BARSTOW HEIGHTS COMMUNITY SERVICES
DISTRICT
REGULAR MEETING
Monday, July 28th, 2014
President Jacobs called
the meeting to order at 6:00 PM and Director Hayhurst led the group in the flag
salute. Directors Jacobs, Stapp, Wilkey,
and Hayhurst were present. Director Schendel
was absent; out of town due to his employment.
There were no guests in attendance.
President Jacobs asked
the Board if they had reviewed the Consent Items and if any changes/revisions
were suggested. There were none. Director Wilkey motioned to accept the
Minutes of the June 16th, 2014 Meeting, along with the Financial Reports for
June of 2014 as presented. Director
Stapp seconded the motion. Motion
carried unanimously.
The Correspondence file was
offered for review. President Jacobs
called attention to a letter received from San Bernardino County Code
Enforcement. It was received, with its
outside envelope missing, a month later than the letter had been dated, so the
Secretary suspected that it had been damaged/lost in the mail for a few weeks
before it was recovered and delivered to the P.O. Box. The letter requested that we get the proper
signage to indicate our address number on the outside of our building. The Secretary will need to investigate a
little more to learn the specific requirements for the signage, since an
enclosed page was missing from the letter, and she will get it done as
requested. President Jacobs also read an
email received from Bill Little, Supervisor of Public Works (and the Barstow
Yard) for the County Roads Department.
His email was in response to the letter the Secretary had sent to
request more information about what and where Road repair work may be scheduled
in the near future, since our Roads have been in bad shape. The Directors were pleased with his detailed
response indicating that some repair work is planned for this Fall and Winter.
While on the topic of the
Roads, President Jacobs told the Board that he had just seen a large dump truck
on P Street that was full of weeds that had been removed in response to
Director Hayhurst’s inquiries about the obscured intersections that pose a danger
on our streets. It appeared that her
phone calls had prompted the County to get work started to remove some of the obstructions. Director Stapp, voiced his opinion that as of
yesterday, he couldn’t tell that any work had been done at the intersections
near his home. He began driving around to
write down the intersections that were the most hazardous, but soon realized
that virtually every intersection had at least one corner or more that was
unsafe. Director Wilkey agreed with
Director Hayhurst that due to time constraints, it would be unrealistic to ask
the County to fix each and every corner that wasn’t perfect, and that only the
most dangerous intersections where accidents happen frequently need be
addressed first. Director Hayhurst
suggested we let the County know which locations are most in need of clearing,
because asking them to just fix every corner would likely not get as much of a
response as a few specific requests might.
President Jacobs suggested that the Board come up with a marked map/list
of the intersections that are most in need of being dealt with first. The Secretary could also include a reminder
in the next newsletter to residents that we would greatly appreciate it if
those whose homes are located on corners would please help us make our streets
safer by clearing any vegetation/over-growth that might obscure a driver’s
view.
Barstow Heights Park was
addressed. The Safety Check List from
the City was reviewed. President Jacobs reported
that he had set off at least a dozen “rodent gas cartridges” to reduce the
ground squirrel population again last week.
After inspecting the park again tonight, he noticed that there are more
new holes again. He also noticed that
are more holes in the locked water tower compound again. Due to the price increase, the cartridges are
now costing approximately $4 each, but still seem to be the most effective
solution.
The Plaque to honor
Barbara Kelley was addressed. The Board
reviewed the wording one last time to ensure that everyone was satisfied with
it before the Secretary submits it to get an estimate of the cost to have it
made. The Secretary was directed to get
a proof and price comparison from Brunner’s Tiny Time shop to help the Board
determine what size should be ordered (8x8, 10x10, or 12x12), to get the best price
possible while still maintaining the quality and optimal size/read-ability of
the print.
Bid 13-03, the new
Covered Picnic Areas, were addressed next.
President Jacobs reported that he talked with Wade Harris just a few
days ago. Wade was currently still
waiting to hear back from the County Building Department. He continues to follow up with them weekly and
expects to have a response from them very soon (within the next two
weeks). He has ordered some of the
materials already and will be storing them as he receives them so that the work
can begin just as soon as the permits are given.
The Plaque to thank
Dorothy Davis was addressed next. The
Board reviewed the wording one last time to ensure that everyone was still
satisfied with it. The ordering of the
Plaque and specifics of its desired location will be discussed again as soon as
the new Construction is near completion.
