Community

HOA Board Meeting Minutes 

May 3rd, 2025 at 10:00 am 

7961 W Golf Course Dr. 

Board Members in Attendance / Quorum Established: Myra Whiting (President), Jan Bergman (Vice President), Donna Chavarro (Secretary) Craig Mancuso (Treasurer) Richard Drath (Assistant Officer) and LaVonne Kranz (Member at Large)

President’s Welcome – Myra

• Everyone took a moment to introduce themselves, to the residents in attendance, as to what positions and which committees they hold.

The 2024-2025 HOA Board: 

• Myra Whiting – President (P) & Design Control Committee 

• Jan Bergman – Vice President (VP) & Grounds & Maintenance Committee 

• Donna Chavarro – Secretary (S) & Covenant Committee 

• Craig Mancuso – Treasurer (T) & Budget & Finance Committee 

• LaVonne Kranz – Member at Large (MaL) & Covenant Committee / Advisory Committee 

• Richard Drath – Assistant Officer (AO) & Design Control Committee / Advisory Committee 

• The residents in attendance took a moment to introduce themselves to the Board and each other. 

Open Meeting – Myra (P) 

• Initial proof of notice of meeting and the meeting agenda was posted on Sea Links website April 29th, 2025 
• Called to order at 10:01 am – Myra (P) motioned – Donna (S) second it. 
• 12 residents attended. 
• Board approved the minutes from the last meeting through emails and it was posted on April 20th, 2025. 

Secretary Report – Donna (S) 

• Website: Donna and Myra are planning to meet with Brian next week to work on what exactly needs to be updated on the website to make it more user friendly and easier for residents to find important information. The website needs to be cleaned up and de-cluttered. We will put something in writing for Brian that reflects the clear delineation of authority, service level expectations and measures of success; so that we can prioritize the changes and additions that the Board would like to see happen. 
• Gate: The front gate is set up for residents to have a 4 digit code that opens the gate, and a 3 digit code that visitors can use to get buzzed in. 
• Donna is still troubleshooting the front gate’s 3 digit code as it was not working with her cell phone number, nor that of another resident. The gate box gave an error message that the long distance number was not supported. She spoke to the DoorKing rep in Bellingham and found out earlier that we can use long distance phone numbers (like for a cell phone) as we are already set up for over 200 long distance area codes. Next step is to reach out to her phone provider and see if the issue is on the provider’s end and not our end.
• Any work on the gate codes needs to be done at off peak times (after hours) as it keeps the gate from functioning when the programming is taking effect.
• Donna wants to make sure our gate code list is complete and up to date with today’s resident list – and delete OLD codes for those that have moved away. She will confer with Kathy on the new residents that are moving into Sea Links.

Treasurer Report – Craig (T)

• HostGator – Craig fixed our HostGator account -that is in charge of our website. He updated it as it had the names of prior Board members. He renewed it for 3 years as it is a minimal transaction to maintain the site.
• Bank Accounts – We have 3 – Certificate of Deposit, Business Checking and Money Market – Craig moved some money around to get the better interest. He moved $23,000 from the checking to the money market as we only had a couple of large expenses: $5,000 to Earthworks and $1,700 to Gateway Controls.
• Tax Liability – We only owed the IRS $2,600 on the interest we earned on our accounts. We paid it and are all set.
• Executive Session – Myra asked the residents to step outside while the Board broke into a quick Executive Session to discuss the HOA Dues. When they returned to the meeting, Craig gave them a brief description that we were looking at the status of dues (A/R – accounts receivable report) and will send letters to those that are in the rears with their mailed invoices.

Covenant Committee – LaVonne (MaL)

• LaVonne visited those residents personally that were in Violation of the Covenants to let them know what needed fixing. Then she follows it up with the compliance letter if they have not made the necessary fixes.
• We also mentioned the home made weed killer that you can make to help kill the weeds in your yard. Thanks to Brian for the recipe! Weed Killer: 4 Cups Vinegar, ½ Cup Epsom Salt, 2 tsp. Dawn dish soap or Castille soap.

