Board Members Present:
George Whitfield (President), Jessica Cessna (Treasurer), Lena Williams, Gabrielle Leitch and Rick Leitch.

Board Members Absent:
Ben Kirby (Vice-President), Matthew Byerly (Secretary)

Homeowners Present:
Smith, Steve Ginn, Robert Brown, and Seth Woodard

December Minutes:
Due to technical problems, the minutes for the December Board meeting will be presented at the February meeting.

Financial Report:
Jessica Cessna
The Association currently has a cash balance of $15,552.

The yearly statements and bills were sent out.

The financials are presented in a new format. The code numbers used to identify account items has been replaced with categories. If there is a need to change or add a category, it can be accomplished.

A motion was made by George to accept the financial report, motion was seconded by Lena, motion carried.

Director of Operations Report:
Rick Leitch

Rick completed the painting of the interior wainscoting in the clubhouse and is working on the new sign that will be placed outside the clubhouse.

Beginning next week, he will start putting the wood deck for the pool together.

Additional board meeting signs were ordered from C.C. Creations.

Rick provided the “Director of Operations Year End Report” to the Board. The report is included below.

Director of Operations Year End Report Jan 1, 2010

By bringing most of our operations in house in the last 2 years, we have saved money and also have been accessible to our homeowners on a consistent basis. The pool is being maintained on a daily basis rather than a 3 times a week basis as it was with a contract in the summer season (April to October). This allows the pool to look good as well as be in compliance with Texas State law on maintaining a Class C pool in Texas. Daily logs are maintained which was not being done before we took over. Homeowners using the pool have said that the pool is like night and day from before and are very appreciative. Playground and recreational equipment are maintained which has resulted in a dramatic increase in their use. The clubhouse is kept clean and ready for party reservations and use is up in that as well. By being here daily the pool area is clean and free from trash because the homeowners know that someone is around to take care of the area and they seem to take more interest in keeping it clean. When I started going out on code enforcement issues 2 years ago we had approximately 12-15 violations, mostly lawns not cut. By consistently sending a friendly notice, we are down to 2-5 violations. This shows that the homeowners are aware that there is someone consistently checking and therefore are complying. When I moved here 6 years ago very few people walked around the neighborhood and now there are many joggers and walkers. For the most part the neighborhood is friendly and quiet and by making it family orientated, letting all homeowners know that they can’t rent to “roomers” has made most homeowners at ease. When we first discussed having a board member (Rick) taking on this position, it was very controversial and narrowly passed the board’s approval. The argument was made that because he was a homeowner and had a vested interest in the neighborhood it would be a good fit. The downside was that we were paying a large salary to someone that was on the board and the perception was that they may not be fully qualified. I think that being said, the board agrees that this has been a resounding success. We are saving around $10,000.00 per year just in the difference in contract labor versus in house operations. If the pool was maintained properly it would cost $12,800 per year (25 weeks @ 7 days a week and 27 weeks @ 3 days a week average). Grounds keeping with the new areas would be at least $15,000.00. Janitorial service at $5,000.00 and a part time person to man the office at $8,000 would come to $40,800. This would not include all the special projects like painting, maintenance (toilet repair, broken water lines, new basketball nets replaced, new tennis net replaced), tennis backboard made, restroom demolition, and new deck installed. In the summer months homeowners can call if there is a problem and I am there in less than 5 minutes to solve their problem. The homeowners as well as the rest of the board appreciates this as they don’t get calls like they used to. I just want to let the board know that I believe that we have made a difference in the SPHOA and our neighborhood and want to improve it as much as we can so that the homeowners can enjoy their neighborhood. I am looking forward to the next year and working with you all.

Committee Report:
Enforcement: No significant problems to report.
Webpage: The webpage is fine and there are no problems to report.
Social: The annual garage sale will be held on Saturday, April 10, 2010. The Association will be holding its annual block party on August 10, 2010 and is currently looking for ideas for kids activities.

Old Business:
The employee job descriptions were corrected and signed by the board.

New Business:
None presented

Homeowner Concerns:
There were concerns over the sidewalks ending abruptly on Decatur Drive and Southern Plantation Drive as well as not having enough lighting on these streets. Another concern was the speed limit for Southern Plantation Drive, the homeowner asked whether there were plans for lowering the speed limit.

Rick was going to put the policy on fallen fences in the next newsletter.

The Board has set-up a Covenant and Restrictions Committee to start looking into changing the covenant restrictions. Members of the committee will be Rick Leitch, Lena Williams, Steve Ginn, and Mary Smith. They will hold meetings on the second Monday of each month at 3:00 p.m. to start reviewing the current covenants and restrictions. Upon completion, they will issue a draft to be presented to the homeowners of Southern Plantation in an old town hall meeting format.

With no further business, motion was made by Jessica that the meeting be adjourned, motion was seconded by Gabrielle, motion carried.