Nara Chandrababu Naidu's Visionary Policies For Andhra Pradesh's Development
Lies, damn lies, then there is misinformation –thanks to LWV Board and supporters
1. A Publication of Residents Voice July 2009 Volume 2 Issue 6
The Voice
Vote “YES, YES, YES, YES” on Recall
T
(approximately $5.4M) was taken out of the resi-
ypical of some resi-
dents assessments without the consent or even
dents in United Mutual,
this speaker at the 7-14-09 knowledge of the Directors or Owners!” What
United Board Meeting does would you call money that was taken out of your
not understand the reason bank account without your knowledge or your con-
for the recall election. Her sent? In very simple and direct terms, most people
comments were indicative of would call that “stealing”! AND, if someone is
the misunderstandings
aware of this and does not tell you, “THEY ARE
propagated by the “No on
Recall” proponents. Her comments were as fol- COMPLICIT.“ How many Directors fall into this
lows; category with respect to the Bonus Plan?
“I am so sick of hearing about the incentive Second; Understanding the details of a Bonus/
plan. Does anybody here not get, work here in a Incentive Plan will not create “Chaos,” UNLESS, it is
corporation where you get a bonus? Incentive is found to be “the tip of an iceberg. By having the
”
a bonus. People get bonuses. PCM is a ‘Not .., is Board not take any action on this, we will never
a for Profit Organization.’ They deserve bo-
know. So far, three years have gone by and the
nuses. I got a bonus, and, Mr. Curtis, I’m sure
when you worked for Ratheon, you got a bonus. Board still has their heads in the sand. Hence, the
So, why shouldn’t they. But anyway, I am happy RECALL action.
with PCM and can you imagine what would (Continued on page 2)
happen, there would be chaos in this commu-
nity if we didn’t have the workers and the peo-
ple in place. PCM is a good management com- Inside this issue:
Find us on the Web
pany otherwise we would not have good people
working here. Vote NO, definitely NO on every- WWW.RVOICE.ORG
Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes 1
thing.”
Bonus Plan Impact 2
This resident has two things on her mind; First; Residents Voice 3rd Dir Comments 3
“Other companies have Bonus Plans, so, why Meetings
Landscape 4
shouldn’t PCM?” With that statement, she has Thursday, August 06
totally overlooked the underlying cause for Frivolous Suit 5
Thursday, August 20
concern on the part of many residents; “The Open Letter 6
money that was used to pay for the Bonus/ CH #5 6:30 pm Opinion 8
Incentive plan between 1996 and 2006
Page 1 of 8
2. A Publication of Residents Voice July 2009 Volume 2 Issue 6
We have governing documents that specifically PCM.
state that all unspent monies should be returned If their skill lies in managing to a budget, we
to the Owners. This is typically done every year wonder why they could not manage our costs to
and unspent funds are placed into an account last years budget. NOW, that would be what we
which will be applied to the following year’s as- would expect from a “good” management com-
sessments. However, the Bonus/Incentive monies pany.
were not a line entry in the ledger for any of the
Many residents look to other companies to justify
Corporations, and, as such, were hidden from the
PCM’s action (i.e.; Bonus/Incentive Plan). Why
Directors and Owners, AND, was NOT returned to stop there! Look at what other companies are do-
the Owners. There never was an account number ing to reduce costs in this economy. Why isn’t
in our ledgers identifying an “Incentive/Bonus PCM using some of the techniques of these com-
Plan.” panies to help control our assessments.
Just because our Management Agreement allows
Impact of a Bonus Plan PCM to reach into our pockets whenever they
want to, is not the measure of a “GOOD COM-
H
PANY.” It is the measure of a “POOR Management
as anyone ever wondered why our assess-
Agreement.”
ments increase every year by, at least, the
cost of living index? When the budget is gener- The public exposure of the Bonus/Incentive Plan
ated, the General Manager is adamant that his in 2006 has had one positive result, to date. Even
costs are based on a “zero base budget.” This im- before the end of the recall election, the owners
plies that there is “NO profit” in our budget. have seen one offspring of this action; rumor has
(Profit being defined as the difference between it that United and Third Mutuals will have no in-
the budget and actual costs). Theoretically, one of crease in their assessments in 2010. Imagine that!
the benefits of such an accounting scheme, is the Perhaps we should start thinking about a
reduction of our monthly assessments as a results “RECALL” in Third Mutual next year.
of any “savings” that are incurred by the Corpora-
tion.
