January 8, 2005

Subject: [Highland Ridge] Home Owners Dues Posted: Cora Spencer
01/08/05 6:16 PM

Hope everyone had a Happy Holiday Season!



This is just a friendly follow up to remind you that HOA dues are due by Feb. 1. Thank you to the many homeowners that have already paid. You can mail your dues to Highland Ridge HOA at 13023 NE Hwy 99 Suite 7-270, Vancouver, Wa 98686 or bring it to me, Cora Spencer 12911 NE 37th Court. The amount for the first year will be $250.00. Our annual budget after that will be $150.00 per household per year.



For those of you that may be interested, our bank account is at US Bank near Safeway on Hwy 99. We are now an Incorporated Home Owners Ass with an official EIN number from the IRS.



I am sure you have noticed that the landscaper has started on the common area with shaping the trees and bushes, removal of leaves, etc. I think it looks better. The landscaping bill will be coming in soon and I would like to have enough dues paid to pay the bill and proceed with fixing the sign, paying the insurance and lawyer.



Thank you.





Cora Spencer (Treasurer)

October 18, 2004

Subject: Fw: Minutes from Home Owners Association
Posted: Bill Johansen
10/18/04 6:57 PM

Please see enclosed minutes for the Home Owners meeting held September 29, 2004.

Highland Ridge Homeowners Meeting, September 29, 2004

"A BIG THANK YOU" to Becky Anderson for taking notes at the meeting, and putting together the minutes.

Best Regards,

Bill Johansen

September 30, 2004

Subject: Volanic Ash info
Posted: Phil Little
9/30/04 7:58 PM

All,

This information was passed along to me and may be helpful to those of us who were not residents of the NW back in 1980, when Mt St. Helens erupted.

Phil Little

Admin note: enclosure not posted

September 29, 2004

Subject: RE: Tonight is the night
Posted: Dawn Grosz
9/29/04 12:28 PM

Kevin and I will be there tonight and are also hoping for a positive and productive evening. We realize that conflict is a part of life, but hope disagreements will be discussed respectfully and compassionately....

dawn grosz

Subject: Tonight is the night
Posted: Sophia Johansen
9/29/04 6:53 AM


Hey everyone,
Tonight is the night. Lets all get together to get our HOA rolling.
We are all in it for one reason. So I for one I am looking forward to a positive and productive evening. Please be present tonight. You may also have a voice even if you cannot be there by giving written proxy to your neighbor. We are meeting a 7:00 at Pleasant Valley Middle School Media Center. Any questions about location or for directions just call me on my cell phone today, 936-1851, I will call u back, as I am unavailable by phone most of my day.
Sophia

September 28, 2004

Subject: HOA meeting
Posted: Cora Spencer
9/28/04 7:00 PM

Hi!
Hope everyone is enjoying this gorgeous weather. Aren't we lucky! Think of those poor people in Florida.
Just want to remind everyone of the HOA meeting tomorrow night Wed. the 29th at 7:00 pm at Pleasant Valley Middle School Media Center at 14320 NE 50th Ave. We will have a guest, Christine Fennimore, an Insurance Broker with Braprude Insurance Agencies. She represents many insurance companies and will explain what options we have in regards to insurance coverage on the common area. This should be very informative.
Hope everyone is planning on attending. If for some reason you are unable to attend, you should try and give your written proxy to a neighbor.
Looking forward to seeing everyone tomorrow night.
Cora

September 16, 2004

Subject: Re: revisions in documents
Posted: Gary Giusti
9/16/04 10:52 AM

Just for ease of reference, from the revised by laws:

Article III
...

Section I, Number
The affairs of the Association shall be managed by a Board of five (5) directors.

Section 2
Term of Office
At the first annual meeting the members shall elect one (1) director for a term of five (5) years, one (1) director for a term of four (4) years, one (1) director for a term of three (3) years, one director for a term of two (2) years, and one director for a term of one (1) year. Thereafter, at each annual meeting the members shall elect one (1) director for a term of five (5) years.

...

gary

Subject: Re: revisions in documents
Posted: Gary Giusti
9/16/04 10:40 AM

The new documents have been posted here for everyone's review:

http://highlandridge.us/documents.html

gary

Subject: RE: revisions in documents
Posted: Kirk Miller
9/16/04 7:50 AM

I have read through the documents, and will be reading through them again before our meeting. My question that comes from our meeting over here at BW. Do we have plans to have an attorney look at these? I am uncomfortable signing a document that could potentially impact my family without some sort of review. I realize Dani and I missed the last meeting so maybe this was covered, those on the committee may have attorney knowledge, background but dont see that in any of the emails that have come out, but I might have missed something.

I have thought about Gary's suggestion about additional members. I am ok with a longer term if for the fact we stagger them so we can possibly vote new person to the board each year, along with your first draft guidelines. I believe you will have no problem getting 5 people to represent the HOA.

Thanks Sophia, if you can let me know your thoughts about the attorney part, we'll see all of you on the 29th.

Kirk Miller

September 15, 2004

Subject: revisions in documents
Posted: Sophia Johansen
9/15/04 5:39 PM

Hi Everyone,
Sorry I have been remiss in getting revisions to Gary so they can be posted and available for your review on our website. My computer has been ill but I am now up and running and working on the rewording.

So there will be the original drafts, which remain unchanged and still on our website, and the revised version, the only difference being the # of officers and the term of office.

To my knowledge there have been no other suggestions for change. If anyone has any other things as far as suggestions or input on the by-laws or articles, PLEASE come forward before our meeting. Hopefully we can be ready to bring the documents forth for a vote of ratification or rejection.

I for one am going to motion for a small change in the agenda on 09/29, and suggest that by a quick show of hands we determine about how many will accept a nomination to be on the board. That way we can quickly see if we can get at least 5 members on our board. If so, that is fantastic. If not, then we need not take up time to debate the "3 or 5 issue." Also if you are not planning on attending please consider giving your vote to another, or voting prior to the meeting by use of written proxy.

A wonderful evening to all!
Sophia

September 5, 2004

Subject: Re: revisions in the by-laws
Posted: Karen Goudeau
9/5/04 10:38 PM


Hi Sophia,

So if we understand correctly, as long as there are at least 5 persons willing to work on the Board, then the revised edition of the Articles will be automatic? Or will there still be a vote on each of them first prior to nominations of volunteers? We are okay with either one as long as we have enough Board Members without causing hardships for anyone of course.

We respect all the time and energy you've been putting into this Sophia. There are alot of the residents whom we believe read the emails, but just aren't asking questions or otherwise responding. Hence, sometimes my husband and I feel as though in getting answers it will also benefit others. At least we hope so. Thank you for all the work you've devoted in this effort. Wishing everyone a pleasant Labor Day weekend!

Maurice and Karen

September 3, 2004

Subject: Re: revisions in the by-laws
Posted: Karen Goudeau
9/3/04 8:06 PM

We've noticed the proposed changes to the Articles, with regard to the number of Board Members and their terms. We're concerned that by changing these numbers it impacts the remainder of the Articles and By-Laws. Can you tell us how that works? Having 5 Board members would be approx. 20% of the homes. Previously we lived in an HOA area with 200+ homes and still there were only 5 Board Members. What if we don't have enough volunteers for our HOA Board?

Is it possible to have the version of the Articles & By-Laws outlining the add'l changes of 5 Members and the longer terms and pass those out by hand as well, also keeping this original version. That way each can be reviewed by all residents prior to the September 29th meeting and decide then which one to incorporate?

We are thinking that since so many of the residents aren't communicating via email, that perhaps having both versions available to be voted on seems more democratic.

Thank you,
Maurice & Karen

Subject: Re: revisions in the by-laws
Posted: Ray Holbrook
9/3/04 7:55 PM

Me too.

Ray

Subject: Re: revisions in the by-laws
Posted: Michelle Conger
9/3/04 10:57 AM

hi

chris and i agree with all of gary giustis suggestions

michelle

Subject: revisions in the by-laws
Posted: Sophia Johansen
9/3/04 10:19 AM


Hello Again,

Hopefully all of you have received notice of the HOA meeting on 9/29. Volunteers have been out in the neighborhood hand delivering them. A few have yet to be delivered only because we haven't caught you at home, but; "We'll be back!" ( A little Arnold humor, I love Arnold!)

We are getting a couple of constructive suggestions for revisions in the drafts of the by-laws and Articles of Inc.

1. Change the wording in the very first line of the Articles of Incorporation from: We the undersigned natural persons of the age of twenty-one (21) or more and citizens of the United States of America..... To read: We the undersigned natural persons of the age of twenty-one (21) or more and legal residents of the United States of America....

It has been brought to our attention not all of the members are citizens but are legal residents. We certainly do not want any exclusion of our members, so that change has been made.

2. There has been a suggestion to change the number of board members to 5, instead of 3, and for a term of 5 years instead of 3.

PLEASE respond with your thoughts on any of these items ASAP. We have all had much time to review and process these documents. By our meeting on 9/29 the documents should be completed, and not a work in progress.

If there are no rebuttals regarding the 3 member to 5 member and 3 year term to 5 year term for the board of directors then that change will be recorded.

We hope to have all changes made so we may list them and post revised, hopefully final drafts, of the documents for your final review on our website at least 2 weeks before the meeting on 9/29.

Lets all work together towards a productive meeting on 9/29!

Have a wonderful holiday weekend!
Sophia and Cora

September 2, 2004

Subject: Suggested change to the articles
Posted: Gary Giusti
9/2/04 11:43 AM

After reading the articles and discussing with a few people, I would like to change the number of board members from 3 to 5. Also, doing this would make the term longer, from 3 to 5 years. (Article III)

5 is almost 20% of the HOA, which I think is a better representation.

The amount of work during the year will be almost nothing, (except maybe the first year), so I don't think this is much of an extra burden.

Since the President and VP must always be on the board , I don't see any reason why the Secretary and Treasurer aren't also permanent board members. (Article VII, section 1)

I think this gives the board a little bit more flexibility if, for some reason, one of the members can't make it.

It also lessens the amount of work each member might be required to do in a year. It adds a bit more continuity over the years.

Finally, since it is the remaining board that solely nominates replacements if someone leaves the board, I think having more on the board ensures a fairer process. (Article VII, Section 6)



Thanks to those who wrote the articles and by-laws,
gary

August 28, 2004

Subject: RE: Feedback for by-laws and articles?
Posted: Cora Spencer
8/28/04 1:51 PM


Gary,
I believe any comments or changes should be addressed to the group address. That will be the best way of sharing information. We have been waiting for comments and only one comment was received, which we took care of immediately. Since there have been no other comments, we felt the rest of the homeowners were satisfied with the end product and ready to proceed. The committee will be handing out in writing notification of our next meeting sometime this week. We welcome any comments and hope everyone has had a chance to read the by-laws and articles.
Cora

Subject: Feedback for by-laws and articles?
Posted: Gary Giusti
8/28/04 10:46 AM

Sophia -

Where should comments and changes get sent for the by-laws and articles? Do the group address, to you, to the group of authors?


thanks,
gary

Subject: HOA progress
Posted: Sophia Johansen
8/28/04 9:11 AM


Hello Everyone,
It has been a beautiful summer, topped off by all of this wonderful rain to green everything up. I am sure all of you parents will join me in saying a few words about school, especially the MOMS who have had so much quality time with the kiddos.......BRING IT ON!!!!!

