YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT PAVING AND SERVING ON UCO
COMMITTEES? . . .
OKAY, LET’S TALK!
If I may, allow me to tell
you what the President of UCO is really all about, -- all in secret, i.e. – the
paving job.
I should tell you first
that I have over fifty years of experience in the Architectural
Profession. I designed and field
supervised perhaps 200 projects of various scopes and sizes that had bituminous
concrete paving work involved ranging from residential driveways to six lane
highways, to massive shopping malls.
It was strongly suggested
to me that because of this experience I should submit my name to be on certain
committees, in that I could perhaps provide needed information in matters of
methods, means, procedures, designs, construction methods and a host of other
things that might save lots of money and provide longevity of the work
proposed, and perhaps save time.
So, I submitted the proper
UCO forms together with the latest printing in the world renowned “Who’s Who in
America” together with other information related to my experience and
background. My feeling was, at the time,
that I’ll do anything I can for UCO, Pro Bono, because I was willing to give
something back, as one might express after a long architectural career.
Two years in a row, I
submitted my name. The committees were
Infrastructure, Bidding and Advisory, as I recall. I was advised by three different people
involved with UCO that David Israel personally rejected my name for any
of the committees. For what reason, I
asked? I was so taken aback that I
respectfully requested such rejections by Israel to be placed in writing. He refused to do that. It is unimaginable, but all factual.
I can think of maybe one
basic reason, and that is when at an Executive Board meeting, Ed Black made a
strong presentation in reference to doing the paving immediately because of
increases in petroleum products, start-up operations after a shutdown, and even
borrowing about a million dollars. I
made a plea to David Israel and others at the meeting that what Ed Black was
saying was absolutely not true. David
Israel shut me down and the Executive Board believed Ed Black with Israel’s
full blessing. You know what happened,
-- disaster, total disaster.
What was done, and I
should tell you that there is a ton of evidence in this regard, would, in the
Architectural and Engineering Professions, be considered criminal, -- or at the
very least, extremely reckless, grossly negligent and unprofessional.
What could I have
done? I think that I could have gotten a
great deal done. I would have
recommended hiring an Architect, or an Engineer experienced in roadway work,
and pay him about $75,000, or as much as $100,000 to produce a complete set of
design/construction documents for paving the entire Village, obtain estimates
of costs of all the work, including drainage, and then wait (if we needed to)
until we accumulated enough money to do the entire job, plus 5%
contingencies. According to an
Engineer’s report, we could have waited two, three or even four years, before
paving would be needed. The contract
with the professionals would include onsite periodic inspections for compliance
with the contract documents, field reports, dealing with governing authorities
and other matters, all in the course of protecting UCO and the Village.
We could have gotten, in
my considered opinion, a first-class bituminous concrete paving job and, I
believe, for a lot less money. So, what
have you got now? You’ve got a finished product that, if it had
been done correctly, should last about 12 to 15 years. My estimation is that a good deal of the
paving will begin to fail in 4 to 5 years.
And, lack of proper drainage will be one major reason.
There is a lot that one
needs to know about paving . . . and I mean, like schooling and much practical
experience. I don’t know all that I should know about this type of
construction, but I think that I could give David Israel, Ed Black, Rodger
Carver, and Dominic Guarnagia a lesson or two.
David Israel has stated many
times over, not only verbally, but in writing, that people in the Village with
experience are badly needed, and would be welcomed. Unfortunately, this is not true,
because what David Israel states verbally and places in writing, does not
conform to what he actually does. The
example above speaks for itself, --- a very costly example, I might add.
Edward J. Ross, AIA, FARA
Registered Architect
How true. But at this point I believe he is running scared and acting more erratically because of that. He has actually stated that HE will not appoint certain people to committees, thus openly setting up as a tinpot dictator and quite obviously violating and abrogating civil rights. makes for an interesting thought or two. His deliberate lack of proper management during the paving, the contract, and every other sin of omission and commission, etc, are coming back to roost and he is afraid. Good! With experts like you able to point out what he did or did not do, the lawsuit will be successful for the Village, not for David.
ReplyDeleteI know Dave Israel very well. I believe in him in every way to be a capable president, but after reading your compassionate story, which I believe to be true and accurate, I'm having very different feelings about Dave's honesty and integrity. I can't understand why he would cause such monetary harm to the Village simply for personal reasons. I don't understand why he didn't take you in as a non-payment professional and use your skill and knowledge for the Village's benefit to do a paving job the right way and maybe for less than 5 million dollars. Your story should have surfaced a long time ago. I feel badly because you could have made a big difference.
ReplyDeleteEd Ross spoke up long before today. You and other willfully blind and deaf people refused to see and hear the truth. Now it is a true uphill battle to rectify the issue. As far as David and company are concerned, they did not want any help and they screwed up all on their own. He refused the help and advice of Ed and anyone else who offered. Ignorance and incompetence, if not worse, ruled the day.
