Jan 27 Meeting Notes

Notes and Powerpoint outlines from our last meeting can be found on the Grand Alliance blog (link is on the sidebar). If you're a Grand Firs resident and still need access to the site, please create a Google account, then email grandfirs@hotmail.com and request an invitation link. The site is blocked from the general public.

Volunteers?

Is there anyone who can help Chris and I with some door-knocking? I was able to gather gate information from 26 households at the meeting tonight, but I need the rest. If we have a couple people help by taking the sheet around the neighborhood, it would help us out so much. Please email me at grandfirs@hotmail.com

Thanks :)

Gate Remotes

From Chris:

Gate remotes can be ordered from multiple online retailers and I can program them. The ones we were all provided are the Elite model DT418. Most places have them for about $30. There are other remotes for as low as $17 that claim to be compatible with our gate (Elite brand), but I have not tested them. As long as the remote operates in 418 mhz it should work.

If anyone has questions, email Mandy through the blog and she will forward the inquiries to me.

Gate Phone Activated

Qwest installed our gate phone today. Chris was able to call our house from the box and I was able to buzz him in. However, there might be a problem with the speaker. I could hear his truck idling but he couldn't hear me talking to him. Chris is going to take a look and see if it's something he can fix.

If you have caller ID, the gate phone number (253-875-4388) will appear along with "Graham, WA". However, I just called to have it switched to "Grand Firs Gate". I was told the change would go into effect sometime tomorrow.

When you receive a call from the box, you can open the gate by pressing 9 from your phone.

Park Repairs

I haven't been to the park in a few months so others may already be aware of the slides being damaged. They are no longer attached to the wooden structure, and several screws are exposed. The slides are still anchored to the ground but the kids should probably stay off until everything is fixed.

It looks like an easy job. Are there a couple of neighbors who are available to do the repair?

Goodies

Anyone interested in bringing some goodies to our meeting on Wednesday? I thought I'd bring a batch of cookies or something. Perhaps there are two or three other neighbors who would like to join me in providing some snacks :) Please leave a comment if you're interested!

Gate Phone

I spoke with Qwest today and was able to set up an account for our gate. The technician will be out on Monday morning to establish service.

Qwest confirmed that we will not be responsible for any missed payments by Mastro. The new account is under Grand Alliance Association (with a new phone number) so we're in no way tied to the old account.

Reminder For Kids

It's unfortunate to bring this up, because so many positive things have been going on in our neighborhood. But I've been asked by a couple of concerned neighbors to post about it.

Several kids have been playing around (and even underneath) the Sterling trailer on 228th. They've been dragging construction material around to make bike and skateboard ramps and then leave the area messy. Granted, it's not like the area was pretty to begin with. But several neighbors have been trying really hard to clean our community up and these kids aren't helping. Parents, please ask your kids to stay away from the trailer and construction material. We can't afford the risk of someone getting hurt, given that we have no insurance.

Another issue that has come up is a group of kids ringing doorbells and running away. I'm sure the kids think it's funny and I'm sure that some adults will shrug and say "let the kids be kids". But really, it's annoying to those that it's happening to. (And it's happened to me as well.)

Gate Is Fixed

As you've probably noticed, our gates are up and running. One of the motors had tripped, but the main problem was actually due to the way the control box was programmed. There were so many on/off times programmed that they seemed to be overlapping with each other. The time wasn't even close to being correct, which was probably due to power outages and/or trips.

The gate is now closed 24 hours a day. Chris didn't make any changes to the codes, so for now all of the codes that start with "key-key" will still work. (Note: the phone line is still shut off, so we still can't dial to the houses.) Remotes still work as well. If you have a remote that needs programming, email grandfirs@hotmail.com and I'll put you in touch with Chris.

Eventually, Chris would like to wipe off all the unnecessary codes and start fresh. But for now, we'll just stick with the ones already programmed until we can figure out how the best way to go about making the transition.

One last note: There is a way to program the gate to have just one arm open at a time (depending on whether a vehicle is entering or exiting). We're thinking this would be a good idea to help prolong the life of the gate. No sense in having both arms opening every time a car enters or exits.

Work Party 2/Gate Update

Thanks to those who showed up today (in the rain!) to help with a few projects around the neighborhood. Our turnout was smaller than last week, but we still had around 10 adults show up to participate. A group of women picked up several bags of trash around the development. A group of men repaired the pedestrian gate that's been broken for months. Several others helped clean up tree branches that blew down during the recent windstorm.

