FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

The following are the questions and responses from the Membership Informational Meeting held on October 2019 and other comments from the RHV.ORG web site through “Contact Us.”

1. How much money has Clinton Ritter contributed to the start up of RHV Maintenance Inc.?

There was an initial deposit of $500 to open the RHV Maintenance bank account. A final payment is expected in March or April as the final transfer of the assets of Ritter Maintenance Corporation required by the Settlement Agreement.

2. Will there be yearly audits of RHV Maintenance accounts?

Yes. This is part of the commitment to transparency.

3. Is the payment plan for those in arrears a one-time plan?

Yes, it is intended to provide a means for people in arrears to catch up. The expectation is that participants will remain current in future years.

4. What happens if a person on a payment plan defaults?

If a person defaults before making all payments of their payment plan, then the remaining unpaid balance is still due and penalties will be due for each year for which payment has not been brought up to date.

5. Will liens and other means be used to collect fees from those people in arrears?

We need to obtain final guidance from our attorney to determine the most effective and least costly way to collect past due fees. It is anticipated that some form of lien and/or court order/judgment will be a part of the process.

6. Are we going to publish who is not current on fees?

We first need clarification from legal counsel on the privacy and legal issues that would either permit or prohibit us from publishing such information. We will have to first go through a reasonable process to validate each person’s past due fees and we will not be able to publish such information on the RHVM.ORG web site because it is a public site.

7. Who can run in and vote in the upcoming elections?

Only property owners who have paid their 2022 road and lake maintenance fees in full are eligible to vote for candidates for the Board from their section. Voting is by Section only. The By-Laws establish that property owners will only vote for a Director from their Section and that the elected Directors will appoint a Director for any Section for which no one ran nor was elected. The by laws require that all maintenance fees be current in order to hold office as a director.

8. How are Officers elected?

The By-Laws do not enable property owners to directly elect RHV Maintenance Inc. officers. During the transition in the last part of April, the 14 Directors will elect a President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer from among the 14 Directors. An officer will therefore represent his/her section as well as perform the duties defined for the office.

9. Will candidates be nominated?

As noted on the RHVM.org web site, the Election Committee has accepted self-nominated candidates who declared their intent to run by filing out the form sent out in December with the 2019 Maintenance Fees invoice and those candidates who notified the Board by phone, mail or email by January 31st. In some cases individuals nominated someone other than themselves.

10. Did the WV Department of Highways make recommendations for emergency vehicle access?

No.

11. Will the State Road Maintenance Guidelines be placed on the web site?

The West Virginia Department of Transportation Road Maintenance Manual section related to “Unpaved Roads” will be posted to the RHVM.ORG web site as soon as possible.

12. What is the process required to change By-Laws?

Amendments to By-Laws and new By-Laws can be enacted at the Annual Meeting.

13. Will there be Board Members “at large”?

No. The By-Laws contain no provision for an “at large” Director. The By-Laws explicitly state that a Director is to be elected from each of the 14 named sections: Coopers Run, Dillon Mountain Estates, White Cliffs Section I, White Cliffs Section II, and RHV Estates Sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 7A, 8, and 9.

14. Is there a Chairman of the Board?

No. The By-Laws define the only officer positions as President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer.

15. Will there be staggered terms for Board Members?

The By-Laws establish a four-year term for each Director. Nothing is defined within the By-Laws for staggering the terms. However, this is something that can be taken up at the Annual Meeting in October.

16. What is the payment for Board Members?

None of the Temporary Board of Directors receives any compensation. While the By-Laws prohibit payment of compensation to Directors, a fixed sum and expense for attendance at each regular or special meeting may be authorized. The By-Laws allow Officers to receive a salary. The current Temporary Board Directors and Officers do not receive a salary or meeting expenses.

17. What is the assessment of the equipment?

An independent or mechanical assessment will but has not yet been made of the equipment transferred from Ritter Maintenance Corporation.

18. Can the Clubhouse be used for meetings?

Yes. The Clubhouse is small and cannot handle only a few people. Other meeting sites are being investigated including outdoor meetings at the Lake Pavilion, weather permitting.

