The comment below certainly does express a common sense understanding of our present situation. They have said it much better than I can or most who post comments on here. I find everything stated as factual and makes sense. Thanks for the thoughtful comment. These are the kind of comments that lead to a meaningful discussion of the issues. This is the intent of the blog.
- 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. - March 1, 2019 at 9:41 PM
29 comments:
They are more than fools. They are contemptuous people. They act with contempt of others, of oversight, and of external regulations.
The person making the common sense observations is exactly the kind we need on the board. If we had that kind now, we would not be in the mess we are. Please consider being a candidate for the board. You have my support and probably many others.
People have made the same observation before 8:10 and have voted for such people and got them elected. I have and those same people elected ended up being quitters.
I'm guessing it gave you great pleasure that they were not allowed to participate, which is what it boiled down to. Patrick served his 3 year term, though he had been harassed so by certain Trustees and Arch. comm. members, he had put his property up for sale. He gave notice about a month before his 3 years were up, as required due to no longer owning S.S. property.
Anyone who reads the Blog, and you obviously do, should understand why Deb Blagg resigned from the Board. Several hostile idiots constantly insulted and harassed her on the Blog, always ganging up as if taunting a new kid on the block, with nothing of substance to say but ridicule. Their comments often were deleted by George because they so disrespected common decency.
Mr. Williams has this same mentality, and sought to crush Johansen with the financial clout of the sizeable Surfside coffers. He has been key in the wasteful legal spending and intimidation of owners with viewpoints differing from his. There has been no tolerance of Trustees who want to make their own judgement about the issues they deal with.
Actually Deb Blagg was serving a one year term to complete George's last year. He also was harassed into resigning. There really is no excuse for other Trustees participating in this childish hazing b.s. It's what people do who fear their complete inadequacy will be discovered - create a campaign of hateful treatment and rumored ill intent to belittle the independent minded free thinkers.
That's how we got into so much trouble. Williams and crew have been so busy high-fiving one another they fell in a deep hole of their own creation. They expect us to pay for their mistakes.
Yep, I am a quitter, not once, but twice. I gave them a second chance. I should have known that with the same people there, nothing would be different. kind of fits the definition of insanity. I can get more information to the members by being off the Board than on. Guess I have to much integrity to be part of "the Board".
To clarify the rumor that I resigned from the Board: I was elected to fill the remaining one-year term of another Trustee who resigned. My term officially ended on the day of the Annual Meeting, when newly elected Trustees were sworn in. I resigned on Fri night at 5PM, less than 24 hours before my term ended. I did this so that I could make floor motions as a Member, rather than sitting at the table with the other Trustees.
3:37 This biased view of how things have been does nothing to help or fix this association. Facts about Blagg were reported on this blog that the blog host frequently chose to delete. It was not a matter of hazing. It was a matter of her own actions speaking as loud as her hypocritical words.
Quitting because things aren't going your way is always an option when serving on a board. It isn't really honorable or effective to quit but an option usually taken in hopes of manipulating the circumstances as demonstrated by the host and Blagg.
Surfside will not get better until the game playing, lack of integrity crap stops. This blog is often used to continue a narrative that fosters discontent and contentiousness. We need some standup people who are willing to set aside their personal wishes and goals to serve on the board for the good of the entire community.
Deb and George, we appreciate your efforts, despite the outright garbage that has been thrown at you. Please continue, as we still need to find a way out of this swamp!
So, it's going to take us a few cycles to replace the whole board, right? Let's start and continue this, as well as make some changes. 60 percent attendance means physically there, everything is on the up and up, all owners are treated the same, whether full time or not since they pay the same fees. First up should be mail in or online voting allowed.
4:14 PM it will never change no matter how many cycles you put it thru. If I go back to the start of my tenure here ( 2001 ) there are high hopes by the disgruntled every year that the new trustees will right the ship. Within months these new trustees are being vilified and the chopping block is too good for them. And these trustees are your friends and neighbors.
Really? Guess we need better freinds. Least ethical neighbors would be nice.
