OCA Board Meeting

July 25, 2004

 AGENDA

PRELIMINARY MATTERS

• Approval of May Minutes
• Set September meeting date - Labor Day is 9/6, Anza star party is 9/11, BSC star party and ETS are 9/18.  9/26 looks best on calendar.
• Financial Summary/insurance status

-        Increase liability limits?  Current limit is $1 million

CONSENT CALENDAR

• Approve amendment of Pad Rules to set the deadline for weed removal each year as May 31 of that year.
• Confirm appointment of Vance Tyree as Anza Broadband Custodian.

MEMBER PRESENTATIONS:

• AstroImage 2004 update (Bill Patterson)
• Bill Patterson - Proposed observatory (plan would not require a building permit or a grading permit, per Gary Schones)

OLD BUSINESS

• Anza site plan/Anza Planning Task Force
• Anza Broadband - Implementation of payment schedule, controlling access, proposed rules for use of the service.

• Observatory roof - support structure also needs repair.
• Kuhn - what can we do to move the repair/renovation project to completion?

NEW BUSINESS

• Fire issues:

-         Fence for Anza site (or portions of the perimeter)

-         Anza Cleanup Day needed to clear out debris from fire; we need to clear out material from our site that was piled on our neighbor's lot, as well.

-         Repairs - electrical repairs on Mars Hill already made by Gary Schones.  Several problems identified by Bruce Waddington corrected by him around 7/14.  He found several GFI units in the Football Field were non-functioning, and plans to replace them.  Notice needs to be given to licensees of pads with problems that they need to correct.

-         No damage to property covered on club's fire policy, minimal damage overall.

-         Policy issue for future: What damage to a pad/observatory in a large scale event such as a fire is it the responsibility of the pad or observatory holder to repair and what damage is the responsibility of the club to repair?

• Proposed widening of roads bordering Anza property.
• Banquet
• Ramp/handicapped access to Anza House needed.  Gary Schones is willing to build a ramp and estimates the cost would be around $400 for materials (pressure-treated lumber).  The existing stairs would be moved to the door for the computer room, which needs a set of stairs.
• Proposal by Gary Schones to convert back kitchen at Anza House (which is largely unused) to another bedroom.  Revised estimated cost:  around $500.
• Trip by Tom Clarke, editor of Amateur Astronomy Magazine, to visit local observatories for possible article (Tom Kucharski)
• Moving of wires for weather station (which currently run across the computer room/control room at Anza House and pose a hazard to anyone walking across the room).

 

UPDATES NOT REQUIRING ACTION

• Dave Radosevich has repaired the focuser of club's 12-inch LX200, and cleaned the optics and lubricated the mount.  He is now undertaking repair of the 10-inch LX200 (the "mirror flop" problem).
• EOA/MOCAT:  12-inch LX200 is now mounted in the Mocat observatory after the repairs.  Connections to the control computers have been completed, and it can be controlled using TheSky.  There is insufficient adjustment room on the pier to properly polar align it while mounted on the existing bolts, so new bolts need to be installed in better position.  Problems with the roof of the observatory binding so it could not be opened easily are being corrected by adjustments and a change in the close-up procedures.
• Posting of pad licensee contact information at Anza site - Charlie has completed map notations showing proper numbering for pads in all pad areas and provided the information to Barbara Toy, who is arranging to have the appropriate numbers painted on each pad.  Letter to pad holders about posting the information on site has not yet been sent.
• Items in storage - We still need to have the radio equipment evaluated to see if any has value and determine what should be done with it (Doug Millar has said he would be willing to do this, but a time has not yet been set).  The boxes of miscellaneous smaller items were sorted and cleaned by Barbara Toy for sale at RTMC; one of the old oscilloscopes and a lot of the other items were sold over RTMC weekend.
• Anza House - Larry Carr has now installed vinyl flooring in all three of the bathrooms, along with the new toilets.  Gary Schones painted the outside, but still needs to finish the trim work.
• Mice/rat eradication in Anza House and observatory
• Awards plans/program update
• Chapman University - show of appreciation.
• Rebuilding/repair of doors/faces of storage cabinets at Chapman - Woody has agreed to do the work, arrangements for access have not yet been made with Chapman University.
• Tessmann update