19. What is the transition process after elections?

The Temporary Board will meet with the newly elected Directors in mid-April to transition information and records to the new Board members.

20. What is the basis for the calculation of the Maintenance Fees for 2022?

Maintenance Fees for 2022 were calculated and prepared by Ritter Maintenance Corporation based on the terms and conditions of the current maintenance contract in place for each property. Escalations were applied from 2018 to 2019 in accordance with the maintenance contracts and their terms and conditions. If you have specific questions about your invoice and the calculation of the amount please post a note on the Contact Us page of the RHVM.ORG web site and the appropriate person will get back to you after researching your contracts.

21. What is being done to make the maintenance fees more equitable?

The fees charged are specifically defined in the maintenance contracts prepared by Ritter Maintenance Corporation (RMC) and signed by each property owner and RMC at the time of the purchase of the property. The judge ratified and confirmed the validity and enforceability of the maintenance contracts when he approved the Settlement Agreement in 2010. This is a complicated legal issue. Notwithstanding, as stated at the Informational Meeting on January 11th, the Board understands and agrees that the current fee structure creates inequities among property owners. We have engaged legal counsel to work with a Maintenance Fees Committee we will form including four or five property owners who signed up at the January 11th Informational Meeting. The goal is for the Committee to come up with a more equitable solution that can be presented and voted on at the Annual Meeting in October.

22. Will Clinton Ritter retain ownership of lots?

There are no lots for which a Certificate of Membership was issued to Clinton Ritter as a property owner. Clinton Ritter is listed as the trustee on the lots owned by the Ritter’s Hidden Valley Scholarship Trust. The Scholarship Trust, established by Clinton Ritter, is not affiliated with or in any way the responsibility of RHV Maintenance Inc.

23. Will Clinton Ritter be required to pay fees on his property?

All property owners are required to pay fees in accordance with the terms of their road and lake maintenance contracts and provisions within their deed.

24. Is there money for snow removal?

While snow removal is explicated not required by the Road Maintenance contracts, the history has been that Ritter Maintenance Corporation paid for snow removal services on an as required basis. Resident volunteers also performed snow plowing and spread sand and/or gravel. We have executed an interim contract with C&E Landscape to be able to continue these services.

25. Who designates what roads will be plowed?

Terry Newport, Board Director and Chairman of the Road Committee, has been appointed by the Board of Directors to oversee the snow removal contract and will determine the priorities and direct the activities of the contractor.

26. Who do I sue for failing to provide road maintenance in 2018?

Ritter Maintenance Corporation was responsible for providing all road and lake maintenance services through December 31, 2014. In accordance with the Settlement Agreement RHV Maintenance Inc. took over responsibility for road and lake maintenance on January 1, 2015.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

VOLUME 2

27.Has the Board considered using Facebook in addition to the RHVM.ORG web site?

The Board feels that the RHVM.ORG web site provides an effective means of communication to property owners and does not intend to implement a Facebook site at this time.

28. The RHVM.ORG web site is a public web site and we are concerned about the privacy of data published on the web site.

The Board is also concerned about the privacy of the data and as a matter of policy will not intentionally post any data about a property owner that is not otherwise available in the public domain.

29. How will funds be collected from the judgments filed with the Magistrate Court on February 26th?

We will work with legal counsel and the Magistrate Court to find the most effective means to collect funds on a judgment awarded to RHV Maintenance Inc.

30. Jaflo has left logs and branches in Dillon’s Run that need to be removed.

Todd Carlisle will contact the site manager for Jaflo to report the current problems. Any property owner who sees an issue with Jaflo should contact Potomac Edison and/or Jaflo directly.

31. Who decides which road maintenance activities get done? Are property owners going to get to vote on specific actions?

