Sunday, December 19, 2010
Friday, December 10, 2010
NEW DATE for Family Reunion
Please use this for your summer calendar.
THE FAMILY REUNION DATE HAS BEEN CHANGED TO THE WEEKEND OF JULY 23, 2011.
This decision was made by unanimous vote of the Board at the December 5 Board meeting.
THE FAMILY REUNION DATE HAS BEEN CHANGED TO THE WEEKEND OF JULY 23, 2011.
This decision was made by unanimous vote of the Board at the December 5 Board meeting.
DRAFT notes: Dec. 5, 2010 Board Meeting
NOTE: THESE NOTES HAVE NOT BEEN ACCEPTED BY THE BOARD. THEY ARE DRAFT AND FOR INFORMATION ONLY. THEY WILL BE REPLACED WITH THE FINAL NOTES ONCE THE BOARD MEMBERS HAVE REVIEWED THEM.
A quorum was present on the call, including: Henry, Gerry, Mary, Tim, Kiley, and Fred
The Draft Agenda was accepted unanimously
I. Old business from previous Board Meetings
1. Henry and Kiley have sent information to Fred to compile. Gerry, Mary, and Tim are still putting their information together and will send to Fred over the next week.
2. Each Board member still needs to send to Kiley a list of their family group members, indicating who has paid dues, how much, and when. They need to provide documentation whenever possible, to Kiley.
3. Tim will email pictures this week to Fred to post on blog site.
4. Henry called Deanne and Charley about paying family group’s board dues. They all turned down the opportunity to help pay the family group’s dues, though Charley said he would pay the dues if he were to be the Board member.
5. Henry and Mary both had talked with Deanne about the inventory. Jason has been travelling, so has not had a chance to locate it to send.
6. Deanne sent a note about her feelings about the Trust/Ranch to Fred, Henry, and Mary. Mary said that Deanne had intended the message to be forwarded to the entire Board, so Fred will forward to all Board members. This topic will be added to the agenda for discussion at the next Board meeting.
7. Gerry will coordinate with Flathead Farmers on insurance for trust buildings and vehicles. They need to be able to get into the Ranch to look around and the Ranch is currently snowed in with a couple of feet of snow. Gerry might get up there to plow next weekend, and if so, they might be able to get up to look at the places.
8. Tim went to the Missoula County courthouse last Friday to determine how much his taxes for house at the ranch would have been for 2008, 2009, 2010. He talked with people in the auditor’s office and at the recorder’s office; they were not help. Kiley provided the county assessor’s (John) number (329-1400). Tim does not have a copy of the most recent tax bill, but could have that available when he talks with the assessor.
9. Tim said he could go to the Whitefish Credit Union with Kiley to get Kiley put on the account, this coming Wednesday (December 8).
10. Gerry and Tim noted that the Forest Service is doing fire hazard reduction around the ranch now, and have plowed up to Kendee’s (Fred and Cindy’s) house.
11. Gerry notified the Five Valleys Land Trust that we were interested in proceeding with the conservation easement. Gerry indicated that the response was positive, without hesitation, and they would start looking for money sources with which to make the easement. They want the Board to think about the goals for the proposed easement – not just about the amount of money, but to what purposes the easement would be accomplishing; why the Board wants to do the easement. Fred noted that there could be some good models around to look at and develop the Board’s rationale. Fred offered to look into what models he could find, and other Board members should send their ideas to Fred to consolidate. Gerry noted that he would be turning in the stewardship plan, so that might be a source of rationale as well.
12. Tim has fixed the welder. If Gerry plows at the ranch, Tim will go pick it up and bring it into Seeley Lake in order to better sell it. Once Fred receives info from Tim, they will get in advertized on craigslist.
13. Fred noted that the records he now has often do not enable associating individual people with specific deposits, so it is not possible to attribute dues to people who have said they’d paid. Tim said he’d look at his checkbook to determine what he could about his payments, JC’s and perhaps others. Henry will look into how he paid his dues for 2008 and 2009. See notes on making lists of family members payments of dues, above.
14. Gerry will change the direct deposit information for project funds for stream/pond project this next week.
15. Kiley and Tim will go to the Whitefish Credit Union on Wednesday to put Kiley on the account. This account will be kept, not closed out. The Statements are supposedly been sent to the Ranch; Gerry will look for an updated statement. Kiley and Tim will have future statements sent to Kiley.
16. Another bill that occurs regularly is for renting the Oxy/acetylene tanks, which costs about $5 or $6 each month. The bill is sent monthly, but Gerry has been paying it annually. Tim said he paid off the balance of the NAPA bill on his own, and that it was such a small amount that the Board did not need to worry about reimbursing him.
17. Other remaining and anticipated bills include having Grandma’s headstone engraving finished, and paying the last bill for fixing the water system.
18. Gerry said he would check into getting copies of all of the phone bills from the Ranch from 2008 through 2010.
19. Tim said he had called right after the November Board meeting to have the statements from the Capitol One credit card account sent to him. They have not come, and he will call again on Monday (Dec. 6).
20. Kiley will pay off the remaining balance on the credit card once funds are deposited from Whitefish Credit Union into Trust bank account.
21. Henry sent his $1500 down payment on the Jeep to Kiley, and Kiley deposited that in the bank account. Kiley will send a copy of the receipt for that payment to Devon’s email address. Fred and Kiley drafted a contract for the loan and emailed to Henry to review and sign. Fred will email a copy of the unsigned contract to the Board members for their review before Henry signs. Kiley will call the local DMV to see what is needed to transfer the title to Henry.
22. Kiley replaced the Jeep battery for $85. She still needs to get the $9 for the core.
23. Lisa and Mary are working on the ranch behavioral guidelines at the ranch. They will make that available to Tim to post up at the ranch and will email to the Board for additional editing. The guidelines can be changed in the future if the Board wants to do that.
24. The Board brainstormed a few ideas for family reunion activities. These included horse shoe tournaments, trail rides, riding lessons, nature walks, water slide, canoes, and boating on Holland Lake. Board members were encouraged to send additional ideas for Fred to compile and post on the Blog site. Mary said she would, over the next week, compile a list of hotels, motels, campers to rent, etc. Tim has a tipi, and there are wall tents too. Gerry has a bunch of cots that people can set up in the top of the barn during the reunion.
25. Fred reported that he had obtained cousin Mary Flud’s email address (maryflud@aol.com). Mary Flud said that she would not be able to attend the reunion, but would pass the information on to cousin Kathy.
26. In the spring, Kiley will call the engraver about finishing Grandma’s headstone.
27. Fred will email and post on the Blog site a notice of the change of when dues are to be paid. Dues are to be paid any time of the year prior to and including September 15, Starting in 2011.
II. NEW BUSINESS
1. Review of financial accounting (Kiley and Fred)
a. Kiley asked a question about the money that was loaned to Mary. There was a lack of clarity about when the loan was made (2007 or 2008), and about the amount of the loan ($2000 or $2200). More work needs to be done to find the documentation on the loan.
b. Mary agreed to pay $20 each month toward the balance of the loan.
c. Kiley needs all of Gerry’s records regarding the projects at the ranch, including the logging and brush piling, and anything else.
2. Other new business
a. The cabin will be winterized as much as possible, including shutting off the hot water heater. Small heaters have to be active in order to keep the pipes from freezing; the water lines are not plumbed for blowing out all of the water.
b. Tim brought up for the future the potential of joining all of the ranch buildings’ electrical meters together, but that would require a larger (800 watt) service to be installed.
c. Henry made a motion to change the date of the family reunion to the July 4th weekend, which was seconded. Under discussion, people talked about how that is the busiest time of year in the area, which would make it difficult for family members and others to find lodging. The lake and other recreation sites are the most crowded then too. Henry revised his motion, with consent, to the weekend of July 23. That motion passed unanimously.
d. Joe signed the document that assigned Kiley as the successor trustee in his place, but it was not notarized. Fred suggested that it should, just in case it is needed, be notarized. Kiley said she would have Joe sign a new one that is notarized.
e. Mary and Henry reported that Charley is willing to take on the board membership and take on the financial responsibility. Mary said that as long as she has a voice with the Board through Charley she would be OK with him assuming that role. Kiley suggested that the Board inquire of Charley what his expectations of Board membership are; Fred added that along with the responsibilities there are liabilities and Charley should be made aware of those before a decision is made.
f. The Board agreed that Mary is still responsible for the past dues, even if Charley does assume the Board membership. Charley’s direct responsibility for Board fees would begin the year he starts paying the dues.
g. Gerry brought up the idea of renting more dozer time to push some remaining stumps at the ranch. He noted that it would be something that could be accomplished in the spring. This idea was tabled for further discussion in the springtime.