Has anyone ever seen a decrease in our as-
sessments from one year to the next? In Memory Of:
The (in excess of $30 million) savings that were Robert Young
incurred by the incentive plan between 1996 and
2006, does not show up as a reduction in our Bruce Campbell
yearly assessments. Residents Voice has lost two staunch
People voice their admiration of PCM for various supporters of our cause and wants to
reasons. “The Voice Newsletter” is especially im- convey our condolences to these two
pressed by the skill of PCM in generating a
families.
budget where costs ALWAYS comes in under
budget. They either have great skill in creating an
excessive budget, or, have great skill in managing
the costs to always come in under budget. Anyone
can manage to costs for an excessive budget, even
Page 2 of 8
3. A Publication of Residents Voice July 2009 Volume 2 Issue 6
Comments by ions are subjected to continuing harass-
ment and ridicule. It is no wonder fewer
Third Mutual Director, and fewer competent people choose to
Katie McDaniel, 7/21/9 volunteer for the boards.
K
“The price for reinstatement has exacted
atherine (Katie)
extremely high emotional and physical
McDaniel WAS
tolls on both sides. The action has been
REINSTATED AS A DI-
nothing but destructive. While pleased
RECTOR ON THE
with the outcome of my action, I am men-
THIRD MUTUAL
tally and physically depleted and I feel I
BOARD. After her intro-
shall be of greater service “on the ground”
duction on Tuesday, she
where I shall work at a grass roots level.
resigned by reading the following statement:
“I am therefore submitting my resignation
“Good Morning;
to this board effective immediately. I in-
“In March I filed suit against the Third tend to take time to work for the rights of
Mutual because it was the right thing to residents and steel myself to run for the
do. It was time for somebody to stand up board as an elected member rather than
and fight back. The case continued far be- for a replacement term.
yond any reasonable time dictated by com-
“This will give the residents a full and un-
mon sense. This has been a graphic exam-
constrained voice to represent them with-
ple of the difference of opinion, not only
out fear of precipitous removal over some-
being ignored, but subject to abuse and re-
thing as trivial as the “color of my shoes.”
taliation.
“Thank You!”
“Diversity of opinion, which is crucial to a
vital and wise decision process is com-
pletely suppressed. The detriment is to the “Yes on RECALL”
community which does not receive the
benefit of full discussion and reasoning.
Let me remind everybody, I had been a
board member only three months when
the action to remove me was taken. There United
was hardly enough time to justify the fe-
rocity and venom of the attack. VOTE
“I was removed because it is thought that
my thoughts and opinions are dangerous YES
and I am not afraid to express them. Other
directors who dare have dissenting opin-
Page 3 of 8
4. A Publication of Residents Voice July 2009 Volume 2 Issue 6
The (Landscape) Work Is Not Done
Until All Directors are Taken Care of
Posted By CotoBlogzz | 06-11-2009 7:00 PM
Reprinted with permission of CotoBlogzz
Laguna Woods, CA - Given the current unemployment rate you would think that land-
scape work can be done on the cheap - right? Not in Laguna Woods!
Consider that the hourly rate for landscape work in the community is $40.00/hour. Yes it
is not $4.00, it $40.00, as in the $5 million landscape budget. Given the premiums, you
would expect that the work would be done with German engineering precision,
right? Wrong again.
Work in and around Mary Robertson continues, even when the project is supposed to be complete
Consider that even after the slope renovation in Third Mutual had been deemed
complete, work continued in and around New Third Mutual director Mary
Robertson's manor, so we asked the Third Mutual what the deal was.
Mary Robertson promptly responded saying "I did not request work on this
slope nor have any say in what is going on. The area has been under renovation
since Sept. 2008, long before I was appointed to the Third Board in April 2009.
The long renovation period was due to the poor soil in the area for which they
had to leach the soil for about 6 months before they could get it in condition for
planting."
We figured that Ms. Robertson knew something we did not, so we asked her if
she knew about any documentation that might have been sent to the commu-
nity alerting the community of the mentioned delay. We also suggested that as
she pondered how to respond to our last question, and to make sure she did
not feel that we had set her up, that she should know we have information that
Cynthia Conner had kept Ms. Robertson informed of virtually everything that
went on in closed sessions. Further, according to Brian Gentry and Ishmael, the
work was complete.
Apparently Ms. Robertson did not know more than we did - she has failed to re-
spond.
Perhaps this explains the $5Million landscape budget.