Our group hopes that we have allowed enough time for everyone to review the drafts of the by-laws and the articles of incorporation that are posted on the Highland Ridge website. That being the case we would like to call everyone together for a meeting with the following on the agenda:

Vote to ratify the By-Laws and Articles of Incorporation.

Nomination and voting of a Board of Directors (3 people).

Review findings of the Landscape Group, and vote to approve an initial assessment to get the sign fixed and the common areas groomed.

Additional concerns or issues anyone may have.

If we can all get together and accomplish this agenda we can record the documents, have the property turned over to us as an incorporated HOA. We can go ahead and get our grounds cleaned up. After this initial meeting, there will only need to be one annual meeting from this point on.

To that end, we are going to be getting around to all of the houses this coming week to deliver the notification of the meeting and to ask that everyone attend or give their votes by proxy.

Best Regards,
Cora
Sophia
Paurine
Mike

August 27, 2004

Subject: So where do we stand with the HOA?
Posted: Gary Giusti
8/27/04 2:03 PM

Neighbors -

We assembled over 2 months ago and had a couple of things that were to be accomplished. There have been by-law and articles of incorporation posted on the web site. I have not heard if there has been any feedback on them. Thanks to those who worked on this.

The grounds committee has met, but that has been shelved because they have no power to act. Again, thanks to those who met.

But we have no plan of action. We have no agenda or schedule for the things that need to be done.

What I can't figure out, is why. I'd love to help, but my current work schedule won't permit it for at least 2 more months. But my $200 was willing to help months ago.

With that $200 we would be done setting up the HOA ($100/household would have paid for attorney who would have taken care of the details, written the documents, set a schedule for reviewing and filing, recommend insurance, and finally filed everything necessary).

For another $50, we'd have a nice sign up front that would last us 30 years. For the other $50, we'd have our grounds clean, our dead trees replaced.

And really, we'd be done with all of it.

Sure we would still need to elect a board and maybe take care of some other details, but we have to do that no matter what.


So what is the game plan? Maybe there is some sort of schedule or plan that I'm not aware of, but since I haven't heard of anything, I'll assume there isn't.


How do we proceed?


gary

August 11, 2004

Subject: By-Laws/Articles of Incorporation
Posted: Sophia Johansen
8/11/04 4:20 PM

Good Afternoon Everyone,
Just to let you know our group has completed the drafts of the By-Laws and Articles of Incorporation for your review. Gary generously posted them for us at:
http://highlandridge.us/documents.html

THANK YOU GARY!

Check them out and let us know what you think.

Cora
Sophia
Paurin
Mike

July 21, 2004

Subject: Archhitectural Committee Meeting
Posted: Bill Johansen
7/21/04 6:43 PM

Good Day Sherrill, Chris, Brett, Tim,

Could we meet on Thursday at my house for the meeting. Time 6pm-7pm. Chris C won't be able to attend and I have not heard from Tim. Please let me know if this will work for each you.

Regards,

Bill

July 19, 2004

Subject: Re: Amending the CCRs
Posted: Phil Little
7/19/04 11:38 PM

Gary,

As I understand this issue, Mike Jensen was at an impasse regarding his pool project: he needed to know if he had neighborhood support for a proposed CC&R change. Once he gathered 20 promises to vote via neighborhood signatures, he felt confident that his project work could resume, even though the proposed change was not yet formally made.

In my opinion, the actual CC&R change should wait until the HOA is registered, incorporated, etc, at which time the elected officers will facilitate the change process. They will manage the CC&R amending, provide for whatever neighborhood review is needed, and manage the final neighborhood vote, as will be provided for in the HOA by-laws, yet to be ratified.

I would hope all CC&R changes and revisions would be funneled through an established HOA, as this seems to be the natural course.

That's my 1/26th worth.
Phil Little

Subject: Architecural Committee Meeting
Posted: Bill Johansen
7/19/04 9:32 PM

Good Day Bret,Chris, Tim, Cheryl, or anyone else interested,

Can we schedule a short meeting Wed.or Thurs. evening from 6-7pm to discuss the front entrance appearance, maintenance, and the sign repair/replacement. We have received bids for the sign and entrance maintenance. We can discuss these bids, and how to proceed from this point.

Please let me know what will fit your schedule.

Best Regards,

Bill

Subject: Amending the CCRs
Posted: Gary Giusti
7/19/04 11:31 AM

Now that Mike and Sheila have gathered enough signatures to amend the CCRs, how exactly, do we do it? Does anyone have info on how to do this? Do we have to file it somewhere?

Mike (Jensen): what is the exact text that you used from your signature sheet?


thanks,
gary

July 17, 2004

Subject: Thank you all
Posted: Mike Jensen
7/17/04 1:14 PM

Thank you to all the neighbors that I talked to these last 2 week about our pool. I have recieved 20 signatures and we are now restarting the process.
It was a pleasant experience to meet all of you and get to talk to all the wonderful people that we have in our neighborhood. I am looking forward to be able to meet all of you and so please stop by and introduce yourself if you'd like to see our progress - slow as it may be it seems.

July 14, 2004

Subject: Articles of Incorporation & By-Laws group update
Posted: BillandSophiaJohansen
7/14/04 5:38 PM

Dear Neighbors,
Hope everyone is enjoying this warm weather!
As discussed at our meeting on 7/10 we have begun work on the Articles of Incorporation and the By-Laws.
A very positive step was accomplished as an agreement of the majority from the Saturday 7/10 meeting created 2 working groups;
One is the Common Area Group, to work on issues pertaining to the common area. And our group, which was created to work on the draft versions of the Articles of Incorporation and the By-Laws for the formation of the HOA.
Our group has had our first meeting and we would like to update our progress to everyone. We have completed the draft version of the Articles of Incorporation. It is currently being edited and we plan to have it available for all to review very soon.
We plan to work on the draft version of the By-Laws at our next meeting. There were also several more people who have volunteered to join us but were unable to attend due to schedule conflicts. We will make sure that you all know our next meeting date and time soon.
We appreciate all of the offers of assistance and would like everyone to know we welcome all constructive comments at anytime. Anyone else interested in helping out in any way, even if not able attend the meeting, is always welcome. Please contact any one of us.
Sincerely,
Paurin Lin
Cora Spencer
Sophia Johansen
Mike Jensen

July 13, 2004

Subject: Have a nice day! :)
Posted: Michelle Conger
7/13/04 5:41 PM


EXACTLY! Many of us want that as well. A SIMPLE HOA. But there are a few out there preventing that from happening by being difficult and close-minded. Unfortunately, several us feel that this is the only way to voice our opinions since others will not LISTEN at meetings.

have a nice day!

Subject: Enough!!!
Posted: Alan Busacker
7/13/04 4:40 PM

Come on people..........this is a neighborhood with 26 homes that needs a "simple" HOA. We are not trying to incorporate a City. Since I have not been to either of the 2 meeting (work & other obligations have prevented this) I will not comment or criticize anything to this point, but these e-mails are getting out of hand.

I'm sure that when this E-mail group was formed that it's intention was for neighbors to communicate with each other and to provide constructive comments in order to resolve issues & to move forward to a solution. It seems to me that we are going in the wrong direction. Things appear to be moving farther and farther apart and making snide & rude comments don't help.

My wife and I are both very busy people, as I am sure that many of you are. We don't have the time, or the desire to be involved in a neighborhood battle.......for a SIMPLE HOA.

Please take our name of the E-mail list. I really don't care to "listen" to the neighborhood bicker. If someone comes up with a simple solution.....mail it to me......I'll sign it and send a check. I'd rather be boating!!!!

Alan Busacker

Subject: Re: Saturday July 10 Meeting
Posted: Michelle Conger
7/13/04 9:55 AM

Hi Nina,
I know that I have already spoken with your privately but I wanted to thank you again for all that you TRIED to do for this neighborhood. I am sorry to see that your intentions were not appreciated by some. I know as well as you that our reason behind wanting an attorney to take care of this from the beginning was not because we are intellectually inadequate to do it ourselves but because it would be nice to have an "outsider" handle things. It would have also eliminated unneccesary arguing, finger-pointing and close-mindeness. But maybe I don't know anything since I do not have an MD behind my name. I do know however that in the end this will not have saved us hardly any money as an attorney will still be needed to "go over" everything. That is why there are proffessionals in this world. So we can rely on people with expertise in a particular field of knowledge to take care of such matters. And as far as I'm concerned, the little bit of money is hardly worth all the headaches and time away from family for meetings where hardly anything is accompolished. Again, thanks for all that you did and know that those out here who are open-minded and will to listen to others are grateful.

Cheers to you Nina

Michelle Conger

Wow! would you look at that. Even without an MD behind my name I can still figure out how to add icons in my email. Amazing isn't? :)

July 12, 2004

Subject: Saturday July 10 Meeting
Posted: Nina Palludan
7/12/04 7:48 AM

I don't know about the rest of you, but I thoroughly did NOT enjoy the HOA meeting last Saturday, what a contrast to the first meeting. I wish the people who did not attend the first HOA meeting could have been there to feel the positive energy, hear the constructive discussions, and feel the consensus of how to jointly move the HOA forward...I wonder if it was the mixture of people or the fact the we had an attorney present as a neutral party to ask questions of and move the discussion forward??? Maybe the value of an attorney is really the intangible skills that experience brings, not how to fill out a form...

So now, like our wonderful democratic nation, our neighborhood is polarized and divided over the issues, neighbor against neighbor. Gary was asked to provide a voting mechanism on the website so home owners can vote to proceed without an attorney or with. Thank you Gary for all your time and effort - I know that senior IT skills cost $150-$200 an hour if the HOA was to purchase the same service. So, we will vote, and until either option has enough votes to proceed, both sides will have to continue lobbying swing voters - Does this remind anyone else of some other current affair? Here is a suggestion - how about if both sides choose a representative and we settle it arm wrestling? It will only take 5-10 minutes, doesn't require us to talk to each other, and we can then move forward? Or we can play a game of Risk - though that could take hours. As you may gather, I have no intention of putting myself through the suffering of another HOA meeting.

