Yeah, I get this is kind of boring stuff for most people. But, when you are watching an HOA descend from general non-transparency into spy-level secrecy, it’s worth noting and documenting. Admitting you watch your HOA calendar on a daily basis could be considered an obsession, yet, if you wish to capture just how desperate the actions can be, it requires this level of dedication.
I try not to miss any HOA meetings. Particularly since we have a small group of about a dozen households who demand full control of the HOA apparatus, have banned recordings, and try to give as short a notice as possible on meetings in the hopes I’ll miss one. Sometimes they pull it off because I’m not watching closely enough, but other times I just document because the scramble IS the story.
Last week, I noted that they suddenly rushed to have an HOA Meeting just 5 days after the previous one held in a coffee shop during a weekday at 3pm in the afternoon. It’s obvious homeowners are being dodged and aren’t really welcome to participate. That meeting didn’t have a sandwich board announcement, and only received a passive posting on the website calendar barely two days in advance. But, I posted about it here and for the article I took a screenshot of the calendar.
But, then on Monday morning, April 8, the calendar changed again for the Landscape Committee Meeting, which was originally to be held at 8am at the coffee shop on April 17, and suddenly it was at 530pm . . . outdoors . . . by the HOA sign. Ahh, Springtime. The smell of fresh air. And outdoor HOA meetings.
I was tempted to go. I really was. But, then it started raining. And, well, I already was aware of the agenda, because it was posted on Monday morning. And, it seemed like the Committee Chair, Gloria, was simply going to have a meeting out by the Island to make plans on where to put the mulch the Board agreed to fund at last weeks snap Board Meeting. Yeah, boring stuff.
So, while I’d like to ensure that this Board and its Committees are transparent by showing up, taking handwritten notes, and then posting about them so that in the slim chance anyone in Poudre Overlook cares, at least there’s some information that’s out in the open to keep along with what we are “collectively” working on. I do wonder if the meeting minutes will ever be posted, however. So far, not.
And, I applaud the sprucing up of the Island. It kind of looks worn and beat, which is the first impression people get upon driving into our community. It’s still early spring, but there was a day when that Island used to have pretty flowers popping up, even in early April.
While putting newer dyed mulch on the island will make it look less sun-faded, the fact of the matter is that we probably need to plant some new Daffodil or Tulip Bulbs, and probably need to replant some other succession flowers (more Lillies, maybe some Veronica Speedwell, or any other reliable perennial flowers). And, hopefully, with some fresh input from Sara and Linda, who I genuinely believe wish for the best final outcome, if the Landscape Committee Charter is also sincere about “promote community participation”, having short-notice meetings (or suddenly changing their date & time without bothering to at least email everyone) that are only passively advertised on a website the know that no one visits is precisely the opposite way to achieve that goal.
I do hope to see some improvement on the Island and Sign. I took the photos below on the way back from the last Board Meeting so that there would be a “before” picture. That said, if all we are going to do is throw down some mulch, it’s going to be a modest improvement. I had higher hopes that more people would take interest, and offered my volunteer help – which was roundly rejected.
And, I stayed away from the second and now the third meeting of this committee. Because, I know that the small group that is ruling our HOA with an iron grip is telling even new homeowners moving into the neighborhood this fiction about me ruining or disrupting meetings. If only there were recordings to prove it objectively – but that is perhaps the purpose of preventing their existence. It allows them to create this fiction – which is a reason not to show up unless it is necessary.
I wish the Committee the best, and hope someone shows up on May 4th to help make this island as beautiful as possible. And, to ensure that my presence isn’t going to diminish participation, I’ll just say in advance I’ll stay as far away as possible to ensure no one uses as me as an excuse not to show up. There’s literally plant swaps all over Fort Collins and Laporte that day, and it’s sad that we have to leave our community to feel welcome and included.