Vista del Cañon Newsletter November 2002 CONSTRUCTION WINDING DOWN We are very pleased to announce that everyone s home here at Vista del Cañon has now been earthquake retrofitted to the standards of the current earthquake code. It has been a long ordeal of a repair process, mainly due to being displaced from our garages, but our buildings have been greatly reinforced, structurally, making them much safer to live in. Valentine Construction is now putting the finishing touches on the stucco work around the stemwalls and garage doors of Phase 8. Valentine, or their affiliated company Nautilus General Contractors, will continue to be involved with other, more minor repairs around the property on an as needed basis. They have done a great job for us, at a very reasonable price, on schedule! Although we cannot yet announce the exact timing at every location, the next repair priorities that will be starting soon are improvements to the drainage system and paving. Since winter is fast approaching, and another El Niño season is predicted, the areas needing repair the most urgently will be done first. We do not expect to slurry coat all the driveways before the rainy season. Sections of some driveways, however, should be removed and re-poured as soon as possible to minimize further damage from rain. Various sidewalk locations also need to be addressed either by re-paving, or grinding, to smooth out sections that are buckling. The landscapers have also begun many improvements to our irrigation system to help reduce the effects of water runoff on our buildings. Their irrigation tech has reviewed these improvements with our construction manager, who has a considerable amount of experience with landscaping and drainage systems. Even small irrigation repairs such as the replacement of all broken seals on sprinkler heads, replacement of broken or corroded valves, re-programming of timers, and installation of the same types of sprinklers, delivering uniform water pressure along the slopes surrounding the property, can make a big difference. Broken downspouts and installation of splash guards also need to be considered. The painters continue to stay on schedule with their production application of elastomeric paint. They are getting to their pick up work (the details like painting of garage doors, touch up along tops of patio walls, painting of chimneys above tile, cleaning of overspray, replacement of broken globe lights, etc.) several weeks after production painting is done on each building. Their pick up crew has been increased to eleven workers, in order to catch up faster with the production painting, and reduce our wait time for our buildings to be completed. We are currently anticipating all pick up work through Phase 8 to be completed by early December. Painting of perimeter site walls, the pool house, Jacuzzi restrooms and the wooden shade coverings at the pool and Jacuzzi is included in change orders. 1
ROOFING COMPLETED New flat roofs have now been installed on all of our buildings; well in advance of this winter s rains. This was a top priority for the Association, considering how much more expensive it is to repair damage after a roof has leaked into someone s home, than to just get the new roof installed in the first place. The manufacturer s rep was very pleased with the work he inspected, informing us that the roofers did an exceptionally thorough job, for which he will have no problem issuing us our 15 year, no dollar limit, warranty. Flat roofs are always the biggest source of concern for leaks, since heavy rains can overwhelm their ability to drain. Sloped tile roofs, on the other hand, can shed rain so quickly in a downpour, that the water won t even enter the rain gutters and downspouts, it will actually waterfall right over them. Our tile roofs have seen 8 to 12 years of service now, including some leaks of their own. They have been easier to repair than flat roofs, however. Complete re-tiling, or even removal of existing tile, replacement of the water-proof felt paper and flashings beneath the tile, and re-installation of existing tile, would cost over $1M, and has never been within the scope of this repair budget. FIRE SAFETY Fires can occur day or night. In the daytime they may appear to be deceptively small and easily controllable. At night, fire becomes a swift terror, worse than any nightmare. A set of procedures for your home is a good thing to have when dealing with an emergency. Survival rates increase in homes with emergency plans. Plans should include: primary and secondary exits, fire equipment locations (there is an extinguisher on the exterior of every building), a meeting place once everyone is outside, utility shut-off switches and valves. Upon the discovery of a fire you need to remember two things: GET OUT! and NOTIFY! Fire safety in the home means, with few exceptions, complete