Doug Winter, lot 46; Mike Booth, lot 2380; Allan

Slavin, lot 181; George Eshnaur, lot 505; Celeste Armanees, lot 62; Troy Lesan, lot 576.  Marvin

McNabb led in prayer.  Jeff Ferguson, Managing Director, led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Approval of Minutes

Troy Lesan suggested two changes to the Sept. ‘22 Board meeting minutes:  The first was to add that lot #675 requested a 2nd buoy on their lot, due to close boat traffic on their point.  The Board approved this request. The last change was to correct wording that the Strategic Planning Committee needs “new and existing Board members” should instead say “new and existing VVA members”.  A motion was made by Allan Slavin to approve the corrected Sept. ‘22 Board meeting minutes. Seconded by Celeste Armanees; minutes were approved.

COMMITTEE REPORTS:

 Handbook Committee

Celeste Armanees reported:  No items to report this month.

Finance Committee

Doug Winter reported: The Finance Committee met & reviewed the Financial Reports for the first

three quarters of 2022.  We expect the Lake to outperform the budget for the year.

Dredge operation:  The Finance Committee proposes the $42,000 reclaimed earnings along with the budgeted amount be used to repair the dredge.  Cost to repair the dredge is estimated $78,000.

Campground electrical:  There are now 3 bids to replace the electrical grid in both Campgrounds.

The Finance Committee proposes that VVA should loan the monies needed for this electrical upgrade to the Campground at a 6% interest rate.

Accounting changes:   We are moving from the current company we use (Westbrook CPAs) to another company (UHY Advisors) starting Nov. 1st.   We have also changed starting Oct. 1st to a new payroll processing company.  Both these changes will be a considerable savings to the Association.

Strategic Planning Committee

George Eshnaur reported:   Kenny Southwick has resigned as Chair of this committee. We want to thank Kenny for his many years of service on this committee.  Tony Gronniger has graciously accepted the interim Chair position, until a permanent Chairperson is named.  Anyone interested in joining the Strategic Planning Committee, please email:  [email protected].

George also reported that we will continue to use the Strategic Plan that this Committee introduced in 2020, to guide VVA’s direction & actions.  So after the committee has been convened, they will utilize  the 2020 Strategic Plan to determine what has been accomplished & what remains as action items.  The committee will work with the new Lake Director, Jeff Ferguson.

Activities Committee

Celeste Armanees reported:  The Fishing Tournament was a success with 30 people participating; proceeds will be used to restock the lake.  The Fall Festival held October 8th drew approx. 150 people and also was a successful event.  Upcoming event:  The Halloween Trunk-or-Treat will be held Sat., Oct. 29th @ 2pm; costumes are welcome but there will not be a costume contest this year.

Building Committee

Allan Slavin reported:  In the past month, the committee has received & reviewed 23 Building Permits—including 2 for houses.

Fire Department

Tony Gronniger reported:  The Fire Dept. meeting included both the Fire Dept. members & members of Maintenance Dept. present.  The Fire Department’s Chili Cook-Off will be held on Sat., Nov. 5th @ 5pm.

Campground Committee

Mike Booth reported:  The committee is planning for the electrical system upgrade.  Mike also reported

there is a Halloween get-together on Sat., Oct. 22nd @ 10am in Campground #1; all are invited.

Lake Committee

Troy Lesan reported:  The committee was on the water to check compliance, after letters were sent out to lot owners regarding non-compliance. The committee plans to go out once more this fall, to check our  Zebra Mussel monitor devices.

Infraction Committee

Mike Booth reported:  The committee met & reviewed 35 infractions, and dismissed 1 infraction.  The committee is seeking at least 2 additional members to add to our current 5 members. If interested, please e-mail:  [email protected].

Dredge Committee

Doug Winter reported:

Dredge:  The committee met & discussed that the dredge has broken down. There is money in the budget to repair the dredge. For removal of silt, the committee has received 2 estimates from outside Dredge Companies. Based on these estimates, it is more cost-effective for us to continue to do our own silt removal vs. outsourcing it.

Beach improvement:  A plan will be submitted next week to improve the beach bathrooms, which gracious members of the Dredge Committee have volunteered their labor to fix, using materials provided by the Association.

