Board meeting centers around proposed bylaw updates, finances
HOT SPRINGS VILLAGE — A significant portion of the Hot Springs Village board of directors meeting on Wednesday was spent going over proposed revisions to its organizational bylaws.
Recommendations have evolved from discussions among board members and staff, along with ad hoc committee analysis and communications with legal counsel.
Included in the proposed revisions are clarifications of board responsibilities, accountability and authority, as the current bylaws focus more on authority than the other two needs.
To align more with the corporate and nonprofit sectors, a change from having a board president and vice president to a chairman and vice chairman has been suggested.
Another proposal would clean up job title verbiage related to the CEO and COO positions, since the general manager title is no longer being used, and eliminate any inclusion of CFO-related phrases, as that position no longer exists.
Because of the learning process for new board members, it was suggested that terms be lengthened from three years to four. This would also eliminate the need for elections every fourth year, which would save money. If passed, terms would not be affected until 2018, when two of the three open seats would receive four-year terms, and the winning candidate with the least number of votes would get a two-year term. After 2018, all terms would be for four years.
The board is also looking to establish a Governance Committee, made up of three board members and the CEO, to oversee board activities.
The final proposal was to allow residents to serve on more than one committee, when there is s shortage of volunteers.
A first draft of these updates will be posted for public inspection prior to the board’s vote on them during the February regular board meeting.
In his president’s report, Mike Medica noted success at the recent Ideal-Living Expo in Chicago, where representatives of HSV were able to garner more than 85 leads for prospective residents, who were reportedly attracted by the community’s beauty and generally low cost of living.
In her CEO’s report, Lesley Nalley said that 2017 is off to a great start, with top focuses revolving around real estate sales, food and beverage businesses, lodging, governance, wastewater projects, golfing, and hydrilla control.
For the three pillars, Nalley discussed that annual pass renewals are underway, contributing to Strengthening Financial Health. This renewal period will cease at the end of February.
Regarding Protecting Value and Lifestyle, she spoke of the more than 500 property owners who were present for the Village Values lakes program this month.
And for Building Property Owner Trust and Support, she said she feels certain the proposed revisions to governing documents will fill that criteria.
In the financial report, Nalley noted a bottom-line improvement of $5.6 million in 2016 over 2015, adding that four departments beat their own 2015 results, and five beat their budgeted bottom-line.
On the down side, golf missed its budget by $650,000, due mostly to underperforming revenues. Nalley said that beginning this year, the Golf Department will report directly to her, in hopes of staving off similar problems in the future.
As discussed in previous months, a big contributor to success in 2016 was significant improvement in collection rates, and nearly $1 million less was considered bad debt than in the previous year.
Nalley said 99 percent of the operating expense was spent in 2016, and 103 percent of net revenue was earned versus budgeted.
She said she feels strong enough with the $7.55 million of cash and cash equivalents to move $100,000 to both the Public Utilities Reserve and General Reserve, even though $4.72 million of the cash is restricted by either the sewer bond or escrow pending the Supreme Court decision.
In her COO’s report, Linda Mayhood said continued plans for combating hydrilla in HSV lakes will be discussed at upcoming roundtables.
For the culvert rehabilitation project, the materials are en route, and work is expected to begin Tuesday and run approximately two weeks.
She said the annual meeting for 2017 will follow the regular board meeting in February, and service nomination forms for residents are available at the Property Owners Association office, 895 DeSoto Blvd.
Mayhood also reported that the Friends of the Dog Park has announced dissolution of its nonprofit, and will turn over the park’s maintenance and operation to the POA.
There was no current business up for discussion. The second item under new business, following proposed bylaw changes, centered around a timber thinning contract.
Mayhood said a forest management program for HSV began in 2004. The thinning not only increases the health of forested areas, but also provides a source of revenue to the POA via timber sales. The estimated figure for revenue with the proposed project would be $90,000.
She was careful to note that thinning projects in the Village have more stringent guidelines than typical clearcut-types often seen in other areas.