The CC&R is a legally binding document that all homeowners must adhere to or legal action can be taken against them by any other home owner in the Highland Ridge neighborhood. Our CC&R does not require any home owner to belong to the Highland Ridge HOA, nor does it require the homeowner to pay any fees for maintenance of the common/shared property. This means, that any HOA that is established without making an amendment to the CC&R to make it "required" for a homeowner to belong to the HOA and pay dues, is a voluntary organization that has no legal right to enforce any of it's bylaws on home owners who have not joined the HOA. This is why it is critical to the success of the Highland Ridge HOA to have an amendment made to the CC&R making it required for a home owner to belong to it and pay dues to fund the maintenance of the shared property. As we all know, Mike and Sheila especially, we need 20 home owners to agree and sign a document to amend the CC&R.

So, why do I keep repeating myself? Because people don't appear to listen or believe, and having 4 kids I am just in a habit of repeating myself while being ignored. I have put considerable time and effort into the HOA, and to realize that many of the people who want to proceed by handling this ourselves because we have the time and intellect to figure it out, had not taken the time to read all the research that many of their neighbors had already completed on their behalf, for the benefit of all, was what made me realize that my involvement with the HOA is not a productive use of my time.

I will re-focus my time and energy on my family and spend some time with some of the wonderful people who make up this little neighborhood. When someone has a proposal for an HOA that has merit, they can knock on my door for a signature and a check.

I do, however, find it intriguingly amusing that Mr. Christel (The attorney that several of us have discussed the HOA with) told me in my first meeting with him on behalf of the Highland Ridge HOA, that what happened last Saturday would happen. He has seen the conflicts and arguments prevent HOAs from being formed for several years....He certainly got that one right - I am glad I didn't bet him since I did tell him that I was sure that wouldn't happen with this HOA because we all appeared to be great people and neighbors.

Oh, one more thing, please do not bash attorneys in front of me - I do take it personal since my brother is a practicing attorney...

I hope you all have a wonderful summer, holiday season, Easter - however long it will take to get 20 homes to come to an agreement....

Sincerely,

Nina

July 8, 2004

Subject: RE: Notes from the Highland Ridge HOA June 24th Meeting
Posted: Cora Spencer
7/8/04 9:32 PM

Fellow homeowners:

I am sure we are all concerned about property values and keeping up the appearance of the neighborhood. The better informed we are before attending the meeting Sat. night the better. I just want to share some of the information I have found.

If you go into www.secstate.wa.gov/corps, you will find the web site for establishing associations, corporations, etc. Their phone # is 360-753-7115. I called them to verify this was the spot to contact to incorporate a homeowners association. They stated, "Yes, it was" and proceeded to mail me the form for articles of incorporation. You fill out the form and return it with a $30.00 fee. I have the form if anyone would like to see it. I will have them with me SAturday night.

Next, I went into htp://gis.clark.wa.gov/ccgis/mol/property.htm. Here you simply type in Highland Ridge. It gives you the plot map showing all the property owners, addresses, and other information. It shows who owns the common area parcel 186425-054 and 186425-058 as being Prestige Data Services, Inc at 10302 NE 85th Circle, Vancouver 98662 and Clark County owns 186425-056. It also, gives you the plot map for the entire neighborhood. You can simply print this off your computer.

If you want to go into the State law regarding formation of a Homeowners Ass, read Chapter 64.38 RCW. The library can provide you a 6 page copy of this document.

I agree that we need to incorporate our HOA. However, one statement made regarding an unincorporated HOA being unable to enforce the CCR's does not agree with what I read in the CCR's. Per our own CCR's, Article VIII General Provisions: "The declarant or any owner or owners of lots shall have the right to enforce, by any proceeding at law, or in equity, all covenants, conditions and restrictions now or hereafter imposed by the provisions of the Declaration."

I would recommend everyone reading thru the CCR's prior to Sat. night.

If anyone wants to see the form for Articles of Incorporation, plot maps, lists of parcel owners, State laws regarding Homeowners Associations, I have them and will be glad to share. I will also bring them Sat. night.

Also, while researching the above information, I was provided with a list of alternative lawyers specializing in HOA's. I will have these with me on Sat night. I have price estmates for two of them.

Just trying to help get this resolved. I hope we have 75% of the homeowners represented so we can get this going.


Cora Spencer
360-566-0301

Subject: pool
Posted: Mike Jensen
7/8/04 9:06 PM

I had added but forgot to save in the draft that WE HAVE ALSO STOPPED ALL WORK until we can get some response from all of you.

Thanks for your responses

Subject:
Posted: Mike Jensen
7/8/04 7:43 PM

Dear Highland Ridge neighbors

We are writing to sincerely apologize to you. We have been in the process of setting up our pool.

Somewhere along the buying process we inadvertently missed the line in the CC&r's about above ground pools. Our intention was NOT to ignore the CC&R's, we believe they are important. It has always been in our plans to put a pool in and mentioned that to John when we were looking at our home. We probably would not have purchased our home if we had found that line about the above ground pool.

During the set up process we had heard rumors of concerns but nothing directly. On July 7 just by coincidence we were looking in the CC&R's and saw "no above ground pools".

Unsure as what to do now we decided to write this letter. It was not a purposeful act to ignore the CC&R's. Once again we are sorry.

Here's where we are now; The pool is up and ready to fill with water. We have dug over 25 yard of clay to lower the pool to the upper lawns level. There is a plan to place an additional deck to surround the pool to match the existing deck, to permanently lock the outer gates to limit children's access to thru the house and an additional rail around the deck for extra security.

Currently the Home Owners Asso... is not officially running but in the process. Since there is no official process to ask permission for an exception or to change the CC&R's we are asking for the support of our fellow Highland Ridge neighbors.

We are requesting an exception to the CC&R's to finish filling the pool and add decking. Please feel free to Email us, Call us at 574-8307 or even drop by and see. We'd like to get to know you and also provide explanations

Respectfully yours,

Mike, Sheila, Alexander and Nicholas

July 3, 2004

Subject: RE: As of tonight, we now have 25 of 26 houses
Posted: Mike Siegel
7/3/04 12:56 PM

THE SIEGEL ARE MISSING A BLACK CAT, IF YOU HAVE SEEN HIM PLEASE CALL 576 5689
THANKS HAVE A HAPPY 4TH

July 2, 2004

Subject: Notes from the Highland Ridge HOA June 24th Meeting
Posted: Chris Conger
7/2/04 1:14 PM

The first meeting of the Highland Ridge Homeowners Association took place June 24th. Those in attendance were:

Kirk & Danielle Miller Lot #23
Debbie & John Valente Lot #15
Laura Siegel Lot #2
Gary Giusti Lot #21
Brent Richter Lot #6
Tim Smith Lot #25
Chris & Michelle Conger Lot #16
Nina Palludan Lot #18
Mike Jensen Lot #20
Ray Holbrook Lot #4
John & Joanna Stotridge Lot#24

Guest Speaker - David Christel, Attorney specializing in HOAs

First, the above group thought it best to have another meeting as soon as possible so that we can get more households from the Neighborhood involved to discuss the details from the meeting and set a Path Forward. The next meeting is set for Saturday, July 10th @ 7:00pm in the Lower Culdesac. BYOC - Bring Your Own Chair.

Meeting Notes:
Mr. Christel reviewed several different aspects of a Home Owner's Association: Incorporated v. Unincorporated, CCRs, By-Laws, Fees, Officers, and other details. First, since each of us signed a document (CCRs) agreeing to an HOA at the time we purchased our homes, the decision that must be made is whether we want to have an Incorporated or Unincorporated HOA. In addition, information surfaced that the owner of the Common Area (From the Entrance Sign to the first homes) will turn over the Common Area to the HOA in the very near future. Therefore we need to move ahead with our decisions.

Liability and Maintaining Property Values were determined to be the key reasons to establish an Incorporated HOA. By establishing an Incorporated HOA we will be able to have Liability Insurance that will protect every homeowner in the Neighborhood from someone suing each of the individual home owners if they get injured or worse in the common area. The Incorporated HOA will buffer the individual Households from that liability.

In addition, the establishment of CCRs (there are many already in place) will help ensure that our Property Values are maintained. How narrow or wide based the CCRs need to be must be discussed, but the general consensus of the attending households was that we should have Narrow CCRs, similar to what is already in place. (Gary Giusti placed a copy of the CCRs on the Highland Ridge Home Page.)

Establishment of an Inc. HOA takes several steps that will require the services of a Lawyer. The approximate cost of the start-up is $1500-$2500 total.
1. Articles of Incorporation must be set. Included in this is Limitation on Powers in the HOA, whether or not Assessments and Liens (the teeth to ensure the CCRs are adhered to) will be part of the HOA, and what the initial CCRs will be.
2. The By-Laws or the Rules and Procedures on how the Board Members must act.
3. How many officers will be involved from the Neighborhood - 3,5,7,...
4. Obtaining a Tax Identification Number from IRS - Keep separate and apart from the Howe Owners
5. Adoption of policies and procedures

Everyone wants to know - How much will this cost? Several people are putting together various quotes, but the list below is what the Start-Up and Annual Expenses will include.

Start-up Expenses
Fee for establishment of Incorporated HOA
Initial Common Area Landscaping Costs - Dead Tree Replacement, fresh Bark,...
Sign Repair

Annual Expenses
Landscaping the Common Area
D&O Insurance
Liability Insurance
Management Fee
Buffer Expense - to take care of any surprises

We will discuss each of these in detail at the July 10th meeting.

If we do nothing, the HOA will be Unincorporated and each Household will be liable for any issues surrounding the Common Area, (i.e. Lawsuits surrounding injury). Also, any maintenance to the Common Area - Sign Repair, Tree Replacement, Weeding, Fresh Bark,... will fall upon the individual Home Owners. In addition, an Unincorporated HOA does not have the authority to enforce CCRs, i.e. our Property Values are at risk.

To many this may seem like a lot of work. However, it appears that the majority of the details will be taken care of by a qualified Lawyer such as Mr. Christel and our protection with respect to Liability and Property Value are a great concern to many.

We look forward to having more Households involved in the July 10th Meeting so that we can come to a general consensus of how we want to proceed. I look forward to seeing everyone there.

Chris Conger

June 27, 2004

Subject: Lost But Hopefully Found......?
Posted: WenLyn Richter
6/27/04 9:24 PM

Hi there,

Brent lost a pair of Rayban sunglasses (in a black Rayban pouch) on Saturday along the entry way to the subdivision. It was accidentally left on the car and fell as we drove out the subdivision. Unfortunately we didn't realize what that sound was until almost a day later. If anyone has found it, please let us know. You can reach us at 574-3930 or 12906 NE 37th Ct.

Thanks!!

WenLyn Richter

June 11, 2004

Subject: FW: Land Use Hearing
Posted: Phil Little for Paurin Lin
6/11/04 9:39 PM

Fyi...Paurin intended for all to be cc:'d on her response.



