FICRA SPECIAL BOARD MEETING
October 18, 2011
All board members were present.
President, Lynne Goodwin opened the meeting at 7:00 with the pledge of allegiance.
Minutes from the Oct. 6 meeting were read and approved.
Presidents report:
• Mike Gresie, a local business man, has made and donated two large banners for FICRA.
• The Casper Babypants concert was sold out, great fun, and brought in money for FICRA.
• The decorated pumpkin contest will be Saturday, Oct. 29. Pumpkins should be dropped off at NCC at 4:00 for judging; the party will start at 5:00.
• The newsletter will come out mid-November. Deadline is Oct. 28. There will be a folding party announced on the website to save the $100 charge.
• The purpose of the special meeting is to talk about building maintenance and Crime Watch.
Treasurer’s report:
Mimi noted no change from the report of Oct. 6.
Max reported that the Baby Pants Concert brought in $1200, less expenses giving us $800.
Building Maintenance:
1) Oil Spill:
Lynne explained that we are getting everything in order to submit our final claim to Traveler’s Insurance. Tony explained that the insurance claim was limited to $25,000. With Tom Purvis and Bob Bowser either donating time or giving a reduced rate we will come in at or below that amount. There were some early expenses that he is trying to nail down. We got a good deal on the dirt (80 yards) thanks to Safeway’s construction. The report of the spill has been sent from the county to the state. Tony is preparing to send the report to the insurance company, and feels confident that it will all work out. Max noted that Bob Bowser recommends that a contingency be set aside within the $25,000 in case we are required to remove the small amount of oil that remains. We are working on finalizing the breakdown of the expenses of the project. Roughly it is:
$3500 – backhoe work
$5500 – disposal of contaminated dirt
$1600 – trucking
$2700 – engineering
$1300-1500 – lab
$1100 – fill
$ 900 – final reporting
$4200 – contingency
$1500 – earlier costs
Some of this was covered by the $11,000 we received up-front from Travelers.
Because of two graffiti incidences, the oil spill, and the roof damage our insurance was cancelled. The new insurance is also through Tom Taylor’s agency with Griffin Underwriting in Bellevue.
2) Oil delivery contract and maintenance contract.
• Tony explained that there are new lines from the tank to the furnace; the lines are now protected; there will be a protective enclosure around the tank; the furnace is working well. He feels that we need a contract for annual maintenance. One company in Kent gave a cost of $191 annually; Dana Heating in Gig Harbor will cost $161 annually but needs a 2 year contract. Tony recommends Dana Heating because they are reliable and local.
• For oil delivery Tony recommends Conan Oil, a Gig Harbor company. Bob Bowser recommends keeping the tank full to reduce condensation. We have a 650 gallon tank which has 150 gallons in it now. We need to fill it soon. He estimates that we use 600 to 800 gallons a year. Phil Craven will check on oil prices and watch for a low point to order a fill. Tony recommends that we have a ‘keep full program’ with Conan to spread out the expense and get a better price break.
Mimi moved, Max seconded, to have Dana maintain the furnace, and Conan Oil supply the oil. Motion passed.
3) Drainage.
• Downspout drainage seems to be effective after checking during the big rainstorms of late. The lines were either plugged or were going directly into the ground. The cost as Tom Purvis estimated was $1400 not counting all the time and material Tom donated.
• The vents on the south side are below grade and need to be corrected. Max, Tom and Tony will work to solve the problem. There needs to be more work around the building to vent the basement and allow more circulation.
• There was talk of laying plastic over the dirt in the crawl space.
4) Insulation
• Tony explained what has been learned about insulating walls: drilling holes around building then repairing the walls. There is also the situation of plaster walls absorbing heat making it harder to heat the air. Because the furnace is working well now in heating the building, he would like to shelve the idea of spending $5000 to insulate the walls.
• He would like to insulate the crawl space, pipes, and floors for about $5000. Batting would be R-30. Square footage is 4400 square feet.
• Bob Bowser recommends electric supplemental heaters. These would also help keep floors dry. Tony found some for $250, but is not recommending purchase yet.
• Question about covering registers when entire building is not in use. It is not a problem to cover some of the registers in unused rooms, but not all. It was suggested that some lightweight covers be made to easily cover them.
5) Dave Harrington has done the insulation around doors and has estimates for the ‘shoes’ for the doors.
6) John Jolibois volunteered to clear the blackberries around the firepit.
7) Cleaning.
Jean brought up the question of having cleaning done more than once a month. After discussion it was decided to go over what needs attention regularly and what needs to be cleaned more periodically, and have the cleaning service deep clean once a month after the Monthly Market, and lightly clean once a month. Once a year have him clean lights and other detail cleaning.
Question about each user cleaning up after an event and taking garbage away. Signs have been placed around telling where things go, but they have not always been followed. Lynne has also made a binder with instructions for users which is helpful.
Jean will talk with the janitor about what he find when he arrives; what an extra trip cost would cost. FICRA needs to talk to groups that use the building. A sign is needed in kitchen to remind people to remove garbage. It was pointed out that removing a plastic liner with one piece of paper in it is wasteful. Lynne wants to eventually have a recycling bin for paper.
Possibility of charging an extra fee to users for cleaning was discussed.
8) Work is being done on the grounds to revise the garden beds in front.
With the coyote situation on the island, FICRA has arranged to have a forum with Tammy Schmidt of the Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Matt Stevens with the US Department of Agriculture, to be held at 7:00 on November 15, to learn how we can better live with the wildlife in the area, and when control methods are recommended. This is a strictly educational forum to learn more about coyotes. FICRA wants to provide residents with the knowledge to make good decisions.
CRIME WATCH:
Lynne asked Stan Weston to share information on the Crime Watch program. He related that in the last eight years he has only had one complaint about the program.
• Each Pierce County Deputy patrol sends Stan an email report once a week on a regular basis. Stan agreed to email the report to Max to post on FICRA.org. Mimi gets a bill for $135 each time the PC Deputies conduct a patrol, as well as bills for the Citizens Patrol to cover gas.
• The volunteer Island patrol uses 5 or 6 volunteers to patrol on a random basis, driving 30 miles:
o Ray Kittelberger watches NCC grounds.
o Joe Montgomery
o Kent Holder
o Ted Cristolph
o Tony Larx
o Jerry Welch
Most attend monthly meetings on the 2nd Thursdays with Officer Emily Watson, and sometimes a deputy, to explain Washington law.
• The main purpose of Crime Watch is to reduce crime on the island. They started with a Neighborhood Watch Program with the county, and a Safe Streets programs, then started Citizens Patrol, which is usually sponsored by a county, but Pierce County wouldn’t do it. Since Crime Watch was started, four drug houses were removed from the island and criminal acts in general are down.
Lynne thanked Stan for starting Crime Watch and keeping it going for the benefit of all on the island. She stressed that FICRA wants to make sure that the lines of communication between Crime Watch and FICRA are open and working well.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:45.
Respectfully submitted,
Jean Peterson, Sec.
After the meeting Tony Moore moved to go into Executive Session. It was seconded and passed.