GACPT Policy for Amenities Usage

The trustees have been made aware of an increasing number of people at the GACPT beach and property who are not GACPT members but short-term guests or tenants using a GACPT member’s house or lot. The numbers of short-term guests or tenants using the beach and property has increased to the point that it is negatively impacting owners and their families’ use of the facilities.

Accordingly, the trustees have voted to implement the following policy to address the situation:
Effective Friday, May 28, 2021, the use of GACPT property and amenities will be limited to GACPT members and their immediate family, the only exception being for long-term tenants who are renting for 31 consecutive days or more. Specifically, short-term renters or tenants, that is, those who are renting or leasing for 30 consecutive days or less, are not allowed access to or use of GACPT amenities, including the beach and beach property, beach docks, tennis courts, picnic areas and tables, cooking grills, basketball court and playing fields. Failure to abide by this policy may result in suspension of privileges for the member whose property is being rented or leased.

Voted unanimously by the trustees: April 15, 2021

Trustees: Roc O’Connell John O’Brien Kathleen Butler Kim Donahue John McGowan

Please note- There is a state park/ public beach area approximately 1/2 mile away from the private Gunstock Acres Beach for those who wish to offer that as an option to renters.

Book your trip to Ellacoya Beach: Visitors can make a reservation before arriving at the park as parking is limited (especially on nice weekends and holidays). Walk-in spaces are available for visitors on a first come/first-serve basis. Reservations can be made up to 30 days prior to arrival.

Gunstock Acres Trust – Trust Document

Declaration of Trust as Amended

May 21, 2016

At the 2016 Annual Meeting of the Gunstock Acres Common Property Trust (GACPT) held on May 21, 2016, two motions to amend the Declaration of Trust dated November 9, 2005 were voted and approved by members voting in person and by proxy. Both motions referred to wording in the “Meetings of Beneficiaries” section of the Declaration.

The first motion was to move the annual meeting from prior to the Memorial Day weekend to prior to the Columbus Day weekend., by replacing the word “Memorial” with the word “Columbus.” This change was suggested because we are now on a year-end fiscal year and budgeting would be improved with a Fall meeting, closer to the budget year. There was little discussion and the motion passed 151-0, including 96 proxies.

The second motion was to eliminate the two sentences referring to the requirement for a budget meeting to be held 40 days prior to the annual meeting. This was suggested because virtually no members except the trustees have been in attendance for almost 30 years (!). Again, with very little discussion, the motion was passed 154-1, including 99 proxies, one of which voted “against.” Trustee Roc O’Connell mentioned that in the future the proposed budget will be prepared by the trustees and sent to the members together with the regular notice of the annual meeting.

It should be noted that in keeping with the Trust Declaration requirement for amendments to the Declaration both motions had been properly moved and seconded at the 2015 Annual Meeting of GACPT. Accordingly, the amended Declaration reads as follows:

DECLARATION OF GUNSTOCK ACRES

COMMON PROPERTY TRUST

[A signed copy of this document was recorded at the registry of deeds of Belknap County on November 10, 1985, book 2241, pages 0586 to 0592.]

This Declaration of Gunstock Acres Common Property Trust is made this __9^th_day of _November_, 2005, by the trustees of Gunstock Acres and Beach Trust, a duly established trust created by G-A-A, Inc. (hereinafter, the Association) under Declaration of Gunstock Acres and Beach Trust dated February 6, 1985 and recorded in the Belknap County Registry of Deeds in Book 893, Page 539-551, February 7, 1985 with a mailing address of P.O. Box 7394, Gilford, Belknap County, New Hampshire, 03247.

