You really want a $200 special assessment for cameras?

Some Board of Directors members think you’re rich. They claim to speak not only for themselves but for all International Village owners when they say that you wouldn’t mind paying a $200 special assessment to install 26 “security” cameras in each of the Village’s 11 residential buildings, at a total cost of about $150,000. They say you want these cameras now, privacy be damned, and you’re ready to write a check today to get them.

Big Brother could be coming to your building.

Does this sound like you? I didn’t think so. But that isn’t stopping certain Board members from convincing themselves that their views are those of all unit owners, because they surround themselves by the echo chamber that is their small clique of well-to-do friends. To them, you don’t exist. They haven’t seen the many emails you’ve sent me telling me how strongly you oppose this project because you don’t want Big Brother watching you all the time, because cameras have proven ineffective in the clubhouse, and most of all, because you simply CANNOT afford another special assessment.

This Monday, you have a chance to let them know you exist.

International Village Board of Directors President Marvin Tow, an enthusiastic advocate for cameras everywhere, is calling a special meeting of the Board of Directors on Monday, Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. in the clubhouse to consider his $150,000 proposal, even though at least three out of seven Board members will be out of town and able to participate only by phone. In doing so, he’s ignoring calls from other Board members to at least first consider a demonstration project to prove they can work in the clubhouse – or in the Zurich building where cameras were installed at building owners’ expense a few years ago – before going whole-hog on this massive project.

Bottom line, we can't afford this. According to our property manager, there isn't enough money left in the fund from the last special assessment in 2012-13 to pay for this project and still have enough emergency reserves left over. That's why another special assessment is being proposed. In fact, even if the Board were to approve the project on Monday, another meeting would have to be held to actually pay for it. Because Florida law requires condo associations to mail all unit owners a notice of intent to special assess at least 14 days before a meeting approving a special assessment. So add the $500 cost of the mass mailing to the cost of the project. Yes, you'd be picking up the tab for both of course.

That’s why you need to show up and speak up at Monday's meeting, and start emailing Board members before the meeting HERE to let them know how you feel. Otherwise you will continue not to exist for them... Except when it comes to making you cough up another $200 in special assessment money.

How about a camera demonstration project?

You could soon be on candid camera, but you won't be smiling about what it costs you. 

Last week, a compliant Projects Committee endorsed a $150,000-plus management proposal to install between 26 and 32 "security" cameras in each of International Village's 11 residential buildings, for a total of about 300 cameras. How would it be funded? With a special assessment, costing about $200 per unit, broken up into three or four monthly payments. (See 9/17/13 Projects Committee meeting video here.) 

But before our property manager brings this massive NSA-style surveillance scheme to the Board of Directors for a vote, I'd like to propose an alternative inspired by our recent decision regarding speed humps. Back in June, the Board shot down a plan to install 24 speed humps throughout the Village, opting instead for a "demonstration project" to put in just four in order to test their effectiveness. We could do the same thing with cameras, but unlike the speed hump test run (which thanks to a recent change order will cost upwards of $6,500), the camera pilot project wouldn't cost us anything because we already have cameras in the clubhouse – only they apparently haven't yet ever been put to the test. As I reported in my last blog post, equipment has disappeared from the clubhouse gym without ever being recovered, despite the presence of cameras in the gym room and throughout the clubhouse, a full-time guard monitoring the cameras at the front desk and a visitor sign-in log. So before we consider expanding the camera system to our residential buildings, I think we owe it to owners to show what good they're doing where they already exist. Otherwise, it'll be money down the drain at best, and a huge unnecessary invasion of privacy at worst. 

My proposal is simple: Give management 120 days to prove they can make cameras work in the clubhouse before they bring their surveillance system special assessment plan to the Board. The proof should be in the form of a report detailing all incidents of theft, property damage or other violations that take place during those four months and whether cameras helped nab the culprits. That way, we'll at least have something solid to base our vote on. 

Speaking of special assessments, our 2012-13 special assessment fund is now down to only about $175,000 following our most recent Board meeting last week (see 9/16/13 Board of Directors meeting video here), in which we OK'd more than $35,000 in spending, the bulk of which will come out of that rapidly diminishing fund. 

The Board approved the following items:  

• Up to $16,000 to replace four old air conditioning ducts in the clubhouse. The actual price may be lower, depending on the bids we get. 

• A $7,780 contract with Todd Knapp Inc. to stabilize the clubhouse pool pump room ceiling. The repairs will correct a problem existing since 2009, when the City of Lauderhill posted an "Unsafe Structure" violation notice on the pump room door because of the ceiling.  