MANAGING DIRECTOR’S REPORT

 Jeff Ferguson (Managing Director) reported:

Condo software:  The Office will be transitioning to Condo, a new software package for HOAs (Home Owners Associations).  This software package is a major step forward for the Office, because prior to converting to QuickBooks accounting software a year ago, all record-keeping at the Office was kept manually—everything was hard copy, carbon copy, shuffling & filing of papers.  Jeff stated that with Condo, VVA members will be able to have a Condo app on their phone, where they can see an Events calendar, activities, announcements, e-sign documents, pay on-line, etc.  Timeline:  On Nov. 1st, the Office will be moving from QuickBooks desktop to QuickBooks on-line.  After this transition is completed, we will work on the QuickBooks/Condo connections.  Note: Jeff asked all VVA members who aren’t already receiving a monthly e-mail from the Office (e.g. monthly Board meeting Agenda) to provide their e-mail addresses to the Office, as this will be required to access the Condo app on your phone.  Please send your email address to:  [email protected].   Vs. The existing list of members’ email addresses will be automatically uploaded into the Condo system.

Help Wanted (part-time):  The Office is looking for a Customer Service person.  If you or someone you know is interested, please have them contact the Office & complete an application.

Re-stock fish in lake:   2,500 walleye will soon be stocked in the lake.  This is funded via proceeds from the Activities Committee’s recent Fishing Tournament.

Maintenance/upkeep:  Jeff stated that we will be doing one more zero-turn mow around

the lake. We will also be trimming trees that are impeding vision in the Three Tubes area. Also, Goose Court will have a bulldozer working on construction of a gravel road for those 3 lots.

Roads:  We have salt & sand already on-hand for winter road needs.

APPROVAL OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Doug Winter made a motion to approve the Financial Statements. Seconded by Troy Lesan; motion passed.

GUEST TIME

Dale Canino, lot #375 & 376 was present to appeal an infraction she received for 3 of her grandchildren being in the water at the beach without a life jacket. She appealed to reduce the fine to $150.00 total, instead of the $450.00 she was charged = 3 children x $150.00 per infraction.  Troy Lesan stated that we as a Board hesitate to undermine our Safety staff’s judgment in issuing these fines as our VVA Handbook requires.  However due to the unusual circumstance, Troy made a motion to reduce the fine from $450.00 to $300.00.  Seconded by Allan Slavin; motion passed.

Robert Walton, lot #217 presented his outline of a plan for a restaurant at Lake Viking—e.g. the Association could construct a building for a Restaurant, which VVA would then lease to a selected  Restaurant operator.  For maximum business, the restaurant would be open to Lake Members & the general public.  After considerable discussion on the profitability & logistics (including septic issues), Allan Slavin made a motion to create an ad hoc (temporary) Restaurant Committee to look into a possible restaurant at Lake Viking.  Seconded by George Eshnaur; motion passed.

BOARD DISCUSSION

Open seats on the Board in March:   Board Pres. Marvin McNabb reminded everyone that at the Annual Meeting in March, members will vote to elect 3 Board members. Current Board members whose terms expire in March are:  Marvin McNabb, Mike Booth, Celeste Armanees.  The Nominating Committee is now accepting applications from any VVA members interested in running for a seat on the Board of Directors.

Campground Fees for ’23 are being discussed.  It was suggested that current fees be the base + add an assessment to finance the new electrical system in Campgrounds.  The upgrade of Campground bathhouses will be paid using the Campground’s retained earnings.

New Committee:  Jeff Ferguson requested we establish a stand-alone Technology Committee to research, recommend, and implement any needed technical upgrades for our hardware/software needs & training.  This committee would ideally include an IT network person & a software person & a website/social media person.   A motion was made by Doug Winter to establish a Technology Committee.  Seconded by George Eshnaur; motion passed.

ADJOURN

Allan Slavin moved to adjourn to Executive Session at 2:58pm to discuss legal, personnel, and Board

organizational matters. Mike Booth seconded; motion passed.  Meeting was adjourned at 2:59 pm.

ATTENDANCE

Approx. 22 members attended, too many to list here. A sign-in Attendance Sheet is on record at the Office for reference.  Let the record show that these minutes are a record of the business transacted at this meeting, and are a sampling of the discussions. Comments and discussions are not reflected in whole or as actual quotations in the minutes, nor do they reflect all comments by members.

Respectfully submitted,
Celeste Armanees
Secretary, Board of Directors
Viking Valley Association