WGIPOA Meeting - May 16, 2009

Agenda:
http://wgipoa.com/Agenda.htm

Jerry Mohn welcomed everyone back to the Galveston Country Club which has been newly renovated.

Sidney McLendon provided a brief legislative update:

• The GLO is seeking $50 million going into committee
• The closing of Rollover Pass is going to the Governor to sign
• There is a bill that would allow those with disabilities to use golf carts on beaches
• A bill providing funds to clean the beaches has been signed by the governor

Officer Dana Williams discussed a new service for the West End:

• The plan is for the West End to have our own officers which should provide more effective coverage
• The officers' email addresses will be provided to the residents and their telephone numbers may also be provided.
• The exact schedule is not firm, but the plan may start by January 2010.
• Lt. Henry Paretto will also be covering the West End.
• Officer Williams stressed that the residents are the eyes and ears of the community and our assistance is needed.
• The non-emergency phone number is 409-765-3702

Brian Lamb Galveston County Commissioner provided an update:

• Background on the new Police Chief was presented.
• Commended WGIPOA's work.
• Urged that everyone be cautious of out of state contractors
• Stated that the Bond Referendum provided funds for road improvements, one of which would be Stewart Road paving with curb and gutter.

Otie Zapp discussed the latest on the Windstorm Insurance legislation:

• Our local representatives were successful in stripping the worst provisions out of potential legislation that was sponsored by the Chairmen of both the House Insurance Committee and the Senate Business & Commerce Committee.
• June 1 the sessions adjourn and legislation in some form will probably pass.
• SB1007 Tx Dept of Insurance if not passed will go away. Contains one good provision and several bad provisions.
• SB14 was the bad bill which pushes aside responsibility on insurance companies and rewards insurance companies
• SB14 is in the House and will go to the Conference Committee
• He stressed we need more coastal representation on this committee
• If the actuarial model for insurance coverage goes away there could have been a 52% hike in cost.
• Probably we will see at least a 15% cost increase.
• Some provisions require a WP8 form on home construction to qualify for coverage.
• Policy holders will no longer be able to sue, the only remedy would be an Administrative procedure in which you must file your concern within 30 days.
• The TWIA would be exempt from deceptive trade practices
• For more information visit this web site: www.cwictx.org

Karen Mahoney District 6 Report:

• City Council will be considering Recovery funds in the amount of $160 million for housing and $100 million for infrastructure.
• Next Thursday there will be a workshop with public comment
• The council will vote on May 28th
• The council will work on infrastructure in June
• Debris - FEMA will no longer pay 100%. The city may have to fund $4.3 million. After June 30th the residents may have to pay for haul-off.
• Bay Debris is being removed by the GLO which uses Sonar to find boats and other objects.
• Bollards are up, but can't provide a time when the signs will be in place.
• If communities wish to place signs make sure the ordinance number is listed, otherwise no tickets can be issued.
• The Planning Department is working on the set back which is now 25 feet from the north toe of the dune and may be changed to 50 to 75 feet.
• Karen Mahoney offered to attend HOA meetings.
• The city will close unauthorized access roads to the beach - residents can call to report this.
• There is less than $200,000 for code enforcement, but has asked that this be doubled.
• One third of Galveston properties have code violations
• The Park Board will be cleaning sea weed at the Seawall, the West End after Memorial Day.
• For any street repair email the Street Department and copy Karen Mahoney
• The WGIPOA board asked that the council have a balanced approach to allocation of funds which will not penalize the West End.

Galveston Convention Visitors Bureau Presentation by Melody Smith and Meg Winchester:

• A pre-Ike video was viewed
• Statistics: 5.4 million visitors, $809 million in revenue to the city, $40 million in tax, each visitor spends on average $1,037.
• Galveston is the #1 attraction in Texas
• The Bureau is now located in Aston Villa, 2328 Broadway
• Discussed the Convention Center and various types of public relation media they have used.
• More information can be found on www.galveston.com
• Saturday, May 30th at Noon is the reopening of the Strand called the Rebirth Day.
• The trolleys may be working in 18-24 months, looking at Grants.

