NEWS FLASH
 Half of our community pools will no longer be heated!

On Friday January 28th, at our Board meeting, a recommendation was brought forward by Russ Holowachuk,  to stop heating half of our pools to reduce energy costs.  The majority of the Board members agreed to this recommendation and half the pool heaters will be shut off. 
 
This raises the following questions:

• Is your pool on the list?
  
  
• What other options are available to offset the increasing energy costs?
  
  
• What happened to the $700,000 extra dollars in the operating budget?  Has this been used up?
  
  
• Should this be happening in prime season, when the majority of our community is here?

 
Our Board is obligated to serve the interests of our whole community. 
 
If you have some questions or concerns about this decision, 
contact Russ Holowachuk at holowachukr@shaw.ca
 

The Blog would also like to hear your thoughts.
 

Our HOA board is considering spending between $400,000  to  $500,000 on one of 2 projects to “update and modernize” Desert Princess.  The cost to each homeowner for either of these projects would equate to   $27.64  to $34.54 of our current monthly dues.  
 
These are the projects the board is focusing on:

• A complete update of the Fitness/Spa center
  or
• A new outdoor patio extension for the restaurant
  
  

The board has already spent over $50,000 on architectural designs and has even submitted a set of plans to the City for approval.
 
This Raises the Following Questions:

• Does the board intend to spend the majority of our increased homeowner’s dues for beautification rather than the needed and necessary maintenance/repairs?

 

• Will either of these investments generate enough revenue to offset the money spent?
  
  
• Will the board make architectural plans available to all homeowners to see how our money will being spent? 

 

• Will either of these projects reduce the amount our dues that currently subsidize the Country Club and Fitness/Spa center each month? 
  
  
• Should we be considering a restaurant project when the restaurant has irregular hours, continues to generate less than pre-Covid revenues and continues to operate at a loss?
  
  
• Why are we considering the fitness center redesign when we only have 10-15 people a day using the facilities?

 
      _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
​
There is a scheduled Board Chat this Saturday 11/19/2022 at 1:00 PM.  This would be a great opportunity for homeowners to ask our board these questions.
 
Below is the link to the ZOOM ONLY CHAT:

You will be prompted to enter the Meeting ID (812 0942 1757) AND the password (498396).
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81209421757?pwd=REF0d1hXQU5XL2NwMUthSUtMMGZXQT09 Meeting ID: 812 0942 1757 Passcode: 498396
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1 778 907 2071 Canada
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​
     The Blog would like to hear your thoughts.

A special Board Meeting is scheduled for tomorrow at 11am (August 9th), in the Masters Lounge, to discuss the Tree management.  This will be an opportunity for all homeowners to discuss this topic and any other topics of concern.  If you are on the property please attend in person and if you are not present attend by Zoom.

Reasons to attend:

• Tree removal has already started without a board approved plan, funding or a contract
  
  
• Find out what trees are being cut down and who is making these decisions
  
  
• See if the fruit trees near your property will be cut down
  
  
• Ask the Board about its plans for replacing trees that are cut down
  
  

•  Seasonal homeowners need to be aware of their trees being removed  before their Fall return. It will be too late to ask for any trees to be spared
  
  
• What are the costs and where  are the funds coming from

Please attend !!!

For those who have not received notification of this meeting the following link can be used to attend this meeting

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81443326618?pwd=S0JIZVkwVStISENDZTRzalVGR3JvUT09


Meeting ID: 814 4332 6618
Passcode: 837570
Dial by your location
1 669 900 6833 US
1 408 638 0968 US
1 669 444 9171 US
1 253 215 8782 US
1 346 248 7799 US
1 386 347 5053 US
1 564 217 2000 US
1 646 876 9923 US
1 646 931 3860 US
1 301 715 8592 US
1 312 626 6799 US
1 647 558 0588 Canada
1 778 907 2071 Canada
1 780 666 0144 Canada
1 204 272 7920 Canada
1 438 809 7799 Canada
1 587 328 1099 Canada
1 647 374 4685 Canada

AT ITS JULY 29, 2022 MEETING, THE DESERT PRINCESS HOA BOARD OF DIRECTORS
APPROVED (BY A 5-2 VOTE) THE FINAL BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2022-2023 WHICH BEGINS
ON OCTOBER 1, 2022. THE APPROVED BUDGET CALLS FOR AN INCREASE IN THE MONTHLY
ASSESSMENT OF $38 FOR EACH DP UNIT, RESULTING IN A TOTAL MONTHLY ASSESSMENT OF
$748. THE TOTAL INCREASE AMOUNTS TO $456 ANNUALLY FOR EACH UNIT OR A TOTAL OF
$549,936 FOR THE 1206 UNITS IN DP. MEANWHILE THE BOARD TREASURER IS PROJECTING
A SURPLUS OF $800,000 TO $900,000 IN OPERATING FUNDS AT THE END OF THIS FISCAL YEAR
(SEPTEMBER 30, 2022).

  -WHY IS THE BOARD HOLDING BACK HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS AS “PLAY
    MONEY” INSTEAD OF USING THE SURPLUS TO OFFSET SOME OR ALL OF THE $38 PER MONTH
    INCREASE?

