I went up there today to take a look at the storage shed. They have done a nice job. However the entrance doors face the West and will have driving rain pelting against it. It needs a covered porch extension to protect the doors. I didn't get close enough to see if there was protection at the bottom of the doors, where moisture could blow in. In this climate, rot happens fast. There were two water dept employees doing some grade work.
The cache is located off J Place at the entrance to the water system complex.
The second picture is of the evacuation sign by Oysterville. I have often questioned why there are none in Surfside. I know us locals know where the high ground is, but tourists and clam diggers may not, especially if an evening tide when it is dark. Seems like the staging area by the inn should also be identified.
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| West side entrance faces J Place. The building is straight and level, the picture taker isn't. |
63 comments:
Is this storage shelter intended for all of Surfside and if not who paid for this. It seams that it could only supply a limited few?
Was voted down I believe, but with tricky accounting it’s allowed. Not even big enough for those in immediate area. Least I know where to go, worst case.
For those who chose to live in an earthquake/tsunami zone it never ceases to amaze me how misinformed and ignorant people are when it comes to survival. Here we have a prime example of posters who have no idea what this project is about and it's intended purpose.
Why don't you 2 tell us your plan to survive a tsunami/earthquake event?
I live higher than u,lol. They say if above 40 feet above sea level be ok. If it’s higher than that. Cache won’t help.
Btw, when was that last big tsunami? Like planning for asteroid.
Tsunami sure cure view problem,lol
This entire HOA is whacked out! Talked to a lady last nite and I told her where our place was. She just rolled her eyes. I now get the point!
This makes a nice monument to throwing money at a problem instead of researching it and making a rational decision. This is a ridiculous and unattractive addition that makes no sense at all.
It was researched, and rejected. They did it anyway on a smaller scale, for a privileged few. Kinda like forced the lowlanders to butcher their trees after no enforcement for a period long enough for the trees to get that big.
In a real emergency, the cache will become the property of the person(s) with the biggest guns.
How about the anti gun protestors? Will they come running to the lowlifes for protection?
yeah right gunman. You'll be beaten to death by a crowd who realizes THEY are the law enforcement. You must have an impressively small hat size. We are always stronger together.
6:52 gunna be the one in front? What world does he live in? There is how you think it should be, and how it is. He needs to travel more.
Those who are allowed to use the cache shed should be charged for the labor, equipment and supplies to erect and maintain it.
Absolutely! Another elitist privilege in SHOA! A fact is a fact. Wish I’d never heard of this place. My mistake! No one to blame but myself.
7:33 ... Your comments don't make any sense. Big into intimidating ? On an HOA blog as "anonymous" ? Pitiful.
First of all, those of us who live here know that the safest and most accessible spot for emergency equipment/supplies is in your own home,ready to go, not locked up in a locked fenced up, locked shed. Next, I wonder about how the funding was procured for this project. If it was self funded by the users, then I have no problem. However, the previous Treasurer of the HOA had a policy of giving any committee established by the Board, $3000 without question, and without having to obtain any Board approval. Methinks this is how the Tree Committee got there Flash Gordon binoculars to the tune of $2000. Funny thing though is that the Emergency Committee was closed down even before this project was initiated, therefore no committee to give the $3000 to. therefore it must have gone to some individual or group of persons who then purchased the materials to build the cache. That might mean that the Treasurer gave the money to someone outside the structure of the HOA to, in effect, fund a personal project. Might it have been the funds that were over collected for the water meters and not refunded to those who were overcharged? Too bad the overpayers don't have first crack at this project that they vicariously paid for. My bet is tht they would have wanted their money back vs build the cache. What about the property? Am not sure if it is on donated personal (shed rules apply) property or HOA property? If HOA property, is it rented or donated? We probably will never be afforded the real answers.
11:44 sees the real picture! Shady deals everywhere you look in SHOA.
I give it a year and those hinges will be rusted off.
Forgot to mention that the construction pictures circulated earlier has the spouse of a Board member helping out. Maybe that is the connection that got them the funds? Need a real forensic audit of the books as we are being overcharged in some areas and not accountable in others. Wonder what will be hidden during the budget meeting? Perhaps they will refund the $60k + that was spent on legal and then dropped as it was known they would lose anyway. We need a financial manager to watch over these activities!
Keep preaching to the choir. I have been for years to no avail. Somethins’ not right with this whole picture. If a unbiased auditor came in, what do you suppose he/she would uncover? Bet it would t be good for BOD. Just sayin
I just find it hard to understand why such a big deal is made over spending $3.000.00 on an emergency storage shed. Except for some grade work done by the employees, the construction was done by volunteers at no cost. We know that labor is usually the most expensive part of any construction. The employee labor costs were charged to the project. Expenses under 3,000.00 dollars do not require Board approval. The funds came out of the operating budget.
Hands on volunteers are hard to find. Most of the committees, other than Community Relations, just sit around the table and visit and try to feel important.
