Background Checks

SOMETHING SHOULD BE DONE WITH OUR BACK GROUND CHECK, NOT GOOD ENOUGH.YOUR GRANDKIDS AND OLDER ARE AT RISK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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8/29/2014

To whom it may concern:

I recently discovered a situation here in Century Village that caused me a great deal of concern. While doing research for a presentation on child sexual abuse I discovered that there are registered sex offenders living right here in the village. On further investigation I discovered that at least three offenders living here who were convicted of crimes against minors. Two of them for child pornography, which is an indication that the person is in fact a child molester as they are known to possess this kind of material, and one person convicted of some kind of molestation against a child in Broward County.

I brought these concerns to representatives of UCO ( Dom Guarmagia and Ed Black) at their offices on 8/28/2014. Their answer was that there was nothing they could do as the named offenders had completed their sentences and have been released into society as rehabilitated and have a right to reside wherever they like. On further questioning about the security checks that are a requirement for residency in Century Village . They replied that they had no jurisdiction and that it is the decision of the building association to accept or deny an application.

They further stated that there are in fact six offenders of this type living here.

This is a concern not to be taken lightly. We have many vulnerable elders living here , Do not make the mistake of believing that these types of predators are solely interested in children . In fact most child molesters are not pedophiles. Most are classed as situational offenders.

A situational sex offender is an opportunist who engages in misconduct when a situation develops or exists that makes the abuse possible. Situational molesters may engage in a wide range of abusive behaviors with individuals of all ages and do not fit any single profile. What they share in common is the willingness to engage in sexual misconduct given the opportunity. They may use force or coerce their victims, be indiscriminate concerning whom they molest, and act completely on impulse.

In light of this information I have to ask if UCO is perpetrating an extreme disservice to the residents who they profess to protect. I and many others residing here are under the misconception that thorough investigations are being performed to filter out people who may pose a threat to others. I am certain that not one person who has applied for residency here is aware of this gaping hole in our security , For the most part they have been lulled into a false sense of security by the perpetration of a myth by UCO and it's apparent security checks. I for one would have never agreed to live here and pay a fee for a service that is at best ineffective and at worst downright dangerous.

There is no legal recourse to force these people from our midst. However the best weapon in our arsenal is to expose them for what they are and what they have done. Usually this results in the molesters moving away .

The molesters among us may get shamed into moving away, but it still leaves Century Village open and vulnerable to others who may arrive in the future, and does not answer the question of how many other criminals who have engaged in serious crimes are among us at this time.

We as a people who care for the safety and welfare of others have a duty to act for the peace and security of all.

Yours in Service

A Concerned Villager

Opt-out versus Throw-out

I think it is Time for a RECALL

Maybe it is time to forget about Opt-out and do something about the man that is forcing us to Opt-out.

The problem with opt-out is that this give the Little Nasty man a chance to be nasty. I have heard that he is threatening to cut out any Association that opts-out with loss of their TV. Don’t say he can't do that, just the attempt would be enough to get some associations on board again. We need a more permanent plan here.

These are the facts when the Wi-Fi monies were being discussed The President was busy making plans to sneak his Wi-Fi back in at the delegate meetings. If the delegates are still asleep at that time, like the last time, it could happen. All that is needed is simple positive Vote.

So I propose we eliminate the problem in its entirety, we Recall the President! Get us another President and advisors that will be more in tune as to what the village need and wants.