-----Original Message-----
From: Paurin Mike and Paurin
Sent: Friday, June 11, 2004 11:08 AM
Subject: RE: Land Use Hearing

Thank you Phil for your very informative update.

Just to let you and anyone who is interested know that our subdivision is w/i the boundary of a local neighborhood association. (this is a very different organization then a Home Owner Association) Anyone in a neighborhood w/i the boundary can be a part of the assoc ie renter and etc., not just homeowners. This Neighborhood assoc was est w/i the past 10 yrs in part to influence the developments w/i this area. It enjoys liason contacts w/ the Clark Co. Sheriff dept and other benefits from the county. It is not currently very active. However the assoc. becomes active when an issue arises. One of the accomplishment was actually the influence of our Highland Ridge subdivision street exit/entrance. There are more information that I feel I cannot do justice in an e-mail. I came across a lot of the information while I was doing homework about HOA.
I have spoken to the current president of the assoc a few times in the past several months. He was very gracious and extended an open invitation to share information. I have kept his name and contact #. This assoc. is a good place to start to try to have any influence about any developement around our neighborhood.
If anyone is interested, I would be glad to share more information.

Paurin Lin

Subject: Land Use Hearing
Posted: Phil Little
6/11/04 12:12 AM

All,

I attended the Clark County Land Use hearing tonight. This was my first time, and it proved more interesting than I expected. There were three Land Use items on the agenda. Two were subdivisions and one was a developer appeal defending its legal right to develop a property as originally petitioned, yet the County staff (planner and engineer) disagreed with the developer on their interpretation of the County code that allow such development. Not applicable, but a good example of what can go wrong for private developers.

Regarding the development we all see to the east of Highland Ridge, I learned the following:

- There are two subdivisions being developed along 131st St: Canyon Crest and Pleasant Meadow. No further information was available for the Pleasant Meadow sub.
- Canyon Crest will consist of 14 lots, one being the existing home at the far southwest corner.
- Zoning is R1-10, the same as ours and the other developments in the area.
- No homes will have driveway access to 131st Street.
- 130th Street will be modified to connect to the subdivisions. All initial access to the development will be located at the intersection of 39th Ave and 131st St.
- Level of homes: middle income houses (no definition of terms given)
- Principle exterior building material: siding (exact quote: 30 , single family siding)

I also learned that the power lines are owned by the BPA - - there s probably a sign on the towers

There were no challenges to the subdivision.

The document that I have from the meeting references the specific codes that the builders must respect. If anyone is interested, I can share the details.

I also had no idea of the rigorous battery of tests/modeling/studies that a developer is required to complete to develop a property. It is quite thorough.

Thanks
Phil Little

June 10, 2004

Subject: Re: Mr. Christel
Posted: Michelle Conger
6/10/04 8:14 AM

thank you neil. i absolutely agree with you
michelle conger

Subject: Mr. Christel
Posted: Neil Palludan
6/10/04 8:06 AM

Mr Christel was contacted by Nina for the first time a couple of weeks ago for the express purpose of getting a qualified opinion on the Highland Ridge HOA. We have no previous history with either him or his firm. Having said this I am a little concerned about the comments regarding potential partisanship as Mr Christel advice is ONLY being sought in relationship to an administrative activity (i.e. what are the legal steps necessary to form the HOA?) I see no link this this task to any future legal requirements the HOA may or may not have.

One of the problems we have is that without a working HOA no-one is empowered to make any decisions or commitments (financial or otherwise) on behalf of everyone. The bottom line is that until we get together and at least 20 of the 26 households agree to something (the voting majority needed to create an HOA is 70%) no-one can be seen as a neighborhood representative. However, a practical reality is that someone has to make the first step and try to schedule something or this will not happen - this is all I believe that the active members of this email list have been attempting to do.

While it might not be the perfect time or place there is at least some interest in attending a 7pm meeting on Thursday, June 24th at BestWay Solutions, 3002 NE 112th Ave Suite F, Vancouver. Nina and I plan to attend this meeting (I guess this is our RSVP). If other "Highland Ridge HOA" related meetings are scheduled (by any or our neighbors) we will endeavor to attend these too as we consider the HOA necessary to minimally address our concerns regarding the broken Highland Ridge sign and maintenance of the shared property.

Regarding Mr Christel's attendance at the meeting I see this as an opportunity to have an expert guest speaker that can help educate all that attend (and consequently due to the kind offers to document the meeting everyone on this email list). If someone wants to invite more experts so we can have an "expert panel" I would welcome this addition.

Regards,
Neil

June 9, 2004

Subject: RE: Meeting
Posted: Cora and Phil Spencer
6/9/04 9:37 PM

We agree 100%. We want to keep this as friendly as possible and get everyone's input. We will be unable to attend on the 24th. I am having surgery the 23rd.
Look forward to seeing everyone at a meeting in the near future.

Cora and Phil Spencer

Subject: Meeting
Posted: Kirk & Danielle Miller
6/9/04 8:08 PM

Wow, I see some emails that don't seem to be conducive to a friendly neighborhood. I am not one to talk about being intense, but want to throw in my thoughts as I have been traveling.

1st I understand that some of you have done a lot of work on getting information. It must be very frustrating trying to set up a meeting with all the work schedules and honoring religious beliefs, trying to set up a meeting. I think we should continue to try to do this.

We offered our place, as stated we don't own the building but lease it for our business BestWay Solutions, LLC. We can use the building anytime that we want, I just need to schedule the time. I would suggest that we schedule two informative meetings where all the neighbors, or those that can gather can get together and put the ideas that we all have down. I realize that we have invited an attorney but would suggest the following.

Lets have the meetings, one of which we have scheduled. I would be more than happy to take notes and relay first meeting that to the potential second meeting. This way maybe we could reach everyone so everyone is informed. I would suggest that we don't have the attorney there yet, but get all our thoughts out, get our questions formalized, then present them at the third meeting to the attorney. This in my opinion would help a few things.

We have some that have been really involved and want to move quickly, this is because of their information level from the work they have been doing, thank you! I would like to be that informed also before we meet with the attorney, I have read the emails and feel somewhat informed but still have questions. There are some of the neighbors that I don't even know and think the first meetings would serve that purpose well. If we are going to "elect" a HOA Board, we would want that to be the ones that can provide some leadership and direction to the HOA. What would our goal of the HOA be? Is it to police the neighborhood, collect the fees? How strong do we want the HOA to direct the neighborhood? I would be a lot more apt to choose someone to lead us after we have a chance to all meet together and get to know each other.

Thanks for hearing what my thoughts are, don't want to throw a cog in the wheel but I know my own tendency running a company is to move too quickly. If we slow this up, but have a process so that we get this done over the next couple of months, I think we can reach out to everyone, and everyone will feel that they have a say in the process.

I will still plan on the meeting next week and wait to hear if this idea is workable.

Kirk & Danielle Miller

Subject: HOA
Posted: Mike and Paurin
6/9/04 7:54 PM

We would like to state the fact that we do not have any problem w/ John Hansen and do not anticipate any future problems.

As we stated in earlier e-mail, there is still a concern due to conflict of interest. Any attorney who is currently or in the past represented any individual homeowner(s) in regard to the home/property in Highland Ridge cannot objectively represent the interest of the HOA as a whole. Has Mr. Christel represented anyone? From the review of the prior e-mail he has done personal work for Nina. Is this incorrect?

We agree w/ Gary Giusti's e-mail that Mr. Christel does not represent the HOA. This is because we have not agreed to the formation of the HOA. Any individual homeowner has the right to seek and choose any personal legal counsel.

We would like to inform everyone that the only thing that we have all agreed to in the purchasing of our homes is the CC&R. There are no enforcing bylaws or regulations or any mandatory fees or dues. These are all to be set up after the agreement to form HOA. We want to reassure all homeowners that our homes and properties cannot be subjected to any liens currently.

Mike called the Three Creek Library and was informed that a public group can meet there many times. The Library simply doesn't allow a group to meet at the same day and time monthly. If needed, a public group can meet again. The Three Creek and the Vancouver Library also recommended many public places we can use.

We have spoken to several people active in the local HOA, some were past board members and past and current presidents. They have all recommended a neutral meeting place. We will gladly share more information that we know about HOA and facts about our subdivision at the first meeting. Also one of the past president of the local HOA has volunteered to come share his knowledge and experience w/ us on his own time.

We are confused in regards to the purpose of this group e-mail communication. The invitation letter we received dated May 12th stated "The purpose of the group address is to have an easy mechanism for open discussion and to pass ideas around. It is not a place to make decisions". In reviewing the past e-mails, we saw that many decisions were made
- the decision to have a lawyer present at the meeting and who that lawyer is
- the decision on the location, date and time of the first meeting
- the decision on having recording devices at the meeting.

Did the purpose of the group e-mail change?

Communication via e-mail can be challenging. Some people might put things in the e-mail that they might not say in person. We wish to remind everyone to communicate in a polite and respectful manner.

Again, we look forward to having an organization that best represents us all and is adaptive to our needs. Everyone wants what is in the best interest of our neighborhood.

Sincerely,

Mike and Paurin

Subject: Re: availability question
Posted: Michelle Conger
6/9/04 3:33 PM

The 19th will absolutely not work. Nina will be gone that weekend and I feel that it is only fair for her to be able to attend as she has gone miles for us. The meeting will not be changed. There will be more meetings in the future and as stated previously there will be notes taken and audio/video if there are no objections. Not everyone will be able to make every meeting but it IS fair that those who have done the leg work so far be able to attend.

Michelle Conger

Subject: Re: Response on formation of HOA
Posted: Michelle Conger
6/9/04 3:29 PM

I absolutely agree with Nina. If you aren't going to lift a finger and do some investigating yourself then you shouldn't knock those down that are trying to get things done. Again, as mentioned in 2 previous emails. Dave Christel has said that he does not know who John Hansen is. So if John Hansen reccommended him, so what. Perhaps he is just someone that he knows would have knowledge of an HOA. It doesn't matter anyways. Whatever attorney ends up helping us has to abide by the same rules and regulations to established an HOA as the next attorney . Again, no one has asked anybody for any money. Nina has been working with him( Dave Christel), with her own money for her own curiousity and is just simply sharing her information with us. I for one am getting very tired of certain people complainging and griping yet not doing anything on their own. You should be grateful and respectful to those who have taken the necessary steps that need to be taken in order to get this process underway. There is too much finger pointing and it is not necessary. Nobody that is trying to get things underway has a hidden agenda. All we want is to establish an HOA. I can not understand why there is the need to be dificult about this. If you aren't willing to step up to the plate then don't go after those that are willing to take role in getting things accompolished. As far as the meeting goes it has been set. Emails were sent out getting opinions and ideas for dates and times. And from what was sent by both emails and told verbally was taken into consideration when the meeting was scheduled. That is why this email was set up in the first place -- for communication. If you chose not to be part of the communication until now that was your choice. It is not acceptable for someone to say that the meeting needs to be changed, especially if you were not communicating in the first place. People need to be flexible. To say that you are not available ALL 5 days out of the entire work week is ridiculous and unfair.

