Castle Pines North Master Association Approved Minutes for August, 2001

President Linda Nuzum called the August 16, 2001 meeting of the CPN Master Association Board of Directors to order at 7:10 p.m. Introductions of all in attendance were made. A quorum was established. Agenda order revised to put Parks Authority report by Tom Anderson first. Eva Mitchell made a motion to accept the Agenda; Cheryl McDade seconded; motion approved and carried.

 

Attendance
Directors present: Eva Mitchell, Linda Nuzum, Todd Swift, Jim Beimers, Royann Cygan and Cheryl McDade
Directors absent: Matt Osborn
Delegates/ Representatives present: Maureen Shul and Sheri Brummett
Delegates/ Representatives absent: Tres Thurston, Joyce Romanello, Tom Olive and Darwin Horan, Kim Nelson, Kyle Linhardt
Staff/Committees: Linda Derback
Guests: Tom Anderson (CPN Metro District and Parks Authority); Tim Gamble, John Torres, Gaylen Crowder, Sondra Willis, and Marshall Willis (all from HOA1), and Janet Moore (Hidden Pointe)

Approval of Minutes
Mitchell made a motion to accept the July 19th minutes; Swift seconded; motion approved and carried.

Open Forum
No discussion.

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Committees:

A. Parks Authority:

Tom Anderson, outgoing Manager of the CPN Metro District and President of the Parks Authority, gave a detailed report on the Parks Authority's present and future endeavors, and discussed questions with Master Association members and meeting guests.

Coyote Ridge Park is growing by the minute and will be ready to host the August 25 picnic, although several park amenities will not be completed until after the picnic. Park construction costs will come in under budget due to donations and cash-in-lieu services provided by DR Horton that far exceeds the cash payment that DR Horton was obligated to make.

Now that Coyote Ridge Park is getting off the ground, the Parks Authority is starting to look into the second park that had been in the Authority's plans, a "South Park" in the vicinity of the CPN Community Center. Several things are coming together that could make it feasible to pursue this park sooner than had been expected, including funds remaining from the construction budget for Coyote Ridge Park (since many items were donated), parks fees from new commercial development in the area (such as the Safeway), and the Metro District's contract to acquire 4.3 Acres to be dedicated as a condition of providing water and sewer service to the King Soopers development.

Anderson presented a concept-plan showing a possible layout of a new South Park, including ball fields, a play area, and possibly a recreation center. To avoid traffic impacts on surrounding neighborhoods, access would be provided at the new intersection on Castle Pines Parkway that will be built for the King Soopers, and a parking lot would be located in the center of the park area.

Anderson has begun research on the feasibility of building a recreation center with the amenities that received the greatest support in last year's community survey, including indoor pools (one oriented to adult swim, another oriented to kids, with a slide), weight and exercise rooms, and a running track. It may be possible to design the building to incorporate a climbing wall and doors to provide "open air" to the indoor swimming pool area. Anderson then provided a preliminary estimate of the costs and financing options for this type of recreation center. These numbers will need to be refined in the future. He has researched the cost of similar recreation centers built in the metro area. Construction costs could be financed by using a type of bond known as a "Certificate of Participation (COP)." Essentially, the "COP" would be a "mortgage," secured by the recreation center property. While it would require a committed revenue stream from homeowners to make the payments, this type of financing is NOT a General Obligation Bond that would put homeowners in the area personally at risk to pay the debt in the event of a default on the payments.

Anderson noted that the CPN Metro District's financial condition has improved, with tap fees and increased tax base due to the new homes and commercial development in the area. The Metro District is not allowed to use the increased income to finance a recreation center, however it would be possible that the Metro District's Board could reduce the taxes paid toward debt-service when they set the 2002 tax rates in December 2001 (perhaps in the range of $400 to $500 per year savings on a $300,000 home), then a portion of each homeowners' tax savings could be used to offset higher Master Association dues that would provide the revenue to pay off the COP. Anderson presented preliminary calculations that the recreation-center could be financed through raising Master HOA dues by $115 per year (to a total of $215 per year), with an additional "rec center membership" fee for those who wished to use the facility of perhaps $10-15 per month.

Metro District operating funds would also be used for the recreation center, so residents of Hidden Pointe, which is not in the Metro District boundary (and do not pay Metro District operating fund taxes), would follow their agreement with the Metro District, which requires that they pay 125% of any usage fees that are paid by Metro District taxpayers. Residents of areas that are outside of both the Master Association and the Metro District could purchase an "outside membership" for a higher fee, which would need to be determined. Discussion that much more information must be gathered before a final decision can be made whether to pursue construction of a recreation center, including more detailed plans and cost estimates for building the center, operating costs, and financing arrangements. Anderson stated that before the Parks Authority invests effort into pursuing these items, they need to know whether the Master Association supports the concept of a community recreation center, and is committed to raising Master Association dues to provide the revenue stream that is needed to obtain the COP funding. If the Master Association can provide the commitment in principle at the next meeting, and acts to raise dues effective for the 2002 calendar year, the Parks Authority can pursue the planning work that needs to be done, and a decision about construction could be made by spring/ early summer 2002.

Discussion that while the Master Association Bylaws allow the Board to assess higher dues, up to an amount that is adjusted for inflation each year (for 2002, it is expected to be approximately $215), and that additional dues can be approved by a vote of the Delegates. Discussion that any consideration of a dues increase could be made contingent on a variety of factors, such as the Metro District's taxes being lowered as discussed, and the additional dues could be refunded if there is no decision to build the center.

Several Master Association members stated that their conversations with neighbors have shown strong support for the concept of building a community recreation center; Nuzum noted that she had discussed the plan at the HOA2 meeting on Tuesday night and all in attendance supported it. Discussion that the Master Association's consideration of this topic should not be "rushed," that it should involve public notice and should be discussed at the Annual Meeting on November 8, 2001.