Venner Park was
addressed. The Safety Check List from
the City was reviewed. Broken tree
branches that had fallen to the ground recently were cleaned up and hauled away
quickly. The City continues to do a
great job of keeping our Parks clean and safe.
President Jacobs also reported that the bushes around the office
compound are in need of trimming and the weeds need clearing again. The Secretary was directed to call Best
Opportunities to get an estimate from them to do the work. Director Wilkey asked the Secretary to make
sure to ask them if they have their own worker’s comp insurance policy before
hiring them to do the work. Director
Wilkey also reported that at Venner Park he noticed a screw missing from a face
plate on top of an electrical box. He
called Mark Gerardi to notify him and it was fixed right away.
Director Stapp brought up
one more thing to discuss in relation to the Roads. He had noticed seeing the Water Company in
the area fixing leaks quite often over the past couple of weeks. He shared his concern that perhaps the water
infrastructure has been more troublesome lately and wondered if anyone else had
noticed the constant leaks/repairs that are needed and being done alongside our
Roads. He wondered if the Board should
do some research regarding the age/conditions of the water system. Director Hayhurst agreed that some of the
pipes could be as much as 50 years old and that frequent patching and repairs
are a normal and routine procedure for pipes of that age.
The Conflict of Interest
Code was addressed next. Director
Hayhurst shared her opinion that the current Code that was adopted ten years
ago is too complicated and difficult to understand. She thinks the District needs a shorter,
simpler, and clearer Code, that is more relevant to our District. She asked the Board to give her one month to
find another Code sample that the Districts’ new Code could be based on; one
that is easier to read and understand. President
Jacobs agreed that the Conflict of Interest Code could definitely be improved
and updated, or cleaned up a lot at the very least.
The General Manager
Guidelines were reviewed next. The
Secretary had some questions about the specifics in the Guidelines that allowed
her just $200 total per month, to deal with office related necessary
expenses. She was continually feeling
like she couldn’t make the purchases needed because of this limit. The Director’s understanding of it had been
that she was allowed to spend up to $200 per incident/item that needed immediate
attention in a given month, but the Guidelines didn’t make that clear enough. Director Hayhurst motioned that the General
Manager Guidelines be amended with the language to say that the General Manager
be given authority to spend “no more than $200 per transaction, not to exceed
$600 per month.” Director Wilkey
seconded the motion. Motion carried
unanimously.
The Board addressed the
purchase of a new printer that the Secretary was in need of for the
office. Director Hayhurst motioned to give
the Secretary permission to purchase the new laser jet printer/scanner/copier presented
to them as well as any cables, accessories, and ink cartridges that are needed;
the total of which are not to exceed $400.
President Jacobs seconded the motion.
Motion carried unanimously. The
Secretary was also told that she could go ahead and hire Sanchez Roofing to fix
the leaking roof since the price of the repairs would be exactly $200 and still
within her authority to spend.
The General Manager
reported there had been increased discussion on the Facebook page since she
shared the report to beware of a man going door-to-door claiming to be a
representative for GE alarm systems. She
was pleased that residents had been posting replies and were sharing/discussing
some of their similar experiences and concerns.
Director Hayhurst asked how things were going with the Auditor. The Secretary replied
that things were going okay, that she feels a little overwhelmed by the lengthy
list of receipts/documents that she will need to scan and send to the Auditor
in the coming month, but that she will get it done and learn a lot in the
process. The Secretary is also very
pleased with the new Accountants, as that they have been very helpful to her.
President Jacobs requested
the Directors’ reports. They chatted
about some of the interesting animals they’ve spotted in the desert recently
and shared their excitement over some of the recent achievements of our
residents/neighbors, but there were no further District needs to report.
President Jacobs asked
the Secretary if there were any additional bills to be paid. She indicated that there were none. Director Wilkey motioned to pay the bills as
presented. Director Stapp seconded the
motion. Motion carried unanimously. There was no New Business to address.
The Board of Directors
went into a closed Executive Session at 7:29 PM, to discuss personnel, and the
Secretary was dismissed from the meeting.
The Board reconvened to a Regular Session and the Secretary joined them
again at 7:53 PM. Director Hayhurst
motioned to increase the salary of the General Manager/Secretary by $1.00 per
hour, to begin (retroactively) as of July 1st, 2014. Director Stapp seconded the motion. Motion carried unanimously.
The next Regular Meeting
was scheduled for Monday, August 25th, 2014 at 6:00 PM. The meeting adjourned at 8:02 PM.
Submitted by:
Jen Rubio - Secretary/General
Manager
