Minutes of the Quarterly Meeting, April 20, 2016

Vista del Rey Mutual Domestic Water Consumers’ Association

Minutes of Quarterly Membership Meeting April 20, 2016

The Lord’s Ranch

President Wade Cornelius opened the meeting at 6:05 p.m. Attending were the president, Treasurer Jana Melvin, Secretary Beth Morgan, board member Rob Campion, Henry Torres and Randy Mellor; with board member Patrick Stafford and Debbie Stafford, Andrea Cecur, Ken Henrie, Stacy Fellwock, and Mark Sechrist coming in after the meeting was under way. Minutes from the meeting of February 17 were summarized and approved upon a unanimously approved motion to do so.

During the Treasurer’s Report, Jana Melvin stated that the association ended the month of January with $9,387.62 in its account. We took in $2,075 in February and spent $1,803.71. We ended the month of February at $9, 658.91, which is what we had at the beginning of March. During March, we took in $1,100 and spent $349.30. We finished the month with $10,409.61.

Henry Torres, our well operator, reported that everything looks pretty good. He is learning about the paperwork that will be required for the Revised Total Coliform Rule, which will have to be done by a certified operator. He will be required to take the RTCR classes, but our president may find it appropriate to take the class, as well, Morgan noted.

In the Homeland Security report, Stafford said that he had almost completed drilling holes to enable us to lock the well cover, locks have been put on the gates, and he had planned to change the lock on the electrical box, but it did not fit. The existing ones are still good, so he will clean them up and we can reuse them. He completed the work on the overflow pipe, for which we rented a cherry picker, and installed a flap valve on the base of it and buried it, leaving a cavity at the end. If we have any overflow, it will go out under the fence. He took pictures, in case Ernest Valenzuela, compliance officer for the Drinking Water Bureau, has questions. Torres had repaired a leak near Kenneth Henrie’s house. We still have a leak that has built up a couple of inches of standing water near the wellhouse. It will need repair. He also reported that an animal has tunneled under the fence on the south side, whether to get at the water, or it might have been a critter, such as a badger, that had tunneled under the slab of the wellhouse in the past.

A plate being fabricated by the Luceros is needed to stabilize a pressure pump. We don’t have it yet, and Stafford believes that’s what is causing another leak. Torres wants to put a different valve on it, and that can be done when the plate is installed. There is another leak on one of the pressure pumps, as well, which doesn’t seem to be a major issue at the moment.

After these reports, we moved on to Old Business. The first item listed was payment of individuals—always the same folks—who end up working on the water system when an issue we can repair ourselves comes up. As Kenneth Henrie had recently arrived at the meeting, he was invited to talk about conflicts of interest. Henrie noted that there is useful information in our blue water system handbooks, regarding conflicts of interest. The book indicated that being paid for work is allowable as long as we are “not taking advantage of the association.” In essence, a board member being paid for working on the water system would have a conflict of interest if he or she were doing so only for financial gain. Stafford noted that a conflict of interest would exist if those working on the well colluded to pay themselves $500 an hour and not tell members of the association about it. We all need the water, so, we agreed that all who work on the system are doing so for the benefit of all users and that those who undertake these tasks are doing so in good faith. Morgan stated that Karl Pennock of the NM Environment Department’s Drinking Water Bureau noted that we would have to stay within the guidelines of the New Mexico procurement code, which can be confusing, because there are different limits for different types of expenses.

Jana Melvin noted that any individual receiving more than $650 a year has to be treated as a subcontractor, requiring paperwork we’re not prepared to handle. Additionally, Stafford noted that if workers must open up a pipe, a certified water operator must be present because sanitation issues may arise. Stacy Fellwock noted that her husband is concerned about the people who are building using the road, but pointed out that we are not at the point in the meeting agenda. She was concerned about liability regarding the work done and not hiring professionals to do the work. She also questioned whether or not individuals doing the work are qualified to do so, an issue also raised by Karl Pennock and passed along by Morgan. Stafford agreed that she had a point, but that working with PVC pipe “is not rocket science.” He said that most professionals would not warranty their work beyond a year, and that previous repairs in the general area of a leak water association members repaired themselves within the past year was not the same location that they had previously repaired. Fellwock noted that questions remain: how many people does it take to do a given job? If the folks doing the work are not professionals, it will take longer. Will we pay hourly? How many people will do the work? Fellwock also said that she paid laborers $10 an hour, not the $20 an hour that had been proposed. Stafford noted that he had given Grover Heard a credit statement to the effect that he could redeem it for cash or use it toward his water bill. Whether a credit toward one’s water bill was allowable or an outright payment would be more desirable was discussed.

