Dear Bretton Ridge Residents,
Due to COVID-19 Ohio State laws on public meetings and gatherings, this year’s annual meeting in February will be done online. This online option will legally and logistically allow for a larger audience since an in-person meeting is not an option. This year’s pandemic has asked everyone to compromise in ways we never thought, and has asked people to give up things they love to keep people healthy, and still COVID-19 has taken the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans.
With the health and safety of the adults and children of Bretton Ridge in mind, and in keeping with the laws of the State of Ohio in this pandemic on public gatherings, the 2020 board members of the Bretton Ridge neighborhood decided it best to hold the annual meeting online. It has been brought to our attention by a homeowner that this (an online meeting) is ‘against the rules’ according to our neighborhood’s guiding documents. We know that conducting a meeting online is not ideal for anyone, but as the president of the board, I am not willing to put people at risk of contracting, or spreading COVID-19, just so we can follow rules written long before this global pandemic, and the invention of the Internet. Because the spread of more contagious strains of the virus is now a risk, an in-person meeting would be dangerous and irresponsible.
The world has been disrupted by this pandemic, and all of us have known personal loss and community loss. It is simply not in our community’s best interest to hold an in-person meeting this year. Taking a wider look around, you will see companies, groups, and government organizations all over the world are conducting regular business online because they must, because they care about their employees and staff, and because it is possible to do so. I feel the same way about the residents of Bretton Ridge and the Board that so generously serves this community year after year.
We will conduct business in this meeting as if residents were in-person at the library. We will record and post the video and audio of the meeting, making it available to anyone who would like to watch. Normally, we would hand out financial summary statements to anyone in attendance. If you would like to review the report, simply send a request to board@brettonridge.com, and one will be emailed to you. If you prefer a hard copy, please include that in your request with your address, and we will mail you one.
Like so many things in 2020 that challenged our patience and resolve, the ability to do ‘business as usual’ was largely thrown out the window. Personally conducting dozens of Zoom meetings per week, I know that first-hand – as so many of us do. But, here we are…trying to care for one another and our common home of Bretton Ridge. We can all do more to give each other some slack, some grace, and some empathy, and understand we’re simply doing the best we can in this pandemic.
Thank you to all the Board members who have served this year, and for a great pool and park season in 2020. We are all looking forward to brighter and sunnier days in 2021. Please be safe and be kind to one another…
Jon Jarc
Board President
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Here are the details for the meeting – online, February 11, 2021 at 7pm. Homeowners can log on to the meeting here: http://bit.ly/3bwyMxk. Or connect to Zoom and use Meeting ID: 993 7180 8826 and Passcode: e8Bkhf if prompted. The meeting ‘waiting room’ will open at 6:45. Please connect as soon after 6:45 as possible to expedite attendance.
Voting for 2021 board members will be conducted toward the end of the meeting, close to 7:30. A link to vote will be provided during the meeting. Election results will be streamed live during the meeting, and only members with no assessments in arrears may vote. The meeting recording and election results will be posted to the website and social media shortly after the meeting ends.