III. Next Board Meeting Date and Time
a. The next Clark Family Trust Board meeting will be held on January 9 at 4PM Mountain Time, 5PM Central Time, and 6PM Eastern Time.
IV. Meeting was Adjourned
A quorum was present on the call, including: Henry, Gerry, Mary, Tim, Kiley, and Fred
The Draft Agenda was accepted unanimously
I. Old business from previous Board Meetings
1. Henry and Kiley have sent information to Fred to compile. Gerry, Mary, and Tim are still putting their information together and will send to Fred over the next week.
2. Each Board member still needs to send to Kiley a list of their family group members, indicating who has paid dues, how much, and when. They need to provide documentation whenever possible, to Kiley.
3. Tim will email pictures this week to Fred to post on blog site.
4. Henry called Deanne and Charley about paying family group’s board dues. They all turned down the opportunity to help pay the family group’s dues, though Charley said he would pay the dues if he were to be the Board member.
5. Henry and Mary both had talked with Deanne about the inventory. Jason has been travelling, so has not had a chance to locate it to send.
6. Deanne sent a note about her feelings about the Trust/Ranch to Fred, Henry, and Mary. Mary said that Deanne had intended the message to be forwarded to the entire Board, so Fred will forward to all Board members. This topic will be added to the agenda for discussion at the next Board meeting.
7. Gerry will coordinate with Flathead Farmers on insurance for trust buildings and vehicles. They need to be able to get into the Ranch to look around and the Ranch is currently snowed in with a couple of feet of snow. Gerry might get up there to plow next weekend, and if so, they might be able to get up to look at the places.
8. Tim went to the Missoula County courthouse last Friday to determine how much his taxes for house at the ranch would have been for 2008, 2009, 2010. He talked with people in the auditor’s office and at the recorder’s office; they were not help. Kiley provided the county assessor’s (John) number (329-1400). Tim does not have a copy of the most recent tax bill, but could have that available when he talks with the assessor.
9. Tim said he could go to the Whitefish Credit Union with Kiley to get Kiley put on the account, this coming Wednesday (December 8).
10. Gerry and Tim noted that the Forest Service is doing fire hazard reduction around the ranch now, and have plowed up to Kendee’s (Fred and Cindy’s) house.
11. Gerry notified the Five Valleys Land Trust that we were interested in proceeding with the conservation easement. Gerry indicated that the response was positive, without hesitation, and they would start looking for money sources with which to make the easement. They want the Board to think about the goals for the proposed easement – not just about the amount of money, but to what purposes the easement would be accomplishing; why the Board wants to do the easement. Fred noted that there could be some good models around to look at and develop the Board’s rationale. Fred offered to look into what models he could find, and other Board members should send their ideas to Fred to consolidate. Gerry noted that he would be turning in the stewardship plan, so that might be a source of rationale as well.
12. Tim has fixed the welder. If Gerry plows at the ranch, Tim will go pick it up and bring it into Seeley Lake in order to better sell it. Once Fred receives info from Tim, they will get in advertized on craigslist.
13. Fred noted that the records he now has often do not enable associating individual people with specific deposits, so it is not possible to attribute dues to people who have said they’d paid. Tim said he’d look at his checkbook to determine what he could about his payments, JC’s and perhaps others. Henry will look into how he paid his dues for 2008 and 2009. See notes on making lists of family members payments of dues, above.
14. Gerry will change the direct deposit information for project funds for stream/pond project this next week.
15. Kiley and Tim will go to the Whitefish Credit Union on Wednesday to put Kiley on the account. This account will be kept, not closed out. The Statements are supposedly been sent to the Ranch; Gerry will look for an updated statement. Kiley and Tim will have future statements sent to Kiley.
16. Another bill that occurs regularly is for renting the Oxy/acetylene tanks, which costs about $5 or $6 each month. The bill is sent monthly, but Gerry has been paying it annually. Tim said he paid off the balance of the NAPA bill on his own, and that it was such a small amount that the Board did not need to worry about reimbursing him.
17. Other remaining and anticipated bills include having Grandma’s headstone engraving finished, and paying the last bill for fixing the water system.
18. Gerry said he would check into getting copies of all of the phone bills from the Ranch from 2008 through 2010.
19. Tim said he had called right after the November Board meeting to have the statements from the Capitol One credit card account sent to him. They have not come, and he will call again on Monday (Dec. 6).
20. Kiley will pay off the remaining balance on the credit card once funds are deposited from Whitefish Credit Union into Trust bank account.
21. Henry sent his $1500 down payment on the Jeep to Kiley, and Kiley deposited that in the bank account. Kiley will send a copy of the receipt for that payment to Devon’s email address. Fred and Kiley drafted a contract for the loan and emailed to Henry to review and sign. Fred will email a copy of the unsigned contract to the Board members for their review before Henry signs. Kiley will call the local DMV to see what is needed to transfer the title to Henry.
22. Kiley replaced the Jeep battery for $85. She still needs to get the $9 for the core.
23. Lisa and Mary are working on the ranch behavioral guidelines at the ranch. They will make that available to Tim to post up at the ranch and will email to the Board for additional editing. The guidelines can be changed in the future if the Board wants to do that.
24. The Board brainstormed a few ideas for family reunion activities. These included horse shoe tournaments, trail rides, riding lessons, nature walks, water slide, canoes, and boating on Holland Lake. Board members were encouraged to send additional ideas for Fred to compile and post on the Blog site. Mary said she would, over the next week, compile a list of hotels, motels, campers to rent, etc. Tim has a tipi, and there are wall tents too. Gerry has a bunch of cots that people can set up in the top of the barn during the reunion.
25. Fred reported that he had obtained cousin Mary Flud’s email address (maryflud@aol.com). Mary Flud said that she would not be able to attend the reunion, but would pass the information on to cousin Kathy.
26. In the spring, Kiley will call the engraver about finishing Grandma’s headstone.
27. Fred will email and post on the Blog site a notice of the change of when dues are to be paid. Dues are to be paid any time of the year prior to and including September 15, Starting in 2011.
II. NEW BUSINESS
1. Review of financial accounting (Kiley and Fred)
a. Kiley asked a question about the money that was loaned to Mary. There was a lack of clarity about when the loan was made (2007 or 2008), and about the amount of the loan ($2000 or $2200). More work needs to be done to find the documentation on the loan.
b. Mary agreed to pay $20 each month toward the balance of the loan.
c. Kiley needs all of Gerry’s records regarding the projects at the ranch, including the logging and brush piling, and anything else.
2. Other new business
a. The cabin will be winterized as much as possible, including shutting off the hot water heater. Small heaters have to be active in order to keep the pipes from freezing; the water lines are not plumbed for blowing out all of the water.
b. Tim brought up for the future the potential of joining all of the ranch buildings’ electrical meters together, but that would require a larger (800 watt) service to be installed.
c. Henry made a motion to change the date of the family reunion to the July 4th weekend, which was seconded. Under discussion, people talked about how that is the busiest time of year in the area, which would make it difficult for family members and others to find lodging. The lake and other recreation sites are the most crowded then too. Henry revised his motion, with consent, to the weekend of July 23. That motion passed unanimously.
d. Joe signed the document that assigned Kiley as the successor trustee in his place, but it was not notarized. Fred suggested that it should, just in case it is needed, be notarized. Kiley said she would have Joe sign a new one that is notarized.
e. Mary and Henry reported that Charley is willing to take on the board membership and take on the financial responsibility. Mary said that as long as she has a voice with the Board through Charley she would be OK with him assuming that role. Kiley suggested that the Board inquire of Charley what his expectations of Board membership are; Fred added that along with the responsibilities there are liabilities and Charley should be made aware of those before a decision is made.
f. The Board agreed that Mary is still responsible for the past dues, even if Charley does assume the Board membership. Charley’s direct responsibility for Board fees would begin the year he starts paying the dues.
g. Gerry brought up the idea of renting more dozer time to push some remaining stumps at the ranch. He noted that it would be something that could be accomplished in the spring. This idea was tabled for further discussion in the springtime.
