Chapel e-Chatter To subscribe to e-Chatter & news alerts, send an email to: cghoanews@gmail.com A p u b l i c a t i o n e x p r e s s l y f o r t h e C h a p e l G l e n C o m mu n i t y p u b l i s h e d b y C h a p e l G l e n C l u b , In c .
October, 2015
NOTICE: Inside this issue: Annual HOA Meeting
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New Trash Cans
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Important #’s
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HOA Minutes
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Greenbelt News 3 HOA Letter, Fact Sheet & Proxy
Annual Homeowners Association Meeting Tuesday, October 6th @ 7:30 P.M. @ Westside Church of the Nazarene See Pages 5-9 for more information
CLUBHOUSE RENTAL DRAWING At Annual Meeting October 6 at 7:30 pm Westside Church of the Nazarene
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♦
Must be present to win! Free rental to be used within one year. ♦ Meet your neighbors at the Annual Homeowners Meeting. ♦ Learn what is happening and/or share your input. ♦ Vote on a Special Assessment Proposal.
Dates to Remember: •
•
HOA Meeting— Oct 6th @ 7:30 pm @ Westside Church of the Nazarene Glendoras—Oct 14th @ 7:15 p.m. @ Clubhouse
New Trash Cans Please place the new trash cans at curb with the handle/wheel side toward your house. If you stand in the street facing your house, you should be able to open the can. This will ensure the can opens and dumps properly into the truck. Also, cans should be stored inside your garage or somewhere out of sight as soon as possible 1
CHAPEL GLEN, INC.
Need to Contact Us?
MINUTES BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING
273-9958 or cghoanews@gmail. com
Chapel Chatter
Lisa Bigley
Chatter Deadline
15th of month
Directory
Kathy Dryer
ChapelGlenDirectory Updates@gmail.com
Clubhouse Reservations
Kathy Dryer
271-5321
Pool Badges
Tara Becsey
tlbecsey@aol.com
Chapel Glen Security
Non-Emergency Mobile Phone
654-3477
IMPORTANT PHONE NUMBERS Emergency
911
Chapel Glen Non-Emergency Cell Phone
654-3477
IMPD Special Patrols
327-6400
IMPD Traffic
327-6600
If you are new to the neighborhood and have not been contacted by the Welcome committee, please call the committee member for your section as listed below (your section is identified on the Chapel Glen map located in the center of the Chapel Glen Directory). If you have questions, email cghoanews@gmail.com.
Section I
Mary Ann Flanary-Schenk
440-7287
Section II
Joyce Weaver
273-1982
Section III
Joan Ayer
271-2016
Section IV
Beth Hardcastle
271-4013
Section V
Dave / Mary Thompson
271-7833
Section VI
Holly Hintz
209-0948
Section VII
Lisa Bigley
273-9958
Section VIII
Tara Becsey
271-4258
September1, 2015
I. Call to Order – Meeting was called to order at 7:00 PM II. Approval of Minutes – The August meeting minutes were approved as written. III. Financial Report – The Financial Report was presented by our accountant. IV. Committee Reports • Architectural – No activity. • Chapel Chatter / Communications – No activity to report. • Clubhouse – There were 9 rentals during August and 1 reservations thus far for September. • The lower level of the clubhouse has been painted as have the closet doors. The lower entry area will be painted this winter. • Greenbelt – Cleanup from the storms this summer continue. • A report was provided regarding an opportunity to have some of the dead trees within the greenbelt removed by a logging firm for a relatively small cost in exchange for the resulting wood. The Board voted to proceed with this arrangement pending agreement on the final terms. • Lake – No issues. • Pool – The pool will be closing on Labor Day weekend as is typical. • Security & Crime Watch – No incidents to report. The crime watch meetings will continue this fall but take a break in December. V. Old Business Long-term Planning Committee – Board members reported positive comments from residents regarding the special assessment. One resident expressed concern regarding potential materials used to prevent creek erosion. There was also a concern about obstructed views at the Chapel Glen Dr / Country Club Rd entrance. VI. New Business – None VII. Other – The terms of three Board members will expire during October. One Board member has agreed to serve another term and residents will be solicited for volunteers. VIII. Adjourn – The meeting was adjourned at approximately 8:15 PM. The Annual Homeowners meeting will take place at 7:30 PM on October 6 th. Due to scheduling conflicts the meeting this year will be held at the Westside Church of the Nazarene. 2
Invasive honeysuckle increases risk of tick-borne disease in suburbs
I have found several articles that give more importance to reducing the infestation of the invasive Asian Bush Honeysuckle in the Greenbelt. Washington University in Saint Louis has completed extensive research on ticks and their habitat. The result of the research is that White Tailed Deer (and we have them in our area) are more prevalent in honeysuckle infested areas than in open woods. It is not the honeysuckle that attracts the tick it is the deer carrying the ticks that are attracted by the honeysuckle according to the report. This article and others can be found by searching for ‘honeysuckle and ticks’. Below are a few excerpts from the Washington University article which is too long to include in the Chatter. “You don’t have to go out in the country and into the woods anymore,” says tick expert Brian F. Allan, PhD, who just completed a postdoctoral appointment at Washington University in St. Louis. “The deer are bringing tick-borne disease to us.” So, it stands to reason that anything deer like might increase the risk of tick-borne disease for people. “I’ve spent a lot of time in honeysuckle,” Allan says, “and I can tell you there are deer tunnels through it. So if you get down low, you can actually move through honeysuckle pretty efficiently. And you pick up a lot of ticks while you’re back in there.” As Allan and his colleagues reported Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the density of whitetailed deer in honeysuckle-invaded areas was roughly five times that in areas without honeysuckle and the density of nymph life-stage ticks infected with bacteria that cause human disease was roughly 10 times higher. Hard as it may be to believe, given the long chain of interactions needed to get there, the presence of bush honeysuckle substantially increases the risk of human disease. Although the tick season is nearing its end for this year the best time to control the Bush Honeysuckles is in the next several weeks. They are especially easy to see when the leaves fall from other bushes. Their leaves stay green when all others are gone as seen in the photo below taken in the Greenbelt... Honeysuckle is fairly easy to control by cutting the larger plant at ground level and spraying the stump with glyphosate (Roundup) or by pulling young plants when the ground is moist. Why not ‘Adopt a Patch’ and be part of cleaning honeysuckle from the Greenbelt? Fall is the very best time to kill honeysuckle because nutrients are moving down from the leaves to the roots and herbicide applied to the leaves or cut stumps moves to the roots killing them.
