The regular monthly meeting of the Board of Directors of the Viking Valley Association was held on December 14, 2025 at 2:00 pm in the Upper Clubhouse. There were 12 members in attendance. Michelle Sullivan, Board President read our mission statement: Lake Viking is a private lake aspiring to preserve our community and environment for future generations. The pledge was led by Brian Holcomb, Managing Director, and the prayer was offered by Dave Daniel – Assistant Treasurer.
Board Members present were: Michelle Sullivan (lot #1826) – Board President, Dan Weidmaier (lot #309) – 1st Vice President, Dave Schaefer (lot #1227) – 2nd Vice President, Christina Lindsay (lot #429) – Secretary, Tom Rice (lot #343) – Assistant Secretary, Robert Walton (lot #217) – Treasurer, Dave Daniel (lot #231) – Assistant Treasurer.
Tom made a motion to approve the minutes from the November 9, 2025 board meeting. Dave Schaefer seconded the motion. Motion passed. Christina and Dave Daniel abstained from the vote because they were absent from the meeting.
There was no report for the Handbook Committee.
Dave Schaefer reported for the Finance Committee. He addressed questions regarding realized gains and losses, clarifying that the association’s accountant recognizes short-term investment fluctuations monthly based on market trends. A sale of an SU lot is currently pending and expected to be finalized soon. The Morgan Stanley investment accounts ended November with a total balance of $2,030,029.31, reflecting a monthly increase of $2,470. Year-to-date for 2025, the account balance has grown by $222,546.22. The campground electrical project is about 1-2 weeks away from completion of this project. The Association received 3 bids for the Clubhouse Septic project prior to the deadline. The total estimated cost for the project, including parts and labor, is approximately $150,000. The Finance Committee recommended moving forward with the lowest bid submitted by Dykes Construction. To fund the project, the committee proposed using $33,624 from the designated BTC Bank account carry-over fund, utilizing $60,000 from the 2024 Capital Expenditure carry-over fund, and drawing the remaining balance from the Deferred Maintenance and Capital Projects Fund. Tom made a motion to approve the Clubhouse Septic cost and funding source. Dave Daniel seconded the motion. Motion passed. The Association has saved $21,413 in trash services over the past five months, the Safety Building Rehabilitation project is complete, and a more cost-effective employee healthcare plan has been renewed. Further details regarding these cost-saving measures, including the transition from Condo Control to the new HOA Life platform, were deferred to the Managing Director’s Report.
Jack Bowers (lot #476) reported for the Strategic Planning Committee. The committee met last week to review progress toward their key projects. The committee is actively identifying and categorizing all Association owned assets. These assets have been defined to include hard assets such as the clubhouse, administrative office, safety and fire department buildings, maintenance facilities, roads, the pool, playground, and docks. Additional assets comprise the Association’s vehicle fleet, including fire trucks, various maintenance and safety vehicles, the snowplow, and miscellaneous tools. The primary objective of this initiative is to create a comprehensive five-year plan. The committee is focused on determining the age and condition of each asset to establish timelines and associated costs for necessary replacement, rebuilding, renovation, or disposal. This project involves collaboration with both the Lake Director and the Finance Committee. Mr. Bowers concluded his report by announcing the committee’s intention to present two new member candidates for board approval during the January 2026 meeting.
Dan reported for the Activities Committee. The committee is currently working on the 2026 activity schedule. Due to the upcoming Clubhouse Septic project scheduled for the spring, the committee expressed hesitation regarding the timing of early-season activities. They are actively working through scheduling adjustments related to this conflict and anticipate providing further updates in subsequent meetings.
Robert reported for the Building Committee. The committee met last month and processed 6 building permits. The committee is actively seeking one additional member to join. It was noted that the committee will not hold a second meeting in December but plans to reconvene in January 2026; however, all permits submitted before the January meeting will still be processed. Robert made a motion to approve Kelly Mathenia (lot #45) to join the Building Committee. Dan seconded the motion. Motion passed. The Building Committee submitted a proposal for a handbook rule change concerning building requirements for SU Lots to be the same as S lots. This would mean that the handbook would treat all SU lots the same as S lots. Tom made a motion to approve this change. Dan seconded the motion. Motion passed. The committee indicated they require further discussion regarding the proposed rule change pertaining to carports before bringing it to a vote, so this item was tabled.
There was no report for the Fire Department.
There was no report for the Campground Committee. The committee will meet again in a couple months.
There was no report for the Lake Committee.
Dave Schaefer reported for the Infraction committee. The committee is done meeting for the year. Tom made a motion to approve Linda Evans (lot #525) and Mark Hagen (lot #462) to the Infraction Committee. Dan seconded the motion. Motion passed.
Dave Daniel reported for the Dredge Committee. The committee met last month, recommended tube sizes for ditches, and reviewed the list of Association owned lots the committee would like to retain. The committee is moving forward on the dredge season next spring.
There was no report for the Fishing Committee.