III. Next Board Meeting Date and Time
a. The next Clark Family Trust Board meeting will be held on January 9 at 4PM Mountain Time, 5PM Central Time, and 6PM Eastern Time.
IV. Meeting was Adjourned
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
November 14, 2010, Board Meeting Notes
(Note: Next Meeting will be on December 5, 2010 4PM Mountain Time,5PM Central Time,6PM Eastern Time)
The meeting was conducted remotely, with members connected through Fred’s Skype either by phone or computer. Difficulties in getting members hooked up and maintaining signal quality delayed the start of the agenda by about 20 minutes. Tim and Gerry were together, while everyone else was connected in individually.
(Secretary’s Note: For future meetings, all Board members should connect either with a headset for their computer or by phone.)
Action Items are bolded.
Board members present included: Henry, Gerry, Mary, Fred, Tim, and Kiley.
Lynne was not present. Fred has continued to call the phone numbers he has for Lynne, but has not yet been able to reach her. Fred will continue to try to get in touch with Lynne.
The meeting was brought to order, with any new items placed under New Business to be discussed after the Old Business section of the Agenda was discussed. With the Agenda adopted, the Board moved to consider the Old Business.
I. Old Business from previous Board Meetings
a. Compile a list of names, addresses, emails, phone #s, birthdays, anniversaries, for everyone in their family and provide that information to Fred. (Henry, Gerry, Mary, Tim)
o This information is desirable for several reasons, including getting the word out (marketing) about the family reunion.
o Kiley had already sent the basic info for her family group to Fred.
o Everyone else committed to get this task completed by Thanksgiving.
o Fred will compile and distribute.
b. Compile list of those in each family group who has paid dues, how much, and when. Provide documentation whenever possible. Send to Kiley (All)
o Tim said Charley paid $50 this year (2010).
o By unanimous decision, this info is to be provided to Kiley by Thanksgiving. The list of information should include, for each family member:
How much they paid
When that was paid
How that was paid (cash, bank check, cashier’s check, etc.)
c. Encourage family members to pay dues (All)
o Tim said that we need to incorporate the ability of people to participate in the Ranch – to spend some time there. We should encourage everyone to visit and spend time there. Fred suggested that everyone should contact their own family members about the dues structure, timing, and need. That is in addition to using the blog site and email. Henry said it would be good to put pictures on the blog, to emphasize the beauty of that place. Tim said he would email pictures to Fred and Fred said that once he got them he would post them on the blog site.
d. Pay Board Dues (All)
o Fred will review the records and then will update the Board. The Board members will send their information to Fred in the meantime. Once that info is received, Fred and Kiley will provide another update.
o Henry said that he will call Deanne and Charley and discuss the possibility of them helping to pay their family group’s board dues. This plays into Mary’s ability to continue to serve as her family members’ Board member. Everyone wants to see Mary continue as the Board member, and yet they are aware of the need for each family group to pay the Board dues. This topic will be discussed further at a later meeting.
e. Check out bundling the insurances (Gerry)
o Gerry had checked into using an insurance company in Lake County, to provide a bundled package for the buildings and vehicles. However, that company can’t cover properties up in the Swan. Gerry will coordinate with another company (Flathead Farmers, in Kalispell) who will come up to the Ranch and look at it. None of the Ranch buildings or vehicles are insured now, except for the Dodge pickup.
o The Dodge pickup has license plates (permanent plates, which you can put on vehicles older than 10 years in Montana). The pickup is insured through Gerry’s insurance this year, which has cost him $198.
o Fred stated that it is imperative that we all separate Ranch/Trust business from our own personal businesses, and that the Trust should be paying the insurance directly. If someone wants to take on extra Trust expenses, that is up to them, but they should route those funds through the Trust accounts so it can be accounted for.
o Henry reinforced the need for clear accountability to the extended family, about making the transactions and costs transparent to everyone.
f. Look into ways to lower vehicle insurance costs (Gerry)
o Same thing as above - bundling will reduce the cost.
g. Pay taxes retroactive to 2008 (Tim)
o Tim stated that he thought that he had permission to not pay taxes on his house if he kept it open for the family after Mom’s funeral. Fred replied that the records show no indication of that and the Board notes from 2008 and from 2010 all show Tim’s statements that he would separate out his house from the Ranch for taxes with the County and he would pay those taxes. Fred further stated that he was not part of any decision to exempt Tim from paying his own taxes, an observation that was repeated by other Board members.
o Tim said that he will talk with the County, get the separation of his house from the ranch for tax purposes, and determine how much it would be for each year (2008, 2009, 2010) if he would have paid them at that time.
o Gerry made a motion that Tim would pay taxes for 2009 and 2010. Henry seconded the motion. Under consideration, Gerry withdrew the motion. The Board agreed that this topic will be discussed more at the next meeting, after Tim finds out what the tax payments would have been.
h. Investigate potential for conservation easement (Gerry)
o On November 14, the day before the Board meeting, Gerry met with Lewis Cogan, who works with the Five Valley Land Trust. Gerry gave Cogan a tour and Cogan will report to the FVLT Board. That Board will let us know if they would consider the conservation easement. Gerry indicated that the easement would be in perpetuity. Cogan was reluctant to talk about how much money the FVLT might be willing to put toward the easement, but he did talk about how they came up with the funds. They are a facilitator that gathers funds from the county, fish and game, and other sources. The amount the easement providers (our Trust) would receive is determined by subtracting (A) the amount the property would be worth with the easement from (b) the amount the property would be worth without the easement.
o Cogan was fishing for what our Trust would need financially to make the easement work. He pointed out that this is not simple process; it requires lots of communicating and negotiation. It is very detailed because they don’t want to leave anything out. There are 13 steps to go through. The first two are done – contact with FVLT and the initial site visit. The next step is for them to tell us if they want to look into it more, and then we would need to let them know if we want to continue to look at the feasibility. If there is a preliminary approval letter for them to proceed further, we would have to send to them a letter of intent as to what purposes for which we would want the easement. The FVLT asks the land owners to write a brief article that explains their reasons for pursuing an easement. The next step after that is for them to checking into property rights, mineral rights, and other potential encumbrances. They do a baseline report on the ecological and physical structures of the property. We would need to let them know what kind of improvements we have envisioned and we would have to work with them to determine whether those can be accomplished within the terms of the easement. The local county planning board has to be in the loop.
o There is also a requirement for land owners to make a stewardship donation. For each easement, they are looking for money that the land owner could donate back to them. That would be to cover the expenses for title insurance, appraisals, etc. That would come off the top of the funds the land owner would receive for the easement.
o Providing the appraisal is at the bottom of the list, which Gerry pointed out as not practical. The appraisal really should be provided up front. Cogan indicated that the appraisal is needed after it has been determined that a mutual interest exists between the two Boards.
o How would the payment work? A certain amount would be provided to the land owner up front and then more later, depending on how soon they can pull together the funds from outside sources. Gerry indicated that Cogan had a suspicion that the difference between (A) and (B) would be a big number.
o Gerry said that if our Board wants to proceed, he can call FVLT on Monday morning to initiate the next steps. The Board voted unanimously to proceed with that process. Gerry also said that Cogan mentioned that the FVLT has very few properties with historic buildings. Working with the State of Montana’s registry for historic buildings might be a way to obtain funds to fix up the cabin, and it may make the easement more appealing to the Five Valleys Board.
i. Fix Fuel Leak on Welder (Tim)
o Welder is up at the ranch and Tim will get it fixed.
j. Sell Welder (Tim)
o Tim said that he would advertize the welder in the paper (Pathfinders) the day after the Board meeting. He said he thought the machine was worth $2,000 to $3,000. Fred suggested that Tim put the welder on Craigslist, and offered to do that for him if Tim were to send him the information.
