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SPARKLE LAKE ASSOCIATION, INC.
YORKTOWN HEIGHTS, WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NEW YORK
CHARTER AND BY-LAWS
| Objectives
| Membership | Dues | Terms and Election of Officers and
Board of Directors |
| Duties of Officers and Directors
| Committees | Meetings
| Voting | Amendments
| Adoption |
| Revision Date | By-laws Committee |
ARTICLE I Title
The name of this organization is the Sparkle Lake Association, Inc.
The objectives of the Sparkle Lake Association are the advancement of the best interests of the Sparkle Lake Community, including maintenance of the Hyatt Street park facilities, enhancement of property values in the community, promotion of congenial social relations among all members of the community and involvement with local government agencies regarding matters of concern to the community.
Section 2 A property-owning member is one who owns a home, or property on which a home can be constructed, with deeded lake rights in the Sparkle Lake community and who has paid the annual dues. Officers and members of the Board of Directors must be property-owning members.
Section 2a All members of the immediate family living with a property-owning member shall be considered members of the association.
Section 2b A property-owning member shall have one vote on association business, as defined in Article IX.
Section 3 An associate member is one who rents a home with deeded lake rights in the Sparkle Lake community and who has paid the annual dues. An associate member shall be entitled to participate in social activities and to vote as defined in Article IX.
Section 3a Residents who rent accessory apartments within the Sparkle Lake community are eligible for associate membership upon payment of annual dues, regardless of the membership status of the homeowner, provided that the house in which they reside has deeded lake rights.
Section 4 Members shall have the right to invite guests to community functions. Additional event fees may be charged for guests.
The fiscal year begins on April 1.
Section 2 Any member whose dues are in arrears 15
days shall be notified of his/her delinquency by the Treasurer and/or Membership Director
by mail to his/her address, and if not paid in 30 days shall be dropped from membership. Section 3 Any member dropped from
membership for non-payment of dues shall be reinstated upon payment of dues. Section 4 Payment of dues may be waived at
the discretion of the Board of Directors. A simple majority vote of the board shall be
required. ARTICLE
V Terms and Election of Officers and Board of Directors
In the event that two
members of the same family wish to participate on the Board of Directors, they shall
constitute one Board member and shall have one vote between them. Votes cannot be split. Section 1a Thirty days prior to the annual
meeting, the President shall appoint a nominating committee of three Board members. The
nominating committee will recommend eligible members for election to the Board of
Directors. Section 1b The election of Board members
shall be by written ballot, and a plurality of votes cast shall constitute an election.
All of the above shall not be construed to prohibit or discourage nominations from the
floor. Section 2 Board members will serve
two-year terms, and may serve three consecutive terms (for a maximum of six years on the
Board). The term maximum can be waived at the discretion of the Board of Directors. Former
Board members will be eligible to serve again after one year. Terms will expire on a
rotating basis, such that no more than three terms will expire in any year. Section 2a In the event of a mid-term
resignation, the Board of Directors shall appoint a property-owning member to fill the
unexpired portion of the term. Section 3 The officers shall include: (1)
the President, (2) the Vice President/Secretary and (3) the Treasurer. Section 3a Officers shall be elected by
the Board of Directors from among the Board members. Section 3b The President, Vice
President/Secretary and Treasurer shall be elected for a one-year term and may not succeed
themselves more than once, except under extraordinary circumstances. A vacancy in the
office of Vice President/Secretary or Treasurer shall be filled by election of a Board
member to serve the unexpired portion of the term. ARTICLE
VI Duties of Officers and Directors
The President shall be
the primary representative of the association to town and other government officials and
boards. He/she may delegate these tasks to other members of the Board of Directors, as
appropriate. The President shall also perform such other
duties as customarily pertain to this office. Section 2 The Vice-President/Secretary
shall, in the event of a vacancy in the office of President, become President for the
unexpired term and perform all of the above duties. The Vice-President/Secretary shall keep an
accurate record of the proceedings at all Board meetings and membership meetings, and
shall submit these minutes for approval at the next Board meeting. He/she shall assure the
filing of any documents required by federal or state statute and will be the official
custodian of the records of the association. The Vice-President/Secretary shall be responsible
for the preparation and distribution of newsletters and other communication with members.
