#30 For Sale $80,000 NOT A TYPO reduced 4/20/09 from $120,000 1b 1b - Wow!

That is $178 per sq. ft. This is the first time in recent history I can remember a Parkridge condo listing for under $200 per sq. ft. These are some serious sellers that do not want to chase the market downward week after week. Howard

Parkridge Votes NO on Assessment

My memory of the announcement is 45 votes against the assessment, 40 for and the number that surprises me most...51 units did not vote at all. Thanks so much to Sally, Kelly and Kim for all the time, dedication, research and preparation. When asked if they would stay continue to volunteer or resign, Sally & Kelly said the board intends to to go back to the drawing board to attempt to come up with a plan that 45 no votes can handle. Actually 3 converted votes from no to yes would do the trick. No other residents, including myself, volunteered to run for a board position in the election.

Pool

TO THE MORON WHO VANDALIZED OUR POOL

I walked past the pool this AM and saw the pool. Three things immediately came to mind:

First, algae doesn't grow that fast under the worst circumstances.

Second, the texture and the color are all wrong. To my eye, it's way too light.

Third, it's too evenly spread thoughout the pool. Algae growth usually starts in the deep end and then spreads out verically and horizontally as it gets worse over time.

Conclusion 1: One of our residents used some sort of food coloring or dye or something to get that water that color that fast.

Conclusion 2: It wasn't one of the usual suspects. Somebody with an axe to grind put some serious thought and planning (and money) into this. No punk did this.


I've lived here over 12 years and was on the board for eight. I've seen a lot of vandalism but I've never seen anything as despicable as this. I guess that as an association we don't have enough negative issues to deal with.

TO THE BOARD:

You should have had the pool drained the same week you decided to close it. Soon. This situation says more about our community than anything else right now and should be made a priority.

Furthermore, the ponds sould be filled in and the pumps and associated hardware should be removed. It was determined long ago that the long term root cause (pun intended) with the ponds is trees. The roots grow up and will eventually break through the bottom, no matter what is done.

A referendum was taken about 10 years ago or so, and two thirds of the community voted to have the ponds removed as they became unserviceable. The alternative is to spend tens of thousand of dollars every ten years or so for repairs. Two of the ponds have already been filled in. It's time to do the rest.

Todd in 122

Parkridge Official Web Site http://sites.google.com/site/parkridgecondominiums/?pli=1

The site is full of fantastic information. There is a tab for all the news letters, minutes from past board meetings, rules & regulations and the assessment documents that we received in the mail. Remember that someone is going to all the trouble of putting our monthly financial statement on the back of the newsletter. In the 12+ years I've been living here there has never been this much trasparincy to where our money is being spent and saved. Remember, we were BROKE when this current board took over just a year ago.

For access, you simply need a to send an email to Desiree "desiree@cmsmgmt.com" at the management company. You will also need to sign up for a free Google account if you don't not already have one. Click on the link in the title above or cut and past this address into your browser http://sites.google.com/site/parkridgecondominiums/?pli=1

Howard

The Four Stages in the Life of a Community Association

This site by Mr. Birding is a great resource for a community like ours. He is an attorney who has vast expirence in this situation that is new to most all of us. Click on the links to his site and/or booklet he wrote.

http://www.berding-weil.net/pdf/uncertain_future.pdf

http://condoissues.blogspot.com/2008/02/when-market-value-slips-out-back-door.html

We can not afford to NOT maintain our community!

Those of you considering a call to the health department or selling your condo should be leading the charge to approve the assessment! I do not have $10,000 lying around and certainly do not like the thought of spending/borrowing so much to generate zero upgrades and only "maintain" what we feel entitled to. However, if you are going to own a car is it short sighted to claim no funds to change the oil...SAME THING! I suggest for those of you selling simply list the $10,000 discount within your asking price and get out so those of us who plan to live here can get on with making this community more livable. If you feel compelled to identify someone or some organization to blame so be it. That is not a simple blame game with so many different management companies over the years and so many VOLUNTEER board members. The board is not "they" the board is WE! Volunteers! I for one am very thankful for all of the dedicated work these people have donated to us (non-volunteers) and thank them for developing a plan. All the rest of us have to do is allow the plan to be executed. Again, I do not have $10,000 but there is no choice! If you would like to be able to sell your place some day with out discounting far below current market value (still dropping)...vote yes! Our posts and comments on this forum make it very easy for perspective buyers who can spell G-O-O-G-L-E to investigate our dirty laundry and sub par living conditions. I thank Sally (Kelly, Kim...) for her leadership, dedication and vision to bring us this far since the previous board leadership almost bankrupted us and allowed this well know situation to fester. Howard