GENERAL MANAGER’S MESSAGE
JOE POWELL – PCAM, CCAM-LS, CMCA, AMS GENERAL MANAGER
PG&E POWER LINE UNDERGROUNDING PROJECT UPDATE
PG&E staff and their contractors continue to work in our community to plan and prepare for the power line undergrounding project. We are in active communication and coordination with the PG&E team to ensure that the project has the least amount of impact possible on our community members. Our management team met onsite with the PG&E team last month and performed a project walk-through to coordinate our efforts.
The first phase of this multi-year project is to underground power lines on Pine Mountain Drive from the Main Gate to just past Cassaretto Court by the Marina. They are also performing the same type of work on Elder Lane. PG&E will be actively communicating and coordinating with individual members who will be impacted along the project route. Additionally, we will be putting out messaging from the Association on vehicle travel impacts and other information to the membership. PG&E plans to complete the project by July 1st to ensure that we do not run into any issues with our Independence Day holiday weekend events. We have invited the PG&E reps to attend the April 26th Board meeting to provide more information to the Board and membership and address any questions and concerns at that time.
ASSOCIATION INSURANCE PRESENTATION IN APRIL
Many of us in PML have had our homeowner’s insurance get canceled, non-renewed and/or our premium increase exponentially over the last few years. With the recent, catastrophic losses of more than $250 billion with the LA-area wildfires, insurance rates are expected to increase even further. The minimum projected increase in California homeowners’ insurance is expected to be at least 25%. Given these factors, we have been working with our insurance broker to determine what we can do to mitigate these increases for the Association.
As PML nears our insurance renewal time, we have invited our insurance broker to attend the April 26th board meeting to provide the board and membership with an overview of where we were, where we are currently and where we expect to be with our insurance coverages and premium costs for the coming Association renewal period. He will be covering Association fire insurance premium impacts as well as all of our other coverage renewals. All members are welcome to attend to hear this important topic. Please keep in mind that the topic will be related to the insurance coverage that the Association acquires to protect our community assets. It is not a presentation for homes and property owned by individual members. Members should seek advice and coverage from their own brokers and agents.
LRPC MEMBER SURVEY REGARDING NEW RECREATION CENTER AND POOL
By the time you read this article, the deadline for the PML Long Range Planning Committee Recreation/Pool center survey will have ended. The LRPC is now analyzing the information and the committee will be presenting their findings at a future board or town hall meeting.
So why in the world did the Board task the LRPC with conducting this survey? Are they just trying to find new ways to spend our members money? With the projected high cost of fire insurance and other costs, why in the world is the board putting out this survey? Is the board just trying to raise my assessment again? These are some of the questions that a few of our members have asked recently.
The purpose of the survey is to gauge if the membership is interested in pursuing a new recreation center that includes a new pool that would be available year- round. Our current swimming pool was constructed in 1971 and is now over- utilized and inadequate for the needs of the membership. Every summer, we see members and guests waiting in line to get in to use our pool. Every year, members complain that the pool is too small and cannot be used year-round for exercise and recreation.
The survey is simply a way to determine if the board should move forward with further investigation and planning. They want to know what members want. A survey is an open and transparent way to gather this feedback. It is not an effort by the board to create a new amenity just so they can raise the annual assessment. It is an information gathering tool to be used in the decision-making process. Members have a say and this is the way we get input. Inevitably, NO new amenity will ever be constructed without the decision being put to a vote of the membership.
So please participate in the process. When the topic comes up on a board meeting agenda or town hall meeting, show up and voice your opinion. The board wants to hear from you!
GET YOUR PML FACTS FROM THE RIGHT SOURCE
Just a reminder that it is important to use official methods of communication with the Association if you are looking for factual information or if you have a concern or issue that you wish to convey to the Board or the management team. Our contact information is readily available on the Official PML website at www.pinemountainlake.com and in the monthly PML News Magazine.
Posting questions to unofficial social media sites may get you a lot of responses from other members and non-members, but you are not reaching the Association team where we can actually assist you. All Official PML social media pages display the Official PML logo for easy identification.
Until next month, wishing everyone a Happy Easter!
PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE
MIKE GUSTAFSON – PMLA BOARD PRESIDENT
On March 8th your Board of Directors hosted a Town Hall meeting at the Lake Lodge. About 35 folks arrived in person and another 12 attended via Zoom.
Joe Milani, Fire Safety Coordinator, provided a comprehensive report on all the things that he does to mitigate fire danger: defensible space inspections, tree removal permits, real estate inspections that are now required in California, and reports to the ECC department for follow-up.
Maintenance Manager Rick Laffranchi explained what his employees and contractors do from October to May to create even more defensible space around PML. Rick also provided information on how his department uses herbicides, the cost effectiveness, and safety of use. The 106 miles of road edges get sprayed to reduce vegetation and help keep any road/car fire away from homes.
