highland hills meets happy valley photo by david stahl · december. we should finish 2016 well into...

December 2016 LINKS web site: www.hhmcsequim.org Editor e-mail: [email protected]

Highland Hills Meets Happy Valley photo by David Stahl


President’s Message - December 2016

Welcome to winter on Bell Hill! After the last couple years of relatively

benign late-fall and early-winter weather, we seem to be getting a taste of

la Niña this year, although we didn’t get a hard frost until fairly late in the

fall. Be especially watchful and careful when navigating roadways and

driveways on the Hill this winter.

In mid-November we (HHMC) held our annual HOA members’ meeting

(AGM) at the clubhouse in SunLand. State Law and our HHMC By-laws

require us to conduct such a meeting each calendar year to elect new

Trustees, ratify an operating budget for the following year, listen to

member comments/concerns and deal with other matters (including

officer and committee reports) as deemed appropriate by the Board of

Trustees. This year’s gathering was attended by about 70 residents

who listened and participated in a full agenda of events, including

visitation and r efreshments. Sally Schaefer’s Annual Meeting

Committee regularly does a fine job arranging for and setting up the

meeting. They deserve our thanks.

As usual at our annual meetings we always have to scramble to get

enough valid ballots or proxies to comprise a quorum (34% of

qualified owners) and this year was no different as we exceeded the

minimum requirement by only two votes. The old saying that “every

vote counts” is so true in our case. Please keep this in mind in future

years and be sure to submit your Ballot/Proxy. Voters elected a new

Board member, Rob Wade, and re-elected two incumbents, Russ

Napier and Paul Banitch (previously appointed). Sadly we have to say

good-bye at the end of the year to our loyal and hard-working

Secretary, Ted Stever, who is completing his term on the Board. In

other voting action the 2017 proposed budget was ratified by a large

majority, and a formal independent financial audit was postponed until

2018.

Treasurer Irv Brock presented a summary of our 2016 financial performance (anticipating an end-of-year

underrun of $9k of our $223k budget), and explained the components of the proposed 2017 budget of

$226.5k. Cash carry-overs into 2017 will permit us to reduce the 2017 annual HOA dues assessment to

$437 per acre, approximately 12% below the 2016 level of $498 per acre. Road & Drainage reserve and

replacement funds will continue to grow per plan helping us to greatly reduce chances of a future surprise

large special assessment, a problem that affects so many Home Owners’ Associations.

Inside: President’s Message 2 Driveway Clearing 4 Weather 5 Photos and Comments 6

Important Dates

Board Meeting January 4 February 1

17 Years of Organizing Meetings , Thanks Sally!


Several HHMC Committees presented special 2016 progress reports at the AGM, including Architectural

Control, Internet Services and Roads & Drainage; the latter presenting photos of several 2016 summer

drainage system improvement projects. In addition, a progress report on emergency planning work

underway in portions of the community was provided by Don Baron, and an invitation was extended to

broaden the reach of the planning to other streets/neighborhoods in Highland Hills.

After votes were tabulated and ballot results

announced by Janet Clark, our appointed

Inspector of Election, the AGM concluded with

discussions of items from the floor. An issue

related to restricting Roads & Drainage work to

routine maintenance of the existing system

versus the approach of also making

improvements to the system (for

function or safety) seemed to

result in a member consensus to

allow the Board to propose and

review reasonable improvement

project proposals, but

communicate planning information

to the membership to

permit opportunities for comment and feedback prior to final project approval. Recent Board management

of project approvals, including membership notification and budget control actions seemed to receive

audience endorsement. Other topics raised from the floor included queries about financial audits; a

question about why HHMC does not maintain cross-lot ditches (a lot-owner responsibility sometimes not

accomplished by the owner); a suggestion that moss growing on asphalt roads be removed as part of

routine road maintenance; more deer-watch warning signs be added; and a suggestion that a deep ditch

near the top of the Miller Road entrance S-curves be filled (tight-lined) for safety reasons. These concerns

will be addressed by the Board of Trustees at future meetings.

The Board of Trustees

Break Time


In summary, my assessment of the current state of your association is that 2016 was a good year for

HHMC and the Commission is operating effectively and efficiently. The 2016 AGM was adjourned on that

note.