Morgan reported that Pennock had advised against giving out any credits toward association members’ water bills, as a “best practice” that the department hoped all water associations would follow. Giving credits is a system that is overly easy to abuse, presenting a “slippery slope,” Morgan reported Pennock had said. He had also said that if our current bylaws allow paying board members—and association members—it would be up to the board whether to allow it. In light of this, Morgan supported writing checks to individuals whose work hours could be verified.

Stafford suggested that a primary and alternate foreman be appointed to decide how many people were needed for a given task and to keep track of their hours. He agreed to serve as the primary foreman, since he does that anyway, and Rob Campion agreed to serve as alternate foreman. Cornelius stated that workers who were approaching the $650 mark could be told they were “on reserve.” Campion made the motion that “the association pay association members who work, a rate of $20 per hour for declared work parties, as determined by the primary or alternate work party manager.” Stafford seconded it, and it was approved with no dissent.

Secretary Morgan noted that we have gotten a crime and fidelity endorsement on our insurance policy, for $49 in addition to the original $303, which has already been paid. Morgan also noted that our insurance company stated that Torres, as a contractor, will need to get his own insurance and is to name the water association as also covered. Torres noted that when he is working for High Valley, he is covered by them. However, he is interested in acquiring his own insurance, because he may pick up other water associations in the future. Morgan noted that she and her husband have a limited liability company, and that her husband Mark Sechrist carries insurance, as it was required when he was doing a project for the City of Ruidoso. He pays around $46 a month. Morgan told Torres that Sechrist would be happy to talk to him about the insurance.

Torres mentioned that under the Revised Total Coliform Rule, the Environment Department is looking to make it possible that if he were to leave, his successor could walk in and pick up where he left off. There is a packet of additional forms that the water operator will have to prepare periodically. With this documentation, a successor should have an easier time tracking what the previous water operator has done.

Kenneth Henrie had asked that we put setting up a meeting to discuss the VDRE convenants on the agenda, which was next. There is an actual agreement from SWICR, re: covenants, Henrie noted. He said the reason it is important is because we have a road to maintain, and the asset of the well, and we could make strides toward getting the road paved. Henrie noted that the road is considered part of the water system, because of the access issue, and that the minutes from past meetings should reflect that the water association had accepted responsibility for the road. He said a homeowners group could chip in, but the water association owns it. Morgan questioned whether we are legally required to have a homeowners association because of wording in documents from SWICR.

Morgan and Campion agreed that it is not the business of the water association to get involved in setting up a homeowners association. Morgan said the only reason for putting it on the agenda was to allow people who have concerns about the covenants to come up with a time to meet if they choose to do so. Henrie noted that the road may not really be ours, because the second amended covenants on file with the county state otherwise. Morgan noted that Mary Lucero and Rob Campion are interested in changing the covenants to allow chickens, which they currently don’t.

Stafford noted that one of the key issues with the covenants is enforcement, and the need for the entire community to agree that they will abide by them and not pick and choose which they will adhere to. He mentioned a meeting in which he and a neighbor were in a dispute about a building that was placed too close to his property line. That meeting became heated. Another property owner at the far west end of Vista del Rey built a large barn and intended to put a small apartment in it to live in until they built a house. He indicated that it was learned the couple never intended to build a house, but to use the building as a house and a business simultaneously. Upon being confronted, Stafford noted that the couple abandoned the project and the property.

Stafford noted that an effort to change the covenants from no animals except horses and cows to “no limits on anything . . . It was just too much too soon.” He also noted that the attendance at the evening’s water association meeting is about what we usually get, and the homeowners’ association efforts were similar. There is some interest, but doing the work of preparing bylaws, etc., requires a lot of work. Stafford is the one who had originally proposed a homeowners association. There were discussions regarding whether people had to submit blueprints for their houses—that is the time to catch infractions, rather than after someone has already poured a slab. Bob Melvin was the one who caught an infraction at the barn at the west end of Vista del Rey, Stafford said. He found that the covenants were being violated because the building was being placed too close to the road. Some structures are not in compliance with the covenants because no one caught violations until after they were built. Mrs. Melvin said there are some things in the covenants that need revision. They were written in the ‘70s. There are people who don’t want any changes, Stafford said, but he didn’t think that was the majority—he believes a chicken resolution would pass.