As far as I am concerned, weekends are family time and business should be conducted during the work week anyways.

michelle conger

Subject: availability question
Posted: Maurice & Karen
6/9/04 3:26 PM

To our neighbors;

Unfortuneately, my husband Maurice is on call 24/5 and sometimes 7 days a week. He travels a great deal and worked every single day in May with the exception of Memorial Day. This is because there was an annual 8 day long meeting that was mandatory he attend....on other weekends he was giving lectures to other medical personnel, doctors, technicians etc. So when he is not actively travelling out of state to another hospital or clinic to do consultation work, he is in his office completing all his paperwork for those jobs. ( Last month he went to Alaska, Nebraska, Minnesota, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Montana among other locations, and for the past 2 days he was in Canada ) This weekend he works again on Saturday out of town. One date suggested on the site was June 19th, we simply accepted that date just as some other residents were putting in their opinion recently. We also stated that Sunday was fine as we see that there is one couple who observe the Sabbath and cannot do Saturday until after 6pm. My husband is really the one of us who truly needs to attend this first meeting more than myself if only one of us can make it.

As for our date of sign up, I believe you will read that it was indeed the very first opportunity the two of us had to look and study the website together as we stated in our letter written last night. I feel bad that it took so long, but we are a traditional household and my husband asked me to wait to do anything until such time that he too could take part. As his wife, I feel that was not asking too much. That's what we did. We have now responded. Like anyone else, we have a right to our opinion on the dates of the meetings......is that not true? Please advise.
Maurice & Karen

Subject: Response on formation of HOA
Posted: Nina Palludan
6/9/04 2:36 PM

It is my feeling and understanding that everyone who has signed up for this message board and contributed to the pre-work to start the Highland Ridge HOA has done so in the spirit of getting the neighbors together to form an association that will serve us all well. If that is what you are looking for, then I believe we have all had similar thoughts.

Video and Audio recording was not suggested with the intention of twisting people-s arms and rubbing their faces in statements they made or committing illegal acts, but merely as a means to capture the meeting for people who might be unable to attend and would appreciate hearing all that was said. Note taking is very acceptable as well, but won-t capture the atmosphere for people who can-t attend.

The Miller-s have generously offered meeting space in the warehouse where they lease. The Three Creeks Library has limited availability, and you are only allowed to meet there once. Since this will be a friendly gathering of neighbors kicking off a joint organization, I see no reason not to accept the Miller-s hospitality.

Dave Christel was invited to expedite the process and steer us in the right direction by answering questions about insurance, what documents to file, who is required to sign when and where, how to handle money since this was not included in the CC&R, mistakes to avoid, and in general share with us best practices for getting an HOA up and running smoothly.

The Architectural Committee is the only committee that is required to be formed according to the CC&R. I am assuming that homeowners will vote on volunteers and the volunteers with the most votes get elected. I don-t know the process if we don-t have enough volunteers to fill the posts mandated by the CC&R I another question for Dave. The Architectural Committee also has no responsibility in the establishment of the HOA, but has as it-s sole function the responsibility to review and approve the appearance of the neighborhood as outlined in the CC&R.

Any other committee, including a process for handling money, needs to be filed as an addendum to the existing CC&R and has to pass with a 70% majority or 20 of the 26 homeowners.

I firmly believe that it is very important for everyone to come to the meeting open minded and accepting that everyone who has stepped forward to get this process going has done so with the best interest of the neighborhood in mind, not to serve some personal agenda. We all have different ways of doing things, and I would like to challenge everyone not to bring problems but solutions to the meeting. Don-t complain that bids are too high if you haven-t gone out and collected lower bids, don-t come and say you don-t believe we need insurance if you haven-t researched that we are legally not required to have insurance etc. Raising questions is absolutely great especially if you are willing to research and find answers to share with the group.


Nina Palludan

Subject: Re: follow up
Posted: Michelle Conger
6/9/04 1:44 PM

apparently you are not reading the emails closely. NOBODY has said that you are expected to pay the lawyer. where are you getting this? the price was mentioned so that if anyone wanted to help out that would be great. for those of us who feel it is beneficial for him to be there will split the difference at this time. i also feel that it is ridiculous that all 5 days out of the whole week can not work out. sherrill sent many messages just recently suggestting different dates and then a date was decided based on those who responded. which i believe is fair. personally chris and i have ALREADY arranged our schedules for the scheduled meeting times and i don't want it changed at this time. this website has been up for some time now and we are all busy with our families and work, but it only takes a couple of minutes to check emails.

Subject: follow up
Posted: Maurice & Karen
6/9/04 12:53 PM

Hello again HR neighbors!

We meant to say the County help is for Neighborhood Associations, not HOA, but we can still get free assistance from other sources if really needed.


The point of this first meeting is for residents only (unless some of you choose to pay for your independent lawyer) to form such an HOA, elect officers also, maybe even visit among ourselves just for fun, and that's it. Once an HOA is established then an ageed upon attorney can be hired to take of legal documents and filings. The cost would then be divided accordingly. We personally have lived in HOA with dues previous to here. It's not all that complicated, truly! We know many of you to be"in the know" also and just haven't made any statements to this end yet. Please speak up!
Thank you.

Maurice & Karen

Subject: landscaping
Posted: Maurice & Karen
6/9/04 12:18 PM

We've also gotten a quote from our yard people ( a local owned/operated group ) to throw into the mix. We used them for 3 years while we lived in Vancouver previously and never even thought about using anyone else once we returned. They are THAT reliable. They are also the ones who have taken care of all of our landscaping needs here for the past year.......which if you've seen our yard lately (in back especially) you would see what a fine job they are doing. We've always had a positive experience with their business. However, we are naturally flexible when it comes to the common area.

So are all of us who can't make it on a weekday tied to the Thursday meeting time? Or can it be changed it to a weekend? Aren't there more of you who can attend on the weekend or is it just us? Please respond. Thank you.

As for an attorney attending for over $200.00 per hour, there are officials from the county who at no charge are willing to talk with us about how to form the HOA properly. Or persons from other local HOA's are also available. How about one of these as a free alternative at this time? Please respond to this too. Thank you again.

Maurice & Karen

Subject: Additional Quotes for Landscaping
Posted: Nina Palludan
6/9/04 11:20 AM

I will be receiving two additional quotes for landscaping shortly. The companies are:

G.W. Deal Inc
18500 NE 182nd Ave, Vancouver
(360) 883-1388

Shipp Brothers Landscape
20115 NW 18th Pl, Ridgefield
(360) 887-8564

I am only contacting local companies since I prefer supporting our local economy.


Nina Palludan

June 8, 2004

Subject: As of tonight, we now have 25 of 26 houses
Posted: Gary Giusti
6/8/04 11:12 PM

All -

We now have 25 of the 26 houses in Highland Ridge represented on the group email list. We are in the process of contacting lot 17 and hope to include them shortly.


gary

Subject: HOA meeting
Posted: Maurice and Karen Goudeau
6/8/04 11:04 PM

Hello neighbors,

Tonight was the very first opportunity that the two of us have been able to read and discuss the website information. This is our input:

Firstly, a weekday evening simply will not work for us. Any Saturday should work after this one (June 12). Or even a Sunday if necessary.

Secondly, some of you wrote about meeting at the local Three Creeks Library which sounds like the ideal location: it's close, neutral & free!

Thirdly, we have not made any agreement to pay for an attorney at this time. Primarily because it is not a necessity until and unless there is an HOA formed. Then only for the legal documents which will need to be filed.

Finally, unless each resident who attends anu meeting agrees to be recorded by video or audio, then it is an illegal act. We are of the school of thought that this is a friendly meeting among neighbors hoping to develop a Home Owners Association for Highland Ridge. How about taking notes instead?

It is our personal hope that we can both attend this first meeting in order to form an HOA and elect officers who will best fulfill the needs of our organization.

If there's anyone else in the neighborhood who has similar thoughts, please respond.

Sincerely,
Maurice and Karen Goudeau

Subject: Re: first HOA meeting
Posted: Gary Giusti
6/8/04 10:01 PM

This attorney has no affiliation with Mr. Hansen. My understanding is that he does not know John Hansen.

He specializes in the formation of home owners associations and the various laws that apply to HOAs. He will be present so that he can tell us about the formation of HOAs, the pros and cons of doing so, and the responsibilities and liabilities of a HOA, so that we may better make a decision as to how to proceed.

I personally wouldn't be able to make any sort of responsible decision about an HOA because I don't know any of the laws about the responsibilities or liabilities of an HOA.

He has not been retained in any way to represent us as a group in the future (although as a group we could retain him). He does know some of the background of our neighborhood because Nina has been talking to him. He has already researched our property, our boundary lines, and our CCRs, and has recommendations for us based on his research. We are, of course, under no obligation to follow his recommendations, but I am certainly interested to hear what they are.

I would not be opposed to hearing from a different attorney if they were similarly qualified. But since this one does have our background already, and can make the meeting at the time we've set, seems like the best person for us to talk to.

Bring your questions and lets get the most out of his hour. After he speaks, then we will be more informed and can discuss how we would like to proceed.


gary

Subject: first HOA meeting
Posted: Mike and Paurin Lin
6/8/04 9:20 PM

It is our understanding that the purpose of the first meeting is to discuss the pro and con of the HOA formation.

Our first question is do we need the presence of an attorney to come to a decision to the formation of the HOA?
Is this such a complicated matter that we cannot discuss among ourselves?

We believe it is best for our first meeting to have an inviting atmosphere that fosters neighborhood communication.

Let suppose majority feels that we need an attorney to be at the meeting. Then the second question is which lawyer can best represent our HOA?

We have concerns about conflict of interests.
We have been advised by our friend who is an attorney that we should not agree to retain the person who has worked w/ John Hansen in the past or present as well as currently or in the past represented any individual homeowners regarding the current home/property in Highland Ridge.

Lastly, what is the purpose of any recording devices at our meeting?

A person who take notes for the minute is enough for any recording purposes.

We look forward to an organization that will represent us all and enhance our neighborhood as a whole.

Mike and Paurin Lin

Subject: Re: Public Hearing Thursday at 7pm
Posted: Ray Holbrook
6/8/04 4:11 PM

Regret I'll be out of town on Thursday. I would appreciate an overview of what the plans are for that area.
Thanks,
Ray

Subject: Re: HOA Meeting Date
Posted: Michelle Conger
6/8/04 3:34 PM

hi to all,
chris and i have absolutely no problem helping to pay a fair share of the attorneys fee for the scheduled meeting. we would appreciate if others did so as well. thanks to those who took the inititative and got this going.
michelle

Subject: HOA Meeting Date
Posted: Sherrill Giusti
6/8/04 12:52 PM

We have a meeting date scheduled! Thursday, June 24th at 7:00pm. Kirk and Danielle Miller have graciously offered their business office space to us at no charge for our meeting. The address and directions to the office are:

BestWay Solutions, 3002 NE 112th Ave Suite F, Vancouver
From 205: East on 500, turn south on 112th at the new overpass, go south about 1 1/2 and they are on the right just past the fire station.
Big sign out front says BestWay Solutions, LLC.

