Ghent Square Community Association
Annual Meeting
Monday, December 2, 2024 at 6 PM
Registration begins at 5:15 PM
The Williams School
419 Colonial Avenue, Norfolk, VA
Run for a board seat
This year members of the Association will be electing three (3) Directors for terms of two (2) years. Under Article VII, it is required that at least four (4) weeks before the Annual Meeting, anyone wishing to run for election to the Board of Directors must file a Nomination Application signed by not less than ten (10) homeowners (one signature per address) in Ghent Square, tenants do not suffice. Anyone wishing to run for office should submit this form to the GSCA on-site office at 852 Mowbray Arch, Norfolk, VA 23507 or send it to lrattan@communitygroup.com. The form should be received no later than close of business on November 2, 2024.
Your vote counts
Ghent Square needs at least 116 votes to make a quorum, or make our annual meeting count. If you can’t make it to the meeting, please complete the Proxy and assign it to a board member to vote for you. You can also complete the Ballot also if you want to select the candidates yourself. Download the Annual Notice, complete the front and back of the Proxy/Ballot form, and place it in the Proxy/Ballot box in the clubhouse lobby. You can also mail it or return it to lrattan@communitygroup.com. Thank you!
Annual Meeting Agenda Dec. 2, 2024
1. Welcome
Steve Roche, President
2. Introduce Board of Directors
Steve Roche, President
3. Approve Minutes
Steve Roche, President
4. Candidate Overviews
Vote for Candidates
Steve Roche, President
5. Security
Jim Gehman
6. Budget 2025
Jim Gehman, Treasurer
7. Annual Assessment
Steve Roche, President
8. ARB
Barry Fletcher
9. Coming Up in 2025
Steve Roche
10. Open Forum
Sign up before meeting starts.
11. Election Results
Steve Roche, President
12. Thank You for Attending
Steve Roche, President
Welcome!
Thank you to The Williams School for hosting Ghent Square's annual meeting.
The Williams School is a small school environment with a strong academic program based on student-centered, open-ended, and inquiry-based instruction. Applications to their engaging, dynamic learning community are welcomed from varied economic, religious, ethnic, and racial backgrounds. At Williams, they believe that strength comes from diversity and inclusivity.
Ghent Square Board of Directors
Steve Roche
President
Jon Davis
Vice President
Jim Gehman
Treasurer
Tanja Korpi
Susan Loiterman
Meryl Mulligan
Francine Blend
Steve Roche, President
Steve Roche, President
Steve Roche, President, will vote to approve minutes from the 2024 annual meeting. Minutes can be reviewed at GSCA-Annual-Meeting-Mailing-Notice-2024.pdf
Security patrols planned for Van Wyck Mews. Organize a Community Watch group.
Jim Gehman, Treasurer
Steve Roche, President
Annual assessment increased to $275/quarter.
Jim Gehman Treasurer
Architectural Review Board – Barry Fletcher, Chairperson
Investment Committee – Milton Long, Chairperson
Maintenance Committee – Susan Loiterman, Director & Jon Davis, Vice President
Ghent Square HOA Board Candidates
Open nominations from the floor
Vote
Results presented at end of meeting
Jim Gehman
Security
Two off-duty Norfolk Sheriffs will patrol Van Wych Mews twice a week for two months. The goal is to keep Maury High School students from loitering in Ghent Square before school starts. The GSCA board approved $900/week for two months.
Community Watch Group
A feeling of safety is closely tied to a sense of community.
Engaging residents in their own safety and security is the best way to both reduce crime and make people feel safer. Empowering people at the community level to Take A Bite Out Of Crime® should be our goal because that’s the one thing all criminals hate.
With your help, we can create a Neighborhood Watch in Ghent Square, but we need you to get involved!
Jim Gehman, Treasurer
Budget
The 2025 Budget Summary Report reflects the Association’s anticipated expenses of $601,700 for 2025, based upon reserve requirements, actual expenditures in previous years and the current costs of various service contracts.
Excess Operating Funds
Excess operating funds are deposited into our Replacement Reserves. While these funds are reflected as an expense in the budget, the funds are actually going into our Reserves account (savings account). At the end of this year we expect to exceed and deposit $120,000 in the Reserves account.
State Law requires associations to set aside funds for future replacements, such as a pool rehabilitation, HVAC replacement, asphalt, tennis courts, clubhouse roofing, etc. Various mortgage loan insurers such as HUD and the Veteran’s Administration also require this. They will not approve loans for communities that do not set aside adequate reserves funds.
It is important to understand the Board is composed of homeowners that realize the impact of any increase in the assessment and that is why we review expenditures at each meeting and spend a great deal of time on the development of each year’s budget.
Transfer Excess Funds
Motion & second to have excess operating income from the 2024 balance sheet transferred to the Reserve Fund.
Steve Roche, President
Annual Assessment
Quarterly assessments for 2025 will be increased to $275/quarter or $1100/annually.
No Coupon Booklets!
A coupon booklet WILL NOT be sent to you in December. If you mail in your quarterly assessment, please include your name, street address and account number on the check and send to the address below:
Ghent Square Community Association
c/o Associa Community Group
P.O. Box 27898, Newark, NJ 7101-7898
We encourage residents to set up automatic payments with their bank or with www.Kliknpay.com. You can also pay via your TownSq account but there is a small convenience fee. Check your HOA balance by logging in to your account at www.townsq.io.
Future projects
Coming up in 2025
- Pool Refurbishment
- Fence Repairs & Improvements
- Seeking volunteers to organize events and groups such as a Neighborhood Watch group
Open Forum
Each resident has five minutes to share their thoughts regarding our community.
Open forum limited to 30 minutes.
Not enough time? Please send us a message.
Election Results
And the winners are …
Thank you!
A big Thank You to The Williams School for hosting Ghent Square’s annual meeting for the last two years.
Nestled in historic Ghent, The Williams School is devoted to a unique approach to educating young leaders and to developing them into responsible citizens. When you step into their historic home, warmth and enthusiasm greet visitors and students at the foot of the grand staircase. Their dynamic curriculum includes rich traditions and innovative instruction.
Explore the school to learn more about how they can partner with you in your child’s educational journey.