Jerry Mohn stressed the importance of the Amendment to HB2387:

At the WGIPOA Saturday meeting, the WGIPOA Board of Directors would like to encourage members to help the GLO with their efforts in securing funds for the Coastal Erosion Planning & Response Act (CEPRA) by asking Senator Joan Huffman to support the amendment HB 2387. Contact for Joan Huffman, Senator, is as follows:

Capitol Phone: 512-463-0117
Capitol Fax: 512-463-0639
E-mail: joan.huffman@senate.state.tx.us
Chief of Staff: Jim Sheer - 512-463-0117

The GLO is seeking $38 million for CEPRA, the largest ever allocation since its inception in 1999. You may voice your opinion by fax, letter or e-mail supporting the amendment as soon as possible.

The GLO is really giving a tremendous gift to West Galveston Island with the proposed massive sand nourishment project west of the Seawall to 13 mile Road. This is just the beginning in having a sand nourishment project for the entire west end. One of the major issues with HB 2387 is to restore the coastal protection fee to 2 cents per barrel and expand the permissive use of the fund to include the coastal management programs of the GLO. Please have your property owner association and your members make contact with Joan Huffman soonest.

See the reasons for the request and the Guest Column by GLO Commissioner Jerry Patterson in today’s Galveston Daily News. Many thanks and please let me know if you have any questions or where I can be of assistance.

Jerry

The meeting was adjourned.

UNIT UPDATE

Click on the image to inlarge.......

Please email customerservice@mrpandcompany.com with any questions...

Thank you,

Matthew R. Prince

Insurance renewal update

To put your mind at ease...Pointe West does retain current flood, wind, D&O and property insurance on all buildings with exception of 10 buildings located in the Villas. The flood insurance policy lapsed due to some incorrect elevation issues that the Board was trying to work out with the insurance carrier. They were charging us too much based on these elevation issues. The flood policy for those 10 buildings has be paid by developer deficit funding to reinstate it and the flood carrier is in the process of issuing the new insurance certificates. They should arrive soon.
Elizabeth is still working to fight the elevation issues and will hopefully result in a credit for overpayment. Once the new certificates have arrived, I will post the information to receive them. The addresses of those buildings are:

26350 Cat tail
26320 Cat tail
4151 Pointe West
26411 Cat tail
26471 Cat tail
26421 Cat tail
26451 Cat tail
26461 Cat tail
4221 Grassy Point
26441 Cat tail

Dune Walkover Update

The walkover reconstruction contract has been awarded to H&H Custom Decks Enterprises. H&H provided the lowest cost proposal and has a reputation for quality workmanship. Their proposed construction methods should minimize environmental risk. H&H is the company that originally built the walkovers.

Work should commence the week of May 18th, pending receipt of permits, and start with the Beach Club walkover. We anticipate contractor mobilization will be complete and permits will have cleared the Texas General Land Office by that time. Phase 1 of the project will repair the seven walkovers that extend from the Cottages to the Ocean Club Villas. We’re working with the City of Galveston to evaluate options for Phase 2 (the two westernmost walkovers) given the high cost to repair the public walkover and the low usage of both walkovers.

A value engineering process, which included input from the engineer and contractors, determined that the most cost effective and structurally sound way to correct problems with unlevel walkovers was to replace sections that were out of limits. Hurricane Ike’s high wind forces against the large “sail area” of the walkovers lifted many pilings out of their original location in the sand. When the pilings settled after the storm they were not in the same place. Value engineering determined that demolition and replacement was more cost effective than piece meal foundation repair given the high labor costs associated with shoring and partial disassembly.

Walkover sections being replaced will be structurally improved. Existing 4” x 4” pilings will be replaced with 4” x 6” (or 6” x 6” in select areas) pilings. The pile depth is being increased from 5’ to 8’ to improve resistance to sideward wind forces. For walkovers where the seaward end is being replaced, the elevation of the seaward termination is being decreased from ~10’ to ~6’ to reduce “sail area” and resulting wind forces during a storm. Damaged decorative “eyeballs” in the balusters are being replaced with standard balusters.