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Dear Chapel Glen Homeowners, The Board of Directors, Chapel Glen Club Inc, has been entrusted by its 373 resident members to carry out the daily business of the corporation and to ensure the long-term viability of the community itself. Included within these responsibilities are the care and maintenance of neighborhood assets such as the clubhouse, pool facilities, and approximately 25 acres of common property and green space. As we approach the 50th anniversary of the establishment of Chapel Glen in 2017, the Board is keenly aware that our aging assets will require additional upkeep and refurbishment as we look ahead to the next 50 years. As a neighborhood we will be challenged during the next few years with costly repairs to our most valuable assets, the pool, clubhouse, and greenbelt. As many of you are aware, this spring the Board solicited resident volunteers to serve on the Long -term Planning Committee. This committee of 15 worked throughout the spring and summer to assess the clubhouse, pool facilities, and common areas to plan repairs, maintenance, and upgrades for the next 15 years. Substantial areas of need include the removal of nearly 400 dead trees, repairs to the clubhouse deck, relining of the pool, and replacement of the pool filters. During the August 4th Board meeting, the Board voted unanimously to move forward with a vote by residents at the October 6th Annual Homeowners Meeting to approve a special dues assessment from 2016 – 2025. This special assessment is needed because the annual dues currently collected are sufficient only to cover the annual neighborhood operating expenses. There will be three informational sessions held during September which will allow residents an opportunity to ask questions of Board members and the Long-term Planning committee as well as to see some of items in need of repair first-hand. These meetings will take place at the Clubhouse on September 8th, 17th, and 23rd between 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM. Please consider stopping by at any time to ask questions. Details of the needs identified during the Long-term planning effort as well additional background information will be available at the September informational meetings noted above or via email request to Chuckcarufel@gmail.com Regards, The Board of Directors, Chapel Glen Inc.
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Special Assessment Fact Sheet Chapel Glen 2015 The proposed Special Assessment, structured as follows, would be in addition to the annual homeowner dues and payable in semi-annual installments along with the annual dues. 2016 $150.00 ($75.00 spring, $75.00 fall) 2017 $150.00 ($75.00 spring, $75.00 fall) 2018 $100.00 ($50.00 spring, $50.00 fall) 2019 $100.00 ($50.00 spring, $50.00 fall) 2020 $100.00 ($50.00 spring, $50.00 fall) 2021 $100.00 ($50.00 spring, $50.00 fall) 2022 $100.00 ($50.00 spring, $50.00 fall) 2023 $100.00 ($50.00 spring, $50.00 fall) 2024 $100.00 ($50.00 spring, $50.00 fall) 2025 $100.00 ($50.00 spring, $50.00 fall) Questions: Why is the Board proposing this Special Assessment? The annual dues collected by the neighborhood are sufficient only to cover annual operating expenses. Some of these expenses include utilities, pool staff salaries, insurance, security patrols, and snow removal. While there are a handful of neighborhood volunteers who help maintain the greenbelt and other facilities, there is simply too much work needed for this small group to handle. How will the funds generated by the Special Assessment be utilized? The Long-term Planning Committee, a group of neighborhood volunteers, spent several weeks assessing the condition of neighborhood assets and planning all anticipated maintenance and enhancements needed over the next 15 years. Funds generated by the Special Assessment will be used to fulfill the needs outlined in this plan. An outline if this plan is included below. What assurances do we have that these funds will be spent wisely? First, the current Board of Directors is committed to maintaining the valuable neighborhood assets and as such has voted to keep the Long-term Planning Committee active as method of checks-and-balances. The Committee will meet twice per year to review the plan and ensure that it is being followed. Secondly, Get Involved! The Chapel Glen Board meets the first Tuesday of each month at the clubhouse. Meetings begin at 7:00 PM and generally last approximately 90 minutes. 5