Randy Mellor asked whether we were leaning toward the idea of starting a homeowners association. He questioned whether property owners could make changes to the covenants “if everyone said, ‘we’re good with that.’” Stafford noted we can’t just say, “we’re all good with that.” You have to have a bylaw that says, for example, with 60 percent of the vote, you can do “X.” We have to have a mechanism for changing the covenants before we can change the convenants. Kenneth Henrie seemed to think we already have a vehicle for changing the covenants because we are “successors in interest.” At this point, the president noted that we were getting off on a tangent and need to concentrate at present on our grant proposal.

The association then moved on to renewing the Open Meetings Resolution (Resolution 2; necessary for the grant proposal), which Morgan noted has not changed: we give 10 days notice for regular meetings, 3 for special meetings, and 24 hours for emergency meetings. The association is supposed to renew this resolution each year and had failed to do so in January, she noted. Campion made a motion to approve Resolution No. 2, seconded by Stafford. The motion passed unanimously.

We had talked briefly about developing a job description for our water operator and to take a look at the Environment Department’s model operator contract. Morgan said we may not need to be as formal as the department’s model, however, that document is where she learned that from the department’s perspective, water operators who are contractors are supposed to carry their own insurance and name the water association as also covered. Although that is as far as the discussion progressed, the president indicated that Torres could leave the meeting, as he has been ill. Morgan said she would provide a copy of the model contract to pertinent people.

The next item on the agenda was whether or not to reimburse board members who travel out of town to attend trainings required by the Environment Department, and if so, what items and at what rates? Morgan suggested that we pay any fees for the trainings, and mileage and per diem, at rates specified by the State of New Mexico. Stafford indicated per diem varies by town—Santa Fe requiring per diem of $135/day and other cities $80/day. He said he thought mileage was being reimbursed at 52 cents per mile. Morgan said that these reimbursent rates are easy enough to look up to verify them. Cornelius questioned whether, if he attends a training in Albuquerque, he should write himself a check for reimbursement. Morgan said she would write the check in that type of situation. Morgan made the motion to reimburse board members for these expenses. Campion seconded the motion, but for the purpose of discussion, that being that the travel should be approved by the board ahead of time. The motion passed, as amended by Campion, unanimously.

Under open forum, Morgan said that we are very close to being ready to submit our grant proposal. However, she wants to have Karl Pennock look over the grant proposal prior to submitting it. What remains to be done is passing a resolution agreeing to submit the grant proposal, which she suggested we schedule for a special meeting after Karl Pennock has looked at it. Cornelius said he would like to have that special meeting prior to mid-May. Then, the president’s schedule gets crazy. We agreed to schedule the special meeting when we are clear what Pennock’s schedule is.

Stafford then noted that he had had an exchange with High Valley Farm’s water association’s president Larz Oberle. He apparently accosted Stafford, asking whether we were not interested in hooking up with them. The board had discussed the HVF engineering study at the previous meeting and got the impression from Torres that their study had been completed. Stafford noted that it is just beginning. The board agreed that it will need to meet with High Valley Farms and the water association’s engineers to find out exactly what they have in mind and to commence communications about both studies. Kenneth Henrie volunteered to be in touch with Mr. Oberle.

Henrie continued that we are “successors in interest” to the previous owners of the properties now known as Vista del Rey Estates, and that the second amended covenants had been filed in the county clerk’s office in 1995. But Stafford noted that once all the tracts in the subdivision were sold, “a committee elected by the tract owners will be created to give approval in place of the subdivider on various items listed in these covenants.” Cornelius noted that the covenant issue had raised its head again and said we will table that. He adjourned the meeting 7:44 p.m.

Afterward, Jana Melvin asked whether Torres had been paid, to which Cornelius noted, he had paid him today, prior to the meeting. Stafford noted he had planned a meeting with Torres to go over his charges. The problem involved reading meters, which Torres does as a matter of course for High Valley Farms. If he reads the meters every month, that is an additional $170/month, which Stafford was not expecting us to have to pay, since we indicated we would like him to read meters once a year to ensure that we have no leaks. Cornelius noted we have a good relationship with Torres, he likes working with him, and we do not want to alienate him. In essence, he and Stafford agreed that we need to set his rate at $200/month or thereabouts, because he is not reading meters every month. Torres has said in the past that he charges by the meter, but because he is not reading them every month, that did not seem fair to Stafford. The board will continue to work on these issues until it is resolved to our satisfaction.

Several people continued talking about water association matters, though the meeting had been closed, prior to preparing to leave.

Please note: Two errors in an earlier version of these minutes have been corrected.