PPHOA Communications and Volunteer Request

 Dear Peyton Pines neighbors and friends,

I’m writing this letter as the current President of the Peyton Pines HOA. I’ve lived in PP for seven years now, and have served on two HOA Boards. Most recently, Debbie Debaun and I were elected to the Board last year in 2022.

We have the Annual Meeting in June annually, and often only fifty or so of the 280 or so of the property owners  attend.    As you know, we have voluntary dues.  Two years ago, they weren’t collected and last year about the same number of people paid them.  In other years, more than one hundred people have paid them, based on the need to pay dues to vote for Board members. And some people tell me that they didn’t see the reminder to pay last year, as it was on the card reminding of the annual meeting. So maybe just better communications and an easier way to pay would help with collecting dues?

A while back, a Board worked very hard on a proposal to have non-voluntary dues and it was voted down, in that case 143 ballots were returned.  

Why am I pointing this out? Just to make the case that we (the Board) don’t hear from most of you. Ever.  And at meetings, we tend to have the same conversations about (1) bridle trails and (2) getting rid of the HOA.  I wonder how many other people have other topics they would like to bring up or discuss?

Shout out to Debbie Debaun and Becky Milot-Bradford!

They have been doing the work to keep the HOA running, not just this year but for many years.

What Do You Think About Communicating?

It’s kind of tough to communicate with people nowadays. Sure, when someone wants to move in or ask about covenants, they send us an email and that works.  Or sometimes there will be a conversation on Nextdoor… but many people aren’t on Nextdoor, or they don’t like the kind of conversations that occur there.  And again, many people are not on Facebook.  We could find some kind of alternative group communication app for questions and concerns, if people are interested. Or maybe everything’s fine.  I’d like to know what you think.. so contact me via email at lodgepolelover@gmail.com or call (719)749-2654.  I’m planning to summarize what I find and send out a report via email.

50th Anniversary of Peyton Pines

This year is the 50th year since the inception of Peyton Pines in 1973! Wouldn’t it be great to have a celebration?  What do we want to be as a community in the future? 

I’ve heard from many people who would like us to have some social events and other activities.  Some of you have even tried to start them.  

Some people who move here think the HOA should organize these things; even some Boards have been made up of people who wanted to do this.  The opportunity is still there for anyone who wants to start- I encourage you.. I talk to many people who would participate but don’t want to organize.  

What Do You Think About Where to Go From Here (And Will You Volunteer?)

As most of you know, the Peyton Pines HOA has a mixed history of enthusiasm, apathy and, at some points, animosity.  It seems to us (the two current Board members) that we, as a community, either need to a) step up and do the work that needs to be done to keep the HOA up and running, b) figure out a way to put it to bed legally, or c) intentionally decide simply quit doing anything, as has happened intermittently, before. 

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Alternative 1. Business as Usual

To keep going, we need more people to volunteer, whether as Board members or volunteering for other tasks.  Fortunately we have had one new volunteer as a Board Member, but need more.

Financial situation:

Here are our costs per year, from our Treasurer, Debbie Debaun .

Taxes: $34.10  for mineral rights and picnic area

CPA to prepare taxes $150-200

Website Hosting $113.43

Liability Insurance: $2046 (board and picnic area gazebo)

PO Box rent:$ 226

Register with State: $10

Postcards and postage for annual mailing:$200

So a total of $2900 per year

At $30 per year,

If 97 lots paid their dues, we would easily break even.

What we would need to keep going: 

Need to have: New Board Members

Nice to have:  

Way to pay dues online. 

Last year we talked about new signs and exploring a no-shooting policy at our annual meeting, however no one volunteered.

Maybe revamp notification of annual meeting

This isn’t hard stuff, but someone has to have the time and inclination to do it.  Like I’ve said, it’s a good way to get to know your neighbors.

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Alternative 2. Graceful Exit

It seems like every year we discuss “getting rid of the HOA” at the Board Meeting.

It would be great if a team could get together and explore this option.

Debbie and others have already done this to some extent, but there have been legal problems with the County.  We tend to have this conversation over and over through the years and again it would be great for some team to explore this and document their findings.

Here is my pretty minimalist understanding

  1. The covenants would still be there with the deed but enforceable by neighbors, there would be no HOA. On the other hand, the current covenants could never be changed. Are either of these a problem? 
  2. Sell the mineral rights and the picnic area property. Would need to hire a lawyer to do this. The picnic area may not be legal to sell.. or might require a vote. We don’t know. Also- what would happen if we stopped paying taxes? We have an idea about the mineral rights (a lien was put on them) but what about the picnic area?
  3. I’d be willing to host a permanent website (at least as permanent as I am)  that would explain the status to future buyers.

So there’s a bit of work to figure this out, whether or not we hired a lawyer (if we could afford it).  I’d start by talking to the County.

We might have to take a vote to get this done at some point. But based on the vote on the latest variance (which was very successful in terms of replies), I think we could do it, depending on how many votes were needed.

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Alternative 1 and 2 could be combined.  We could keep the Board going, and also have a team exploring Alternative 2 at the same time.

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Alternative 3. Whatever Happens

 Board members resign, and we go back to where we were when the bills simply stopped being paid. We don’t know exactly what would happen.  

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I’m also asking is whether anyone is interested in volunteering- whether for Alternative 1 or working on a team to develop Alternative 2. Serving on the Board is relatively simple. Becky Milot-Bradford has documented the roles and responsibilities and I can share those with you. Again, please contact me if you have any questions. 