PURPOSE

Gunstock Acres and Beach Trust (hereinafter, GABT) hereby intends to establish by this declaration a Trust to have, hold, protect, maintain, operate and improve certain property and assets (hereinafter, the Property) heretofore held and managed by GABT for the use and enjoyment of the Beneficiaries, as hereinafter defined. The Property shall include all cash and investments held by GABT on this date, and the parcels of real estate described in the Declaration of Gunstock Acres and Beach Trust dated February 6, 1985, including, but not limited to, deeds of New England Properties, Inc., dated February 26, 1976 and December 11, 1975, recorded in Belknap County Records at Book 672, Page 130 and Book 666, Page 105, respectively, together with the buildings and other improvements thereon, but excepting such portions of said real estate as have heretofore been conveyed by GABT or the Association.

TERM

The term of this Trust shall be twenty-one (21) years from the date hereof unless earlier terminated or extended by written vote of sixty (60) per cent of the Beneficiaries that vote either in person or by proxy. In the event the term of this trust expires without a vote of the beneficiaries to terminate or extend as provided above, the Trust shall continue to be in effect indefinitely until such vote to terminate or extend is properly voted by the trustees as provided above.

BENEFICIARIES

The owner of record title to each separately designated house lot, whether improved or unimproved, as originally approved for subdivision in Sections 1 through 9 at Gunstock Acres in the Town of Gilford, said County and State, shall hold one beneficial interest in the Trust; provided, however, that upon the date hereof if the said owner is not in good standing with GABT, then said owner shall have no beneficial interest in this Trust.

Determinations of good standing for purposes hereof shall be made in the sole discretion of the Gunstock Acres Common Property Trust (hereinafter, CMPT)Trustees within ninety (90) days hereof, and a listing of lots the owners of which are excluded from beneficial interest hereunder shall be provided by the Trustees and become a part hereof. A Beneficiary will be considered to be in good standing for the purposes of this Declaration when the annual fees, assessments and any other financial obligations of said Beneficiary are paid in full within 90 days of initial billing. Any error in such determination may be corrected by said Trustees, and the affected owner shall thereafter be entitled to benefit hereunder.

VOTING RIGHTS OF BENEFICIARIES

The holders of each beneficial interest shall be entitled to one vote in all matters determined by vote of the Beneficiaries hereunder, regardless of multiple ownership of any lot. In instances of multiple ownership of any lot, the respective owners will decide how to vote on all matters and cast one vote per lot.

RIGHTS TO USE OF TRUST PROPERTY

The rights of Beneficiaries to use and enjoy the Trust Property are limited to two families per beneficial interest, each family being comprised of the immediate household family members of an owner of record of a qualified lot; provided, however, that all record owners of such lots upon the date hereof and their said families shall be entitled to such use and enjoyment of the Trust Property until record title to such lot shall change, in which event the rights of use and enjoyment in Trust Property shall be subject to the foregoing limitation.

In the event a beneficiary rents his/her property, the tenant of an owner may be granted access to the Trust Property in that owner’s stead. For purposes of this section, lots owned by corporations, trusts, estates or partnerships shall be regarded as entitled to a single beneficial interest and therefore entitled to beneficial use rights by only two families.

All use and enjoyment of Trust Property by Beneficiaries and their families shall be subject to rules and regulations governing such use as the Trustees, appointed hereunder, shall from time to time deem reasonable.

TRUSTEES

There shall be seven Trustees, five to be elected by the Beneficiaries, one to be an attorney at law licensed to practice in the State of New Hampshire to be appointed by the elected Trustees, and one to be a professional trustee (i.e., a qualified bank or trust company) also appointed by the elected Trustees.

To be eligible for election as Trustee, an individual must be an owner of record of a lot entitled to beneficial interest in the Trust, and must not be engaged in a practice or occupation which may present any conflict of interest with the performance of his or her duties as Trustee, such as the selling of real estate in Gunstock Acres. The appointed Trustees shall have no vote in matters determined by the elected Trustees; but the attorney Trustee shall be primarily responsible to advise and guide the Trustees in matters of law and in the exercise of the Trustees’ duties hereunder, and the professional Trustee shall be primarily responsible to advise and guide the Trustees in fiscal and investment matters.

