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When a member is clearly and actively behaving in a manner the not consistent with CSS policy or in violation of law (violence or the threat of violence), anyone present has the express right to document the incident via video, audio, or any other media and turn over that evidence to the Board of Directors. Period.
Bille,
Read the text of the letter, all of it. Stop focusing on the date in the top left which is the date the letter was prepared. The letter clearly states the terms of the suspension, you are just selectively ignoring it.
If you think there are grounds for any kind of lawsuit what so ever, you clearly have no idea how civil law works.
Bille,
Do NOT threaten me or this club. There is no grounds for any kind of lawsuit and it’s clear that you haven’t read the letter.
Your point is heard, however the difference with this situation is that the behaviors in question have been going on for the entire year. Almost every Board member has had conversations or phone calls with Gene many times before the warning letter was delivered about the horses, the dogs, and other concerns. The complaint did not come from 5 general Members, ultimately the Board received multiple verbal complaints from general membership and we all witnessed several occasions of Gene and Nicole violating our requests to stop those behaviors. Additionally, there has been a pattern of behavior from Gene going back several years. None of those things from the past are part of the current grounds for suspension, but you simply can’t expect any reasonable person to not consider a long history of behavior when dealing with where we are now.
Essentially, the Board had no choice but to act immediately on behalf of the members who complained, while also having a very significant amount of evidence via pictures and video as well as first hand observations by the Board members where gene violated Club rules that we expressly asked him to abide by. This isn’t a normal situation of Club discipline. As Jana mentioned in a post above, aside from Insurance issues, ALL of our time as a Board this year had been consumed by Gene.
With that said, there is a General Membership scheduled for Dec 9th via Zoom and the Board has agreed to allow Gene to address the charges. I’m sure you will criticize the order of events in that this should have occurred prior to the disciplinary action being exercised, but the Board feels that we have been fully justified in our actions to date given the circumstances. We specifically considered allowing Gene this opportunity because you pointed this out from the By-Laws and we will recognize it in fairness.
Dennis,
The By-Laws you cited were followed to the letter by the BOD. The 2/3 Vote is among the board members, not general membership. A letter of warning was delivered, that was violated and the Board voted to suspend for 30 days. That was also violated. The Board voted to extend the suspension for one year based on the warnings that were provided in the original letter.
*** How we are spending the donation funds raised ***
The first $5,500 will cover the majority of supplies needed, but there is also some equipment that the Club will need to maintain the grass year after year.
– The first big thing to get the weeds under control is to spray the entire 3 acres. There is a unit that we will purchase that is towed behind the Lawn Mower or Gator. I has a 40 gallon water tank to mix in the liquid products and then will spray a track about 6 feet wide when towed. This same unit will be used to apply the liquid fertilizer in the same way.
– Consumable supplies. The grass seed, fertilizer, and herbicide are the consumables we will need to purchase and apply annually. We probably don’t have to over-seed every year but we do need to fertilize and take care of weeds more often. This will be a $900 to $1700 annual expense but we will become part of regular annual operating expenses.
– Equipment rental. One thing we need to rent in called a ‘Plug Aerator’, its basically like a giant spike roller to aerate the soil. Because we have a large area of LZ to cover we will try to rent a machine that is basically self-powered like its own little tractor. Worst case, funding restrictions considered, there are are towable units to rent.
The above expenses total nearly $6000. We would like to extend our total fundraising goal to $10K to cover an unexpected expenses, but here is what we could also use the additional funds for:
Gopher Smoker – You all have seen how bad the gopher mounds got in the spring. they weren’t as bad during the summer because the little buggers move out into the eastern approach area to be under the shade of the taller brush. There are hundreds of them! I had professional pest control services quote us for gopher mitigation services (i.e. mass murder), and the quotes were between $7500 to $10K. The club can’t handle an annual recurring expense that high but there is an alternative – there is a $2500 machine that is essentially a smoke generator, you stick a tube into the tunnel and pump smoke into the tunnels which kills the Gophers with carbon monoxide. This is the most effective machine on the market today, several Farmers in the Inland Empire are using these machines with great success. (Insert Gopher Smoker Pic Here).
Weeds… Weeds…. Weeds….
We’ve got a significant amount of weed growth in the LZ. A good portion of it is clover and is not really a super bad thing except that hogs all a lot of the water and nutrients in competition with the grass. The biggest problem is the ‘Goat’s Head’ weeds. These are nasty little radial weed growths that small burrs with very sharp thorns. Getting the thorns in your skin is painful as they tend to puncture and then break off under the surface of the skin, while basically being nearly microscopic. It’s bad enough getting one in your hand or ankle, imagine what it would do to a PG sail or getting tangled up in the lines. A few of these Goat’s Heads have popped up along the southern edge of the LZ and I’ve ripped them out as I find them, but I want to stop them dead before any encroach in the PG Kiting area. (Insert Goats Head pic here).
The first step in the LZ project will be spraying an herbicide that kills weeds but not the grass. Its a multi-step process that will be done just before sunset so it gets watered in during the evening sprinkler cycle. It will take 5 to 6 applications over a 10 day period.
