The Lauren Condominium Association

Minutes of the Board of Directors - September 1, 1999

President Elizabeth VanderPutten called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. in the Manager's Office. Present were other Board members Joe Morris, Mason Essif, Adrienne Simenhoff, and Waldemar Wajszczuk. Also in attendance were owner Eileen Collins and Property Manager Walter Krolman.

Treasurer's Report

As of July 31, 1999 the Lauren had $584,216 cash on hand. In July, we had income of $51,474 compared with expenses of $55,044 for a monthly deficit of $3,570.

Operating income was over budget by $534, while operating expenses were over budget by $72.

In July capital expenditures of $1,469 were made for continuing lobby renovations.

As of June 30, the Lauren had a total income of $345,554 compared to expenses of $330,010 for a year to date surplus of $15,543

Since the last meeting one of the Association's six-month Certificates of Deposit matured and was rolled over into a similar six-month CD.

Professional Presentations

Wayne Hall, Environmental Systems Engineering

Wayne Hall of Environmental Systems Engineering, The Lauren's building engineer, gave a presentation to the Board. Mr. Hall reported that on the whole the building operates very smoothly mechanically and that he does not see the need for any major upgrades or replacement in the near future. He did note that he would like to see the insulation in various common areas of the building - especially the heating and cooling pipes - replaced or improved. This would help save energy as well as
prevent corrosion.

Mr. Hall also answered questions regarding the cooling and heating systems.

He explained that the efficiency and capacity of the building's air
conditioning system was designed to meet or exceed the design and
engineering codes of the early 1970's when the building was constructed.

In response to a question on the difference in systems cooling ability in different units he mentioned that the balancing of the cold water flow through the system may not be optimal

The Board asked Property Manger Walter Krolman to look into identifying several companies that balance water flow in AC systems and to get prices for insulating the pipes in the basement.

The Board also asked the Property Manger to better publicize changeovers in the heating and cooling system through bulletin board notices in response to a suggestion by resident/owner Eileen Collins.

Susan Fitzgerald of Dubin & Associates

Susan Fitzgerald of Dubin & Associates, the Association's financial management company, met with the Board. Ms. Fitzgerald assured the Board that Dubin's systems are Y2K compliant. She also explained that Dubin is currently investigating acquiring and using new accounting software and a third party package to create reports. The benefits of the new software would be better reporting and the ability to for the association to receive information electronically.

Association Treasurer Joe Morris requested from Ms. Fitzgerald reporting on long-term trending of our budgets. Dubin will provide a three-year comparison and reporting on a monthly basis comparing results between this year and last year.

Also in response to questions the Board had regarding the accounting for investments. Ms. Fitzgerald reported that all interest earned on investments remains in the investment accounts. To help clarify the financial statements Dubin will break out the income line so that interest from investments will appear on an "interest retained in reserves" line. The change will appear on the August 31 financial statements.

Mokhless Al-Hariri of Georgetown Design

Mokhless Al-Hariri of Georgetown Design presented the Board with two options for putting the Lauren's street number on the outside of the building. Mr. Al-Hariri suggested applying numbers to the glass above the doors as the best option. He will work on getting samples of options for the Board to inspect.

Action Items

Lobby Steps

The Board requested that the Property Manager Walter Krolman acquire a ramp for the lobby steps that was made available to association.

Private Unit Renovation

The Board approved renovation plans submitted by the owner of unit 413.

Committee Reports

Technology Committee

The chairman of the Technology Committee, Waldemar Wajszczuk, reported that both StarPower and Home Satellite Express visited the Lauren and made a presentation to interested owners and residents on July 28th. Bringing StarPower into the building would provide an alternative to District Cablevision for cable TV, high-speed internet access and an alternative to Bell Atlantic for local phone service. Home Satellite Express would provide The Lauren with direct broadcast satellite television.

Because of the wide variety of services StarPower would bring to the building, the Board decided to move ahead with StarPower and Board President Elizabeth VanderPutten signed the contract. The Board also agreed to continue examining the possibility of brining Home Satellite Express into the building as well.

Lobby Decoration Committee

Lobby Decoration Chair Adrienne Simenhoff submitted a proposal to the board with the final selections for the lobby area rug and the fabric for the new furniture. The Board voted and approved the proposal.

Managers Report

Packages: The Board discussed a complaint by a resident who says she did not receive two packages that she says were mailed to her at The Lauren. The packages were untraceable through the U.S Post Office and no records of the packages being logged in at the front desk could be found. To address this complaint the Board directed Property Manager Walter Krolman to investigate the problem and to take any appropriate steps to safeguard residents packages.

Regarding packages, the Board reminds residents that number of packages arriving daily at the Lauren has been steadily increasing with the front desk handling nearly 5,000 packages a year. In an attempt to better track the large volume of packages the Board instituted a package sign-in system at the front desk in April. However, most delivery services will deliver packages directly to a unit and the Board encourages this option if a resident is expecting items of any value. Also, if residents
are planning to be away for extended periods of time, it is best to make arrangements for delivery of packages to your unit or to have the package picked up by a friend. It is also a good idea to have the post office hold delivery of mail if you are going to be gone for long periods.

Other Business

Board Resignation

Vice President Adrienne Simenhoff offered her resignation to the Board citing her disqualification from Board membership because she is no longer a resident. The Board accepted her resignation. The Board would like to thank Adrienne for her service to the Board and the association community over the last year and a half and in particular for her hard work in helping bring the lobby renovations closer to completion.

Next Meeting

Next meeting: Oct. 13, 7:30 PM

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 10:10 p.m.. Executive session followed.

Respectively Submitted

Waldemar Wajszczuk, Secretary

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