Time to take the next step...
A little over 15 years ago, changes were made in our Homeowners Association. Prior to the changes, most association business was all done by volunteers. As we grew in members, the demand for services increased. That along with many new laws and regulations put an increased demand on volunteers.
It was at this time that a paid General Manager was hired. This was Ken Karch. Board President Jimmy Applegate supported the needed changes. Bob Haskin was hired as the Water/Field Superintendent. All had computer skills that vastly improved the operation of the association. It is said that they moved us into the computer age.
It is once again time to take another step.
That step is to become professional. Our Board, staff and most volunteers are not capable of the management needed today. This can be accomplished in several ways. We can hire an outside management firm or/and hire a professional qualified General Manager. We should not expect volunteers to have the experience and expertise to manage our association.
If we had in place the management we should, we would not be in the mess we are today.
Employees without proper safety training, fines and criminal investigations would not happen. Spending would have better controls and priority spending would be the norm. Three to four Trustees is all that would be needed. They could return to their original function of setting policy. The much needed review of policy, including covenants could be accomplished.
The time for change is now.
32 comments:
I would support moving forward wholeheartedly. That being said, I would counsel against a professional management firm. My belief is that it will cost us more for a lower level of service.
What could be a lower level of service than what we have now? Cheap water and a dump. The housing prices (low) are not due to our hoa.
Low housing prices could be directly attributed to the blatant mismanagement of the hoa.
Keep in mind that low housing prices are great if one is buying. And the constant lament from many, including our blog host, is that dues should remain low for the poor folks here. You can't have it both ways. Dues will go up drastically to obtain proper management.
Housing prices are low for a variety of reasons. The "mismanagement of the hoa" is probably the least of them. If you bought here as an investment to make fast money you picked wrong. Other than the bubble of the early 2000's prices have always lagged behind and progressed slowly. This area is considered hard get to or too remote for the majority with the funds to buy a second home, else we'd be priced similar to Cannon Beach with property taxes to match. There's not much going on. Medical access (up until recently) is another consideration.
Low cost, remoteness, nothing going on, is what attracted me here. Other than reading the covenants before I purchased, the HOA didn't factor in and still doesn't.
I cannot, and will not support an organization that does not deal with its members honestly. They support their own self interests, and nothing else. Anything that smacks of progress is ruthlessly eliminated.
The fact that I have served before on nonprofit boards makes me even angrier for the treatment we receive.
cannot and will not support our hoa should pack up and move to a place that better suits
Happy March Everyone!
"For Whom The Bell Tolls"
John Donne
Why don't you take your anti-everything attitude and hit the bricks yourself? Blind followers are how the Nazi party was formed.
Change is coming, whether you want it or not.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
bible thumper hopeful gibberish. The meek will not inherit anything unless they stand up for it. What ever happened to God helps those that help themselves.
eye for an eye my darling lets change everything to benefit only a few
absolutely 12:09pm - LOL!
I'm not a religious person at all. However, I appreciate goodness from all sources.
Ah there's some niceness. Calling me your darling made me feel good. That statement is not sarcasm. I'm sincere when I say that.
Again, let's make some positive change,brake the upper hand. Show the current BIT we want to make this work or look at other options.
And thats different from where we are now in what way?
This is a particularly decrepit strand, which seems to tell us that none of these people could possibly show enough humility to find common purpose, when coming together is what is most urgently needed.
First, to suggest that the problems facing the HOA aren't of any significance is the classic excuse for letting influential people have their way with our money and our lives. You tell yourself you're above the fray, you're too smart to let it bother you, too cool. It's an excuse for being lazy, and fearful of taking a stand.
The community spent a half-million dollars to buy our own Water Plant. The S.S. BOT failed to have it properly permitted, and attempted to build it anyway. We built an equipment shed at around $300,000, and it is also improperly permitted. The BOT blew about $75,000 on the Johansen lawsuit which they dropped at a total loss of Revenue, and just dropped another after spending about $50,000, trying to collect past due fines on a compliant property.
The amount of mistakes, failed management, and lack of oversight on legal matters has the community in a serious bind that means dues just go up in smoke of the many fires the HOA has created and can't put out. Maintenance on the Plant has been delayed repeatedly. We've been told it costs too much, but the lack of permits has stalled progress on the Plant. An enclosing building was budgeted, began without a permit, and legally brought to a halt.
None of this matters ? Only a fool can ignore the obvious mess that puts us all on the hook to pay for mistakes, and accept that our investment is being mishandled, mismanaged, and damaged by the weather. Accept that our water quality is failing due to the other chain of mistakes. Accept that our governance is a failure and will continue to be so. That's what they know, and they must continue to be headstrong and compulsive, and anxious to enforce their rules in inches.
