AT&T's U-verse service is now being rolled out to residents of the Manors. They have begun to use "pair bonding" to extend the reach of their service from their existing VRAD equipment, which is used to connect to the high-speed fiber optic network. The U-verse "pair bonding" installation also requires an "intelligent Network
Interface Device" (iNID) to be mounted on the exterior of your Unit
near the existing land line telephone junction box.
Previously, U-verse was only available to customers located less than about 3,000 feet from the nearest VRAD equipment. Unfortunately, the Units at the Manors were outside that range, since they are all located between 3,000 and 5,000 feet from the VRAD on 22 Mile Road. Since "pair bonding" extends the U-verse service envelope to a distance of about 5,000 feet, all Units in the Manors should now be able to subscribe and get a signal with decent bandwidth.
Click here to check the current U-verse availability status for your street address. If it comes back with a "Service Not Available", follow the instructions to "research your address" or check back again in a few weeks as they seem to be continually adding more blocks of addresses to the "Service is Available" category as they do a phased roll-out.
The iNID is housed in an enclosure that is approximately 12" x 12" x 4" in size. Since the iNID must be permanently attached to the exterior of the Unit, the customer must submit an Alteration/Modification Request for approval by the Board of Directors. All future iNID enclosures at the Manors must be directly mounted to the brick wall at a location directly above the electric meter that supplies the customer's Unit.
Click here to download and print an MS Word file that contains a partially-completed Alteration/ Modification Request form for the iNID installation. Finish completing the form and follow the included mail/fax instructions to submit the request.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Thursday, December 22, 2011
What's Expected of a Board Member?
Control of our Condo Association is about to be transitioned over to the co-owners at the upcoming Annual Meeting, where for the first time, we will be able to nominate and elect three co-owners to the Board of Directors. This means that we will need to have more co-owners who are willing to be nominated and and serve on the Board if elected. As I've mentioned this need over the past year, the response has often been, "what's expected of a member of the Board of Directors?" The following my my best attempt to answer to that question.
Our Condo Association is an incorporated business and as such, it is run by a Board of Directors. Our Bylaws stipulate that the Board consists of three members, who are each elected to a one year term at the Annual Meeting of the Association. The Bylaws also state that at the first Board meeting following the Annual Meeting, the Board shall elect from among themselves a President, Secretary and Treasurer.
The Board Members have the powers and duties necessary to administer the affairs of the Condominium Association and to maintain and regulate the use of the Condominium's common elements, property, easements, etc. These include, but are not limited to, the power to levy and collect assessments for the purposes of the Association, hire a managing agent, enter into contracts with suppliers, establish committees, enforce the Master Deed and Bylaws as well as make and enforce additional reasonable rules and regulations.
The President is the chief executive officer of the Association and presides at meetings of the Association and of the Board of Directors. The President also has the power to appoint committees from among the members of the Association, with the consent of the other members of the Board.
The Secretary keeps the minutes of all meetings of the Board and of the Association. The Secretary also prepares the meeting agendas with input from the other Board members.
The Treasurer is responsible for the Association's funds and keeping a full and accurate account of all receipts and expenses. The Treasurer is also responsible for developing an annual budget for the Board's consideration and also annually prepares a financial statement that is distributed to all members of the Association.
Kramer-Triad has been hired by the Board to serve as the Association's managing agent. A representative of the managing agent attends the Board's Regular Meetings. The managing agent handles the receipt and expenditure of all Association funds, maintains the monthly financial records for the Board, solicits competitive bids from suppliers for the Board to choose from, handles requests for service from the members of the Association and assigns work orders, handles the mailings to the Association members on behalf of the Board, etc. The managing agent's representative who handles the Association's account is authorized to spend up to $1,000 on budgeted items without first seeking approval from the Board.