Thanks to everyone for your attention!

Sharon

Sharon Friedman

Current PPHOA Board President

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Some Background for New Residents:

Some folks feel more or less strongly, that we don’t need an HOA.  And indeed, there are difficulties.  To stay current we need to keep up with State regulations, not designed to fit an all-volunteer HOA with voluntary dues.   Covenants have not always been enforced.  In an ideal world, we would vote and agree on updating the covenants and grandfather in exceptions.  But many people who would want to work on this don’t want to put a lot of time in to figure it out, because it’s not clear if people would vote to change them. Several times in the last ten years or so, different boards have asked for people to volunteer to draft up covenant changes for a vote.  I think some people even worked on it, but not sure the suggestions were finalized.

Covenants vs. County Code

 To understand what the covenants, outdated as they are, do, we have to compare them with the County Code- because the County has more legal sticks than we do.  So how much more restrictive are our current covenants compared to county code? Here’s how to see for yourself. I use the example of dog kennels because we had a potential buyer for property who wanted to see if they could house a show dog operation with 12 dogs.

On these County Code tables, we are the fourth column over, RR5 so you can check out both table 5.1 and 5.. Here’s a link. There’s also a great search function if you want to look up special use requirements or definitions. And below are the definitions of major and minor kennel from the EPC code. If we see “S” on the tables of uses, then property owners can do this with a special use permit.  Would the County grant one? We don’t know. So our covenants are more restrictive than county code.

“Kennel, Major — Any place or premises used in whole or in part for the purpose of keeping, training, boarding, breeding or sale of domesticated dogs or cats in which 9 or more dogs or cats exist, and all of which exceed 4 months in age, to include animal pounds, animal daycare facilities, and shelters. Establishments where animals are offered for sale as the primary use, such as pet stores, are not classified as kennels.

KennelMinor — Any place or premises used in whole or in part for the purpose of keeping, training, boarding, breeding or sale of domesticated dogs or cats in which 5 to 8 dogs or cats exist, and all of which exceed 4 months in age, to include animal pounds, animal daycare facilities, and shelters. Establishments where animals are offered for sale as the primary use, such as pet stores, are not classified as kennels.”

This is only one example, but by checking the tables, you can see that the differences between the Code and our covenants.

June 14, 2022 Annual Meeting Minutes

The meeting was called to order by President Sharon Friedman at 6:41 pm.  After determining there was the appropriate number of members present a quorum was declared.

Sharon Friedman and Debbie DeBaun gave reasons to get new board members and help with the duties.  Ballots for the election of board members were given to the member who had paid their dues.  There was some discussion about waiting until the end of the meeting to have the election of board members; however, it was determined that the appropriate time for the election was at the beginning of the meeting so that the elected board members could conduct the meeting.  Sharon Friedman and Debbie DeBaun were elected to the board. No other members were nominated.

Continue reading “June 14, 2022 Annual Meeting Minutes”

Peyton Pines HOA Update

Due to Board Members’ moves, resignation and ill health, there had been a hiatus in Board activities. Based on a Board Meeting of Feb 13 2022, we have two new Board Members, Sharon Friedman and Debbie DeBaun. Sharon Friedman was elected President, Kate Buffetti Vice- President and Debbie DeBaun Secretary Treasurer. The website has come back online, many thanks to Becky Milot-Bradford. 

As always, we are looking for more members for the Board. So please consider volunteering. Also we need some members for the Environment Committee. Their responsibility is to review plans for consistency with the covenants. The work is intermittent. Some experience in construction or real estate would be helpful, but not necessary. Again, volunteers greatly appreciated! If you have questions about the responsibilities of either, please contact us.

If Covid conditions don’t change, we plan to have the usual June Membership Meeting in person. At that time, there will be a vote on Board Members.

Due to the issues mentioned above, the notices for paying dues were not sent out last year. The dues year is June to June and the amount is $30 per year.  These dues are voluntary, of course. However, if you did not pay last year (June 2021 to 2022) and would like to combine next year’s (June 2022 to 2023)  you can write one check for both and send it to PPHOA Box 158 Peyton, Colorado 80831.  Otherwise if you want to skip last year, just pay in June for next year.

Meeting minutes for the Board meetings are posted on the website. If you have any questions or concerns please contact us at board@peytonpines.org

Meeting Change

Sorry for the late notice, but because of inclement weather we had to change the date of the meeting to elect board members. The meeting date has been changed to 6/16/2020 at 6:30 at the Peyton Pines Pavillion. We hope to see everyone there.

Annual Meeting/Election of Officers

The annual meeting of the Peyton Pines HOA will be held on June 9, 2020 at 6:30 pm at the HOA picnic ground. This is at the corner of Peyton Highway and Steeplechase. Election of the new board will be held at this meeting. Nominations will be taken from the floor at the meeting. Those lot owners that have paid dues will be allowed to vote in person or by proxy. A signed proxy form must be presented at the time of the meeting. We hope to see you there.

Mandatory Dues Vote Results

Tuesday evening, March 3, 2020, the HOA Board and several volunteers (Robert Herz, Maureen Fitzgerald and Jeff Mielke) opened and counted the ballots received regarding the proposed amendment to the Peyton Pines covenants.  143 ballots were returned, but no filing had enough “yes” votes to approve the amendment.  Therefore, HOA dues will remain voluntary in all filings.  If you have any questions about the exact vote count please contact the HOA Board at board@peytonpines.org.

Additionally, the Board would like to thank the volunteers for their cordial assistance with the count. It was greatly appreciated.