The term of office for each elected Trustee shall be three years from the date of election. The initial elected Trustees shall be elected by the beneficiaries: one for a one year term, two for a two year term, and two for a three year term. The initial appointed Trustees shall be appointed by the initial elected Trustees. Any vacancy in the office of an elected Trustee shall be filled by appointment by the remaining elected Trustees until the next election of Trustees by the Beneficiaries, and shall thereupon be filled by said election. Any Trustee who shall fail to perform the duties of Trustee in accordance herewith may be removed by a majority vote of the Beneficiaries at any special or annual meeting of the beneficiaries, provided that notice of such proposed removal is contained in the proper notice for such meeting.

POWERS AND DUTIES OF TRUSTEES

The powers of the Trustees hereunder shall include and be governed by the Uniform Trustees Powers Act (New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated, Chapter 564-A, as amended), excepting those provisions limiting the transfer or delegation of a trustee’s powers or duties. The Trustees shall administer the Trust Property for the Beneficiaries in accordance with said powers and the purposes of this Declaration, subject to the following restrictions:

At no time shall the Trust Property be pledged, leased, sold or encumbered unless approved by vote of sixty (60) per cent of the Beneficiaries that vote either in person or by proxy, nor shall improvements or additions be constructed thereon unless approved by vote of 60% of the Beneficiaries that vote either in person or by proxy. The Trustees will be permitted to, at their discretion and upon majority vote of the Trustees, grant certain easements or encumbrances to hold, protect, maintain or operate the Trust property. Any proposal to construct improvements or additions upon the Trust Property or to liquidate any or all the Trust assets shall not be voted upon until one year after said proposal is properly moved and seconded at an annual or special meeting of the Beneficiaries.
At no time shall the assets of the Trust be placed in high risk or speculative investments.
Any and all income derived from the Property shall be used to hold, protect, maintain and operate the said Property, in that order.
The elected Trustees shall be responsible for the general operations of the Trust, the professional Trustee shall be responsible for financial operations of the Trust, and the attorney Trustee shall be responsible for legal matters and compliance with the terms hereof.
The elected Trustees shall annually prepare and present to an annual meeting of the Beneficiaries a budget for the operation of the Trust in the ensuing year in accordance with the terms hereof, and shall manage the Trust in accordance with the budget adopted by vote of the Beneficiaries.

TRUSTEES’ COMPENSATION

Trustees shall be entitled to compensation for their services, which compensation shall be initially set at $300 per annum. Additional Trustees’ compensation may be authorized by vote of the Beneficiaries, and all such compensation shall be allocated as expenses of the Trust.

MEETINGS OF BENEFICIARIES

There shall be an annual meeting of the Beneficiaries in Gilford, New Hampshire, prior to or during the nationally observed Columbus Day weekend. Notice thereof shall be mailed by ordinary mail to each Beneficiary by the Trustees addressed to the last known address of each Beneficiary, not less than twenty days prior to the date of the meeting. Such notice shall set forth the date, time and place of the meeting, the agenda of matters to be voted or acted upon, the proposed budget, and a copy of any ballot to be used at said meeting.

Special meetings of the Beneficiaries may be called upon request of any three elected Trustees or of ten percent of the Beneficiaries, in which event notice shall be given in like manner for annual meetings.

A quorum must be present at annual meetings and all special meetings in order to transact business and to conduct votes. A quorum will consist of a majority of the elected trustees and those Beneficiaries present and voting in person.

At any annual or special meeting of Beneficiaries, the budget recommended by the Trustees shall be voted upon item by item, including the recommended annual fee, and may not be increased in the aggregate amount by more than ten percent of the recommended budget.

A majority vote of the Beneficiaries that vote either in person or by proxy shall be required to pass the budget or to act upon any other matter except in matters requiring a greater vote as provided elsewhere herein.

