As reported in the Wed. Jan. 1, 2020 edition of the Chinook Observer news paper..
An embarrassment for the water district Board and staff. The former General Manager, Bill Neal, did not leave them with a very Happy New Year. Until the end of 2019, this district held a contract to manage the Surfside water program.
Click on the article below for a larger read:
31 comments:
You're welcome.
I think that is the same software program that surfside has. Might be we need a state audit. Will neal return his bonus? Do you think this had anything to do with his retirement? Watch the finger pointing and cover up.
just an honest mistake
Wow Mr. Neal. I hope you never work for Surfside, directly or indirectly, ever again.
Neal never possessed the competencies required for his supposed work at Surfside and North Beach Water. Many of us knew that in 2010. Our data, words and opinions were ignored by the Surfside Board members including the blog host. Really, it takes 10 years of stupid errors and money wasted before this man's incompetency get exposed? Spare us all the hollow breast beating.
Must be time to buy another computer program. That would be our 4th. We could go over to Cosco and get one for 39.95
Still no one knows how to use though.
10:42....You are making a big claim with no evidence, and no identity to verify you MAY know something of worth. Neil screwed-up on the asbestos handling, but he said that contractors had been handling the stuff for decades without taking great care, only to always keep the material wet when cutting it. Long Beach Water Dept. also got tagged by the EPA not long after Surfside, for the same thing.
This may not have been as big a blunder as it seems to most of us, but there should have been more care in disposing of the old pipe, and at least an appearance that safety meetings were being held. I haven't talked to anyone but April about it, so don't know what the workers may say. April said she was really worried about the crew, saying she felt they were like family.
Neil was also responsible for choosing more advanced pumps to replace old ones, which has reduced the number of waterline blowouts from frequent to very few. It was his view as well as some others, that pressure surges were largely responsible for the pipe failures, not "old pipe" as engineers claimed without proof.
To compare Bill Neil's performance with the current BOT's, we can say that the BOT leads Neil for expensive blunders by a long shot. Neil admitted to his, while the BOT does not. Big difference !
Btw, not only dry cutting n moving the pipe, but wrapping each individual piece with plastic to be hauled away, with no training or protection. Some not even told about it containing asbestos.
Cox: What engineers claimed without proof that it was "old pipie"? Do you have that in writing?
Research it yourself. I'm sure they have their expertise, and without a doubt the much more expensive new style pipe is a good direction for the future of Surfside. What is known for a fact is, Raymond and other communities around the country have used this type of pipe for close to a hundred years. Raymond does not experience constant pipe failures, and theirs is about 80 years old.
What was proven was that pumps that gradually increase pressure and react to reverse pressure that seems to cause most of these pipe blowouts, have nearly eliminated what became nearly bi-monthly in Surfside, costing the community a lot of money in Water Dept. overtime.
Want to feel awesome about the engineering firm, or solve the problem ? The community wisely had the engineering firm investigate the problem (at great expense) and they said we should replace all of the pipe (millions of dollars). I'm no expert, just listen carefully to people involved. That's what COX sez, person who won't identify yourself. .
I didnt live here then, but what was frequency of pipes failing during Haskins term n before?
I'm so glad Cox isn't on our board!
Our computer system is largely run by a former cafe owner who used Quickbooks, A nice woman but certainly not a wiz when it comes to the skills an accountant possesses. Our system is used very successfully by the city of Raymond.
Yes 8:19, i bet you are, heaven forbid we have an intelligent, different point of view on our bot. Without a mixed viewpoint we are doomed to dissolution. Maybe not a bad thing.
8:19 - Mr. Flood was a Trustee on the BOT for about 12 years, and was a big promoter of the "Mile of Pipe" replacement project that costs the community at least $150,000/annually. I'm not sure that covers labor. Flood has some background in Water systems, and a full roster of committee members were to review and oversee procedures at the Waterworks.
Neil was manager, and certainly at fault for the eventual EPA fines and costs for the asbestos clean-up which was something like $24,000. But the Water Dept. Comm. had the responsibility of overseeing the entire operation, so share responsibility in the management failures and huge costs. We still have not had a final closing of the CRIMINAL investigation they launched, obviously wondering why this occurred beyond Neil's mismanagement.
The BOT has never come clean with a full explanation of what happened, why, and what was done to prevent similar mistakes occurring in the future. The costs were never outlined by the Board, all required to be public record for the Surfside members. The costs were instead hidden, and never made public knowledge.
I've agreed that the waterline replacement seems forward looking, and costs for new advanced pumps has been quite expensive. But it was never proven by the engineering firm, that the pipe alone was to blame. Our system builds-up sediment, because of the shallow water table, sporadic volumes of use, and long lines along the lower part of the community. This requires frequent flushing, and those procedures have often been associated with pipe failure.
