During their Aug. 8 meeting, the WCA Board considered several facilities proposals and set budget workshop dates.
Coach Patrick Piper of Pipeline Swimming took the floor at to ask the WCA board to consider reinstating a masters swim program at the Countryway pool. Several residents have requested the return of the program, he explained, because they are currently traveling outside of Westchase to train.
President Shawn Yesner commented that the WCA stopped hosting masters swim a few years ago due to low participation. Participants were not signing in as they were supposed to, countered Piper, which meant that the program appeared less popular than it was.
Piper said the program used to be held from 5 to 7 a.m., when the pool wasn’t being used by anyone else, and he’d like to use the pool during the same hours. His coaches are all trained and certified lifeguards and he carries all of the necessary insurance to support a masters swim program, he added.
Board Member Michiel Oostenbrink asked whether the program would be open solely to Westchase residents. The swim team is 71% residential, Piper responded, and he guessed the masters program would have a similar makeup. Board Member Jack Maurer questioned whether it was fee-based. Participants previously paid $50 per month, and a percentage of that was given to the WCA, said Piper.
Before the board makes a decision, the Swim & Tennis Committee should do a deeper dive into the pros and cons, suggested Board Member Terry Boyd. A resident asked for clarification of program eligibility, and Piper said it would be open to swimmers aged 18 and older of any skill level. The board agreed to allow the S&T Committee to further investigate the matter.
Oostenbrink began his treasurer’s report by sharing that he had received the association’s June financials, but was still waiting for July’s. Association Manager Debbie Sainz has put most of the budget together for the coming fiscal year, he continued. They had been waiting to finalize numbers until the reserve study came in, and it didn’t arrive until August 6, he said.
He and Sainz plan to meet the week of August 19 to compare notes on the budget, and they have tentatively scheduled a meeting with Ledian Muhametaj, GPI’s vice president of accounting services, on August 23, Oostenbrink stated. The board’s budget workshop will be held on August 26, and the VMs will hold theirs at 6 pm on August 29. The board will meet on September 5 to approve the budget.
Government Affairs Committee Chair Rick Goldstein said he had scheduled a meeting about the recent sign installation and curb painting in West Park Village that was done to enable emergency vehicles to more safely access residences there. Seventeen residents came to express their concerns about the work that had been done, he added. Goldstein planned to meet with the fire marshal on August 14, and told his fellow board members that the Department of Public Works was going to reassess the situation.
Oostenbrink asked whether the signs, some of which were placed directly in front of homes, could be repositioned so as not to interfere with their appearance. Goldstein said he would ask the fire marshal. Committee Member Dale Sells said that after the signs’ positions were finalized, the CDD would replace the posts so they matched the others in the neighborhood.
This issue is a symptom of a larger problem, which is the way in which the community disseminates vital information to its residents, Goldstein posited. He said he had discussed the matter with Karen Ring, editor of the World of Westchase magazine, and Sonny Whyte, the Westchase CDD office manager, and they hoped to work together to improve residents’ awareness of action items that would directly impact them.
Goldstein then asked whether the board wanted to engage the GAC to potentially challenge some of the state laws impacting homeowners’ associations that went into effect on July 1. The board members briefly discussed the matter and agreed that they did not wish to do so.
The Modifications Committee sought to appoint a new architect, Tampa Bay Designs, said Yesner. Oostenbrink moved to approve the measure, and all board members present voted in favor of it. Michele DelSordo was absent.
Dan Haigy, chair of the S&T Committee, told the board that one of the three neutral committee members had resigned. He asked the board to appoint Kristen DeAngelo to the vacant position. Boyd made a motion to do so, and it passed unanimously.
Prior to the meeting, Haigy had submitted the committee’s detailed analysis of the options available to address the possible replacement of the Westchase facilities’ lighting. He summarized the report, saying that committee members voted to partner with Future Energy Solutions (FES) to replace the current lights with LEDs. Boyd, who is also a member of the S&T Committee, made a motion to ask FES to conduct a routine assessment of the community’s lights, and, subject to board review, to allow the lighting company to move forward with its proposal to prepare a contract. The motion passed, 6-0.
Facilities Manager Dwight Kilgore was not present to provide his monthly report. Haigy shared that the S&T committee hopes to better use the pickleball courts by changing the length of reservations from two hours to one-and-a-half hours during peak playing time. He added that they also wanted to open the courts at 7 am on Saturday and Sunday. Yesner noted that the change in opening hours required board approval, but that reservation times fell under Kilgore’s domain.
Sainz pointed out that the rules state that “reservations are on a first-come, first-served basis for a maximum of two-hour intervals.” Boyd moved to temporarily open the pickleball and tennis courts at 7 a.m. on the weekends, with the change going into effect as soon as Kilgore could staff the additional hours. The motion passed unanimously.
Haigy expressed concern that staff members weren’t universally applying the lightning policy, which he claimed is stricter than others in the area. Yesner said that facility rules dictate that if lightning strikes within six miles (based upon the WeatherBug app), staff will shut down facilities for thirty minutes; a subsequent strike will restart the thirty-minute clock. The current rules are based upon the Red Cross standard, added Eric Holt.
Yesner reminded the board that they had tabled Kilgore’s proposal to provide staff with merit increases and asked whether they wanted to address it. Oostenbrink said that any changes needed to be a part of the overall budget discussion, along with the impact of September’s minimum wage increase. Maurer suggested that they also table their evaluation of proposals to repair the activity room door because the bids were so far-ranging and Kilgore was not present. The board agreed to continue both matters.
Sainz began her manager’s report by sharing that the WCA must now provide members with digital copies of the covenants and all rules and regulations, based upon recent changes in state law. She said she planned to do a mass email to all residents who had signed up for virtual notifications and would send a postcard with a link to the online documents to those who hadn’t.
Dechlorination of the West Park Village pool was scheduled to begin on August 12, and pool deck repairs should begin on August 19, she reported. Sainz told the board that she sent a list of association documents to legal counsel to determine which records could be destroyed, and they responded that she could safely dispose of sixteen boxes. Maurer stated that he didn’t want records from previous contractors and subcontractors to be shredded. Yesner moved to destroy all the boxes that legal counsel slated for shredding, with the exception of those that Maurer deemed important. The motion passed unanimously.
The current auditor contract goes through 2024, and Yesner asked whether the board wanted to commit to a new contract for the next three years at a slightly increased rate. Oostenbrink made a motion to approve the new contract, and all board members present voted in favor of it.