ANNUAL FEES AND ACCOUNTS

The Trustees shall estimate in advance of each calendar year all ordinary expenses that they anticipate will be incurred from and in connection with the management and operation of the Property, including expenses of any maintenance and replacement funds, and anticipated income from whatever sources. Any expenses in excess of anticipated income shall be equitably allocated among the Beneficiaries in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles applied on a consistent basis in the form of an annual fee. Each Beneficiary shall be liable for and pay to the Trust such annual fee as provided herein. Any additional or special expenses incurred by the Trust on behalf of any individual Beneficiary shall be paid to the Trust by said Beneficiary on demand or as otherwise required by the Trustees. Trustees shall render annual accounts of their administration to the Beneficiaries and give notice of the availability of such accounts upon written request.

The Trustees shall obtain on behalf of the Trust comprehensive property insurance and liability insurance covering the Trust Property and the actions of the Trustees, their agents or employees hereunder. Additionally, fidelity bonds shall be obtained covering all officers or agents of the Trust handling Trust funds.

Annual fees assessed to the owner of each beneficial interest shall be not less than $45.00. Such annual fees and any additional fees or financial obligations, such as mooring fees, incurred by each Beneficiary must be paid in full within 90 days of receipt of initial billing for same to remain in good standing. In the event of multiple owners of lots, annual fees will be billed separately to the individual owners, but all fees must be paid in full for the lot to be considered in good standing.

Beneficiaries who are not in good standing will be considered delinquent and will not be permitted to use and enjoy Trust properties and will lose all Trust privileges as specified herein. At the discretion of the Trustees, delinquent Beneficiaries that refuse to pay outstanding fees and financial obligations as specified and billed will have their beneficial interest severed under this Declaration of Trust. Notice of such action by the Trustees must be mailed to said Beneficiary by certified mail, return receipt requested and will be recorded in the Belknap County Registry of Deeds. Restoration of beneficial interest for lots severed from the Trust will not be permitted except as specified below.

RESTORATION OF BENEFICIAL INTEREST FOR SEVERED LOTS

Upon written request by the lot owner(s) and upon payment of the fees specified below, the beneficial interest of any lot in Gunstock Acres previously severed from the Trust may be restored, including the beneficial interest of lots severed from the Trust by CMPT, GABT or by the Association at any time in the past or future for any reason, including non-payment of outstanding fees and obligations. The fee for restoration of the beneficial interest for any lot will be $500 for each year or part thereof since the date the lot was removed from the Trust with a maximum total fee of $5,000. The Trustees will record any action taken at the Belknap County Registry of Deeds and the owner of said lot will pay any and all fees associated with such action. Action taken by the Trustees with respect to any one lot will not establish a precedent for any future action by the Trustees with respect to any other lot. A change in the fee for restoration or the maximum total fee amount can be authorized by vote of the Beneficiaries at any annual or special meeting.

ENFORCEMENT OF PROVISIONS OF DECLARATION

Each Beneficiary shall comply with, and hold his rights to use and occupy the Property subject to the provisions of this Declaration as they now exist or are amended from time to time hereafter. The Trustees shall have a duty, subject to their reasonable discretion, to enforce the provisions of this Declaration. In the event that any party breaches any provision of this Declaration, the Trustees may take any lawful action to enforce the provisions of the Declaration, including, without limitation, instituting legal proceedings for damages, injunctive relief or specific performance. In any such legal proceeding, the prevailing party shall be entitled to costs and reasonable attorneys fees. The aforesaid remedies shall be cumulative and in addition to all other rights or remedies that exist hereunder or are available at law or in equity. No breach of any provision hereof by any party shall permit or empower any other party to breach any such provision or excuse any such breach. Failure of the Trustees to enforce any provision of this Declaration on one or more occasions shall not constitute a waiver of the right to enforce such provision on other occasions.