The real outrage is the spending that is over budget. That includes fines and disposal of AC pipe, suing members over sheds and surplus of water department employees. Replacing pipe that has never been proved to be needed. One computer program after another and still not adequate.
Be alert to diversion tactics that hide the real problems we have.
3000$ is a big deal George with the out of control spending in this HOA. I usually agree with 99% of your views, but not this time. I will NEVER believe that there wasn’t money spent out of HOA budget. Doesn’t mean we can’t still be friends on this blog. I respect your efforts keeping members informed. See, you hateful bloggers! You can disagree and still be civil and agree to disagree.
George, you forgot to mention money spent on the fortress to protect the friendly office staff! Ridiculous!
Are the “volunteers” who did it, the ones that have access?
I will take 99% any day. It is also right about the fortress. Truth be known, the budget could probably be reduced at least 100,000 and still provide the needed services. I would like to see a Board goal of reducing the budget 10% each year. They might start setting real priorities. As an old friend said..."give them the money and they will find a way to spend it" (Sophia Platt)
Oh for Pete's sake, you people are too much. Is there any wonder why it is hard to get people to volunteer? I get it, you don't like the project. Fine. But why go after someone who gave up their time to help out for free no matter who they are married to? What about the other gentlemen who also gave their time to help with the construction, what's in it for them?
BTW, I've seen that spouse you attacked at the chipper gate and other functions for the SHOA so it wasn't just for this. What have any of you done?
8:50. It is because we are being taken advantage of by a few. Many of us have tried to volunteer on projects that would bring some common sense back to this organization only to be heavy handed out, so we gave up. You may think $3000 is no big deal, but it isn’t your money to spend on your selfish interests. As it was pointed out about the Federal Govt, the organizations have no money, we the people own it, thus we expect it to be spent wisely. Projects that have been cancelled, exorbinant waste on uneccesary legal fees, high tech binoculars, unneeded remodeling, fines, incompetent water replacement program. Those are just some of the problems created by a few that drive our concerns. Any CEO who ran a million dollar organization as this is run would have long since been replaced. Maybe it is time we hire a professional organization who understand business to replace our ineffective Board.
Seems 8:50 defends the “volunteers” involved with the cache, but sidesteps the whole question of are they the same people that will have access. Hoa funds, labor, etc. but nobody will cop to who can use it.
Typical SHOA secret/secrets. You aren’t privileged to know the goings on unless you are part of the Mafia. Calling a spade a spade!
Two of the most visible controlled activities where folks wanted to participate but were thwarted, were the dissolution of the Emergency Committee (which gave birth to the cache) and the Tech Committee. They seemed to somehow conflict with what persons on the Board wanted to do, so they were axed. Maybe they would have taken some of the valuable funding that is being wasted elsewhere.
Technically, everyone in Surfside had the opportunity to buy into this project. The reality is, the boxes to be bought by the individuals involved are so large that not more than about 50 will fit. It will not house basic necessities that can be doled out, but will contain about 50 locked gear boxes that belong to individuals.
The logistics of someone making it up to the cache with the fence and door key, and the owners of the boxes making it up there too, in a Tsunami event, is very improbable to work.
The money spent isn't that significant, but the plan is a head-scratcher. Since we cannot fathom what could take place in such an event, we can only guess that someone may actually benefit from this cache. But it is not an emergency cache for the community, just 50 households that aren't likely to even be in Surfside unless they are full-timers, must hear the warning sirens and act quickly enough to make it to the cache.
Oh yeah, and they'll have to do battle with the gunman.
The EMC was not terminated, they are still an active committee
9:44 better check your facts, the emergency management committee is still going. Curious why people don't check on facts before stating them as such here
Tech committee was greatly needed by those members who aren’t in the Mafia. What a shame!
The EMC should be renamed the Sky is Falling (SIFC). Many of their projects were harebrained to say the least. I don't need to be protected from many of the pitfalls they think we face.
Which one is Chicken Little yelling, “ the sky is falling, the Sky is falling”!
12:59 and 1:01 My humble apologies if the EMC is still a real committee. I should have said it has gone dormant since the Board disapproved the Cache Project. Somehow even though the Board disapproved it, some of the folks still were able to convince the Treasurer to disburse funds from our ever liquid treasury. If the Board stopped it, don't you think that it was against better judgement to continue handing out the money and providing real estate? Regardless, the far better idea the Tech Committee was stopped by the "Buddha". Perhaps there is still $3k available to the remnants of that committee to go forth and begin to accomplish what they set out to do. It would be best to be "tranparent" to the rest of the members as to where their dues were being placed.
Still not hearing who in general has access to the cache, I know I wasn’t asked. Buying into the cache? We all paid for it. Even though we were told it was scrapped.
You need to dial it back there 8:03. No where in my comment did I address the idea of the storage shed because I don't have anything to do with it. So you being upset about the $3000 and saying I'm selfish and spending your money makes no sense. I take issue, and always will, with people who go after those members who volunteer for our community. I believe it took those folks a couple days to get it built. I'm sure they could have spent that time doing personal things. Anyone who donates their time should be thanked. I'm not saying you have to but at least don't be insulting towards them.