k. Set Up Tax Payments on Tim’s House with County (Tim)
o This was covered in an earlier agenda item.
l. Document Tim’s Payments for Water (Tim)
o Tim said the records should be in the check register as deposits. Fred said he would look through the records to verify.
m. Review Stream and Pond Design (Board)
o Gerry indicated that the Swan Valley Ecosystem is committed to doing the work, using the engineering firm River Design Group. They are working on the design and have flown an elevations study.
o Kiley inquired about which account the funds from SVE would be used. Gerry indicated that as soon as the existence of the project account in Kalispell is verified, Gerry will have the direct deposit information changed for deposits to be made in the project account.
n. Pay off Credit Card ASAP (Kiley)
o In order to pay off the credit card, the funds from the savings account at the Whitefish Credit Union need to be moved over to the new Trust account that Kiley has set up. There is not enough money in the account to pay it off as is.
o To move the funds, each of the Trustees needs to sign a letter saying that Kiley is assigned the role of managing the account as a successor trustee, in the role of Trust treasurer. That letter needs to include:
The account number (955629)
The names of the trustees
The date of the decision to assign Kiley access to the account as treasurer
The day the trust was established (Clark Family Trust established February, 6 1991)
o Kiley said that she would call the bank the following week to ask about whether the letters need to be notarized, and if they could be done in parallel; that is, if each Board member could send in their own letter and they could be used as one authorization.
o Once he receives information from Kiley about the appropriate letter process, Fred will draft the letter and distribute.
o. Sell Jeep (Kiley)
o Henry made an offer to purchase the Jeep for $6000. He offered to pay a down payment of $1500 and then pay the Trust the remaining sum of $4500 over time at 10% interest. Tim made a motion to accept Henry’s offer, modified to an interest rate of 6.5%, which was seconded.
o Under discussion, Fred pointed out that the Board needs a set of criteria under which to decide to make loans or not. Fred also noted that it would be to Henry’s advantage to acquire a loan from a bank at a lower interest rate, and to the Trust’s advantage to have the $6000 in the bank all at once. Fred said that he had no doubt that Henry would very likely be able to pay the payments, and the issue has to do with the process, not the person.
o The motion passed. Henry will send to Kiley a check to the Clark Family Trust for the down payment of $1500. Henry will afterward make monthly payments to the Clark Family Trust, due on the 3rd day of each month, at an amount calculated from a balance of $4,500 at 6.5% interest over a two-year payment period. That amount will be approximately $200.
o Kiley said that the title was not signed over to the Trust. It is still in the name of Bernice Clark. To transfer the title to Henry, Kiley will provide a copy of the death certificate to the DMV. When the title is done, the Clark Family Trust will be the lien holder. The Jeep will be collateral for the loan.
o Fred will draft the contract with Kiley’s help.
o Kiley will get the Jeep’s battery, which is no longer working, replaced. She will look at the warrantee. The battery will be paid for by using part of Henry’s down payment.
p. Acquire Inventory from Deanne and Jason (Mary)
o Henry said that he would follow up on this topic when he calls Deanne about dues.
q. Post Inventory on Blog (Fred)
o Fred said he would post the inventory on the blog site as soon as her receives the information.
r. Develop Ranch Behavioral Guidelines (All, Mary to coordinate)
The Board spent 5 minutes brainstorming the items that would go onto a list to be posted at the Ranch buildings to instruct visitors as to the expected etiquette. This is an initial list and may be added to in the future.
o Leave the place as good or better than when you arrived.
o Bring essentials with you (laundry soap, dish soap etc., paper goods) if you staying for more an extended time.
o If you get it out, put it away, if you drop it, clean it up, etc, (Mary will flesh out).
o If you break it, fix it or tell the manager about it.
o Sweep up.
o Do the dishes.
o Clean the bathroom.
o Haul all garbage away; pack it in, pack it out.
o Do the laundry.
o If you use the bedding, wash it, fold it and leave it on the bed. If you can’t, notify the manager.
o If you use fire wood, replace it. Clean out the firebox when it needs it.
o If you use tools in the shops, put them away in the right place; Do not take tools away from the shops.
o If you see a mess, no matter if you made it or not, clean it up.
o Take responsibility for your pets – any damage your pet does is your responsibility to repair or replace.
o Take responsibility for your minor children – any damage your minor children does is your responsibility to repair or replace.
o Only catch and release fishing is allowed.
s. Decide on Method to Distribute Residential Lots by Family Group (Board)
o Because of the uncertainty of how distribution of family residential lots may affect the negotiations on the conservation easement, this topic was tabled for later consideration.
t. Develop Schedule of Activities for Family Reunion – 8/6-8/2011 (Mary and Henry, with Board review)
o All Board members and other family members are encouraged to attend the family reunion, as well as to provide ideas for events/activities. Fred said that if people sent ideas to him, he would post them on the blog site.
o Fred also offered to try to contact cousin Mary Flud, who lives in Las Vegas.
o All Board members were encouraged to get feedback from their family members on who might be coming.
o The Board is open to changing the date to some time in July to accommodate more people. Discussion of this was under New Business, and was not done at this meeting.
u. Finish Engraving on Grandma Bea’s Headstone (Kiley to arrange for spring 2011)
o Kiley will call in the spring.
v. Allowing steers for family members? (Board)
o This item was tabled for later discussion.
II. NEW BUSINESS
a. Change due date for dues to better coincide with tax year (Fred)
o A motion to change the due date for dues to September 15 was made and seconded. Discussion focused on aligning the timing better with when the property taxes are due. The motion passed unanimously.
THE BOARD TABLED THE FOLLOWING ITEMS BECAUSE OF THE LATE HOUR, IN ORDER TO SET THE NEXT MEETING DATE AND ADJOURN:
b. Review of financial accounting (Kiley and Fred)
c. Project Updates
d. Other new business
o Changing the date for the Family Reunion
o Discuss Mary’s dues in light of Board policy for Board dues
III. Next Board Meeting Date and Time
a. Dec. 5, 4pm Mountain Time
IV. Adjourned
The meeting was conducted remotely, with members connected through Fred’s Skype either by phone or computer. Difficulties in getting members hooked up and maintaining signal quality delayed the start of the agenda by about 20 minutes. Tim and Gerry were together, while everyone else was connected in individually.
(Secretary’s Note: For future meetings, all Board members should connect either with a headset for their computer or by phone.)
Action Items are bolded.
Board members present included: Henry, Gerry, Mary, Fred, Tim, and Kiley.
Lynne was not present. Fred has continued to call the phone numbers he has for Lynne, but has not yet been able to reach her. Fred will continue to try to get in touch with Lynne.
The meeting was brought to order, with any new items placed under New Business to be discussed after the Old Business section of the Agenda was discussed. With the Agenda adopted, the Board moved to consider the Old Business.
I. Old Business from previous Board Meetings
a. Compile a list of names, addresses, emails, phone #s, birthdays, anniversaries, for everyone in their family and provide that information to Fred. (Henry, Gerry, Mary, Tim)
o This information is desirable for several reasons, including getting the word out (marketing) about the family reunion.
o Kiley had already sent the basic info for her family group to Fred.
o Everyone else committed to get this task completed by Thanksgiving.
o Fred will compile and distribute.
b. Compile list of those in each family group who has paid dues, how much, and when. Provide documentation whenever possible. Send to Kiley (All)
o Tim said Charley paid $50 this year (2010).
o By unanimous decision, this info is to be provided to Kiley by Thanksgiving. The list of information should include, for each family member:
How much they paid
When that was paid
How that was paid (cash, bank check, cashier’s check, etc.)
c. Encourage family members to pay dues (All)
o Tim said that we need to incorporate the ability of people to participate in the Ranch – to spend some time there. We should encourage everyone to visit and spend time there. Fred suggested that everyone should contact their own family members about the dues structure, timing, and need. That is in addition to using the blog site and email. Henry said it would be good to put pictures on the blog, to emphasize the beauty of that place. Tim said he would email pictures to Fred and Fred said that once he got them he would post them on the blog site.
d. Pay Board Dues (All)
o Fred will review the records and then will update the Board. The Board members will send their information to Fred in the meantime. Once that info is received, Fred and Kiley will provide another update.