Worry Later,

START WORRYING, VILLAGE

     The other day in the NY Times, Deborah Lipstadt, a noted historian, wrote a wonderful piece about the growth of anti Semitism and why it is time to worry. She used the semi joke about a Jewish telegram, the one that is sent with the message, "Start Worrying. Details to follow."
     If I may be so bold as to build on that statement and apply it to our Village, then perhaps some more people will begin to understand what is going on here in the Village and why we have been pounding on it for so long and so strongly.
     Several years ago, before the paving, we had a wonderful bound proposal from a reputable company in response to the paving contract. It clearly explained what was needed and a timetable for it, giving us another three years on the roads, a phasing of the job and a whole lot less than what it cost us with M&M Paving, never mind all that it is still costing and will cost in the future. Why was this proposal not taken? 
     Weeelll, your guess is as good as mine and none of the choices are very palatable. We had, by that time, saved up millions of dollars towards the job and if we had waited a bit longer, would have had all the money and actually, we already had all the money necessary if we had used the proper proposal. In fact, we would have had a SURPLUS. Yes, a surplus which could have been applied to other needs of the Village without raising fees. 
     It seems that this money was burning a hole in Ed Black's pocket and he could not wait to spend it. Why have this money sitting there when he could have fun spending it? So he and David Israel ILLEGALLY under our bylaws signed a first contract for over two million dollars, WITHOUT DELEGATE APPROVAL and another contract would follow. They then moved on to bollix up the rest of the job and even went for a line of credit of a million dollars - which would never and should never have been necessary if they had chosen the proper company! That, if used, would have required $100,000 of collateral and in any event, cost us over $6,000 wasted dollars in fees. What clever financial planning - NOT!!!!
     A former president was known to have accepted "gifts" from companies within the Village. Has it become a habit here? I do not know. I have no proof, but this whole thing stinks to the high heavens. Either it is "gift giving and taking time" and it continues with all these ridiculous contracts, including this farce of taking DSL once, then saying no because they were incapable of fulfilling the Wi Fi contract - having messed up in Boca CV, and then lo and behold! here we are awarding them the same contract! When more and more people are planning to OPT OUT and wire up or not as it pleases their respective associations, I ask why? Such cleverness - not, again!
     One does not need Hamlet nor Shakespeare to know that something smells rotten in the state of CV. If it is not the first, then it is a second choice which is just as bad in the final end outcome. That is, a MASSIVE state of incompetence at the top level of UCO. I have been saying that since before I announced myself as a candidate and I am still saying it and the facts on the ground prove it to be true. There is no management competence, knowledge or skill at the level of the president of UCO nor in his sneaky UNELECTED advisor/puppet master, Ed Black. There is no understanding of what it means to plan for the future, to save, to wait till the right time, to prioritize and to plan and to not be a baby and just because one wants something that does not mean one gets it. My four year old grandson could teach it to these guys - a whole lot better than they understand  - or purposely ignore now.
     It is total mismanagement when according to the by laws there is to be no non member of UCO in the administration, not in certain positions. Well, we now have non members, renters, in many positions where they should not be. One, Anitra, has her hand stuck in so many piles that I am not sure even she knows where they all are. What I do know, is that in many instances when there is a question either within the building of UCO or without, from a resident, they are told - "Call Anitra." Really - not proper at all, against our bylaws. And why is all this allowed - simply because they are part and parcel of David Israel and company, jump to his tune and beat and here we are, stuck in this muck of his making.
     If we, the residents and the delegates do not do something about this, we will go bankrupt, unable to pay bills, fall into a state of disrepair and just not look towards a real positive future. This is my home, my only home, nor do I have big bucks packed away somewhere. When I shout from the hills it is because I see what can be coming, no, what is coming, down the road, unless we act - NOW.
     So because a growing group of people are publically and strongly opposing these terrible decisions and awful governance of the Village, we have been called names, debased, been the targets of foul language, been on the receiving end of a physical threat to be blown up and on and on. But I paraphrase a hero of mine from the time I was in sixth grade and was appointed by my teacher to represent him in a classroom debate - JFK. He said it is not to look at something that is and ask why, but to look at something that should be and ask why not? I, and many others are asking why the hell not here? Why should we be expected to be held in thrall, under the thumb of incompetent or worse people who are destroying our future? Why do they think that a proud American history of muckrakers, dissidents and others who have changed our country for the better - indeed, even began it! should be denigrated because it is pointing out THEIR deficiencies? I cannot answer that as I truly do not understand their thinking for they are cruel and selfish, thinking not of the Village but of the own petty and selfish needs.
     People, delegates - please think carefully. Please choose carefully in the next election where we have two VP positions and ten Executive Board positions open. Destroy David Israel's dictatorship. Denounce his policies and colossal management errors. Break the evil synergy between WPRF here in the Village and David Israel and company to deny us our rights. Stand up for yourselves and don't be frightened by a little man who blusters and shouts but underneath it all is empty.
     RECALL. RESIGN.

What is and What Isn't

THE TRUTH – WHEN DO YOU REALIZE WHAT IS AND WHAT ISN’T?

In all my years of experience involving numerous contracts, I’ve seen many high-ranking people indicted for various crimes relating to construction work.  In Century Village, there is a very similar history of vast illicit operations, but nobody has ever been indicted.  Now just think about that for a day or two.

When you have 5.3 million dollars’ worth of construction work (bituminous concrete paving); a president who, with a partner or two, moving a 2 plus million dollar project along to a contractor without approval of the governing body; a Property Manager who volunteers to singly oversee the vast amount of work, but in fact, is rarely seen at the jobsite; a former treasurer manipulating monies and concealing his unlawful actions; a single page contract for each of 4 jobs, all sanctioned by the president and with no legal assistance; work performed that is allowed to be below acceptable standards of performance (the proof is before your eyes); over 300 pages of punch lists lost somewhere and cannot be reproduced; a contractor who is not governed by a sound contract, or by any drawings and specifications and the contractor being able to perform the work in any manner he so chooses; a former treasurer who convinces people that re-mobilization will cost about $500,000, and it turns out to be a blatant lie; the same treasurer who obtains, and all sanctioned by the president, a 750,000 dollar line of credit costing all of us thousands of dollars; a president who absolutely refuses to acknowledge his responsibility and his Nero-like control over all of the Delegates; a president who admits that he made errors, but says that he should be forgiven for such errors.  And, that’s the tip of the iceberg.

Mr. Israel wants to be forgiven for his secret, devious ways, his prevarications, his manipulations of our money, his inept ability to provide governance in a justifiable and honest manner, his reluctance to listen to knowledgeable people, his mean-spirited stance toward anyone with an opposing opinion, and his many illicit operations; and his 5.3 million dollar debacle.  Forgiven?  Are you serious?  Who in their right mind can forgive him? 

So, what do you do?  Do you just look the other way?  Do you simply say “I saw nothing; I heard nothing; I don’t know nothing about nothing.  Don’t bother me – I’ll wave my placard whenever you want me to, but nothing else.”  The President’s legacy will be NOTHING.  Progress toward better living in Century Village – NOTHING!

As one woman – on in years - precariously said to me, “It’s okay for them to steal as long as it’s not a lot.”  Then she followed up by saying “So long as my dues don’t prevent me from buying food, I don’t care what the hell they do.”  That’s the thinking of some people in Century Village who are deeply frightened by the ogres in power who instill fear upon them that they cannot protest anything or even voice a difference of opinion lest there be repercussions.  Ask Delegates.  They are so fearful that they don’t even want to discuss this matter for fear that their name may be brought forth to the Dominator.  Then, for all time, they will be refused everything they ask for.

Try and handle this one, -- when UCO’s Property Manager, Rodger Carver, was deeply pressured and ready to open up and spill the beans about a whole bunch of things, he was forced to resign.

Think!  Just think, -- why does Mr. Israel not want to sue M&M Paving?  The answer to that question would require extensive writing with legal assistance.

