DAMMERON VALLEY LANDOWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC.
1137 Dammeron Valley Drive East Telephone/Fax (435) 574-6397
Draft Minutes of the Monthly DVLA Board Meeting of March 26, 2013
The monthly DVLA Board Meeting was held at the Fire House. Thirteen landowners were in attendance.
Board Members attending: Bill King, Terry Taylor, Jim Johnson, and Mac Thomson
Absent: Julie Cropper
President Bill King called the monthly board meeting of the Dammeron Valley Landowners’ Association to order at 7:00 p.m.
1. Approval of the agenda:
A MOTION WAS MADE by Jim Johnson and SECONDED by Terry Taylor that the agenda be approved. Motion carried.
2. Review & approval of the minutes of the February 26, 2013, monthly DVLA Board meeting and the March 12, 2013, special DVLA Board meeting:
Jim Johnson MADE A MOTION that the minutes for the February 26, 2013, monthly DVLA Board meeting and the March 12, 2013, special DVLA Board meeting be approved. The motion was SECONDED by Terry Taylor, and the motion carried. It was noted that Chief Szczerbiak’s comment in the February 26, 2013, minutes, page 2, paragraph b, line 2, “Two more volunteers were hired” is changed to “Two more volunteers were added”.
3. New Business: None proposed.
4. Old Business:
a. Update on complaint by Jill Petersen regarding flooding problem
Kurt Gardner has not yet responded to inquiries regarding the flooding issues.
b. Ongoing discussion regarding the Special Service District Dammeron Valley Fire Department
There was a question as to whether rescue services had been included in the SSD resolution since it had not been included in the name of the SSD. Resolution number
R-2013-1701 does include rescue service in its definition.
c. Ongoing preparations for the May, 2013, annual meeting
A meeting to mail out the annual meeting packets is set for 6 p.m. at the fire house on Tuesday evening, April 9, 2013. We are sending out the information that is currently available. Since there is so much that cannot be included at this time, we are requesting those who are not going to be present at the meeting to mail their proxies to a landowner in good standing who will be available to vote in person, following meeting updates on all relative issues.
The following gift certificates were brought in by Ken and Sheri Mandell for the raffles to be held at the annual meeting: $15 - Riggatti’s Wood Fired Pizza; $50 – Seven Wive’s Inn Bed and Breakfast; $70 - Main Street Antiques; One pie of your choice – Veyo Pies; One free oil change for Chevrolet only at Stephen Wade; One free oil change for Chevrolet only at Stephen Wade. The two certificates from Riggatti’s Wood Fired Pizza and Veyo Pies were donated directly by the business establishments, and the other four were donated by the Mandell’s.
Mac Thomson MADE A MOTION and Terry Taylor SECONDED THE MOTION that $100 also be made available for a raffle to be drawn for a member in good standing that is in attendance at the annual meeting. The motion carried.
An appreciation plaque was shown to those in attendance; it is the intention of the members of the board that this plaque be presented during the annual meeting and later be hung in the fire house, with the permission of the recipients.
A notice will be included in the annual meeting packet requesting contact information for reverse 911 use and for inclusion in the Dammeron Valley telephone list.
d. Continuing discussion on the proposed 2013-14 annual budget - Nothing further presented.
5. Reports:
a. President’s message – Bill King
Volunteers are needed for the mail-out meeting on April 9 at 6:00 p.m. and during the morning of the annual meeting.
b. Fire Department Report – Chief Maciej Szczerbiak
Due to health issues, Assistant Fire Chief Jay Workman is going to be performing minimum administrative duties as an Assistant Fire Chief. Kevin Dye will take over the command duties as an Assistant Fire Chief, and Don Wallace will be trained to cover all state and local EMS administrative duties and responsibilities.
The vehicle inspection has been scheduled by Washington County Fire for April 7 in order to complete DVFDSSD cooperative rate agreement with them.
Wild-land certification is progressing with the rest of DVFF; certification is scheduled for April 20. The Dammeron Valley firefighters are participating in the annual SUWETC (the Southern Utah Wild-land Engine Training Course) on April 12-13 in St. George with Brush 13-3 and Brush 13-4. The annual extrication class was completed last weekend with two cars which were donated and one which was purchased by the fire department.
Since February 26, there have been a total of ten EMS emergencies, including two citizen assists and one traffic incident involving a bicycle race on Veyo bridge. (The drop from the bridge is approximately 180 feet – 18 stories – and additional rope will need to be purchased in order to accommodate rescue from the bridge.) This is one of the most dangerous locations to which the firefighters must respond.
