by Olimpia Borys

A New Year, A New Board, A new Era! I’d like to start this message by wishing everyone a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous, New Year. It is my hope that this be your best year yet.

As your newly appointed Tall Ship Association Board President, I’d like to take a few minutes of your time to talk to you about my vision for the future of Tall Ship and our expectation of the owners. We live (or own) in a very special place. There are very few communities like ours with all the amenities, a beautiful clean lake, and spectacular mountain views. As such, it is in everyone’s best interest to play an active role in keeping it the special place we know it to be.

The Tall Ship demographic is changing. We had 24 new owners in 2018! Most of these were new retirees or empty nesters. As a retired Network Engineer, I’d like to make better use of technology to meet the needs of this shifting demographic. In general, I’d like to modernize the way we as an organization do business. I have several thoughts on this:

First, you may have noticed that I announced the new 2109 Board via a new email account, Tall Ship Association the address is: tallshipassociation@gmail.com. I created this account to let owners know that the email is from the association President and contains important or useful information. It’s more official than coming from my personal account which can get lost in the email weeds. This account is monitored daily and can be used for all owner correspondence. It is also transferrable to any sitting president, and the contact list will be continuously updated and maintained. The contact list is only visible to the keeper of the account. It is my intention to use the email platform a bit more frequently than it the past to inform owners of changes, events, and important news, but I promise not to send daily bombardments like Keowee Key!

TALL SHIP HOMEOWNER’S ASSOCIATION

2019 Board of Directors President - Olimpia Borys, 503 TSD #303, (586)604-3622, tallshipassociation@gmail.comVice President - Frank Aaron, 519 TSD Unit #317, (478) 442 4727, faaron248@msn.comSecretary - Loretta Dandrea, 503 TSD Unit #206, (864) 719-0391, la.dandrea@yahoo.comTreasurer - Roger Heffelfinger, Marietta GA, #328, (404)374-1076, rhfin@bellsouth.netAt-Large - Jaime Cruz, Greenville SC, Unit #207, (202) 445-2273, CASEmail@earthlink.net

January 2019 Volume 7, Issue 1

From the PresidentTall Ship Beacon

From the Editor….

Calling all Writers & Editors!

With my new Presidential duties, creating and publishing this newsletter is more difficult. I am asking for any owners with writing or editing experience to ass ist wi th producing th is quarterly publication.

Much of the content is written or created by me personally. I will either need help creating content or preferably, someone to take over as Editor. I will still contribute as much content as I can, but it I would like to not have the added responsibility of having to produce the newsletter.

The good news is that any new Editor gets to decide what the news le t te r l ooks l i ke and contains, and can make it his or her own style and format, much as I did when I became Editor in January 2016.

If you are interested in helping with writing or producing this publication, please contact me at ogborys@gmail.com.

Tall Ship Beacon - January 2019

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From the President - Continued

Second, I would like to see our website updated, though this is currently just a bunch of thoughts. My vision is to have a secured member section (like Keowee Key has) to be able to post members only information such as financials, or other non-public items like forms. I’d also like to see the format updated a bit to allow for online completion of forms and requests. Web development is not really my forte, but I will be discussing some possible changes with our webmaster. Stay tuned for updates.

I also want to create a formal process for unit construction requests. As you know, Board approval is required for construction to units, however, we do not have a formal process in place. Many new owners are performing major renovations to their units. This is good, because it helps bring up property values. The issue is many new owners are not aware of the rules and regulations around such modifications. I am happy to report that work has already begun and we are developing a form and a surrounding process. Our new Member-at-Large Jamie Cruz, has presented the Board with an initial draft. This will be fined tuned and will distributed when it is completed. Jaime will bring much value to the Board and the community as a whole with his Structural Engineering knowledge.

The next item of importance is to discuss the Board’s expectations from the community. We find it very difficult to get volunteers for the Board and a subsequent quorum vote at the annual meeting to elect those that do volunteer. Keep in mind that running an organization such as this Homeowner’s Association is no small task. There are a lot of moving parts and it requires a dedicated Board. Without the Board, important decisions can’t be made, financials are not fully monitored and managed, and things that bring value to you as an owner do not get done! Not only is it important to have an active dedicated Board, it is important for all owners to either be present at or send a proxy to the Annual Meeting to vote for that Board.

