July 21st Board Meeting

We decided to meet again quickly after assessing the situation last week. It was determined that given the current employment crisis, the board needs to be as proactive as possible. Today the board elected to bring Jed back to Seven Bays. It was 4/1 decision to offer Jed a new job.

Getting to the point of the actual motion took several hours of vigorous debate not so much about Jed, but about the budget, employment issues, and coming to the realization that the labor budget was going to be stretched thin.

In facing this debate, the board recognized a hard reality. The days of being able to pay cut rate amounts to employees were gone and the difficult of hiring new staff means that they have to be paid a sufficient amount in order to show up to work.

Joe is learning his new job and doing well. If you seem him out there, make sure to tell him that you appreciate his hard work. It's not an easy position to be in and he has the weight of the world on his shoulders as he goes from 0 to full steam ahead in 7 days.

The board also began to explore the issue of complying with the State mandate of our meter requirements and how to handle the installation of everyone on a water meter. None of the solutions are pretty, but the board did ask the serious questions.

Clearly, we are going to need the help of the resident's of Seven Bays. If you are available to volunteer at the office to answer phones and take messages, we can surely use you. Be sure to add your name to the volunteer list that we have on the home page of the website. You can bet that we are going to count on your assistance over the next few months.

Where do we go from here? Well we have some loose ends to tie up on the Phase I water tank issue. We have to stablize our employment status and then we can begin the serious work of moving forward with creating a long term plan and goal for Seven Bays.

The Board has some serious issues to deal with to keep Seven Bays running. It isn't going to be pleasant or pretty. Sometimes we have to be careful what we wish for as we become victims of our own success. There is no guidebook or cheat sheet to work from, the board is essentially starting from scratch. The board appreciates the patience you have shown as well as your support.

Remember the next meeting is August 17, 2007. If you want to be able to voice your opinion, make sure you come to the meeting.

Care to Comment?

Several people have asked if they could blog on here as well. You are welcome to post any comments you wish. Do try to keep them constructive please and observe the rules of etiquette. At the bottom of each post is a link that will allow you to post a comment on the post that has been created. Anyone may comment at their leisure.

Thanks!

Jay

The First Board Meeting

Our first board meeting was held yesterday, Monday, July 16, 2007. Attending were myself, George Cordier, Rick Graf, Margot Rach, and Linda Schindler. The meeting was called to order at 8 a.m.

First on the discussion list was getting someone to work for Seven Bays. George had indicated he had been speaking with Jed who had quit Seven Bays a few months earlier. Apparently, Jed is interested in returning to Seven Bays. The board discussed what role Jed should play in Seven Bays.

Joe Brinkman had been contacted the previous day by both George and myself and we both invited him to join us around 8:30. Joe showed and we discussed his qualifications as a maintenance manager. After showing Joe the job description he still wanted to apply and it was decided that Joe would be a good person to have on board. He started yesterday.

After excusing Joe the board took up discussion on how much to pay Joe and what his title should be. This created a discussion about how Seven Bays should be managed. The two views expressed were a return to having the 'maintenance manager' be in charge of everything v. having an 'business manager' run the day to day operations of Seven Bays with maintenance staff working with the business manager. The issue was left unresolved and Joe was hired as maintenance personell rather than a maintenance manager. The lean in the end was to let Joe demonstrate his ability to become the manager and the allow him to evolve into the role.

Having accomplished this goal and averting the crisis facing Seven Bays, we next turned to issues that needed to be addressed. I informed the board about the continuing issues with the new water tank being built. George was going to address the issue this week. We also discussed the pending water meter issues, the need for a second lagoon, and the plan for putting the roads on a continuous cycle of preventative maintenance.

The first meeting was a productive one, all the parties worked together although there are an incredible diversity of views on the board. It will be interesting to see how the relationships develop.

The next board meeting is this Saturday at 9:00 a.m.

Seven Bays Homeowners Association Annual Meeting

Our Annual homeowners meeting was held July 14, 2007 at the Community Center. At that meeting I advised the members of the community that I would utilize our new website and email capability to communicate with members faster and more thoroughly. I've gone one better. By creating a blog, we now have a community resource for everyone to congregate on and post their thoughts and opinions. This way we can really get some work done together on making Seven Bays a better community!

Our first board meeting is Monday, July 16, 2007 at 8:00 a.m. I will keep you up to date on what happens, and possibly, what doesn't happen.

Jay S. Jump