Housing Authority Minutes

MINUTES
Willington Housing Authority
Monday, May 8, 2017 – 6 p.m.
60 Old Farms Road – Senior Center
Willington, CT

Present: Chairman Robert Campbell, Vice Chairman Wilbur Gangaway, Secretary Don Berg, Treasurer Claudia D'Agata, Member Laurel Millix, Financial Consultant David Berto, ACCESS Management representatives  David Innes and Alex Fuentes, Recording Secretary Brenda Sullivan.

1. Call to order –   6:10 p.m.

2. Present to speak – opportunity for members of the public to speak.

No members of the public present.

3. Old Business –  Senior Housing “Button Hill”

Housing Authority members and ACCESS representatives discussed a number of questions related to marketing Button Hill Senior Housing.

There was discussion about mail delivery.  R. Campbell said there's no need to locate a mailbox at the Button Hill complex for ACCESS, since the agency already has mail delivery at Willington Woods.  And Housing Authority mail will continue to be mailed to Town Hall. He also said the Post Master has indicated she is adverse to having two sets of group mailboxes – one at the upper level of the Button Hill central stairs and one for the lower level.

W. Gangaway asked if ACCESS will send rent bills to tenants.  D. Innes said ACCESS usually sends a notice only if a rent payment is overdue.

There was review and discussion of a draft version of the Button Hill  Senior Housing marketing pamphlet.

C. D'Agata said wording that implies only low-income residents are eligible to rent at Button Hill needs to be changed to something like “meets certain income eligibility guidelines.”

A. Fuentes said that when people apply, they will be given information about income ranges and it will be determined whether they are eligible and what they would pay for rent.  He also noted that four units are “market rate,” and these can be rented to tenants who are outside the income guidelines (and who are 62 years old or older).

D. Innes said he will remove the reference to dishwashers, since these are not included at Button Hill.

Also regarding information and images on the pamphlet, R. Campbell noted some units don't include a den.  D. Innes said he will remove reference to the word “den” in the brochure, to eliminate confusion.

D. Berg said he'd like the pamphlet to show the lower units, as well, and suggested some of the photos could be cropped or eliminated so that there's space to do this.

D. Innes noted that the pamphlet suggests people visit the website for more detailed information.

D. Berto said the brochure should show only one unit as an example, and people can see more images on the website.

R. Campbell said the brochure should still describe the range of the units' square footage, and he agreed that only one sample unit needs to be shown in the pamphlet. He also suggested removing the photo with a group of people in a common area, since Button Hill doesn't have a common area.

There was discussion about updating the sign on the road – to change it from 60 Old Farms Road to Senior Way.  R. Campbell said the Board of Selectmen need to be contacted to make this change.

D. Innes said the pamphlet will be inserted in an upcoming edition of the Journal Inquirer and is projected to reach 58,000 readers. R. Campbell asked what the deadline is for submitting a final version of the pamphlet to the Journal Inquirer. R. Innes said the final version needs to be submitted a week in advance, on a Wednesday.

D. Berto asked when applications will be made available, and what is management's launch date for marketing.

D. Innes said they began newspaper advertising on May 1, using the agreed upon list of publications.

He also said people on the list of interested residents that the Housing Authority had been compiling have been contacted. W. Gangaway, whose name was on the list, said he only received a request to verify his address and indicate if he is still interested.

D. Innes said that last week he sent the application form, sample lease, tenant rules and other documents to Housing Enterprises to review and approve.  He said applications can now be sent to the people on the list.

R. Campbell noted that applications need to be updated every year because the government adjusts the income limits.  He asked that the “effective date” be included on the applications.  

In response to a question about when prospective tenants can be show a sample unit, R. Campbell said that tours cannot be scheduled until after inspection, and after asphalt has been laid down, and that the site is currently under the control of the contractor, Zlotnick Construction.

D. Berg said he wants at least three apartment layouts depicted in the pamphlet.  He'd also like a drawing that shows the location of solar mounts, and the roadway.

C. D'Agata said she feels there only needs to be a couple of photos because they are meant only to be “samples.”

D. Innes said additional photos will be posted on the website.

R. Campbell said the rooms probably shouldn't be shown with furniture, so there's no misunderstanding that the units are not furnished.  W. Gangaway said the appliances should still be shown in the photos.

