My final year on the board - Part V - Projects Newsletter Article

My final year as a board member is drawing to a close; I was on the association board for eight years. Here's the text of one of three newsletter articles I prepared for our owners and residents.  The newsletter was one of many of my focuses, and this article was published several weeks ago. For about four years I was simultaneously the Maintenance Director, Architectural & Projects Director, and the board President. That's in an association with 336 owners. Not everyone on the board was happy with my tenure as President while fullfilling the responsibilities of the other positions, but they were more than willing to allow me to do the work, which was a low of 500 hours per year and a high of more than 1,000 hours per year.  I did not follow the practice of "expanding the task to fill available time". In fact, I could have done more. What I did do was what was absolutely necessary.

v     Projects and the Board --This is my final report as Architecture & Projects Director.

Because I was president I also was significantly involved in coordinating other aspects including landscaping and was a member of the finance committee. I believe in a “working board” and most board members have agreed on this during my 8 years on the board. The results speak for themselves; as I stated we did accomplish a lot since 2010. This could not have occurred if board members merely attended meetings after an hour of preparation.

A commitment to excellence, positive involvement, and dedication is beneficial for a board. It is helpful to approach it as part time job in which all of our actions and inactions have consequences for our owners. What does that look like? I frequently walked the property, conducted numerous surveys of all manner of infrastructure, prepared reports and investigated alternatives. The information gleaned was incorporated into reserve studies, maintenance programs and annual budgets. This facilitated the creation of project lists, spread sheets, progress reports and so on.

Long term planning is essential for financial stability and effective association “guidance”. It requires the partnership of the board, our professional management and our contractors. Trust is an important ingredient. The maintenance director and I worked in a coordinated manner to set priorities and perform physical surveys. There was extensive coordination with landscaping. I would like to emphasize the partnership of the board, for example, our treasurer and maintenance director. Without their assistance the schedules could not have been achieved. We freely shared information on the finance committee, brainstormed and then everything was shared with the entire board for further discussion so group decisions could be made. We had a small, dedicated team working in the best interest of all of the owners. Anyone walking the property does see the results. If requested by your newly elected board of 2019 I may provide future support. I have discussed the 2019 projects list with the current board and include a summary of it in this newsletter.

My final words about our infrastructure: Our infrastructure is much improved but complacency would be a mistake. Our project lists represent a work in progress. Boards should continue with our professional management to generate annual surveys, implement incremental improvements and so on. Our association is 40 years old. Some driveways, garage floors and so on will have to be replaced annually. If not, your future boards will find themselves in the unenviable situation of “catching up” just as I did. See the insert.

PS: Our next roofing cycle may begin as early as 2023!

My Final year on the board, part IV- President's Newsletter Message

v    President’s Message – These are my final newsletter articles as a member of your board. 

We’ve accomplished a lot in 8 years. There were real opportunities and of course many challenges. 
You need to determine who will replace me, their agenda, the specific programs they will have or continue, how they’ll be accomplished, the fees necessary and the benefits to owners.  I’m including several reports, insights and guidance to owners and future boards in this newsletter.   I’ll be available for questions during the annual meeting on September 27 and I’ll make a presentation.

Election 2018. About 75% of our owners live on the property and all have a financial interest in the success of this association, but most are uninvolved. Our history indicates that a small group of owners can control the board and the association. The board you elect will be tasked with figuring out the long term finances, they will set your fees for 2019, will spend association money, and will make and enforce rules.  Not all boards have been well prepared for this. The Candidates’ Forms may not reveal the actions you can expect from a board.  Not everyone understands the requirements and reality of a “working board.” Boards do manage our managers, set priorities, make the significant decisions, provide oversight and interact with our contractors and experts! I suggest all owners attend the annual association meeting and listen to the candidates to determine where they are coming from. I expect that candidates will have an opportunity to address the owners prior to the final vote tally. The current board will make presentations.

Do you want your fees to remain stable? It must be decided Who will maintain the water mains.  There are some really significant things going on. For example, after 5 years of effort and discussions with the city of Wheaton there is a real possibility of turning over our water mains to the city, who would then maintain them. The city is waiting for a response from our association. Board member positions about this have ranged from “wonderful” to “ambivalent”. Nevertheless there has been substantial progress on this “impossible” project. A change in our approach to water main maintenance has facilitated this and we now have about 500 feet of new water main. The city will not take over infrastructure in disrepair. If your board fails to pursue this with adequate resources and vigor, then this will never happen. Over time failure to transfer to the city is a guarantee to cost each owner at least $4,500 via fees.  If this initiative fails then owner fees will need to be adjusted. You need to let the newly elected board know what priorities they should establish and follow. The last 8 years have proven that fees can be stable while maintaining and improving the association. Come to the annual meeting!

