Who Makes the Rules here? Hotel or Village?
Century Village was established as a retirement community which has changed over the years, much of it for the better. However, one thing that remained true from the beginning was that this is a community of owners and if there are renters, they are to be vetted carefully. This was for the safety, financial and physical, of the association and the community at large. I am sure it was not perfect, but for the most part it worked.
Now we have an ongoing situation about which many people are aware and no one seems to be doing anything about it. Dave Israel and UCO know about it and have done diddly all about it, passing on the responsibility to others (leaving us wondering again about just what he does here) and the president of the Dover Association obsesses about doors and windows but does nothing about the woman who owns several apartments in the association and then rents them out as a day to day hotel offering.
The renters come in and could care less about the rules and regulations of the Village and use the facilities like a resort. The Village gets nothing out of this arrangement and in fact, loses much by it. The Dover president knows all about this, Dave knows all about this, and it is an open secret in the Village so who has the hell WILL do something about it?
There is another issue with a renter in the Village who sublet to a creep and again, no one does anything. Dave Israel and minions, delegates of the Village - this is more than a simple quality of life; it is a question of the very fabric of the Village. Step up, do something. You asked for the responsibility of your positions, so is it for the glory of saying I am the..... or is it for the real responsibility of making and keeping our Village the way it could and should be?
OK Esther, I'll bite:
ReplyDeleteIf YOU were President of UCO, or advising whoever was, what would be your plan to stop hotel-style rentals or illegal sublets? How would YOU compel individual association boards to enforce their own bylaws?
The answer is simple Mr. Don 4060.
DeleteEDUCATE THEM. Most of these dummy delegates don't have a clue about dealing with people who abuse the rules. For one thing you can rat them out to the county. Most of them are probably not paying the Hotel tax.
His highness will quickly inform you that UCO has no power to do anything about what an association chooses to do...........right or wrong, against or in accordance with their by-laws. IMHO it's just because he'd rather sit on his throne rather than get off his a** and search for ways UCO could legally help. If the king wanted UCO to have the ability to help with such things, I know he could find a way. However, it might mean that he would get his 'hands dirty', and he might have to get off his computer for an hour or so to do some REAL work!
ReplyDeleteNot going to get placards and march around the building? May be the only way to get their attention.
ReplyDeleteFirst, I know in our building we have a strict policy about renting and we investigate renters as well. Second, I am not an expert in the laws of how to evict an illegal tenant here in Florida or how to fine an owner who is doing illegal deeds, but there are people who do know - right, lawyers! They are the ones to go to with the proper way of doing that. Third, we can tell the authorities as there is a hotel tax and for sure these people are not paying it! I think, though, that it has to be someone from the Association to complain. I could be wrong, but again, that would need to be checked out. These are not difficult things to check but some people are too lazy or perhaps getting a little incentive? to not say anything? As for enforcing rules of an association, again, I am not knowledgeable in this area but know enough to consult one. Surely Dave and minions could do that if they truly have the welfare of the Village at heart but do they? I see no proof of that at all. Perhaps privileges of the Village can be removed and the members of the Association banned from WPRF pools, the Clubhouse, etc. See how fast they would force their president and other officers to do their jobs. Again, should I run and win this would be a priority of mine, to see how we can change this situation. We have to start somewhere and to constantly say it cannot be done is to defeat ourselves befoe we even try.
ReplyDeleteWhy wait? Anyone can call the County "authorities" responsible for collecting "hotel tax" and register a complaint. If a law is being broken, report it. If you saw a crime being committed across the street from where you live, would you call UCO? Would you locate and "educate" the association president of the building where the crime was being committed, or post to an Internet blog that "someone should do something"? If you know where the hotel is, call the cops.
ReplyDeletePerfect example: mr grossman, a Wellington resident, lodged a complaint with code enforcement and now I have nasty looking black stripes on the pavement in front of my building . No blog postings, no UCO, he just picked up the phone. (Thanks Ed). The same can be done in this case, without any need for speculation about "incentives". Just pick up the phone.