It was agreed that D. Berg will review the pamphlet design after these revisions and once he feels satisfied, they can be used for marketing.

In response to a question about the emergency light pulls in each unit, R. Campbell said the pull doesn't alert emergency dispatch, it just turns on the outside emergency light.  

There was discussion about prohibiting the use of outdoor grills on the patios. R. Campbell said this is an important safety issue, and that there is potential for grills to melt the buildings' siding.

R. Campbell also said he'd like a non-smoking policy for all areas of Button Hill, in order to protect the health of all residents, particularly those with health issues.

D. Innes said pets will be allowed – one per unit – with a weight limit of 55 lbs.

There was discussion about fire protection.  The Housing Authority will provide smoke detectors, but not fire extinguishers.  R. Campbell said that if there's a fire, the sprinklers and alarm will be triggered and dispatch will be notified.  He said he'd rather see tenants leave the building instead of trying to put out a fire with an extinguisher.

D. Innes asked if there will be assigned parking spaces.  R. Campbell said no, but this is a question that can be revisited if there's an issue.

D. Innes asked if an area will be provided for posting notices for tenants.  R. Campbell said there can be an outdoor – enclosed and locked – bulletin board.

D. Innes asked if there will be telephone outlets. R. Campbell said tenants will be able to choose their phone services, and he suggested marketing materials simply state, “Units will be equipped with phone and cable outlets.”

There was discussion about the windows.  R. Campbell said shades or drapes are not included. He said the units will have tilt-in windows, and a flower box.

D. Innes asked several questions about utilities. Heat (propane) will be paid for by the owners (the Housing Authority), as well as water/hot water, electricity and trash removal.

It was also noted that a typo, “lightening,” needs to be corrected to “lighting.”

Concerning the Tenant Handbook, R. Campbell said it needs to include the protocol for handling violations, such as the first step is a written warning, followed by the next step, etc., which also should be reviewed by counsel for proper legal wording. He said the Willington Woods Tenant Handbook also needs to be revised to include this information.  

There was discussion about charging a nonrefundable application fee.  A. Fuentes said this fee covers the costs of background checks – criminal and financial. He said most senior housing complexes charge this fee.  He suggested a fee of $35.

D. Berto asked if there's a cut-off date for submitting applications for the initial lottery if

needed, after which future applications would be included in the order received.  R. Campbell said providing a lottery is part of Fair Housing rules.  D. Innes said he fully expects there to be a lottery.  D. Berto said it's important to alert applicants of the cut-off date.  D. Innes said there also will be a waiting list.

D. Innes and A. Fuentes left the meeting.

There was discussion about the construction schedule.  D. Berto said currently the completion date is expected to be mid-June.  He said Zlotnick needs a change order to extend the schedule and that while they are asking for 9 weeks, they will charge only for 3, at $15,000.  They also requested $25,000 for extra sub-base materials. The result is $5,700 over the change order budget of $200,000.  

R. Campbell asked how the 9-week extension affects the work requirements charges, which were originally billed at 12 months.  

D. Berg asked about what action will be taken regarding the concrete tests, which showed the material didn't meet the 28-day strength test.  R. Campbell said the material may need to be removed.  He also said the engineer, E. Peterson, could approve another limit. D. Berg said he'd bring this subject up at the construction meeting.  R. Campbell said he should first email E. Peterson and ask for his input.

D. Berto asked for an update on the solar Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) process. D. Berg said his contact was on vacation last week.

W. Gangaway asked about the status of the project budget.  D. Berto said some items are over budget (i.e., legal and civil engineering costs), while some are under budget, so that overall, the project is still close to being on track.

D. Berto left the meeting at 7:55 p.m.

4. New Business –  None.

5. Correspondence – None.

6. Approval of minutes –

The March 13, 2017 minutes were tabled at the April meeting.  W. Gangaway moved to approve the March 13 minutes as presented. The motion was seconded by L. Millix and passed unanimously.  

C. D'Agata moved to accept the April 10, 2017 minutes as presented. The motion was seconded by W. Gangaway and passed unanimously.

7. Treasurer’s report – C. D'Agata reported a balance of  $1,810.18 (April secretarial expenses were not deducted because B. Sullivan was unable to submit a signed payroll form until after the cut-off date.)

8. Adjourn – The meeting adjourned at 8 p.m.

Respectfully submitted by Brenda Sullivan, Recording Secretary.