Opening of 2011 Meeting

Allen Ulm brought the meeting to order at 1:00 pm. Forty five members were present. Allen Ulm led the Pledge of Allegiance. Officers present were: Allen Ulm, President; Judy Crawford, Vice President; Susan Straub, Treasurer; Vivian Schwartz, Member at Large; Bridget Koons, Secretary.

Guest Speakers

Tim Hansen, Mono County Supervisor, was scheduled to speak but was unable to attend due to a family matter.

Adrianne Thatcher, Recreation Manager with the U.S. Forest Service, spoke of the importance of not feeding the wildlife. She cited an incident in 2007 in Utah which resulted in a wrongful death lawsuit. An aggressive bear had been swatting at tents, etc., located just outside the campground. Law enforcement was contacted but nothing was done. Meanwhile, other campers arrived and a child was taken out of a tent and killed by the bear. The court sided with the family of the victim, awarding them a large settlement. Adrianne spoke of what to do when reporting a troublesome bear and how important it is to get an accurate description of the bear and never go between a bear and her cubs. She said to always secure food, dog food, suntan lotions and even items such as motor oil. Bears are attracted to bird and hummingbird feeders, so be sure to put them in at night. Bears are very curious and will check things out. If they don’t find anything, they will move on. They don’t usually attack people, and are more interested in food. Adrianne also spoke of the deer. They are very protective of their fawns. Never get between a doe and her fawn. Do not feed deer. They can’t assimilate most foods which are very bad for them.

Mike Crawley, Bridgeport District Ranger with the U.S. Forest Service, first mentioned that ice chests/coolers are something bears are familiar with and will be attracted to, so be sure to secure in a safe place, out of sight. It was also noted that troublesome bears are no longer relocated but, instead, killed, since it has been found that they cannot be rehabilitated. He also talked about the recent discovery of the Sierra Nevada Red Fox which hasn’t been seen here for over 40 years and how important it is not to habituate the fox to human food.   Mike’s main topic of discussion was the Twin Lakes Proposed Fuels Reduction Project. In order to reduce the threat of wildfire, some of the actions the Forest Service is proposing are hand thinning, mechanical reduction of sagebrush, pile burning and chipping. Thinning will be done within a group of trees whose crowns are too close to each other which reduces density and competition between trees for moisture. Thinning equals healthy trees. The objective is to create a mosaic so fire doesn’t have a constant fuel source, being careful not to reduce wildlife habitat. Under burning will be done only under ideal conditions such as high moisture content in the surrounding vegetation due to snow or rain. Property owners will be notified when there will be a prescribed burn. Mike fielded questions from the association members, using a map to identify the subject areas. He encouraged members to submit their comments and ideas for consideration. For more information on this project, contacts, and a copy of the Twin Lakes Fuels Reduction Project along with maps, go to www.fs.usda.gov/goto/htnf/projects.

Mike Boohres who works for the Mono County Sheriff’s Dept and is the Chief of the Bridgeport Volunteer Fire Department, mentioned a new method of dealing with problem bears. They have just started using a pepper ball gun which is very effective. Mike talked of the Search and Rescue (SAR) organization which is a function of the Sheriff’s Dept. in Mono County. It is a volunteer group consisting of about 70 members. Many on Search and Rescue have had extensive technical experience, such as rock climbing, and are very active. During a rescue, the sheriff will be there and a presence. They have the ability to utilize great resources such as the military and train with them. When going into an unfamiliar area, Mike said it is important to have a GPS. Be sure to talk to people you may encounter and don’t be embarrassed if you are lost and need to ask for help. It could save your life! For more information regarding SAR, go to monosheriff.org where there is a link to SAR. Mike reminded everyone about the Code Red/Reverse 911 System. If there is a fire, the system will be used to notify residents to evacuate. Property owners can go onto the website and register. You can receive the evacuation order via phone, text or email. Also, Gerry Trapp provides an updated list every year to the Sheriff. Mike reported Bridgeport Fire Dept. tried buying a new engine this year since they have had the same engine for ten years. Unfortunately, the purchase didn’t happen. He invited anyone who is interested in volunteering to come on Thursday to the fire station and they will train.