All owners are responsible for doing their part to keep this community running and viable. That includes paying your regimes and assessments on time. When you delay or don’t make payments, you place a burden on all other owners some of which are your direct neighbors. Our budgets, (Operating, Capital Reserve, and Loan Payoff) are carefully planned based on the fees we collect. Your unpaid portion of the funding to run this community, pay the loan, and maintain the buildings and grounds, has to come from somewhere. If you don’t pay, the onus is shifted to the other owners. Tall Ship Association has a strictly applied process for collecting unpaid debts, including placing liens on units or forcing it into foreclosure.

As I mentioned above, being on the Board is voluntary. We do not get paid for our time and contributions to the community. As such, we expect owners to respect our time. What this means, is that the Board is not a 24/7 entity. I, for instance do not answer calls from unknown numbers. This limits scammers. My experience is that if it’s important, the caller will leave a message and I will return the call as soon as possible. In addition, I place my phone on ‘Do Not Disturb’ from 11p.m. to 9 a.m., so any calls or texts that are not on the allowed list will not ring through. Foothills Property Management is on my allowed list.

With that bit of unpleasantry out of the way, I want to close by saying that I am both honored and looking forward to serving as your Board President in the coming year. We have a lot of wonderful improvements planned for this year, and I am excited to see them come to fruition and hope that you, our owners, like the changes too. We will be discussing more about these improvements in future publications.

Tall Ship Beacon - January 2019

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Unit 109Bruce & Terri McCrary

Unit 112David and Kathryn Cole

Unit 117Chuck Ferrell & Shelley Sedor

Unit 122Erna Jean Alm

Unit 133Bob & Mary Green

Unit 136Robert & Catherine Goldt

Unit 202Marty Moore & Jan Prentice

Unit 204Gary & Valorie Crumbley

Unit 215Dale & Michelle Blazek

Unit 218David & Leah Fearing

Unit 220David and Christina Guertin

Unit 225Deborah Lynn Clinton

Unit 230Charles & Mary Ellen Beagan

Unit 233Glenn & Christy Bowers

Unit 236Richard & Loretta Temkin

Unit 239Steven & Lois Plaisted

Unit 240Ernie & Sharon Manos

Unit 305Kevin & Elaine Botsford

Unit 306Raymond Shafer

Unit 307Jerilyn Schaller

Unit 309 Caroline Lander

Unit 316Peter & Melissa Coles

Unit 321Fletcher & Carrie Anderson

Unit 327Harry & Sandra Hardy

CALENDAR Tall ship Board of Directors

meetings are held the second Tuesday of each month at 9am in the Lakeview Room, North Marina

2019 Meeting Schedule

★February 12 ★March 12 ★April 9 ★May 14 ★June 11

In Memoriam Sadly, we lost a few Tall Ship residents last year. Our condolences to the families of:

Unit 234 Charles “Chuck” Giordano Unit 217 Mary NeubeckUnit 301 Judith “Judy” Kovacs

Congratulations! Clemson Tigers

2019 National Champions!

New Owners in 2018 Tall Ship Welcomes You!

We had 24 new owners last year!

Tall Ship Beacon - January 2019

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Maintenance & Janitorial Report

Here is this quarter’s update on the general building maintenance.

RAIL REFURBISHING: The project to paint the front rails and install new tarps is still in the planning stages for the Cutter, Square Rigger, & Ketch buildings A prototype of a possible new tarp design has been installed on one of the front rail of the Square Rigger building. This prototype eliminates the need for roping which is a major part of the repainting cost, however it has presented other issues. A new prototype is being planned and will hopefully resolve the issue.

POWER & WINDOW WASHING: Our new cleaning service, Clemson Cleaning, has already started the process of thoroughly power washing all buildings. The Cutter and Square Rigger Buildings have been completed. Ketch and Yawl will be completed next.

LIGHTING UPGRADES: Tall Ships is replacing the CFL flood lighting with LED lighting to reduce lighting costs. This will be done building by building as the installed CFLs fail. This will be a phased in approach.

ROOFING: A plan is underway to address the roofing sealant failures found on some buildings. The BoD has approved significant capital funding to repair the roof on Clipper. We are investigating the possibility of a cost savings to repair the Frigate building roof as well.

WATER LEAKS: Frigate: A chimney flashing leak was corrected and an affected unit repaired.