According to the Association's Bylaws, in addition to the Annual Meeting of the Association’s membership, the Board must also hold a least one Regular Board of Directors Meeting each year, at a time and place determined by a majority of the Directors. In practice, the Board will probably need to meet monthly in most of the months during the September through February time period and only if necessary during the remainder of the year. A Regular Board meeting is typically between two and three hours in length. Most, if not all, of the Board's communications with the managing agent that happen between Regular Meetings are handled through e-mail. To expedite certain decisions without having to schedule a meeting, some Board decisions can be made via e-mail and confirmed with a formal vote at the next Regular Meeting so that they are documented in the minutes.
As a Board Member, you will be asked to make collective decisions on issues such as the following:
I have already been nominated and I intend to campaign for election to the Board at the Annual Meeting in January. Over the past four years, I have unofficially handled the duties of the Board President, Secretary and Treasurer. As a result, I have already developed most of the formats and spreadsheets the Board will need to use, so the new Board officers will not have to create everything from scratch, just modify things to suit.
If you have any questions about the role of a Board Member or concerns about whether to accept a nomination for the upcoming Board election, please give me a call or send me an e-mail (see my contact information in the right sidebar).
Our Condo Association is an incorporated business and as such, it is run by a Board of Directors. Our Bylaws stipulate that the Board consists of three members, who are each elected to a one year term at the Annual Meeting of the Association. The Bylaws also state that at the first Board meeting following the Annual Meeting, the Board shall elect from among themselves a President, Secretary and Treasurer.
The Board Members have the powers and duties necessary to administer the affairs of the Condominium Association and to maintain and regulate the use of the Condominium's common elements, property, easements, etc. These include, but are not limited to, the power to levy and collect assessments for the purposes of the Association, hire a managing agent, enter into contracts with suppliers, establish committees, enforce the Master Deed and Bylaws as well as make and enforce additional reasonable rules and regulations.
The President is the chief executive officer of the Association and presides at meetings of the Association and of the Board of Directors. The President also has the power to appoint committees from among the members of the Association, with the consent of the other members of the Board.
The Secretary keeps the minutes of all meetings of the Board and of the Association. The Secretary also prepares the meeting agendas with input from the other Board members.
The Treasurer is responsible for the Association's funds and keeping a full and accurate account of all receipts and expenses. The Treasurer is also responsible for developing an annual budget for the Board's consideration and also annually prepares a financial statement that is distributed to all members of the Association.
Kramer-Triad has been hired by the Board to serve as the Association's managing agent. A representative of the managing agent attends the Board's Regular Meetings. The managing agent handles the receipt and expenditure of all Association funds, maintains the monthly financial records for the Board, solicits competitive bids from suppliers for the Board to choose from, handles requests for service from the members of the Association and assigns work orders, handles the mailings to the Association members on behalf of the Board, etc. The managing agent's representative who handles the Association's account is authorized to spend up to $1,000 on budgeted items without first seeking approval from the Board.
According to the Association's Bylaws, in addition to the Annual Meeting of the Association’s membership, the Board must also hold a least one Regular Board of Directors Meeting each year, at a time and place determined by a majority of the Directors. In practice, the Board will probably need to meet monthly in most of the months during the September through February time period and only if necessary during the remainder of the year. A Regular Board meeting is typically between two and three hours in length. Most, if not all, of the Board's communications with the managing agent that happen between Regular Meetings are handled through e-mail. To expedite certain decisions without having to schedule a meeting, some Board decisions can be made via e-mail and confirmed with a formal vote at the next Regular Meeting so that they are documented in the minutes.
As a Board Member, you will be asked to make collective decisions on issues such as the following:
- review and approve the annual budget, which sets the monthly assessment amount to be paid by the co-owners and identifies the spending plan for the entire year; identify and approve any mid-year budget adjustments that might be needed due to an unforeseen expenditure; identify and initiate Additional Assessment and/or Special Assessment projects that the Board feels are necessary.
- review and approve Alteration/Modification Requests that have been submitted by co-owners; often the co-owner would like a speedy response and these cases can be handled by the Board via e-mail review and response.
- enforcement of violations of our Master Deed, Bylaws and other rules and regulations; enforcement of repeated violations can include the applications of fines; enforcement of the leasing restrictions could necessitate taking legal action against the landlord and tenants.