John Hicks, Twin Lakes Fire Safe Council President, gave an update on the activities of the Fire Safe Council. He first thanked the board members, Wanda Hicks, Jerry Schmiedeberg, Dick Crawford, and Lilly Tallman. He also thanked retired board member, Monte Weddle, for his contribution. The 2010 Fuels Reduction Project will begin in Sept/October. The mahogany has been cleared from Kirkwood up to Rickey Drive. The section to be completed on Lakeshore is from Twin Creek Road to Forest Service Cabin.   Charlie Day Drive West of North Patterson is scheduled to be completed, also. John and the council board members met onsite with Jeff Mills to discuss the 37 acre property which is for sale adjacent to Eagle Peak Drive and how best to reduce the fire load and clean up the edge of the property. John thanked the Twin Lakes Property Owners for their ongoing efforts in creating a defensible space around their properties. Starting in mid July, running until the end of September, the FSC Directors will be conducting a Homeowner Defensible Space Survey. Please contact John, Jerry, or Dick if you are interested. You don’t have to be present during the survey. The survey will include a written form. Some homeowners may need this documentation for insurance purposes. He reminded the members of the upcoming Community Chipping Day scheduled for August 16^th and 17^th. If you have any wood waste, you can notify the FSC Directors and leave it out on the side of the road. Also, wood waste can be taken to the dump at no charge.  Sage and other items that can’t be chipped can be taken to the biomass site. Contact Dick so he can open up the site. John talked of the importance of receiving the work completed “in kind” documentation forms from homeowners which shows we’re doing a lot of the work ourselves and helps with receiving the grant money. So far, there have been 800 “in kind” hours. John spoke of how Norman Annette, with no explanation, abruptly stopped the Fire Safe Council’s Fuels Reduction Project which was scheduled to be completed by the fall of this year. He stated that this decision may have been due to the fact that John had written a letter to the CPUC protesting that homeowners are responsible for fire hydrants.

Approval of 2010 TLPOA Minutes

A motion was made and minutes were approved.

Treasurer’s Report

Susan Straub, Treasurer, read the Annual Treasurer’s Report. The beginning balance as of June 30, 2010 was $28,382.34. Income from dues was $3,570.00; raffle, $496.00; interest from savings, $45.98, and interest from checking, $4.97. Total income was $4,116.95. Expenses were $3,995.91. The balance as of June 30, 2011 is $17,645.11 in savings and $10,858.27 in checking for a total of $28,503.38.

Donations

Donations approved were:

It was stated that on the meeting agenda, it listed the Bridgeport Fire Dept donation as being $300 and it should have been $500. A vote was taken and it was agreed the donation should be $500.

President’s Report

Allen Ulm, TLPOA President, spoke of the water rate increase and gave a summary of the process.

1. Received notice from CPUC that increase was requested by Twin Lakes Enterprises
2. Requested why and more information as to the increase
3. CPUC gave information on how to respond to the request to the increase
4. Reviewed TLE’s info and then responded
5. Waited for CPUC staff to give recommendation
6. TLE meanwhile sent Allen a nasty letter threatening a lawsuit
7. CPUC granted a 75% increase to TLE

This was the first water rate increase since 1995. It will cover the management of the fire hydrant system. The CPUC said they didn’t have any complaints about water quality which indicated communication in the past was directly between the CPUC and TLE. Allen spoke of a recent incident in which a property owner had a faulty valve problem for years and had asked TLE repeatedly to repair the valve. Finally, the owner contacted the CPUC and made them aware of the problem. The valve was repaired soon after. Allen said if anyone has an unresolved water related issue to contact the CPUC and they will help resolve the matter.

Allen thanked John Hicks and Bridget Koons for their help this past year.

Committee Reports

Claudia Hughes-Pearman reminded members who are participating in the Annual Adopt-A-Highway Cleanup Day to meet at the TL Fire Station on 7/12 at 8:45. She also mentioned she had contacted Mono County Code Compliance regarding the cleanup of a problem property located at Twin Lakes.

Dave Holcomb gave an update on the street signs. He reported the last six signs will be ordered. The sign at Parker & Aspen Drive had been vandalized. He asked that if anyone sees a sign that is leaning to please rectify. The “no parking” signs will be fixed with new stickers.

New Board Member for 2011-2012

The new board members are: Rockey Reed, President; Larry Schwartz, Vice President; Judy Crawford, Treasurer; Bridget Koons, Secretary; Pat Ulm, Member at Large.

The meeting was adjourned at 2:30 pm.

Sincerely, Bridget Koons, Secretary 2010-2011