November 5, 2012 Meeting Minutes

Dipper Wettstein, Board Chair, called the regularly scheduled meeting to order at 7:06 p.m., on November 5, 2012, at Claret Hall, 6020 Daybreak Circle, Clarksville, MD 21029.  Members present were Jenny Chu, Kenny Kan, DengFeng Liu, Tony Miceli, and Liyan Zhang. Tiffany Kan (Student Member) and Susan Smith (Village Manager) were present. Todd Harrison, Kaede Johnson (Student Member), and Michael Cornell (Council Member) were absent.

 Approval of the Agenda (Agenda 2):

Mr. Wettstein made a motion to remove Agenda Item 5B – Rental Rates from the agenda and add Agenda Item 6B – Chartering Boy Scout Troop 618.  Mr. Liu seconded the motion the motion passed (6-0-0). (Student Advisory Vote -1 in favor.)

 Mr. Wettstein made a motion to remove Agenda Item 5. – Scout Troop 618 – Chartering from the Agenda because not all members were in attendance and to include this on the October 1, 2012 Agenda.  Mr. Miceli seconded the motion. The motion passed (6-0-0). (Student Advisory Vote – in favor).

 Administrative Items (Agenda 3):

Mr. Wettstein made a motion to approve the September 10, 2012 Minutes.  Mr. Kan seconded the motion.  The motion passed (5-0-1) (Student Advisory Vote – in favor).

 Mr. Miceli made a motion to approve the September 24, 2012 Minutes.  Mr. Wettstein seconded the motion.  The motion passed (5-0-1). (Student Advisory Vote – in favor.)

 Mr. Miceli made a motion to approve the October 1, 2012 Minutes.  Mr. Kan seconded the motion.  The motion passed (3-0-0). (Student Advisory Vote – in favor.)

 Resident Speak Out (Agenda 4):

Peggy Sharp (Empty Song Road) spoke out about recurrent power outages in a portion of the Pointers Run neighborhood and the impact that this has on residents, particularly those with young children, the elderly, and the infirm.  Due to the small number of homes affected (est. 60 homes), the power in this area is out longer than surrounding homes because BGE focuses first on larger outages.  In addition to the times when outages might be anticipated, such as during snowstorms and hurricanes, these homes also lose power at odd times.

Laura Brooks (Empty Song Road) reiterated the comments made by Ms. Sharp and expressed concern that due to the frequent outages more people are purchasing generators.

Matt Levine (Empty Song Road) confirmed Ms. Sharp’s and Ms. Brook’s concerns and reiterated that the outages are not just occurring when there are major weather-related events.

Mr. Miceli made a motion to send a letter to BGE requesting an investigation of this matter and asked that our elected officials be copied on the correspondence.  Mr. Wettstein seconded the motion. The motion passed (6-0-0) (Student Advisory Vote – in favor).

 American Chestnut Tree Planting Project (Agenda 5A):

Mr. Sean Harbaugh, Assistant Director of Open Space Management, and Mr. Sam Quick, Open Space Foreman for the Village of River Hill, presented plans for a project designed to re-introduce American Chestnut trees to the area.  CA plans to plant approximately 10 seeds in an area located in the open space between Ocean Shore Drive and River Run.  The area will be enclosed with fencing and each tree will be protected from the deer.  It was the consensus of the Board to allow for resident comments until Thanksgiving so that the seeds could be planted in late November.  Mr. Harbaugh indicated that they are also looking at options for planting a larger grove.  Ms. Kan suggested that CA involve local teens when doing planting projects.

 CA Proposed Legislation (Agenda 6A):

Mr. Kan and Ms. Smith provided overviews of the November 1 meeting.

Mr. Kan made a motion that based on the Village Board’s understand that the window is closing for CA to propose the legislation and the Association has not received sufficient facts on the pros and cons of the proposed legislation, the River Hill Community Association maintain a neutral position on the legislation.  Mr. Wettstein seconded the motion.  The motion passed (6-0-0). (Student Advisory Vote – in favor).

 Boy Scout Troop 618 – Chartering (Agenda 6B):

The members not in attendance at the October 1 meeting were informed that the Board had reversed its decision and will charter Boy Scout Troop 618.  It was the consensus of the Board that Michael Cornell, as the Chartering Organization’s Representative, will provide regular reports on the status of the troop.  In addition, it was the consensus of the Board that representatives from the troops, e.g., a scout, should provide bi-monthly updates to the Board.

Manager’s Report (Agenda 7A):

A written report is on file with the original minutes. It was the consensus of the Board not to provide testimony at the CA Budget Hearing on November 8.  However, Mr. Miceli recommended that if the caterer’s parking pad is not installed then the Association should work with Kimco and CA to have the location of the crosswalk changed to better align with the walkway into the Village Center.  Ms. Smith recommended that the Board comment on the County’s Bicycle Master Plan. Mr. Miceli inquired about the location of the new pathway connection proposed in CA’s plan and suggested a direct, ADA compliant connection between the condos and the Village Center.

Board Chair Report (Agenda 7B):

Mr. Wettstein announced that he will be stepping down as the Board Chairperson but will remain on the Board.  It was the consensus of the Board to vote for a new Chairperson at the next meeting.  Mr. Wettstein reported that 3 people are interested in serving on the Watershed Committee.  Due to Hurricane Sandy, the first meeting will have to be rescheduled.

Council Representative Report (Agenda 7C):

None.

 Liaisons (Agenda 7D):

Tiffany Kan reported on the successful Halloween event.

Executive Session (Agenda 8):

At 8:31 p.m., Mr. Wettstein made a motion to move into Executive Session to discuss personnel matters.  Mr. Liu seconded the motion.  The motion passed (6-0-0).  Ms. Kan departed the meeting.

 At 8:42 p.m., Mr. Kan made a motion to adjourn the Executive Session.  Mr. Wettstein seconded the motion.  The motion passed (6-0-0).

Board Speak Out (Agenda 9):

None.

Adjournment (Agenda 10):

Mr. Wettstein made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:44 p.m.  Mr. Kan seconded the motion.  The motion passed (6-0-0). 

Minutes submitted by: Susan M. Smith, Village Manager

Minutes Approved:  December 10, 2012