The Road Maintenance Committee will develop a Short Term and a Long Term Road Maintenance Plan. The Short Term Plan will be the plan for the current year and will identify those actions proposed within the budget available for the year. These plans will include a priority for each element of the plan considering the severity of the need, potential benefit, and cost. The Board of Directors, as the elected representatives of the property owners, will review/modify and approve the plans. The plans will be posted to the RHVM.ORG web site. Property Owners will not vote directly to approve the plan or specific elements of the plans, but are encouraged to submit comments through the Contact Us function on the web site.

32. Is the Board aware of the Health Department testing requirements for the swimming lake and the possibility that the lakes can be closed by the Health Department if tests are failed or the phone is not in place at the pavilion?

• • Yes, we are aware of the need for testing and we will budget accordingly. We have received the 2018 initial documentation from the Health Department allowing us to open the lakes. We will contact Frontier to confirm the change in ownership.

  • Is the board going to comply with operator license, certification, training and other requirements to be able to operate the equipment used for road maintenance?

  • We intend to contract with an outside firm to conduct road maintenance services and compliance with operator licensing, certification, training, and other requirements will be part of the negotiated contract.

33. Will the Board consider a payment schedule for the annual Maintenance Fees over a few months or the entire year?

We will take this under advisement and evaluate the cost of implementing such a plan with the potential for more people paying their fees on time.

34. If no one is elected for a Section, is the Director appointed for that Section from among the remaining elected directors?

No. The By-Laws enable the elected Directors to appoint a new Director to represent any Section that did not elect its own Director from the entire body of members/property owners who are in good standing and current in their fees.

35. Is the term for a Director 2 years?

The term for directors elected in April 2018 ends at the Annual Meeting in October 2021. The Board intends to seek approval from the membership at the Annual Meeting in October 2015 to stagger terms for Board members.

36. Will the Community Affairs Committee be required to approve the actions of the Neighborhood Watch, Conservation Club, and other organizations?

No. The Community Affairs Committee needs to be coordinated with and approve the use of the Club House and Pavilion for scheduling purposes, but does not replace or oversee the operation or any activity of such organizations. The Community Affairs Committee can assist these organizations in publishing their events and/or support their meetings or events as appropriate.

37. What is the Board doing about property owners who have put chains and other barriers across the roads?

The Board requests that anyone who is aware of a chain or other obstruction to the road submit a Contact Us form on the RHVM.ORG web site with pertinent information. The Board will then investigate and take appropriate action.

38. How will lake and community property access be policed to ensure that non-residents are not allowed to use our facilities?

There are significant limits on the enforcement abilities of RHV Maintenance Inc. We are working with our attorney to determine what we can do. We are also evaluating whether it is necessary and helpful to continue to produce lake passes.

39. Will liens be placed on properties for nonpayment?

We are working with the attorney to determine the best means to obtain payment of maintenance fees. Our attorney has told us that mechanic’s liens may not be allowed nor the most effective means for obtaining payment of maintenance fees.

40. What tax forms will be filed?

The IRS has directed that we use an 1120H form and we will use the CNF-120 to file taxes to West Virginia.

41. Will future meetings be held at the Pavilion?

When the weather permits we intend to conduct the Open Agenda Meeting at the Pavilion, perhaps in coordination with a community event.

42. Why are regular Board of Director meetings not open to property owner attendance?

Board members are working diligently and as transparently as possible. Regular Board meetings are closed sessions to enable discussion of sensitive and private information such as maintenance fee status and Magistrate Court actions, hardship payment plan requests, property transfers, deliberations on policies and work performance by vendors or subcontractors, and vendor contract negotiation strategies. The Board feels it would be inconvenient and insensitive to property owners to ask them to leave a meeting each time a sensitive topic arises. For these reasons we hold a monthly Open Agenda Board meeting whereby status is reported from each Committee and questions and comments are presented by Property Owners who can attend in person or via the conference call capability. The Board values property owner input before decisions are made and has instituted a practice wherein each Committee will hold an open meeting to present the strategy, issues, plans or other information to property owners and property owner input is solicited. The schedule for all these meetings will be posted on the RHVM.ORG web site and announced via the Ritter’s Hidden Valley Yahoo Group site where possible. These meetings are in addition to the Monthly Open Agenda Board Meetings.