Here is the latest on the gate: the motors seem to be working just fine, which is a good thing. My husband Chris thinks the problem is in the control box (located at the keypad). He removed the control box and is attempting to diagnose the problem as I type this. If he can't figure it out within the next couple of days, we'll go ahead and call Sutherland and have them come out. We will contact Qwest this week to get the phone line up and running again.

Back to the pedestrian gate: The men spent a lot of time and effort to repair the gate. Parents, please remind your children that it's not a toy to swing on. It would be a real shame for the gate to break again. Thank you.

And thanks to all who came out and helped today! We will wait a few weeks before planning another work party. Didn't get around to the flags, so that will be on the list again.

Proxy Vote

Reminder: Please have your proxy vote signed, notorized and turned in to Jim E by Monday, January 18. If you have questions, need a new copy of the form, or have no idea what I'm talking about, please email the blog or see Jim ASAP. Participation by ALL homeowners is crucial in our attempt to gain control of our HOA.

Gate Update

We have obtained the software to program the gate. Michelle and I have been in contact and will be working with Qwest and Sutherland Security to see about getting the gate fixed ASAP. My husband Chris will take a look first and see if he can fix it himself, but if he can't, we will be faced with a repair bill. We may need to ask homeowners to contribute some money toward the bill.

Once the gate is in working order, Chris will program it to be closed 24 hours a day. He'll update the call-box list and wipe all the extra codes off (codes the contractors and agents used). Jim Selden did ask that we provide a specific code for agents to use for the purpose of showing houses, which we agreed to.

HOA Meeting - January 27th

Grand Firs HOA Meeting
Graham Fire House on 70th
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
7:00pm

Agenda Topics:

Update from meeting with the bankers
1. Operating the HOA in 2010
2. Status of CCRs
3. Bankruptcy court

Review of plans for new homes listed for sale for vacant lots on 228th bought by Winterwood Green LLC

Budget - discuss matching the services to be provided by the HOA within the amount available from annual dues

Nomination of officers for HOA – which office are you available for?

Other topics

Work Party II - Sunday

Since we had such a nice turnout for last Sunday's work party, Jim and I thought that we'd try again for this Sunday (January 17) at 2pm. Let's meet at the entrance again, rain or shine!

The remaining flags need to come down, and perhaps one or two neighbors would like to take a look at the lighting on the stone fence posts along 86th.

If you live in one of the homes on 85th, we'll need to have access to your backyard. The crew will work as quickly as possible.

Can anyone think of anything else that we can add to the list?

Sale of Lots

Winterwood Green, Jerry Mahan's corporation, purchased 23 lots from Sterling bank (11 lots in Phase 2 and 12 lots in Phase 3). The banks still own the other 295 vacant lots.

Jim E, Michelle and the board will do everything possible to keep an eye on any building permits filed in Phase 1. We need to make sure the homes comply with the CC&Rs for Phase 1 (exterior requirements, square footage, etc).

Gate Issues

As we all know, our gate has not been working for some time. Michelle has had contact with Shauna Melvin regarding the issue, and I wanted to pass the information along.

Regarding the phone bill, roughly $175-200 is past due. The normal monthly cost for the gate phone is about the same as a regular residential land-line. Shauna said that she will check with Jim Selden to see if there is any money available to go toward the phone bill.

Shauna indicated that there is no money available to go toward gate repairs. Sutherland Security maintains our gate, and Michelle will contact them to see how much the repairs will be.

The following information comes from an email sent to me from Jim Ehnborn:

The phone bill should be filed with the bankruptcy court. We should only be responsible for costs in 2010. We may have to put down a security deposit.

Gate repair costs should be filed with the bankruptcy court. We should only be responsible for costs in 2010. We may be responsible for a security deposit on this as well.

Jim Selden has a new computer board for the south gate that is paid for. If the computer board is the problem for the north gate, we might be able to use it for the north gate by borrowing parts. We should just have to cover the cost of labor to repair the gate.

Which brings up the issue of money. How are we going to pay for this to get our gate up and running ASAP?

Heads-Up: Vehicle Break-In

This news is a month old, but I wanted to pass it along. A vehicle was broken into on 229th in December. An I-Pod was stolen, as well as a blue briefcase containing business and personal documents.