DISPOSITION OF TRUST PROPERTY UPON TERMINATION

In the event the Beneficiaries vote to terminate this Declaration as provided herein, Beneficiaries shall also vote a plan forthe liquidation of the Property, and the Trustees shall execute and record in the Belknap County Registry of Deeds an instrument certifying that the Declaration has been terminated pursuant to the provisions hereof. In that event the Trustees shall forthwith cause the Property to be liquidated or disposed of in accordance with the plan of liquidation voted by the Beneficiaries. In the event the Property is sold pursuant to the plan of liquidation, the Trustees shall allocate and pay the net proceeds of sale to all Beneficiaries in good standing in proportion to their respective beneficial interest in the Property. In such event, the Trustees shall have the right and authority to execute and deliver on behalf of the Beneficiaries any and all documents necessary to effect the liquidation or distribution of the Property free and clear of all covenants, conditions, restrictions and trusts created by the Declaration which shall be thereupon terminated for all purposes.

SEVERABILITY

If any provision of this Declaration shall be deemed invalid, it shall not affect the validity of the remainder of the Declaration.

ASSIGNMENT, SALE OR TRANSFER

A Beneficiary shall have the right to assign, sell or transfer his rights and duties under this Declaration upon conveyance of the lot or lots to which such beneficial interest pertains, provided that the Beneficiary gives notice as required by the Trustees that his successor or assign agrees to assume his rights and duties and that all accrued obligations to the time of such assignment, sale or transfer are paid in full. The proceeds of any such assignment, sale or transfer by any Beneficiary shall belong solely to the party making the same. Beneficial interests hereunder may not be severed by sale, assignment or transfer of the lot or lots to which such interests pertain.

INDEMNIFICATION

GABT will indemnify and save harmless any person employed by it and any officer or member of its governing board, administrative staff or agencies, including, but not limited to the elected Trustees, from personal financial loss and expense, including reasonable legal fees and costs, if any, arising out of any claim, demand, suit, or judgment by reason of negligence or other acts resulting in accidental injury to a person or accidental damage to or destruction of property if the indemnified person at the time of the accident resulting in the injury, damage, or destruction was acting in the scope of his employment or office.

INTERPRETATION

The paragraph titles at the beginning of each paragraph of the Declaration are for convenience only, and the words contained therein shall not be considered to expand, modify or aid in interpretation or construction of meaning of the Declaration. As used herein, the singular shall include the plural, and the masculine or neuter gender shall include the other genders.

AMENDMENT

This Declaration may be amended by means of written instrument recorded in the Belknap County Registry of Deeds; provided, however, no such amendment shall impair the trust obligations of the Trustees. Any proposal to amend this declaration shall not be voted upon until one year after said proposal is properly moved and seconded at an annual meeting or special meeting of the Beneficiaries. Any amendment hereto must be approved by vote of seventy five (75) percent of the Beneficiaries voting, either in person or by proxy. A meeting shall be called by the Trustees upon their own motion or upon request of at least ten percent (10%) of the Beneficiaries for the purpose of amending the Declaration; provided, however, no such amendment may alter the rights and duties of Trustees as provided herein unless Trustees shall expressly so consent in writing. Notice of any meeting hereunder and the determination of the voting power of the Beneficiaries shall be the same as provided herein above for annual meetings. Subject to the foregoing provisions, any amendment shall be binding upon the Trustees and every Beneficiary upon its recordation in the registry.

TITLE TO PREMISES

Title to the Property shall be held by the Trustees in their said capacity hereunder for the period the Declaration remains in force and effect and thereafter as provided hereinabove.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Declarant, GABT. has caused its name to be subscribed and its seal to be affixed by Roc O’Connell, Carolyn Parker, and John O’Brien, Trustees,duly authorized, the day and year first written.

Witness: Gunstock Acres and Beach Trust

Carolyn Parker___, Roc O’Connell____, John O’Brien___

Carolyn Parker Roc O’Connell John O’Brien