TO: ALL NPOA HOMEOWNERS
FROM: Northstar Property Owners Association RE: New Gate at NPOA Dumpster Site Background: As homeowners have undoubtedly noticed, the use of the NPOA Dumpster Site (“the Site”) has over the years become increasingly subject to abuse, both by some homeowners themselves, and also by contractors, gardeners, outsiders and other unauthorized dumpers. Construction debris, old mattresses, discarded furniture, and large electronic waste items are frequently found there. None of this is authorized. To deal with this situation, NPOA and NCSD determined that the only viable solution was to install electronic gates at the Site, limiting its use to Northstar homeowners and their authorized guests. The new gates will be activated starting on Monday, July 30th. The gate will be accessed utilizing the same key cards as you use for access to the NPOA Rec Center. New cards will not be issued. (Of course, replacement cards are available in the case of loss, with the usual replacement fee of $25 per key card.) Hours for use of the Site will be the same as in the past, from 7am to 8pm. Rules for Authorized Use: The following rules for authorized use of the Site are not new. They have been in effect for many years, but have frequently been ignored. They are simple and straightforward:
Enforcement of Rules for Use: As the posted rules at the Site have long stated, violation of these basic principles will subject offenders to fines, and for repeated offenses, may result in loss of privileges to utilize NPOA facilities. NCSD and NPOA will address such situations on a case by case basis after notice to violators. The new gate system includes cameras which will permit us to identify cars or trucks which dump unauthorized materials, and the entry system at the gate will identify the card used in such cases. We hope everyone will cooperate with these simple rules and we can finally eliminate the misuse of the Site which we’ve seen in recent years. As always, please make sure to lock the dumpster bins to prevent access to our neighborhood bear population. On May 26, 2018 the Board of Directors passed the following Parking Policy. This policy was requested by a number of owners who have experienced difficulty parking near their unit during peak periods. The primary purpose of this Parking Policy is to assure that occupants of each condominium, whether owners or guests, are provided with the parking privileges to which they are entitled. Only authorized vehicles may park in the parking areas owned by Indian Hills Owners Association. In general, authorized vehicles include passenger cars, motorcycles, and light trucks (meaning those for which the loaded weight specified by the manufacturer including passengers and cargo, does not exceed 8,500 pounds). Commercial and recreational vehicles exceeding 3/4 ton may park temporarily for loading and unloading purposes only. Trailers or other wheeled vehicles attached to or separated from an otherwise authorized vehicle will be ticketed unless arrangements are made for their temporary presence with the Indian Hills property management company.
In January 2015, Del Valle Consulting was hired to perform an in-depth assessment of the status of the siding, estimated remaining useful life, a recommended schedule for replacement and an estimated cost. A draft report was delivered to the Board in May, discussed at the May Board meeting, and Del Valle was asked to include an estimated cost for simultaneous replacement of front decks (from the ground up) and rear decks (infill panels, their support posts and railings only) as well as an estimated cost for replacement of the rear deck infill panels, their support posts and railings if done separately, before the siding replacement project. (Note: structural work was done several years ago for all rear decks.) Del Valle delivered their final report in January 2016. This can be found on the Documents page.