Special Assessment Fact Sheet (Continued) My family does not use the pool, clubhouse or greenbelt. Why should I be concerned with their upkeep? Regardless of whether or not you use the neighborhood amenities they are still important to you when you consider their contribution to the resale value of your home. A neighborhood realtor told the Longterm Planning Committee that he estimates each Chapel Glen home likely sees a minimum of $10,000 in resale value attributable to the neighborhood amenities. Even if you do not plan to sell your home in the near-term it is important to maintain our amenities to retain that value. It is also reasonable to expect that as other Westside neighborhoods suffer decline, Chapel Glen will see even greater benefits from our amenities if they remain in good condition. In short, the reasons that many of us chose to live in Chapel Glen in the first place are the same reasons that will help us each attain higher sales prices when it’s time for us to move on. How do our annual dues compare with other neighborhood associations? Chapel Glen has some of the lowest annual dues in the greater Indianapolis area when compared to other neighborhoods with similar amenities – pool, lake, playground, tennis courts, clubhouse, greenbelt, etc. What will happen if this special assessment is not approved? Immediately perhaps not much will change except that the dead trees will continue to dangerously drop branches and eventually fall. Within the next 3 -5 years the Board will likely need to permanently close either the pool or clubhouse as both currently face serious structural issues. At that point Chapel Glen will begin to lose the amenities which differentiate us from nearby neighborhoods and resale values will likely begin a rapid decline. What if I have additional questions? Attend an informational session at the Clubhouse on September 8th, 17th, or 23rd. These sessions are informal, Board and Long-term Planning members will be available between 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM to answer questions and show you first-hand some of the issues that we are facing. How can I help? Successful approval of the Special Assessment will require involvement from many concerned residents. If you feel strongly that this Special Assessment is vital to the future of Chapel Glen, please consider helping in the following ways: Talk to your neighbors and make them aware of the issues. Encourage them to participate in the vote by either casting a ballot or assigning their proxy and returning it to a Chapel Glen Board member. Both documents are included below.
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Chapel Glen, Inc. Notice of
Annual Homeowners’ Meeting Date: Tuesday October 6, 2015 Time: 7:30 P.M. Place: Westside Church of the Nazarene, Rooms# 616/618 Nature of Business: The purpose of the meeting shall be to: 1) 2) 3) 4) 5)
elect new board members, present the financial statement review the past years activities vote on a Special Assessment dues proposal transact such other matters as may properly come before the Board and/or homeowners.
Solicitation of Proxy: If you cannot attend, the present Board of Directors request that the following proxy be signed and either sent to the mailing address below, given to a designate, or given to a current board member. PROXY The undersigned, owner(s) of real estate in the Chapel Glen Village, as members in good standing, do designate ONE vote to be cast by: (Fill in one of the two statements) 1) The following, ____________________________, may act as my attorney-in-fact and is authorized to cast one vote on matters as brought before the ANNUAL HOMEOWNERS MEETING to be held on October 6, 2015. 2) _____ The Board of Directors may cast my vote on matters brought before the ANNUAL HOMEOWNERS MEETING to be held on October 6, 2015. Date: __________
Signature: _____________________________________________
Date: __________
Signature: _____________________________________________
Chapel Glen Mailing Address:
Chapel Glen, Inc. P.O. Box 31075 Indianapolis, IN 46231
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Chapel Glen Inc. Annual Homeowners Meeting October 6th, 2015 Proposed motion for Approval of the Special Assessment submitted for action this 6th day of October 2015, pursuant to Article V, Section 3 of the Chapel Glen Inc., By-Laws Recorded and Approved October 1990 (“hereinafter called By-Laws”) WITNESSETH: WHEREAS, the purpose of the Chapel Glen Inc., corporation is to promote the development, enhancement and general welfare of the Village of Chapel Glen; and, WHEREAS, the affairs of Chapel Glen Inc., shall be managed by the board of Directors (“Board”) whose duties include the establishment and collection of assessments, as set forth in Article V of the By-Laws; and, WHEREAS, Article V Section 3 of the By-Laws permits the Board to propose an assessment for funding unexpected obligations and expenses beyond the normal operation of the Corporation; and, WHEREAS, the Board in the execution of its duties has determined that the Village of Chapel Glen will, in the near future, face expenses beyond the normal operation and incur unexpected obligations that cannot be met with the collection of annual assessment. NOW THEREFORE, the Board hereby proposes the following Special Assessment for Chapel Glen Inc., The specific purpose of this assessment is to fund unexpected obligations and expenses beyond the normal operation of the Corporation as determined by the Board. “An assessment of One Hundred Fifty Dollars ($150.00) in 2016 and 2017, per owner, to be paid in semi-annual installments of Seventy Five dollars ($75.00) in the spring and fall of each year.” “An assessment of One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) in the years 2018 – 2025, per owner, to be paid in semi-annual installments of Fifty dollars ($50.00) in the spring and fall of each year.”
(
) Vote for motion
(
) Vote against Motion
Name: ______________________________ Address: ____________________________ Signature: ___________________________ 8