Maintenance Committee – Jan (VP)

• Trees: After we lost a large ornamental plum tree on Sea Links drive, the task of caring for the trees was removed from our lawn service and given to Earthworks. The trees that were wobbly were staked to help hold them up – thanks, Gene.
• Gate: The front gate was not working properly. Gateway Controls fixed it.
• Mowing: The corner lot, near the swamp, sold and is not our responsibility to mow anymore – that saves us $50 a month. 
• Paving: The tentative start date for paving is May 19th. We will follow up to notify residents in more detail. There are 4 main projects: Wedgewood, Sawgrass, and the Front & Back Gate.
• Drainage: We hired Mike Price (a Licensed Engineering Geologist) to do a “Groundwater Drainage Assessment”. He evaluated the 8 areas – with high to low status. Regarding the Golf Course – Ironborn has been receptive and willing to help get it done.
• Stop Signs: Thanks again, Gene! Gene fixed the stop sign at the end of Club House Drive, as well as the stop sign with lights, at the end of Sea Links Dr. An extra thank you to the Beach Bar – as they donated the stop sign. 

Design Committee – Richard (AO)

• New Build: YAY! The house on West finally got the power issue solved after months. They have the deadline of May 19th to have the exterior finished – or they forfeit the bond if it is not done.
• Design Requests: Roofs: there were 5 houses on North that were getting new roofs – as they got a deal together. There was a new roof started on East, and another is waiting for their metal roof – their product was delayed. Fences: House on Ironwood has a 6 foot fence that was approved by a previous board – they wanted to extend the fence. Regulations are 4 feet – so it was approved to grade down to 4 feet fence.

• DCC Fine: We will verify with our lawyer and get it in writing – HOA Board approved imposing a fine of $1000 for any work started without approval. Approval is not needed for basic repairs, but any exterior work that is new. Including roof replacement, painting, major landscaping, sheds, fencing, patios, decks, etc. MUST get approval BEFORE work begins. If our lawyer comes back with a yes; flyers will be dropped off to everyone, added to the Welcome Pack and posted on the website – letting everyone know that failure to obtain pre-approval can result in a $1000 fine.
• The corner lot on North and East sold. A request to build was put in – CCR requirements were made known: Min. size is 1000 sq ft and a garage or carport is required. They will need to work with the county as part of the lot is wetlands.

Welcome Committee – Kathy

• New Welcome Packets were assembled and delivered – with a new Welcome letter. It includes new info from Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce. Thank you to Kathy and Esther for all their help with this!
• We will add all new Welcome Packet info on the website.
• We are also drafting a letter to ALL homeowners (and Realtors) referencing the CC&R’s to remind everyone what they need to know to live here.

Community Clean Up & Barbecue – Myra (P)

• The tentative date for the Our 2nd Annual Community Clean Up & BBQ is Saturday, June 21st from 10 am – 2 pm. More info to follow.
• Myra and Corrie have a trailer, and will drive it around the neighborhood to pick up neighbors’ yard waste and haul it away. Last year, it really made Sea Links look great!
• Then, all neighbors can meet up and greet each other and enjoy a BBQ with hotdogs and other potluck dishes. Last year it was held at Wedgewood Court – depending on the paving – it may be there again. Again – more info to follow.

Garage Sale – LaVonne (MaL)

• We considered having the Sea Links Garage Sale at the same time as Latitude 49’s, to piggyback on the foot and car traffic it will bring. The date is Saturday, August 2nd, from 8-2. More info to follow.
• We will pass out small flyers again, at the front gate, to each car, and have them drive in one direction around the block. We will use orange cones to assist controlling traffic entering the community, so they must turn to the right and drive counterclockwise around the neighborhood. This is for safety reasons and is an “emergency services” issue. 

Guest – Barry Richmond

• Barry was given 2 minutes per topic that he would like to talk about: Flags, CCR’s, Bylaws and Misleading Association – followed by Q&A.
• After his 2 minutes speaking about his past fines for flying the “American Flag” and personally attacking Myra regarding his fines, Donna reminded Barry that it was not this Board that fined him for flying his “Canadian Flag” – we inherited that. We also had changed it to say “Flags of Country of Origin” – so that he could fly his Canadian or American flag. Also, we did not collect the extra fines that had accrued, and even took his $100 fine that he did pay, off of his HOA dues this year. So, Donna questioned what else he needed to bring up about this past issue. He wanted his lawyer fees paid – we let him know that was not approved.
• Richard reminded Barry that he still had 3 other points that he wanted to talk about – but Barry said that he was done.   

Next Meeting / General Meeting – Myra (P)

• Saturday, July 12th at 10:00. Location to be determined.
• LaVonne (MaL) motioned. Donna (S) second it. All agreed.

Adjourn Meeting

• Meeting adjourned at 11:55 am. Richard (AO) called it and Myra (P) second it. All agreed.