Here is your round up of business at the November 24th meeting, and the Special Meeting of the Board to review the 2015/2016 proposed budget with the Budget and Finance Committee.

PARK TOWER CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION

BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING

Monday November 24, 2014 at 7:30PM Party Room 2nd Floor

6:30PM: CLOSED SESSION

The Board held discussion of pending litigation and violations of rules and regulations.

OPEN SESSION

The Board President called the meeting to order at 7:35pm, and confirmed all Board Members, George Pauley (Board President), Michael Parrie (Vice President), Betty Terry-Lundy (Secretary), Dave Nicosia (Treasurer), and Tom Wartowski (2nd Vice President) were present. Also present from Management (DK Condo), David Barnhart (Property Supervisor), Tim Patricio (Property Manager), and Mavis Mather (Assistant Manager).

Committee Reports

Ad-hoc Rules Review Committee – Michael Parrie reported the Committee had completed their review of the Construction Rules and Procedures and the Rules and Regs Handbook. Management forwarded a summary of the changes to the Committee for final review, and plans to distribute it to the Board on Wednesday Nov. 26th for review and Board consideration at the December 8th Board Meeting. He mentioned that proposed Construction Packet has been dramatically updated, but that a comprehensive review of all changes would be provided as well as a summary identifying where all current rules and procedures were located in the new document.

Ad-hoc Rental Policy Committee – George Pauley reported that the attorney completed a review of the recommendations proposed by the Committee and the Board would consider the proposals at the December 8th Board meeting.

Board Report

Board President George Pauley thank the Rules Review Committee and Rental Policy Committee. He said a lot of work and hours were put into the recommendations the Board would be considering. He thanked Jean Shamo as chair of the Rental Policy Committee and Board Vice President Michael Parrie who helped navigate the Rules Review Committee through the Rules Handbook and Construction Procedures, tracking the Committees discussions and recommendations.

Action Items – New Business

Motions from Closed Session

Michael Parrie moved, George Pauley seconded and the Board unanimously passed a resolution finding 24 unit owners in violation of the Association’s “Insurance” rules and assessed $100 fines and the cost of forced placed insurance to each owners’ account.

Michael Parrie moved, George Pauley seconded and the Board unanimously passed a resolution finding a unit owner in violation of the Association’s “Move Ins and Move Outs” rules and assessed a $225 fine to the owner’s account.

Michael Parrie moved, George Pauley seconded and the Board unanimously passed a resolution finding a unit owner in violation of the Association’s “Construction” rules and assessed a $250 fine to the owner’s account.

Michael Parrie moved, George Pauley seconded and the Board unanimously passed a resolution finding a unit owner in violation of the Association’s “Construction” rules and assessed a $225 fine to the owners account.

Michael Parrie moved, George Pauley seconded and the Board unanimously passed a resolution waiving $4800 in fines on a unit owner’s account, resulting from tenant disturbances; it was noted that the owner had cooperated with efforts bring the tenants under control.

Michael Parrie moved, George Pauley seconded and the Board unanimously passed a resolution denying a unit owner’s request to waive a work order charge for the installation of a faucet.

Minutes October 27, 2014 – Betty Terry-Lundy moved, Tom Wartowski seconded and the Board unanimously passed a resolution approving the minutes of the Board Meeting held on October 27, 2014.

Owner Request for Documentation – Dave Nicosia moved, George Pauley seconded and after discussion the Board unanimously approved the request from a Unit Owner for a copy of the Commercial space appraisal, for a fee of $1/per page, but asked Management to consult with legal counsel and follow any direction given by the attorney.

Soil Pipe Replacement – Dave Nicosia moved, Betty Terry-Lundy seconded and after discussion the Board unanimously passed a resolution ratifying managements action to pursue replacement of a failed drain line in the garage on an emergency basis, hiring LS Contracting for the labor to replace about 160’ of soil pipe for a cost of $12,811.

UPS Box Proposal – Dave Nicosia moved, Betty Terry-Lundy seconded and after discussion the Board unanimously passed a resolution approving the agreement from UPS for installing a package dropbox in the mall area. Management was directed to try and find a location for it near the mailbox on the North side of the mall, and to relocate the FedEx box there if possible.

2015 Holiday Schedule – Tom Wartowski moved, Dave Nicosia seconded and the Board unanimously passed a resolution approving the following holiday schedule for the management office employees, with the Management Office to close on New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day, with a reduced staff as deemed appropriate by management for the balance of DK Condo’s scheduled holidays.

