By Greg Ellison

Those who can pay should, others will have more time

(April 9, 2020) With the covid-19 pandemic hammering the economy, the Ocean Pines Board of Directors last Wednesday voted 6-1 to delay annual assessment fees due May 1 for 90 days until the start of August.

Treasurer Larry Perrone, the dissenting board member, championed a 60-day window that could be extended as needed during the still-developing health crisis.

OPA President Doug Parks said the topic was broached during the board’s last regularly scheduled meeting on March 7, with General Manager John Viola subsequently researching options to assist property owners facing an unanticipated monetary crunch.

Viola said the three-month delay’s financial impact on fiduciary responsibilities and operations could likely be absorbed without tapping replacement reserve funds.

“If we had to go longer, it would have an effect,” he said. “It would be tighter, but based upon the amount of assessments coming in now, we believe we would be okay.”

While acknowledging that the association has enough cash to endure the 90-day revenue gap, the rapidly evolving situation remains riddled with uncertainties, Viola said.

Perrone, who conducted an in-depth look at budget figures with Viola, said no one knows how severe the financial hurdles will become over the next several months.

“I think it’s clear we’ll probably delay the due date some amount of time. The question is how long?” he said.

The overall goal would be avoiding dipping into the OPA replacement reserve account, Perrone said.

“As treasurer, my concern is, if this stay-in-place order stays in place past June, we’re going to be in a little different situation than we would be if we’re able to open up by the end of June,” he said.

If pandemic restrictions continue into the summer and amenities can’t generate revenue in July and August, the financial picture would become even more cloudy , Perrone said.

“If we extend it 90 days, we would be taking more risk because we don’t have enough concrete information,” he said. “We don’t know for sure where we’re going to be, but there is a possibility that we would have to go into our replacement reserve account for operations.”

Perrone espoused providing a 60-day delay option for assessment payments and also noted OPA members who pay dues after July would be ineligible to vote for the 2020 board election.

“With all the uncertainly we have around the numbers, we don’t know for sure where we’re going to be in 60 days,” he said. “If things get shut down for the entire summer, and if it possibly goes into the fall, we could have some serious situations.”

Perrone stressed that the delayed payment option would be intended for property owners suffering from financial distress, while members who can pay should honor the May due date.

Board member Frank Daly asked if additional financial data could be acquired before the board’s May 2 meeting.

Viola said roughly 90 percent of fees are usually submitted by the end of May.

Daly also suggested any delayed payments should be tracked to differentiate between members who need assistance and the few who typically pay late.

“If you want to defer, have them contact the administration building,” he said.

Daly said the May meeting date also could be delayed slightly to gain a clearer picture of the association’s finances.

“If we go to May, and things go to hell in a hand basket and somebody says, ‘I think we’re going to extend this for 60 days,’ then we have a lot different discussion than at the end of May us being out of the woods,” he said.

Board member Tom Janasek, while acknowledging the association’s monetary uncertainties, expressed strong support for the 90-day window.

“This is an opportunity for Ocean Pines … to be a community again that takes care of its own,” he said. “It really goes a long way to the psyche of our community to let them know what we are planning as a board.”

Board member Camilla Rogers backed the perspective shared by Janasek, while also supporting Daly’s notion to track those needing help by offering to create an application form.

“We need to know how we can help them if more help is needed and direct them towards appropriate resources,” she said.

Parks also expressed support for a 90-day grace period to pay dues, while simultaneously agreeing with Perrone the overall aim should be avoiding using replacement reserve funds to cover future revenue shortfalls.

“That’s not unprecedented, that’s been done in the past, but if we can avoid doing that, we certainly should set that as one of the goals,” he said.

Parks cast doubt on the need to track members taking advantage of delayed payment options.

“If someone doesn’t send in their assessment, the system will tell us that,” he said.

Parks also noted the importance for members not experiencing financial uncertainties to meet the May due date.

“If you can still make the payment, please do so,” he said. “We still have a fiduciary responsibility to our contractual obligations and our staffing.”