• A $5,200 clubhouse roof change order with Todd Knapp Inc. for the removal of old protruding stucco finish around the perimeter of the roof to prevent water infiltration, and the replacement of affected shingles. 

• A $3,000 contract, also with Todd Knapp Inc. to reinforce the delaminating Grenoble building façade facing the Orleans using galvanized steel tapcons. 

• A $2,655 speed hump change order with Atlantic Southern Paving and Sealcoating for additional asphalt to meet city code requirements, bringing the project's total cost to $6,580 – or $1,645 per speed hump. That sounded pretty steep for a speed bump to me, so I voted against it, just as I voted no on the original project when it first came up on June 10.  

• A $4,000 contract with S&S Inventive Technologies to replace the Orleans trash compactor, using operating funds. 

Special assessment for cameras?

The International Village Board of Directors will hold its regular monthly meeting tonight (Monday, Sept. 16 at 7 p.m.), but the Board meeting may just be a warm-up act for what could be the week’s main attraction on Tuesday at 6 p.m. when the Projects Committee meets to discuss a proposed $100,000-plus special assessment to install 26 security cameras in each of the association's 11 residential buildings.

Proponents of the idea – which could translate into a $150 special assessment hit per unit owner – say cameras are needed to catch people in the act of dumping garbage in front of laundry rooms, stealing mail packages from people’s front doors and various other violations. Opponents counter that it’s a violation of privacy, reminiscent of a maximum-security prison, and an unnecessarily burdensome expense at a time when many owners are still recovering from the last special assessment and other big projects on the horizon are threatening to wipe out our rapidly dwindling 2012-13 special assessment fund. Critics also question cameras’ effectiveness, noting that a set of dumbbells recently disappeared from the clubhouse gym despite the presence of cameras in the gym room and throughout the clubhouse. Even advocates of security cameras in every building are balking at the high price tag, saying a surveillance system could be installed for a fraction of the proposed cost, either by finding a more reasonable vendor or by forgoing the Quantico Prison model in favor of a more modest system with fewer cameras. 

Regardless of the cost, it might instructive to first examine the outcome of the Zurich building’s experiment with cameras before making any decisions on this issue. In June 2009, a committee of Zurich owners won the Board of Directors’ approval to install surveillance cameras in that building at their own expense. What were the results of that effort? 

It’s also worth noting the ironic fact that this issue is coming up only a few short months after the owners of a Bordeaux unit were refused permission to install a security camera in front of their door at their own expense. Does this mean that cameras are good if they’re paid for by a special assessment, but bad if they don’t cost us anything? Where’s the logic?

New tenant screening process and pre-Labor Day party

International Village has automated its rental and purchase application process. From now on, instead of filling out an approximately 20-page printed application, prospective renters and buyers will be directed to a website where they must complete the application online. The new system, which was approved by the Board of Directors at last week’s meeting, will streamline the process and reduce the Sales and Lease Committee’s workload by eliminating the need to hound applicants for any missing information, as the automated system will not accept incomplete applications.  

Tenant Evaluation, the company International Village has been using for years to conduct applicant background checks, will provide the service at no extra charge. International Village will continue paying the company $45 per application out of the $100 processing fee the association collects from applicants. The Sales and Lease Committee, chaired by Board member Frances Mesirow, will continue performing the job of approving or disapproving applicants.

Another benefit of the new system may be a reduction in the number of people who lie about their income in order to qualify to lease or own a unit -- a very frequently voiced concern among owners. As a deterrent to providing false income data, the Board adopted my suggestion of requiring applicants to authorize the association to obtain their most recent tax return from the IRS as part of the application process.

In other action last week, the Board retroactively approved the following emergency projects that came up during our summer break: $14,800 for a new clubhouse air conditioning system, $3,250 to stop a leak in the outdoor pool, and $5,900 to replace 15 feet of storm drain between Heidelberg and Edelweiss to prevent the seawall from collapsing due to a sinkhole that formed during the recent heavy rains. (See the Aug. 19 meeting video here.)

Finally, International Village owners and residents are invited to a pre-Labor Day potluck party this coming Sunday, Sept. 1 from 5-10 p.m. in the clubhouse, featuring a live band and dancing. Bring a dish or barbecue items and come out and meet your neighbors as we say goodbye to the summer!

Board of Directors returns from hiatus

The International Village Board of Directors will meet this Monday, Aug. 19 at 7 p.m. after more than two months of being on hiatus. It should be a short meeting, since we will only be retroactively approving some emergency projects that came up while we were on break: $14,800 for a new clubhouse air conditioning system, $3,250 to replace the outdoor pool piping, and $5,900 to replace 15 feet of storm drain between Heidelberg and Edelweiss to prevent the seawall from collapsing due to a sinkhole.