Same goes for you 9:18.
It was not a matter of volunteering for the good of the community, it was the execution of personal agendas at the expense of others, without concern for or about others, you are a hypocrite 8:50.
In my conversation with the committee chairman, he stated that there was one or at the most two J Place residents who have an emergency cache container in the storage shed. In my opinion, that pretty much shoots down the "personal agenda" issue.
While I am not a great supporter of the storage shed, I am a supporter of those who volunteer their time and talents out of concern for their fellow members. That is a positive for any homeowners association.
I am sure they would appreciate and consider any ideas that members have in regard to emergency preparedness and response. You can do this by attending a meeting or even sending them an Email or letter.
It is easy to sit back and be critical, but takes some effort to be a contributor. I admit to sitting back, other than providing information and support on this blog.
Of course this is just my opinion, but it is the way I see it. As a frequent comment often says.."just saying".
4:32... The "Surf-In-Sider" did at least one article about the Cache, and I believe the weekly offered info about signing-up over several weeks. The blog had conversations about it for a couple of months or more. This was not a secretive matter, nor did anyone get first shot at it. Not popular I guess, so not well planned.
I think that basic necessities in bulk would make more sense, but any food stuffs would need to be refreshed, maybe annually, at a significant cost. Such stuff could be gifted to the food bank. But it is hard planning for an event that may occur only once every 300 years or so.
Most of the peninsula is challenged to find any practical safeguards as there is little high ground except at the Cape.
Problem is this: this whole cockeyed idea was squelched but somehow they still continued to carry on. How is that transparent or ethical? Thought this was a HOA, not a MOA(Mafia homeowner assn). It just keeps getting worse!
OMG, there is no conspiracy. They rejected the first plan because it was over budget. They authorized the second one because it was within their budget. If anyone cared to read minutes you would find all this information.
Ridiculous! But they couldn’t move on with Tech Committee that would have benefitted all? OMG IS RIGHT!
OMG! only 193 responses from the membership tell me no one cares about the TECH lol
193 is pretty good considering the opposition and non-cooperation from Buddha and his accomplices.
193 of 2000+ is good? not even 10%
It appears the majority is not interested, as with most things
!:52 also fails to realize that since there were no controls set up for the poll people could submit more than one, which undoubtedly some did. So the 193 is far from accurate. Even if it was, a reasonable person can make the claim that there is was no strong desire for the committee, just a few.
You miss the point. There was so much work against this proposal that I doubt if the word got out to 20% of the members even noting the announcement in the Weekender (nobody reads it anyway). Therefore 10% was a good return, and there was no advantage for anybody to respond more than once, although there probably was a minuscule number that may have. I guess we both can rationalize any result we want to. There is no doubt though that the Board and their close ally's didn't want this to happen and pulled whatever shenanigans they could do stop it. Doesn't mean it shouldn't be revived.
5:32. Give me a valid reason why you would be against members ability to vote, pay dues, garnish their compactor passes, etc. online? I may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but I can’t find one reason why anyone would argue that capability. Spare me any sarcasm as I’m trying to wrap my brain around the controversy of the Tech Committee. Doesn’t every upstanding member wish for transparency and feeling informed on all business of SHOA?
The key word is “upstanding” . Looks like we are going to see behind the curtain soon.
No Freakender. Miss the puzzle.
The Tech Committee was dissolved at president William's insistence. He was mad at Deb Blagg for trying to remove him from the BOT, and his image was much more important to him than what benefits the Tech Comm. could bring to the community.
I think the Committee's survey was simply a test run to gauge interest, and to not deal with anything controversial. Too much has been made of this, when there really was much more work the committee intended to do. Getting past the chasm between the devoutly detached members who never vote or get involved in S.S. governance, and the "ruling class elite" who are repeatedly re-elected to the Board, is bound to take some time and patience.
You have to build relationships, and demonstrate good will.
It’s too bad Buddha (aka Williams) and his band of merry elitists (the Board, with only knowledge of how to follow, not lead) did not have the foresight to see the good possible with the Tech Committee instead of their petty jealousy. Perhaps the Committee could have received one of these $3000 ‘gifts’ and been able to really do something positive for this crumbling organization. Pity.
So 7:31 PM what the hell does "garnish your compactor pass" even mean?
Really that stupid to think he meant garnish? Really? Your hater self is showing
Helpful tech improvements should be coming from competent employees, not another dippy committee. The survey was crap. The survey was a perfect example of the incompetency and waste of time that exudes from most committees in Surfside and elsewhere. When will Surfside wake up to the value of competent professionals to do the job?
11:33 The answer to your question is NEVER as long as this Board and GM are in place.
And the current employees
This cache will be vandalized and broken into regularly, just wait, the tweekers are a coming!
There's nothing in there worth the effort and risk. Only 2 individuals have boxes in there, and no reason why it would have stuff of value. Would you keep you Krugerands and jewelry in there or food and clothing ?
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