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Wheelwright Cluster Board Meeting Minutes – July 2021

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Thursday July 8, 2021 at 7 pm via Zoom

Attendees:  Kelly, Cyndi, Sandy, Kristina, Kayleen (2224) 

Community updates

Erosion – There was a proposal for the swale from Chris. Details for proposal outlined in spreadsheet. Jose proposed a French drain behind 2243-2249

For the breakdown, look at the spreadsheet Erosion Projects 2021.

Kristina proposes completing the swale project as proposed, the French drain project and the path leading to the rear of houses by 2231.  Cost of all projects $6505, coming under budget by $495.  Board voted to pursue all erosion projects.

Concrete – We do not have a date of service, yet, but Bright Construction says it will be 6-8 weeks from June 30th, putting the concrete work probably at the end of August or beginning of September.  Kristina will reach out to folks who are redoing their house from car damage to make sure that concrete work won’t interfere with their reconstruction.

Will Juan be offering a discount for homeowners who want work done? Cyndi spoke to a rep at Bright Construction group and they said that they could probably offer the 10% discount but it would have to be confirmed by Juan who hasn’t yet gotten back to Cyndi.

DRB applications updates

Siding – We are bundling the changes for trim, siding style, and colors together . Sandy has completed the DRB application for the trim, siding materials and colors with the intent to submit by the end of this week.  She will also include an update for the poly-coated wrap trim (fascia board) that we already have approved.  The current approved color is Musket Brown, which does not match our trim color, Oxford Brown.  Going forward, we’d like to amend the color to Oxford Brown but grandfather those who have already put trim capping in the Musket Brown color.  The board voted and agreed.

Door art glass styles – Sandy presented a number of decorative glass options for door inserts from several different companies.  She would like to present the community with options from different companies.  Styles were presented from Therma Tru, Masonite, MMI, and Jeld Wen.  Generally, the board tended towards modern but simple styles with straight lines and geometric shapes.  From Therma Tru, Pembridge and Axis styles were the favorites.  From Masonite, the Crosslines and Brooklyn styles were favored.  From MMI, the Atherton style was favored; and from Jeld Wen, the Wendover style was selected.  Sandy will put together a list of our favorites and we will share with the community for input.  Also, we would like to consider whether the art glass options should be available for doors only or also for the sidelight.

Landscaping proposal – Noncompliance issues with rock swales that were installed as part of recent erosion control work. The surrounding swale installation application is almost complete now that Chris’ proposal came through.  Kristina should be able to complete it by early next week.

Parking lot and asphalt – On hold until maybe September? Board agreed to delve into this topic in September.  Since we’re consumed with concrete, erosion projects, DRB applications, we’ll hold off until we can have a more comprehensive discussion.  Kristina will put something together for the September meeting. We can then present the issue at the annual meeting. This will be at the top of the list for annual meeting topics, as the work may be scheduled in 2022.

General Landscaping – Nudge Chris to give a gentle reminder to his crews to be more mindful when using the large lawn equipment in the yards. There has been damage to residents garden gates and bushes.

Sandy will bring up with Chris again.  Cyndi mentioned that the equipment they are using is too large for our front yards.  Sandy said she has had discussions with Chris about this topic and the next step down is similar to push mowers, which Chris stated is not very cost effective or beneficial for a landscaping company.

Garbage/Recycling – There was another combined recycling/trash dump incident. Bates also missed the upper cluster during yard waste pickup. Kristina has been in touch with Theresa trying to get these issues fixed.

Tree inspection – We are waiting to hear when this will be scheduled from the tree committee

Summer community cookout? August 1st

Preparations -We will plan to host a cookout similar to that of cluster cleanups.  Kristina will do the shopping at Costco a few days before.  Cyndi has room in her fridge.  Ideally, we will set up in the lower cluster at 1pm.  Our goal is for Sandy to a bring charcoal grill from 2223, or Kayleen has offered to lend the cluster the use of their gas grill.

Neighborhood donation drive – We will hold a donation drive the weekend of October 16th for Cornerstones. Items that are needed include new and used blankets and towels, and new sweatpants and sweatshirts

The board decided to do the Cornerstones donation during the cookout.  That way we can also look for a charity that picks up a wide array of used items not needed by Cornerstones. Residents can donate used items to prevent our dumpster from overfilling with items in good condition during the Fall Cluster Clean Up.  Kristina will look into Lupus foundation or Amvets.

Board Member positions – We need a new board member and person to fill the officer position of secretary.  Ruth Schulte will be leaving her position as secretary, as she and her family are leaving the neighborhood at the end of August.  Kayleen from 2224 has graciously offered to step in as board member and secretary. 

Who else is planning on leaving after this term is up?  Terms are up for Cyndi, Sandy and Kristina.  All have expressed interest in continuing to serve on the board.

Annual meeting – The board feels that more people attend when the annual meeting has been in person.  Kristina will reach out to RCC to see what their availability is for rooms in December.  We will also try to have a Zoom option available.

