August 11, 2005
Westmore Association
Board of Directors Meeting
Attending: Lee Anderson, Art Brooks, Bob Drew, Mary Drew, Greg Gallagher,
Carol Guitar, Mari Harter, Martha McKay and Dick Simpson
Absent: Bill Hartford, Vince Dotoli
The meeting was called to order at 7:30 PM.
The minutes from the July 11, 2005 BOD meeting were reviewed and the following change should be made -
Dick Simpson noted that the Milfoil Project barriers have been
relocated within, not removed from, the
Fishing Access area.
The minutes from the July 28 Annual meeting were reviewed and the
following changes should be made -
o
For the Water Quality Committee report, Art Brooks added that the sample from the North Beach area has been submitted every Monday morning to the State for testing. The slide Art presented graphed the water depth over time, including the pH, O2 content, chlorophyll content and temperature variations.o
Before the meeting was adjourned, Art Brooks introduced the evening’s speaker, Professor David Conant from Lyndonville State College, who spoke on the botany of the Northern Connecticut River islands.A motion by Greg Gallagher to approve the minutes from both
meetings as corrected was seconded by Martha McKay and approved.
Greg Gallagher presented the Treasurer’s Report as of August 11 and
added that the Association’s $1,000 contribution to the Milfoil Project
had not been subtracted yet, bringing he total balance of the savings
and checking to $4,747.77. He also requested that from now on the
Treasurer’s report be synchronized with the bank statement. A motion by
Art Brooks to approve the report with the amendment, and the timing
change, was seconded by Mari Harter and approved.
Bob Drew read a note from outgoing President Wayne French, thanking the Association for the gift presented to him at the Annual meeting.
Old Business:
Membership Committee: Bob Drew reported that the membership now
totals 273 families. Approximately 120 former member families have not
renewed, and he will send a reminder letter to them within a week or so.
Water Quality Committee: Art Brooks reported that they continue to
collect a sample at the North Beach every Monday morning. There was one
high reading about a month ago, but all samples have since been OK. Dick
Simpson stated there seems to be a problem with the Schoolhouse Brook
and asks if the committee can sample it. Art stated that it is the
State’s duty to sample and test such water, and the appropriate agency
should be notified.
Beautification Committee: Bob Drew reported that it will cost around
$100 to plant perennial wildflowers in the triangle at the junction of
Routes 5A and 16 at the North end.
Scholarships: Bob Drew had requested transcripts from the scholarship
applicants and has so far received one from Paul Rodgers. The two
additional applicants for scholarships this year are Jeremy LeBlanc (who
has also submitted his transcript) and Leon Feerick, whose transcript is
pending. A motion by Dick Simpson to give the two additional
scholarships of $500 each to these two additional applicants as soon as
Leon’s transcript is received and found to be satisfactory was seconded
by Art Brooks and passed.
Milfoil Project: The project will continue for 3 more weeks. Dick Simpson proposed a mailing to the current membership requesting additional contributions for the project since they will need two dive teams next summer. A motion by Dick to mail these now was seconded by Martha McKay and passed.
New Business:
The BOD confirmed having given permission for Wayne French to write,
have published and mail the next issue of "Reflections."
Dick Simpson reported that the July 25, 2005 meeting of the VT
Federation of Lakes and Ponds in Montpelier was attended by Art Brooks,
Bob Drew and Dick and provided lots of useful information.
Bob Drew stated that he had engaged a speaker from the State for the
2006 Annual meeting, whose topic will be the new laws that will regulate
water intake and sewerage disposal.
Bob Drew proposed that the Association re-issue the Willoughby Lake
Guide and quoted prices for publishing by the Memphremagog Press. Any
interested BOD members should be involved in the re-write; adding
pictures would be a plus. A motion by Dick Simpson to proceed with this
update of the Guide this winter was seconded by Mari Harter and passed.
Bob Drew proposed that the Association could take the responsibility
for assisting the Town to take advantage of the VT Better Back Roads
Program. The State could grant up to $4,000 to provide an initial
inspection by an engineer who would then issue recommendations for
action. The State could also grant up to $7,000 for follow-up action on
each project identified by the engineer. Dick Simpson reported that this
issue was also brought up at the Town Select Board meeting. Lee Anderson
and Art Brooks (and they might possibly bring in Ethan Swift) agreed to
pursue this.
Bob Drew reported on Caspian Lake’s project on replanting the
lakeshore to provide a vegetation buffer and remarked that this was
something we may want to pursue in the future.
Regarding liability insurance for the BOD, Bob Drew stated that the
Shadow Lake Association reported at the Federation meeting that their
town covered their Association directors’ insurance. Dick Simpson agreed
to check with the Westmore Selectpersons on this to see if the town
could cover this Board.
Bob Drew proposed that the Association consider sponsoring a Cottage
Tour as a fundraiser next summer. Carroll Guitar pointed out the risk of
potential liability problems for the homeowners and Mari Harter
expressed concerns about security issues following a tour. The BOD
decided not to pursue this any further.
Art Brooks noted that Joe’s Pond has uniform signs on the cottage
lanes made by their Association and asked the BOD to consider this.
Art would also like to inquire into getting a government grant to do a
comprehensive new depth survey of the Lake for subsequent maps.
Dick Simpson reported that at the recent Select Board meeting it was
announced that Pam Prue has resigned as Town Clerk and a successor has
to be appointed.
He also reported taxes this year will be up 10% for non-residents and
11% for residents. And that the state-required re-assessment may be put
off until 2007.
Art Brooks commented that it would be beneficial if the Town had a Health Officer who is pro-active in checking septic systems to ensure that they are adequate, particularly as some camps and houses are being rented and occupied by more people than that septic system may be capable of handling.
The next BOD meeting is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, September 15, at 7:30 PM.
Meeting adjourned at 8:50 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Mary Drew, Clerk