Many trees have died - Recent Architectural work on the property: You may have noticed a lot of work to build architectural walls, grading, drainage work, completion of common area decks, streams, etc.  In 2009 I asked that board how they would deal with our many ornamental trees which were approaching end of useful, healthy life. I was told “Trees live a long time”. At that time I asked myself “What will our association look like in 10-20 years with hundreds of trees dead, and removed?” I concluded that our boards needed to pursue a realistic, long term program. If not, we’d have a lot of dirt scars, weird grassy mounds on the property, mud, bare areas and so on. As Maintenance and Architecture Director I took it upon myself to enroll the board in a long term program to deal with this.  As president I continued to move this along with board support. In 2010 we began a program to address tangled trees, fix our streams, build walls, deal with dirt mounds, failing common area decks, even a stream for which maintenance had been delayed for 10 years, and so on. I also literally moved sod, stone and other landscaping completions to maintenance so they would be performed with some urgency.  This dealt with many of the property’s landscaping issues as they occurred.  The boards since 2010 have agreed that the streams are a major architectural aspect of our property. By 2015 a survey revealed 95 additional scars on the property; that survey facilitated the decision of the board to expend a large amount of funds on specific repairs by a landscaper.   In August our landscaping director stated to the board that certain pine species are dying out.  There obviously remains much to do.

For additional perspective see my other articles inside and the insert to this newsletter.          

My final year on the board - Part III - "Guidance"

Board members are fiduciaries. But many are unprepared to perform their duties and responsibilities. In my final newsletter articles I included an insert called "Guidance" which is consistent with my board duties and responsibilities. This was published with sufficient time to advise all owners, remaining board members and any candidates. Our board election is September 27. Here' the content of that insert:

“Guidance” – Newsletter Insert - Posted by board member Norman Retzke, August 16, 2018

This newsletter includes some tips and guidance. This is information for owners, candidates and future boards. A working board provides real advantages for the association including firsthand, extensive knowledge of the property, its condition, current problems and solutions.  Working boards are also more familiar with the finances, rules and regulations.  A working board is how everything has been accomplished since 2010.

Our 40 year old association has extensive infrastructure, grounds and mature trees. Every dollar collected as fees will be spent. It is challenging to spend your money well.  Boards may choose to deal with highly visible issues while ignoring or deferring more substantial, difficult or less visible problems. That should never be a long term strategy, but at times this may occur. When this occurs the board should inform owners, but may not. Be watchful!   

Trees, shrubs and landscaping. These are major architectural features. Some of our trees have specific problems. It seems ornamentals may be nearing end of useful life and others are mature. We seldom water trees. We had a very wet spring this year followed by 6+ weeks of drought. This stresses our trees. We do things to deal with specific insect pests, etc. Nevertheless we have removed hundreds of trees since 2010 and our viburnum shrubs are dying. I am of the opinion we could benefit from additional help in making the difficult decisions we face with our landscaping. Would there be a benefit if an independent professional with extensive landscaping and tree knowledge reviewed the plants in our proposals to be sure our boards are completely aware of the maintenance, watering requirements and other implications? Should we get alerts to water specific trees if we are in a mild drought, etc.? Which trees?

Our many Viburnum shrubs are under attack by a voracious beetle. We trim these shrubs to 3 feet, which weakens them and makes them more susceptible to the consequences of insect attacks.  However, because these shrubs are adjacent to buildings there are good reasons for trimming. The board has a proposal to replace about ¼ of these dead shrubs on the property. It will take several years to replace all at a significant expense. I have concerns about the care required by the proposed plants which include hydrangeas. Some of these new plants will require watering if we want them to provide years of trouble free life to the association.

Boards face conflicting financial demands. We spend many dollars for water on the property. To keep water bills “as low as possible” boards may be inclined to underwater our trees and plants, even when stressed. This contributes to their demise. Our large trees are extremely valuable. For which of these should we be taking extra steps to preserve? This goes beyond spraying for pests. When our ash trees succumbed to a drought and the emerald ash borer I realized “Could timely watering of these ash trees have delayed or prevented this?” In recent years we have spent several hundred thousand dollars removing dead and dying trees, grinding stumps, then grading mounds, adding soil, and topping with sod or plants. We’ve had areas which were a tangle of trees; some have been dealt with. In 2018 we’ve identified about 20 dead trees, some large like a mature silver maple, some small like hawthorns.  These are being removed. Long term residents have noticed the thinning of our trees. 

