TIMBER LAKE ESTATES PROPERTY OWNERS' ASSOCIATION CONSTITUTION and BY-LAWS

Article II   Purpose

The purpose of the Association is to promote and safeguard the civic interests of all of the Owners of property in Timber Lake Estates and to protect and preserve the natural environment of this sub-division, the Lake, beach, boat ramp, roads, trees and everything else therein.

Article III Membership

Membership in the Association is mandatory to all property Owners of Timber Lake Estates, whether your property has a dwelling on it or not. Membership in this Association shall be limited to Owners in fee simple of the lots designated on a certain map entitled "Timber Estates," which map was approved by the Town of Highland Planning Board on February 16, 1984, and filed in the Sullivan County Clerk's Office on March 15, 1984, as map #1094, together with all Declaration of Reservations, Conditions and Grants on file and including "Schedule A," which is to remain in full force-and-effect, unless or until it is lawfully replaced or amended.

Joint Membership of property or ownership of more than one lot shall constitute one membership and entitle the property Owner to one vote regardless of the number of lots owned and regardless of the number of Owners of a lot. However, each and every lot Owner shall pay the road and common property maintenance and improvement charges of $400.00 each year for each lot owned.

In the event of the sale or transference of ownership of a property it shall be the responsibility of the current owner to notify the Association’s Treasurer of said sale or transfer a minimum of five (5) business days prior to “closing”.  This notification shall include contact information of the new owners and/or the attorney(s) handling the transaction.    

Article IV Board of Officers

(a) The elected officers of the Association shall be the President,Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer. Said elections shall take place
at the annual meeting.    The President and Vice President shall be elected each year and may not serve more than four years consecutively.
After being out of Office for one year they may run again.  The Secretary and Treasurer shall be elected each year, however, they may serve for not more than five years. This is to afford the Association continuity of operations.

(b)  A majority vote is required to elect.

(c)  All Officers are elected until the next Annual Meeting of the Association or until their successors are elected.

(d)  In case of a vacancy in any elective office the Executive Board may fill such vacancy for the unexpired term by a majority vote of
Executive Board members present.

(e)      There is "no order of ascendancy".

Article V Responsibilities of Officers

Section 1. The President shall:

a.     Preside at all meetings of the Association, including the
meetings of the Executive Board.

b.     Appoint all Committee members, except the Chairmen, who
shall be elected and are to serve as "Directors."

c.     Be the Chief executive officer of the Association and have
general authority to exercise the powers that are necessary
to his office.

d.     Be an advisor, consultant and ex-officio member of all
Committees.

e.     Co-sign any and all contracts, agreements and any bills prior
to payment.

f.      Report at all meetings of the Association the affairs that have transpired since the previous meeting.
 

Section 2. The Vice-President shall:

a.     Assist the President in the performance of his duties

b.     Perform all of the duties of the President, in his absence, in accordance with the advice and recommendations of the President.

c.     Follow and carry out any and all directives made by the President.|
 

Section 3. The Secretary shall:

a.     Record all minutes of all meetings of the Association.

b.     Keep custody of the minutes of all meetings of the Association, Including the Executive Board minutes.

c.     Send a copy of the minutes of all regular, Annual and Special meetings to each paid up member, indicating the date, time and place of the next meeting.

d.     Preserve all minutes, records, contracts, documents, and any other correspondence and paperwork.

e.     Maintain a record of all members' names and addresses

f.      Attend and respond to all correspondence as directed.
 

Section 4. The Treasurer shall:

a.     Keep complete and accurate accounts, showing receipts and all expenditures and the financial condition of the Association at each regular meeting.

b.     Receive monies due from all sources and deposit such funds in the name of the Association in such bank accounts as the Executive Board may designate.

c.     Keep a record of all current or delinquent members and notify the Membership Committee of any members who are in arrears in the payment of dues and assessments.

d.     Arrange for the sending of all bills to all property Owners for Dues and/or assessments, which shall be due for payment on January 1st. of each year.

e.     Pay all properly approved bills, which shall be approved at each meeting by a majority vote.

f.      Submit to the property Owners at each Annual meeting of the Association a written financial report for the calendar year that shows receipts and disbursements and the financial condition of the Association.

g.     At request of the Executive Board, present all accounts, records, vouchers, drafts and checks to them in proper order, ready for audit.

h.    Have all records audited each year, by whomever the Executive Committee so designates.

I. Upon relinquishing the office of Treasurer, turn over all records of the Association to the successor in a timely fashion.

Article VI Executive Board

Section 1. The Executive Board of the Association shall consist of the Board of Officers, the Directors (who shall be the Chairmen of each and every "standing Committee") and the immediate Past-President. This Board shall not exceed 12 in number.

Section 2. The Standing Committee Chairmen (Directors) terms of office shall be for a maximum of three years, however, after being out of Office for one year they may serve again.

