The 3rd Quarter Board meeting was held on 21 Aug with all members in attendance. We completed a standard agenda, reviewed financials and covenant reports.
The board had two issues that concern all Stablewood residents. The first requested the board to consider making Stablewood gated or secured similar to The Oaks. The second issue concerned the new construction on Woodland Drive and the use of metal roofing.
The issues surrounding the making the neighborhood private/semi-private were the costs and the logistics of presenting a proposal that is feasible in design and financially sustainable. The Oaks is deemed a semi-private community. The primary reasons for this declaration are the public golf course and the unlimited access offered during daylight hours. The guard is on duty from dusk to early morning, and access is limited to The Oaks residents and vehicles with an Oaks sticker. The Oaks community is responsible for the maintenance of all private roads, and they grant access and emergency service easements to police, sheriff, fire and similar agencies.
For Stablewood to be declared private or semi-private; Harrison County would require the SPOA to assume responsibility for the maintenance of the all roads, drainage and utility easements. Stablewood has approximately 3 miles of two-lane road that is 22 feet wide (330,000 sq/ft). The average cost of asphalt is $4.00 sq/ft which would make a minimum material cost of $1.3 million dollars a recurring expense every 15-20 years. By comparison, the City of Gulfport awarded a $5.4 million contract to repair and resurface Courthouse Rd, 1.1 miles of 4-lane road (360,000 sq/ft).
To add uniformed security after dark, the labor cost alone would be approximately $65,000 a year based on current contracts the City of Biloxi has with Swetman Security. That is twice our current annual budget. Even if we pursued these options, Oakenshield Ln would not be altered. It would offer easy entry to our neighborhood with or without a manned security gate. The Board concluded that this action was neither a fiscally nor a logistically sustainable proposal and closed the issue.
The second issue discussed was a complaint received based on the use of metal roofing on the new construction on Woodland Dr. The issue is grounded in the SPOA ARC guidelines that states; “Sheet metal roofs are not allowed.” The ARC reviewed the design plans and approved the metal roof on “porches, breezeways and accents”. The approval was based on at least seven homes in the neighborhood that were approved for metal roofing material on porches, breezeways and accents in the past. This current approval was in keeping with the guidelines and previously accepted construction approvals. Issue closed, no Board action required.
Stablewood Property Owners Association 