Thank you to all the nominees and voting participants this year, we appreciate your participation.

Introduction

The Board of Directors met on 2024-03-06 as required in the Bylaws for the Regular Meeting (ARTICLE VI Section 1. Regular Meeting) following the 2024 election.

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Your 2024 Board is:

• Walter Bolles, President
• Tricia McDonnell Garrison, Vice President
• Eileen Dills, Secretary & Treasurer
• Chris Becker, Landscaping Committee Chair
• Mike Daniels, Arc Committee Chair

My goals this year for everyone are transparency, compliance, and courtesy. I am in the process of drafting fresh standard operating procedures across the board that are in full compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and best practices. You will see these start to roll out in the coming weeks.

Landscaping

The first item is we have overhauled the Landscaping Committee with a clearly written charter. We will be giving priority invitations to people who attended the first Landscaping Committee meeting in 2023 and reaching out to them this week to verify their continued participation. If there are additional slots available we will follow up shortly and start accepting nominations for consideration. Our goal is to have one meeting of the Landscaping Committee before the April Board Meeting to provide sufficient time for us to consider any proposals.

In the meantime, if there are landscaping priorities you would like to share with us, please contact us with the following email, and I will ensure your suggestions are passed along to the Committee Chair: braelochboardhoa+landscaping@gmail.com

Rental Records

It has come to the board’s attention in the annual meeting that we do not have complete records of rental homes in our neighborhood. If you have a known rental near you please email the address to the board so we can cross reference our existing records and ensure mailings and electronic communication are directed appropriately.

Additionally if you missed our prior post you can view the latest legal review on neighborhood rentals here.

Rules and Regulations

Proper Disposal of Yard Waste

As a reminder now that Spring is upon us, please dispose of large yard waste such as branches and limbs appropriately. The woods by Medfield are not an appropriate place to dispose of large limbs and other yard waste.

For pickup by the Town of Cary, please do the following:

• Securely tied bundles that are small enough for one person to handle, not more than four (4) feet in length, not more than twenty-four (24) inches in diameter and with no individual pieces more than four (4) inches in diameter.
• Limbs must be less than four feet in length and less than four inches in diameter.

If you need a chipper you can contact the City of Cary to grind tree limbs longer than 4 feet. Limbs must be less than 14 inches in diameter and fees apply.

Click here for more information from the City of Cary.

Upcoming Meetings

The next Board of Directors meeting is planned for April 18th at 6:30pm. This meeting was rescheduled due to time conflicts. I am currently working on the agenda for this meeting, the focus of which will be landscaping.

The April meeting will open with the homeowner forum for about 20 minutes. Homeowners who wish to speak will be given 3-5 minutes each to discuss an item on the agenda.

We have scheduled board meetings with homeowner forums for the year. Moving forward agendas for open board meetings will be published no later than seven days before the meeting is to be held. Agendas for Executive Sessions will be posted no later than three days unless the board is addressing an urgent issue.

Note: Executive Sessions are closed board meetings to address confidential, sensitive, or privileged information.

FAQs for Board of Directors Meetings

“Who decides the agenda for Board of Director meetings?”

Agendas for upcoming Board of Directors meetings are drafted by the President, in collaboration with the Secretary, and any committee chairs and other board members as needed, in addition to considering any recommendations from homeowners, not by homeowners.

“How do homeowners participate in board meetings?”

Homeowners may not make motions or participate in Board of Directors meetings following the homeowner forum; homeowners are an audience to the board meeting, not participants.

Homeowners generally have the following means to directly effect change once a year at the annual meeting:

• The election of new board members
• Approval of annual assessments over six percent (6%)

Homeowners are shareholders in the corporation of the homeowners association. Their job is to elect the Board of Directors which then sets direction and policy for the year. That said, it is our responsibility and duty to regularly receive feedback from the homeowners and provide transparency. These are specific areas actively being improved so homeowners are empowered to make informed decisions at the annual meeting.

“How do homeowners provide feedback to the board?”

Homeowners may and are encouraged to attend the next open forum and provide suggestions and feedback to items on the agenda that day. Any off-topic items will be tabled by the President for consideration at the next meeting.

Outside of open forums homeowners may reach out to the board at any time and provide suggestions and your own priorities for future agenda items by the contacting the following:

• Your Community Manager: https://portal.mycmg.com/login
• The Board of Directors’ main contact email: braelochboardhoa@gmail.com
• The Landscaping Committee: braelochboardhoa+landscaping@gmail.com

The Board may incorporate this feedback in upcoming board meetings. We also review summaries of communication between homeowners and Cedar every few months.

“Will we get updates regarding specific violations in the neighborhood?”

No. Your neighbors have a right to due process and confidentiality, and we are strictly bound by both. I understand this can be quite frustrating and may give the impression that the board is not enforcing the covenants, but appropriately following the law and the regulations by carrying out due process takes time, sometimes quite a bit of time. We are well aware of all major issues in the community, and homeowner forums are not an appropriate venue to report a violation or discuss a violation.

If you have a concern about a potential violation you may report it via Cedar at any time using the portal.

“Will we get updates regarding violations in general in the neighborhood?”

Yes. We will be publishing more reminders such as the Proper Disposal of Yard Waste above.

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We will have more updates soon!

Regards,

Walter Bolles,
Braeloch HOA President