o Henry said that he will call Deanne and Charley and discuss the possibility of them helping to pay their family group’s board dues. This plays into Mary’s ability to continue to serve as her family members’ Board member. Everyone wants to see Mary continue as the Board member, and yet they are aware of the need for each family group to pay the Board dues. This topic will be discussed further at a later meeting.
e. Check out bundling the insurances (Gerry)
o Gerry had checked into using an insurance company in Lake County, to provide a bundled package for the buildings and vehicles. However, that company can’t cover properties up in the Swan. Gerry will coordinate with another company (Flathead Farmers, in Kalispell) who will come up to the Ranch and look at it. None of the Ranch buildings or vehicles are insured now, except for the Dodge pickup.
o The Dodge pickup has license plates (permanent plates, which you can put on vehicles older than 10 years in Montana). The pickup is insured through Gerry’s insurance this year, which has cost him $198.
o Fred stated that it is imperative that we all separate Ranch/Trust business from our own personal businesses, and that the Trust should be paying the insurance directly. If someone wants to take on extra Trust expenses, that is up to them, but they should route those funds through the Trust accounts so it can be accounted for.
o Henry reinforced the need for clear accountability to the extended family, about making the transactions and costs transparent to everyone.
f. Look into ways to lower vehicle insurance costs (Gerry)
o Same thing as above - bundling will reduce the cost.
g. Pay taxes retroactive to 2008 (Tim)
o Tim stated that he thought that he had permission to not pay taxes on his house if he kept it open for the family after Mom’s funeral. Fred replied that the records show no indication of that and the Board notes from 2008 and from 2010 all show Tim’s statements that he would separate out his house from the Ranch for taxes with the County and he would pay those taxes. Fred further stated that he was not part of any decision to exempt Tim from paying his own taxes, an observation that was repeated by other Board members.
o Tim said that he will talk with the County, get the separation of his house from the ranch for tax purposes, and determine how much it would be for each year (2008, 2009, 2010) if he would have paid them at that time.
o Gerry made a motion that Tim would pay taxes for 2009 and 2010. Henry seconded the motion. Under consideration, Gerry withdrew the motion. The Board agreed that this topic will be discussed more at the next meeting, after Tim finds out what the tax payments would have been.
h. Investigate potential for conservation easement (Gerry)
o On November 14, the day before the Board meeting, Gerry met with Lewis Cogan, who works with the Five Valley Land Trust. Gerry gave Cogan a tour and Cogan will report to the FVLT Board. That Board will let us know if they would consider the conservation easement. Gerry indicated that the easement would be in perpetuity. Cogan was reluctant to talk about how much money the FVLT might be willing to put toward the easement, but he did talk about how they came up with the funds. They are a facilitator that gathers funds from the county, fish and game, and other sources. The amount the easement providers (our Trust) would receive is determined by subtracting (A) the amount the property would be worth with the easement from (b) the amount the property would be worth without the easement.
o Cogan was fishing for what our Trust would need financially to make the easement work. He pointed out that this is not simple process; it requires lots of communicating and negotiation. It is very detailed because they don’t want to leave anything out. There are 13 steps to go through. The first two are done – contact with FVLT and the initial site visit. The next step is for them to tell us if they want to look into it more, and then we would need to let them know if we want to continue to look at the feasibility. If there is a preliminary approval letter for them to proceed further, we would have to send to them a letter of intent as to what purposes for which we would want the easement. The FVLT asks the land owners to write a brief article that explains their reasons for pursuing an easement. The next step after that is for them to checking into property rights, mineral rights, and other potential encumbrances. They do a baseline report on the ecological and physical structures of the property. We would need to let them know what kind of improvements we have envisioned and we would have to work with them to determine whether those can be accomplished within the terms of the easement. The local county planning board has to be in the loop.
o There is also a requirement for land owners to make a stewardship donation. For each easement, they are looking for money that the land owner could donate back to them. That would be to cover the expenses for title insurance, appraisals, etc. That would come off the top of the funds the land owner would receive for the easement.
o Providing the appraisal is at the bottom of the list, which Gerry pointed out as not practical. The appraisal really should be provided up front. Cogan indicated that the appraisal is needed after it has been determined that a mutual interest exists between the two Boards.
o How would the payment work? A certain amount would be provided to the land owner up front and then more later, depending on how soon they can pull together the funds from outside sources. Gerry indicated that Cogan had a suspicion that the difference between (A) and (B) would be a big number.
o Gerry said that if our Board wants to proceed, he can call FVLT on Monday morning to initiate the next steps. The Board voted unanimously to proceed with that process. Gerry also said that Cogan mentioned that the FVLT has very few properties with historic buildings. Working with the State of Montana’s registry for historic buildings might be a way to obtain funds to fix up the cabin, and it may make the easement more appealing to the Five Valleys Board.
i. Fix Fuel Leak on Welder (Tim)
o Welder is up at the ranch and Tim will get it fixed.
j. Sell Welder (Tim)
o Tim said that he would advertize the welder in the paper (Pathfinders) the day after the Board meeting. He said he thought the machine was worth $2,000 to $3,000. Fred suggested that Tim put the welder on Craigslist, and offered to do that for him if Tim were to send him the information.
k. Set Up Tax Payments on Tim’s House with County (Tim)
o This was covered in an earlier agenda item.
l. Document Tim’s Payments for Water (Tim)
o Tim said the records should be in the check register as deposits. Fred said he would look through the records to verify.
m. Review Stream and Pond Design (Board)
o Gerry indicated that the Swan Valley Ecosystem is committed to doing the work, using the engineering firm River Design Group. They are working on the design and have flown an elevations study.
o Kiley inquired about which account the funds from SVE would be used. Gerry indicated that as soon as the existence of the project account in Kalispell is verified, Gerry will have the direct deposit information changed for deposits to be made in the project account.
n. Pay off Credit Card ASAP (Kiley)
o In order to pay off the credit card, the funds from the savings account at the Whitefish Credit Union need to be moved over to the new Trust account that Kiley has set up. There is not enough money in the account to pay it off as is.
o To move the funds, each of the Trustees needs to sign a letter saying that Kiley is assigned the role of managing the account as a successor trustee, in the role of Trust treasurer. That letter needs to include:
The account number (955629)
The names of the trustees
The date of the decision to assign Kiley access to the account as treasurer
The day the trust was established (Clark Family Trust established February, 6 1991)
o Kiley said that she would call the bank the following week to ask about whether the letters need to be notarized, and if they could be done in parallel; that is, if each Board member could send in their own letter and they could be used as one authorization.
o Once he receives information from Kiley about the appropriate letter process, Fred will draft the letter and distribute.
o. Sell Jeep (Kiley)
o Henry made an offer to purchase the Jeep for $6000. He offered to pay a down payment of $1500 and then pay the Trust the remaining sum of $4500 over time at 10% interest. Tim made a motion to accept Henry’s offer, modified to an interest rate of 6.5%, which was seconded.
o Under discussion, Fred pointed out that the Board needs a set of criteria under which to decide to make loans or not. Fred also noted that it would be to Henry’s advantage to acquire a loan from a bank at a lower interest rate, and to the Trust’s advantage to have the $6000 in the bank all at once. Fred said that he had no doubt that Henry would very likely be able to pay the payments, and the issue has to do with the process, not the person.
o The motion passed. Henry will send to Kiley a check to the Clark Family Trust for the down payment of $1500. Henry will afterward make monthly payments to the Clark Family Trust, due on the 3rd day of each month, at an amount calculated from a balance of $4,500 at 6.5% interest over a two-year payment period. That amount will be approximately $200.
o Kiley said that the title was not signed over to the Trust. It is still in the name of Bernice Clark. To transfer the title to Henry, Kiley will provide a copy of the death certificate to the DMV. When the title is done, the Clark Family Trust will be the lien holder. The Jeep will be collateral for the loan.
o Fred will draft the contract with Kiley’s help.
o Kiley will get the Jeep’s battery, which is no longer working, replaced. She will look at the warrantee. The battery will be paid for by using part of Henry’s down payment.
p. Acquire Inventory from Deanne and Jason (Mary)
o Henry said that he would follow up on this topic when he calls Deanne about dues.