Regarding fire emergencies, there was one illegal burn on North Canyon Trails Drive. From October to June 2, as a fire officer, Chief Szczerbiak can issue a burn permit on a burn day within the unincorporated area of Dammeron Valley; the burn permit entitles a landowner to burn debris that is collected into a designated area. That burn area must be thirty feet away from any structures, with the wind being no more than ten miles per hour. It is a class B misdemeanor to violate county law, and an illegal burn carries a $2700 fine; the responsible person also has to cover the cost of the fire suppression ($308 per hour for the fire engine, plus cost of the crew). Chief Szczerbiak will post information regarding burn permits and permit fines for violations on the neighborhood e-mail and have a notice available to pass out at the annual meeting.
$7,900 was received in grant monies from the state during the past month and is available for use. Ninety percent of the firefighter equipment has been found to be obsolete and cannot be restored to use, as previously planned. This is one area that will need to be adjusted in the upcoming budget.
In response to a question from a landowner, Chief Szczerbiak indicated that a landowner can burn in a fire pit, without a burn permit, until June 2, as long as that pit does not exceed four feet in diameter, is surrounded by rocks, etc. and is not used to burn trash or other debris (recreational purpose use).
Chief Szczerbiak was asked if he could secure some signage for the fire season from the state, BLM, or the forest service to be used at the four entrances, similar to those that have been secured from previous years.
c. Financial Report – Carol Clason
The landowners’ list has been secured from the County Recorder’s office and is being compared with our list for the annual meeting mailing in April. A notice is going out in the annual meeting packet asking those landowners who want their listing to appear differently than it is on the county’s list to let us know before our telephone list is published during the middle of May.
Regarding the financial statements, line 3.0 on the “budget-versus-year-to-date expense” sheet lists the $7,960.00 in grant monies that was received by the fire department from the state during the month of March. Also on line 11.0 the late fees of $6,841.00 collected since July 1, 2012, is listed. Of the $21, 396.00 owed on July 1, 2012, for the years 2008 through 2012, (including late fees and lien fees) we now have $6,926.00 in dues owing. For the almost $15,000.00 that was collected, the attorney fees were paid by the landowners who were delinquent in their dues and cost the membership nothing in legal fees.
d. Committee Updates:
i. Finance – Terry Taylor
Comparison between the on-line bank statements and the financial statements submitted in tonight’s financial report indicates that all bank account balances match the financial statements once an outstanding check for $80.00 written to J.P. Pest Control is deducted from the U.S. Bank fire department operating bank account. Jim Johnson MADE A MOTION that the financial reports be approved; Terry Taylor SECONDED THE MOTION, and the motion carried.
ii. Public Safety – Mac Thomson
County personnel completed a survey at the intersection of Wild Herb Drive and Orchard Drive, cleared the vegetation, and created a good line-sight visibility at this corner. Matt Pace has been contacted regarding help in replacing a wooden sprinkler box cover that continues to deteriorate and create a hazard in the surrounding area.
iii. Social/Insurance – Jim Johnson
No report submitted.
iv. Architectural Review - Gary Jensen
Two projects were submitted to the architectural review committee during the previous month – one for an RV storage garage and one for a pool block wall. The first project was approved; the block wall was denied as it fell under the definition of a privacy fence, and the landowner was referred to the board for an appeal of the decision.
v. Public Properties – Julie Cropper
No report submitted.
6. Comment and discussion by landowners:
Written comments submitted by Amanda Ballif, who was unable to be present this evening, are summarized as follows: I would like the DVLA board members to know I am grateful for the privacy fence variance that was issued to my neighbor during the October 30, 2012, monthly board meeting. I was not aware a variance had been approved until it came up in a recent telephone conversation. The minutes for the meeting indicated that the fence was installed due to issues between my children and the neighbor’s dogs. I would like to state that said issues were between our livestock and animals (not our children), and the neighbor’s dogs. The privacy fence has made life in our yard not only more likely, but more peaceful.
One landowner indicated that there is a street sign missing at the corner of Dammeron Valley Drive West and Old Farms Road.
7. Adjournment:
A MOTION WAS MADE by Mac Thomson and SECONDED by Terry Taylor to adjourn the meeting. The meeting adjourned at 8:00 p.m.