Notice that Mr. Israel never reduces to writing anything in defense of the tens of allegations against him.  Why is that?  Well, let’s speculate a bit.  First of all, he doesn’t know how to put responses into writing without throwing out sophisticated bull-crap that an ordinary person cannot understand.  Secondly, there is no way you can refute an allegation that is truthful, without having it come back and haunt you when proven to be true.  Thirdly, he has his dedicated cohorts who step up and answer everything for him.  Fourth, he can never be quoted.  Fifth, ignore everything to try and show that you have an impenetrable shell.

EDUARDO

Add to his nefarious litany that now he has risen to MisDirection or better yet outright lying. See this Post - Gary

MIsdirection and Wi-FI

This is Misdirection - Again

XFINITY NO-FI HOTSPOTS - A MATTER OF NON-SECURITY

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Have you ever noticed the little icon in the lower right corner of your computer screen; it's called "NETWORK & Internet Access". Click on it and if you are in a Malcontent NO-FI zone you will see the following:

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NAME: xfinitywifi

SECURITY TYPE: unsecured

RADIO TYPE: 802.11N

SSID: xfinitywifi

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Heed the red flag warning that if you connect to this unsecured network, others will be able to read your traffic.

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Wait for Village Wide real Wi-Fi. which will, of course, be fully secured by high grade Crypto.

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Delegates make it happen.

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Dave Israel

NOT TRUE

CLASSIC MISDIRECTION

This is another Misdirection by the Great Misdirector.. I don''t have it on my desktop, because I am using the secure Association's Wi-Fi nodule. What the Great Wi-Fi deamer may be talking about is the use the the hot spot for Guests or he is just talking nonsense and Misdirection.

You know there is enough problems here with Wi-Fi I don't think the Director has to Misdirect. Just facts will do nicely.

Could it be the Great One does not know about Guest Wi-Fi,naah, more likely he is just Misdirecting the facts, as usual.

Here is a link to Comcast and Guest Wi-Fi

Poles and Bandwidth

Here is another comment on Poles and their use. The only thing I suggest is the we let Anitra do it again except this time we put in the costs and the ways it couod be done. So that the choices are mitigated by the possible costs and what could happen - Gary



AnonymousAugust 25, 2014 at 6:46 PM

I totally agree. I am a heavy bandwidth user and would not even begin to consider UCO's WiFi.

If one does research...and I have, many of the existing WiFi locations have problems. Some problems are greater than others. But the most common problem , no matter how good the Wifi is, is that there are major bottlenecks when there is heavy usage. Then your bandwidth will be as slow as molasses.

Anyone who is really counting on the reliability of UCO Wifi will be frustrated.
I personally know that I'll definitely opt out of this situation. If I will be forced to pay for this, I will sell, as I don't want to live in an atmosphere of a dictatorship.
The wisest thing to do, is to make a democratic decision. Every delegate must make a spreadsheet of each association member individually. They need to include the old people,who have home attendants, who would otherwise not vote. If we have a list of "ALL" CV members and their preferences we can take a democratic assessment of our WiFi needs. Once we have a list, either side, pro or con can spot check on individual units to see if they were recorded correctly. One should not put names on the spreadsheets only unit numbers, to preserve the privacy of each individual.

If we need to spend a million dollars we need to take the time to make sure that there is a majority agreeable to spending this kind of money. Especially when our reserves are low. We cannot rely on a few individuals who need to play some games on their many gadgets.

The facts ma'am just the facts

This Article should appear in the UCO Reporter,
but it wont!

This article, which is full of facts, is being written to refute David Israel’s 550 words article in his Private Newspaper, The UCO Reporter. I think the Village is entitled to a clear cut explanation of when Israel wanders from the Truth. Your comments and help in this endeavor is welcome.

One of the commenters on the other blog, has stated that "Further affiant sayeth naught.” The word affiant means one who swears to an affidavit; broadly:  deponent. This doesn't make much sense since nobody on the Private Blog is swearing to the truth of their statements, or even giving their names.

For starters let’s talk about the Reserves. It would seem that Israel has no fault here, that he just heard about this problem and is taking immediate action to handle it. The facts are that he was the one that took the Reserves, unbeknownst to anybody except the mysterious Mr. Black. He took the monies to pay the paver.

Mr. Israel says his recommendations means nothing other than he sees the need for a Reserve fund for emergencies. The facts of this attitude is the Israel’s believes we have plenty of money. There is plenty of money in the Villagers bank accounts that can be gotten at by a simple assessment.

Yes he can hang his hat on “we have 2000 surveys, there are 8500 units here so that is not even half. The questions were asked with no indication on the costs that might be incurred to get Wi-Fi.

Now for the idea of an Association Wi-Fi. Of course you may run out of Band width, that is what the President is talking about, you can always run out of band width, Comcast offers 3 different speed tiers,  for Wi-Fi speed, read band width. He doesn't say what the band width problem would be with his plan, since he will, up front, buy all the band width we would ever need, and of course we will pay for it up front.

He claims when asked by possible buyers, if we have Wi-Fi, he answers no. the truth is we as much Wi-Fi as anybody. We have 3 tiers of Wi-Fi. The problem is it has to be paid for. Don’t make me laugh that all potential buyer want a very cheap Wi-Fi or they go elsewhere.
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He has to be kidding when he says the vast majority of Wi-Fi users at the pools are happy. I don’t see very many users anywhere. I see some users in the clubhouse, but these people don’t want to pay for it at the Unit.

Okay, the cameras. The real necessary ones at the gates are already there. If it is deemed necessary at the pools, they are ready with Wi-Fi. If the associations want cameras in their parking lots, they can do it with the Association Wi-Fi

What has to be done now is for the delegates to pay attention to what is right with Wi-Fi and what is misdirection by the director.