Service Animal Request – Michael Parrie moved, Tom Wartowski seconded and the Board unanimously passed a resolution approving the request by a Unit Owner to accommodate a Service Animal as defined by the Association’s ‘Service Animal Policy’ in the Rules and Regulations and consistent with advice of legal counsel, and applicable federal law.

Construction Requests– Dave Nicosia moved, George Pauley seconded and after discussion the Board unanimously approved the construction request for the Unit Owner of 2801.

Treasurer’s Report: David Nicosia

Board Treasurer Dave Nicosia review the Association operating and reserve fund balances at the end of September; Operating Account Balance = $333,048.72, Reserve Account Balance = $1,685,342.41, Total Cash and Investments = $2,018,391.13.

Reserve CD Renewal – Dave Nicosia moved, Michael Parrie seconded and the Board unanimously passed a resolution approving the renewal of a reserve CD at International Bank of Chicago for 18 months in the amount of $86,307.75 at a rate of 1.00%.

Management Report: Tim Patricio

Property Manager Tim Patricio delivered an update on the driveway project and plans for the garage power wash, and reviewed the Monthly Activity Report and
Sales and Leasing Report for September.

Approval to Adjourn

The Board of Directors unanimously approved adjournment at 8:16PM.

The next Board Meeting is scheduled for Monday December 8th at 7:30PM, in the Party Room.

SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD – BUDGET AND FINANCE WORKSHOP

The Board President convened the Board Meeting with the Budget and Finance Committee at 8:16PM, and the Committee members, including Chairman Paul Groeninger, Scott Schmidtke, Don Yuratovic, Becky Rossoff and Jean Shamo, joined the Board at the table. The Board President asked for Paul Groeninger to lead the meeting to review the proposed 2015/16 Operating Budget.

Paul Groninger started by indicating they would only review changes the Committee made to line items in the proposed budget as presented by Management, and said the balance of line items were reviewed and the Committee agreed with what management proposed. He reminded the Board be sure to review the budget in its entirety so if there are any questions about line items that are not reviewed tonight, the Board can do so and make any additional considerations before the proposed budget is approved for distribution to Unit Owners.

The Committee made the following general recommendations:

The Committee recommended the Board send with the annual budget a form that would allow residents to opt to receive information via email instead of paper. The Board indicated this would be considered at the upcoming meeting on December 8th.

The Committee recommended the reserve project to remodel the elevators for $56,000 be removed indefinitely.  The work done by Ariel to improve the appearance of the cabs was enough and therefore this money does not need to be spent at this time; and the Committee recommended the following increases to the hourly parking rates in the garage, necessary due to the increase in parking taxes – 1 hour $10.50,  1-3 hours $12.50,  3-6 hours $16.50,  6-8 hours $20.00,  8-24 hours $35.00.

The Board agreed unanimously with the recommendations from the Committee.

The Committee made the following recommendations for Administrative Expenses:

Office Supplies-Recommended reduction of $500 to $4,700 budget for this account.  B & F feels, after discussion with Management, that $4,200 is a more realistic number.

Professional Fees-The B&F Committee recommended that the triennial tax appeal be included in assessments rather than as be charged back to the homeowners.  This will add$18,500 to expenses. Management noted they were able to negotiate a decrease in the cap for the appeal fees to $15,500.

Telephone-Increase by $500 due to elimination of garage expense for this category.

Telephone-Due to the city increasing the telephone tax by 56%, Management recommended this expense be increased by $300.

Miscellaneous Administrative-The B&F Committee felt this account should be increased by $2,000 to match historical trending.

The Board agreed unanimously with the recommendations from the Committee.

The Committee made the following recommendations for Payroll Expenses:

Janitors Payroll-This category must be increased by $4,800 due to the new union contract.

Recreation Payroll-Reduced this account by $2,500 due to an error in the calculations submitted by Management.

Doormen Employee Benefits-Reduced by $$3,200 due to a calculation error.

Administrative Employee Benefits-Reduced by $5,800 due to options adopted by the current staff.

The Board agreed unanimously agreed with the recommendations from the Committee.

The Committee made the following recommendations for Contracted Expenses:

Uniforms-Since new uniforms were proposed for the doormen by Management, the Committee felt the $500 charge for alterations would be unnecessary for this category.

HVAC Maintenance Contract-Management recommended and increase of $600 to this account to match the Board approved contract.

The Board agreed unanimously with the recommendations from the Committee.

The Committee made the following recommendations for Operating Expenses:

Maintenance Supplies-Based upon historical trends, the Committee felt this account could be reduced by $1,000 to $5,500.

