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6 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | DECEMBER 2018 When homeowner associations are formed, builders import rules and regulations from other HOAs to kick start a new community as it develops. They are known as Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions (CC&Rs). The majority of these serve the new HOA well, but some don't fit since the population, background, and technology of the new HOA differs. When the new community is well established, it is time to change some of these CC&Rs. Our Rules and Regulations Committee has proposed, and the Board endorsed, three changes that will be sent to the homeowners for approval. Two apply to our voting procedures and one to enable long term contracts for energy. The exact wording of the proposals and current CC&Rs is being mailed to every household, and a Town Hall meeting to answer questions was held last month. #1. To "Get out the Vote" our CC&Rs require us to "elect" ward bosses or "whips." They are called "District Delegates." Our HOA has established neighborhood districts of approximately 100+ households. These elected officials are charged with encouraging the households in their district to vote; something our Neighborhood Watch also does. If the district does not achieve a 50 percent turnout of voters, the Delegate may vote all 100+ votes to a single candidate of their choice regardless of how the households voted. This clearly is not democratic and should be eliminated along with the $3,000 tab for electing the delegates. #2. The current procedure for electing Board members allows each voter (household) to cast all their votes for a single candidate. This is called "cumulative voting." If there are three or four positions to be elected, one candidate could receive all the votes from one resident. Should a small group choose to vote in this manner, the results would be skewed giving the impression that this elected Board member should carry more weight than the other two or three candidates with a smaller number of votes. The other members would elect the president and vote the interests and concerns of their broader constituency. We are accustomed to electing members to school, hospital and other public boards, recognizing that once on a board no member carries more influence because of their vote count. By eliminating cumulative voting our homeowners will be encouraged to look at all candidates and elect a full board and not an individual. #3. To safeguard against one Board committing future Boards to long-term contracts our CC&Rs limit contracts for services and goods to one year. We annually renew these contracts. The advent of energy saving opportunities through solar and wind power require large upfront investments or long-term commitments. With long- term commitments, the savings begin immediately and help pay for the investment. For example, entering into a long-term solar power contract for heating the swimming pool at The Courts would enable the HOA to heat the pool year-round. The energy captured by the solar panels would reduce our costs for this service during summer months and make winter heating possible, making it available now as opposed to a future date. ~ Len Tavernetti Tailoring the CC&Rs

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