Section 3. In case of a vacancy created, for Director, the Executive Board may fill such vacancy for the unexpired term by a majority vote of Executive Board members present.

a.    Said vacancy shall  be filled  by another member of the Committee   where   said   vacancy  was   created   wherever possible.

 Article VII Responsibilities of the Executive Board

They shall be responsible for all matters relating to the purpose of the Association and the management and control of all business, properties and affairs of the Association.

a.     Exercise all their powers at anytime, whether the Board is in session or not, provided that their actions shall not be in conflict with the expressed policies of the Board and provided such action shall be reported at the next membership meeting.

b.     Prepare, supervise and direct all financial matters, including the preparation   of operating   budgets   (OB) and capital expenditure budgets (CB).

c.     Engage in contracts and employment as the purpose and needs of the Association shall require.

d.     Subject to a favorable vote of two-thirds of the members present  and  voting,  they  have  the  authority to  acquire property of  any kind,   real,  personal,  mixed,  tangible or intangible and any interest in such property and to own, hold, manage, lease, pledge, mortgage, encumber, sell or transfer such property, provided such acts do not conflict with the purpose and Intent of the Association.

e.     Establish dues and assessments to be applicable to all property owners.

f.      Audit, or direct an audit by others, all records and accounts of the Treasurer prior to the Annual meeting

Article VIII Nominating Committee

At least 60 days prior to the Annual Meeting the President shall appoint a Nominating Committee for Officers and Directors. Said Committee shall consist of one Officer, one Director and either the immediate past-President or a member at large of the Association, making it a three member Committee.

a.    Said Nominating Committee shall canvas the membership for candidates, prepare their slate and present it at the Annual meeting.

b.    At that time additional nominations may be made from the membership, and if a majority approves, they shall be put on the ballot. 

c.    Nominations shall then be closed and elections held. Article IX Elections

Association elections shall be held by either a mere raising of hands or a secret ballot, immediately after the closing of nominations, at the Annual Meeting. Only current paid up members are eligible to vote. A majority vote is required to elect.

a.    The newly elected Officers and Directors shall take Office immediately after the elections and after being sworn-in by the President.

Article X Meetings/Membership, Annual, Special and Executive

      The Officers and/or the Directors may meet on their own, separately, if they so choose for informational purposes and/or discussions, however no official business may be transacted. Standing Committees have this same right and privilege.

a.     There shall he a minimum of two meetings of the Association during the year at a time and place so designated by the Executive Board. One of the two shall be the Annual meeting. A majority vote is required to transact and approve all business.

b.     Notice of any and all meetings, except for the Executive Board meetings, shall be given to all members a minimum of 7 days prior to the meeting date

c.     Executive Board meeting shall be held "quarterly," at which time a majority vote is required to transact and approve all business.

d.     At any Annual or membership meetings of the Association, seven members present and eligible to vote thereat shall constitute a quorum. Members may be present and vote in person or by proxy in a form that is approved by the Executive Board and mailed to all members with the meeting notice.

e.     Proxy votes are to be returned to the Secretary in a sealed envelope, and must be received prior to or on the date of the Annual meeting, at which time they will be opened after the closing of Nominations.

f.      A membership meeting shall be held anytime between April 1st and July 1^st, while the annual meeting is to be held between October 1st and December 1^st each year. Additional meetings may be held upon proper notice to the entire membership.

Special meetings shall be called only at the call of the President or the Executive Board or at the call of the Secretary upon filing with the Secretary of a written request signed by not less than 40% of members that are entitled to vote.

a.   Notice of Special Meetings shall be given no less than ten days prior to said meeting date, and shall stipulate the date, time, place and specific purpose for calling it.

Article XI Standing Committees

The following are the standing Committees of the Association, which shall consist of three members for each Committee.

Additional standing committees may be constituted be a majority vote of members present and voting.

1.              Membership/Social/Community Relations

2.              Road/Beach Maintenance/Environmental

3.              Constitution and By-Laws

4.              Security

The "Chairman" of each Committee is an elected Official and is a Director on the Executive Board. The other two members are appointed by the President. All Standing Committees are to meet at least twice a year, and more often if they feel the need to.

Special Committees may be appointed from time to time to work on matters of interest or concern to the Association that are not within the scope of responsibilities of a standing committee. Members of such special committees shall be appointed by the President from the membership and are not members of the Executive Board.

Article XII Responsibilities of Standing Committees

Section 1. Membership/Social/Community Relations

a.    To contact any new property owners and explain the Associations purposes and activities and to encourage active membership therein.

b.    To propose periodic social activities designed to enable Association members to become acquainted with each other and to foster a spirit of community interest; to plan and implement plans for such activities as authorized by the Board.

c.    To prepare periodically, but not less than once a year, and send to all Association members a newsletter informing the members of matters of community interest and/or concern.