Vote for Association Wi-Fi save us all some Money.

Misdirection is for the misinformed.

The Truth will out and set us Free

Down the Garden Path Demand for Action

Here is Feaman's demand to Israel for action, and my comments (new).

Peter M. Feaman, Esq. Nancy E. Guffey, Esq. Jeffrey T. Royer, Esq

The Law Office
of PETER M. FEAMAN, P.A.

Strategic Counselors. Proven Advocates.™

www.FearnanLaw.com

August 5, 2014
3695 W. Boynton Beach Blvd. Suite
Boynton Beach, FL 33436 Telephone: 561-734-5552
Facsimile: 561-734-5554

Via Certified Mail - #7013 3020 0000 4221 0717 and U S. Mail

David Israel, President
United Civic Organization, Inc. 2102 West Drive
West Palm Beach, FL 33417

Re: Demand for Action
M&M Asphalt Maintenance, Inc.

Repayment of overruns and remediation cost 

Dear Mr. Israel:


The undersigned represents numerous property owners in Century Village, including but not limited to Camden K, Unit 245, Century Village, West Palm Beach, Florida 33417. Ownership makes them "members" of the not-for-profit United Civic Organization, Inc. ("UCO") pursuant to the terms of Article IV of the By-laws of UCO. ·

As members of UCO, and by and on behalf of UCO, demand is hereby made that the officers and directors authorize and initiate a lawsuit on behalf of UCO against M&M Asphalt & Maintenance, Inc. ("M&M") for the incompetent and defective work they performed as a contractor for the asphalt paving project for the Century Village Community (the "Paving Project"). The specific defects in the M&M work are outlined in detail in the Verified Complaint filed by some of UCO's members against UCO and you, arising out of the Paving Project undertaken by M&M (a copy of the Complaint without attachments is enclosed for your reference). The Paving Project was subject to extreme cost overruns, ultimately costing UCO and its members in excess of $5 million. The incompetent work M&M performed will cost millions more in remediation repairs. The undersigned demands that this lawsuit be initiated without delay.

Additionally, the undersigned demands further that you, as a director and officer of UCO, pay as damages to UCO those amounts that represent: a) the cost overruns incurred by UCO as a result of the incompetent and inefficient work by M&M; and, b) the costs incurred, or to be incurred, to remediate the shoddy work performed by M&M. The demand is made against you

based on the reckless manner in which you administered the Paving Project on behalf of UCO. This reckless conduct included, but is not limited to:

1. Failure to retain legal counsel to review the contracts for a multi-million dollar project for the legal protection of UCO;
2. Failure to solicit meaningful, good faith competitive bids for significant portions of the project as required by §718.3026(1), Florida Statutes;
3. Failure to adequately perform due diligence on M&M prior to awarding M&M the contract or contracts for the Paving Project, to-wit:

a. Failure to evaluate the quality of M&M work by inspecting other asphalt paving projects performed in the past by M&M;
b. Failure to ascertain M&M's ability to provide repaving and related services of the type and quality required to competently and efficiently complete the Paving Project;
c. Failure to determine the qualifications of M&M work personnel;
d. Failure to evaluate M&M's other pending projects so as to evaluate M&M's ability to timely and competently complete the Paving Project; and
e. Failure to ensure that all permits were obtained for the Paving Project as required by Palm Beach County.

4. Failure to engage a qualified engineer, architect or other construction professional to oversee the proper performance of the work on the Paving Project;

5. Failure to obtain from the Delegate Assembly the required approvals before unilaterally transferring funds from other unrelated accounts, such as the Ambulance Account and General Account, to the Road Reserve Account, for the purpose of paying for cost overruns.

Please be advised that your failure to:

1. Initiate, on behalf of UCO, litigation for breach of contract against M&M; and


2. Repay to UCO those dollar amounts that represent cost overruns and remediation repairs for the incompetent work performed by M&M in connection with the Paving Project, will result in the undersigned initiating a derivative suit on behalf of UCO against you and M&M for damages.


Please govern yourself accordingly.

Very truly yours,

PETER M. FEAMAN, P.A.

Here is the reply from Israel's lawyer concerning the initiating of actions against M&M Paving for the extremely poor job they did on our roads.


August 12, 2014

Peter M. Feaman Esq.
3695 W. Boynton Beach Blvd. Suite 9
Boynton Beach, FL 33436 Re:

 UCO demand for action

Dear Mr. Feaman,
My client United Civic Organization Inc. has asked me to respond to your August 5th letter which demands UCO initiate legal action against M&M Asphalt for alleged construction defects. You make reference to a class action lawsuit filed by Mr. Karpf and Mr. Solomon but a review of the docket on that lawsuit does not show you as counsel of record. Your clients are unidentified except for the owner of unit Camden K-245 at Century Village which I believe is Myron Solomon.

UCO and its President Dave Israel reject all of Mr. Solomon's allegations and will not initiate any actions against M&M Asphalt or repay any funds to UCO's treasury. Solomon's demands have no legal or factual merit.

Sincerely        


Rod Tennyson Esq.

So the questions here are did the Delegates, the Ultimate deciders, for Century Village have a say in this?

NO!

Did Israel do his duty by advising the delegates of his stance and action on the Lawsuits?

NO!

So if the Delegates did not have a say, and were not advised about  this decision then what is the function of the delegates? I know that a Delegate vote must be counted if the amount of monies is over about $2000. So what about a possible expenditure of over $5 Million?

NO!

Did any Committee that has interest in this get a say? Was it published in the Minutes and posted to the internet for all to see? Was there Sunshine on this matter?

NO!

Is this another decision made by the President without anybody giving their opinion and/or Votes?