You've got the parking space division lines all wrong. Again, you're making a rather dumb statement. NOBODY AT UCO WOULD DO ANYTHING! The code relative to parking space widths was violated by the paving contractor. Nobody at UCO took any responsibility. The Property Manager/Project Manager was nowhere to be found. Code enforcement had to be consulted, and, instead of UCO, - enforcement had to make the Paving Contractor correct the parking division line spacing. It was necessary, of course, to cover over the white lines that were wrong. So, here you are again criticizing, and you don't have the foggiest idea what the hell you're talking about. Your president at UCO is the bottom line, - he let this all happen. There is so much that you don't know about a very wrong $5,000,000. paving job, - so that you really ought to get your facts straight before you put some lie in print.
DeleteEduardo is correct and that is the problem with everything here. Noone takes responsibility for anything and so the Village goes lurching on from crisis to crisis and Dave sits there like Old King Cole just singing away -"briefly" and "you are out of order". Not a very pleasant song. FYI, yesterday we were at a doctors center whih just had a parking lot redone and my oh my, not a pebble to be found, not an uneven spot to be seen and all the paint was fresh and bright. That is what we should have had and did not and Dave NEVER took responsibility or admitted he had made a really big boo boo by hiring these people and letting them get away with a crappy substandard job. Wake up and smell the coffee; this is just one of the things people are angry about. It is the whole stinking attitude towards everything and everyone who does not agree with Dave and CO. and the nastiness that he engenders. Secret agent man or not - he is not James Bond and no one except the deluded are going to fawn all over him.
ReplyDeleteOff point. Discussion was over whether or not "someone should do something" about hotel- style rentals in CV. If you know the "who" and the "where", let the "someone" be you. Make the call.
ReplyDeleteAnd the black stripes still look like ass. Thanks, Ed.
@ "Eduardo":
ReplyDeleteYou are correct when you say that I do not know very much about the recent paving and drainage project.
Explain it to me.
@ Esther:
ReplyDeleteYou still have not answered my question.
What would YOU do, specifically, to stop hotel- style rentals and illegal sublets? Besides "making it a priority", what would you DO? Who would you call? What action would you take?
And, again, how would you compel Association Officers, in buildings where you do not reside and have no fiduciary interest, to enforce their own bylaws?
If you know where these "illegal" activities are happening, have you examined the Condominium Documents of the "offending" association to see if they even HAVE a bylaw against this type of activity? Has it occurred to you that these rentals may actually be PERMITTED under that association's bylaws?
I need do nothing if the president of the Village would get off his ass and do something! Is the fat lady singing, he asks. Maybe it is worth a visit to court? This is our president? A jerk beyond all words. Does he realize that even if bylaws of Dover allowed this, the board would then be complicit in the evasion of taxes since they know of these hotel rentals and do nothing, do not see that hotel taxes are paid. This is a village issue, but as usual, we get nothing. Will I do something? Maybe, and that is my business and perhaps I will run for office in UCO on the platform of doing away with a yes man board and a do nothing president. And now, since you know the association, why don't you ge the bylaws and call the hotel commission or tax clerk, or bettr yet, stick a pin in Dave so he loses some of his air and actually takes a stance on something. Maybe , as the other person suggested, YOU are Dave and that is why you came up with that ridiculous accusation of conjoined twins. Hmmm.....
ReplyDeleteSo, your answer is......"nothing".
ReplyDeleteSo much for "fresh faces and fresh ideas".
UCO is not the IRS or the Florida Department of Revenue. Tax evasion is is crime. If you are aware of a crime, it is your civic and moral duty to report it, not post vague complaints on an Internet blog.
I am glad to hear that you are considering running for UCO office. Community Service is among the highest of callings, and I applaud you. This blog is a fine place to present your ideas about changing how things are done in our Community. Obviously, you are unprepared to address this issue today, but there is plenty of time to "do your homework".
As for Don4060 doing your homework for you, please remember that it was Esther who posted the complaint at the top of this thread. Do your own homework.
Here is a good study tip: the Condominium Core Documents are easily accessible on the Century Village Blog. They are located in the sidebar and a link to the website is located on the homepage of this blog, listed as "malefactor".
Good luck.