On December 7th the Board of Trustees assembled for its final 2016 regular monthly meeting. AGM after-

action discussions were a dominant topic. Further research will hopefully lead to an improved Ballot/Proxy

solicitation process in the future. Also, alternate AGM venues and meeting days/times will be researched

and evaluated. Action items were assigned regarding AGM member concerns with road maintenance

(moss; ditch filing; signs) and reports will be received in 2017 Board Meetings. Amongst Committee

reports, Architectural Control (ACC) had the most November activity. In addition to normal construction and

re-model monitoring, ACC is also dealing with tree trimming and solar panel installation questions. Recent

Internet Service Committee happenings were reviewed in some detail. You can find summaries of their

progress on their new ISC Tab in the Members-only section of the www.hhmcsequim.org.

Your current 2016 password to access the HHMC website will expire at the end of 2016. Look for your new

(2017) password in a letter in the US Mail accompanying your 2017 HOA dues assessment invoice, which

you should receive in December. The new password will be effective 1/1/2017. Your assessment payment

is due by 1/15/2017.

Suggestion: Enter and SAVE your new password right away; plus keep good track of your password letter

next year.

Financially HHMC is ending 2016 in good shape. Significant non-routine November expenses included

$824 for drainage ditch fortification and maintenance plus $600 for annual HHMC Office internet access

fees. A $2000 construction deposit was received for a new home start on Fox Hollow Road. The Treasurer

was tasked with preparing a report on status/tracking of all outstanding construction deposit funds. Income

from outstanding Reserve Fund savings deposits has been earned, but will not be recorded until the end of

December. We should finish 2016 well into the black!

We can look back on 2016 as a year of relative HHMC peace and accomplishment, while now looking

forward to a successful 2017.

Happy Holidays,

Ted Johnson

Want Winter Driveway Help?

Contact [email protected] (or call 683-2077) for referrals if you want

professional help with driveway snow and ice removal.

http://www.hhmcsequim.org/


Our Monthly Weather

A Cold December

November 2016 rainfall total was less than half the 2015 total. December has continued the same rainfall pattern, however a cold blast has resulted in a week (so far) of temperatures in the high 20s to high 30s range. It snowed ½ to 1 inch (depending on what part of hill) on the 6th and took 5 days to melt due to the low temperatures. Lots of ice led to a hazardous S-curve for a day until the chemical spray took effect. Many a resident with a steep driveway were stranded for a few days and walkers had to use ice tracks to keep upright. Today’s high is forecast to be 36°, not sure if it will make it. It’s been dry and the cold is forecast for the coming week with snow over the weekend. This is not too bad if the wind is not blowing. Just look at the weather across the northern U.S. and be thankful we live in a relative banana belt.

All measurements are taken at 600’. Precipitation is measured daily at 7 am.

2016 2015

2016

2015

2016

2015

2016

2015 Precipitation Precipitation Snowfall Snowfall High High Low Low

(In.) (In.) (In.) (In.) °F °F °F °F

January 1.74 2.59 0.0 0.0 61 58 29 28

February 1.92 3.20 0.0 0.0 57 54 36 35

March 2.51 3.27 0.0 0.0 70 53 36 34

April .91 .66 0.0 0.0 81 67 45 37

May .75 .41 0.0 0.0 75 82 46 43

June 1.49 .40 0.0 0.0 88 92 45 47

July .53 .52 0.0 0.0 71 91 51 46

August .20 .83 0.0 0.0 90 90 47 46

September 1.20 1.25 0.0 0.0 75 82 46 45

October 3.57 1.84 0.0 0.0 61 73 42 40

November 2.48 5.35 0.0 0.0 70 57 39 28

Month to Date (Dec 14th) .49 3.44 0.5 0.0 51 57 26 28

Annual Totals 17.79 23.76 0.5 0.0 90 92 26 28

Running Year Total (11/14/15 - 11/13/16) 20.33

0.5

90

26


Photos and Comments There was a paucity of photos and articles this month, so we’ll have to make do with snow pictures. Hurricane Ridge parking lot and view as of today.


Dogs love snow as much as kids, here are Lily and Daisy frolicking on our back lawn.

highland hills meets happy valley photo by david stahl · december. we should finish 2016 well into...

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