q. Post Inventory on Blog (Fred)
o Fred said he would post the inventory on the blog site as soon as her receives the information.
r. Develop Ranch Behavioral Guidelines (All, Mary to coordinate)
The Board spent 5 minutes brainstorming the items that would go onto a list to be posted at the Ranch buildings to instruct visitors as to the expected etiquette. This is an initial list and may be added to in the future.
o Leave the place as good or better than when you arrived.
o Bring essentials with you (laundry soap, dish soap etc., paper goods) if you staying for more an extended time.
o If you get it out, put it away, if you drop it, clean it up, etc, (Mary will flesh out).
o If you break it, fix it or tell the manager about it.
o Sweep up.
o Do the dishes.
o Clean the bathroom.
o Haul all garbage away; pack it in, pack it out.
o Do the laundry.
o If you use the bedding, wash it, fold it and leave it on the bed. If you can’t, notify the manager.
o If you use fire wood, replace it. Clean out the firebox when it needs it.
o If you use tools in the shops, put them away in the right place; Do not take tools away from the shops.
o If you see a mess, no matter if you made it or not, clean it up.
o Take responsibility for your pets – any damage your pet does is your responsibility to repair or replace.
o Take responsibility for your minor children – any damage your minor children does is your responsibility to repair or replace.
o Only catch and release fishing is allowed.
s. Decide on Method to Distribute Residential Lots by Family Group (Board)
o Because of the uncertainty of how distribution of family residential lots may affect the negotiations on the conservation easement, this topic was tabled for later consideration.
t. Develop Schedule of Activities for Family Reunion – 8/6-8/2011 (Mary and Henry, with Board review)
o All Board members and other family members are encouraged to attend the family reunion, as well as to provide ideas for events/activities. Fred said that if people sent ideas to him, he would post them on the blog site.
o Fred also offered to try to contact cousin Mary Flud, who lives in Las Vegas.
o All Board members were encouraged to get feedback from their family members on who might be coming.
o The Board is open to changing the date to some time in July to accommodate more people. Discussion of this was under New Business, and was not done at this meeting.
u. Finish Engraving on Grandma Bea’s Headstone (Kiley to arrange for spring 2011)
o Kiley will call in the spring.
v. Allowing steers for family members? (Board)
o This item was tabled for later discussion.
II. NEW BUSINESS
a. Change due date for dues to better coincide with tax year (Fred)
o A motion to change the due date for dues to September 15 was made and seconded. Discussion focused on aligning the timing better with when the property taxes are due. The motion passed unanimously.
THE BOARD TABLED THE FOLLOWING ITEMS BECAUSE OF THE LATE HOUR, IN ORDER TO SET THE NEXT MEETING DATE AND ADJOURN:
b. Review of financial accounting (Kiley and Fred)
c. Project Updates
d. Other new business
o Changing the date for the Family Reunion
o Discuss Mary’s dues in light of Board policy for Board dues
III. Next Board Meeting Date and Time
a. Dec. 5, 4pm Mountain Time
IV. Adjourned
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Time Correction for Meeting
My apologies. I posted the wrong time for the Board meeting for November 14 - It is at 4:00PM Mountain Time and 5:00 Eastern. *Uncle Fred*
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Board Meeting Rescheduled
The Nov. 6, 2010 meeting of the Clark Family Trust Board has been rescheduled for Sunday, Nov. 14 at 9AM Mountain Time (10AM Central; 11AM Eastern). The Draft Agenda from the Nov. 6 meeting will serve as the Draft agenda for the Nov. 14 meeting.
- Your Secretary,
*Uncle Fred*
- Your Secretary,
*Uncle Fred*
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Draft Agenda for Nov. 6 2010 Board Meeting
DRAFT agenda
Clark Family Trust Board Meeting
November 6, 2010
9AM Mountain Time
10AM Central Time
11AM Eastern Time
Note: Decisions of the Board require at least 5 out of 7 votes. Consensus is preferred.
I. Old business from previous Board Meetings
a. Compile a list of names, addresses, emails, phone #s, birthdays, anniversaries, for everyone in their family and provide that information to Fred. (Henry, Gerry, Mary, Tim)
b. Compile list of those in each family group who has paid dues, how much, and when. Provide documentation whenever possible. Send to Kiley (All)
c. Encourage family members to pay dues (All)
d. Pay Board Dues (All)
e. Check out bundling the insurances (Gerry)
f. Look into ways to lower vehicle insurance costs (Gerry)
g. Pay non-ranch property taxes retroactive to 2008 (Tim)
h. Investigate potential for conservation easement (Gerry)
i. Fix Fuel Leak on Welder (Tim)
j. Sell Welder (Tim)
k. Set Up Tax Payments on Tim’s House with County (Tim)
l. Document Tim’s Payments for Water (Tim)
m. Review Stream and Pond Design (Board)
n. Pay off Credit Card ASAP (Kiley)
o. Sell Jeep (Kiley)
i. Consider Henry’s offer to purchase
p. Acquire Inventory from Deanne and Jason (Mary)
q. Post Inventory on Blog (Fred)
r. Develop Ranch Behavioral Guidelines (All, Mary to coordinate)
s. Decide on Method to Distribute Residential Lots by Family Group (Board)
t. Develop Schedule of Activities for Family Reunion – 8/6-8/2011 (Mary and Henry, with Board review)
u. Finish Engraving on Grandma Bea’s Headstone (Kiley to arrange for spring 2011)
v. Allowing steers for family members? (Board)
II. NEW BUSINESS
a. Change due date for dues to better coincide with tax year (Fred)
b. Review of financial accounting (Kiley and Fred)
c. Project Updates
d. Other new business
III. Next Board Meeting Date and Time
IV. Adjourn
Monday, October 25, 2010
Ranch Project Update: Uncle Gerry
Captain’s Log Star Date: 10/25/2010)
The Clark Ranch update: Very busy and productive last three weekends. The brush pile burning has been completed as of Sat, Oct. 23rd 5:34 Pm. Ben and Gerry worked together to complete the task. Please have a drink of your favorite beverage and toast the event. I will be contacting our forester to let him know we are ready for his inspection of the work. Ben and Gerry were completing the burning of the piles. Patrick was hard at work around the cabins. He cleaned both the cabins, mowed the lawn, cleaned the yard and chopped and stacked firewood.
Friday the 23rd, The Engineering firm River Design Group from White Fish came to spot check the elevation survey. They had completed an Arial Air Light Elevation map of the stream restoration area. This construction work for the stream restoration will begin some time late summer 2011. I will keep you posted on the progress and the board will review the final concept plans before the work will start. They will however start putting funds into the Ranch account to cover the startup costs for the project. No, these funds are not to buy beer and whisky. They have to be paid out to invoices for the project such as the Engineering and materials. They will also be purchasing 6,000 worth of fencing materials. Some of the fence I just completed will need to be moved and things will be moved around to provide a protected area around the project. A special large culvert will be placed at the bottom of hill behind the cabins and this will be the route of the stream bed, and also provide the crossing into the lower meadow. A pipe will be buried in the old existing stream bed, and then will be covered at the same time that stream bed is covered up and reclaimed. This pipe will be pressurized from the drop in elevation, and flow to a stock tank in the lower meadow. This will provide water for stock since they will be fenced away from the stream. The placement of an off steam pond is still in the works and no designs are on paper of the project as a whole at this time.
What is next: get some money and fix the Dozer? Maybe.
Pat, Ben and Gerry will be starting a clean up project around the buildings the next few weekends.
Like usual, if you have questions please feel free to contact me anytime.
Your faithful servant , Uncle Gerry
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Please Pay Your Dues. The Ranch Depends On It
TO: Clark Family Trust Family Members
FROM: Clark Family Trust Secretary
October 24, 2010
Dear Family (especially those 21 and older);
As we give thanks in November for the bounty we each have in our lives, we need to remember the ranch and how it is the responsibility of each and every one of us to ensure that we all retain that lovely ground. To retain the ranch, we have to pay the bills, including the property taxes, which are due very soon.
