A look back at 2022

We hope you all had a great holiday season, and a big thank you to the 45 homeowners who “braved” our Palm Springs winter chill to attend the annual meeting at Demuth Community Center on Jan. 28, 2023. A new law allows HOAs to save money on elections when uncontested. The election notice goes out earlier, and if the number of candidates is no more than the number of vacancies, they can be elected by acclamation, which happened with our three open board positions. Here’s the new board.

We have a new community manager at Personalized Property Management, Jennie Tidwell. David Schuknecht has taken on new responsibilities at PPM but remains available to advise Jennie. We wish to thank him and outgoing board members Steve Suttles and Steven Wolfe for their service. Suttles delivered his president’s report summarizing the work done the past year and extolling the “beauty of the property, general friendliness and kindness of neighbors.”

President’s report sums up “eventful year”

The Feb. 20 annual meeting was by necessity the first held by videoconference. Only about ten homeowners attended in addition to the five board members, so we hope those who missed the meeting will read this recap.

Enough homeowners returned ballots by mail to ensure a quorum of 41 votes. Two routine motions were approved without opposition and the three incumbent candidates were overwhelmingly re-elected to the three open board seats: Greg Reid, Roy Landon and Steven Wolfe. The board officer positions remain unchanged.

Board President Carl Toland, who has a year remaining in his term, gave a report looking back at “an eventful year.” He said the board, the management company and our contractors had been diligent in maintaining our property values. “Projects and actions that flaunt our rules, regulations and Bylaws are given notification in a timely manner.”

Three owners who replaced rooftop HVAC units recently set a good example of following the rules — notifying the management company, submitting the Architectural Variance forms found on our website, and working with the HOA’s roofers. We recognize homeowners feel less time pressure regarding air-conditioning when it is 70 degrees outside as opposed to 120 degrees, but the process is necessary to protect fragile roof tiles.

Seven owners of two-bedroom units obtained HOA permission this past year to install desertscape in front of their units. The HOA removed the lawn and in-ground trash bins, and the owners paid for the materials and landscaping work. We thank them for this cost sharing, which saves on lawn irrigation and mowing. 

Toland praised the completion in April of the repainting project and the work of landscaper Ismael Ramirez in relocating sprinklers away from the buildings, pruning shrubs and trees, and facilitating two tree-trimming projects by other contractors. Timely palm tree trimming kept blossoms out of the pools this summer, and aggressive trimming of jacaranda and pine trees helped ensure we lost no large limbs during recent windstorms that wreaked havoc elsewhere in the area.

Several units went on the market recently and sold quickly at record high prices. “This is good and bad news because we hate to see our friends move away,” Toland said. “Please make it a point to welcome our new community members as much as social distancing will allow.” Looking ahead, he said he hoped a bingo get-together canceled in April because of COVID can take place this year, probably in the fall.

In the homeowners’ comment portion of the annual meeting, topics discussed included whether we could increase hedges to deter intruders or use video surveillance. The board agreed to consider these suggestions.

The treasurer’s report was emailed to all homeowners on the HOA Board mailing list.

A 2/22 important meeting

Homeowners are invited to attend the HOA’s annual meeting on Saturday Feb. 22 at 9:30 a.m. at Demuth Park community center, 3601 E. Mesquite Ave.
 
Homeowners should check their mail for an envelope containing official voting instructions and a ballot for electing directors. While we have two candidates for two positions, please mail in your ballot whether or not you plan to attend the meeting. Your vote helps meet the required meeting quorum. If a quorum is not achieved, it will be necessary to call a second meeting at additional expense to the Association.
 
The current board president, Carl Toland, is running for another term on the board. Katie Ullman is running for a first term. Nominations have closed. Director Jeff Welsh is leaving the board.
 
At the meeting, the HOA’s director of elections will tabulate, certify and announce the election results. The current board will report on the HOA’s budget and financial forecast, recap last year’s events, and look ahead at major programs scheduled for the coming year. The new directors will hold an organizational meeting, electing officers.
 
Any homeowners who did not receive a ballot or need to replace a spoiled ballot should call our community manager, David Schuknecht at Personalized Property Management, 760-325-9500.

Annual meeting scheduled for March 2

Homeowners are invited to attend the HOA’s annual meeting on Saturday, March 2 at 10 a.m. at Demuth Park community center, 3601 E. Mesquite Ave. Note the location has changed from prior years.