Surveys and “projects”: 

•  Boards should vigorously pursue the water main replacement negotiations with the city and do the things necessary to make this happen.
• Streams, driveways and garages need to be surveyed annually or every other year.
•  The grounds should be inspected multiple times each year. Also review drainage.
•  To continue current initiatives the following should occur each year: We need 1, 2 or more garage floor replacements, 3 or more driveway replacements.
• Seal coating and crack/seam filling will extend the life of driveways.
• In 2019 the board should consider applying an asphalt preservative (GSB-88) to Lakecliffe.
• From 2019-2022, the viburnum shrubbery should be replaced.
•  In 2020 the board should consider a reserve study update.
• From 2019 to 2021 one of our three remaining cul-de-sacs should be repaved each year. This will include storm water basin work and curb work. Patching in other areas may be necessary. Less frequently we need patios, common decks and walks inspected.
•  Unit decks are usually inspected by our maintenance contractor as part of the annual painting cycle. That occurs once every 6 years.
•  Other:  Begin “staircase” mortar repairs (epoxy grout) following behind the painting cycle. Ditto for foundation repairs.  Evaluate kynar aluminum flashing to cover remaining brick window. Scarify our walks to remove high areas, and replace sections as necessary. Continue an informative newsletter and the website.                                        

Winter weather predictions 2019

The Old Farmers Almanac has released the weather predictions for winter 2019.

"This winter, we expect to see above-normal temperatures almost everywhere in the United States, except in the Southwest, where we're predicting a colder-than-normal season......Our milder-than-normal forecast is due to a decrease in solar activity and the expected arrival of a weak El Niño, which will prevent cold air masses from lingering in the North."

For Illinois the Almanac predicts less snow and more rain.

The problem is, this could mean a see-saw winter with frequent temperature changes from below freezing, to above and then back to below. That means more ice! It could be an interesting winter!

I personally prefer winter temperatures consistently in the "mild" below freezing range of 14F to 30F.

Here's a link to the regional weather forecast in the Almanac:

https://www.almanac.com/weather/longrange/region/us/6

My final year on the board, Part II

I've been extraordinarily busy for the last few months. At this association we began projects early this year and accellerated two of them. They could have been delayed, and that's the "kick the can down the road" approach that previous boards preferred.

I'd like to point out that I run a viable business, am the president of a condo board and yes, I do have a life to lead. So I like to kayak, etc. in my "free time". Life is short is my motto. So it is so very important to treat each day as the wonderful gift it is.

I'd also like to point out that I live "somewhere else" for 75% of the year. Yet with all of the above I've found a way to get the job done. Which is why I have little patience for those who join a board with the expectation of reading the packet, attending the monthly meeting, vote and do little else. Our owners benefit from having a "working board."

Our longest serving board member once commented to me that "We shouldn't cater to the lowest common denominator". But that is precisely what our condominium association does. If anyone has sufficient credit to purchase, they are approved. If anyone can get to a HOA meeting, they are a suitable board candidate.

My time on this HOA board is ending. Glad I could donate thousands of hours to the association. I had an agenda; I wanted to demonstrate what was possible if a very few, capable board members showed up.

I've accomplished my goal. What's next? Ask my crystal ball; I'll be bringing it to the annual association meeting on September 27. I will have some additional information for owners:

My final year on the board, Part I

I've been extraordinarily busy for the last few months. At this association we began projects early this year and accellerated two. I'd like to point out that I run a viable business, am the president of a condo board and yes, I do have a life to lead. So I like to kayak, etc. in my "free time". Life is short is my motto. So it is so very important to treat each day as the wonderful gift it is.

In 2018 and with the assistance of two board members we accellerated several projects. This decision was made fully with the recognition that with an improving economy our costs would most likely go up. This was fully discussed with the entire board in open session. So we did some work which could have been deferred until 2019 in this year. That did increase my work load. It also reduces the work load in 2019.

Never fear, our association has a recognized list of additional work to do in 2019. Never fear, we have the reserves to do this.

We currently have a full (7 person) board but there are a variety of positions taken by those on that board. We have a working board and some board members might find themselves pushed to perform.  I'm aware that some may simply joined to get a notch in their belt on LinkedIn. When I go to monthly meetings it becomes readily apparent that not everyone on the board is comfortable and not everyone is prepared. Some clearly have a personal position to run. Which is why I sometimes I feel I'm looking at deer in the headlights. But everyone can argue their position, no matter how ill-equipped or how ill-prepared, and they do. It must be wonderful to be clueless! Or to assume that no one is really aware of these machinations!

I haven't posted recently because of the amount of work and also because I have been in a quandary about my future here. I decided I will no longer be on the board, effective September 28, 2018.  I reached that decision on August 12, 2018. I immediately informed the entire board. This decision was cemented by the board meeting of August 9. I allowed several days for the charge of that meeting to dissipate. I then made a rational and unemotional decision. I issued several emails to the board and I began the work of completing.

I have a lot of completion work to do. I've written about 1875 words for the newsletter. What is actually printed will depend upon others on the board, some of whom loath making committments via the newsletter. I always parse my articles to allow others to publish. With an election in September some members of the board may show up and provide an article simply because of the election. We do have politicians on the board of BLMH.