Rene and his Rules
First, there is no "Slab Leak Remediation Project". There was a slab leak under the clubouse and our friends at Pro-Serv convinced Julie that it was easier to tear up the walls and ceilings and leave that for someone else to fix than it was to make a proper repair.
The "previous board" had, in mid-2005, six estimates to replace the corroded pipes under our complex, but with our former property manager quitting suddenly, the departure of the board member who was bird-dogging the project, and the failure of proposed contractors to provide adequate references, the project never proceeded. These estimates were for various schemes ranging from replacing the current water mains in place to running the mains over the roofs and then down into the units to installing separate water heaters in each unit. In other words, Rene is not plowing new ground. He used the term "Slab Leak Remediation Project" on one of his signs, and then he had to come up with some BS story to make it look like he was actually on top of things when someone challenged him.
Second, as far as the rules go, this issue came up in 1998 when I first got on the Board. We decided that it wasn't worth the time to rigorouly enforce them. Why?? Because what do you do if someone just denies it ?? What do you do for proof on something like a garage door being open?? Suppose someone refuses to pay the fine?? Is the Board really going to spend thousands of legal dollars to foreclose on a property just to get a $25 Dollar fine??
In addition, placing a towel over your wall or gate or having a welcome mat in front are NOT currently rule violations. Anyone who pays a fine for these trivial violations of Rene's pet peeves should look into getting legal advice. If he's going to re-write the rules, that's fine. Re-write them, print them up, distribute them to the community, and THEN waste your time enforcing them.
Finally, it may not seem like it, but I sincerely hope that Rene can do a better job than I did of being a Board Member. But my suspicion is that we have a "Talker" instead of a "Doer".
Todd in 122
7 comments:
Todd,
Since you were on the Board, maybe you can answer a question that Julie is looking in to for me. Is there or was there a rule about leaving patio gates open while not in use??
I was given a warning notice a few years back about having my gate open while NOT "actively using" it. I had my dogged hooked up and opened the gate so he could lay on the grass in front of my unit but was told that the gate, like the garage door, must remained closed while not being actively used for security and safety reasons.
I am asking because the man in #20 leaves his gate open for hours at a time for 4-5 days a week. I've been complaining about it for months and was recently told that having the gate open is not a violation. Julie is double checking for me but I'm not sure who she'll be checking with and what new interpretations may be applied.
I'd appreciate any help you may be able to provide for clearing up this situation.
Tim #40
Todd,
According to my Rules and Regulations booklet, revised April 2005, it states in the Common Area Rules (#20, to be exact), "It is prohibited to hang clothing, TOWELS,rags, rugs, etc., from the windows, railings, fences or from any of the facades of the development."
I don't think that's a pet peeve of Rene's.
Tim:
Without looking at the book, I think that there is indeed a rule like that.
The problem I have with all this petty rule stuff is enforcement, fairness, and proof. How much time and effort is Rene going to spend (or waste??) worrying about things like open garage doors and towels over walls ?? What if someone just denies it or says they didn't get the notice in the mail, or for whatever reason, just refuses to pay ??
The other issue is fairness. He seems to like enforcing these, but he is ignoring the "one unit, one dog" rule, which is in both the rulebook and the CCR's. There are at least 4 units that have at least two dogs on their property. That's just one example. Like I said before, there is no way to enforce all these rules without being on the property 24/7. When I was on the Board, the general feeling was that it wasn't worth the effort to go after every single violation because of both the effort it required and the fairness issue.
The other problem is "squealing". Your little note about the guy in 20 is exactly what Rene wants. Neighbors squealing on neighbors. Everybody worrying about everyone else's business and in the meantime, the real problems are ignored.
When you had your comment about the Slab Leak Remediation project, I had to laugh as well as respond to it. If he had a plan, why did the slab leak in or near Unit 8 a few weeks earlier not require a re-pipe of the whole building, like the clubhouse?? It just seems to me that if you have a plan that changes every time you ask Rene about it, you don't have a plan.
But of course we don't have time to notice that because we've all got our eyes on everybody else's garage doors and gates.
Todd in 122
Rene:
If you can't muster the guts to sign your name to your comments, at least make it less obvious that it is you.
There was no April 2005 revision to the rules that was approved by the Board. The revision you speak of was written by yourself as a part of your so-called "Welcome Package" which was a seven page, single spaced nightmare, as I recall. It was rejected at that time.
If you've re-written the rules during the last eight months, please publish and distribute them to the entire community, so that we all know what the new rules are.
Your administration during the last eight months has been extremely disappointing. You are obsessed with enforcing trivial rules and blaming the "previous board" for issues you don't want to deal with.
Todd in 122
Todd,
I totally understand about getting everyone to "taddle" on each other. The only reason I bring up the guy in #20 is because he intentionally torments the animals in my area and stares at people coming to and from the parking lot. It makes quite a few people undercomfortable, especially the single women the have to walk past his open gate to get home. My neighbor will drive the long way around the complex and park nexdt to the tennis court just to avoid unit 20. Just doesn't seem right the people can't feel safe coming home to a gated community because of the neighbors.
All that aside, I noticed the recent newsletter stating that 96% of residents follow the rulles and they should not be afraid to report the rule breakers. I just thought the 96% part was a funny number to use. 96% of 136 units is roughly 130.6 people that follow the rules. First of all, how does .6 of a person follow the rules? Secondly, that would mean that only 5.4 residents break the rules but there were 8 of us that showed up for our "hearings" at the last meeting and my last "hearing" had 15 people scheduled. Where did this 96% come from if 12% of the residents have hearings each month, and those are only the people being reported.
That just proves that the Board is trying to get everyone watching each other rather than paying attention to what the Board is doing.
Tim in #40
Todd,
I have to laugh because I am the FEMALE who posted that second comment. My rules and regulations booklet specifically states what I put down. It states April 2005 on the front cover and I got this when I was in escrow this past year for this place. Glad to know that this book isn't authentic! I would have happily taken a Welcome Package over that any day!
Happily Annonymous Female
Todd,
I'm wondering if during your time on the board you ever looked into changing management companies? Chris Wirges was a real creep and actually hung up on me one time when I was pressing him to give me an actual date as to when he was going to address my problem, and I've had no better luck with Julie. She doesn't return calls and doesn't seem to be doing anything for the residents who contact her. Is it really that expensive for us to change management companies, and is there any company out there who can actually provide the service they claim to offer?
And I know this isn't your fault, but I'm sick of the response by Rene that we should fill out an "administrative greivance." First of all, I'm not going to tick Julie off because I'm sure I'll have to call her in the future, and secondly, how many forms is it going to take before the board actually does something?
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