evacuation of the home. Do not fight the fire unless it is to save a life. Close the doors on your way out. With the door closed the fire may be confined to a single room. If you must go through a smoky area, stay low and crawl on your hands and knees. Once you are outside, call the Fire Department. Dial 911 from a neighbor s phone. Many times people are hesitant to call the Fire Department for small fires. Consider the risks. Three reasons for making the call are: You are required by law to report fires. It is often necessary to have a fire report on hand before an insurance company will pay compensation. Fires should be reported even when you think they have been put out so that the Fire Department can insure they have been completely extinguished. Finally, studies have shown that in residential fires causing death, 60% of those residences did not have smoke detectors, had disconnected the smoke detectors, or had dead batteries. Consider changing the batteries every six months and vacuum the detector to remove as much dust as possible. It is also recommended that every home have at least two dry chemical type fire extinguishers (at least one per floor). We all want to ensure our safety, as well as the safety of those surrounding us. By following these simple fire safety tips from the LAFD, Vista Del Cañon will be a safer place to live for all of us. (More information is available at WWW. LAFD.ORG. Source: LAFD Emergency Preparedness Booklet.) 2
PARKING PERMITS Now that construction parking is over, our system is less complicated. Basically, from 5pm to 5am, seven days a week, vehicles parked in interior spaces (the spaces with the big black and white parking permit signs in front of them) must have interior or guest permits. The interior permit should be displayed on the rear view mirror, with the permit number showing. The guest permit should be on the front dashboard, with its number showing. Since each unit is issued only one guest permit after sending in their parking application, if you have additional guests in the evening after 5pm, the parking policy requires that you call the security company (661-254-6910) and give them the license numbers. Security s dispatcher will then call and inform the patrol officer for that evening, so that your guests are not cited or towed. The Parking Committee has found that the most common mistake that residents make about parking is forgetting to display the interior permits that have already been issued to them. Residents switch vehicles that they are driving between the one they keep in their garage and the one parked outside, and forget to switch the permits. Or residents have to display a different permit on their rear-view mirror at work, and forget to switch to their interior permit when they park here. Please be very alert about displaying your parking permits. Our security patrol officers cannot know everyone s cars, and cannot only have tow trucks on site during early evening hours, when residents are still awake and can respond and show their permits to avoid being towed. We all want to keep towing to a minimum. POWER BUGS "Was Santa Clarita founded on an ant hill?" is a question many of us have asked at one time or another due to the constant ant problems we are plagued with. Gophers and rats (yuck) have also been reported over the years. We have a new pest control company, Conquer Pest Control who have just performed a thorough and needed "power spray" which is a once a year occurrence. Regular maintenance of bait stations and general pest control will also be carried out every Thursday. Per the company, the power spray and pest control treatments are not hazards to humans or pets. Conquer Pest Control has also informed us that they will discount the regular service charge on Thursdays to any Vista Del Cañon resident who wants pest extermination in their unit. Some pest control is covered by the Association, but some areas (like inside your home) are not. For any additional questions please contact our property manager. 3
NEW ASSISTANT PROPERTY MANAGER Ani Bekmezian has left Ross Morgan in order to continue her education in clothing design. We thank her for all her help over these past nine very busy months. Please welcome Jamie Muniak as our new Assistant Property Manager. Jamie is a Pace student at Pierce College in Woodland Hills. She is majoring in English with a minor in Business. Before starting with Ross Morgan she worked at Kellogg and Andelson, CPA s in Sherman Oaks. At Kellogg she assembled tax returns, provided customer service and other general office tasks. At Ross Morgan, Jamie assists Tiffany with our account and a couple of others. Treasurer s Trove As of September 30, 2002, the following amounts were in the Association s funds: Cash Operating: $ 8,663.67- Cash Reserves: $424,526.36 Defect/Earthquake Accounts: $710,492.83 Total Cash: $1,126,355.52 Board of Directors Ken Greaves, President Dennis Booker, Vice President Jim Allaire, Treasurer Marla Adams, Secretary Jim Reedy, Member-at-Large ELECTION 2002 CANDIDATE STATEMENTS As requested by many homeowners, statements by candidates for this year s election to our Board of Directors are included on the next page. Inclusion of a statement does not constitute endorsement by the Association. The statements are provided for information purposes only. 4
