September 20th, 2019

​River Place South Housing Corporation (RPSHC)
FINAL Minutes From the Board of Directors Meeting
Tuesday, August 27, 2019
 
In Attendance – Board of Directors

• Janice Mays, President
• Waqas Ali, Vice President (via video conference)
• Jim McInerney, Treasurer (via telephone)
• Sara Shahade, Secretary
• Lauren Hall, Director
• Vikram Reddy, Director
• Richard Villegas, Director

 
In Attendance – Property Management

• Joette Waters, General Manager
• Bryan Hernandez, Assistant General Manager

 
In Attendance – Shareholders

• Nancy Greenberg, Unit 542
• Oscar and Crystal Jobe, Unit 1007

 
 

1. Call to Order

The Board of Directors of the River Place South Housing Corporation held a meeting on Tuesday, August 27, 2019.  Board President Janice Mays called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.
 
 

1. Resident Participation

Crystal Jobe of Unit 1007 stated she has not been receiving emails from the cooperative.  Ms. Mays encouraged Ms. Jobe to ensure the management office has her correct email address.
 
Oscar Jobe of Unit 1007 reported experiencing repeated issues with the laundry machines.  Ms. Waters explained the laundry vendor is expected to visit River Place South on Wednesday, August 28th to look at the machines, and also reported an issue to the vendor about the timing of the dryers not being evenly spread out and the timing needing to be realigned.  She encouraged residents to immediately call in laundry issues when they are experienced.  If any machine has been out of order for longer than a year, residents should report such instances to the management office.
 
 

1. Approval of Agenda

Ms. Shahade moved to approve the August 27, 2019 Board Meeting agenda as presented.  Mr. Ali seconded, and the motion carried unanimously (7-0-0).  The Board of Directors then agreed to add a discussion concerning “Rules and Regulations – Hate Speech, Emblems, Symbols and Assaults” to their September 2019 agenda.
 
 

1. Approval of Meeting Minutes (July 16, 2019)

Ms. Shahade moved to approve the July 16, 2019 Board of Directors Meeting minutes as amended.  Mr. Villegas seconded, and the motion carried unanimously (7-0-0).
 
 

1. Reports
2. President’s Report: Ms. Mays reported the following information:

1. At the request of Ms. Mays, Dr. Reddy reported recently experiencing a bat in his unit, which resulted in Dr. Reddy having to receive vaccinations because of the exposure.  He encouraged everyone to be aware that there are bats in the area – particularly persons who live on higher floors in the building.
2. The balcony repairs are progressing favorably, and are expected to be completed during the week of September 2, 2019.
3. Ms. Mays read the full version of the draft Anti-Smoking Policy for the benefit of those in attendance.  Ms. Mays then moved to approve the Anti-Smoking Policy as presented.  Ms. Hall seconded, and the motion carried unanimously (7-0-0).  Effective January 1, 2020, shareholders who sell or lease their unit will be required to do so as a “No Smoking” unit.  Existing shareholders and leases will be grandfathered.  The Board of Directors will discuss penalties associated with violations to the Anti-Smoking Policy at a later date.

 

1. Treasurer’s Report: Mr. McInerney reported the following information:

1. Mr. McInerney will speak with First Service Residential to ensure they provide the monthly financials in time for each Board meeting.  However, the cooperative’s financial position is strong year-to-date.
2. Mr. McInerney raised the importance of refinancing the current mortgage loan to avoid the upcoming balloon payment.  Mr. Villegas stated he obtained a proposal from Raymond Goodrich with the Bank of Charleston for refinancing, and will forward it to Board members for review.  Mr. Goodrich has expressed a willingness to meet with the Board of Directors either in person or via telephone to discuss refinancing options.  Mr. McInerney indicated he will speak with the United Nations Credit Union and report back during the September 2019 Board meeting. The Board of Directors agreed to revisit the loan refinancing topic during their next meeting.
3. Ms. Waters spoke with a loan officer at United and put him in touch with Mr. Villegas, as United may be interested in lending for purchases at River Place South.   Mr. Villegas spoke with the representative from United during the day on Tuesday, August 27, 2019.

 

1. Owners Association (OA) Report: Ms. Mays reported the following information:

1. The MP Garage project continues, with the last phase expected to begin soon.
2. OA Manager Bill Smith announced he is leaving the Owners Association.  As a result, the OA Board of Directors will discuss their options regarding management of the Owners Association.
3. The Board of Directors agreed by unanimous consent to appoint Richard Villegas to serve as the River Place South representative on the Owners Association Board of Directors.  Because Mr. Villegas already serves on the River Place East and River Place West Boards of Directors, he will inform the South Board if the appointment to the OA is too much for his schedule.

