UNIVERSITY HILLS ASSOCIATION OF HOMEOWNERS

MONTHLY BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING – TUESDAY JUNE 3, 2008

President Arnold Martin called the meeting to order at 11:31 AM. Board members present were Arnold Martin, Charles Schmidt, Anna Walther, Don McGee, Nell Anne Hunt, Barbara Hull, Bob Kitzman, Don Jensen, Martin Kahn, and John De Marco. Board members absent were Esther Nachimson, Kass Prince, and Jim Wells. Committee Chair present was Fred Odell. Kathrine Pennington represented the Las Colinas Association (TLCA).

In the absence of our Secretary, Esther, John made reference to the minutes of the May meeting that were posted on the UH website. A minor editorial correction was noted. John motioned for their approval with this change. Don McGee seconded it and the motion was approved.

In the absence of our Treasurer, Kass, the financial reports for June were not available.

For the benefit of those who were unable to attend, Fred declared the Spring Fling a success. A burst of rain and wind came right at the start of the event, but this lasted only about 5 minutes. The weather was fine for the rest of the afternoon and evening and everyone had a good time. Fred acknowledged Nell Anne’s complimentary article in The Irving Journal but admitted some mistakes were made. He attributed these to his first time in the chair and vowed to make next year’s event even better. There are plans to get together with Jen Davis to compile their experiences into a User’s Manual for the Spring Fling Chair.

Fred is asking for suggestions to improve upon the Spring Fling. Already on the list are; the need for more publicity, an earlier start to the preparations, a change in menu (perhaps), and more volunteers. Anyone with suggestions or ideas is invited to contact Fred at (972) 650-8035.

Nell Anne distributed copies of the letter she’ll be sending to over 400 patriots. It provides a schedule of events for the 2008 Great Flag Caper. The kick-off meeting was held on May 25^th and the notable dates are;

June 25 as the deadline for receipt of the children’s essay, July 1-3 for collection and planting of the flags, and July 4 to behold the awe-inspiring sight and celebrate our Nation’s Birthday. Nell Anne further noted that this year’s Flag Caper is honoring two wonderful ladies, Patty Schmidt and Dorothy Schulstadt, who passed away earlier this year. They were outstanding members of the community and will be missed by all.

Bob asked about the financing for this year’s Flag Caper with costs rising and the breadth of coverage expanding. After Nell Anne’s summation, Bob made a motion to donate $1500 to this patriotic cause as per UHAOH’s usual custom. Martin seconded it and the motion was carried.

Charles expressed disappointment over the disruption to our efforts to enlist more UH residents in the Green Neighbor Program. This was caused by the burst of rain and wind at the Spring Fling. The attractive poster that Linda Oliver created and the array of Green Neighbor checklists had to be taken down to avoid damage, so very few residents were able to enroll at the event. However, Charles was optimistic that Arnold could arrange a mailing of the program information and a checklist. Every resident in UH deserves the opportunity to qualify as a Green Neighbor and to enhance their environmental awareness. In addition, the UH website might be used to provide information on this important cause.

Arnold remarked that such mailing might include information about other programs of interest to UH residents such as mentoring for the Farine Elementary School students and volunteers to help with our association’s events throughout the year. Respecting the former, Arnold observed that the two newly elected members of the Irving Independent School District board as well as the newly appointed IISD board chair are very enthusiastic about the benefits of parental involvement in achieving high academic results for students.

Arnold mentioned that a meeting of the Green Committee will be held tonight at City Hall. This would be the second meeting of this newly instituted group formed by the City of Irving to provide input on measures to make the city more “Green”. Arnold encouraged anyone with interest in this important issue to attend.

In response to a question from John about receipt of the community grant funds, Charles advised that the paperwork to support payment of our community grant is due by September.

Without the presence of Jim, Linda, and Ann Aghassibake, further details about the new 20087 UH Directory could not be provided. Arnold noted it was issued in early May and by now most residents ought to have their copies as these were being distributed by the Block Captains. Also, Arnold mentioned that Linda is endeavoring to collect payments from a few advertisers whose accounts were still outstanding.

In the absence of Jim, there was nothing to report on communications. John mentioned that the home page at the UH website has a much better look these days as there is no wrap-around effect. Arnold remarked that Jim is continually seeking to make improvements at the website and with our other means of communication within UH.

