Las Palomas

November 04 Comments

Jan 06, 2005

Las Palomas H.O.A.


Las Palomas ?“President?’s Perspective?”

To: Homeowners of Las Palomas
From: Ken Dry
Date: 1/6/2005
Re: Summary of November Meeting
For the minutes of the November 2004 meeting, please log on to our website at: www.neighborhoodlink.com/scottsdale/palomas/. Copies of the minutes will be available at the Las Palomas gate office for homeowners who do not have e-mail service. We have mailed copies to out of town owners without e-mail access.
35 lot representatives attended the meeting. The only draw back was a time restriction. The Library closes at 8PM and we only had an abbreviated meeting, without an open forum. The next meeting will start a 6PM. Hopefully; this will be enough time to get everything covered.
The following comments are based on my personal interpretations of the November Las Palomas Board meeting along with the discussions between attendees and the Board. The minutes of the November meeting represents the official position of the Board. Please direct all criticism to me. All members of the Board welcome open discussion on any topics related to the operations and conditions of Las Palomas. We are homeowners too.
I had intended to read a few letters from some lot owners who are not happy with the condition of the property and are in support of grass. I will still read them at the next forum. The letter from the Taras?’ questioned the Board?’s motives on making decisions. They feel we are ?“self-serving?”. They were not happy with the gate locks, the landscaping and the Board?’s decision to repair the North tennis court. They had come down for three weeks to attend to their property, prior to moving down for the season. The e-mail was sent after they had returned to their regular home. Their letter may not have been necessary if they had contacted the Board or Bob Wallace while they were here. The lawns had not been trimmed because we were in the middle of reseeding. We were not aware that there was a problem with any of the gate locks. All locks have been inspected. None were broken. Some were loose, but were working. They were tightened. The toilets in the pool house were inspected. There was nothing wrong with the plumbing. There were no leaks. We are not sure what he had seen. The repair of the tennis court is required under the CC&R?’s. The Board is obligated to maintain and repair all assets and common areas. This has been put off for the past few years. It has nothing to do with usage. However, there are more tennis players in this complex today than15 years ago when I moved to Las Palomas. Repairs will not start until the end of 2005 or the beginning of 2006. The cost is included in the dues for 2005 and 2006 projected budget.
Steve Stuhmer had questions related to the reserve fund and how it was to be used. We are updating the value of all the Las Palomas assets and their respective life to determine how much money should be in the fund to replace these assets. The Board feels that if our Budget is correct and we do not have any unforeseen catastrophes, we should be able to cover all our maintenance costs and not deplete the current reserve. We do not anticipate the need to use any of the reserve funds until we start to repair the North tennis court and seal the streets. As we pay for these projects, the funds will be replaced, during 2006, at the current monthly dues. Again this is predicated on the projection that there will be no major unforeseen problems. If we need to increase the reserve, it will require an increase in dues or a special assessment. It is my personal opinion that we have an adequate buffer in the current reserve and that we should be able to increase the reserve to $100,000 by the end of 2008 without increasing dues or special assessments. If we have to replace any of the pools, buildings, irrigation or major changes to landscaping, all bets are off.
A special assessment of $456 per lot would put our reserve at approximately $120,000 by the end of the year it is paid. It would add another $65,000 if done two years in a row. This is a topic for the next Board.
We have had someone volunteer to take the fruit off the trees and donate it to the homeless and other charities. This will save Las Palomas a lot of man-hours. If you want to pick the fruit for your own use, we will have this service skip your yard. It will then be the lot owners?’ responsibility to keep any fallen fruits off the ground.
There is no overnight parking allowed on the streets of Las Palomas. Any guests, staying overnight must park on the host?’s driveway or in the designated parking lots. Any car staying overnight must have the proper ?“Visitor?” sign on the dashboard or a Las Palomas window decal. Any cars left on the street will be subject to towing. The night gate attendants will be instructed to call the lot owner and notify them that the car, in violation of the parking rule, will be towed if not removed, immediately, from the street. These calls would occur after 1am. Be sure you register your guests.
We are contacting our lawyer to set up a procedure to fine lot owners who are breaking the rules of Las Palomas on a regular basis. The two rules most violated are improper parking and failure to remove refuses containers from the front of house within a twelve-hour period after the containers are emptied. There are only a few people who do this on a regular basis (more than three times a year) without an acceptable explanation. The third problem is, you guessed it, dog droppings. Lately, it is the big dogs doing the dirty work. Once in awhile it?’s a little one. The solution is easy, be sure your dog goes on its home turf before going for a walk. Don?’t exercise the dog until it goes.
The major topics covered at this meeting were, monthly dues will be $327 for 2005, The Master insurance for the common area is $306.52 per lot for 2005 (this will be lightly higher for 2006) and there is no capital spending budgeted for next year. There are no houses scheduled to be painted and there will be no lawns converted to zero-scape unless the lot owner approves the change. The Board will discuss problem lawns with the respective lot owners to determine maintenance requirements and limitations.
Please submit questions and criticisms to me, prior to the next Board meetings. If you see something you don?’t like or something you would like done, let me know. We rely on the homeowners to see things we miss or don?’t think noteworthy. I may not agree but I will either correct the problem or discuss it with the full board at the next meetings. When possible, leave me a note at the gate (lot 86) or e-mail me at totalexposure@msn.com.