YES!!

Are we being taken down the Garden Path by the Arrogant one who needs nobody's permission for anything?

YES!!

Under the direction of the Century Village Non- Lawyer, David Israel, Rod Tennyson is calling a Licensed lawyer a non- lawyer. 

You can't make this stuff up.

Paving Facts

PAVING, THE FIVE MILLION DOLLAR CON:

RESPONSES TO COMMENTS BY GRACE, THE WOMAN

WHO PROFESSES TO KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT PAVING.

On the very private blog owned and operated by David Israel, a woman by the name of Grace had made a number of statements, -- rather dumb statements, I must say.  So, inasmuch as she has mentioned that my recent posting regarding paving is “nonsense,” I really need to respond.

Grace – I hope that you are going to read these responses on this free and open blog and I would certainly debate what you have to say about paving.  As a Registered Architect, I’ve designed, produced working drawings and specifications, and supervised paving projects for about 350 bituminous paving jobs from residential driveways to major highways.

Note:  the underlined emphasis represents the actual statements as they appeared on the “private blog.”

Grace makes the statement – “I have read the nonsense from Ed Ross about the roads.  He is an architect, not a paving expert.”  This statement is just an indication of Grace’s lack of understanding and knowledge.  Who does she think writes up all of the paving contracts?  Who does she think produces the paving design drawings and specifications?  Who does she think supervises all of this paving work in the field?  She doesn’t seem to understand that all paving projects of this type have Architects and/or Civil Engineers, and they control the execution of their design documents.

Grace also states that – “The paving company told us they would have to go down to bedrock to get a perfect road.”  This is a false statement.  No person employed by any paving company in the country would ever make such an absurd statement.  All that is needed is assurance of a sound, well-compacted gravel base void of fertile material.  Recognizing the stability of existing roadways can easily be determined by testing, such as coring.  A great many times, a crushed stone base is chosen but that is considered for heavy vehicle use.  The real success of a roadway or parking area is its base – the material used and how it is placed.    

              

Grace states further “The cost to go down to bedrock was a lot more than we paid.”  Another stupid statement.  Using the word “bedrock” reveals that she’s trying to impress somebody.  You can talk about a high-rise building and “bedrock” in the same sentence, but not when talking about Bituminous Concrete Roadways.  If the project was done correctly, taking into consideration all of Ed Ross’ “nonsense”, we would have probably saved between one-half to one million dollars, and no doubt have gotten a first-class, quality installation.

Grace comes up with another erroneous statement: “If they paved over the existing road the cracks would come back.”  Well, that’s exactly what they did, - they paved over the existing cracks.  If an Architect was involved, he would have included in his design a workable system of dealing with hairline cracks as well as pavement failures up to an inch or more.  There are special ways to deal with root systems below existing paving, and in this paving job, - it wasn’t even considered. 

Now, Israel wants to spend thousands of our dollars to do something about roots breaking up new pavement.     

      Say you found that you had a flat tire.  The mechanic fixes it, so he says,

      and you pay him and drive away.  After a mile, the same tire goes flat and

      you notice that the nail was never removed.  Do you pay the mechanic a

      second time?                   

                                

Grace goes on to say “THE DELEGATES chose to go with paving over the old road.”  Well, how else do you propose to do the paving?  Grace, there’s something really wrong with what is scrambled around in your head.  It was David Israel and Ed Black who lied to everyone, including you, about the entire paving job, most especially about the money.  Can I convince you, Gracie, that the sky is falling and you should run for cover?

Grace, you now make the most stupid statement of all by “So why sue David Israel?”  Because David Israel, the President of UCO, is totally responsible, - -  absolutely and positively.  Read Mr. Ross’ “nonsense,” and if you can understand common English language, you can understand that Israel MUST be sued.  Just come to reality with what that man has done. 

So, you see, Grace, you know a little bit less than zero when it comes to Bituminous Concrete Paving, and you may even know less when it comes down to reasons for law suits.  It is about damages . . . David Israel, President of UCO, has seriously damaged the property owners of Century Village and he should be held accountable for the damages.  All of the basic facts are out there.

Grace, you seem to have all of your priorities scrambled and you just don’t make any sense at all.  I’m convinced that you just don’t get it.

EDWARD J. ROSS, AIA, FARA, ARCHITECT

Our Beautiful Roads

PAVING, -- THE RESPONSIBLE PARTIES, AND WHO SHOULD PAY.

I have read and heard a good deal about Century Village’s historic paving job.  One could certainly write a book about who did this or who did that and who did nothing.  Most of the CV residents and their representatives, the Delegates, may not really be aware of what this is all about.  They may have questions like, “So, what was done wrong?” or, “Didn’t they do the best that they were capable of doing?”

We, all of us, didn't spend $25,000 or $100,000 for a paving job.  We spent about $5,350,000.  In my professional opinion, the president of UCO and at least five of his closest associates should be held completely and wholly responsible.  I dare say, again, from my experience, “criminal” activity had to be prevalent in the course of this entire paving fiasco.  Talk to any law enforcement officer or the Attorney General, and you’ll see what the odds are that there was no criminal activity. 

Please allow me to clear up the “Who’s, Why’s, When’s and Where’s, so that you can better understand why you should want to see these responsible people punished or otherwise put down, so that we can return to being a community as a whole. 

But first, in order for me to make a number of statements, all readers should know my background and experience in the preparing of this analogy of a five million dollar project which was executed in an illegal, amateurish, unprofessional manner.  I have more than 50 years of experience in the Architectural Profession, with registrations and licenses to practice Architecture in six states, including the states of Florida, Massachusetts, New York, California, New Hampshire and Vermont, and a National Licensing Certification of the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards; (all presently inactive – at my election as a retired registered architect); an expert witness in construction law; professional organizations:  The American Institute of Architects, Fellow of the Society of American Registered Architects, The Boston Society of Architects, Mass. State Association of Architects, Construction Specifications Institute, National Panel Member of the American Arbitration Association; and, a Massachusetts Licensed Construction Supervisor.    

