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
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6/20/2022 27 Comments pAYMENT iSSUES WITH mONTHLY DUESA 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:
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:
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:
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 4/28/2022 37 Comments Just the facts?An email was sent to all homeowners from a CDAC member, Diane McAlpine with the username of “Community Design Advisory Committee". This was actually sent with Diane’s personal email (dmmcalpine@AOL.com). Diane McAlpine, led the Landscape revitalization presentations and told us that we have only this one opportunity to revitalize our landscape due to both rising labor costs and Loan interest rates.
This plan was presented as a $5.26 million project with additional interest payments totaling $ 2.1 million. Here is what Diane is personally promising: 1. No personal Liability (no mention of Future assessments or dues increases when the Loan interest rate resets in 7.5 years) 2. Annual interest costs of $117 per year (we do not have a loan commitment the interest amount is unknown) 3. No Impact on Freddie/Fannie Mortgage loan eligibility (Have we heard from the Consultant the HOA board hired to provide recommendations to fix our loan eligibility issues?) 4. Quote for Contractor is 5.26 Million (no bids have been solicited – the quote came from O’Connell) 5. Quote for Commercial Loan = 5% (we have no Loan commitment and no guarantee of interest rate after 7.5 years) 6. Three Bids Competitive Blind Anonymous Bidding (There have been no bids to date and the scope of work has not been defined for the 7 areas that will be rejuvenated. What are the vendors bidding on?) 7. Sell anytime - you never owe more than your last dues payment (if this turns out to be a bad deal, this is your only way out) The Blog would like to know your thoughts. 4/16/2022 63 Comments You have an opportunity to choose how your money will be spent to revitilize our landscapeAn email was sent out expressing concerns that the Board would like the the homeowners to authorize a commercial Loan that will fund a project to "revitalize" our landscape. This loan will be collateralized by the HOA's receivables. In other words, the board is asking every homeowner to be personally liable for $7.1 million to be paid back over the next 15 years . The email is shown below. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The Blog would like to know your thoughts. The HOA and Board are planning to send out a Ballot for voting on the Landscape Revitalization Project's funding. About 200 residents have seen the CDAC Landscape Revitalization presentation that is driving the request by the Board to take out a $5,260,000 loan.
The Landscape Revitalization Project is being presented as an “ALL or Nothing” Project that will be completed in 18 months. The Board will decide next Monday whether to spend the $4000-$10000 on a ballot vote to allow the HOA to take out the $5,280,000 loan. . So far, the CDAC committee has not supplied any of the homeowners with access to the Town Hall CDAC Landscape Revitalization Presentation, only the 4 year old RGA Master Plan that served as an example of plants and materials that could be used. Missing still is the actual plan for all 7 phases of the landscape revitalization plan. The CDAC FAQ’S does not address the following:
Let your voice be heard, contact your 7 board members at the following email addresses and ask for answers: 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 We welcome your comments on the Blog 4/4/2022 20 Comments BOARD BALLOT ALERTOn April 11th at 1:00pm the Board is planning to vote on sending out a Ballot to gain approval for the CDAC Landscape Revitalization Plan.
The Board is asking our community to rely on information in their presentation that was gathered from 2018 to 2020. The information presented to the community was delayed for 2 years due to the pandemic. The CDAC Presentation, to date, has been seen/heard by less than 250 homeowners. This raises the following questions:
Let your voice be heard, contact your 7 board members at the following email addresses ASAP: 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 We welcome your comments on the Blog 4/1/2022 43 Comments IS THE PROPOSED CDAC LANDSCAPE REVITALIZATION PLAN THE MOST PRUDENT APPROACH FOR OUR COMMUNITY?Do we need to revitalize certain parts of our Desert Princess landscape?
The answer is a definite YES! The concern is, do we have enough information at this point to commit to the revitalization plan proposed by the CDAC? The CDAC is asking every homeowner to commit to 15 years of monthly payments on a loan of $5,260,000 to be used to revitalize our landscape. Based on the presentation by the CDAC at the recent Town Halls, we know the following:
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CharterThis blog is designed as a means to provide transparency and informative access to the policies and protocols of the Desert Princess Palm Springs Homeowners Association, the governance of the HOA Board of Directors and the management of the community’s assets by The Management Trust. The expressed intent is to establish a neighborhood hub for trusted connections and the exchange of helpful information, goods, and services; it is hoped that homeowners will use it to build a stronger and safer Desert Princess Palm Springs. PLEDGE
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July 2023
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