There are sections of walkovers that are not level but meet industry standard tolerances. These sections are not being replaced to conserve funds. There are also sections of walkovers that will be more susceptible to future storm damage because we’re not replacing the pilings and some of the sand has washed away. The loss of sand has reduced piling embedment depth and will therefore leave the affected walkover more susceptible to high wind forces.

The Beach Club walkover should take 3 to 4 weeks to complete. A schedule for all the walkovers will be disseminated once work has started.

Alan Wilde

A/C Update

I wanted to let everyone know that the only a/c's that are covered under the Claim are the ones that had to be removed to make drywall repairs if your A/C is not one of these units and is not working please contact your own a/c repair company I am sorry for the inconvenience and there is a local repair company on the island called Air Repair and I will try and find out what there number is if anyone would like it.

Cabinet Update

The Cabinets will not be here today like we originally planned I have been informed that it could be another two weeks. The cabinet company will be out this weekend to measure for the cabinets and as soon as I get a delivery date I will post it on the blog. I do apologize for the inconvenience and I know you will have questions regarding this issue and I will try to answer them for you the best I can. Please email all questions to matthewprince@mrpandcompany.com


Matthew R. Prince

WGIPOA Meeting- May 16, 2009

WEST GALVESTON ISLAND PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATION
4210 Silver Reef PBW#1, Galveston, TX 77554
TEL: 409-737-5768 FAX: 409-737-5951
Email: mohn@msn.com

To: West Galveston Island Property
Owners Association Members
____________________________

May 6, 2009

MINUTES: The April 18, 2009, meeting minutes are on our website at, www.wgipoa.com

MEETING: The next meeting will be on May 16, beginning at 8:30 AM for breakfast burritos and 9:00 AM for the meeting at the Galveston Country Club, 14228 Stewart Road. Please note: We are back at the Galveston Country Club, which has been completely remodeled and looks great. Come see the new Galveston Country Club!!

The program will be a power point presentation by the Galveston Island Convention and Visitors Bureau on their marketing campaign and efforts in promoting tourism for Galveston Island following Hurricane Ike and how the west end can help with backyard marketing.

Sea Turtles Donation: The HEART (Help Endangered Animals – Ridley Turtles) organization needs your help to protect the endangered Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle.
HEART is a 501©3 charitable organization and donations are tax deductible. Visit the website at: http://www.ridleyturtles.org/ and please make a donation and to:
HEART, P.O. Box 681231, Houston, Texas 77268-1231

Upcoming Events:
Ongoing: Join the American Shore & Beach Preservation Association (ASBPA) and automatically become a member of the Texas Chapter. See www.asbpa.org and www.texasasbpa.org for details.
June 4-5, 2009: “Texas Coastal Conference” by the Texas General Land Office (GLO), on Galveston Island at the Galveston Convention Center. Go to: www.texascoastalconnection.com

Sept. 16-18, 2009: Florida Shore & Beach Preservation Association (FSBPA) Annual Meeting, Amelia, Island Plantation, Amelia Island, FL.

Oct. 14-16, 2009: American Shore & beach Preservation Association (ASBPA) National Coastal Conference at the Trade Winds Island Resort, St. Petersburg Beach, FL

Thank you for your support and we hope to see you on May 16 at the Galveston Country Club, starting at 8:30 with breakfast burritos and at 9:00 AM for the meeting.

Jerry A. Mohn
President

Property Owners Association Launches New Website

We are very excited to announce that the community's new web site is up and running at www.pointewestpoa.com! The new website includes a variety of features such as community documents, email bulletin and newsletters, events calendars, eforms, job bid tracking, photo album, message board, live chat and many more features.

In the next few days each owner will receive a website introduction letter that includes your temporary user name and password. Once you have received the letter, please take a moment to logon to the website and update your user profile which should including changing your user name and password to something you will remember.

If you experience any issues while trying to login to the website please contact Joyce McGarrigle at 409-515-1900 ext. 3018 or via email at jmcgarrigle@ccmcnet.com.