John also related a personal experience that demonstrated the efficacy of Jim’s email notices to UH residents. His daughter was visiting and while relaxing in the back garden one evening a small dog scampered by. It appeared to be lost and she followed it as it wandered along the golf course behind the homes on Guadalajara and Tampico. After 30 minutes or so the dog became tired and took the offer to be carried back to the house. There were no tags on her, so our Web Master was notified. Within the hour, “Dixie” was reunited with her owners.

Bob reported on two transportation topics. The first related to the recent formation of a sub-committee to the Transportation Committee of the Irving/Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce. Bob has been appointed Chair and his sub-committee has been tasked with finding measures to alleviate the impact of truck traffic in our area. An immediate response was seen with the Irving Police Department surveillance efforts along Rochelle and Northgate as well as the posting of NO TRUCKS signs at the various entry points to UH. Bob wished to dampen any unrealistic expectations, however,. This signage will not in itself eliminate recurrence of the “cut-throughs” that were reported earlier. But the NO TRUCKS signage does give IPD the authority to issue tickets to any transgressors.

Bob then reviewed the schedule of road construction projects in our area including the improvements to Loop 12, the widening of the Airport and the Carpenter Freeways, the DART Orange Line, and the demolition of Texas Stadium. The latter is critical as this will serve as a staging area for many of the road construction projects. In addition, Texas Stadium is in the vicinity of the interchange of highways amongst Loop 12, Route 183, and Route 114. When completed, this tiered interchange will dwarf the High Five at the intersection of LBJ and Dallas Central Expressway. A span of 7-8 years will be needed to accomplish all these ambitious construction projects. Accordingly, the committee’s role in minimizing the effects on our community is not only important but its efforts must be sustained for a long period.

Arnold echoed Bob’s comments and noted the history of Chamber of Commerce involvement in the development of the City’s transportation plans since the formation of ICAC and the creation of the Transportation Summit over 10 years ago.

In response to a question from Anna about the fencing recently installed around the perimeter of the motel at Wingren and Rte 183, Arnold advised this was a prelude to the razing of several buildings along the frontage road and the erection of a sound barrier for Nichols Park. All of this is related to the planned widening of the Airport Freeway.

Anna distributed copies of the color marketing brochure for University Hills which she and her husband, Wolfgang, had developed using the conceptual design first put forth by Jim early this year as one of the Six Action Items for UH in 2008. All were impressed with the photographs, the captions, and the informative content. Anna motioned to have 2,500 copies printed with 500 or so mailed to UH residents as requested by Arnold. The cost of printing would be about $365. Don McGee seconded the motion and it carried.

Arnold informed the board that a special committee of the board had been formed to address the issue of Barnett Shale leasing. Its members are Charles, Bob, Martin, Nell Anne, Arnold, and Don McGee with the latter serving as chair and discussion leader. The purpose of this committee is to seek information about gas leaseholds. The University of Dallas (UD) recently entered an arrangement with a gas exploration and production company who already are conducting seismic tests on UD property. Moreover, there appears to be a drilling rig on UD property across Rte 114, although that land may be within the city limits of Dallas. All agreed that timely and complete information about the leasing of mineral rights would be of considerable value to UH homeowners as they will be the party to any gas leasehold arrangements

Kathrine mentioned that TLCA has retaining walls in residential areas as one the issues for their review. Homeowners may recall a campaign conducted about 4 years ago wherein TLCA encouraged the replacement of retaining walls constructed with creosote-impregnated railroad ties. Only masonary or stone may be used as materials for the construction of retaining walls under current TLCA codes. In addition, over the years, walls made of wooden materials are subject to deterioration, rot, infestation by insects, etc., all of which make for an unsightly appearance and hazard to others.

Martin and Barbara cited some other hazards for the attention of TLCA; bicyclists on the walking paths and those miniaturized motor vehicles.

In the absence of Pat, Charles announced the winner of Yard of the Month for June; Grace and Tom Davis at 3801 Cabeza de Vaca. A photo op session will be held there immediately after the meeting at 1:15 PM. The winners receive a $50 Gift Certificate from Calloway’s.

Don Jensen reported that organizing the Flag Display Program for individual homeowners in UH was proving to be more difficult than he had anticipated. Nonetheless he is not giving up on it and is making every effort with the Rotary and with the Boy Scouts to have this program available in the not too distant future.

The next meeting of the board will be held on July 1, 2008 at 11:30 AM.

There being no further business to conduct, Arnold motioned to adjourn the meeting. John seconded and the motion passed. The meeting closed at 1:09 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

John De Marco on behalf of Esther Nachimson, UHOAH Secretary