Dave Christel, an attorney that Nina Palludan has been working with while researching how to start an HOA will be at this meeting to go over his findings with us regarding the existing CC&R's and our possible future HOA. He will be with us for 1 hour and his fee is $210.

This initial meeting is to determine if we intend to start a Homeowners Association for our neighborhood and find out from Mr. Christel how we legally must go about this, should we choose to. Other issues, such as maintenance and repairs of the neighborhood, can be put on an agenda for the next meeting once an HOA has been established and board members elected. I think we can all agree that the necessity to legally establish an association must come before anything else and that will give us plenty to discuss at this first meeting.

Anyone that is unable to attend the meeting will be able to view the documents from Mr. Christel on the highlandridge.us website soon after the meeting. Also, we can have someone take meeting minutes that can be posted on the website, and maybe even video or audio record the meeting if someone chooses too.

We look forward to seeing (and meeting) you all. Thanks again to the Miller's for allowing us to use their office.

Warm Regards,
Gary & Sherrill Giusti

June 7, 2004

Subject: Public Hearing Thursday at 7pm
Posted: Phil Little
6/7/04 9:48 PM

All,

It occurred to me that we may want to provide input to the County regarding the development of the parcel just to the East of our neighborhood. The public hearing for citizen input! is set for this Thursday at 7pm. I plan on being there, if for nothing else than to better understand the process. It seems that it is in my interest to influence, to the degree that I can, the development of land around our neighborhood.

Thanks
Phil Little

In case anyone else is interested:

Development id: PLD 2004-00026 (Canyon Crest Subdivision)
Thursday, 6/10, at 7pm
1300 Franklin, Suite 680 (6th floor)

Subject: Meeting Times
Posted: Joanna Brooks Stotridge
6/7/04 8:28 PM

John and I are not available any Friday from 6:00 pm to Saturday, 6:pm We observe the Sabbath.

Joanna Brooks Stotridge

June 6, 2004

Subject: Highland Ridge
Posted: Sherrill Giusti
6/6/04 7:19 PM

There is some confusion as to how this works. Emails that are intended for everyone are being sent to the wrong address. Here's a quick refresher:



To send an email to the group, so everyone sees it:

highlandridge at garygiusti dot com



To initially sign up for the group or change your contact info ONLY:

highlandridge-admin at garygiusti dot com



To view all past correspondence, plat maps, etc. visit:

highlandridge.us

Subject: Meeting Place
Posted: Mike and Paurin Lin
6/6/04 3:25 PM

Fort Vancouver Regional Library District has Meeting Rooms available for reservation for use free of charge. The local one here is called Three Creeks near Fred Myer. The rooms are avaiable Mon.-Sat. Just have to find out which day will work best w/ everyone then can call for dates.

Another option is the local schools ie Skyview or other middle or elementary schools, often the meeting places of other homeowner assoc and neighborhood assoc. Don't know for sure if it has any costs but we have checked w/ the library and there is no cost for sure for the library.

Mike and Paurin Lin

June 5, 2004

Subject: Meeting times
Posted: John and Debbie Valente
6/5/04 5:04 PM

We would be available to meet on June 19th, July 10th, or July 17th, which are the Saturdays that were mentioned. We would also be available to meet on any of the Fridays that precede those dates.

Thanks,

John and Debbie Valente

Subject: Re: Meeting Schedule
Posted: Michelle Conger
6/5/04 11:48 AM

hi

maybe we need to look at a weekday evening date. how about a friday?

thanks, michelle conger

Subject: Meeting Schedule
Posted: Alan & Janet Busacker
6/5/04 10:13 AM

It looks like getting everyone together at the same time is going to be quite a task. I am adding my dates to the out of townA list.

June 12th 20th.

July looks good, for now, but can change at any time.


Alan & Janet Busacker

June 4, 2004

Subject: Re: Sign Out Front
Posted: Michelle Conger
6/4/04 6:15 PM

i really don't think we should be waiting a whole month for a possible meeting. i think we should be trying to get something schedule in the nest 2 weeks possibly. i'm afraid this will just continue to drag on throughout the rest of the year.
thanks, michelle and chris conger

Subject: Re: Sign Out Front
Posted: WenLyn Richter
6/4/04 5:52 PM

June 19th and July 10th work for us. Thanks!!

Wenlyn

Subject: Re: Sign Out Front
Posted: Ray Holbrook
6/4/04 4:11 PM


At this point, any Saturday mentioned, with the exception of tomorrow, is okay with me. I'm okay with any location. India might be nice.
Ray

Subject: Thanks Nina
Posted: Chris and Joan Carro
6/4/04 3:55 PM


I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank Sherill, Gary, and Nina especially for doing all the leg work for this HOA.

Sherill for distributing all the letters. Thank you

Gary for setting up this web page. Thank you

Nina for all your work with the lawyers and offering up internet services as well as getting estimates.

It is nice to know that we live in a neighborhood that cares about it's future as well as giving everyone the opportunity to have his/her say. I know all this information is very difficult for each and every one to compute. I hope we all realize that this is in the best interest of all of our investments as well as building a warm and loving community for our families.

Thank you again for all who have responded and participated!

Chris and Joan Carro

Subject: Re: June 19th
Posted: Chris and Joan Carro
6/4/04 3:46 PM


Joan and I will be out of town the weekend of the 19th. Any other saturday after that will work fine. Also, the Salmon Creek Library is also available for meeting too!

Don't want to be difficult but that weekend is our anniversary celebration!

Chris and Joan Carro

Subject: Re: Update on Shared Property Owner
Posted: Michelle Conger
6/4/04 3:12 PM

nina

i like the idea of using the library. free is always a good price and then there really is no excuse for others to show up if they have an issue with helping to pay for the use of hte church.

Subject: Re: Sign Out Front
Posted: Sherrill Giusti
6/4/04 2:46 PM

Thank you Kirk, that's great! That opens up more dates but now comes the nearly impossible task of finding a Saturday that works for most of us. Here are some to choose from:

June 5th
June 19th
July 10th
July 17th

Please reply with what date is best for you or anything else you are thinking! -Sherrill

Subject: Meeting
Posted: Nina Palludan
6/4/04 2:34 PM

I checked with the Three Creeks Library, and they also have some availability. We can only meet there once, max 58 people can attend, but it is free. They have a pull down screen available. They have availability on June 19, and all the Saturdays in July.

If people on the road have internet access from their hotels, I can make my companyas conference service available for conference calls and documents to be presented. There will be a charge for that I can give an estimate if I know how many people would join remotely. It would also only be available if I am able to attend on the chosen date, but anyone can use MCI or Microsoft to schedule a net-conference, the cost would just be a little higher.

Just some additional options make it easier for people to attend.

Nina Palludan

Subject: RE: Sign Out Front
Posted: Kirk Miller
6/4/04 2:32 PM

We have our warehouse / Office available for a time to meet for free. We can arrange anytime after 5:00 or anytime on the weekends. Let us know, Conference room would sit about 18, larger area if more show up.

Kirk Miller

Subject: RE: Meeting times
Posted: Nina Palludan
6/4/04 2:19 PM

Both Neil and I are out of town one June 19. Neil is still in India on July 17, but I will be able to attend.

Subject: Meeting times
Posted: Sherrill Giusti
6/4/04 1:13 PM


I contacted the church and we have a couple options for Saturdays:

June 19th
July 17th

We can use one of their meeting rooms for 2 hours and it is $35. I think everyone should reply with what day works best for them and then we can decide on a time of day. Hopefully this will work out for most of us.

Sherrill

Subject: Re: Sign Out Front
Posted: Sherrill Giusti
6/4/04 12:58 PM

I'll check to see what time the church is available on upcoming Saturdays and let everyone know a couple options.

Sherrill

Subject: Re: Sign Out Front
Posted: Michelle Conger
6/4/04 12:34 PM

Sherrill,
I agree with EVERYTHING you have said and couldn't have said it better myself. I know Chris would like to be at the meeting as well as many others that travel as part of their job. Does sometime on Next Saturday work for most so that way both parents (for those of us that have kiddos) can attend?
Michelle Conger

Subject: RE: Sign Out Front
Posted: Dawn Grosz
6/4/04 12:10 PM

Sounds good to me...

Dawn Grosz

Subject: Re: Sign Out Front
Posted: Sherrill Giusti
6/4/04 9:24 AM

Nina,

Absolutely the northern cul de sac should be included in maintenance and landscaping. We can't have any areas of this neighborhood looking unkept. I personally can't wait until we begin regular maintenance and will FINALLY be a weed/sign/junk free neighborhood. None of us moved into this neighborhood thinking that there wouldn't be maintenance fees for upkeep, that's just ridiculous. I think you're absolutely right that we need to get a couple bids for each item we're considering and then vote on it. As far as getting quotes for insurance, I personally don't know what we legally need to have as far as coverage so maybe the attorney can let us know what we should be getting quotes for and then I would be glad to do that. Obviously none of us know exactly what we're doing as far as start-up for the HOA and we need to make sure what we do is legal since any sort of loophole can result in major problems in the future. Any governing body (HOA) that can put a lien against my house is serious business as far as I'm concerned and we shouldn't think that the HOA is only for making sure the weeds are pulled and grass mowed.

We still have a couple households that haven't responded to the group e-mail list despite several written letters and face-to-face reminders, so I feel we've waited long enough. Let's schedule a meeting date and move forward. What do you think? I can get the Salmon Creek United Methodist Church as a meeting place when we decide on a date.

Sherrill Giusti

Subject: RE: Sign Out Front
Posted: Nina Pallundan
6/4/04 8:44 AM


We have a lot of children in the neighborhood who will be waiting by the sign for school busses for many years to come, and I personally favor getting a sign that doesn't break when exposed to some horseplay (Kids will be kids).

To be consistent with previous consensus though, I beleive that we should wait for the formation of the HOA, maybe that will give us all some incentive to get the HOA established faster when there are things that we know we want to get done.

I have seen a lot of sensitivity from people when it comes to accepting expenses for upgrades/maintenenace to/of the shared property and the formation of the HOA. I don't think it is wise for a few people to try to fix something without majority concent, however much it may bug us, since I have also seen a lot of sensitivity/emotion in that area.

My 2 cents - Thank you for getting the quotes, we now have 2 quotes for the sign, still only 1 for landscaping and none for insurance.

