Rancho Santa Fe Association President’s Corner: Update on several issues

By Philip Wilkinson, Rancho Santa Fe Association President

Our March 6 Board of Directors meeting was another well attended and lively open meeting with a lot of input from members.

The main takeaways from that four-hour meeting with your all volunteer board were:

1. The Finance Committee Chair and Treasurer Larry Spitcaufsky explained that on Feb. 27 the Finance Committee met and found that the Form 990 issue was an “administrative oversight” and immaterial with no liability exposure to the Association or the board. This conclusion was based on an “opinion letter” from the Association attorney and finding of the Finance Committee. The Finance Committee recommended that a letter be placed in our auditor’s file requesting a specific timeline for future reporting periods to provide the Finance Committee and the Board of Directors a draft of the Form 990 before filing the fiscal year-end tax document. Obtaining a comparative compensation survey each year was also recommended.
2. After many months of discussion and debate, a Farmers Market, which will operate on a nine-month trial basis on Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. in the Village, was approved by a vote of 6-0-1. The market will be held on El Tordo, between Linea del Cielo and Avenida de Acacias. We are excited about this trial run and we believe it will be a complement to the Secret Car Club’s weekly events. We hope to see you there.
3. The RSF Garden Club purchase decision will go to a full vote of the membership and, therefore, the board approved the election schedule and the election inspector. Ballots will be mailed on April 4 and are due back by May 5 at 5 p.m.
4. Your Board of Directors expressed its commitment to increase the RSF Association’s voter registration. As of March 1, roughly half of the eligible voters were registered to vote in the upcoming elections. This is unfortunate and we are asking that those members that are not registered to vote on Association matters please visit the Association office and register. If you are a Rancho Santa Fe Covenant property owner and, therefore, a member of the Association you must register (one time) to vote in the Association elections!

The deadline to register to vote for the Garden Club purchase decision is March 24, and if you miss that chance to register then the deadline to register to vote for the Board of Directors candidates is April 25. There are seven candidates for June 9 election that will determine who fills the two board seat openings beginning in July with three-year terms.
The RSF Association has a professional staff of approximately 135 full- and part-time employees, 95 of whom work at the Golf Club. The staff provides services to the members of the Association in the areas of general administration, building and design review, recreational facilities like our world-class golf club and terrific sports fields, Security Patrol, development and maintenance of our nearly 50 miles of trails and several acres of open space, roadside landscaping maintenance, community buildings and other services.

The staff does a very good job of serving our membership so please be sure to let them know how much their hard work is appreciated when you speak with a member of staff. It’ll go a long way.

Lastly, the Covenant has a rich history dating back to the late 1920s and I believe it is one of the finest places on earth to live and raise a family. Let’s all try to focus on protecting that lifestyle and the traditions of this wonderful community.