The good of the community is the BOT's charge, and they have abandoned that effort. But they will continue to spend our money on legal expenses with no explanation of what is going on or why.
Well stated! This debacle must end, we need to either take our Association back or dissolve it.
I wonder how many of these BOT's would be there if they had to provide their taxes for our review annually, as well as any holdings or relations with companies Surfside does business with. How it's done in other associations to make sure there are no conflicts of interest.
Do you mind informing me of any of that information? Do you mind giving me pointers on how to to verify that?
I recommend that BOT members are required to disclose all the votes they cast: board meeting votes, annual meeting votes, budget votes, and CC&R votes.
Mike Riley
Many of our problems could be solved with complete, thorough and truthful minutes of each meeting of board members being posted on the Surfside website to inform any member fairly who would be interested in reading. With so many of our members living far away or visiting Surfside rarely, many of us suffer with a lack of transparent and trustworthy information about what is happening in our association. Nothing should ever happen in this association that is hidden from members or the general population. Wouldn't it be great to feel trust and pride in Surfside?
The Tree Committee chaired by Peggy Olds is a prime example of conflict of interest. As enforcement is to be based on member complaints we often hear that those who complain are to be anonymous. We know for certain that many if not most complaints attributed to the Arch. Comm. and Tree Comm. are generated by the Comm. members themselves.
We have heard recently that Arch Comm. members have been told to get out there and write some violations up. As for the Tree Comm., we all know that the Committee does the bidding of J Place owners to "protect their views". The newsest member of the Tree Comm., Ms. Nelson is a new J Place resident. Ms. Olds and Annette deLeest are also J Pl. owners, and there may be others on the committee.
These people have no business on the Committee which serves only J Place interests. Yeah, there's the fear-mongers out there, claiming trees are beyond dangerous. Most of the rest of the world knows this is B.S..
Want to know why some owners despise the Tree Policy ? Because it is based on a lie. There is an intensive program to control most of the owner's trees in Surfside, based on inches, that is strictly to serve J Place owner's whims. That is sick, and a violation of the intent if the covenants - to serve all members fairly and equally.
12:09 your eye for an eye is old testament venom from your god and not mine. Let's keep the fables out of the discussion.
Ok.
Since when did Kurt Olds get on the board? Shouldn't the open position have gone to the runner up from
last years general meeting?
Also noticed, James Flood physically attended May, June, July August and October last year. He was absent March and December and via phone Jan, Feb, April and Sept. I thought board members had to attend 60 % of the meetings. Being on the phone is not attending.
I say he gets booted for not being in compliance.
Kurt Olds, the current BOT, and many of their supporters enjoy proxy voting which the current BOT allegedly voted inappropriately. Due to current BOT not disclosing their election votes, I guess we'll never know for sure.
7:08 nothing requires the board to show you how they vote. Your ballots aren't shared with the entire membership, why would theirs be? No one had a problem when Patrick had over 70 proxies to vote, I guess it just depends on how much your liked as to what rules you have to follow.
If I was a BOT Member, I would disclose how I vote one way or another.
My answer to your question is as follows. See my previous statement.
We as the USA population have a right to know how our elected officials vote. It is all public record. The only exception in this case is for elections of elected officials.
For new or changes to ByLaws and CC&Rs and such, why should SHOA BOT be secret record?
I am against any BOT Member voting more than once for anything.
That is why I've also said that if I was a BOT Member, I would never proxy vote for anybody even if I was asked to do so.
Mike Riley
I'm not saying there should be a requirement for the BOT Members to show how they vote.
I'm saying how I would behave.
If you don't want to know how your BOT Members vote, then vote for those who won't tell you.
Mike Riley
All votes at regular Board meetings are verbal so you know how each Trustee voted. The election votes by members are private, but all Trustee votes by proxy should be made public. Trustees individual vote as a member doesn’t need to be revealed, but members have every right to see how Trustees vote on proxies. We just need to do away with the proxies altogether and let people vote online or by mail. Since the Board squashes floor motions, there is no reason to have proxy ballots anyway. Proxies should all be designated to a specific person - this entire business of the Trustees splitting up proxies is ridiculous. It’s yet another example of abuse of power and manipulation by the status quo.
I agree Deb. Well said.
I'm fully committed to and will never stop arguing for voting by mail and online voting.
I just don't know what else to do with these people who support proxy voting as it is today. This is one of the biggest methods used by the BOT to take the power from the members and maintain it for themselves.
Thanks for your input Deb!
Mike Riley
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