Master Association representatives were charged with going to their neighborhood associations to discuss the plan, and bring feedback to the next monthly meeting, where we will determine next steps.

B. Development & Design Review:

Safeway Mitchell reported that the County approval process for the Safeway development is completed. Construction has begun, and the developer is targeting an opening date in Fall or Winter.

King Soopers Mitchell reported that the King Soopers developer hopes to break ground in about 4 weeks with a target opening in April 2002. Plans were approved by the County Commissioners on August 8, 2001, subject to two conditions, both of them related to parks improvements in CPN.

BP Amoco - SP00-012 Mitchell reported that the BP Amoco made many of the improvements we asked for. Some issues, such as lighting, remain. The Board supported the comments and Mitchell is to compare notes with Charter Oaks and submit joint comments to the County.

Sprint Cell Phone Equipment Referral - SP01-074 - due 8-24-01 Mitchell made a motion to approve the antennae inside the tower and some ground equipment to be installed; Beimers seconded, motion passed and carried.

C. Action Committees:
Daniel's Park Road Nuzum reported that work on paving Daniel's Park Road (the 1.5 mile section north of the existing paving) should start at the end of the month.

Roads/Traffic Cygan will call Larry Corcoran at Douglas County to get the current status of the traffic signals that were to have been installed by August 2001.

Schools There is no change to the previous report at this time. A professional study is being done to determine if the school building site is affected by magnetic fields. The report has not come back as of yet. Laura Kennedy continues to be very active in this issue. The next step is contingent on the report in the next few weeks to a month. Once the study report has been finalized, the committee will get together with Reimer to reassess.

Telecommunications Update on new options for high-speed internet access for the community: Todd Swift reported that he has not heard back from AirBlaster about beginning service. Nuzum reported that she has heard nothing further from MHO.net, which had called earlier in the summer about the potential to serve the CPN area (they were planning to serve Castle Pines Village and looking at adding CPN at the same time). Dick Lichtenheld indicated that Qwest has requested an additional easement from HOA1 for wired DSL service, and that some HOA1 residents have installed this service.

D. Parks Authority:
(Parks Authority issues not discussed earlier in the meeting) Royann Cygan reported that the Parks Authority approved up to $2000 to fund expenses for the August 25 picnic that are related to the Grand Opening ceremony, including food for the dignitaries invited to the Grand Opening, or expenses for facilities needed for the picnic that will not be completed by the date of the event (such as porta-potties). Cygan also noted that plans are proceeding for the October 15 Golf Tournament fundraiser. Post cards are being worked on to communicate the preliminary details on the Golf Tournament to the community.

E. Metro District:
Cheryl McDade reported that Judy Dahl is the new manager. Seven candidates were interview and 2 finalists were selected. They felt Dahl had the best experience; her previous job has been Manager of the Green Mountain Metro District (western Denver suburban area). She will start on Monday.

F. Social Events:
Cygan reported on preparations for the August 25 annual picnic and Grand Opening celebration for the new Coyote Ridge Park. The park is coming together and there will be a walk thru for picnic logistical preparations on Tuesday p.m. The deadline for purchase of food tickets is Monday, August 20th, so that the caterer can prepare the right quantity of food. Swift made a motion to authorize Cygan and McDade to work out how much overage to order; Mitchell seconded; motion approved and carried.

G. Newsletter/Website:
The next quarterly newsletter will be published in October. Due to the late hour of the meeting, further discussion of newsletter and web site was deferred to the next meeting.

Old Business:

New Business:
A. Director/Delegate vacancies Tom Olive and Matt Osborn have informed Linda Derback that they wish to resign; she will obtain official letters of resignation from them, and contact the Village Homes HOA to name new delegates. At the next meeting, the Master Association will vote to fill the Director position vacated by Osborn's resignation. Delegates should state whether they wish to be considered for the Director position.

B. Master Association Annual Meeting Preparation. The Master Association's Annual Meeting will be November 8, 2001, at 7:00 pm. Legal notice must be given to each Delegate District, which must certify their delegate and the number of votes they are responsible for; we will ask that these letters be returned by the October 18 Master Association meeting. The Fall newsletter will also include notice of the Annual Meeting. In addition to the annual election of Directors, the subject of the possible Recreation Center will be on the agenda.

C. Airport Traffic Patterns CPN residents have reported that it appears that air traffic is being re-routed over the community. Maureen Shul will investigate whether this is a temporary change (perhaps weather-related) or a longer-term adjustment to air traffic routes that we would need to address.

D. Crime reports Mitchell reported that there have been some incidents of car thefts in CPN. Residents should be notified to secure their cars and valuables; notice will be posted on the web site, email News Alert, and the Fall Newsletter. We may also want to have a Sheriff's representative attend the Annual meeting to discuss this topic, and neighborhood watch programs, etc.

E. Door to Door Solicitations Mitchell asked that the Master Association post "No Solicitors" signs at the entrance to the CPN community. Due to the late hour of the meeting, discussion on this item was deferred to the next month.

Management/Financial:
A. Financial Report McDade reported on the financials. Beimers made a motion to accept the financials; Mitchell seconded; motion approved and carried. McDade reported that the Annual Dues statements will be going out within the next week, with a return stub on the bottom to obtain email addresses and to determine the number of kids, by age, to help in determining the numbers for the school projections. McDade reported there were 55 closings in July: 42 new homes, 12 resales, and 1 lot. We now have 1,915 occupied homes.

Adjournment:
McDade made a motion to adjourn at 11:10 p.m.; Swift seconded; motion approved and carried. The next meeting will be held on September 20th at the Community Center at 7 p.m.

Respectfully submitted, Linda Derback, Recording Secretary