Am I Running for the Board?

Am I running for office this year, you may ask? Well, as of today, August 26 I have not submitted my candidacy form, because I am frankly undecided. Why the hesitation? That's the subject of this post. On August 25 I called FUPM to get the submittal date and I was informed that they had not yet received a single candidacy form. Ah, you gotta love political games. We have one current board member who either runs again or loses her seat and there are two appointees whose seats will be vacated.

Getting back to the question. I see many, many impediments to getting the job done. I'd like to serve on the board, but I see very little possibility for accomplishment. It takes a majority to pass votes. I see our manager holding his head during meetings (frustration?) and I think "that could be me."

Last year, I did run and I achieved a respectable number of votes; however, an insufficient number to win a seat. Last year I prepared and mailed a letter to the unit owners, at personal expense and the assistance of several other candidates. None of us was elected.

After the election, a vacancy was created, however I did not volunteer. That was, among other things, a test for this board majority. I was curious to see if they would discuss this with me. As was pointed out to me by others, I was "next in line" when the individual who was elected declined the AD position, thereby creating that vacancy.  At the time, I also had many of the concerns I express here in this post.

I was never asked by the President nor anyone else on the board, nor was there any discussion of the position. That told me lot about the new board. I think they forgot that they were elected representatives and they chose to turn their backs on many of the the unit owners who had voted. Before anyone gets all bent out of shape, this "isn't about me". It's about honoring the unit owners, acting as elected representatives and running this association and getting results. More on that later.

Did I really want the job? Well, as one of the board quipped during one of our association chats "the good news is, I won a seat on the board and, the bad news is, I won a seat on the board!"

How do I feel about this today, and how does it influence my decision to run or not to run? I suppose to be honest, I have to tell it the way I see it, and that will take a few more minutes.

As I view it, this association is in trouble and we missed several critical opportunities. We can never, ever, go back. Money spent is gone forever. Time wasted can never be recovered. In the fall election of 2008 the new board comprised of the Communications Director and two others, both of whom have since resigned, appeared to support the position that the fees are too high and there were votes against a fee increase. In 2009, the recommended candidates of the Communications Director were elected and the board was then able to motion and pass a 0% fee increase. That's all well and good, except for one very large problem. No serious attempts were made to reign in costs. There was no simultaneous announcement of cuts, no substantive budget reductions. So costs and spending have actually increased, and income has decreased.

We needed minimum $50,000 annual spending cuts. We went in the wrong direction.

For the past two years, efforts have been instead placed on social issues, and squabbles with previously elected board members. This included all kinds of petty issues; for example, how to put reinforcing mats in sidewalks, etc. While this went on, money was spent, and continues to be spent, that can never be recovered. The attitude was and is "You have the money in the budget". I know, because when the issue of reducing spending came before the board in a discussion of landscaping during an association meeting, that was the advice of management. So spend we did.

That brings us to "today", two years later and after the new direction at BLMH.

So where exactly is that? The board majority seems to operate at best as a reaction to events. There is no association plan. As someone who is committed to planning and preparation, this poses an impossible situation. There is absolutely no structure for fulfillment.Then we appear to have three groups of unit owners. About 1/2 of the unit owners don't vote. I suppose that means that about 1/2 of us are expecting a "free ride". Pay the fees and go to our unit, pop a beer or soda and walk the dog or feed the cat or goldfish. When things don't turn out as expected, come to an association meeting and complain or bring a few friends and disrupt it. How is that relevant? Well, I don't expect these people to do anything until they, like the board majority, feel that their "rights" or whatever are threatened. Then they'll be a reaction, and band together and show up. Until then, they'll do nothing. So they are of no support to anyone who wants to get things under control here. By the time the mob shows up, it will be far, far to late. That leaves the remaining 50% who do vote. Some of those are motivated by a personal agenda. They include those who show up at association meetings and act as shills or shout things like "What do we get for our money?" or something to the effect "What are you going to do for me?"

To sum it up, perhaps 25% of the unit owners are interested in workability and are willing do something about it. They vote, participate in some ways, such as picking up the trash in the street, painting their air conditioners, shoveling snow, cleaning the halls, etc. They create a small opening for some possibility. So what about the board?

Some on the board are trying. However, the board majority seems preoccupied with social issues, projects, the newsletter, providing donuts and coffee with the board, and the Neighborhood Club. That is an significant impediment. That provides a board voting block which prevents anything substantial from getting done. I'm not talking about driveways or roofs. Those will eventually get done. We have specifications and we have money, and the board can always collect more or get a mortgage (Note 2). Eventually, these projects will occur. But at what cost and when?