In all of my experience, I have never seen a five million dollar Bituminous Concrete Paving Project consisting of four agreements, each having one page and perhaps an attached signature page.  Fully detailed paving contracts would normally be documents containing, but not limited to, General Conditions, Supplemental General Conditions, Special Conditions, Unit Prices, overall area Site Plans enlarged to clearly indicate the scope of work, and General Requirements. 

There were no detailed drawings of the multiple varying conditions above and below finished grade; no contract specifications detailing the scope of work; no alternates for optional design, no forms for partial payments and forms for partial or total completion, no detailed specifications of the bituminous products to be used and their various applications in accordance with government standards; no mention of change order work and how that work should be performed, no performance bonds, no Workman’s Compensation stipulations, no field order information or work orders; no shop drawings, no daily UCO representation by the on-site Property Manager, no detailed requirements by drawings and specifications to assure proper surface and sub-grade drainage, no samples of materials that are specified, no Clerk of the Works,  no competitive bids from at least three qualified paving contractors, no field reports from anyone, no progress reports, no traffic control requirements, no Architect and/or Engineer in the design and construction phases; no construction completion time indicated, no liquidated damages or bonus clauses, no allowances stated for specialty work, no weekly meetings of all involved concerned parties, no conditions set forth for public safety, no contact completion time, nobody checking quantities and acceptable work for partial payments, no requirements set forth for field preparation, and it goes on and on.  No methods, means and procedures are set forth relative as to how the entire work is to be executed.  NONE of the above functions were included, and much more. 

It has to be understood that there are tens of standards that are commonly known to professionals that need to be executed prior to, during the performance of the work, and at its conclusion.  Listed above are many of these standard procedures.  Of course you are going to get a poor job with one-page contracts.  You just can’t get any worse than that. 

It is incredible knowing the way David Israel secretly handled a paving job costing over five million dollars and he got away with it.  He has to be the most inept, irresponsible person in the State of Florida, or, he is someone who needs to be charged and brought before a judge.

What is the matter with the people?  There is a president, plus bloody stupid followers, who went along with spending well over five million of our dollars and we have received nothing for the money but headaches and problems and a lot more money is going to come out of our pockets for repaving.  Is it alright that road reserve monies are accumulated for the purpose of re-paving work that is needed now or in the not too distant future?  Never mind $10 or $20 thousand for an attorney, -- what about all of this new money for the repairs and replacement of faulty paving?  Who is supposed to pay for it? . . . The people who came up with all of the directives and decisions and the people who physically did the work.  You go after them whether they are all covered by insurance or not.

No sane person who understands now most all of the things that should have been done, would simply say “faget aboudit.”  David Israel keeps commenting on paying an attorney using “your” money. What, -- $10K, or $20K?  What about 5 mil plus of your money?  And, to fix what we now have is going to cost much more than you think because of the established finished grades.  Surfaces are going to need to be scarified, striated and re-graded to maintain and provide new finished elevations and drainage requirements. 

Let’s simply put it out straight: what David Israel, President of UCO, acting in and for Century Village did, was wrong, and most certainly, may be “criminal.”  What Mr. Black, as Treasurer, did in hiding the truth from all residents was unjust by statute standards; what Mr. Marshall did was blatantly stupid; what Rodger Carver did is a bunch of things that should require criminal investigation; what Mr. Guarnagia did was despicable and may be “criminal” as well; Mr. Cornish should have known better than to talk a lot about something he knows nothing about.

Further, what did the Executive Board do?  Nothing, absolutely nothing but go along with the illicit scheme.  And then, the Delegates, who knew nothing, but just wanted to vote so that they could feel important, were sold on “the sky is falling” and they believed it. 

They believed in Hitler, they believed in Mussolini, they believed in Tojo, they believed in Stalin, they believed in Mao, and they believed in Israel.  That seems to be the mind set of Century Village.  Israel can point you to the cattle cars . . . stay in line.

The very bottom line is that David Israel is responsible.  He is totally and absolutely responsible.  I don’t know about you, but I’m all for suing him, putting him in jail, or at the very least, -- getting him the hell out of office.  It is not a matter of who is going to take his place, -- it is, -- you MUST get him out of office . . . he is a plague.

EDWARD J. ROSS, AIA, FARA, ARCHITECT 

(STATE OF FLORIDA, ARCHITECT REGISTRATION

No. 6796 – STATUS: INACTIVE AT PRESENT TIME

AT REQUEST OF LICENSE HOLDER)

Downtrodden again!

So much for freedom of speech?

Our lustrous UCO President, David Israel has claimed on a number of occasions that he is a constitutionalist (which means a person that believes and supports our constitution) Then why is it he is the first one to deny a persons right to free speech!

I was running an add on channel 63 for my meeting of the Presidents Umbrella Club which was to be held on Tuesday 8/19/14. About two weeks before my meeting I learned that David Israel had pulled my add. Now in the Blogs I had stayed away from bashing David and he had no reason to pull my add. I know he will say it is because I am one of the parties suing him, which by the way is a half truth,  which David likes to use because  in truth a number of the Unit Owners will be suing him in a legal action because of all his poor judgment and not safeguarding the funds of  the unit owners of Century Village. 

In my opinion, based on many years of various Co-Op reconstruction work and past work on my condominium plus helping other condominiums solve their problems. the handling of the walkway and the roadway resurfacing job and the drain was a total disaster .

