Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Kings Forest Board of Trustees Updates Residents on Board Changes

A message to the residents of Kings Forest from the Community Association Board of Trustees

As you may be aware, Howard Pitman, Bob Braun and Richard Badoian have voluntarily stepped down from the Kings Forest Community Association Board of Trustees. We know this community is grateful for their contribution, and we hope to have an opportunity to show our appreciation very soon with a celebration of their service.

The remaining board members elected Kevin Morley and Amy Slaughter for Section 1 and Cheri Baker for Section 2 to complete the terms of the departing board members. Kevin’s background is in finance and, as head of the Deed Restriction Committee, he has worked to strengthen enforcement. Amy and Cheri are both attorneys, and will provide us with a valued source of legal guidance in future decisions. The new board has met twice in recent days to ensure a smooth transition and address the issues facing our neighborhood.

The board’s immediate focus will be to execute the planned projects that were approved at the June board meeting: (1) changing the pool operation to key access, in accordance with the wishes expressed by the community in the April 2008 survey, and (2) rebuilding our aging infrastructure, beginning with the entrance at Kingwood Drive and Woods Estates. We hope to celebrate both these pivotal events with you soon; details will be provided in the WoodNote, by email and the blog.

The board also will address the high school exit construction on Valley Manor. A meeting has been scheduled this week with City Councilman Mike Sullivan and Humble ISD Superintendent Sconzo, where the board and residents will express their concerns about the impact of increased traffic and the reduced tree screen.

While these three issues will occupy our immediate attention, we also will attend to the everyday management of our community.

We will re-energize our enforcement of deed restrictions; review all vendor/service contracts and re-bid where appropriate, and begin a sustained effort to widen the community’s participation in its own affairs through volunteer committees.

We intend to conduct the affairs of the board in an open and inclusive manner. We will use the internet to communicate with you, provide a source for accurate and reliable information, and solicit your feedback through polls and internet-based discussion forums. If you’ve not yet given us your email address, we urge you to do so.

Perhaps most important, we will develop a comprehensive five-year plan that will address financial planning, infrastructure replacement and governance (such as establishing terms limits and clarifying deed restrictions). This plan will be updated annually with input from the community and will provide continuity and direction for board decision-making year over year.

We want to thank the growing number of volunteers who are contributing their time on behalf of our neighborhood. We’re excited about the opportunities to be of service and look forward to working with all of our neighbors to keep Kings Forest one of the most desirable communities in Kingwood.

Contact information for the new board is available at www.kingsforest.org.