Hello, Team LMOA!

Please continue reading for a summary of the February Board Meeting and other important news:

Carol Cavanaugh Retires in March: Carol Cavanaugh's final weeks working for LMOA have begun. She will be leaving us in mid-March after nearly 35 years of dedicated service to the EC&C Department. She plans to move near her son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter. We wish her all the best and thanks her from the bottom of our hearts for her many years of expertise. About a hundred of her closest friends, family, and colleagues celebrated her retirement at the Fairway Clubhouse earlier this month, and the Compliance Committee Chair, Scott Marshall, held a heartfelt speech for her at last evening's Board Meeting. Be sure to watch it when the recording is posted to lmoa.org. Best wishes, Carol!

Legal Funds Approved to Fight Aqua Virginia: At last night’s board meeting (02/22/2024), our Board of Directors (BOD) authorized up to $5000 to be put toward legal costs in fighting Aqua Virginia’s application to raise rates. This decision was reached in response to Fluvanna County’s offer to help support the opposition effort. This was authorized by the Board of Supervisors (BOS) at their January meeting when the County Attorney, Dan Whitten, requested $35K from BOS to fund expert witnesses to litigate and a certified public accountant. His resolution stated, “In addition and depending on how the County proceeds, there could be legal costs for an outside counsel if the workload is more than the County Attorney could handle. For all of these costs, there is interest from other participating localities [Virginia counties] to cost share on these items, which would lower Fluvanna’s direct cost.” LMOA’s $5000 would go towards those extra costs if needed. We encourage resdients to continue submitting comments to SSC before the deadline in April.
 
February Staff Reports:

• F&O: The Maintenance Department has been rebranded as the Facilities & Operations (F&O) Department. The F&O Director, Tracy Chandler, said he is understaffed and that his workers earn about 35% less than the average Fluvanna County resident, making it very hard to find qualified employees who are willing to stay when there are jobs at nearby warehouses that offer competitive pay. He is solving the problem by cross-training but warned that that could create employee burnout, especially in the summer months. He is also forced to postpone projects which could result in more expensive repairs in the long run. On a positive note, his team joined the LMPD in a "Stop the Bleed" training to promote lifesaving skills on the job. We will share an article and pictures of the training soon!

• Slips/Racks/Courts: In March, payments for boat slips and kayak/canoe racks are due and tennis and pickleball memberships need to be renewed. Please fill out the application for tennis and pickleball HERE.

• Independence Day Fireworks: Lake Monticello will celebrate on July 4th and 6th this year with the fireworks taking place on July 6th. Volunteers will receive an invitation to meet in April and the finalized schedule will be sent out in May.

• Food & Beverage: LMOA staff meets once a week with RocDun Hospitality and Troon to ensure a smooth transition. The Pub, which will be renamed Bunker Bistro, will be closed from February 26 through March 11 for redecorating and repairs. Jacie Dunkle provided us with a letter about the new restaurant which we will share soon. By leasing The Pub to RocDun, LMOA expects to save about $100K in losses in Food & Beverage this year and eliminate losses by 2025.

 
February Board Approvals:
 

• Golf: Changes to the golf policy which included a no-show penalty for tee times and the use of privately owned golf vehicles if and when approved by the Golf Professional (currently Mark Marshall).

• Non-voting Memberships: Changes to policy to allow a Special Social Associate Membership, Tennis/Pickleball Associate Membership (this was missing from the policy manual), and the purchase of two barcodes by Golf Associate members with family plans. The fee for the Special Social Associate Membership will be the total of a Social Associate Membership and an Improved Property Fee, allowing the owner of a property adjacent to Tufton Pond to enter through LMOA gates and utilize GFL trash pickup. Our new neighbor is building a home on his property, and this approval will prevent unauthorized traffic from entering LMOA via Garden Lane and a separate trash service from entering the Lake.

• Software: Software for the Facilities & Operations Department that will help streamline work processes, thus saving time and money.
  *for more details, please read the Board Meeting Packet.

• DEQ: Yesterday, (02/22/24)The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) facilitated and mediated a meeting between LMOA and Aqua Virginia. In a 3-hour discussion, LMOA was given the opportunity to discuss its concerns about the lack of remote monitoring, sewage containment, and sewage leak reporting in an open forum. The DEQ representative, Brandon Kiracofe, made note of the concerns, received proposed solutions from Aqua Virginia, and stipulated criteria for future reporting. Based on Kiracofe’s recommendations, LMOA strongly encourages all of its residents to video record sewage leaks when discovered and send the footage to Member Services so that it can be used to ensure accurate sewage leak reporting to DEQ.

• Town Hall Meeting: The Board of Directors finalized a draft of the Board Proposal to raise dues and requested it be posted on lmoa.org. This has been made available to allow the Membership to prepare questions for the next Town Hall Meeting on February 28, 2024, at 6 PM at the Fairway Clubhouse. The Board will consider all feedback and the draft is subject to change. This is by no means the final version that will appear on the ballot. Please log in to lmoa.org and select 'LMOA Survey 2024' from the GOVERNANCE drop-down menu to read the draft. This meeting will be broadcast on comcast channel 977 and streamed live on YouTube!

• Plan Your Month: Upcoming Events and Volunteer Opportunities will be shared this Monday, February 26, 2024.

 
Have a great weekend!

-Tom Schauder
General Manager