ELEVATORS: The OptiGuard light screens have been replaced in all elevators. This component is the electric eye that tells the elevator when it is clear to close the doors. The BoD has approved the purchase of new carpeting to replace the flooring, and we are in the process of ordering it . There are other safety system components being replaced in the coming year to keep our elevators in good working order and improve the safety. We will update the owners when these changes happen.

TREE REMOVAL: We are in the process of tagging and obtaining CARE approval to remove some dead and encroaching trees.

ANNUAL CRAWL SPACE INSPECTIONS: Foothills is beginning their annual crawl space inspections. These inspections check for cracking or rotting of the foundation, mold, termites and pests, and water intrusion.

Tall Ship Beacon - January 2019

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NEW JANITORIAL & TRASH SERVICE

The Tall Ship BoD is proud to announce that as of January 1, 2019, we have contracted a new company to provide Janitorial and Trash Services. Clemson Cleaning is our new contractor. They have many years experience in commercial cleaning. See the article on the next page for more details.

A NOTE FROM KKPOA FOR OWNERS WHO RENT

All owners who rent their unit must register with KKPOA. There is a $125.00 annual fee. For questions or comments about this procedure, please contact Amy Bruner at 864-538-0282.

REPORTING PROBLEMS

All problems (including owner disputes) and emergencies should be handled in the same way as for an individual home. Your Board is not your personal landlord, as we are not equipped to assess or fix any issues you may have in your condo. Call KKPOA Patrol, 911, KKUS, or any other appropriate and/or 24/7 entity. Our 24/7 entity is Foothills Property Management and all building or grounds related calls, including after hours emergencies, should be made to them, not a Board member. If a Board member needs to be contacted, Foothills will contact us.

DELINQUENT ACCOUNTS

We have seen an uptick of delinquent accounts. As mentioned in my article on page 2, every owner shares the cost of delinquent accounts. Please be sure to pay your regimes and assessments on time. Please see Roger’s comments regarding this in the Treasurer’s report below.

Our Christmas luncheon had to be canceled because the Club did not open due to snow, but the Annual Meeting was held as per the By Laws. We had many new members during the past year, and several were able to attend the meeting. Thank you for the service of our past directors and welcome to our new directors for this year.

This coming year we are planning several social events. Among them are shuffleboard, a wine and cheese party and a Tall Ship Kentucky Derby party on May 4. Stay tuned for dates for the other events.

News & Notes

Social Report by Sylvia Stuart

Tall Ship Beacon - January 2019

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The Tall Ship BoD is proud to present Clemson Cleaning as our new Janitorial & Trash Service. These services began on January 1, 2019. There were several reasons for the change, one of which was that Keowee Key Operations informed us they were raising trash pickup rates and reducing pickup days from four to three. The Board felt this was not sufficient for our needs. Regarding the Janitorial services, the BoD had been looking at options for a while and found this company to be the best pick. Contracting an outside company relieves Foothills from the burden and will allow them to focus on their core services of maintenance and management.

As mentioned, Clemson Cleaning has replaced Keowee Key Operations to pick up our trash four days a week, though the schedule has changed. Trash pickup will now be on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, & Friday. The cleaners bleached and sanitized the cans, which has greatly improved the smell.

In addition, they will be performing the janitorial services formerly performed by Foothills. This includes, but is not limited to, cleaning of the walkways, alcoves, stairwells, railings and tarps, gutters, drains, elevators, and much more.

They are starting with a building by building thorough power wash. Cutter and Square Rigger have already been completed. Also, they have thoroughly cleaned the mail stations and the boxes and it is quite an improvement!

For a complete list of Janitorial Services, see our Janitorial document on our website at: http://www.tallshipscondos.com/resources.html

Below is some basic information about the company. You can also visit their website at https://www.clemsoncleaning.com

• THE COMPANY WAS FOUNDED IN 2008 • HEADQUARTERS ARE IN SENECA, SC • THE FOUNDING OWNERS, JOHN AND PATTI WALTER LIVED IN TALL SHIP FROM 2001-2004 • 100% OF ALL EMPLOYEES ARE BACKGROUND CHECK USING SLED • THEY ARE THE PRIMARY CLEANER FOR GHS/OCONEE HOSPITAL SYSTEM, ANMED HEALTH SYSTEM,