Homeowners should check their mail for an envelope containing official voting instructions and a ballot for electing directors. While we have three candidates for three positions, please mail in your ballot whether or not you plan to attend the meeting. Your vote helps meet the required meeting quorum. If a quorum is not achieved, it will be necessary to call a second meeting at additional expense to the Association.

The current board secretary, Michael Pagliaro, is running for a second term on the board. Gary Manchester and Linda Seymour are seeking their first terms. Nominations have closed. The current president, Chuck Mendenhall, and treasurer, Rosanne Kumins, are leaving the board as of the end of the meeting on March 2. Directors Carl Toland and Jeff Welsh remain on the board for another year.

At the meeting, the HOA’s director of elections will tabulate, certify and announce the election results. The current board will report on the HOA’s budget and financial forecast, recap  last year’s events, and look ahead at major programs scheduled for the coming year. The new directors will hold an organizational meeting, electing officers.

Any homeowners who did not receive a ballot or need to replace a spoiled ballot should call our community manager, David Schuknecht at Personalized Property Management, 760-325-9500.

Annual Meeting 2018: President’s Report

The annual meeting was held on February 10, 2018. Reports from the Board and good discussion from the residents helped outline events planned for the upcoming months. This newsletter highlights the remarks made at the meeting.

Election Results: The Director of Elections, Carolyn McDonald ably assisted by David Lamski, announced that the necessary quorum had voted. Two board members were elected: Carl Toland and write-in candidate Dennis Turrone.

President’s Remarks: During the past summer, signage was replaced in each cul de sac entrance. These new signs will be augmented, as requested by residents, to include the range of house numbers in each and, where necessary, additional lighting. Two major projects will be scheduled in the coming months. A protective slurry coat will be applied to the asphalt which was installed 4 years ago. The other major project will be preventive work to the flat portions of our roofs. The roofs will be cleaned, patched where necessary, and resprayed with a sun/uv protective coat. This is required every 10 years or so, and it protects the foam from deteriorating. Residents will be advised when the work is scheduled for their area.

Both of these projects are part of our regular maintenance schedule. Funding comes from our Reserve Account. Both projects are major expenditures amounting to approximately $125,000. The Board will continue to manage the Reserve Account to ensure its adequacy and will, of course, notify residents if additional contributions are necessary in the future.

—Chuck Mendenhall

Annual Report 2018: Dog owners’ proposal

Several months ago the Board was asked by a group of residents to begin a discussion about allowing a designated off-leash exercise area for dogs. At the annual meeting dog owners presented the idea for discussion. They proposed a fenced-in, gated, landscaped area along the back wall behind the west pool. The cost of the project would be borne by interested dog owners and any others who wish to contribute.  No HOA dollars would be committed to the project. Proponents have an estimated budget of $3,000 and they currently have pledges of over $1,000. Supporters of the project stated that over 30% of residents own dogs. Many of them are full-time residents. Dogs suffer, particularly in the summer, because of HOA rules requiring that dogs walk on the hard surfaces (on leash) only.

Questions raised during the meeting related to liability, insurance, nuisance, municipal requirements, and process.  The Board president said that these questions needed to be answered and more discussion would be had. For instance, what hours would it be open, who could access the facility, what about unattended dogs, barking, enforcement procedures, etc? The Board will continue to consider the proposal and accept additional information and comments at future meetings. Ultimately, a vote of residents will be required before the Board would take any action.

Highlights of the 2016 annual meeting

Ballots were tabulated at the annual meeting in March, and Carl Toland was reelected to the Board, joined by new member David Burgess. Here is a list of all five current Board members:

Chuck Mendenhall, President
Carl Toland, Vice President
Rosanne Kumins, Treasurer
Michael Pagliaro, Secretary
David Burgess, Director

Topics of interest discussed at the annual meeting included a review of the current HOA rules regarding vehicle parking and community communications. Two working groups were appointed to deal with these issues in depth. Rosanne Kumins will chair the communications working group, and David Burgess will lead the parking discussion.  Both groups have met, and their reports were included in the May 2016 newsletter.

The HOA’s budget for 2016-2017 is balanced with no fee increase anticipated; landscape and facilities are a work in progress.

We are off to another busy year.

— Chuck Mendenhall