Question to the group - The upper culdesac has an area that belongs to the county but is located inside our neighborhood. Does people feel that this area should be included in the property maintenance that the HOA will provide? Otherwise the maintenance will default to the homeowner that the mess bugs the most i.e. the 5 homes located in the upper culdesac.

Nina

June 3, 2004

Subject: Re: Email and info for Cassie and Tim Smith
Posted: Gary Giusti
6/3/04 10:51 PM

I've been posting documents on the web site as I get a chance, so if you can get that PDF, I'll post it so everyone has access to it.

thanks,
gary

Subject: Email and info for Cassie and Tim Smith
Posted: Tim Smith
6/3/04 6:36 PM

removed

Let me know if this is all you need. Also, I have access to the original plat (yes, plat-that's the correct term for the recorded subdivision survey map) map from the county. I think I can get it electronically in .pdf format. Let me know if you want it. The fish are calling, I'm outta here.

Later
-T

Subject: Sign Out Front
Posted: Kirk A. Miller
6/3/04 1:01 PM


I have looked into replacing some of the letters on the sign with a Vancouver company Sign Biz. Dave Forster is the owner who I personally know, he came out and recommends the following.

Either we replace the letters with Bronze lettering (cannot break, maybe bend if you took a bat or steel to it). Or the laminate comparable to what we have currently on the sign.

Right now his quote is for the Bronze cast metal a cost of approximately $830.

The other quote is for approximately $530 this is to replace all the letters with comparable product that is currently on the sign. It would be somewhere around $200-250 to get something that might or might not match up to the sign.

Danielle and I would like to see if everyone is interested in pitching in and having him put up the Cast Iron sign, or if only a few of us are interested, would pitch in up to $100 toward the sign. I have samples of the product that I will leave at our house, 13103 NE 36th Place. Please let us know your thoughts.

Kirk A. Miller

June 2, 2004

Subject: Re: Update on Shared Property Owner
Posted: Sherrill Giusti
6/2/04 5:11 PM

We will of course get several estimates on landscaping maintenance before any decisions are made. There is no way the neighborhood kids will do this.

Sherrill

Subject: Re: Update on Shared Property Owner
Posted: Gary Giusti
6/2/04 3:40 PM

John Hansen
cell: 360.921.2473

gary

Subject: Re: Update on Shared Property Owner
Posted: Mike Jensen
6/2/04 3:36 PM


I was just catching up on my email and saw the estimate for the maintanence of the common area @ $150/mth. I think that is probably really high to do a little weeding,caseron and blow a few leaves off in the fall.
We could probably get the neighborhood kids to do it for a lot less !

Does anyone have John's phone number I seemed to have misplaced it ?

June 1, 2004

Subject: Update on Shared Property Owner
Posted:Nina Palludan
6/1/04 2:49 PM


Gary, I thought I had sent this e-mail but didn't see it posted:

Dave Christel has not been able to locate information on Prestige Data Services Inc. but has located the trustee, Richard Arrell. Richard has no issues with signing over the property once the HOA is established. Dave is still researching if there is anything in writing stating that the property owner must turn over the property in a certain state, but has not found anything so far. We do have the option to set a condition of transfer that the property is restored to the state it was in when most of us bought our homes. The downside is that unless there is something in writing stating that the owner has an obligation and since the property has no tax burden the owner would want to get out of, I am not sure why Richard Arrell would agree to do anything.

John Hansen also mentioned that the Green Belt - Tract B, has been turned over to the county.

Thanks,


Nina

May 26, 2004

Subject: Richard Arrell
Posted: Nina Palludan
5/26/04 1:49 PM


The only phone number I can find for Richard Arrell is (360) 885-3076. This number has been disconnected.

I am sure that John has his contact information since John & Fulya just recently applied, Apr 1, to develop a new subdivision with Richard Arrell called Royal Ridge down on 99th Street. The county permit filing only lists Johnaes contact information.

I am not a PI so if left to me, the attorney will resolve to identity and legal ownership of APrestige Data Services Inc.B and the responsibilities this firm may or may not have toward the ongoing maintenance of the shared property until it is turned over to the Highland Ridge HOA.

Nina Palludan

Subject: Re: Talked to John...
Posted: Michelle Conger
5/26/04 12:32 PM


I agree Sherrill. I think we all can also agree that John has told many of us different things. He actually told Chris and I a couple of months ago to get together and let him know what needed to be done and he would take care of it. Seems that he just tells people what he thinks they want to hear. Personally, I wouldn't believe one word out of his mouth anymore and we will just have to go the legal route. Someone has to be responsible for the maintenance of this property until there is an HOA.

Michelle Conger

Subject: Re: Talked to John...
Posted: Gary Giusti
5/26/04 11:35 AM


Well I always assumed it was John who owned the land ("I bought this land 30 years ago..."), but in my title docs it does say:

Prestige Data Services Inc.

and in the first paragraph of the CCRs, page 2 of 19, it does say

"Prestige Data Services Inc. Profit Share, Richard Arrell Trustee."

I would speculate that John owns this company, but that's besides the point.

Whomever the owner, I would still say they are responsible for upkeep until we take the land over.


On a slightly different note, Chris Carro said yesterday that the area behind his house, "Tract B," is slated to be handed over to the County after construction of the area.

On page 1 of 19 of the CCRs of Highland Ridge in the Grantee(s) section, there are two names listed, "The Public" and "Highland Ridge Homeowners Association" which seems to support Chris' claim.

Other than the first page of the CCRs, does anyone have any documentation about the transfer of "Tract B"? I can't find anything that specifically mentions this.


thanks,
gary

Subject: Talked to John...
Posted: Chris Conger
5/26/04 11:28 AM


Nina,

Thank you very much for that clarification. uThis puts a light on things that I was not aware of and makes our obligation as a neighborhood even clearer. uIt also makes me feel better about weeding the other day. uI am also glad to hear that John is taking care of getting his signs off of the property this week. u

Thanks again,

Chris

Subject: Re: Talked to John...
Posted: Sherrill Giusti
5/26/04 11:20 AM

So who DOES own the shared property? I don't think it's necessarily clear that John isn't obligated anymore just because he says he isn't. Am I wrong, or didn't the attorney say otherwise?

Subject: Talked to John...
Posted:Nina Palludan
5/26/04 10:53 AM


Here is a summary of my conversation with John that may shed some light on several questions people have.

John Hansen never owned the land, the entire subdivision was owned by Prestige Data Services Inc.S and John bought lots from that company to build on. The CC&R supports that statement. The other builder who also bought lots from the company only built two homes and then moved on to another development. John is not the legal owner of any of the shared property, and everything that he did on the landscaping and maintenance of the shared property was to better sell the lots and the homes that he had built, not because he in any way was obligated to do so.

Because he does not own the shared property, he does not feel any obligation to maintain the property now that the homes on all his lots have sold. The home owners, including the home on the vacant lot, needs to get the HOA established so they can resume responsibility and ownership of the land. The HOA will have the right to force maintenance on the vacant house, and either set up a billing scheme with the home owner or a lean against the house.

He will replace Gary & Sherrils tree, Gary - you can call HC Impressions at (360) 772-0330 to make sure it gets on their calendar.

John is also not aware of any legal requirement to keep the Orange/White reflector barricade in place, so we can talk about what we want to do there besides yank it out. John is sending someone over to pick up all this signs this week.

Since it is clear that John Hansen is not obligated and will not volunteer to pay for anything related to the shared property, I think we just need to continue to get the bids and present the budget to the homeowners. I agree that everything can wait until the HOA is official and the property transfer has taken place.

Please let me know if anyone needs further clarification, and remember dont shoot the messenger. Please check your papers, CC&R and Title, if you disagree and believe that John is obligated and include any reference that supports your belief.

Sincerely,

Nina Palludan

May 25, 2004

Subject: Re: Thank you Nina
Posted: Sherrill Giusti
5/25/04 7:19 PM


I completely agree about John's responsibility for things until our association is formed. I don't want to start replacing/repairing out of our pockets since we are all under the assumption that the responsibility is not ours yet. There is also some question as to whether the letters on the sign should be of better quality to discourage further vandalism. Of course this is something to be discussed at a meeting, but I do agree with Chris & Joan.

Subject: HOA
Posted: Cora Spencer
5/25/04 4:11 PM


It seems several homeowners are asking for everyone's opinion. Does anyone understand what John's responsibilities are through the CCR's or any county regulations governing home development, property development, etc.? We also need to verify that the greenbelt has been turned over to the county and we are not responsible for any maintenance in that area.
Isn't the forming of a HOA a civil matter? Before we really get into hiring a lawyer, are we sure we really need this expense? We need to know who is willing to commit to this expense. We need to find out how many people are willing to pay their part for the lawyer. It may be difficult to proceed with a lawyer, if not enough people are willing to pay their part. I have heard of other HOA being formed without a lawyer. I feel we need to come to a decision on this as a group.
Cora Spencer

Subject: John's Responsibility
Posted: Chris Conger
5/25/04 1:03 PM


If John is still the responsible for the property, then wouldn't he have to be in compliance with the Convenants. I need to review the convenants again, but upkeep must be in them. If that is the case, then John does have responsibility to replace the letters and dead trees.

I know John looks at this neighborhood as a done deal and he will no longer get any revenue from it, so it will be difficult to get him to do much unless we are a unified front. His signs - the big one at the entrance and the smaller ones next to Nina's house, dead trees, letters, bark, the empty house, all need to be addressed.

I will review the CCRs again and see what I can discover.

Chris

Subject: Costs of potential HOA
Posted: Gary Giusti
5/25/04 10:13 AM


Sherrill and I have no problem with on-going costs for maintenance. We expected that when we moved here.

In my mind, if we keep the HOA amount under $20/month that's great by us. I don't know what costs we will have: Maintenance, taxes, insurance, and/or repair fund. Maybe some of those are zero, great, maybe there are some things I missed.


As for the estimated startup cost for tree replacement, etc., I sure would like to try to negotiate those costs with Mr. Hansen. Seems to me he should be handing over the property in good condition.


Nina, thanks for tracking down this info,
gary

Subject: Re: Thank you Nina
Posted: Michelle and Chris Conger
5/25/04 10:12 AM

hi

I also agree that we still need to do what we can to get John to "finish up" in here before we start paying for these items.

Michelle and Chris Conger

Subject: Action Items
Posted: Nina Palludan
5/25/04 10:06 AM

In response to Chris Congers question on how many of the action items are being completed.

Dave Christel, has agreed to come up with a plan/proposal for action based on the exploratory fee I paid to get information for my personal use. Once he completes the review of the plot maps and the title insurance I should get the plan/proposal which I will post here.

Dave will need to be paid a real retainer before he will proceed beyond producing the plan, i.e. we need people to sign off on joining the HOA, decide who handles money in the interim until the HOA is official and write a check to get the whole thing started with filings etc.