AND ARAMARK (CLEMSON FOOD SERVICE ON CAMPUS) • MINIMUM TURNOVER OF ACCOUNTS SINCE THE COMPANY WAS FOUNDED • EMPLOYEES HAVE BEEN PROVIDED WORKMEN'S COMP AND LIABILITY INSURANCE • INSURANCE CERTIFICATES HAVE BEEN FURNISHED TO THE ASSOCIATION

New Janitorial & Trash Services - Clemson Cleaning

Tall Ship Beacon - January 2019

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by Roger Heffelfinger

For 2018, the Operating Account had an operating gain of $22,042, compared to a budget of $2,715. The operating gain is primarily due to collection of past due regime fees and related late charges, and lower legal fees related to collections, as well as lower insurance cost. The 2018 year end cash balance for the Operating Account was $30,075. The 2019 Operating Account is budgeted to have a $440 gain. The Operating Account funds all building, elevator, and grounds maintenance, as well as janitorial services, utilities, administrative, insurance, and property management expenses.

The Capital Reserve Account had a 2018 year end cash balance of $455,630. The Capital Reserve Account funds capital repairs and improvements for all seven buildings and grounds surrounding the buildings from Tall Ship Drive to the Leisure Trail. The main capital projects for 2018 were completion of the first phase of a comprehensive landscape improvement plan and installation of new door light screens in all seven elevators. For 2019, capital projects are budgeted at $288,250. The main capital projects will be continuation of landscape improvements at each of the building entrances, replacement of long steps to the leisure trail, and starting multi-year projects of painting

and re-tarping building railings and resealing building roofs. We are hoping for a more normal rainfall year in 2019, as weather can significantly impact the timing of all these projects.

The Special Assessments Account is for owners who have not optionally prepaid Special Assessments fees. For those interested in optionally prepaying, the next prepayment window will be April 1 - 20.

Owners not paying either Regime or Special Assessments fees by the invoice due date have a negative impact on the entire Tall Ship community. Quite frankly they are taking advantage of owners who pay their invoices on time. Therefore, the Tall Ship Board is serious about taking all collection actions necessary as described in the Delinquency Policy of the Tall Ship Handbook to collect amounts owed Tall Ship Association. If any actions are necessary to collect past due balances the owner is responsible for all costs including late fees, attorney fees, and court costs. In addition, properties may have liens placed on them, as well as have foreclosure proceedings initiated if past due amounts remain unpaid.

So please remember to pay your Regime Fees or Special Assessments by the Due Date.

Regime Fees of $800 Due Each: January 1, April 1, July 1 & October 1

Special Assessment of $895 Due Each: February 1, May 1, August 1 & November 1

Payments should be made payable and mailed to:

Tall Ships HOA P.O. Box 111 Clemson, SC 29633

Treasurer’s Report

“A budget tells us what we can’t afford, but it doesn’t keep us from buying it.” ~William Feather

Tall Ship Beacon - January 2019

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1017 Tiger Boulevard, Clemson 864-654-1000 Open M-F, 8:30 am - 5 pm

For inquiries regarding a variety of issues, from pest c o n t r o l t o b i l l i n g t o m a i n t e n a n c e , c o n t a c t F o o t h i l l s M a n a g e m e n t directly or via e-mail at info@clemsonhousing.com

Foothills should be the first contact for all maintenance issues. Please do not call Board members.

Landscape Report by Sylvia Stuart

With the rainy season over, perhaps, we can catch up with approved landscape improvements. We have also begun replacing older plants with new ones. We will also be putting new mulch down and taking out some problem trees whose roots or limbs are in danger of affecting our buildings. Many bushes have been pruned, helping to clean up the appearance.

Thanks to our Landscape Committee, the Board, Foothills and Green World for their efforts.

The members are as follows:Priscilla AaronBarbara NykazaHarold CapitolaSylvia Stuart

This Month’s Contributors

Olimpia Borys, President & Beacon Editor

Olimpia is a retired Network Engineer with 40 years experience in the IT industry. She has been a resident since May 2015, and an owner since 2013.

Roger Heffelfinger, Treasurer

Roger has a BS in Financial Management and has worked in variant forms of that capacity for 34 years. He has been a TS owner since 2005.

Sylvia Stuart, Social & Landscape Committees

Sylvia is the wife of former President Barry Stuart. She is very active in the Tall Ship community, her roles include the Social Committee and Landscape Committee.

Tall Ship Homeowner’s Association: http://www.tallshipscondos.com