So what am I suggesting and what would I expect? How about a program to complete all projects and simultaneously reduce fees? How about reducing spending and simultaneously maintaining the streets, streams and grounds? How about better use of our unique facilities? Is that possible? Perhaps. But my numerical analysis isn't encouraging. As a former board member said "what do you know?" I've asked this board to produce their planning documents and all I get are backward looking spreadsheets, old balance sheets and a reserve study by management which they prefer to ignore, and have.

So, if I ran and if I were elected, the question is, how to function as an effective member on such a board and in such an environment? That is the big question. As a professional problem solver, I get paid to ask the hard questions, come up with straight answers, present alternatives and then get results. I don't think that's possible with this board majority. I'm sure the unit owner minority who is in this entirely for themselves will not be helpful, either.

Here is a question: Don't they realize we are in the grips of a really nasty recession, that costs are increasing, that this "recession" may continue for years and I mean perhaps span a decade; that retirees living on social security may not see increases again this year or the next, or the next? That inflation may rear its ugly head and sooner than we think? According to the data published by the association on its website, we had about $24,000 in past due unit owner fees as of December 31, 2008. I wouldn't publish that information here, but hey, our board decided to put this on the BLMH website for the world to see. I brought my concern to the attention of the board President. The email response I got was "Maybe you're right, although I'm not sure it really matters so much." As of today and several weeks later, the report is still on the official website. So in the spirit of supporting the board, I suppose they are right and I am wrong. So what harm can it do to publish those numbers here?

This financial information was made available to unit owners about one year late. I have no idea of the audited figures for 2009.

I've attended many association meetings in the past three years. I do so to look, to listen and to say "is that workable?", "are there alternatives?", "what's missing?" and "how would I solve that?" That's what I do for a living. I also attend to protect my investment here and my quality of life. Shouldn't we all?

Here's one of many, many possible examples of why I see little possibility on the board at BLMH. In those meetings, unit owners come and complain about the issues of selling their unit. This is not simply an association problem. So how to distinguish our association in this terrible real estate market? I published an argument for the production of a sales or marketing brochure as an aid to unit owners. That was in April. In May, our CD announced at the association meeting that "someone" had suggested a sales brochure. She went on to state that this "might be a good idea." Prior to the August association meeting, I emailed our board president and reiterated our CDs statement and requested that an update be presented to the unit owners. I also requested that if no progress had been made, that the unit owners be informed of "why not." There was no update at the August meeting. Instead, I was given an email which stated, among other things, that "This seems a good idea in theory; I'm not sure how many owners would actually make use of it. It might be one of those things you put effort into and then it's not used.....it seems to me that this would fall in [our Communication's Director's] area. From what I gather, she is not interested in pursuing this idea in the near future. If you feel strongly that this would a useful project, perhaps you might consider drafting something and passing it along."

I didn't offer to take this on and declined. Why? There was no assurance of any kind in the email that what I produce would be used. Nor did I get a response from our CD. I reluctantly concluded that I would be wasting my time.Am I wrong? We have about 25 unit owners who want to sell and a fully staffed board, one of whom has no specific duties or assignments. They can take it on.

And that is, in a nutshell, the dilemma I see in having a position on the board of this association.

Other things to consider: Our former Architectural Director would not take on the position for a limited term  because he stated he could not accomplish the job with only one year. He said other things which I will not repeat here. In other words, why take on what may be an "impossible" assignment? The job is not overwhelming. However, as I stated earlier, I see no "structure for fulfillment". "Damage control" and being a reaction to everything is not for me. Another question to ponder: Why take this on and become a larger target and the "bearer of bad tidings?" Let's assume that the reserve study, which was sent back to the author for "rework" reveals problems, or, why did Management reverse course and press forward a request for a 7% increase during the August meeting for the sole purpose of funding reserves? Someone is going to have to make the serious decisions required to achieve cuts in services and spending. Or, fees need to increase to cover both the expressed need for more reserve funding and to cover the increased costs of day to day operation. Or both!

So after two years of partying we now take away the donuts and get down to business? Who is the "volunteer" who is going to go before the electorate and give them the bad news? And in the process, get booed and tomato-ed? I'm sure our current board is looking for someone willing to be a target and provide them with both political and literal cover.

Comments, Corrections, Omissions, References
1. Are we having fun yet?
2. After the 2009 election, a new member of the board answered my concerns about budgeting and perceived shortfalls with the statement that "the association can get a  mortgage." That's not acceptable to me.
3. I've written 213 blog posts for this site. This is the 181st to be published. The others are "works in progress."