Other topics? Renewal for website domain name needs to be renewed.  Kristina will check with Ruth to see if she can take care of the renewal.  If not, Kristina will do.

It was suggested that a hard copy of the Wheelwriter be distributed to the neighborhood especially around cluster clean ups. Members also agreed that now might be a good time for a hard copy to go out, including information about hazardous waste pickup, the cookout, the Cornerstones donation drive, the fall cluster clean up, and doors style options.

Financials

Reviewed the current status of the budget and the anticipated net income for the end of the year since we have had a few line items go over budget and/or have some unexpected expenses.

Discussed proper allocation of income based on current and future cluster needs, such as the grind and mill for the parking lot, and general increases to operating expenses.

Began discussions on how to ensure we are in a better financial position moving forward.

Next Meeting

Thursday, August 12 at 7 pm

Wheelwright Cluster Board Meeting Minutes – June 2021

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Thursday, June 10, 2021, at 7 pm via Zoom

Board Members: Kelly, Kristina, Sandy, Cindy, and Ruthie

Residents: Matt and Sarah K

Community updates

Door Styles – Sandy

RA wants residents to pick what they desire so Sandy drove by newer construction to get a sense of the current market; aim to keep it simple. We need guidelines because RA won’t let clusters eliminate them.

Question from residents: Why are we changing the guidelines now? Answer: We are updating the siding colors so the door colors need to coordinate with new siding colors. We are going for a more universal style and expanding brand choices so residents can take advantage of sales.

New door options will include different door material options (i.e., steel, wood, fiberglass, etc.). We plan to include glass panel options. New options will mimic what we currently have – flat panel – and add in divided two-panel option (¾ glass and ½ glass), all glass option, and a craftsman style door with one glass panel at top.

Do we want to include privacy glass options (i.e., frosted glass, simple privacy glass, satin etch) and art glass option as long as it is simple? Sandy will present glass styles at next meeting.

Colors – Sandy

How many colors? Goal is to make the colors subtle or pop if wanted, and allow for individuality. Ask Meghan if 18 door colors is too much before completing the DRB application. If RA thinks 18 is too many, the board will reduce color palette.

Do we want to include a wood grain option? Popular but limit to one manufacturer and one color.

DRB applications update – Sandy

No news from Meghan but application is available online to be downloaded. We can bundle the changes for trim, siding style, and colors together. After DRB application is sent to RA for changes to the siding, we can work on DRB application for doors.

Landscaping – Kristina

We can use proposal from Hemax as base to fix non-compliance problem. Otherwise Hemax proposal is over our budget.

Concrete – Cindy

Do we have a date scheduled for the work? Juan got back to Cindy and said we can get railing on the left side of the stairs by for same amount as proposed for the right side. Once we have decided, we can circle the options we want in the proposal, sign and then submit the contract. A 40% deposit is required if we want to proceed and the work will be scheduled 6-8 weeks after the deposit is received.

Parking lot & asphalt updates – Kristina

Kristina contacted Brothers Paving and Concrete Corporation for another 3rd opinion and they are coming out next week. No new updates otherwise. Kristina can update everyone at the next meeting.

Erosion – Kristina

For drainage and erosion solutions, Hemax quotes were complex engineering solutions and out of our price range. Suggest contracting with Jose’s company for the French drain.

To address RA non-compliance around the rock swales, we can use plants suggested by Hemax to submit to RA and strategize on what we can do as a cluster to save money. Kristina will ask Hemax to line item landscaping installations so we can pick which areas we really need to focus on.

Landscaping – no updates, begonias went in and look good

Garbage/Recycling – no updates

Trees – inspection aim for late July or early August, after cicadas are gone

Other topics?

Neighborhood donation drive – Kristina wrote to Cornerstones about working with them, aim to hold it weekend before the Fall Cluster Clean Up (October 16th).

Communicate events sooner rather than waiting until it gets closer so residents can plan ahead. October 23rd was proposed as the tentative date for Fall Cluster Clean Up.

Summer community cookout scheduled for Sunday, August 1st.

Financials

Treasurer expressed budgetary concerns as to how we will be able to afford the upkeep of the neighborhood. Board suggested communicating with the cluster about participating in cluster cleans ups to stave off costs. Other options include a special assessment or raising dues.

Other financials were discussed.

Next Meeting

July 8th at 7 pm via Zoom.

Wheelwright Cluster Board Meeting – February 11

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Board Attendees: Kristina, Sandy, Cyndi, Kelly, Ruthie

Members: 2207

Community Updates

Parking lot rejuvenation – Kristina talked to someone at Tri Technologies and she will send someone out to look at our parking lot to give us an estimate. Might be too late to try this option. Kristina spoke with someone else at an HOA that had the rejuvenation done by Tri Technologies. The work quality was great, but she seemed unsure that it was a better option than asphalt seal coating. Grind & mill schedule for 2025, but the parking lot seems like it needs work. Tri Technologies offered to give a 15-20 min presentation at the next meeting. Sandy suggested getting a prospectus for how long the rejuvenation would last. Effectiveness reported to be better when it’s put on early after the grind & mill (within 4 years and then subsequent 4 years to extend the need for another grind & mill). Kristina will do more research.