Brian gave the Managing Director’s Report. Maintenance winterized the lake, which includes servicing boats, installing ice eaters, moving docks, closing bathrooms, putting antifreeze in equipment that uses water, and raking sand on beaches away from the water so it won’t wash into the lake. Filled edge ruts on Special Road District roads. Repaired hydrants in the campground. Staged dredge pipe on shorelines for the upcoming dredge season in 2026. Added a new pond draining system between drain ponds. Dipped creeks. Shaped up roads where tubes have been replaced. Cleaned the shop and repainted the meeting room. Serviced equipment, as needed.
Safety received training on HOALife and began transferring watercraft documents from Condo, and attended CPR/First Aid Training. Checked on house alarms, moved the zebra mussel hot wash station to the Maintenance Building, and relocated Safety functions back to the Safety Building.
The office participated in multiple HOALife meetings and continued the implementation/integration process by setting up member accounts and confirming contact information. Continued digitalizing former member deed information and historical building permits. Audited VVA owned lots against real-estate tax bills and worked with the Dredge Committee to identify lots that can be sold. Audited deeds for VVA owned lots and obtained copies of deeds from the Daviess County Recorder for those that were missing. Processed deeds for lot transfers, invoiced for Campground and Lake Viking News, reviewed and processed invoices for payment, prepared and processed bank deposits, ran payroll (input hours, processed IRA contributions, reviewed ADP journal entries), ordered supplies, and answered customer phone calls and walk-in requests.
Brian reported on the new HOALife platform. Access to Condo Control will cease at midnight on December 31, 2025. We had to manually adjust every account for consistency, transfer member boat titles and registrations, enter GPS locations for every property, and transfer ownership dates to determine if members can receive 2 or 3 watercraft stickers. We are still working through how processes such as guest registrations and pet information will be handled. We conducted a soft enrollment for HOALife with the Board members to test the system and we will be incorporating their input into our final roll-out which we plan to send out during the week of December 15-19. You will receive an email invitation to HOALife at the email address that is listed in your Condo account, and we will post a notification to Condo and Facebook when the invitations are sent. Change is never fun, but please be patient as we transition knowing that we saved $20,000 this year and will save more than $16,000 each year moving forward with HOALife instead of Condo. As always, if you have any questions or have trouble logging into your account, please contact the office.
The Daviess County Special Road District’s car counter was installed on 165th Street during the month of November 2025 and there were 25,138 axles recorded. The counter is currently deployed on Nickel Ave.
Trash expense for Rapid Removal during the first 5 months of the contract, July through November 2025, was $21,413 less than the expense during the same months in 2024.
Brian reported on the Clubhouse Septic project. As mentioned during the Finance Committee report, we completed the bid process and will continue to move forward on this project. There will be no new clubhouse rentals scheduled between January 1 and June 1, 2026, and members who had already scheduled a rental have been contacted about the pending construction plans and were offered a refund of their deposit and reimbursement of other related expenses they may have incurred.
The Safety Building was completed ahead of schedule, and the contractor has been paid. We are in the process of moving all of Safety’s processes back to the Safety Building and will send a message when the transition has been completed.
The office obtained bids for employee health insurance and we are changing to a new provider on January 1, 2026. This allows the coverage term to align with the fiscal year, offers better coverage for employees by lowering their maximum out-of-pocket from $7,150 to $2,000, and covers 7 employees instead of 4 while saving the Association $974 per month.
Felicia Roth continues her work on updating and creating a new color map of Lake Viking.
The Board members pooled their own money and hosted an employee Christmas luncheon on December 11, 2025. All Board members and all employees were able to attend. On behalf of the employees, thank you!
Tom made a motion to approve the November 2025 financial statements. Dave Schaefer seconded the motion. Motion passed.
Board discussion started with a conversation about Ben Becerra (lot #Z17) request for driveway easement. Although verbal permission had been granted in prior years, Mr. Becerra requested a written easement for the driveway from his Z lot to the acreage he owns on the north side of the lake, which abuts it. The Board reviewed the draft agreement, noting several points beneficial to the Association. The agreement explicitly stipulates that Mr. Becerra is prohibited from constructing any structures within the inundation area. The Board clarified that the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) would officially define this inundation boundary. Furthermore, this easement will be subordinate to the Association’s 20 foot easement. It was confirmed that the easement agreement is binding and runs with the land, ensuring that the stipulations remain in effect should the property ever be sold. Tom moved to approve this Driveway Easement agreement. Dave Daniel seconded the motion. Motion passed.
The next item for board discussion was concerning Brandon Stevens (lot #Z15) request to change the commercial lot from no designation to gym. Tom moved to approve this lot designation. Dan seconded the motion. Motion passed.
The last item during board discussion was to Authorize Brian Holcomb to Represent VVA in Real Estate Matters. It was explained that the purpose of this authorization is to streamline transactions with title companies, allowing them to issue warranty deeds without requiring new board meeting minutes for every individual property sale. Tom made a motion to Authorize Brian Holcomb to Represent VVA in Real Estate Matters. Dave Daniel seconded the motion. Motion passed.
Michelle motioned to adjourn the meeting at 2:57 pm. Tom seconded the motion. Motion passed. The Board moved into Executive Session to discuss legal matters, third party contracts and employee matters.
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
by Christina Lindsay
Secretary, Board of Directors
Viking Valley Association