Page 4 of 8
6. A Publication of Residents Voice July 2009 Volume 2 Issue 6
This "Recall," is a defining moment for our commu-
Open Letter to the nity, whatever the outcome, the die has been cast, and you
have been put on notice! We are no longer willing to al-
United Board low ourselves to be summarily excused. When we ask a
question, we deserve an honest and complete answer. The
old rhetoric of "thank you for your comment," is no
longer acceptable. You may have the last word to refute
the words of residents you don't agree with, but, the valid-
ity of your word comes into question as well.
T he Recall, Mysterious Bonus Incentive Plan, The
Regulatory Agreement, The Illegal Transfer
Fee, Rising Monthly Assessments, Accountability, Trans-
The United Board has attempted to make this "Recall," an
issue of a personal attack on the directors named in
parency, Fair, Honest, and Open Communication, True the "Recall," nothing could be further from the truth. This
Fiduciary Responsibility, and Disenfranchisement of "Recall," is about two issues, 1) The $5.4 million dollars
United Residents. paid out by PCM to certain PCM employees without the
permission, or knowledge of the directors of any board, or
These are just some of the issues confronting the United the residents! We want the money that was taken from us
Board members that need to be addressed and deci- paid back. We expect the directors to address this issue
sively acted upon. Presently, there has been a lot of dia- and retrieve our money. Instead they defend PCM's outra-
logue and posturing without any results. I would give this geous actions, and refuse to perform their fiduciary
board a failing grade in all aforementioned areas. duty. 2) The directors continue to allow PCM's "Make
Work Project's," that are costing us hundreds of thousands
The Recall, has been contentious to say the least, resem- of dollars, without oversight. They continue to Defend
bling a WWE Free For All. Accusations, false information, PCM, no matter what the cost.
statements attacking certain group's, mis-information, ma-
nipulation of the Recall Ballots, distortion of issues, name The United directors, and the No4 Recall Committee,
calling, and outright lies! have confused, manipulated, and lied in their deter-
This has all been done in the name of "Leadership, Power mined efforts to win this Recall.
and Truth," by none other than the majority of Directors 1) The Recall Ballot authorized by the board with the ap-
on the United Board, and the No 4 Recall Committee. proval of attorney Bill Hart of HKC was confusing, and
These are the people administering the governance in our improperly written. There is still the question of it's legal-
Mutual, these are the people that use their "Bully Pul- ity.
pit," and accuse us of being "Hate Mongers," complainers, 2) We were led to believe the ballot would be changed
destroyers, and dividers of our community, being respon- and re-written in a proper sequence at the United Board
sible for the lack of manor sales, airing our dirty laundry in meeting of July14, before the mailing date of July
public, and just giving our community a bad name. They 20,2009. The board voted to reject the change!
accuse us of hating our community, of being bitter and 3) The approved mailing date for the Recall Ballot was set
angry, and last but not least of spreading mis-information for July 20. The reason the board rejected the change is
and lies. They say we are but a small handful of radical because the Recall Ballots, had already been mailed
dissidents who just want to stir up trouble, and that no out. Residents began recieving their ballots on Wednesday
one should listen to us! They have allowed the "Titular," morning. No wonder the board rejected changing the bal-
heads to refer to us as the "Unelected." These are the lot! Timing is everything!!!!
very people that demand civility, and courtesy for the sake 4) Monday, July 20, I received phone calls telling me they
of Village Unity, so that we can all get along. They say we had received calls from the No4 Recall Committee urging
are responsible for the division in our community and if them to vote No, and stating that Residents Voice was
we don't stop, we will ruin the community. These are our supporting the No4 Recall vote. That is a blatant outright
United Directors, the people that are supposed to direct lie! I left a message at the number listed for the No On
their best efforts and decisions in the best interest of Recall (949. 380. 0724 ) and told them to stop their
the residents.
Page 6 of 8
7. A Publication of Residents Voice July 2009 Volume 2 Issue 6
lies immediately! No response from them. 7) The Mysterious Bonus Incentive Plan: This is
$5.4 million dollars of our money that was taken with-
The Laundry List of Important Issues: out our knowledge, vote or consent, by PCM. This is a
plan that was devised in secret without approval or
1) Regulatory Agreement: In October 2009, our Hud knowledge or vote of the boards of directors at large.