Section 2. Road/Beach Maintenance/Environmental

The Maintenance Committee is in charge of roads, beaches, boat ramps, the lake and stocking of same with fish, all access into and out of Timber Lake Estates, entrance gates, any and all environmental issues, cutting of trees, cutting of brush along the roads, fallen trees, utility poles, underground utilities street signs, culvert pipes and lake rights. Their responsibilities shall include:

a.     To inspect the condition of the lake, beach and lake inlets and outlets and to arrange for necessary maintenance and/or repairs as authorized by the Board

b.     To review all bids and quotations for work to be done and purchases to be made that fall within the scope of Its responsibilities and to recommend to the Board the acceptance or rejection of bids and/or quotations

c.     To monitor any violations of the Declaration of Reservations, Conditions and/or Grants, including "Schedule A" and report any found  violations to the  Executive  Board,  with their recommendations as to how to correct same.

d.     To report to the Executive Board any conditions and/or circumstances that are not conducive to a desirable and tranquil environment or that might present hazards to human health and/or safety or to plant life. Such possible hazards shall include, but not be limited to, lake pollution, dead trees that border the roadways, mosquitoes, gypsy moths and any other possible insect infestation. Recommendations should be made as to how to correct same.

Section 3. Constitution and By-Laws

Their responsibilities shall include:

a.   To bring to the attention of the Association any needed changes or amendments to the Constitution and the By­laws, that would from time to time, update our regulations that the Association operates under. Also to draft any such changes or amendments to present to the membership for consideration and adoption.

b.    To bring forth to the Association any violations of the current Constitution and By-Laws, including any such violations of "Schedule A" of the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions of Timber Lake Estates.

Section 4. Security

Their responsibilities shall include:

a.    To attempt to meet any and all of the concerns of Property Owners of Timber Estates, relating to security.

b.    To meet with local and State agencies when we have a concern or security problem within Timber Estates, and to work with our local Constables, Sheriffs and State Police as necessary.

Article XIII Dues and Assessments

Section 1. Dues

a.     Annual dues shall be $100.00 per year payable on January 1st. of each year, to cover such maintenance that is approved and any capital expenditures.

b.     Failure to pay yearly dues, as stipulated in paragraph 27 of 'Schedule A" of the Declaration, by March 1   shall entitle the Association to declare said charges "delinquent", and the Association shall collect same pursuant to paragraph 28 a. thru c. of "Schedule A" of the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Grants of Timber Estates.

c.     Every property owner, by the act of recording the deed to his parcel or parcels, shall thereupon become a member of the Homeowners Association of Timber Estates and agrees to maintain such membership and to pay reasonable annual fees and/or dues as set by the homeowners Association. Item 30 of the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions of Timber Estates is herein modified by deleting the last sentence, The By-Laws of the homeowners association shall provide for one vote for each lot owned," as Article III Membership, herein, is to take its place.

d.     Before  each  Annual  Meeting  the  Executive  Board  shall submit to the property owners an operating budget (OB) for the forthcoming calendar year. The budget shall include an amount to be placed in a Contingency Reserve that shall be used only for unusual expenses & capital expenditures that had not been anticipated. If not expended in the forthcoming year such amount shall be held in the Contingency Reserve until needed.

e.    A majority vote is required to adopt the (OB) budget.

Section II. Assessments

a.     Annual assessment shall be $400.00 per year payable on January 1^st of each year, to cover the road and common property maintenance and improvement charges or fees regardless of the amount of usage by any and all property owners.

b.     Failure to pay the yearly road and common property maintenance and improvement assessment, as stipulated in paragraphs  25,26,27,28  and  30  of  "Schedule  A'  of the Declaration, by March 1^st shall entitle said Association to declare said charges "delinquent", and the Association shall collect same pursuant to paragraph 28 a. thru c. of "Schedule A" of the Declaration,  Covenants and Grants of Timber Estates.

c.     All  property owners  acknowledge  and  agree that every property  owner shall  pay  his  or  her fair share  of the maintenance/improvement charges as set forth in paragraph 25 of the Declaration. Each property owner also acknowledges and agrees that a homeowners Association of lot owners is effective only if all property owners participate and make timely payment of dues and all other maintenance/improvement charges and fees.

d.     Before each  Annual  Meeting the  Executive  Board  shall submit to the property owners a Capital Expenditures Budget (CB) for the forthcoming calendar year. If the income from assessments in any year exceeds the related anticipated expenditures the surplus shall be placed in the Contingency Reserve until needed.

e.     A majority vote is required to adopt the (CB) budget.

f.      It is "Grantors" sole right to grant Lake Rights to all Timber Lake Estates property owners, however, it shall only be done without further compensation being charged for same.