SVHOA Board Meeting February 26, 2002

Meeting commenced at 7:04 p.m.

Board Members in attendance: President Brian Brick, Vice-President Jill Warner, Treasurer Jennie Brick, and Plans Chair Gail Rappl.

Board Members absent: Parks Chair Matt Cronin

Other attendees: Steve Bettcher, Jennifer Palmer, Jen Frick, Raoul (missed the last name), Jim Nelson, Dawn Chesney, and OPD Captain Dennis Shinn.

1. Minutes

Motion by Brian Brick to waive reading of the prior minutes; motion was unanimously approved.

2. Old Business

Bookkeepers Report: The board unanimously approved the January Financial Statements presented by Jen Frick. Jen notified the board that she had tried to contact Beverly Merrick who is the only signer on the village Certificate of Deposit in order to have a current board member become the signer. Beverly did not respond to Jen's requests and the window for any activity on the CD passed. Jen informed the board that there are 10 days in February of each year when the SVHOA can have any activity on the CD or else it constitutes closing the account which would incur fees. It was agreed that the issue should be addressed in January 2003 by the (next) board, so that a decision can be timely made.

Tree Complaint and letter: A friend of a villager on Middleton, and later the villager herself, had contacted President Brian Brick concerning a tree that her (late) neighbor had planted; the tree was alleged to be dropping "hazardous" pine cones in her yard. The Board, after research, determined that the tree had been planted over 25 years ago by the neighbor on property that was and is owned by the City of Oakland. The neighbor had erected her backyard fence to include the City's land, and the tree. Brian Brick composed a draft of a letter to the villager explaining that the SVHOA's determinations. (By subsequent email vote) the letter was unanimously approved by the Board and was mailed to the villager.

City of Oakland Planning Commission Meeting: Brian Brick reported on a Planning Commission meeting he attended to oppose rezoning a property on upper Revere to create a second, separate tenant unit. Several homeowners from upper Revere attended and made objections, and one other neighbor filed a written opposition. Although the Planning Commission eventually approved the request by a 4-2 vote, the SVHOA went on record as opposing any and all such developments based on population density, parking, and traffic concerns. None of these grounds were among the stated bases for the two Commission votes against the permit, so the Board (on a 4-0 vote) voted against pursuing any appeal - which would require a $600 filing fee.

Another Upper Revere villager later contacted Brian Brick saying she had asked, several years ago, for help from a prior board to fight the construction of 2 large homes on the hillside of upper Revere, but was met with little interest by the then-Board. She was happy that the current board shared her concerns about development of upper Revere.

3. Continuing Business

Parks Update: The board authorized Parks Chair Matt Cronin to pursue bids for the design and construction of a stairway at Milford Park. Jen Frick will follow up to Matt Cronin regarding some connections she may have for a designer. Matt Cronin will also look into closing the space between the short retaining wall and the tennis court fence which he thinks could be a hazard for villagers (Brian Brick dissented on this last issue).

Annual Picnic: As set forth in the February Crier, the prospects for a Village Picnic in 2002 were dim. Volunteers were needed to raise funds for the picnic and to organize and conduct the picnic and fundraising events.

Prior to the meeting, former board president Laurel March had sent an email to current board members outlining the history of the Village Picnic. The Picnic has been a Village event for only 3 years - it was an outgrowth of a block party. The Village Picnic has been funded in all 3 years from the proceeds of an annual garage sale, which had been organized and run by Villager Brian Kelly. Mr. Kelly is moving out of the village in the next few months. At the meeting, new Villager Steve Bettcher volunteered to take over the annual garage sale in order to raise funds for some sort of summer event; he will contact Mr. Kelly for assistance and ideas.

A lengthy discussion about what sort of event ensued and it was decided that a committee would be formed to come up with a new event for the summer.

Meeting Schedule: Due to schedule conflicts of some board members it was presented that the board meetings be changed for the rest of 2002. The meetings would be on the 3rd Tuesday of the month (currently they are on the 4th Tuesday) beginning in May. The new schedule passed 4-0. The meetings will now start at 7:00 p.m. instead of 7:30 p.m.

Easter Egg Event: The Second Annual Easter Egg Hunt will be held at the City Park on Saturday, March 30th at 10:30 a.m. Susanna and Gerry Oto are heading it up again this year and still need volunteers to help. The SVHOA is contributing funds and will help solicit or provide volunteers.

4. New Business

Housing Development: At the most recent City of Oakland Leadership Breakfast President Brian Brick and Treasurer Jennie Brick were approached by a leader of a neighborhood near the Oakland Zoo. The topic of potential further development on the church property on the other side of Dunsmuir Ridge was discussed. After further research it was determined that no formal applications for any permit had been submitted to the city for approval - but the board agreed to be proactive and contact the (potential) developer for further information.

Oakland Police Department: OPD Captain Dennis Shinn displayed and discussed diagrams of criminal activity in City Area III, which includes Sheffield Village. Captain Shinn is in charge of our area and wanted all villagers to know that he and his staff are available to us for any reason. He agreed to help us organize an crime prevention workshop for April to address village issue concerning registered sex offenders; children will not be allowed to attend the workshop, but age-specific workshops can be separately arranged. Captain Shinn also outlined the new organization of the department and handed out phone numbers for residents to contact if there is non-urgent criminal or mischievous activity.

The meeting adjourned at 9:11 p.m.

NOTE THAT SOME AGENDA ITEMS AT THE MEETING WERE TAKEN UP OUT OF THE ORDER LISTED ABOVE.