The Del Valle report identified a number of issues with the siding including delamination, unflashed horizontal seams, inadequate nailing density and blocking, buckling, no moisture barrier in many of the locations opened. Del Valle recommended the HOA begin making plans for replacement of the siding within the next 3-6 years. The report was reviewed and discussed at the September 2015 Annual meeting, and discussed further at the October 2015 Board meeting, where it was decided to retain a second consultant to assess options and cost estimates for extending the useful life of the siding through repair and maintenance. A committee of several owners and Board Vice President Bryan Miller was formed to select an appropriate firm for this work and oversee the activity. On December 15, the Board approved a proposal from Posard Broek and Associates (PB&A) for this work. PB&A completed their siding evaluation and report in August 2016. They concluded that our siding has reached the end of its useful life. They found conditions had deteriorated further over the year since the Del Valle report was prepared. In addition to the conditions identified by Del Valle, they found water intrusion within exterior walls and instances of biological growth (i.e. mold) on the backside of interior sheetrock. They recommended that the HOA remove and replace all siding. Their report recommended using fiber cement siding. It provided only one other replacement option, which was to replace with the existing T1-11 and rough sawn siding. It also provided a "limited repair" option, and did not recommend this option. PB&A presented their findings and recommendations to owners on August 19, 2016, at Blackhawk Country Club in Danville, CA. This presentation was also broadcast via a webinar to allow owners to attend remotely. The presentation was repeated at the Annual Owners Meeting on September 3, 2016. This second presentation was also broadcast via a webinar. Links to sections of the PB&A report, including numerous photos of existing conditions, are on the Docs page. During an Executive Board session on March 3, 2017 that included PB&A and the HOA attorney, it was discussed that PB&A had considered some siding replacement alternatives that were not documented in their report because in their professional opinion those were not recommended options for the HOA to consider. The HOA attorney advised the Board that HOA members should be presented with all viable options including pros/cons and cost estimates. The Board then decided to commission an additional evaluation of siding conditions and maintenance/repair/replacement alternatives. In Executive Session on July 7, 2017, the Board approved a proposal from Bert L. Howe & Associates to perform another analysis of our siding and to provide a report. The final report was delivered to the Board on September 28, 2017. A link to the report is on the Docs page. A Board meeting has been scheduled for October 28, 2017, to provide owners with information on the Howe report as well as the earlier reports and to make decisions on next steps. Garbage is picked up from our dumpsters on Fridays and Mondays during peak usage periods, and is picked up once/week during other periods. The NPOA dumpsters, located off Northstar Drive near the traffic circle, are available for our use if needed. PLEASE NOTIFY CAMCO IF OUR DUMPSTERS ARE FULL OR IF YOU NOTICE GARBAGE BEING PILED ON THE GROUND BESIDE THEM. CAMCO will rectify the situation and will arrange for a garbage pick-up, if needed, as soon as possible. Click here for CAMCO's contact information, including their 24-hour emergency number.
CHARCOAL BARBEQUE GRILLS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN INDIAN HILLS AND MUST BE REMOVED!
The Board implemented a List of Fines at the April 28, 2012, Board meeting. These were amended at the September 3, 2016, Board meeting. The fines are for violations of our CC&Rs.
On 6/15/2013, the Board approved proceeding with projects to replace pathways (including steps/stairs within pathways and stairs between parking lots and pathways) and pathway lighting, with a total cost not-to-exceed $800,000. Installation of new handrails is also included. Stairs attached to front decks are notincluded.
Why does the new pathway and stair design include additional steps connecting horizontal surfaces? Placer County required that we construct the new pathways and stairs in compliance with current California Building and Residential Codes. These current building codes no longer allow the sloping pathways that were installed when Indian Hills was built and to which we had become accustomed. Is our HOA required to provide for ADA access? Our condominium complex does not have the characteristics that trigger ADA requirements. This determination was made prior to embarking on the pathway/stair replacement project. The cost to provide ADA access to all of the units in our complex would have been extremely high due to our terrain.
A Master Plan for Indian Hills was completed in August 2010. (All owners received a copy, and an electronic copy is available on the "Documents" page of this web site.) The plan evaluated all "common area" components, prioritized their need for replacement, and provided a conceptual design and estimated budget for each. The Master Plan documents the future vision for Indian Hills, integrating the design for all components and building upon the unique architecture of the complex.
The Board has been acting upon the recommendations in the plan using funds being held in reserve. Several projects are have been completed or are underway. Deteriorating retaining walls made of railroad ties were replaced with retaining walls made of rock. Standards for new windows were developed, documented and approved. A test project was conducted during the late summer and early fall of 2011, involving the installation of windows in 6 units and replacement of all windows in unit 6027 on Bear Trap to finalize the waterproofing technique. As discussed above, a window replacement project began last summer and will be completed this summer. The HOA is funding replacement of front-facing windows (kitchen, entry rake and clerestories). Owners have the option to take advantage of group discount pricing to replace additional windows at their own expense. A project to design new front decks, pathways and lighting for a prototype building - 6029 - 6032 Mill Camp - began in 2011. However, when cost estimates for construction of this project were available, they substantially exceeded the Master Plan's estimated budget. Design of pathways and lighting was removed from the project's scope to limit the HOA's additional expense for the project to approximately the balance of the retainer that had been paid in advance. The deck design component of the project was completed in November 2012. After considering the current state of our common areas, input provided by homeowners, and evaluating available reserves and projections, the Board agreed on 2/8/13 to obtain bids for pathway and pathway lighting replacement. Replacement of pathways includes the stairs/steps along the pathways and between pathways and parking lots. After reviewing bids and budgets, the Board agreed on 6/15/2013 to proceed with this project. See separate sections above for the status of these projects. |
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