43. What is being done to resolve the inequality in maintenance fees?

There will be an open meeting for property owners to weigh in on the issues, discuss the proposed solutions, and offer other ideas and suggestions. The approach approved by the Board will be presented to the Property Owners for a vote at the October Annual Meeting.

44. Will the Board consider installing less costly swales/swells in the road in lieu of culverts?

Your idea will be passed to the Road Committee who will evaluate it as part of their planning process.

45. Will the Board consider installing a retaining wall to prevent beach sand erosion into the road and other areas?

Your idea will be passed to the Lake and Park Committee who will evaluate it as part of their planning process.

46. Comment: The Ritter’s Hidden Valley Yahoo Group site will gladly publish meeting and other event notices for RHV Maintenance Inc. and requests that the RHVM.org web site be updated to mention the Yahoo site as another source of information and provide contact information.

We appreciate the support. The requested notice will be added to the RHVM.ORG web site in the near future.

47. With an even number of Board members how is a tie vote broken?

The President will break a tie.

48. Will the Board encourage property owners to mark where culverts are located on their property so that maintenance can more easily be performed?

Your idea will be passed to the Road Committee who will evaluate it as part of their planning process.

49. Will the Board encourage property owners to put up a sign on their property to denote their 911 addresses so that it is easier for visitors, vendors, and first responders to find their way?

This is an excellent idea. A notice requesting 911 address signs be put up on each property will be posted through the RHVM.ORG web site in the near future.

50. Can the financial report posted to the web site be redone so it has larger print and is easier to read?

Yes. Based on further analysis, we will modify the current Financial Report by converting it into a series of Quarterly Reports. This will shorten each report and make them easier to read. At the end of the quarter that quarter’s Financial Report will be retained on the web site and a new quarterly report will be initiated. The Financial Reports will also be modified to delete the Expense Account Column. A new Budget Status Report will be provided monthly so that everyone can see how we are doing relative to the approved budget. The first report will be for month end May and will be posted in early June after it is reviewed and approved by the Board.

51. What action can be taken to enforce the speed limit?

There is not a lot RHV Maintenance Inc. can do to enforce a covenant such as speed limit. Our lawyer has informed us that other property owners can only enforce covenants. Peer pressure is probably the most effective way, however, please be careful we do not wish any property owner to get into a confrontation.

52. What action can be taken to enforce lake passes?

Once all 2019 Lake and Park passes are distributed, people without valid lake passes can be considered to be trespassing. Such self-policing is the only viable option and we do not wish any property owner to get into a confrontation.

53. What is the status of the actions taken to collect past due maintenance fees?

RHV Maintenance Inc. filed 21 actions with the Hampshire County Magistrate Court on February 26, 2015 to enforce payment of past due maintenance fees. Results to date are that a judgment was awarded to RHV Maintenance Inc. in three cases. All maintenance and late fees, filing fees, and attorney fees were included in the judgment. One person paid all costs in full on the date of the decision. Another individual has executed a payment plan. The third case is pending negotiation of payment. There are two hearings scheduled: 6/11 – Circuit Court scheduling hearing; and 6/18 – Magistrate Court. Rather than have a hearing, seven individuals have paid the judgment amount plus filing fees in full and one individual has executed a payment plan. We have filed for a Default Motion in the case of three individuals who have received the summons and not responded. A fourth Default Motion is being considered. We will ask the court to ‘Re-Serve” two summons for which we have valid addresses. Finally we need to find better addresses for two individuals.

54. Where do I find information about who is representing my Section?

A letter will be sent to all property owners in the next few weeks from your Section Director. In addition, the RHVM.ORG web site contains a list of all Section Directors.

55. What is the purpose and function of the Community Affairs Committee?

The Community Affairs Committee is intended to enhance communications with the property owners, coordinate schedules for use of common property such as reserving the Clubhouse and Pavilion, and maintain the www.rhvm.org web site. The Committee will also monitor the Contact Us forms sent in, email, and messages left on the RHV Maintenance Inc. message line: 304-856-1159.