  -WHY WAS THE $15 MILLION BUDGET APPROVED ON THE BASIS OF THE TREASURER’S ORAL
   RECOMMENDATION WITH NO FINAL PROPOSED DOCUMENT AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW BY BOARD
   MEMBERS PRIOR TO THE VOTE?

 -IS THE REAL PURPOSE OF WITHHOLDING THE $800,000-$900,000 SURPLUS TO FINANCE THE
  BOARD’S SPECIAL “VANITY” PROJECTS OUTSIDE OF THE BUDGET?

THE HOA IS OBLIGATED TO PROVIDE A SUMMARY OF THE BUDGET IN THE ANNUAL MAILING
IN AUGUST. EACH HOMEOWNER SHOULD REQUEST A COMPLETE COPY OF THE BUDGET FROM
THE HOA TO DETERMINE WHERE YOUR MONEY IS ACTUALLY GOING. AS A MEMBER OF THE
ASSOCIATION, YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW.

THE BLOG WOULD YOUR THOUGHTS 

A number of homeowners have contacted the Blog with their monthly dues payment issues.  In the past, the HOA gave homeowners up to 30 days before taking action to collect on late dues.  The Board decided to change their collection policy last year, reducing the late payment date to 15 days and instituting a late payment fee($10) along with a 10% penalty($71).

This has resulted in many homeowners being fined and/or receiving letters requiring them to go in front of the Board for a hearing.

The Blog would like to hear from homeowners that have had similar issues, for example:

• Have you received fines for late payment when you mailed a check or paid  through your Bank’s bill payment service?
  
  
• Have you received a letter or email requiring that you pay immediately or face a Board hearing?
  
  
• Have you dropped off your payment on time to the HOA office and afterwards been told that your payments late?
  
  
• Did you know that the Board has changed it's policy and now ignores the postmark and only considers the date that your payment arrives?
  
  
• Do you feel comfortable giving the HOA direct access to your personal accounts as an alternative to paying by check or through your banks payment service?
  
  
• Have you been able to setup your bank’s bill payment service to only send payments electronically to avoid a mailed checks that could arrive late?

The Blog would like to hear your thoughts.

 
The Blog would like to hear from homeowners that are in favor of authorizing the Board to take a $5 million loan.
 
For example:

• Do you feel comfortable spending an additional $2.1 million above the $5 million?

 

•  Do you believe that the only option is to spend $5 million over the next 18 months?

 

• Are you confident that these funds are enough to address the 7 areas targeted by the Landscape redesign committee?
• Do you know what we will be getting at the cost of $7.1 Million
  
  
• Are you comfortable with the fact that the ballot did not specify that the funds will be used ONLY for landscape renovation?  Leaving open the possibility of using these funds for other purposes.

The Blog would like to hear your thoughts?

The ballot sent out to all homeowners is a vote to allow the Board to take out a loan for $5 million.  A follow up summary of the actual loan terms was published on Desert Princess Condo Communities.

A number of homeowners have contacted the Board to get a copy of the “Fixed Term sheet”  that outlines all the details for the loan that we are being asked to vote on.  The HOA has refused to release this information.  How can homeowners make an informed decision on this vote without the facts?

For example:

• Was this the only Loan available to us? 
  
  
• Was there an Request For Proposal from Multiple lenders?
  
  
• What additional conditions and obligations are we committing to?
  
  
• Can/Will the board be restricted from using these funds for other projects?
  
  
•  Will all the funds be available day one or will there be multiple distributions as the Landscape changes are completed?
  
  
• What happens 7.5 years from now if the new interest rate is not competitive (can we pay off the loan without additional expenses?

 

• Do we have any other financial obligations or operational restrictions during the next 15 years in order to meet the loan obligations?

The blog would like to know,  Do we have enough information to Vote for the $5 million loan?

At the HOA Board Meeting last week, the board announced that the bank who is financing the $5 million loan has provided them with a "Fixed Term Sheet"  that outlines the terms and conditions of this loan.

The board also decided to not release the "Fixed Term Sheet" to the homeowners.  As one board member stated,  "I have a PHD and it is hard for me  to comprehend", implying that homeowners do not have the capability to understand all the details.  So the board released a summary of the loan financial terms without any specific obligations (as outlined in the Fixed Term Sheet) that each of us will be committed to if the Board takes out this loan. 

It is a right for all homeowners to request and see the "Fixed Term Sheet" before voting to allow the Board to enter into this loan. 

Without this document,  homeowners will not know all the obligations we have been committed to under the loan contract.

To receive a copy,  send your request to:   Jerry Storage jstorage@desertprincesscc.com

and CC our board members:

Peter Webb pfwebb@telus.net
Terri Swartz terriswartz.dp@gmail.com
Russ Holowachuk  holowachukr@shaw.ca
Bob Mangold lingold7096@sbcglobal.net
Bill Bergstrom billbergstrom.dp@gmail.com
Martin Backstrom backstrom@berkeley.edu
Mark Brown mark@310.net

Please leave any additional comments below