After these two presentations the floor was open to any questions relating to the operation of the association. Some of the questions were about use of drones in and around PML, status of PG&E power line undergrounding, how PML is dealing with the Golden Mussel, and the devastating cost of fire insurance. Regarding fire insurance, the biggest factor is getting and keeping your home with ample defensible space.
Unfortunately, trees and bushes are no longer our friends as far as an insurance company is concerned. Many companies simply won’t write policies in our zip code.
The Board plans to host a Town Hall meeting every quarter. It’s your opportunity to come with questions and suggestions for your board.
The new pool survey closed at the end of March with around 800 responses. Unlike previous pool surveys, there appears to be strong support to proceed to a vote of the membership. A paper ballot vote is expensive but necessary. We will need a quorum of homeowners to respond one way or the other and give direction to the BOD.
The cost to build the pool and activity center is not the only expense to consider.
We must also know costs to run this new amenity year round. Preliminary numbers for an amenity manager and staff, maintenance costs, utilities, pool supplies, etc. comes in at about $13.00 per homeowner per month.
It will be a significant factor when we vote on the total package. We plan a Town Hall meeting in the near future to present the final survey numbers, options to pay for the construction and a break-out of costs.
As we move closer to spring and good weather the invasive Golden Mussel is an important consideration in the launching of all boats. Michelle Cathey, our Assistant General Manager, attended California Fish and Game classes on this topic and has created a launching process: launching will require a solid reservation, ad hoc launching will not be allowed. Each boat will be inspected carefully by trained staff and if there is any question or concerns you will be asked to power wash your boat and let it dry for two weeks before being allowed onto the lake. We need to protect our lake.
Spring has sprung, let’s have some fun in the coming nice days!
FIRE SAFETY
JOE MILANI – FIRE SAFETY COORDINATOR
Our team will begin ramping up our routine residential fire safety inspections. If you would like a fire safety inspection of your home or property, please contact us to set up an appointment. Although beautiful this time of year it is imperative to stay vigilant and remember that we live in the Wildland Urban Interface and with it the responsibility to maintain your defensible space and prepare for the fire season ahead of us.
Owning a home in Pine Mountain Lake provides the satisfaction of living in a great community. The local rules and restrictions, which you became acquainted with when you purchased a home, are important in maintaining ownership here. I would like to highlight one rule that is occasionally overlooked or forgotten.
· ARTICLE VIII, SECTION 1, Use of Lots (k). – No existing trees with a diameter greater than five inches shall be destroyed, uprooted, cut down or removed from any lot without first obtaining a tree-cutting permit from the Association.
This rule can be found in Pine Mountain Lakes Articles of Incorporation, By-Laws, and Declaration of Restrictions handbook “flash drive” you received with your new owner information packet. For any tree over five inches in diameter please fill out a Tree Removal Request form found on our website at https://www.pinemountainlake.com/tree-removal-request-2-2/ If this rule is not followed and trees are removed prior to PMLA approval monetary fines and penalties may result. Pine Mountain Lake has experienced major tree mortality due to drought and bark beetle; because of that, preserving live trees is of the utmost importance.
Please remember to test your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors once a month and replace any faulty alarms or low batteries immediately.
Lastly, fire safety inspections will continue in Pine Mountain Lake. Remember a fire safe community begins with you! If you would like an inspection of your property, or you are looking to educate yourself more, our fire safety team would love to help. If you have questions or concerns regarding fire safety, you can contact Amanda Birmingham at 1-209-990-5263 or email her at Inspector@pinemountainlake.com I can be reached at 1-209-990-5260 or Email fsc@pinemountainlake.com
MAINTENANCE MATTERS
RICK LAFFRANCHI – MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS MANAGER
“April is a reminder that life is a beautiful ever-renewing cycle” E.E. Cummings
Wow, April is here and the busy season is rapidly approaching.
Responsibilities have shifted dramatically for both teams. While March was a month with Major projects that included a 36” culvert replacement on Wells Fargo. This culvert was 90’ long and stretched from one side of the road to the other with utilities incumbering the pipe in the middle of the road and an abandon communication pole on the far end. The belly of this culvert was rotted out the entire length of the pipe in addition when PG&E was setting a new pole the mistakenly punched an 18” hole in the end of the culvert. Interestingly enough we were alerted to the deficiencies to the culvert by a home owner who lives nearby. The second significant project was the move and updating of the audio video room at the Lake Lodge which includes the complete rewiring of the audio feed, the addition of automatic TV mounts and the moving of the storage closet closer to the board area. This was all in an effort to improve overall quality of the Board meeting experience for our members.
