By Greg Ellison

(Sept. 17, 2020) Recently ensconced OPA Treasurer Doug Parks reviewed short-term investments, annual assessment payments and replacement reserve fund balances during the Board of Directors’ meeting on Sept. 9.

Parks opened the report by updating investment numbers.

“The overall laddered investment rate of return on CDARs for July was approximately 1.9 percent,” he said.

Parks said as of this July 31 the association had roughly $13.5 million in cash. Of that, approximately $7.1 million is in CDARs (Certificate of Deposit Account Registry Service) and about $6.4 million between money market funds and other operating accounts.

Parks turned next to collection rates for annual assessments after membership was provided several extra months to pay because of the current covid-19 pandemic.

“I did some research and it was based on the fact that we had covid-19 this year and we made some adjustments in the way people are going to pay their assessments,” he said.

Parks said looking back over the past five years the association averaged about 95 percent rate of return for annual assessment dues.

“If you look at the 92 percent we have this year as of Sept. 1 … it’s pretty good considering. However, please note that … accounts for a $708,000 shortfall in the amount of assessment money we would have budgeted to collect,” he said.

Parks also presented a chart outlining the collection rate of return over the past few months.

“You saw a big uptick in April, May and June [but] right now we’ve sort of leveled off,” he said.

Parks also covered reserve account balances, including replacement, bulkheads, roads and new capital.

“I will certainly continue the trend as we’ve done in the past and we will monitor our reserve funding,” he said.

Parks said about $1.6 million has been spent from reserve funds for projects undertaken this fiscal year.

“At the end of last fiscal year, there was $5.6 million among all the different reserve funds,” he said. “At the end of July, the current balance in our reserve funds collectively is $7.2 million.”

Replacement reserve funds sat at about $3.5 million to close the last fiscal year on April 30, with $1.9 million from assessment fees and $900,000 expended for current projects since that point to leave a tally of $4.4 million on July 31.

Bulkheads closed FY19/20 on April 30 at $1.6 million, which was boosted by $900,000 in assessment fees with $500,000 spent since that point to leave a roughly $2 million balance as of July 31.

Roads and drainage reserve funds sat at $500,000 to end the last fiscal year, with casino funds contributing $300,000 since that time and $100,000 expended for a roughly $700,000 balance on July 31.

New capital reserves had a $100,00 balance on July 31 after $200,000 from assessment fees was transferred in and about $100,000 was spent since April 30.

Parks, while noting the association spent a large sum on capital projects this year, highlighted the importance of continuing to monitor reserve funds based on a motion the board passed two years ago to assure balances were maintained at prescribed percentages.

“These are projects that we have expensed over this past year and we’re starting to make sure that we manage both the expense side and where we are with the balance in the reserve funding with a target at the end of this current fiscal year of $5.05 million,” he said. “If there are unplanned expenses we’ll certainly have to manage that.”