Exterminating-Due to an error in the formula, Management reduced this account by $4,400.00.

Dry Cleaning/Receiving Room-The Committee felt though the volume of packages has more than doubled, a 40% increase to this expense was to much and therefore has recommended this increase be cut by $1200,00.

The Board agreed unanimously with the recommendations from the Committee, with the exception of Exterminating – Michael Parrie and Tom Wartowski disagreed.

The Committee made the following recommendations for Maintenance/Repairs Expenses:

Keys/Locks/Doors-Due to the Boards desire to make the building more secure, the B&F Committee felt it was unwise to Fob the two glass doors that currently act as a deterrent for unauthorized entry to the building. Therefore, they recommended the $5,000 budget to Fob these two doors be removed from the budget.

Floors/Tile-The Committee recommended additional mats for the elevator to replace them more often during the winter months.  The cost estimate provided by management was about $300 per mat.  The B&F Committee recommended the account be increased by $2,400 to have eight extra mats for the elevators.

Security System-The Committee felt it was unnecessary at this time to install cameras in the pool and weight room.  Since the Board is considering how to handle the issue with having attendants versus life guards and the potential liability it may cause, the Committee felt that the larger issues should be considered before putting $13,000 in additional cameras. They also pointed out this means more cameras for the staff to monitor.

Security System-The Committee recommended increasing the budget expense by $600.00 for the purchase of new radios including a radio for the move guard for additional safety and security.

HVAC Supplies/Repairs-Management is recommending an increase of $10,500 to this account due to not including the annual boiler maintenance in the originally submitted budget.

Increase this category by $5,000 for maintenance visit due to moving the replacement out one more year.

Windows & Glass-Management notes say the budget for this account should be $3,000 not $3,500.  The Committee is recommending a change to make the account agree with the notes.

Fire Prevention—Management is asking to increase this category by $5,400 to include the Board approved contract for the city mandated fire panel and elevator recall testing.

The Board agreed unanimously with the recommendations from the Committee.

The Committee made the following recommendation for Recreation Expenses:

Fitness Center-Increase of $1,100 recommended for additional repairs and decorating.

The Board agreed unanimously with the recommendation from the Committee.

The Committee made the following recommendations for Garage Expenses:

Parking Tax-The city is expected to pass a 2% increase in their tax.  That means 22% for the city and 10% for the county.  The B&F Committee is recommending that this 2% increase be included in the budget. It will also impact the Day Parking rate.  Increase this expense by $5,700.

Telephone-Reduce by $500 to remove this account all together.

Garage Administrative Expense-Committee recommended this account be reduced by $500 to reflect historical averages.

Garage Worker’s Comp-Add $600 due to miscalculation of policy numbers.

The Board agreed unanimously with the recommendations from the Committee.

The Committee made the following recommendations for Garage and Other Income:

Day Parking-The Committee recommended this be increased to $150 per month in order to net Park Tower $105 after taxes.  This increase is also recognizing the extra 2% tax increase from the city.  Increase the income by $8,900.

Health Club Membership-The B&F Committee recommended the 1 year single Park Tower membership be increased to $250 as proposed, however, the B&F Committee went on to recommend the following increases above what Management recommended: Park Tower residents double one year rate increase to $450, the family rate increase to $625, the six month rates for Park Tower residents be Single $175, Double $275 and the Family rate $400, for non Park Tower residents, the recommended rates are one year, Single $290, Double $520 and Family $720, and the six month rates for non Park Tower should be: Single $200, Double $315 and Family $460.   These changes will add $8,300 to the Health Club income.

The Board agreed unanimously with the recommendations from the Committee.

The Committee made the following recommendations for Reserve expenses:

Plumbing Project-Management recommended an increase by $210,000 due to a formal estimate having been received.  This new amount was included in the new reserve study.

Roof Repairs-Management recommended pushing this expense to next year based upon the recommendation made by Reserve Advisors and included in their new reserve study.  Decrease expense by $380,000.00.

Passenger Elevator Decorating-The project being canceled, decrease this reserve expense by $56,000.00.

Garbage Elevator Cylinder-Increase this expense by $1,350 based upon the latest estimates.

The Board agreed unanimously with the recommendations from the Committee.

The Committee made the following recommendations for Reserve expenses:

The B&F Committee recommended the Assessment level be increased 3.5%.

The Board agreed with the recommended increase, with the exception of Board President George Pauley who disagreed.

Approval to Adjourn

The Board unanimously agreed to adjourn the meeting at 9:43pm.