More details about why and what we are doing, for those who feel inclined for some light technical reading:
This year we enjoyed greener grass for a longer part of the season. I cannot take any credit for this, we simply had an abnormal amount of rainfall. The added rain along with a healthier than normal snow-pack that melted in the spring kept water levels and water pressure very high up at the pond. We want to capitalize on the healthier, more hydrated conditions and keep the green for as long as possible.
I took a soil sample from the LZ in December of 2022 and had it analyzed at a lab located in Anaheim. The report shows all of the critical nutrient levels in the soils that are important for agriculture. As I expected, the nitrogen levels are critically low so we desperately need to fertilize. I’ve attached that soil report to this point if you’d like to read it.
October 10, 2023 at 6:42 PM in reply to: Volunteers Needed! Work Party October 21st & 22nd, 2023 #19050Hey folks,
The work is relatively simple but I need as many volunteers as possible to ensure we knock it out in the two days that we will rent a Boom Lift.
What we need to to do is lightly sand and then varnish the ends of the beams that stick out facing east for the high side of the Pavilion. The timber is getting dried out and causing checking (cracks), so we need to get several coats of a clear urethane coating onto the wood to prevent further damage.
We have most of the tools we need and its all easy stuff like a few orbital sanders and then the paint rollers. If we need anything else I’ll make follow up posts. I would suggest that everyone bring hats for being out in the sun. We can only have one or two people in the bucket at a time (depending on the size of the lift we get), but having a good size group of people ensures that we can change-out regularly so people don’t get warn out and we must have safety spotters on the ground while people are working aloft.
Let me know if you have questions. I plan to start by 10am on Saturday the 21st of October. we will go again Sunday if we don’t get it all done on Saturday. We want to do it right the first time, no short cuts, so 6 to 8 coats of varnish is needed to protect the beams from the sun!
Unfortunately my CSS email is locked for some reason and I need to wait for an unlock (again). If any member wants to call me about this I don’t mind people having my personal cell, 619 316 2736
As Jana explained, a few weeks ago we were informed that Gracie needed a radiator repair, which we took care of. Jeff (Treasurer) picked up the completed radiator at a local shop and delivered it to one of the containers. Getting to the actual install of the parts ran into a couple logistic hurdles when myself and Tim were both out of town for a bit on opposite ends of the continent.
In any case, I went and picked up the fluids last night (anti-freeze, distilled water, and hydraulic fluid) and I’ll be on my way up there shortly (Sunday, 24 SEP by 1pm). Kelly has volunteered to come give and hand and Tim should be on hand to advise. Still, anyone who feels like they want to help is welcome to join us.
Bump… If you are reading this forum post, please plan on helping out this Saturday morning!
Traps will be placed in Container #2 tomorrow (Tuesday). I would still highly encourage everyone who has Gliders or Gear in there to check on it as soon as possible, inspect everything, and wash your glider bags. It would be a good idea to wear a mask when entering and use disposable gloves. We are going with traps to avoid having dead mouse bodies in unreachable places. Will update as needed.
I would suggest that all members who gliders stored in #2 remove their wings and other gear as soon as possible. I am working on pest mitigation measures and will get something done as soon as possible.
If anyone who is close to the site can check the other containers and let me know if they find any droppings, chewing, nests or other evidence please let me know. We may need to do a complete clear out of all the containers and smoke them out, plus clear out any carcasses (that’ll smell lovely in the summer if we don’t).
Mario, it might be worth getting a cheap Android phone just to use for this purpose. I don’t think the phone has to be ‘on’ in terms of being connected to a cellular network/active carrier plan, the gps and other functions as well as the ability to use wi-fi & Bluetooth should function independently. Basically like having an Android iPod, just download the Ap on home wi-fi to use the glasses. Damnit, I think I just talked myself into it…
The important thing to know is that there are alternatives on the ballot this year. As a nominee, if elected, my goal is to revitalize the grass and set it up to be green and healthy year round. Linda’s goal is not only to fulfill her position duties by throwing a couple of rad parties, but to keep the membership abreast of plans the BOD develops that have been a conspicuously absent function of the current BOD. We feel that Jeff Bether & Daniel Quick have been the voices of reason on the current BOD and recommend they be re-elected to their current positions. Myself, Linda, Jamie, Ed Wiggins (write-in for president), Jana and Tom Evans (write-in for Safety Director) promise to work together across HGs, PGs, and non-pilots to be transparent and forthcoming in our plans to keep this club what it has been nationally known for, one of the BEST developed free-flight sites in the world.
I’m pretty sure most level-headed adults in the club would agree with me, we DO NOT want this club to be at the same risk experienced by Point of the Mountain and Sylmar/Kagel (Developers are threatening those sites). We also DO NOT want the BOD to be like a HOA. We DO NOT want issues in this club being addressed by rumors, emotions, & conspiracy theories. Help us right the ship!
In closing, please consider the issues at hand, review the documentary statements from concerned pilots, and please vote for the recommended team listed above. Thank you!
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