Minutes to 10/5/09 Board meeting

Beddington Lake East Road Maintenance Association

Board Meeting Minutes

Conference Call

10-5-2009, 7:00 pm

In attendance: Peter, Win, Jean, Marty

Agenda

1) Approve minutes of prior meeting (8/8)

2) Road maintenance

- has brush cutting been completed?

- Marty’s findings with Bangor Hydro

- Other.

3) Treasurer’s report.

4) Status/plan for mailing assessment notices.

5) Discussion re: maintenance of additional association roads, e.g. Shorey Brook.

6) Next meeting

1) Approve minutes of prior meeting (8/8)

• Minutes approved unanimously.

2) Road maintenance

• Brush cutting: No evidence of brush cutting. Jean will follow up with Herb Jordan.

• Marty’s findings with Bangor Hydro: Our roads are scheduled for maintenance next October, 2010. Their maintenance cycle is 7-8 years. Camp owners on side roads camps may want to hold off on their own spring brush cutting expenditures until after Bangor Hydro completes their brush cutting. Service rep stated Bangor takes care of lines except between the box on the house and the last pole (open to interpretation). Win and Jean have had good experiences with Bangor Hydro’s tree service: emergency response for Win, as quick as 45 minutes (from Cherryfield), both Jean and Win (separate lots, occasions) were not billed: Recommends Top Notch Tree Service, owner David Jodrey, Waltham, ME,who does work for Union River Telephone.

• Other: None.

3) Treasurer’s report: $175.00 debits since August 1 report. $100.00 contribution to the town, for August 1 use of building. $75.00 spent on professional/state fees. Balance: 15,348.91 at the end of August.

4) Status/plan for mailing assessment notices: Jean: Notices are going out next week.

5) Discussion re: maintenance of additional association roads, e.g. Shorey Brook

• Lively discussion by all regarding strong feelings of empathy for lot owners and private road maintenance issues. Peter notes the mandate given us by the membership at the annual meeting. We, as a board need to provide information for BLERMA members to vote on at the next annual meeting. What we do as a board will set precedent and should apply to all roads. Legal concerns discussed: what kind of maintenance is allowed over private land, pothole filling, grading, brush cutting? Discussion regarding precedential effect on Shorey Brook and where is the line drawn? All agreed: could be very complicated, very quickly. Jean: Information from legislature. DEP is trying to get change in culvert size. Original culverts were sized for twice as much as highest water. DEP proposes ¾ bigger than highest water. If Shorey Brook Culvert washes out, it may have to be replaced with a bridge. Define what “all the roads” is. Policy needs to be defensible. Once we define, we can ask Herb about costs. Distinguish between lot and camp… dividing line should be lots. How many lots does a road need to serve before it can be included in the proposal? Two or more. Anything serving one lot is a driveway. Proposed maintenance would end after the first driveway. The standard that Bangor Hydro uses is that two or more lots are an access road. Next step: what do we want those roads to looks like: not wider, same width…just grading, brush cutting. Develop a maintenance schedule. As a first cut, go to Herb and give him the roads we want to include (work as above), he should be able to give price for doing the first time. Then determine maintenance schedule with Herb’s advice, expecting it to be same as now. But it could be three years.

• How are roads used…on the board walk of camp roads on August 8, the biggest distinctive evidence of use on Shorey Brook vs. other roads appeared to be ruts from four wheel vehicles. Do we take it into account? Use and abuse is more evident on some roads than others. If someone is damaging road, the Association should not have to maintain every year. One proposed policy could state that roads are maintained every X year and interim maintenance would be by camp owner. Discussion of fatality on Beddington Lake East at the gate last summer and irresponsible ATV driving experienced by autos on the road: near head-on misses, side-by-side racing, etc. Possibilities? Signs stating ATV responsibility? Sit down with ATV Association?

• *Restating the above into reasonable policy proposal 1: add maintenance to all access roads, defined as any that serves two or more lots. 2: determine maintenance schedule and what it would include, grading, trimming. Costs and budget would be determined in consultation with Herb Jordan.

• At next annual meeting give facts, hard numbers, dollars and cents, options so members can make a motion.

a) See * above.

b) Leave maintenance policy as is, no expanding of policy.

c) Development of side road associations by lot owners (4 or more). BLERMA provides funding only for first maintenance. Separate associations give BLERMA insulation from liability.

• Jean will have conversation with Herb Jordan and get estimate based on above, for further discussion.

6) Next meeting: Tuesday, November 10, 2009

8:15 Meeting adjourned.

Respectfully submitted.

Martha LaMarche

Recording Secretary