The meeting was called to order at 7:00 PM by President Gary. Present were John Horn, Herb Jolliff, Gail Hill, Robert English, Gary Van Horn, and Alan Wright. Craig Cowles was also present, as was attorney Sean Armstrong. Sixteen guests from the community were also present.
There were two issues before the Board this evening: the first is the retirement of Craig Cowles as Maintenance Chairman. Gary presented a commemorative plaque to Craig for his years of service to the community. Craig spoke briefly saying he appreciated being able to help, and had three people to thank for their assistance: Lynn McDonald, John Horn and Gail Hill.
The second issue before the Board was the vote for two Bylaws Amendments: the first having to do with lease/rental contracts in Article IV Membership and Voting Rights:
Members who lease or rent their property to a tenant must include in their lease a provision requiring their tenants/lessees to abide by all of the By-Laws and the Residential Through-The-Fence Agreement, and copies of both documents must be provided to all tenants/lessees.
And the second establishing mediation and arbitration within Article IX Legal Process as an avenue in the event of a dispute and assuring compliance with ORS 94.630:
After Gary explained the mediation and arbitration processes, he opened the floor for questions. A question was asked about the fee structure, and Sean explained that the parties involved would equally share the costs of mediation, since there are professionals hearing the case, and if it came to arbitration they would share that too. In instances where the dispute affects the entire airpark (the TTF agreement for example), the Board itself can jump in as necessary to represent one side of the case.
Another question had to do with what happens if one side refuses to show up for mediation, and Sean answered that there would be no mediation if one person refused to pay, and in the case of arbitration it is similar to court cases where if only one side shows up that side wins the case.
The next question had to do with whether it would be best to bring a complaint to the Board first rather than the police or some other outside agency, and Sean answered that mediation and/or arbitration would be cleaner and have a greater chance for success if the complaint comes to the Board first (as provided for in the DRAFT process document).
Another question was about whether mediation could only be between two people or if more could be involved, and Sean answered that as many people as were affected could join in.
The votes were counted at
the meeting, and they all unanimously approved the new Bylaw measures. Four more votes were received by mail on
the 15th, all in the affirmative, so the final vote tally was 56
to 0 all in favor.
The next step for the Board is to establish a process procedure now that mediation and arbitration steps are part of our Bylaws. That will be the focus of the next Board meeting in July.
Discussion continued about the current state of affairs with the FAA and the ODA. Sean made a statement that the Board has done its due diligence to establish a means of dealing with problems between neighbors, and this will very likely satisfy the ODA that we have a plan in place to resolve our own disputes.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:10 PM. The next regular Board meeting will be on July 23, 7:00 PM at the EAA hangar.
Respectfully submitted by Robert English, secretary.