Kingsgate! With the days getting shorter, and the sun getting lower on the horizon, we are approaching my favorite time of year… Fall. It seems like it has gone faster than ever considering the extraordinary circumstances we are all dealing with this year. As you can hopefully tell, the Board has spent the summer working hard on serving the community on multiple fronts. Please see my note below for some details on this. I will address the professional management selection process, describe the transition to our newly selected manager, and finally ask for some community volunteers to help us more forward. Professional Management Selection On Tuesday, August 18th we had our out-of-cycle board meeting to vote whether or not to select a management company to help with tasks in the neighborhood. This process started in May of this year and was as follows:
Professional Management Selection
On Tuesday, August 18th we had our out-of-cycle board meeting to vote whether or not to select a management company to help with tasks in the neighborhood. This process started in May of this year and was as follows:
The feedback the Board received was generally in favor of the move, with only a few members not wanting to see the change. I think that the Board vote of 7 in favor and 2 not in favor of full management likely accurately represents the feedback from the community.
Professional Management Transition
I believe the selection of NOVA is the right fit for our neighborhood and will frankly be a breath of fresh air in the community – I can tell you that they are already helping the board to be more organized and produce documents and structure that we have not focused on in decades. Finally, they are a local company with employees who live in the Seattle area and they understand us and our community well.
In the next few weeks, we will be transitioning our financial management to NOVA. The Board is working hard to make this as seamless as possible for the community. If you pay dues quarterly, you will be receiving your 4th quarter bill from NOVA around the beginning of October. You will still have the option to pay by check if you desire, but there will be other payment options available to you as well. Look for that in the mail. You will also be receiving introductory letters from NOVA that will help explain some of the processes that they will become involved in.
Please Join our Team and Help Maintain and Improve Kingsgate 3 & 4
The Professional HOA Management Company Exploratory Committee did a tremendous job helping the Board make a comfortable and well-educated selection in an area that we had no expertise in 4 to 5 months ago. The team spent time learning about the industry and then studied how certain members of the industry would or would not help our HOA. They then conducted a Fortune 100 style formal proposal and multi round interview process that allowed them to filter down from over 10 serious companies to 3 for the board to vote on. The entire time the committee communicated with the Board on a monthly basis (or sooner when required) and engaged the community when appropriate. I point this out for two reasons; the first is to recognize and thank the committee members that spent over 150 personal hours on this individually while still being dads, working at their real jobs, and trying to spend summer vacation with their family. The second is to show how something great is created within our community when someone raises their hand and becomes a chair or member of a focused, motived, well organized and accountable Committee.
Due to the success of our last committee, in the coming weeks the board will be looking for community members to be part of a few committees:
Covenants & Enforcement Committee Chair and members– Duties will include working with the board on a community engagement policy, building rules based on the CCRs and By-Laws, and working with our manager to follow up on enforcement actions.
Election Committee Chair and members– Duties will include running the yearly Board member election according our guiding documents in a fair and equitable way.
Pool Committee Members – These members will help prioritize tasks and duties pertaining the running of the pool.
Social / Recreational Committee Chair and members – Develops social programs to promote our ongoing sense of community.
Park Committee Members– These members will help prioritize tasks and duties pertaining to the upkeep, maintenance, and improvement of the park.
Architectural Committee members– These members will help facilitate approval of community members wishing to make improvements to their homes.
Additionally, the Board has interest in developing the following unchartered and currently inactive committees. If any members have interest in leading or joining one of the below committees please reach out to the board via the email below:
Communications Committee – Prepares association newsletters, works with Board on written, verbal, digital, and print messaging and communication strategy, maintains a community listing+
Safety Committee – Identify hazards, develops programs to promote the safety and security of the community, inspects common areas and equipment.
Finance Committee – Revise the preliminary budget, conducts public hearings on the budget, revise financial reports, reviews and monitors insurance needs and coverage, monitors financial procedures and transitions
PLEASE make contact with kg34.board@gmail.com if you are interested in serving the community in any of the above roles – we love to have community participation, leadership and support! In fact, please e-mail us even if you’re not 100% sure you are interested but just want to talk about it, if you think you may be interested in the future, or if you have a different idea for a committee that leverages a skill or ability that you have! No matter where you fall into the previous comma-spliced mess of a sentence – WE WANT TO MEET YOU. Moreover, rest assured, no matter what, we will use your real talents and not ask you to do manual labor – unless you want to!
Thank you all for your feedback and support on this issue. I personally look forward to the future in Kingsgate
Best,
Mike