- collection of delinquent amounts from co-owners who have not paid their monthly or additional/special assessments; collection could even involve authorizing our attorney to file a lien against the property or initiate foreclosure, depending on the circumstances.
- what to do about Alteration/Modification Requests that were submitted after the fact and then denied by the Board, yet have not been removed by the co-owner.
- what to do about enforcement of decorative and landscaping items placed on the general common elements by co-owners without submitting an Alteration/Modification Request.
- what the Board can do to further enhance the overall value of our property and also promote a greater sense of community here in the Manors.
I have already been nominated and I intend to campaign for election to the Board at the Annual Meeting in January. Over the past four years, I have unofficially handled the duties of the Board President, Secretary and Treasurer. As a result, I have already developed most of the formats and spreadsheets the Board will need to use, so the new Board officers will not have to create everything from scratch, just modify things to suit.
If you have any questions about the role of a Board Member or concerns about whether to accept a nomination for the upcoming Board election, please give me a call or send me an e-mail (see my contact information in the right sidebar).
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Final Paving Special Assessment Fact Sheet
The mailing you received today from Kramer-Triad announcing the 2012 Annual Meeting also included a one-page fact sheet about the proposed Final Paving Special Assessment that will be voted upon at that meeting. I'm reproducing the contents of the fact sheet below so that it is also available on this blog.
I would personally like to add one more reason for approving the proposed Final Paving Special Assessment now rather than later and that can be found by reading this post.
If you have any questions about the proposed Special Assessment, please contact me using the phone number or e-mail address shown in the right sidebar.
At the 2012 Annual Meeting, the current Board of Directors will be asking members of the Manors at Central Park Condominium Association to approve a Special Assessment for the purposes ofa) Repairing numerous sections of cracked concrete curbingb) Paving the final asphalt layer on the remainder of our streets and private access drives.A Special Assessment requires the approval of more than 2/3rds of all "members in value" (as opposed to "members in number"), since it is levied on the basis of the percent of value assigned to each Unit. Per the Amended Master Deed, owners of Units 1-14 have each been assigned 0.17422 percent of value and owners of Units 16-167 (including the Carpenters Pension Trust Fund, which owns 47 incomplete units) each have 0.64185 percent of value (owners of all Units each have a vote that is worth 1/166 = 0.60241 percent when voting by number).Shelby Township had obtained a letter of credit in 2004 from Sable Realty Ventures to be used in case the company failed to install the final layer of asphalt paving. However, as previously explained, that letter of credit is no longer valid. Attorneys for the Carpenters Pension Trust Fund maintain that they are not required to honor the legal agreement that Sable Realty Ventures made with the Township to provide the final paving at a later date. Therefore, the entire cost of the final paving will have to be paid by the owners of the complete and incomplete Units that comprise the Manors at Central Park Condominiums.Pending the receipt of competitive bids, the Board estimates that the final paving project will cost about $83,700 and therefore, the Special Assessment levy will be about $145 ($83,700 x 0.0017422) for each of Units 1-14 and about $540 ($83,700 x 0.0064185) for each of Units 16-167. The Carpenters Pension Trust Fund owns (47) incomplete Units and they will also pay the Special Assessment amount for each of their Units.The current Board of Directors recommends a "yes" vote on the Special Assessment for the following reasons:a) The final paving is a capital improvement in excess of $5,000 and it is an addition to the common elements that must eventually be completed. Therefore the Bylaws stipulate that it be funded via a Special Assessment instead of through the replacement reserve account or the annual budget.b) The exposed base layer of asphalt is already seven years old and was not designed to stand up to weather and traffic for that length of time; further delays could necessitate costly repairs that must be made before applying the final asphalt layer.c) The cost of asphalt paving has more than doubled since 2004; further delays will likely result in a higher cost to complete the final paving project.If approved, the curb repairs and final layer of asphalt paving will be completed before the end of 2012.
I would personally like to add one more reason for approving the proposed Final Paving Special Assessment now rather than later and that can be found by reading this post.