We also will be getting an update on the clubhouse roof project which is now under way.

Some of you have expressed concerns about a proposed children's playground, which was discussed at a July 13 community meeting. But the idea seems to be going nowhere, as no meeting of the Projects Committee meeting has been scheduled to take up the proposal. (Read my post about the issue here.)

Play area issues

No basketball court at International Village: That was the verdict from the recent community meeting to discuss the installation of a children’s play area in the Village.

About a dozen residents – mostly owners – turned out on July 13 to talk about whether and how to address the recreational needs of the community’s growing number of children, although the day’s rainy weather may have kept many parents away. (See video here.) Several owners pushed for a playground for small children, but they strongly rejected the creation a basketball court.

“We’re definitely not for the basketball court,” said owner Jennifer Moloney, the mother of a toddler. “That’s just going to bring obscenities and a different dynamic... No one wants that kind of trouble.”

Most of those attending the 37-minute meeting appeared to back a plan to convert one of the condo's underutilized tennis courts into a tot lot with key access and parental supervision required. Parents said a playground is needed to keep children out of the street and safely away from cars. Left unresolved was the issue of how to pay for it, but one suggestion called for interested parents to put up the funding.

According to the association’s property manager, converting one of the tennis courts into a children’s play area would not raise the association’s insurance costs because it wouldn't require a change to the condo's existing insurance policy, which already covers the courts.

But a playground could be a long way from becoming reality. International Village President Marvin Tow, who attended the discussion, said the meeting was only the first stage in a four-step process that may present some significant hurdles to the proposal. The idea next heads to the Projects Committee, which will discuss it once its new chairman, Sidney Schulman, schedules a meeting. The committee’s recommendation will then be forwarded to the Board of Directors, which still might not have the final say. Mr. Tow believes creating a tot lot would constitute a “material change” to the condo’s common elements. Under Florida law, that would require putting the idea to a vote of the owners, 75 percent of whom would need to approve the change.

Clubhouse roof update and more

It’s been quite a peaceful past several weeks. The Board of Directors is on hiatus. We’re taking July off and probably won’t meet again until August 19, unless something urgent comes up. But some of you have been asking me for an update about the clubhouse roof, so for those who have not had a chance to check out the video of our last meeting on June 10, which I posted several weeks ago, here’s a recap…

We approved a $117,000 contract with Todd Knapp Inc. to install a Durolast roof, for which we will receive an $8,000 FPL rebate. We didn’t really have much of a choice, because as I previously reported, Citizens Property Insurance is refusing to reinstate the clubhouse's canceled wind insurance coverage until a new roof is in place. The new Durolast system will cover the entire flat roof area, but we saved about $65,000 by going with the contractor’s recommended option of removing only the damaged parts of the old roof instead of the whole thing. The new roof will come with a 20-year warranty. While working on the roof, Todd Knapp Inc. also will install an $18,900 new air conditioning system to replace the current failing system. Work on the new roof is expected to begin by around the end of next week and take about three weeks to complete.

At the same meeting, the Board approved a $30,000 tree-trimming contract with National Property Services, arguing that it will reduce the risk of property damage from trees during a hurricane. I voted against the contract because I never got an explanation as to why it’s costing nearly twice the $15,750 we paid Lawn Logic to perform comprehensive community-wide tree-trimming in 2010.

The Board also OK’d a $3,925 contract with Atlantic Southern Paving to install four speed humps at strategic locations around the Village as a pilot project to test their effectiveness. Although I was glad we shot down a much costlier plan to install 24 speed bumps at a cost of $14,500, I voted against the final contract because I think we should be saving as much money as possible for more critical projects, since by my calculations our special assessment fund will soon be down to only about $250,000 after accounting for the aforementioned projects plus the recently completed $10,350 clubhouse termite-tenting.

Finally, we put off discussion of an $11,000 plan to reinforce a delaminating portion of the Grenoble building’s brick façade while we explore other alternatives including removing the affected section and applying a paint-like material to the underlying wall to match the look of the façade.

In other news, the Association will host a meeting this Saturday, July 13 at 2 p.m. in the clubhouse to discuss the possibility of creating a play area to address the needs of the community’s growing number of families with children. All residents, whether owners or tenants, are invited to attend or send an email to admin@internvillage.com to share their ideas about what type of recreational facilities should be installed and where. Among the ideas currently under discussion is converting one of our underutilized tennis courts into a basketball court. Funding options under consideration include asking our current owner-investors to pay for the changes, since the tenants they collect rent from make up the majority of the Village's families with children.