I have received some quotes on the landscaping and letters, non on insurance.

John is willing to be present for the kick-off meeting of the HOA, I have not discussed what he is willing to do. There is no requirement anywhere that I have seen that states that he needs to keep the property in a certain condition until turned over to the HOA, but he is legally responsible for the property until the time the HOA is a legal entity and can have the property transferred.

I would like to get the plan/proposal back from Dave before we have the meeting. I am hoping to get that in the next 2 weeks. I think everyone will be more likely to sign up if they know the plan and cost involved. Dave is also willing to be at the meeting.

Nina Palludan

Subject: Thank you Nina
Posted: Chris and Joan Carro
5/25/04 9:56 AM

To Everyone,

Thank you Nina for all your work in getting these estimates.

I was under the impression that we all agreed that we felt John Hansen was responsible for the replacement of the trees as well as the letters on the front sign.

I still feel that he has work the is undone on this property before the HOA resume the property in it's entirety. How does everyone else feel?

Chris and Joan Carro

Subject: Update on Title information and more...
Posted: Nina Palludan
5/25/04 9:45 AM


As part of our title insurance agreement, ours was done by First American Title, there is a schedule B that has references the Highland Ridge Homeowners Association and any tax, fees, assessments, or other charges the HOA may levy.

I know that schedule B is an exception from title insurance coverage presented in schedule A, but I am wondering if we are starting to get enough implied references that everyone signed to determine that everyone did indeed sign up to join the Highland Ridge HOA. I will defer to Dave Christel as he is also reviewing the plot map.

The HC Impression Quote Details:
Monthly Maintenance Cost $150.78 (Annual cost per household $150.78*12/26=$70)
- Weed flower beds
- Rake debris of flower beds
- Trim groundcover away from curbs
- Fertilize trees, shrubs, groundcover, and flowers Feb/Sep
- Remove garbage if any
- Sweep debris near curbs
- Maintenance performed weekly
Startup Maintenance $1254.70 (Cost per household is $49)
- Bark dust and installation
- 3 white birch trees to replace dead ones
- 1 fruitless pear to replace dead one
- Planting of trees

Done Right Signs came back with a quote of $15 per letter + $25 per letter installation cost for a total of $80 (Cost per household is $3)

I would like to know if people would like to pitch in to get the sign fixed before we finalize all the HOA stuff. I will be happy to arrange.

Thanks,


Nina Palludan

May 24, 2004

Subject: Plot Maps
Posted: Nina Palludan
5/24/04 2:36 PM

I picked up the full sized plot maps from the Survey company. It looks like the green belt is part of the HOA property. Neil also said that there are some interesting references to the HOA in the title agreements that every home owner signed. I need to read up on it since his interpretation is that by signing the title you also agreed to the establishment of the HOA, but there still was no mention of funding for the maintenance of the shared property.

I received a quote back from HC Impressions on getting the shared property maintained. Ongoing monthly cost of $150 to weed, fertilize, prune etc. $800 to replace all dead trees and put down bark dust. I will get the details so we can make sure that people getting other estimates getting it for the same items.

Nina Palludan

May 20, 2004

Subject: We are over 50% participation on the Highland Ridge list
Posted: Gary Giusti
5/20/04 10:58 AM

We now have 14 of the 26 homes represented on the Highland Ridge list.

thanks,
gary

http://www.highlandridge.us/

Subject: Re: Monument Letters
Posted: Sherrill Giusti
5/20/04 7:34 AM

I spoke with the Millers last night and they have a friend that has a sign business and have gotten a couple quotes from him to repair/replace the letters on the monument. They will sign up for this email group soon and then send out the information to everyone.

Sherrill

May 19, 2004

Subject: Monument Letters
Posted: Nina Palludan
5/19/04 2:35 PM

The letters on the monuments were provided by:

Done Right Signs
7719 NE 88th Street
Vancouver WA 98662
(360) 256-3370

I have called and left a message for a quote.

Nina Palludan

May 18, 2004

Subject: Thank you Nina
Posted: Chris Conger
5/18/04 3:55 PM

Nina,

Thank you for taking the initiative to talk with a Lawyer and get a better understanding of the situation. Question: Did the lawyer state that John would have to take care of any discrepancies prior to the hand over?

I am ready to help, but it sounds as if the first step is to get everyone together for a meeting. How many of the "action items" are taken care of by the Lawyers/HOA?

Chris

Subject: To answer a couple of Nina's questions
Posted: Gary Giusti
5/18/04 1:16 PM

I've been keeping the following page up to date, and it has this info on it.

http://highlandridge.us/index.html

It has a count on it of households, currently: 10 of 26

Also, if you look at:
http://highlandridge.us/directory.html
There is a list of which houses are represented. I have only put lot numbers up here for now, because I don't know if people want to put up names/phone/email/etc. here.

Finally, I am putting a copy of any emails sent to the list here, for now:
http://highlandridge.us/archive.html

That way, for anyone who signs up late, the info will be there.



gary

Subject: Full Size Plot Map
Posted: Nina Palludan
Tuesday, May 18, 2004 1:05 PM


Minister & Glaeser Surveying has agreed to provide us with a full size plot map free of charge. I will pick it up Thursday, May 20, on my way home from work.



Nina Palludan

Subject: Full size plot map
Posted: Nina Palludan
Tuesday, May 18, 2004 10:00 AM


Minister & Glacier Survey - 360 694-3313 will make us a copy free of charge of the plot map. I am waiting a call-back so I will know where to pick it up.

I am having 1 estimate on shared property maintenance done by the landscaping company that John Hansen used. I have not contacted others but believe that we should get at least two more. They are quoting tree replacement and bringing the area up to snuff, and then a monthly maintenance fee.

Nina Palludan

Subject: Highland Ridge HOA
Posted: Nina Palludan
Tuesday, May 18, 2004 8:37 AM

Gary, how many people have joined the group? Will you manage communication to the remaining people of events happening on the e-mail group?

Highland Ridge Home Owners,

Over the past several months several people have had discussions about the formation of the Highland Ridge Home Owner Association and the maintenance of the common property. I will like to share with you information that I have, so that when we put all our information together we can proceed in an expedient manner to conclude the formation of the Highland Ridge HOA.

As many others, I researched on the internet and talked to John Hansen. Neither source of information provided me with what was needed to start the HOA. John told me that he turned over the shared property to the home owners in October of 2003, and was no longer going to maintain the shared property. He also told me that the property was listed at zero value with the county and no property taxes are due. I am not sure if he ever had insurance on the property. John Hansen gave me a reference to a real estate lawyer, Dave Christel, who practices out of Vancouver.

I have met with Dave and gave him a copy of the CC&R so he could help me understand what needed to take place to form the HOA. Here is a summary of the information that he has provided me with so far:
The CC&R specifies that John Hansen turns over the shared property to the HOA, not the home owners. Since there is no HOA, John is still legally responsible for the property
The CC&R does not state that an HOA will be formed as an outcome of the sales of homes, so to form a HOA is a change to the CC&R
The CC&R does not spell out that a home owner is required to pay maintenance fees for the shared property, so to require this is a change to the CC&R
Any change to the CC&R requires 75% of home owners approval, meaning 20 of the 26 homes in the development
Only the legal owner, a home can be owned by a trust or financial institution, can sign-off on a CC&R change
If the home owners vote not to form the HOA, John will remain the shared property's owner
Start up cost preliminary "guesstimate" is about $150-$200 per home
Legal fees, filing fees, title search, one time maintenance, etc.
On-going cost preliminary "guesstimate" is about $100 per year per home
Insurance and maintenance
This formation of the HOA is easier with all original owners in place

Next steps with the information I have:
Get a full size plot map so Dave or other legal council can determine if the green belt is part of the development shared property and if there is other details that affect the CC&R and HOA.
Meeting by all home owners with 20+ agreeing to the formation of the HOA and associated startup and annual fees
Bids on property insurance
Bids on landscape maintenance
Bids on Monument letters
Title search
Presentation of budget to legal home owners and legalizing the filing for the HOA
Property transfer from John Hansen to Highland Ridge HOA
Election of Architectural Committee and Treasurer

I talked to John Hansen about the full size plot map, and his copy is in storage and he can't get to it. He gave me the number of the original surveying company, so I will call them and post the results back.

I don't know the time frame that others are thinking about to get this concluded. I would personally like it done over the summer.

Any one can choose to take one of the actions items and just communicate to the group that they are working on it and then post the results back. I think that is the real value of this group.

Sincerely,

Nina Palludan
3715 NE 131st Street

May 17, 2004

Subject: Re: Getting in front of John
Posted: Sherrill Giusti
5/17/04 9:25 AM

I guess what we need to do is have a meeting so that we can discuss these things and decide as a group what to do at the meeting. This email group is for information and ideas only, not for any decisions. Once everyone has joined this email group it will be easy to choose a meeting time and place that works for most households. We are still waiting on several households to respond. We definitely need to be sure that everyone that chooses to be included is on board before we start meeting. I may have to go around from house to house again to see if the people that haven't responded intend to. It's frustrating, but I don't know how else to do it without letting this drag out for months.

Sherrill Giusti

Subject: Getting in front of John
Posted: Christopher L Conger
5/17/04 8:35 AM

How are we going to go about getting in front of John? He continues to side step the issue of turning over the up keep to the residence and says he already has. I know that Nina talked to a lawyer, but what is the time frame? The signs, the dead trees, new bark, and the vacant house need to be addressed.

Chris

May 16, 2004

Subject: Thanks to all that helped with the front
Posted: Chris Carro
5/16/04 5:25 PM

Thank you to all that took the time to help out in cleaning up the front. It looks great. Hopefully now that most of the work is done in the weeding, John will be more likely to put down beauty bark and replace the dead trees.

Thanks again
Chris Carro

May 12, 2004

Subject: FW: HOA
Posted: Gary Giusti
5/13/04 11:09 AM

Phil sent this to me when he and Cora signed up for the list, but I thought I should pass it along.

I like the idea of a directory for the HOA, but I won't publish any name/phone/email/address info unless explicitly given permission by the household.


gary


------ Forwarded Message
From: "PHILLIP SPENCER"
Date: Wed, 12 May 2004 17:16:30 -0700
Subject: HOA

Thanks for starting this. It sounds like a great idea. I think no one knows how to start this HOA. We have personnally been in Associations before, but they were already established.
One problem in this neighborhood is no one has started a neighborhood directory. We don't know each others names, phone numbers, etc. Once you get everyone's name, e-mail address, street address and phone number, it would be nice if everyone could have a copy. We can each pay you; whatever, it costs to run off the copies.
Obviously, the main concerns right now are establishing the HOA, getting the common area cleaned up, and finding out if we need to carry insurance on the common area in case someone is injured. Thanks again for getting this started.

Name: Phil and Cora Spencer




------ End of Forwarded Message