Even after almost two years he said he made a Mistake, will that was some mistake at the cost of five million Dollars. But he Doesn't  worry there is plenty more he can get and it will come from you, the unit owners of Century Village under the guise of some emergence to come up in the future. 

Remember what I said.

Jerry Karpf (one of the downtrodden)

Remember, I warned of the Little Dictators propensity for taking the rights of the Villagers and dumping them. He feels no compunction to justify himself. We need to get rid of this nasty little man - Gary

Android Smart Phone Troubles

 

For those of you that have a Iphone and insist on the need for Village wide Wi-FI, read this below. Although it specifically applies to Android phones, how far behind can the rest of you be?

Boy I sure would like a pole on the number of Wi-Fi interested owners/

Android Phones Hit by ‘Ransomware’

By NICOLE PERLROTH

 AUGUST 22, 2014 1:14 PMAugust 22, 2014 1:30 pm

• E-MAIL
• FACEBOOK
• TWITTER
• SAVE
• MORE

You are guilty of child porn, child abuse, zoophilia or sending out bulk spam. You are a criminal. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has locked you out of your phone and the only way to regain access to all your data is to pay a few hundred dollars.

That message — or variations of it — has popped up on hundreds of thousands of people’s Android devices in just the last month. The message claims to be from the F.B.I., or cybersecurity firms, but is in fact the work of Eastern European hackers who are hijacking Android devices with a particularly pernicious form of malware, dubbed “ransomware” because it holds its victims’ devices hostage until they pay a ransom.

Ransomware is not new. Five years ago, criminals in Eastern Europe began holding PC users’ devices hostage with similar tools. The scheme was so successful that security experts say many cybercriminals have abandoned spam and fake antivirus frauds to take up ransomware full time. By 2012, security experts had identified more than 16 gangs extorting millions from ransomware victims around the world.

Now those same criminals are taking their scheme mobile, successfully infecting Android devices at disturbing rates. In just the last 30 days, roughly 900,000 people were infected with a form of ransomware called “ScarePackage,” according to Lookout, a San Francisco-based mobile security firm.

“This is, by far, the biggest U.S. targeted threat of ransomware we’ve seen,” said Jeremy Linden, a senior security product manager at Lookout. “In the past month, a single piece of malware has infected as many devices in the U.S., as a quarter of all families of malware in 2013.”

In addition to Scare Package, Mr. Linden and a team at Lookout have also been tracking another strain of ransomware dubbed “ColdBrother,” or “Sypeng,” which not only locks users out of their device, but can take a photo from the device’s camera, can answer and drop phone calls and search for banking applications on the device.

And in just the last three weeks, Lookout discovered a new form of ransomware called ScareMeNot, which has already managed to infect more than 30,000 Android devices.

See the rest of the article

Reserves and Blame

On  bobs know nothing blog he states that the fault of the lack of Reserves was the Previous Treasurers fault. The fact of the matter is that Israel and Black took the reserves to pay the paving bills. Not the Treasurer. Had they done this legally the Delegates would of had a vote, which they didn't.

From the President of Chatham D

This is a copy of a letter to the UCO Reporter from George Pittell President of Chatham D.

Here you will note his apparently open mind.

Not so, he still is for the Village wide system. Israel's baby. No matter that there are many, many residents that have no need for expensive Wi-Fi. There are many residents that don't have a Computer, don't have a smartphone, don't even have a Ipad. Don't know or care what Wi-Fi is.

Why don't he pole Chathan D and see where he actually stands.

I think the better way to go is smaller. The Association way. The price is sensible. The addition charge for an Association unit owner can be as little as $5 per month

What I ask is this.

Can the Village wide system be done at a price that is reasonable and not back breaking?

Do you think the $1 million plus price, that could creep up to say $2 million or more is a reasonable expense and is it fair to impose this on Residents that don't want it?

The better way to go is via Association Wi-Fi where the Association member can voice their concerns. A large association can be wi-fi'd for probably less than $2000 with a monthly costs of $120 per month.

wi-fi yes or No

 TO WI-FI OR NOT TO WI-FI, THAT IS THE QUESTION.

The UCO budget review at the clubhouse today turned out to be a non-event which lasted only 10 minutes.  The most important issue was the elimination of $377,000 originally appropriated for Wi-Fi in the earlier budget draft and taken out of the 2015 budget in this version;  thus saving the residents $6.00.    This budget version will increase UCO dues $3.09 per resident per month; a far cry from the $17.00 increase proposed at the last delegate assembly. Thanks to Howard O'Brien and Edward Grossman who helped tweak the 2015 budget, we are now at a reasonable increase.  However, David Israel is still going to try to sneak Wi-Fi into the budget.

So BEWARE, and BE CAREFUL. The fox is planning his next move.  He will try to intimidate the residents into putting Wi-Fi back.   It will be up to the delegates to stop him.  Someone must make a motion to transfer the money from Wi-Fi to the reserve fund, and the motion must be passed by the delegates. This will ensure that at this time, Wi-Fi will not be included in the budget.

The rumors swirling round this meeting are;

1. If you anger David Israel he will arrange to have your TV turn off. 
2. Marilyn Gorodetzer quit the chair of the advisory Committee and then Unquit.
3. There is a warrant out for David Israel for his actions in the Road debacle.
4. Association Wi-Fi don't work, but if it does then we are just making Comcast richer.
5. Of Course Village wide Wi-Fi is not good for Comcast bottom line
6. The bid opening showed the low bidder at $1 million, which was rejected as too high, go back and sharpen your pencils was the mantra.