DeleteWhat really gets me is the arrogance of this straw-man(No heart or Soul) he pontificates as a Attorney(no License), he rails as a Architect (not register), and of course the resident expert on Roberts Rules (No credentials).. I probably missed a few, but you can right your own comments right here
ReplyDeleteMr. Ross, sir, -- I read your detailed posting and I am compelled to make some comments.
ReplyDeleteOne of the biggest problems there is in Century Village is that we have a president who LIES. He is a LIAR. A bold-faced LIAR. He says to your face, and to the faces of many, such as the Delegates, and he also reduces to writing, that Century Village is always looking for people to serve, especially those who have a good deal of experience in their field and want to give of their time and effort. That is not true; it is a LIE.
You go through the UCO formalities and stringencies, short of giving your wife's maiden name and your blood type, and then you find out that Mr. Israel scratched your name, or he instructs a head of a Committee person to tell you that all slots are filled. Or, even worse, he orders up "Do Not Respond."
This man seems to be so filled with hate and bitterness toward anyone that he even suspects of having an opposing view, that he becomes afflicted with paranoia. Paranoid people LIE at every opportunity in order to shore up their confidence levels.
And people of the Village allow him to get away with LYING. Who, for one second, would believe anyone that LIES?
Oh yeah, ask Esther Sutofsky about her applications to serve on UCO Committees.
EDUARDO
I can answer that. They were totally ignored by order of David Israel. I am just too bright for him and too demanding, too caring of and for the Village.
DeleteDavid Israel suffers from a mental disease. . He sees himself as a supreme being who is above the law. I saw first hand the way he violated the law at the delegate assembly and yelled at Olga to sit down before she had a chance to finish her speech. Olga had a right to speak and has been an ally of the rights of the residents for many years. She has worked tirelessly for the people of the village without getting any benefit or respect . It was a shameful thing Israel did by telling her to sit down and not allowing her to finish her speech. I wanted to hear what she had to say. I do not know Olga personally but I know people in her building. They tell me she is a fantastic president. She runs a tight ship but she does it with compassion. She is well liked by the people who live in her building. I wonder if Israel can say the same thing.
ReplyDeleteOlga is a bright, intelligent and caring woman who puts others first. She is passionate about her beliefs and is refreshing in her honesty. I wish more people would have been there who would have stood with Olga as she was battered and abused by Demented David. We need to stand up to him and his cohorts and as we said in the campaign - take back the Village. take it back from the incompetents, the liars, the financial screw-ups.
ReplyDeleteI look at it this way: the only thing that is going to get done the next couple of years, or otherwise show progress in Century Village, is precisely what Mr. Israel wants to do. Nothing more; nothing less.
ReplyDeleteThis Village is stagnated of total control by one person, -- the president. He controls all of the Committees. Ask Mr. Israel for a list of all of the Committees by name and function, the number of members allowed to serve on each Committee, and the actual number serving at this time. Don't forget to ask for the number he has personally added to each committee without authority.
Further, ask for the names of all of the CV residents serving on those Committees, and the Chairperson's name in each of the Committees. You can anticipate a negative verbal response, or no response at all. If he does respond, Mr. Israel may even demand that you put your request in writing, name what rule or regulation under which you are making such a request, and the reason(s) why you are making it. It is all a segment of his paranoid aspirations.
If you are successful, I think that you'll find that every person has been scrutinized by Mr. Israel and gauged strictly by their loyalty toward him, and the matter of -----WHAT CAN YOU DO FOR MR. DAVID ISRAEL; IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR CENTURY VILLAGE.
The mind-set of the people of Century Village who follow and obey this ogre is intellectually damning.
EDUARDO
I can't give my name here because if I do, my building president, to whom I have spoken, will sanction him and the building association will suffer if I say anything negative about Israel. It is alright to talk about all of the officers and other Israel people.
ReplyDeleteI saw a man at a meeting in one of the classrooms in the clubhouse. He had been talking about paving. After the meeting, I spoke to this man about my 35 years of experience as a general contractor in the roadway paving business. I am now retired. We exchanged stories and he suggested that I speak to Mr. Israel. Mr. Israel listened and then told me to deliver my resume indicating my background and history in the paving business. I did that, in fact, I mailed it and hand delivered a copy to the UCO office.
You know, I never heard a word back from Dave Israel or anyone else, so I believe that I understand exactly what you're saying. The paving is going to fail. You're right about that. What are to do when this happens, pay again?
Dear Anonymous, The very reason for this lawsuit is to get the money back for the sham of a road paving job that was done with David Israel's ONE PAGE CONTRACT. The lawsuit will punish David Israel and ALL the officers who were responsible for this fiasco. And, I can tell you personally, they are running scared because they know how guilty they are.
ReplyDelete