Month: December 2018

Our Expectations from the Onsite Property Manager

What should we expect, as a residential community, from an onsite Property Manager (PM) for whom we fund?

  • A Job Description of the Property Manager’s duties to understand the responsibilities the PM has to the community for what can and cannot be expected from the PM, which is available to the Residents for review and revision, if needed.
  • Ongoing evaluations of the PM to determine that the PM is successfully fulfilling PM responsibilities.
  • Allotted times for Residents to engage the PM for concerns that may emerge in the community.
  • As a professional, the PM should at all times maintain an arm’s length and business type relationship with both the Residents and the Board of Directors.  Developing circles of friends within the community, including the Board of Directors, cannot foster an atmosphere of impartial decision making.
  • The PM should always take the high road and not antagonize or banter with the Residents, or become defensive. 
  • Being a service provider should be the focus of the PM.
  • If the PM suspects or recognizes any social or cultural alienating division emerging in the community, then the PM should not take sides, but should seek advice and direction from the primary Property Managing Company with whom the PM is associated.  
  • The communication that the PM provides and shares with the community should be a mixture of being instructional and informative.
  • Consistent procedures should be in place and documented for all events in the community.  These procedures should be available and applicable to all Residents to be able to follow.
  • The PM should spend as much time in the community as in the office.  The community is fluid with many moving parts that need monitoring to ensure a viable entity within to comfortably live.

Does our Property Manager perform in the manner just described?  We should expect at least this listed performance– it is the basic and expected property management for which we are paying.

Merry Christmas!

The Latest Newsletter Report Card

Social Activities Report

It is good to see organized social activities for the community, which provide an opportunity for the Residents to have fun, and maybe meet other Residents outside their community social network. However, it should be remembered that accommodating cliques should not be the focus of these gatherings.

In addition, individual behavior at our facilities should not get out of hand, which it has, and continues to the extent that some Residents have been temporarily banned from these facilities.  Better enforcement is needed to prevent and discourage this rogue and childish behavior.

Grade – C+

Construction and Maintenance

The Board and its President have been irresponsible, selfish, and maybe incompetent with the decisions that have been made to “improve” our community.  Our funds have been misappropriated for the Board’s and President’s agenda spending, e.g. the move of the Gym and the refurbishment of the Golf Maintenance Facility. Other community needs with much more of a priority have been ignored.  Needs that would serve All the Residents have been abandoned, e.g. roadways, regular building maintenance, proper funding of our amenities’ reserves, and daily monitoring of the community to determine areas of repair and restoration for the community’s aging infrastructure.

Now there is a Board’s and President’s project to foist more debt on the Residents with an irrigation well for the golf course. Have you noticed how many projects are golf oriented? The Residents basically subsidize golf for a handful of players.  Costs and spending are disproportionate for golf when compared to the total spending for all the Aquarina amenities.  Each amenity should have measured costs with respect to all the amenities.  It could be argued that golf and its cabal of followers have hijacked the Aquarina Community, which has left the community in disrepair.

Grade – F

Kahama Mediation

Hundreds of thousands of dollars of the Residents’ funds have been expended over these past years on the expected and allegedly contentious transfer of some of Aquarina’s oceanfront property to a private entity.  Though this boondoggle has been ongoing through multiple Boards, it should be incumbent upon the current Board to disclose to the community exactly what is going on, and not by just telling the Residents that a resolution is underway. There is always the excuse of privileged negotiations and discussions, and that matters cannot be revealed; however, the initial disagreement leading to this attorney banter back and forth should be disclosed to the community for the community to decide on a course to take.  The Residents are left in the dark, and its funds are falling into an attorney money pit.

Grade – D

Honoring Our Veterans

Joe Smith has earned and deserves the reported trip to Washington he took, as have all the other participating Veterans.  It certainly belonged in the Newsletter.  Joe is certainly worthy part of the heritage in our community.

Grade – A

Good Publicity for our Community

The Brassie Grille has been a high point among the AGI businesses in its continued success of Community and outside public patronage.  Its kudos in the press is deserved.  However, the Brassie Grille’s covert financial operations, and the Residents being continuously locked out from having access to the specific expenses and revenues of the Grille by the Board and its President can be considered unconscionable and indefensible. The Residents subsidize this business with well over $200,000 of their funds and are forcibly kept in the dark.

Grade – C-

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Keep in mind that the Grades – F, D, and C-are with the most important community Board service category, i.e. the fiduciary duty to oversee the Residents’ funds. The current Board and its President have been totally negligent and self-serving with this most essential of responsibilities to the community.  This lock out of the Residents from the AGI financials is cavalier and illegal, and is further evidence of the carpetbagging Aquarina has been enduring.

BTW Folks – I enjoy golf.  I earned a high school Letter in golf, LOL.  However, the focus for the Board and its President should be the totality of the Community; unfortunately, golf has gained more attention and more of the Residents’ funds than is warranted.

Merry Christmas!

Brassie Grille Special for Monday (12/10)

Direct from Chef Josh –

Roasted turkey grilled cheese paired with a cup of split peasoup and side salad $10.99