We live in a vibrant community with many good neighbors, and one of the ways we keep our community together is through the work performed by the Lakeport Board. Our Board deals with a wide variety of issues such as capital improvements, landscaping, improving our architectural design standards, maintenance, finance and fees, interaction with Reston Association and Fairfax County, and social get-togethers. We are a working Board, and every member brings interests and skills that match our assigned responsibilities and applies them for the common good. Joining the Board not only allows you to contribute to your community but also is a great way get to know your Lakeport neighbors.
A day in the life
It’s very rare for a Board member to work every day, but most of us have tasks to do at least once or twice per week–some weeks more, other weeks less. This might be reading and responding to emails (sometimes lots of them if there is a hot issue), editing communications or changes to Lakeport standards or other documents, taking care of specific projects such as drafting resources for the web site (e.g., recent maintenance and disaster preparedness documents), evaluating landscaping and maintenance needs (meeting with arborists, landscapers, and other contractors and perhaps even pitching in ourselves to water, trim bushes, fix potholes), and any number of other things like encouraging TGIF get-togethers, signing design documents for neighbors, working with owners about community trees overhanging their properties, and answering questions from owners. Each of the five Board members has a specific role:
- President leads the Board; signs official documents; handles administration, general management, announcements to the community; and serves as the primary interface with Lakeport committees, our management company, and Lakeport’s attorney.
- Secretary takes minutes and sends approved minutes to Lakeport’s webmaster and management company, handles paperwork, and monitors the cluster mailbox.
- Treasurer prepares and monitors the annual budget, reviews monthly financial reports from the management company and summarizes them for the Board, and monitors our accounts and audits.
- Vice presidents take on responsibility for specific critical projects, chair or coordinate with Lakeport committees and/or outside contractors, and write articles for Ripples.
Occasionally, we have a major improvement task that requires a great deal of work (e.g., replacing the dock, paving the entire neighborhood). Fortunately, these occur rarely, but it is helpful to have a Board member with some knowledge of the engineering and other issues involved who can volunteer as the coordinator for the project. Our next major project is scheduled in about two years when we repave all our streets.
More frequently (two or three times per year), much less complicated projects need a coordinator. These are typically related to community relations, drafting/editing documents, or landscaping (e.g., planting bushes or flowers, runoff control). They usually last about a month and require attention several times a week while they are underway.
What you might bring to the Board (among other things)
- An interest in improving our community
- Positive and collegial attitude focused on tangible accomplishments
- Experience reviewing proposals
- Financial skills
- Landscaping, forestry, or horticultural skills
- Project management experience
- Editing skills
- Excel skills
- Engineering and construction skills
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