Erosion – Kristina spoke with Chris Hughes and looked at Cyndi’s hill. Discussed planting to help stabilize the hill and asked about putting in pavers so that people can get behind the houses along that row. He will give us an estimate for the work and we can look at what we might be able to do on our own.

Tree Work – Sandy said nothing is going on with tree work at the moment. There could be a tree credit for the over trimmed holly tree that could be used toward labor for planting a new cherry tree (which we would have to buy) or grinding of stumps (which would require us to pay for renting a grinder). Sandy agreed to get numbers on the cost of cherry tree and grinding equipment rental. Not sure what the tree credit is, so Sandy will ask Chris.

Landscaping – Sandy talked with homeowners with concerns about damage done (divots) to their yards when the crew last came through for mowing.  Chris Hughes said he would reseed this spring for those who had their yards seeded.

Snow/Ice – Peyton has come out to handle the snow and ice when needed. We could get a bucket of sand for the playground area or check with Peyton on how much it would cost to sand and/or salt common areas.

Concrete – Cyndi hasn’t contacted Juan yet because it’s too early in the season. Areas have been identified last year, but Juan needs to walk the neighborhood to assess if more areas have become problematic over the winter.

Siding color palette/door colors? – DRB application – Sandy still working on it. Cluster residents should meet in a special session (or roll it into a regular board meeting) to discuss door colors. We need approval from the Cluster before we can submit new door colors to DRB. Or, if our HOA guidelines don’t require a meeting, we can notify the cluster of the change using a flyer and that appears to be sufficient based on DRB guidelines. Kristina will look through the cluster guidelines to determine what is required. Sandy agreed to have a color palette for the doors by the next meeting so we can proceed one way or another.

Composting – A new compost bin has been installed by the playground. Sarah is the contact and agreed to maintain. Sandy is going to laminate the Do’s and Don’ts. Cyndi pointed out that there are discrepancies between the newsletter and the graphics provided by Sarah. Kristina will double check the different versions and send a copy to Sandy to laminate instead. 

Garbage/Recycling – Kristina talked to Teresa about the communication problem as to when garbage and recycling are supposed to come, particularly when it changes due to weather conditions. Kristina will reach out to Republic, American, and other waste management companies for updated quotes. Waste Management appears to accept new business, so we could try to contact them to see if they would serve our area again.

Parking registration – 42 homeowners have responded via online form or paper document! That leaves 20 homes not registered. It appears that many homes have more than two cars, which is against our guidelines. We will keep an eye on it to make sure that parking is still available. We can send out reminders as needed.

RA HOA cluster meet and greet – Sandy attended. Got a lot of good information on DRB application. 135 clusters in Reston. 

  • Meet & greet available to view online via YouTube. Survey sent to clusters to determine how cluster boards engage with their constituents. 
  • RA is trying to get a list of contractors and vendors and which clusters use those contractors and vendors so that we can determine which vendors are good to work with and not good to work with. 
  • RA is looking for ways for clusters to connect to each other and looking toward clusters to work with RA to facilitate those connections. Several new people joined the website after Sandy shared the information. 
  • RA has discount codes for Sherwin Williams 30-40% off so we can contact them to get that information. Sherwin Williams has a point of contact we can use and work with. 
  • RA is pushing clusters to go back and update guidelines and color palettes. RA will enforce whatever is in our guidelines, so if we don’t want those out-of-date products we need to submit new guidelines. 
  • Sandy discussed door colors and door styles with them. They shared new door styles that have been submitted and already been approved, which is a good sign that we can get the doors we want (especially if another cluster already has that door approved).
  • RA has revised DRB situations. There is now a 30-day turnaround. Previously the time was 5 months. RA is working on digitizing cluster standards so we will be able to go online to look at other clusters and see what they already have approved. Fences, decks, siding, and trim decisions now take place in the covenants committee to avoid going into additional committees.
  • When updating guidelines, we need to pay attention to wording so that older, original versions can be grandfathered in (except in cases like the color palette where we want only the new colors).
  • Sandy will look for a way to get us on future RA cluster DRB info meetings

Climate planning meeting in Fairfax County – Kristina attended. Action plan being put together to develop environmental standards and changes they want implemented in Fairfax County and they want to engage the community as much as possible. Group is looking for help from HOAs, churches, and other community groups to get their new standards and guidelines communicated to the public.

Financials

Treasurer went over monthly financials

  • P.O. Box fee went up. 
  • HOA fees will need to go up, probably up by $20 per quarter to increase operating budget. Previous increases in dues were put into capital costs rather than operating expenses, so we may have spent from capital costs to cover operating costs. Kelly will look into this in more detail.
  • Other clusters charge $270 to $350 per quarter, but some of these clusters have 100 or more homes so their budgets are much larger. Kelly will inquire what services these clusters provide to their residents. 

Next meeting 

  • March 11th at 7 pm via Zoom