We all need to step up to our responsibilities and contribute our part, our dues for the year. This simple act means so much. Instead of a burden, you should think of it as an honor and a duty. I do. We all know that it was Grandma and Grandpa’s legacy, their wish and expectation, that the land, the equipment, the cabins, and the other assets be retained by the family, to be enjoyed by generation after generation. It takes all of us to realize that legacy.
The ranch - their legacy - was conveyed as a Trust. As a Trust, it has legal, moral, and ethical connotations. The Board is the leadership of the Trust and we take that responsibility seriously. We have been meeting regularly, setting priorities and establishing processes (including accountability for the finances), and attempting to better communicate. I hope that everyone has been following the ranch activities on the internet through the Clark Family Trust blog site. Things are looking better.
How Much to Pay
As a reminder, the dues for Board Members are $500 per year. Family members 21 years of age and older have dues of $100 per year. The dues are minimums; anyone is welcome to contribute more if they wish to. The Board Members’ dues are really the Board dues for the family group, so if your Board Member is having a hard time coming up with the dues, it is the family group’s responsibility – and opportunity – to help come up with that amount. $500 per year is only $42 per month. Spread out, it is just not that much; in aggregate, it will make a big difference.
Dues responsibility is retroactive to 2008, when the ranch passed in Trust to the family. How much does your family group owe? How much have you paid so far? The difference is what you should pay now. If you can’t pay it all at once, figure out a payment plan and keep with it.
Where to Send Dues
Kiley is now the Treasurer for the Board. Make checks out to Clark Ranch, and send them to Kiley at:
Kiley Theis
624 Sylvan Ct
Kalispell MT 59901
Kiley will keep records of who has paid as she receives your checks. If you want a receipt, please request one.Contribution Hesitation
I have heard from many family members that they are hesitant to contribute because they do not know how the funds are spent. The Board is actively working toward an accounting of past spending and a thorough and transparent presentation to you of current and future spending. Through this, we hope that everyone feels a part of the fiscal operations associated with the ranch. We hope to have the results soon and look forward to sharing those with you.
The simple facts are:
· There is currently not enough money in the ranch checking account to pay the ranch taxes.
· There is not enough money in the ranch checking account to pay current outstanding bills.
· Everyone needs to pay their dues ASAP to help cover the cost of keeping the ranch.
I don’t expect you to do something I’m not willing to do myself. I sent to the Treasurer this week my annual dues of $500, plus the $300 I pay toward the water system for keeping the water flowing to our house on the ranch, as I do every year. Tanner and Micah have also committed to pay their dues, Tanner back to 2008 ($300) and Micah, who just turned 21 this year ($100). They are doing this even though they are living off loans while studying at their universities. (In case you are wondering about ‘Fred and Cindy’s house’, we have been paying our house taxes separately from the ranch for decades.)
Feedback
I welcome any opinions, perspective, corrections, ideas, or any other communications from you. Part of my role, as Secretary and Board Communicator, is to let you know what is going on, but it is also important that I get your feedback on the Board’s activities or anything to do with the ranch operations.
Respectfully,
Uncle Fred
Clark Family Trust Board Secretary
Friday, October 22, 2010
Notes from first Board Meeting
Here are the notes from the first Board Meeting, in order to make the set whole on this blog. This one is from January 26, 2008, when we all at the Ranch for Grandma Bea's funeral. In following posts are the notes from the June 12, 2010 and September 4, 2010. FYI, the next Board meeting is supposed to be December 6, 2010. *Fred*
1/26/2008
Meeting of the Clark Ranch Board
Assembled at the new cabin:
Henry, Gerry, Mary, Fred, and Tim
Absent: Lynn and Kiley
Subject: What's Next
● The Board Members assembled agreed that the Draft Charter will be used as a guideline for Board Operation, awaiting full Board Participation and ratification of a Charter. The Board structure as laid out in the Draft Charter is what we will use as a guideline.
● It was acknowledged that the Board will not be able to make any major decisions until after the Board as a whole (including Lynn and Kiley) has a chance to meet and the Charter is ratified.
● RE: Definition of Family in the Draft Charter: Step children will have the opportunity to participate in the operations of the Ranch, given that their family is intact (meaning that the parents are married), and that as adults they pay dues. They will not be able to serve on the Board. Adopted children are equivalent to biological children in terms of participation and abilities to serve on the Board.
● Tim is comfortable continuing in the manager role for the Ranch, acknowledging that having JC at the Ranch will help by taking a lot of the day-to-day load off.
● Tim will arrange to pay for taxes on the house at the Ranch separately from the Ranch proper.
● The Clark Family Trust has invested in Clark Family Enterprises (Fund). Mom's bills have been paid out of the Clark Family Fund. Mom had Medicare Supplemental, so nearly all of the hospital bills will be paid by Medicare.
● Mary will talk with Michelle by Friday of next week about making a donation or a gift to Our Lady of the Swan Valley Church.
● Tim said he would make a personal gift to the Condon Fire Department.
● The Ranch will pay for the hotel bill at Super 8 for those family members who cannot afford to pay for it themselves.
● Brainstorming on potential projects:
○ Move the bunk house to the West, across the road, with a new foundation and sill logs, as well as a hook-up to running water (though no toilet)
○ Build a community center where the bunk house is now located. One option is that this would be the focal point for a family-based business, the idea being that every family member who wanted to participate would have the chance to do so.
○ Move new cabin to another location, to open up the view and make the area around the old cabin more in keeping with the character of the ranch.
○ Build a machine shed in the “boneyard” area, as a place to park Ranch machinery, using the trusses already at the Ranch, and poles.
● The number 1 priority is to improve/upgrade the water system, to provide adequate supply and quality throughout the Ranch, including the residential area.
● Tim said that he would start now paying $300/year , as Fred and Cindy have been, to help support the water system. The idea is that this will be the precedent that all new residences will need to follow.
● Gerry will talk with Kiley, once Kiley returns, and Brandon about the layout for the residence area.
● Mom's car is to be part of the Ranch property, for temporary use for Ranch-related tasks and for short-term family member use. This could include emergency use, transportation for family members who have traveled from far away, etc.
● The Ranch has accounts at Rovero's, NAPA, and Timberline in Seeley Lake.
● Next best opportunity for a full Board meeting will be in connection with family weddings, either the week of July 21 at the Ranch or the week of August 16th in Minnesota. We will keep in touch about that and also confer with Lynn and Kiley.
● Gerry will take care of Mom's personal affects at Kimberly's house.
● Tim will reconstruct the list Mom put together for distribution of her personal goods, if that list is not found.
● Granddaughters should have the first opportunity to select for themselves any of their Grandma's clothes. What they don't want should be donated to the Loving Hearts Thrift Store.
● We agreed that there should be purchased a fire safe for the house.
● Henry said he would call Elsie in Kansas to investigate possibilities for loaning the Pony Express map. Tim mentioned that the Willy Whitewater book that is at Mom's house should go with the map.
"Old" Board Notes - June 12, 2010
Here are the Board's notes, for your records, from the June 12, 2010 meeting. This is just to keep you informed - and to provide you what you need to keep track of what the Board is up to. *Fred*
FinAL Notes and DECISIONS
Clark Family Trust Board Meeting
Clark Ranch, June 12, 2010
I. Roll Call and Contact Information
a. Board Members Present:
i. Henry (via phone; all others present in person)
ii. Gerry
iii. Mary
iv. Fred
v. Tim
vi. Kiley
b. Board Members Not Present:
i. Lynn was not present; her absence is excused because of family medical emergency.
c. Other Family Members Present (for portions of the meeting):
i. Pat
ii. Ben
iii. Connie
iv. Gina
d. Operational behavior:
- Be respectful
- No cutting each other off; Let all complete their thoughts
- Make sure everyone has a chance to speak
e. Decision Making:
Ø Board Decision: Decisions of the Board require at least 5 out of 7 votes. Consensus is preferred.