KEN GREAVES - ELECTION STATEMENT Hello Neighbors! I would like to be elected for another term on your Board of Directors. I have been a Board member for the past two years, serving as President most of that time. Before that, I served on various committees for many years. I bought my home here originally in 1991. During these past couple of years I have had the privilege of meeting most of you, even if just by delivering your construction parking permits to you. I ran for the Board, originally, especially because I knew that our construction repairs would be a huge job, which would need dedicated leadership and genuine concern to make sure the work got done right, as quickly as possible, at the best value for our dollars. Many of our homes have needed these repairs desperately for years. The Board needed to pull together and focus on getting these repairs done. I think it has. I have personally worked very hard at completing the repairs, and on all the many other issues facing our Association. I believe it is important for the Board to be a cross section representing all the homeowners, and for each Board member to be open-minded. I do my best to listen to the viewpoints of everyone and make sure that they are considered. It is never possible to do everything that everyone wants, since there are always different opinions, but I try to make sure that everyone s voice is heard. In the next year I want to complete the remaining construction priorities, so that the Board can turn its attention back to the other routine issues that we all face. The Board has important financial, legal, insurance claim, property management, enforcement, maintenance and communication responsibilities that need more of its attention. I especially want to see our committees become more active, so that we are doing more things for ourselves, rather than spending our operating budget paying to have things done for us. Active committees will also help to build a sense of community here as members learn the give-andtake of ideas necessary to work together. Please give me your continued support with your vote in this election. Thank you. MURI COOPER ELECTION STATEMENT Dear Friends, I would like to run for a position on the Board because I want to help make Vista del Cañon a better place for all of us to live. I have lots of experience serving with homeowner association boards. I worked for a very large subdivision builder in New Jersey for approximately 3 years. My job there was to start-up the HOA for each subdivision and work with the people to get it running properly until they had 80-90% occupancy. This job involved going to all the HOA meetings and guiding the people through the process until they could function alone. I also owned a condo in Escondido, CA and was on the start-up Board of the new HOA organization there. I served on that Board for a year before moving to Vista del Cañon. I currently work in the Planning Department of a large company. With my experiences to draw on, I think I can make a contribution to managing this association more efficiently and effectively. Please give me your consideration when voting in this next Board election. Thank you. 5
HELPFUL CONTACTS Property Management Security Tiffany Barron, Managing Agent Maxwell Security Services, Inc. 818-907-6622 661-254-6910 800-843-8727 800-277-4827 818-907-0749 (Fax) For reporting disturbances, vandalism, parking enforcement, etc. Ross Morgan & Company, Inc. 15315 Magnolia Blvd, Suite 212 Landscaper Sherman Oaks, CA 91403 Landco Maintenance- 818-891-0398 tbarron.rmc@covad.net Ext. 201 (Tiffany) Construction Hotline 661-251-3302 Most questions, comments and concerns For all construction-related questions Ext. 811 (Emergency Line) After-hours Construction Manager- Professional Services emergencies, including damaged utilities, David McLeroy, Project Manager plumbing, safety hazards, etc. Onsite Trailer (661) 250-8149 Office (949) 635-6700 in emergencies Website - www.vistadelcanon.com THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY Our Property Manager, Tiffany Barron, will be out of the office over the Thanksgiving Holiday, starting on Wednesday, November 27 through Sunday, December 1. She will be back in the office on Monday, December 2. Ross Morgan s offices will be closed from November 28 December 1. Please call (818) 907-6622 x811 if there are any emergencies while their offices are closed. 6