He/she may delegate these tasks to association members. The Vice-President/Secretary shall also perform
such other duties as customarily pertain to this office. Section 3 The Treasurer shall receive and
keep a record of all money collected by the association from membership dues, event fees,
raffles, sales and any other sources. This record shall be made available to any
association member upon three days notice. He/she shall expend funds as directed by the
Board, or by vote of the property-owning members. The Treasurer shall be responsible for the
collection of dues, and may assume the duties of Membership Director. Those duties shall
be to furnish new members with Membership Cards and By-laws after payment of dues and to
keep an accurate roll of all members with their mailing addresses and phone numbers. The Treasurer shall prepare and present the
annual audited financial report at the annual membership meeting. The Treasurer shall also perform such other
duties as customarily pertain to this office. Section 4 The Board of Directors shall act
together in an advisory capacity for the good of all members and perform such other duties
as may arise. The Board’s activities shall be recorded by the Secretary at each
meeting. The Board of Directors shall audit the financial
report annually, at the Board meeting immediately preceding the annual general membership
meeting. A quorum of five members shall be necessary for a
meeting of the Board, although informal discussions may be held with fewer members
present. Any member of the Board of Directors who is absent without good cause for more
than three consecutive meetings shall be removed from office upon the vote of the Board,
after the member has been notified by the President of the impending removal. Section 4a A member of the Board of
Directors shall serve as liaison with the Town of Yorktown Recreation and Parks
Commission. Section 4b A member of the Board of
Directors shall serve as liaison with the Town Board and town department heads to
represent our community’s interests in the establishment of policy and/or the
administration of town functions. These duties may be incorporated with those of the
President, at the President’s discretion. Section 4c A member of the Board of Directors
shall serve as liaison with the Council of Neighborhood Associations. Section 4d A member of the Board of Directors
shall serve as Membership Director. The Membership Director shall be responsible for
encouraging all residents with deeded lake rights to join the Association and shall
furnish new members with Membership Cards and By-laws after payment of dues and shall keep
an accurate roll of all members with their mailing addresses and phone numbers. These
duties may be incorporated with those of the Treasurer, at the Treasurer’s
discretion. Section 2 The following standing committees shall
be established: 1) Entertainment 2) Beautification/Adopt-A-Road 3) Beach/Clean-up Section 3 Standing committees shall meet
in January to identify appropriate goals and activities for the coming year and to prepare
budgets for submission to the Board of Directors. Section 4 Ad-hoc committees shall be
established as deemed necessary by the President, with approval of the Board of Directors.
Ad-hoc committees shall have specific objectives and shall be dissolved upon completion of
their tasks. Section 4a Additional standing committees
may be established at the discretion of the Board of Directors. Section 2 The general membership meeting shall be
held annually. Special general membership meetings may be held as deemed necessary by the
President or the Board of Directors. Members can request a special meeting by submitting a
written request, signed by at least five members, to the President. All association members shall be notified of the
annual general membership meeting no more than 20 and no fewer than 10 days prior to the
meeting date. Section 3 The President will conduct all
general meetings. The following will be the order of business for the annual meeting: 2) Report on the year’s activities and
accomplishments and preview of coming year’s objectives 3) Treasurer’s report 4) Committee reports 5) Old business 6) New business 7) Courtesy of the floor 8) Adjournment Section 3b The order of business will be
modified as required for special general meetings. The President will determine the
appropriate agenda and will announce it at the opening of the meeting. Section 4 No member may have the privilege
of the floor to speak on any topic under discussion for more than five minutes. No subject
may be discussed for more than thirty minutes, after which time the President will appoint
a committee to study the topic and report its findings at the next meeting of the Board of
Directors. Section 2 An associate member shall have one vote
in the election of Board members, but will not be eligible to vote on policy issues and
amendments to the Charter and By-laws. There shall be only one associate member vote per
parcel of property. Votes may not be split in half. The provisional
Charter and By-laws will be presented for approval by the membership at the next general
meeting and will be distributed to all members no more than 20 and no fewer than 10 days
prior to the general membership meeting. It will be adopted by a simple majority approval
of property-owning members, present or by proxy. If the Charter and By-laws is not adopted, the
By-laws Committee will reconvene to address any issues identified as an impediment to
adoption. The process of provisional adoption and presentation to the membership will be
repeated. Diane Charash Return to Top of Page
Peggy Derevlany
Dave Humphrey
Rhonda Santini
Donna Theall