II. Roles of Board Members: General Considerations
a. Aspects of Management
o Timber
o Roads
o Grazing
o Buildings
o Water
o Surface water
o Machinery
o Livestock
o General assets
o Air
o Graveyard
o Property boundary
b. Oversight of ranch management activities
o Fiscal & budget
o Getting together – both the Board and the Family
o Communications
o Collecting dues
o Determining proper etiquette and behavior
o What can be done with the property
o Involvement in all aspects of the ranch activities
o Consequences/rules for not following the rules
c. Bringing folks together
o Regular meetings of the Board
o Communications tools
Ø Board Decision: All Trustees accept their responsibility as a Trustee to participate in all of those aspects
III. Dues
a. Agreement (by signature) on dues structure
i. Board Member/Family Group
Ø Board Decision: Annual Dues amount per family group, including those under 21 is $500.
ii. Adult Family Member
Ø Board Decision: Annual Dues amount per contributing family member 21 or older is $100. This does not include spouses. There is no exemption for contributing family members attending college/higher education.
iii. Schedule for dues
Ø Board Decision: Dues are due by the end of the calendar year for that year. New accounting year begins January 1.
iv. Where dues are to be sent
Ø Board Decision: Dues will be sent to the Treasurer, who is responsible for receipt, deposit and tracking. The Treasurer will send receipts when dues are received.
v. Consequences for not paying dues
Ø Board Decision: Each Trustee is responsible for identifying their own family’s contributions, though it will be tracked by the Treasurer as well. If persons expected to pay annual dues do not do so,
1. Individuals or Trustees will receive a letter from the Board that explains their infraction and the consequences;
2. Individuals will lose their ability to access the ranch as a whole;
3. They will lose access to their family lot; the Board will assume control of any permanent structures on the family lot. The owner will have the opportunity to regain control once back dues are paid.
IV. Trustee Succession
Ø Board Decision: Each Family Group can decide to change their Trustee. The Board must acknowledge the change formally, to ensure that all are informed. While the Board has no decision-making role in changing Trustees, the Board can recommend changes.
V. Fiscal matters
a. Accounting for funds (Report from Gerry)
i. The Clark Family Trust currently has $2000 in checking (in the First Valley Bank) and $25,000 in savings (in the Whitefish Credit Union savings account). The Trust started with $68,000. The monthly average cost of utilities (electric) is $200 per month, which includes Tim’s house. The most recent annual taxes were $2283.91.
ii. The pasture fencing, which encloses only part of the Ranch, will require no additional expense to the Ranch.
b. Priorities for funds
Ø Board Decision: Priorities for spending funds from the Clark Ranch Trust shall be, first, for taxes and, second, other priorities as determined by the board.
c. Funds needed for upcoming expenses:
1. $500 in general fuel fund
2. $1400 for parts for bull dozer
3. $300 for backhoe. Henry will take care of that.
4. $120 for garbage pickup.
5. $?? for insurance coverage on the buildings. (Gerry will check out bundling the insurances)
6. $?? for vehicle insurance and plates for dodge pickup and trailer –
a. Gerry will look into ways to lower the insurance costs.
d. Board controls on expenditures
Ø Board Decision: Managers will get clearance from the Board for any expenditure over $500. (FC note: For clarification, this is a total cost figure, so several smaller payments for items/services/etc. that together total over $500 are not allowed without Board clearance.)
e. Other individual responsibilities
Ø Board Decision: Tim will pay the taxes on his house separately from the taxes on the Ranch as a whole. Payments will be retroactive to January 2008. Tim has been and will continue to pay $300 per year as fee for the water system. Tim will continue to pay for propane separately from the Ranch. Tim will pay for electricity separately from the Ranch from now on (not retroactively).
f. Income possibilities for the Ranch
Ø Board Decision: Business ventures on or involving the Ranch need Board clearance.
i. Grants
1. Gerry has arranged a grant through Swan Valley Ecosystem Center for brushing, for $5,800. Gerry has submitted a stewardship plan, which was accepted by the Department of State Forestry and which can be the foundation for further grants.
ii. Logging
1. From logging cleanup, the State takes out a slash/fuel reduction fee from each load of logs. It is held back until the cleanup is done. It is to ensure that the private land owner does not leave a big fire hazard. There should be $588 dollars (half) coming to the ranch soon. The remaining held-back funds should come once the slash piles are cleaned up.
iii. Sales
Ø Board Decision: The Jeep will be sold and the funds will go into the general account. Kiley will take the Jeep to Kalispell to sell. If documentation shows up that indicates that Mom wanted Mary to have the Jeep, Mary will be compensated from the general fund at the amount at which it was sold.
Ø Board Decision: The portable welder will also be sold and the funds will go into the general fund. Tim will sell the welder.
Ø Board Decision: Tim and Gerry are mutually responsible for getting the donkey to make money for the ranch or sell it within two years.
iv. Possibilities for leasing property, buildings
Ø Board Decision: Ranch assets may be leased or rented only if funds are need for taxes.
v. Possibilities for family joint ventures
1. This is an important topic, and if individuals have ideas they should submit them. Opportunities can be addressed by the Board as they come on an individual basis.
Ø The Board tabled this topic for discussion at a future meeting.
VI. Guidelines for using Ranch assets
i. Mary asked about Clain’s family having a family reunion at the ranch.
Ø Board Decision: Family Group use of the Ranch for Family Group gatherings are OK in principle. In addition, gatherings need to be:
a. Proposed to and evaluated/decided on by the Board
b. Scheduled ahead of time
c. Assessed a user fee
d. Have guidelines for attendees
ii. Guidelines for use of ranch structures
Ø Board Decision: Mary will draft guidelines for use of the cabins, shops, etc. and then distribute to the rest of the Board for feedback and modification.
Ø Board Decision: A “pack it in, pack it out” policy will be implemented immediately.
VII. Residential Area
a. Survey and assignment of property areas
i. Brandon has created an autocad drawing of the residential area, which he and/or Kiley will distribute to the Board electronically.
Ø Board Decision: Six lots north of the road will be ground-truthed and surveyed. The survey will be approximate and not legally binding. Lots with permanent structures will be assigned to the owners of those structures (i.e., Fred and Gerry); the rest of the lots will be assigned by lottery (number each lot and draw number). Tim’s house will have 1 acre associated with it south of the road; the other six lots will be of a size approximately equal to each other, based on the total available acreage in the area between the road and the dropoff to Owl Creek. Lots are tradable between family groups, but not sellable. Trades must be in writing and acknowledged by the Board. The lots are for family groups’ access and use, not legal ownership. That is, lots may not be deeded, divided or subdivided from the Ranch as a whole.
b. Expectations/Requirements for personal structures.
Ø Board Decision: Permanent structures must be approved by the Board.
Ø Board Decision: Permanent structures must be insured.
VIII. Roles
Ø Board Decision: The Board assigned these roles to Trustees and each Trustee accepted that responsibility.
a. Co-managers: Gerry and Tim
b. Treasurer: Kiley
c. Coordinator/Convener: Fred
d. Secretary: Fred
e. Patriarch: Henry
f. Matriarch: Mary
1. The Patriarch and Matriarch will be responsible for coordinating the next Family Reunion.
IX. Communication
a. Each Trustee will compile a list of names, addresses, emails, phone #s, birthdays, anniversaries, for everyone in their family and provide that information to Fred.
b. Fred will write and distribute a letter that outlines the dues, structure, timing, who to send the dues to (Kiley)
c. How does each Trustee like to be communicated with?
i. Email first and then a phone call.
ii. If immediate, call first.
iii. Henry: phone first.
d. Fred will figure out a better electronic communications media and will share that with the Family.
X. Fish and Wildlife Service Conservation Easement
a. Tim gave an overview of the proposal from the flyer provided to him by FWS.
Ø Board Decision: Tim and/or Gerry will look into this more and share what they find out with the Board.
XI. Stream and Pond reconstruction
a. Gerry is coordinating with the Swan Ecosystem Center to have them redo the stream and pond with an out-of-stream pond. That should come together in the next month (July).
XII. Getting Mom’s headstone engraved:
a. The dates have yet to be engraved. Tim will investigate how to get that done.
XIII. Next Board Meeting:
a. Discussion focused on mid-August as a set-aside each year for a family gathering, which would include a Board meeting. It is usually good weather, conducive to camping and swimming. The Board would like to set it up around Grandma’s birthday. Consensus was that an August meeting/family reunion in August of 2011 would be the target.
Ø Board Decision: The next Board meeting will be September 4, 2010
XIV. Meeting adjourned
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