Given the fact that other communities do not experience what became very frequent blow-outs, even though their lines are much older, issues with flushing clearly are a primary cause. Old pipe alone does not adequately explain the constant failures. I'm just stating what I know in hopes that you get what I was driving at.
Yeah, because competence is so overrated...
Clancy, competence? You got to be kidding.
Cox is way willing to spout off about what he has not lived or known. Neal was a former well digger with zero updated and required credentials to run a water system when hired by Surfside. His ignorant and self serving mistakes with wasteful spending have all been a matter of recurrent and consistent job performance. He talks so sincerely that many are sucked in as he fails to perform to minimal standards. It has been a continuing embarrassment to this association that he was paid well to manage the water system.
Seems 3:56 has reading comprehension problems, as he seems to agree with cox. Smh
I'm well aware of Mr. Neal's background, that you mention as if "once a well-digger, always a well-digger". He did pursue the necessary education to get his credentials, and seemed intelligent and interested in what he was doing. Surfside provided him with the opportunity, and he took advantage of it, showing some ambition to broaden his skills.
As I have stated, the management failures at the Waterworks are equally shared by the Water Dept. Comm. who failed to pay attention to what was going on in the Dept., as was their charge. What has been made very obvious is, that little mention of the mistakes made, fines paid by the Assoc., or the on-going permitting issue has ever been admitted to by the Board of Trustees. I must assume that you are a Trustee and are bitter that you are in fact just as responsible as Mr. Neal for what happened.
The Wetlands Mitigation which is the outcome of Mr. Clancy's debacle in taking charge of the permitting more than a year and a half ago, and the HOA will be paying a large price for those mistakes, possibly a huge price. The Board of Trustees has not been forthcoming with information on this mitigation process, and this week a hearing in Long Beach will possibly be making a final judgement on what the HOA will be expected to pay out, per acre, between $12,000 and $90,000, how many acres, and determine if there will be further requirements or fines.
All of this is entirely the Board's failure, and they do not want to admit to it, nor cop to the ridiculous amount of money that will have to be wasted to appease the County and State Possibly in 6 figures and as much as a quarter million dollars. Add to that attorney costs, and the fact that the Board has put this off to the point that those holding the hearing have no reason to show mercy for the HOA's audacity and irresponsibility.
It is entirely obvious WHY some Board members were so adamantly opposed to me being appointed to the BOT. I would never sit still for this cover-up, nor should members excuse this kind of disregard for the Trustees sworn duties to the membership, to be transparent in spending and conducting HOA business in their service to the MEMBERS.
So I understand your objective in belittling Mr. Neal and myself, and your inability to face the truth and be honest in your service to the community, anonymouse.
I heard that our water has PPH chemical and MCHM I’m sure what either one of these are but I did understand enough to know that it’s poison. Now my question is should we even take showers in this water ? I think I am going to invest in a water filtration system. If anyone has information on what filtration system they think is the best bang for your buck, I’m ready.
I had a system installed by Taft. It wasn't cheap, but I have peace of mind regarding the water here that this incompetent Board will never give me.
It is ludicrous that an essential Public Service such as water should be left up to the management of non trained part time fools. Please note I have no quarrel with paid employees - this is a leadership issue. We have none, just a special interest group that has hijacked our organization.
Wonder what happens if an independent audit is taken of SHOA?
Brita, works fine for me. I sleep peaceful minded
Jan 7 @ 1:19 PM then run for the board. I'm tired of the whining by you and other couch potatoes. I come for the beach and the solitude and don't spend my time bitching. Follow suit or work like a dog to correct it and then we can complain about you.
347 - sorry dude, but my brita works fine for me, I don't worry about the rest, why should I run for board, I/m not whining, you are?
People like to complain. It's okay to complain.
The owners in Surfside are responsible for its' governance and insisting on BOT accountability. The BOT has largely adopted a pact of stonewalling the membership, rather than accepting that they are required by the covenants and State law to conduct all HOA business transparently, all expenditures public knowledge.
If you read the proceeding topic, you know that Winegar still does not accept responsibility for management failures that have cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in member dollars, on fines, corrective action, and legal representation. Tomorrow the HOA will be in a County Hearing with legal counsel to determine the final assessments and fines to be levied on Surfside in the Wetland Mitigation. This is the result of BOT management failures to properly permit the Water Dept. Carbon Treatment Plant.
You can enjoy the beach AND make efforts to make Surfside a better community, by participating in electing honest people, and expressing your views to the HOA and on the Blog. It isn't whining if you have a point to make and evidence of misconduct before you. It doesn't require RUNNING for the BOT, and being a candidate does not assure a position on the Board.
Will anyone be going to that hearing tomorrow that can post an update?
They must have been prepping today, big crowd at office today.
6:15 - Yes. We'll try to get that info out.
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