Israel's Baby

Do you remember that the Wi-Fi bids were due in August 1, 2014. They were received, at least most of them were in a timely manner. The plan was to open them during a bid committee meeting, maybe a public bid committee meeting. But what happened?

Nothing.

The bids are here. They were discovered by our Treasurer on his desk. Apparently unopened. The questions to be asked is what is he to do about them and when?

I have no question if the Treasurer opens the bids and makes the decision as to who wins. That is as long as the Village wins also. But what is going on with Israel's baby?

Advisory Committee

Marilyn Gorodetzer was asked to rewrite the UCO by-laws and bring them into the 21st Century. The following comment by Olga explains what happened at the Advisory Committee when she was asked to report and present the new by-laws. 

From: olga wolkenstein [mailto:owolken@gmail.com]
Sent: Wednesday, August 20, 2014 3:12 PM
To: Gerry Sutofsky; Edward R Grossman; Phyllis Richland Cell; dillytd@gmail.com; Marilyn Pomerantz; Dot Loewenstein; DOROTHY TETRO
Subject: Advisory meeting 8/20/14

It was an exciting advisory meeting today. Topic was: Review of Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws.

After some small talk, Marcia told Marilyn Gorodetzer she needed a copy of the present bylaws in order to compare them with possible future changes.  Marilyn Gorodetzer disagreed, and an heated discussion ensued.  Marilyn’s position was that these were to be new bylaws, and they did not need to be compared to the old bylaws.  After a while, Joy Vestal agreed with Marcia and later David chimed in and also agreed with Marcia and Joy.  . They took a vote, and the majority of the advisory committee agreed that they needed a copy of the present bylaws in order to know specifically which changes are being made.

Meanwhile, some nasty words were exchanged between David and Marilyn G ..

 Marilyn became livid and said, “ I put in a lot of hours in this, if you don’t like it, I can quit, "  and  walked out.  David’s last words before the meeting adjourned was meekly, “We need to look for a new Advisory Chair." 

Olga 

I agree. As a matter of fact we need a new Advisory Chair, UCO chair, The UCO reporter Chair, ad infinitum. We need anew broom after all a new broom sweeps clean.

Lawyers talking

Here is the reply from Israel's lawyer concerning the initiating of actions against M&M Paving for the extremely poor job they did on our roads.

August 12, 2014

Peter M. Feaman Esq.

3695 W. Boynton Beach Blvd. Suite 9

Boynton Beach, FL 33436 Re: UCO demand for action Dear Mr. Feaman,

My client United Civic Organization Inc. has asked me to respond to your August 5th letter which demands UCO initiate legal action against M&M Asphalt for alleged construction defects. You make reference to a class action lawsuit filed by Mr. Karpf and Mr. Solomon but a review of the docket on that lawsuit does not show you as counsel of record. Your clients are unidentified except for the owner of unit Camden K-245 at Century Village which I believe is Myron Solomon.

UCO and its President Dave Israel reject all of Mr. Solomon's allegations and will not initiate any actions against M&M Asphalt or repay any funds to UCO's treasury. Solomon's demands have no legal or factual merit.

Sincerely        /


Rod Tennyson Esq.

This is a copy of the letter that Israel President of UCO had his Attorney send in reply to the demand that a lawsuit be started against M&M Paving by UCO. The reason for this is that the opposition can not go after M&M since they were not a party to the contract. Only M&M and UCO were.

But what is outrageous is that the direction for the action is obviously from the Great David Israel, who is directing Mr. Tennyson. What is simply unbelievable is that this decision has been made only and solely by David Israel.

What happened to the Delegates need to vote on a situation that will affect each and every one of the Unit Holders. That can affect them monetarily. Is it not proper, within the by-laws, new or old,  for the President of UCO to ask for a vote and get the pleasure of the Delegates?

This is not the first time the The Great Misdirector (David Israel) had taken it upon himself to take the delegates and by extension the entire population of unit holders down the Garden Path. The first time he spent 5.2 Million Dollars on the roads, now he is about to stand up to a credible lawsuit, without asking direction from the Delegate's Assemble. Incredible!  


  

Below is a Letter from Attorney Feaman to the UCO Insurance Co Attorney. 

July 9, 2014

Karen M. Nissen, Esq.                                Via ertified Mail & U.S. Mail Stephanie M. Showe, Esq.

Vernis & Bowling of Palm Beach, P.A. 884 U.S. Highway One

North Palm Beach, FL 33408

Re:      Myron Solomon and Gerald Karpf vs. United Civic Organization, Inc. And David Israel; Circuit Court in and for Palm Beach County, Florida Case No. 50 2014 CA 002029 AI

Dear Ms. Nissen and Ms. Showe:

We will be entering an appearance in the above-referenced lawsuit.

Pursuant to Section 627.4137 of the Florida Statutes, please provide our office with the following insurance information in regard to insurance coverage maintained by the Defendants, United Civic Organization, Inc. and David Israel, in regard to the claims filed against them in this case:

1.                  Each insurer which does or may have provided liability insurance coverage to pay all or a portion of any claim which might be made, within 30 days of the date of this written request, and a statement, under oath, of a corporate officer or the insurer’s claims manager or superintendent, setting forth the following information with regard to each known policy of insurance, including excess or umbrella insurance; and

2.                  The name of the insurer under each such policy of insurance;

3.                  The name of each insured under each such policy of insurance;

4.                  A statement of any policy or coverage defense which such insurer reasonably believes is available to such insurer at the time of filing such statement;

5.                  A copy of each such policy of insurance. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Very truly yours,

PETER M. FEAMAN, P.A.

By:

PMF/mk                                                                      Peter M. Feaman

cc: Clients

This was answered by Karen Nissen in the affirmative. Meaning she answer all the questions to Feaman's satisfaction.