BAY COLONY CLUB CONDO - SLOTA ON BOARD?

Originally Published 1/22/12

On September 18, 2008 Sam Slota, then President of the Bay Colony Club BOD, secretly signed a contract with communications Consulting Group (CCG) obligating BCC to pay more than $120,000 for their services.  This "consultant" tied us into a ridiculous, over priced, ten year deal with Comcast.  (The video industry is developing so fast that in ten years, there may not be any cable TV.)

1. This contract was not approved by the BOD.
2. The compensation to CCG was misrepresented by CCG and  not pointed out by Slota.
3. According to BCC's attorney; "...CCG committed fraud when it presented itself to the owners at the Board meeting, just as (Slota) committed the same fraud by allowing that presentation without correcting the compensation."   
4. At the Board meeting of October 22, 2009 a motion to remove Slota as BOD President was defeated when Slota, George Lauth and Pete Shelton voted against it.
5. At the January 21, 2010 Board meeting our BOD approved a $60,000 payment to CCG thereby ratifying and approving Slota's secret deal and preventing any civil and/or criminal actions against Slota and CCG.  Board members voting to rescue Slota from his indefensible position were: Harriet Gustafson, Pete Shelton, Saundra Zubko and Slota himself.

In March, 2002 then BOD President Slota convinced his Board to impose an illegal (non-emergency) $384,000 assessment.  The assessment generated a legal challenge which ended with a judgement that the special assessment was, in fact, illegal and not authorized by the BCC Documentation.  The legal process dragged on for 4 years and generated tens of thousands of dollars in legal bills which the BCC owners had to pay.

It is not in Bay Colony Club's best interests to have Slota or any of his defenders and enablers (Harriet Gustafson, George Lauth, Pete Shelton, Saundra Zubko) on any future Board or committee.

BAY COLONY CLUB CONDO - ZUBCO ON BOARD?

Originally Published 1/22/12

1. Zubko, both as BCC Board of Directors' President and later, as CEO  of the Special Recreation District Board of Supervisors, did everything in her power to prevent the dissolution of the Special Rec District.  Tens of thousands in legal bills were paid by BCC owners due  to Zubko's obstructionism.  As BCC association attorney Rob Rubinstein stated in his letter of November 27, 2007; "The District and the individuals comprising its Board of Supervisors* have acted in reckless disregard for the truth in order to prevent the District from being dissolved and to remain in power.  The District and the individuals comprising its Board of Supervisors have deliberately sabotaged the dissolution of the District, using defamation of the Association, its Board of Directors and attorneys and false accusations about commingling funds and not getting financial information as smoke screens." 

*Rec District Supervisors:  Bob Lewis, Wendy Metzger, Joe Pappas,  Pete Shelton, Saundra Zubko

2. In January 2010,  Zubko hired a private investigator (using $5,000 of Association money) to investigate BCC owners and provide "cradle to grave" information those who failed to show her the deference she felt due.
3. In February 2010, Zubko, as BOD President, authorized the un-budgeted, illegal purchase of an ice machine for Rec 1 without any prior BOD discussion and vote.  This was an "emergency" because the machine was needed for Zubko's upcoming Super Bowl party.  Board members approving this illegal purchase were: Saundra Zubko, George Lauth, Pete Shelton, Sam Slota and Harriet Gustafson. 
4.  In a February 19 2010 letter*, Bill Delaney, Bay Colony Club Board of Directors V.P., alleges: “Photocopies of your personal information were illegally taken from the office by Saundra Zubko.” Delaney advised: “You need to take immediate action to protect your identity and consider placing a fraud alert and or security block with all of the credit reporting agencies.”   *(To see a copy of this letter, click on “BCC 2010 Delaney Letter” under “Links” in the left column.)

5. There are plenty more.  Please add your own story in the comments to this article.

 It is not in Bay Colony Club's best interests to have Zubko or any of her defenders and enablers (Harriet Gustafson, George Lauth, Bob Lewis, Wendy Metzger, Pete Shelton, Sam Slota) on any future Board or committee.

BAY COLONY CLUB CONDO - BOD ELECTION

Just got the ballot information and I am flabbergasted!

Many of the same motley crew who were  very publicly discredited have the chutzpah to run again!

So, are we to be treated to another run of secret contracts, personal information being "borrowed" from the BCC files, obstructionism in order to hold on to a power base and all the rest of those shenanigans?

In order to remind BCC owners of what happened in the past, some of the more outrageous performances will be made again available on this blog.

Are we bound to repeat history because our memories are so short?  We can't all be in the grip of senile dementia.  

Say it ain't so...

BAY COLONY CLUB CONDO - YEAR END REALTY REPORTS

In order to provide some trend indication, we are showing 2012 AND 2011 numbers.