Moving forward the tasks to be undertaken for the month of April, the Facilities crew will be busy prepping the beaches, moving sand and bringing the area up to recreational standards. The team in addition will be addressing the swim areas replacing cables and ropes, repairing swim docks and updating signage. In the second half of the month the team will be fully engaged striping parking lots painting stops and bars and repainting handicap emblems in designated parking areas.
The Buildings team will be equally engaged, as the weather improves touch up painting of all the amenities will begin with initial focus being on the seasonal recreational facilities primarily the Marina Café, Marina store and Marina restrooms in addition that amenity will be aerated to help bring proper absorption back to the lawn the irrigation will be brought back on line, tuning of the 100-gpm variable speed pump will take place and adjustment will take place to the nearly 75 high volume sprinkler heads will be performed. Landscaping throughout the association will be brought back to life with irrigation work and replanting taking place at Pre-entry, Administration and the Country Club. Finally, the Swim Center will start its resurrection, with repairs to our deck overlay, painting touch up, chemical balancing and tuning of the variable speed pumps (2) and filter refreshing (2). We employ a redundant pump and filter system to ensure that even with a single failure the amenity can remain open for member enjoyment. Well, that’s all for this month and as always “Slow for the cone zone”
PMLA MONEY MATTERS
DAN SZATHMARY – ASSOCIATION CONTROLLER
As of the writing of this article, we are wrapping up the first quarter of the new year. The annual audit is almost complete and we are moving on to a few projects before peak season is upon us.
We are assisting the Grill Team with improvements to their operational tools to help them manage labor and material costs more efficiently. Grill management is focused on providing excellent service to our members while working to improve the bottom line. These are challenging goals.
There is an updated reserve study on its way that will not only help us dial in funding reserves with more precision, it will help us complete the true-up of our assets we began last year. This is a monumental task that is performed every few years to ensure we are also measuring what we manage with the highest level of accuracy and confidence as possible.
Though most of our insurance renewals are happening in July, now is the time we begin working with our brokers and carriers on increasingly creative ways to stay ahead of price inflation in that area, that has hit historically high levels. Not only is pricing a concern in today’s markets, we have to tackle these skyrocketing costs while still maintaining the highest level and quality of coverage possible.
The other area of major cost inflation we are tackling is, of course, Gas and Electricity. Utilities have also seen record high inflation, and as such is a major area of focus of your money-management team. Though we saved a substantial amount of money with a successful solar project, we still experienced cost increases of over 20% in 2024; and expect the upward pressure on utility prices to only get worse in 2025 and beyond. Given that, we are continuing to go to work on tackling that problem by reviewing rate plans, looking at ways to reduce the amount of power we need to pull off the grid, and other creative ways to make that hit from PG&E sting as little as possible.
We continue to see reductions in printing and publishing costs as our “going paper-LESS” initiative continues. Rather than provide ample amounts of expensive kindling and birdcage-liners to the membership, we are now fully digital with the PML News. As this project evolves, we will see potential reductions in costs for billing, elections, and other routine PML business; as we continue to leverage technology to help get an increasingly higher return on those assessment dollars one year to the next.
And, since a penny earned is at least as good as a penny saved, we are also hard at work looking at ways to increase sales at various amenities, specifically focusing on bringing in more dollars from outside the association. We want those that visit and enjoy our community to not only have a great time while they are here, we want them to leave behind as many dollars as possible to help fund our association. The more visitors that leave here with happy faces and lighter wallets, the better it is for everyone in so many ways.
Also, as our cash reserves continue to increase, there is more opportunity to earn returns on those membership dollars. Higher cash balances mean more can be put to work without risking needed liquidity. Using more money, just sitting in the bank, to make even more money for our members, is one of the easiest and most effective ways to put those precious assessment dollars to work for us.
So, as we continue through Q2 of 2025, we will continue to sharpen our pencils and go to work on ways to use our money more effectively and efficiently, month over month, year over year. More to come.
Questions or comments? Feel free to contact me anytime at controller@pinemountainlake.com or 1-209-962-8606.
DO YOU HAVE YOUR PIN?
Since PML is a private gated community, we want to offer our property owners a secure way to call in guests. When you become a member of PML you are assigned a Personal Identification Number (PIN) to utilize either when calling in a guest pass or using the Gate Access Internet program.
This PIN identifies you to staff without you having to be present. This is a confidential number and should not be shared. When you call the Main Gate to authorize a guest or vendor access into PML, you will be asked for your PIN. The staff will look up the number in the computer and use it to confirm your identity before entering the guest information. You must have this number to utilize the Gate Access Internet program as well.
If you do not know your PIN or have any questions, please contact the Administration Office at:
1-209-962-8600 : Monday – Friday from 8 am – 4:30 pm
and we will gladly supply this information to you.
