HOA Board Message

BEHIND THE SCENES LOOK

Serving on the Cresswind Lake Lanier (CLL) Board of Directors is a privilege that requires a strong commitment of time and effort by those residents who volunteer. What does that really mean to a potential volunteer? Here’s a behind the scenes look.

In August 2020, the Community divested itself from Kolter. That means the Community, through the Board of Directors (Board), is now completely responsible for the management, maintenance, operation, and control of our community. In essence, CLL is a small city, and the Board is the city council. The Board, as the governing entity, must therefore be judicious, unbiased, forward thinking, and guiding as it assumes responsibility for governance of our community. Board decisions are made in the best interest of the community, not individual residents. Our decisions and actions impact us the same as each of you.

Since divestiture, there has been a massive effort to review all the governing documents and ensure we are operating within the guidelines and parameters established by our Charter. This is crucial from both a legal and operational perspective. The results indicated we weren’t necessarily fully in compliance. An effort is underway to document policies and administrative procedures for transparency and operational continuity using administrative and policy resolutions.

It takes several months of planning, review, and investigation to successfully develop our multi-million-dollar annual budget. This budget includes day-to-day expenditures and provides for long-term or future needs and requirements, including fully funding the Reserve Budget. The overall goal is financial stability. While the Treasurer (Sid Jacobs) leads this effort, all Board members participate in the development of the final product. Throughout the year the Board reviews requests for additional expenditures or changes to the budget projections. This could include responding to and resolving unfunded emergencies or other unexpected situations.

The Board leads the efforts in negotiating and approving major contracts. In 2021, we reviewed and approved a new multi-year contract with FirstService Residential, the community management company. In 2022 we will approve two new contracts: Landscape Maintenance and Pine Straw Application that together account for over one-third of our annual budget. Contract approval isn’t simply reviewing an existing contract, making minor changes, and signing a new one. Requirements must be developed and approved by the Board, and bids solicited from various service providers via the Request for Proposal process. Once identified, preferred vendors are evaluated for capabilities and performance. Negotiations with our preferred vendor follows, and a contract is approved by the Board and signed. In total, we spend approximately 4-6 months working on major contracts.

Our Cresswind community could not function without the many committees that support it and keep it functioning. Each committee has a Board liaison that facilitates direct, two-way communication with the Board. Liaisons attend committee meetings as a non-voting member, respond to committee questions and concerns, and provide guidance when appropriate.

Mid- and long-term initiatives and projects are monitored via the Board Task List. A Board member is assigned as the responsible agent for each task. Depending on the task and its complexity, an ad hoc committee or work group may be required to assist in the investigation, design, and implementation of the response. Some tasks are relatively simple and easy, while others may require more extensive work, including budgeting. Board members are actively engaged and involved in these tasks.

All regular Board meetings are open to residents: eight meetings are conducted via ZOOM and four quarterly Townhall meetings are conducted in person. If you have attended one of these meetings, you know they cover a wide variety of topics and concerns. It is during these meetings that votes on resolutions and motions take place. Preparation for these meetings can require a great deal of work. In addition to those meetings, the Board may meet in private (Executive Session) to discuss topics such as contract negotiations, personnel issues, or resident violations.

Unfortunately, Board members must also deal with resident disputes and violations to the Rules and Regulations and the Charter. While the majority of these can be resolved with a simple phone call or email, others require deeper involvement, including conducting hearings and approving and issuing sanctions or other penalties. Fortunately, these types of situations are infrequent. The Board is diligent in addressing these events with upmost respect and courtesy for all those involved.

Probably the most difficult task for the Board is communications. What is the most effective and timely means to provide information to members of the community and in what detail? Lots of inquiries/comments received from residents deal with issues that are covered in our Governing Documents. We strongly encourage all to visit the Governing Documents tab on the Cresswind website and read the Charter, the Bylaws, the Rules and Regulations, and the Board resolutions. We also cordially invite you to attend the Board meetings via ZOOM, as well as the Townhall meetings. If you have questions, submit them to the Board or the community manager.

We are happy to serve such a great community and look forward helping guide the future of this community.

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