Minutes from 8/28/17 Meeting (approved 9/25/17)

BARSTOW HEIGHTS COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT

REGULAR MEETING

Monday, August 28th, 2017

President Jacobs called the meeting to order at 6:00 PM and Director Schendel led the group in the flag salute. All directors were present (Jacobs, Schendel, Stapp, Hayhurst, and Low). There were no guests attending.

The consent items were reviewed. Director Stapp motioned to accept the minutes of the July 24th, 2017 meeting, along with the financial reports for July of 2017, as presented. Director Low seconded the motion. The motion carried by a vote of 3-0. Director Schendel and Director Hayhurst abstained from the vote due to their absences from the previous meeting.

The correspondence file was offered for review. President Jacobs shared email correspondence from the week prior between the secretary and Bill Little, the county roads supervisor, regarding upcoming road work that had just begun. The improvements will be performed on the county sections of Rimrock Road, H Street, and L Street from 8/28 to 9/26. The Secretary had shared a blog post on Facebook informing the public and reminding them to please slow down and expect delays.

Barstow Heights Park was addressed. The safety check list from the City of Barstow was reviewed. There were no new safety or maintenance issues listed. President Jacobs reported that the ground squirrels under control as there had been no new holes to deal with since last month.

The two new pepper trees recently planted by Unique Landscaping were discussed briefly. One of the trees isn’t looking very healthy, but the secretary was reassured that Unique Landscaping is keeping a close eye on it, has been giving it extra water, and that they will replace it if it doesn’t recover soon.

The street lamp near the basketball court was discussed again. President Jacobs will get more information to the secretary regarding the exact solar street light he is interested in (50 watt solar-powered LED), so she can request another installation estimate from Zapp Electric.

Venner Park was addressed. The safety check list from the City of Barstow was reviewed. There were no new safety or maintenance issues reported. The board was aware that there are still some trees and bushes that need replacing, but the City is working on that. Director Stapp commented that the grass there continues to look “really good.”

The shade cover project (three canopies to shade the playground equipment at both parks) was addressed again. President Jacobs had a lot of questions and concerns and a lengthy discussion ensued. President Jacobs motioned to approve the hiring of APC Play to purchase and install the shade structures for the amount quoted ($89,011.76), but not to exceed $100,000, to allow for the small possibility that the costs might increase a little if any additional equipment/engineering/permit fees are required later. Director Schendel seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

The new trash cans that are needed at both parks were discussed again. The purchase of 22 new trash cans (9 at BHP and 13 at Venner park), had been approved at the last meeting and the secretary had made some progress, as she now had permission from Mark at the City to have them shipped to and stored briefly at the City warehouse, like had been done once before (because a forklift is required to unload them). She will get the trash cans ordered and get an estimate from John Rowe to determine the cost of installing them once they arrive (prevailing wages included).

The office building and compound were addressed next. The secretary should finally have the re-bids for the kitchen renovation job ready for the board to consider at the next meeting in September. Director Hayhurst requested that the weeds that had grown back quickly be removed again.

President Jacobs read a short excerpt from the letter received from the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians to clarify how it might impact the district. Because none of the districts’ projects are expected to effect surrounding land/resources, reporting them to the tribe will most likely never be necessary.  

The best practices of “capitalization thresholds for capital assets” document, as provided by the Auditor, was reviewed and clarified. Director Hayhurst motioned to approve and implement the best practices, as is the standard accepted practice, and as was recommended by the auditor; motion to be adopted retroactively to July 1, 2016 and going forward. Director Stapp seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

Discussion about water conservation was skipped, but will be added to the agenda again in October.

Director Stapp presented the safety review report. Director Schendel motioned to accept the report as presented. Director Low seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. The secretary will mail the approved and signed report to SDRMA as usual.

The general manager reported having another very busy month that required her to work additional hours to finish just the most urgent things. The auditor’s assistant, Jesse, had been at the office on Tuesday 8/8 to complete several hours of field work/sampling. She also continued to meet with Deb, the accountant, several times to finish up more accounting work that the auditor requested be done. She had purchased and installed a new Microsoft Office program for the new computer. Using the program now requires that it be renewed by paid subscription annually. She had been to the bank, and provided them with a copy of the approved minutes necessary to remove a former Director (Wilkey) from the signature card and add new Director, Gene Low, to the account. He will stop by the bank to sign and finalize that paperwork. Finally, she requested some direction on exactly how much money the Board wanted her to move from Savings to Checking, so the large check she will be writing to pay the deposit towards the new shade structures will be covered. Director Hayhurst motioned that the secretary transfer $50,000. Director Schendel seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. The Directors will stay briefly to take their annual “group photo” after the meeting adjourns.

President Jacobs asked if there were any directors’ reports. Director Stapp thanked the board for finally approving the shade cover project and promised to keep everyone updated on its progress. President Jacobs reported that he had a conversation with a golden state water company employee working near his home recently. He was told that they now have the permit required to put a new water tank in at the top of the Heights (near the radio tower), so its construction and the removal of the old water tower located in front of the district office building is that much closer to happening.

President Jacobs asked the secretary if there were any additional bills to be presented. She indicated that there were none. Director Low motioned to pay all the bills, as presented. Director Stapp seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

There was no new business to address and no executive session requested. The next regular meeting was scheduled for Monday, September 25th at 6:00 PM. The meeting adjourned at 7:13 PM.

Submitted by:
Jen Rubio
Secretary/General Manager