The Lauren, A Condominium | ||||
MINUTES
OF THE LAUREN ANNUAL MEETING CALL
TO ORDER PROOF
OF NOTICE OF MEETING READING
(OR WAIVER OF READING) OF THE MINUTES OF PRECEDING MEETING QUORUM REPORTS
OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS President's
Report The
Lauren's finances are sound, the president said. We received a clean
audit for 2013 and finally got the long due 2011 tax refund from the
city. Unfortunately, for the first time in our history, we had to
foreclose on a unit that had fallen into deep arrears.
We recouped all the money owed us plus attorneys’ fees. She
stressed the point that the board takes seriously suggestions from
owners and tenants, and cited several examples of suggestions that
have already been adopted by the board. Treasurer's
Report A
question was asked whether we have sufficient funds to cover the
estimated $2 million HVAC renovation now. The answer was that, while
we don't have the funds yet, conditions have changed and we may not
need to replace the units anytime soon. Some trial repairs, including
sealing the leaking pans, seem to have worked in almost every case.
However, while the Whalen units are no longer leaking, the airflow of
many units is not working very efficiently. There was a discussion of
where the funds for this and for the elevator update would come from.
This discussion was continued after the election. [For
the copy of the Annual Meeting Treasurer's Report see Treasurer's
Report] REPORTS
OF COMMITTEES Roger
Hirschland, board vice president and chair of the Conservation
Committee, reported the committee has recommended and the board has
approved a change to 50 percent wind energy from Washington Gas and
Electric. The committee is also considering other energy saving
strategies to recommend to the board for consideration, such as
purchasing water-saving toilets, group purchases of efficient
refrigerators, installation of thermopane windows to conserve heat and
air-conditioned cool air, composting for the roof garden, and motion
sensors to turn on stairwell lights. The
committee plans to visit our recycling facility to see how our paper,
plastic, glass, and metal are actually sorted and processed. Residents
and owners are welcome to participate in such a visit (contact Roger
Hirschland). Reports from the Conservation Committee
will be recorded in minutes of the monthly meetings. ELECTION
OF INSPECTORS OF ELECTION NOMINATION
AND ELECTION OF OFFICERS
The
Board was elected by acclamation. NEW
BUSINESS Following
the election, a question was asked as to whether the Lauren has enough
funds to pay for the $600,000 to $800,000 elevator replacement
scheduled for some time in the near future. John Filice explained that
we do not have sufficient unrestricted reserves yet without leaving
the Lauren finances in a precarious financial state. Instead, the
board is considering is to take part of the funds from unrestricted
capital reserves, part from annual income, and to "borrow"
the remainder from the dedicated HVAC reserve funds. Several
investment owners observed that they strongly favored maintaining The
Lauren as a premium place to live, but were concerned about the level
of annual fees. One owner commented on the increasing competition in
the burgeoning rental market in DC, with many new buildings offering
amenities such as exercise rooms. Another investment owner, who was
concerned about the condo fees level, said that neither of the
thermostats in her two units worked properly, and that she understood
this to be a common problem in the Lauren. She wondered if energy
costs might be reduced by the Lauren replacing all the thermostats.
Walter Krolman pointed out the owners are free to replace their
thermostats anytime they wish. There
was a brief discussion of the building not being a non-smoking building.
Roger Hirschland responded that many smoking issues have been reduced
in the last year or so, as Walter Krolman has been generally
successful in dealing with issues as they arise on a case-by-case
basis. Mr. Hirschland encouraged all investment owners to add a
no-smoking clause to their leases. Joe Douglass, the Lauren's
attorney, explained that, in order for the board to prohibit smoking
in individual units, 80 percent of the owners would have to approve
such a policy by changing the bylaws. However, because of some recent
changes in the law that permit proxy voting, this might be feasible.
Amy Bertha pointed out that board members are already busy, and
suggested that what is needed is for someone to champion the cause and
oversee the effort. There
was also a brief discussion regarding replacing the windows in the
Lauren.
The windows are not a common element, so the condo fees are not
able to go towards replacing the windows.
In the past an owner organized a contractor to come and replace
windows for any unit where the owner was interested (the cost was
divided among the owners). This
approach allowed for group savings from bulk purchasing.
Amy Bertha suggested that it would be great, if another owner
was willing to organize this again. ADJOURNMENT Respectfully
submitted,
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