NOTE: Data in (parenthesis underlined and italicized) is as of December 31, 2011

  

Total # 2 BR for sale:  8 (13)

High         $256,000 ($299,990)
Low          $178,900 ($189,900)
Median      $224,950 ($244,945)

 

Sold 2 BR YTD:  33 (17)                            LP/SP*                       Days on Market
High         $222,500 ($215,000)                 103%  (89%)                1,825 (90)

Low          $145,100  ($105,000)                    +1%  (75%)                     6 (10)
Median    $172,500 ($160,000)                     93%  (90%)                   85 (73)

Total # 1 BR for sale:  0 (0)

High      $NA ($NA)

Low       $NA ($NA)

Median  $NA ($NA)

Sold 1 BR YTD:  5 (3)                                LP/SP*         Days on Market

High       $111,000 ($95,500)                      96%  (97%)                106  (365)                 
Low        $ 87,000  ($80,000)                      80%  (82%)                    9     (6)
Median  $104,000  ($82,750)                     89%  (91%)                   20  (33)       

*LP/SP = Sales Price divided by Listing Price, or what % of the listing price was actually paid.

Information provided by Margaret Matinale, Lic. Associate Broker, Galleria  International Realty, 954-298-2527, fax: 954-771-7367, email: margesells4u@yahoo.com

A little recovery showing here?  A bit of an uptick?

BAY COLONY CLUB CONDO - SECURTY, ARE YOU THERE? HELL NO!

It's bad enough that the bar code reader at the gate is not working properly and that our manager apparently doesn't give a damn.  (Colleen seems to find it beneath her to acknowledge receipt of emails when an acknowledgement is requested.  She's even less  likely to respond to owners' emails and/or phone calls.)

In addition, Security is so laid back that folks can park how and where they like without any problem.  The BOD members who hired these folks and defend their lousy performance should be voted out of office and shunned by the community.

BAY COLONY CLUB CONDO - DECEMBER 6 MEETINGS- COMMENTARY

Membership Meeting & Amendment Vote 

So, major proposed changes in our BCC Documents managed to rouse a grand total of 38 people from their torpor.  Assuming that at least eight attendees were part of a couple, at most 30 apartments were represented at the meeting.  Whoopee!  4.7% of the owners cared enough to show up at a meeting with major significance. 

Predictably, not enough proxies were returned to reach a quorum.  Plans are to keep shaking the bushes until, one way or another, a quorum is reached and then put through the changes.

•  Return those proxies!
•  Vote!
•  Or, "somebody" may vote for you...

Board of Directors' Meeting

The only subject drawing your blogger's interest was the unanimous vote to spend $10,809 for ice makers in Recs 2 & 3.  Recalling the undercover 2010 installation of an ice maker in Rec 1, and thinking $5,405 each was a lot to pay for cranking out cubes, we investigated. 

We need not only an ice maker, which will make cubes, but an ice distributor which will cough them into a glass.  Distributors cost about as much as the ice maker itself .  A distributor is required in order to keep your funky neighbors from chilling their beer and wine in the ice bin, fondling the cubes and/or soaking their feet among them.

Nevertheless, we feel the money would be better spent on flowering perennials which everyone could enjoy and which would go further in increasing our property values.  Potential buyers will note explosive displays of bougainvillea sooner than ice makers.  People can drink at 1 & 4 or bring their own coolers with ice to 2 & 3.

For additional details, go to: https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B5HHQLxes8EZMGVHUzhxaU1LN3M

After clicking on the link above, you can read Bev Houston's latest Informer for BOD meeting details.

BAY COLONY CLUB - ORPHAN OWNERS?

We have contacted BCC’s office many times over the past year via email and phone.  No one ever picked up the phone.  We always have to leave a voice mail message.  We have never  had any response to phone calls or to emails.  

Although received and read receipts are always requested when I send emails to the BCC office, the office has never acknowledged receipt of or reading the email.

The tree outside our apartment has been leaning for over a year.  The office was first contacted Oct 31, 2011 with followups October, 25 2012 and November 9, 2012.  There has been no response from the BCC office and no action taken (not even putting the support stakes back in the ground.)  Jack Israel did email me November 10 that he was looking into it.   Meanwhile, nothing has been done.  The next good blow from the East will certainly take this tree down and be an additional and unnecessary expense for all of us.

Has anyone else found it impossible to get action or a response from the office?  Am I being singled out for special attention or are other owners being ignored? 

As far as we are concerned, performance by the office staff has been totally unsatisfactory.  I would like the hiring of a new manager or management service to be an agenda item at the NEXT BOD meeting.  If you feel the same way, contact the Board members (and remind them of the upcoming election.) 

BAY COLONY CLUB - AMENDMENT VOTE

Just got our "Notice of Membership Meeting & Amendment Vote". 

There was no random number on the return envelope and the ballot was not printed on safety paper.  Is this just an oversight?  Are we going back to the ballot stuffing that was common before these steps were introduced?  

Why not take two simple steps to eliminate any possibility of fraud?

Failure to provide the random number and safety paper is an invitation to those unhappy with the results to contest the vote.  And, no matter which way the votes go, there are going to be plenty of unhappy owners.

Is this really what we want?

BAY COLONY CLUB - 2012 PROPOSED BUDGET

The proposed 2012 budget offered by our Board shows an unwarranted 4.5% increase in the office payroll.

Our experience with the present office staff has not been satisfactory.  They do not respond to emails and do not answer phone calls  They have set up an office schedule to suit themselves rather than owners who pay their salary and the Realtors who are trying to make a living.

The office staff's performance calls for their replacement, not an unwarranted pay increase.


What has been your experience and what is your opinion on the pay increase?
   

BAY COLONY CLUB - MISSING FALL?