I'm not sure if the victim vehicle was locked or not. However, I'd just like to remind everyone to keep your cars locked at all times (even during the day). And if you must leave valuables in the car, the trunk is the best place.

Drunks in Phase 3-4

Thanks to Johnny, Michelle and Pierce County Sheriff, a couple of drunks were escorted from the property (Phase 3-4) earlier today. Though they were driving when the police caught up to them, they were not cited for DUI or trespassing. However, it's nice that the cops at least had the opportunity to catch someone (and hopefully discourage them from coming back).

Their vehicles are still parked in the back (white Ford Ranger and black Isuzu Trooper) until the clowns come to pick them up. So if you see these vehicles in the next day or so, you don't need to worry about reporting them. Unless of course, the occupants have returned and are causing problems.

Keep calling 911 for anything in progress, or the non-emergency number for anything not in progress. Johnny and Michelle, thank you for being proactive and reporting these guys.

Lighting Along 86th

Chris and Johnny took a look at the fence lighting today (if you haven't noticed, the stone accents along the 86th Street fenceline have lights, but most burned out a long time ago). It looks like the lights are difficult to get to, as the concrete/mortar was poured too deep around them. It might require someone to chip some of it away.

Do we have a neighbor or two who is willing to take this project on? The stone looks so pretty when lit up at night. If you can help, please leave a comment. Thanks :)

Work Party = Success!

Next time you drive into Grand Firs, take a peek and admire how nice and clean our entrance looks! Several neighbors gathered today and removed the large broken sign as well as the six flag poles at the entrance. I think everyone was in agreement that the sign was just too dangerous to stay up any longer (especially considering that Grand Firs has no insurance) and that the worn, faded flags were an eyesore. Neighbors inspected the flood lights and gate hinges to figure out what needs to be purchased so we can fix these items. (And I'm terrible with names.. I wish I had taken better notes to I could give credit to the proper people).

Personally, the part that had me most excited was seeing how many kids/teens showed up to help! They raked leaves and picked up trash, and left the entrance looking pretty nice. Kids, thank you for the hard work and for taking pride in your neighborhood. We all appreciate it :)

The sign and flag poles were nicely stacked behind the Sterling trailer.

We'd like to set up another date to finish removing the flag poles along the fence. If you live in one of the homes that backs up to 86th, the crew will need access to the backyard for a few minutes. Once a date is set, we'll pass it along. Thanks for your cooperation.

So once again, if you were at the work party today, thank you so much! If you weren't able to make it, maybe we will see you next time!

Sign Removal - Sunday?

It's only a couple days' notice, but is anyone interested in meeting this Sunday (Jan 10th) at 2pm to dismantle the remainder of the big sign? One of our neighbors took some time to really check it out and feels that it's too dangerous to leave it up (rotting posts, cracked boards, etc). Especially since it's so close to the bus stop where the kids gather.

We've received several emails from neighbors who are interested in seeing the flags taken down since they are so worn. We figure that we can pick a place to store them (some have suggested behind the Sterling trailer) so the proper owner can pick them up.

Another thing we should look at is the entrance lighting. Bulbs are burned out so let's take a look at what we need and how many. We also have several fence post lights burned out (on the fence that runs along 86th).

We have some trash that needs picked up as well.

Hopefully, by accomplishing this list of items, our entrance will look cleaner and more welcoming!

Attention: Babysitters

Attention!!! Looking for a responsible babysitter.

If you are looking for some extra money to spend then that is what we need. Maybe a evening here or there. Some days in the summertime.

Qualifications needed: Responsible, fun, creative, and reliable. Give me a call!

Tricia Garber 253-655-5007

Please watch the Speed

One of our neighbors (who happens to be a cop!) asked that we post a reminder about speeding. Even though there are no speed limit signs posted in our neighborhood, it's important to be aware of how fast we're driving. Let's stay safe. Thanks :)

Sign Damaged

Sometime last evening, the giant sign (advertising Grand Firs and the builders) at our north entrance was damaged. Someone ripped half of it down. So now it's an even bigger eyesore than it was before, and we all know that no one is going to come out and fix it. It's obsolete anyway, given that two of the three builders no longer exist.

Rather than repair the sign, it's going to be easier to just take it down. Are there a couple of neighbors willing to volunteer some time to dismantle the rest of the sign? Please leave a comment so we can get something coordinated! Thanks :)