 
 
  VI.Management Report
A.     Balcony Work: The balcony project will be completed during the week of September 2, 2019.  Nearly every balcony contained some kind of application to the floor, which is against the cooperative’s rules.  Ms. Waters will send a notification to shareholders informing them of the OA’s bylaws concerning the prohibition of flooring applications on the balconies.  Ms. Waters stated Commercial Waterproofing did an outstanding job.
 
B.     Façade Work: Facility Engineering Associates, P.C. (FEA) performed an evaluation of the building’s façade.  The façade work will be pursued after the balcony project is done, and will likely not begin until spring 2020.
 
C.     Cooling Towers: The starter failed on the cooling tower on Monday, August 26th, causing the cooling tower to shut down.  Densel was contacted and visited the property during the day on Tuesday, August 27th to replace the starter.  During the performance of that work, a great deal of sediment was discovered in the system.  Therefore, Densel will return to the property on Wednesday, August 28th to apply chemicals in the cooling tower.  Ms. Waters will send an email during the morning of Wednesday, August 28th asking everyone to keep their windows and window treatments closed during application of the chemicals to keep their units cool, as the A/C will be off during the application.
 

D.    Cell Towers:
1.      Ms. Waters met with one representative from T-Mobile and two representatives from Advantage Engineering on Thursday, July 25, 2019 regarding the cell tower upgrades.  River Place South is known as “Project Anchor” to the representatives, and the engineers plan to install 12 antennas contrary to the nine antennas noted in the drawing attachment in the original contract.  To explain the discrepancy, the engineers pointed to a section in the lease that indicates they have the right to alter, replace, expand, enhance or upgrade at any time during the time of the lease.  The engineers offered to perform another study of the electromagnetic energy devices (EME’s), but have not contacted Ms. Waters since the July 25, 2019 meeting.  Ms. Waters suggested getting attorneys involved – a recommendation with which many Board members expressed agreement.
2.      During the July 25, 2019 meeting with the T-Mobile representatives and the engineers, a discussion was held about the screening that was formerly in place around the T-Mobile cell tower structure.  The screen was made of a brick-like design, and presented both an eye sore and a barrier to the line of sight for some units.  It is believed that the screen was removed at the direction of a former Board President.  However, T-Mobile reported they were contacted by the Arlington County State Historical Preservation Office as well as management for the George Washington Memorial Parkway requesting replacement of the screening.  The Board of Directors discussed the matter, but did not take any action.
3.      Other topics discussed during the July 25th meeting included denial of access to the rooftop and the replacement of a router in the equipment room.
 
E.     Terrace Leak: A recent 11th floor terrace leak caused damage to a 10th floor unit.  Commercial Waterproofing, Inc. (CWI) performed the needed repairs at a cost of $3,300.  No additional leaks have been reported.
 
F.      Telephone System: The new telephone system has been installed for the management office and concierge team.
 
G.    Arlington County Commercial Space Tax Appeal: Management received a copy of the determination that the cooperative’s building value was reduced from $2,303,700 to $1,473,200 – a reduction of $830,500. The land value remained the same at $198,900.  Ms. Waters acknowledged the work of Tom Colucci to achieve the reduction, and asked Board President Mays to sign the documentation needed to approve the decreased assessment.
 
H.    Stock Certificates: Attorney Kevin Kernan sent a letter to the RivStar Transfer Agency on Monday, July 29, 2019 demanding provision of the overdue stock certificates.  The certificates were sent to River Place South the next day via courier, and were signed by Board President Mays.  Once the cooperative’s attorney signs the certificates, they will be distributed to the appropriate shareholders.
 
I.       Rental Occupancy: The cooperative has one unit that is not rented.
 
 

1. Resale Notifications

No resale notifications were presented.
 
 

1. New Business

No matters of New Business were raised.
 
 

1. Old/Unfinished Business
2. Arlington County Commercial Space Tax Appeal: Please see Section VI.G of these minutes.

 
 

1. Temporary Adjournment to Executive Session

The Board of Directors temporarily adjourned the Open Session at 6:43 p.m. to hold an Executive Session to discuss cooperative fee miscalculations.
 
 

1. Adjournment

Following the conclusion of the Executive Session, the August 27, 2019 Board of Directors meeting was adjourned at 7:30 p.m.
 
 
These minutes were respectfully drafted and submitted by: The Professional Document Services