TRASH TALK
SUZETTE LAFFRANCHI – COMMUNITY STANDARDS DIRECTOR
Garbage that is being improperly stored is leading to scattered litter in our scenic community. Never leave bags of garbage or overflowing cans that are accessible to wildlife. Please keep your garbage in a secured fully enclosed facility such as a bear box. Garbage that is not properly bagged will not be picked up by the contracted garbage service. Garbage cans shall not be stored by the roadside.
The Rule or Regulation that applies is as follows:
PMLA CC&R, ARTICLE VIII, Section 9. Garbage. No rubbish, trash, or garbage shall be allowed to accumulate on Lots. Any trash that is accumulated by an Owner outside the interior walls of a Residence shall be stored entirely within appropriate covered disposal containers and facilities which shall be screened from view from any street, neighboring Lot or the Common Area.
Many times, when the property is in violation of the PML CC&R, article VIII, Section 9, it is due to improper disposal receptacles and placement. These receptacles are required to have a solid bottom, made of sturdy material with a latch for closure. We recommend a wildlife proof bear box to store your garbage. If you need guidance on properly storing your garbage between garbage service pick-ups contact our Community Standards Department who can assist you to bring your receptacle into compliance. All receptacles must be approved by ECC prior to construction or placement. Don’t let your dilapidated open garbage receptacle add to the garbage concerns.
If you are planning a storage container to store your garbage between pick-ups, please note that ALL exterior improvements including storage containers must be approved by the Environmental Control Committee and meet our minimum construction standards.
PML CC&Rs, article VI, Section 5, Setback Requirements, applies to all permanent structures. Storage containers may not be placed in your setbacks.
Setting your full garbage cans out before your scheduled pick-up date may seem like the most convenient option but it creates a temptation for our furry friends. As you know bears, racoons, even the ravens are very good at finding treasure in your trash. Our garbage also poses a threat to their health and wellbeing. Let us work together as a community to maintain our neighborhoods and keep our critters safe. Contact Moore Bros Scavenger Co. at 1-209-962-7224 to schedule pick up service and to ask for your scheduled pick-up day.
Be sure to check out the Community Standards page at https://www.pinemountainlake.com/resources/ where you will click on the Community Standards page. There you will find other resources such as FAQs, rental registration or the link to submit an exterior project such as a new bear box.
For the love of our community let us take the steps to protect and preserve the natural beauty and character of Pine Mountain Lake and all it has to offer. As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me at 1 (209) 962-1241 or communitystandards@pinemountainlake.com I will be happy to guide and provide you with the information you need to navigate our governing documents to maintain our beautiful community.
GOING WITH THE FLOW
ASHLEY HENDERSON – ARCHITECTURAL CONTROL SPECIALIST
April showers may very well bring May flowers, but unfortunately, they can also bring clogged culverts, heavy erosion, and flooding. While we may not be able to completely control Mother Nature and her mercurial California whims, there are steps we can take to help mitigate any potential damage. All drainage courses, ditches and swales on your property are your responsibility to keep clear (PML CC&R’s Article VII, Section 3 B & C). Routinely clearing out debris from drainage areas will keep the water flowing in its natural course, and will greatly help our Maintenance department when it comes to keeping our streets and culverts clear.
It is also incredibly important that all projects that will disturb the earth, and potentially affect the natural drainage have approved drainage plans. This includes retaining walls, landscaping, new builds, driveways, etc.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out at: 1-209-962-8605 or ecc@pinemountianlake.com
DOCKS
CARRIE HARVEY – COMMUNITY STANDARDS SPECIALIST
Winter has come and gone, and it is nice to see more sunny days ahead of us. It’s the perfect time to get out and enjoy our beautiful lake. Did you know you can check the lake level and temperature at any time? Log on at: https://www.pinemountainlake.com/1marina/
For those of you that are lucky enough to own a lakeside property, please take some time to review the Lake Shoreline Improvement section in our ECC Rules, Guidelines, and Construction Standards.
Property owners are responsible to meet the requirements and know the regulations. The following is some of the things we look at while doing our dock inspections, that will be performed this Spring:
• Dock shall not extend into lake more than twenty (20) feet from the high-water line. High water line is defined as 2,550 feet Mean Sea Level.
• Material shall be of a non-corrosive material or treated wood.
• Make sure your dock is in good repair.
• Flotation must be designed with safety factors in mind and should allow for changes in lake level.
• No permanent pilings are permitted in the lake.
• One dock per lot is allowed.
• Each dock must have a Unit and Lot Number placed where it can be seen from lake.
• A private dock shall not exceed ninety-six (96) square feet, excluding ramp.
If you are planning on making any improvements to your dock, or the exterior of your home, please be sure to submit your plans to the Environmental Control Committee for approval. To submit a project to the ECC please go to: https://www.pinemountainlake.com/ecc-project-submittal-process/
As always, if you have any questions or concerns you can contact me at 1-209-962-1242 or email me at compliance@pinemountainlake.com I will be happy to assist you!