Loan will be paid in full, therefore our protection will be This secret Bonus Incentive Plan dates back to 1996, is
gone. What has this board done to assure that our Regula- there more money involved in this plan we don't know
tory Agreement is updated and will continue to protect us about?
from outside sources that would attempt to take
our property for Re-development! Since this plan became public knowledge in 2006, PCM
general manager Milton Johns, has stated publicly that
2) Rising Monthly Assessments: If PCM has saved us the directors of the boards had knowledge, and had au-
$31 million dollars in the last years, how come our monthly thorized the Bonus Incentive Plan. Johns went on to say
assessments continue to go up? that the plan appeared in the management contracts as
well, it was not a secret. Looking back at the minutes of
3) The Illegal Transfer Fee: Hiring a lobbyist to go to previous meetings since 1992, there is no written men-
Sacramento to overturn an Illegal tax on every resident that tion of any "Bonus Incentive Plan." When this became a
sells their manor. PCM conducted a poll of other HOA's and hot topic item, a former GRF director spoke at a board
the vast majority were against supporting this proposal. The meeting, and said that he never knew, heard of, dis-
cost could be as much as $5,000.00 per manor sale we cussed, or authorized a "Bonus Incentive Plan," and he
would have to pay! One GRF director is proposing this out- defied anyone to prove differently.
rageous expenditure because he states, this is a good way to
generate more revenue. My advice to GRF directors, Learn Former United president Ray Barrett, didn't know about
To Operate Within Your Budget, and Stop Looking for the plan, neither did former United Treasurer Connie
More Ways To Take Our Money From Us! Shame On Grundke, or former United directors Kay Margason,
You Bob Hatch. and June Todd.
4) We have no Fair, Honest and Open Communica- Former and present directors that claim they knew all
tion with our directors. They see us as the enemy. They along, are former GRF president, and presently GRF
reject any suggestions, refuse to answer any questions, make treasurer, Bob Miller says he knew from the beginning
no attempt to listen and communicate with us. They would about the Bonus Plan, and that it was authorized by the
rather sit back make accusations, and call us names. How boards. United director Linda Wilson, says she has
can they expect to unite this community? Residents Voice known about the plan all along, and supports it. For-
has not divided our community, the majority of directors on mer GRF treasurer and Third Mutual president Richard
United, GRF and Third Mutual board have. Moos stated at the Third Mutual board meeting today,
July 21,2009 that he has always known about the Bonus
5) Fiduciary Responsibility: The management agree- Incentive Plan.
ment states that we will pay for Any, and All Costs Incurred By
PCM! That needs to be deleted from any and all management If all of you knew and approved this secret plan without
agreements immediately! This is not performing Fiduciary declaring this information to all the directors of all the
Responsibility! The directors need to fully understand what boards, then you're Either Lying, OR YOU"RE COM-
these words mean, and put them into action. PLICIT ! Neither option is very savory.
6) Disenfranchising Residents: By preventing Mike Pamela Grundke
Curtis from performing the duties that we expect of him,
the United Board is not allowing a substantial group of resi-
dents from being represented.
Page 7 of 8
8. A Publication of Residents Voice July 2009 Volume 2 Issue 6
Opinion
What Does A Board Majority Mean!
Many of you will receive phone calls, flyers This would effectively be accomplished
and mailings from both the “Yes” and “No” under either of two conditions;
on recall committees. You would hope that One, the contractor stuffed the ballots to
the options available to both committees be mailed to the owners before the ballot
would be equal. Such information as the was selected by the board with the knowl-
date of the mailing of the Ballots would be edge that he might have to undo all of that
known to all Owners so that everyone has work if the board selected the alternative
an equal time to get out their information ballot, or,
to the public.
Two, the contractor was informed which
That is not the case. In fact, the “NO” on ballot was going to be selected before the
Recall people mailed out their information motion and vote was completed. This
before the motion to select the format of could only have been done by the United
the ballot was voted upon by the United Board members predetermining the out-
Board. This could only occur if the com- come of the motion during the Board
mittee had prior knowledge to the out- Meeting.
come of the 7/14/9 United Board Motion
A board majority that is completely pre-
to select the final ballot.
dictable (no possible consideration of an
Why would this be important? Many sen- alternative view point) evolves when per-
ior residents like to mail their ballots as sonalities take precedence over common
soon as they received them lest they forget. sense and the owners become the low man
Getting information to them as close to the on the “Totem Pole.”
time that the ballots arrive is therefore
The resulting priorities become;
critical.
PCM, PCM Employees, Boards, and
The motion was made and seconded on
finally the Owners.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009 to select the format
of the ballot. That afternoon the ballots
were mailed and owners started receiving Contact;
their ballots on Wednesday. This implies Residents Voice
that the contractor completed the stuffing 24100-D #296 El Toro Rd
of the ballot envelopes on the same day Laguna Woods, CA 92637
that the final ballot was determined. (949) 683-7317
rvoice@rvoice.org
Page 8 of 8