They are NOT my friends. No friend of mine treats me the way the BOT treats me.
02/22 11:49 Comment on "Seeking Information" Topic.
What is your intent on posting my name only? Why post someone else's name and hide while doing so? Are you threatening me? Are you trying to intimidate me? That is the current BOT way.
By the way, when posting someone else's name and hiding you should spell their name correctly.
Mike Riley
4:14 we can impeach every board member at the annual board meeting and start fresh, there is no rule that we cant do this and I feel that is what should happen.
Martin, I made a motion at the Annual Meeting to remove the Executove Committee. The BOT, along with its lawyer, forced me to change my motion to remove the entire Committee to recalling each Trustee individually. This was another example of manipulation by the BOT. Had my initial motion been allowed to go forward, every Trustee on the Executive Committee would have had to revise themselves from the vote - along with all the proxies they held. By breaking it up into four votes, the remaining three Trustees were able to use their proxies to protect one another. Since this was a member meeting - not a Board Meeting - I think every action taken by the BOT to interfere with allowing Members to make floor motions and put them to a vote were improper. We can only hope that the exposure we are getting by the media and government agencies will eventually expose the corruption the BOT is employing to abuse the members.
I think Blagg meant to have written recuse themselves from the vote. A deceitful and manipulative move to fix a problem never works out well. It takes integrity and decency to truly fix problems.
Correction, “Had my initial motion been allowed to go forward, every Trustee on the Executive Committee would have had to recuse themselves from the vote”
Was the lawyer's name Sam Jacobs?
Typical of Blagg. No thank you for making sense of my error just a correction as if she did it with no prompting. This is her character on display again.
I will ask SHOA via email or formal letter, if I have to, when the July, 2018 Membership Meeting Minutes will be disclosed and posted to the SHOA website. Others are. Why isn't that one?
4:08. You kindly pointed out my typo, so I decided to correct it. However, your kindness quickly became rude and critical as you slipped back into that old refrain of name-calling so I chose not to offer any thanks. I think most people got the point that the BOT once again relied on manipulative tactics to retain their control. Their stronghold will be broken.
If it's a member's meeting for voting to remove the BOT Members, it makes complete sense, consistent with integrity, and decent for the BOT Members to recuse themselves.
Good work Deb!
2:43....You don't know a damn thing about the covenants, which prescribe exactly the process Deb followed at the Annual Meeting. While a group of members can request the scheduling of a "Special Members Meeting", the Annual Meeting IS a member meeting, the only one permanently scheduled annually. This is the venue for member initiated motions/votes/recalls of Trustees.
Williams and the Board knew they had intentionally held meetings in private of a few Trustees without following State and HOA mandated procedures required to conduct community business, and they knew that this really should be grounds for a recall - their dismissal.
Those on the Board who were not included in the private meetings could have/should have shown some backbone and supported the recall motion, to demonstrate their understanding of WHY there is prescribed procedures, but did nothing. Deb anticipated this, and had no choice but to keep her intentions unpublished until the meeting took place.
Deb had the vision and courage to take a stand, showing far more integrity than anyone else, making all of her anonymous detractors look like a bunch of poser-monkeys.
I've got a bridge, Astoria Bridge, to sell you 6:30 PM. I promise I'll give you a really good deal.
I don't get what you mean 6:53. Please explain.
The unceasing attacks on Deb show much more about YOUR character than hers.
As stated before, if you can't see there are problems here, then you're part of the problem.
Sometimes it's better to stay silent and be perceived as foolish rather than speaking and removing all doubt.
SO who is running? It will be interesting to see how many people run. You can't oust them all then have no one to replace them lol
Why wasn't Gary Williams at the last BOT Meeting? Was he too busy laughing?
What would be funny about the HOA you are president of being at the mercy of County, State and Federal regulators ? ALL of these issues should have easily been avoided by a modicum of oversight/management by the prez and his BOT.
He will be known as the biggest failure to have served as a Surfside president. Funny huh ? And you are unbelievably naïve.
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