If you have any questions about the proposed Special Assessment, please contact me using the phone number or e-mail address shown in the right sidebar.
Monday, December 19, 2011
New Signs at entrances to the Private Access Drives
Recently, a handful of people who do not live in Units 1-32 had been using the private access drives to park their vehicles while dropping off and picking up their children from the UCS School Buses. The congestion was impeding the resident's use of the access drive, so in response to their complaints and acting on behalf of the entire Board of Directors, I politely informed those non-residents that they were parking on private property and asked them to please park on North Central Park in the future. Several of them vehemently challenged the right of the Board of Directors to deny them the use of the private access drive, particularly since there were no signs saying they couldn't use the private access drive. Rather than listen to any more verbal abuse, the Board ordered the purchase and installation of the signs that are now in place.
Please let the Board know if you see any non-residents parking or standing their vehicles on the private access drives or using them as a shortcut to get around the school bus stop.
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Carpenters Pension Trust Fund (CPTF)
The "Carpenters Pension Trust Fund - Detroit & Vicinity"
(CPTF) acquired ownership of 63 incomplete
units at the Manors at Central Park Condominiums from "Sable
Realty Ventures - Shelby I Limited Partnership" in August of 2007. Sixteen of those
incomplete units were already under construction and the CPTF
hired Lombardo Homes to finish and sell them (those were in addition to the incomplete Units 1-14 along North Central Park that Lombardo Homes bought directly from Sable Realty Ventures in May of 2009 and upon which they subsequently built thirteen detached condos).
As of December 2011, the CPTF stll owns 47 incomplete units and has no plans to begin construction on any of them in the forseeable future. The CPTF also controls two of the three seats on the Board of Directors of the Manors at Central Park Condominium Association. Full control of the Board has not yet transitioned to the co-owners and the third seat has been held by a duy-elected co-owner of a completed unit since January 2008.
In accordance with Federal Law, the CPTF employs a Qualified Pension Assets Manager (QPAM) to manage their investments for them, including the 47 incomplete units at the Manors at Central Park Condominiums as well as the operation of the Manors at Central Park Condominium Association. Titanium Real Estate Advisors of Chicago, IL has been the QPAM for the CPTF since August 2010 (prior to that Fifth Third Bank had been their QPAM).
Once full control of the Board is transitioned to the co-owners (planned to occur at the 2012 Annual Meeting on Jan. 18, 2012), Titanium will no longer be involved in the operation of the Manors at Central Park Condominium Association. However, Titanium and the CPTF will still remain responsible for maintaining the appearance of their incomplete units and are also responsible for paying any Special Assessments levied against their units for the completion of unfinished site improvements such as the final layer of asphalt pavement on our streets.
At the beginning of its 2007 plan year, the CPTF was 67% funded [see pg. 3 of this document], meaning that the value of its assets ($1.08 billion) were worth about two-thirds the present value of all accrued benefits being promised to the pension plan participants and beneficiaries ($1.61 billion). During the 2008 plan year, its funding fell below the Pension Protection Act's 65% "critical" threshold, placing it in the "red" zone and initiating the creation of a rehabilitation plan to bring it up to the 80% funded level ("green" zone) by the 2019 plan year [see pp. 4-6 of this document].
In a September 2009 report, Moody's Corporation analyzed the funding levels of the 108 largest union pension plans in the United States, which included the CPTF. A list of those pension plans and their funding percentage is reproduced here. Their report ranked the CPTF in 104th place, identifying it as being only 41.4% funded at that time.
In 2010, the CPTF was again assessed as "critical" and placed in the "red" zone [see pg. 1 of this document].
The CPTF is a multiemployer, defined benefit pension plan that is safeguarded by the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation (PBCG) under their Multiemployer Insurance Program. The PBCG is a Government Sponsored Enterprise, similar to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in that it was created by the US Congress and it carries the implicit financial backing of the US Government.
If the financial status of the CPTF should deteriorate to the point of insolvency, the PBGC will step in and mandate that they reduce their pension benefit payments to a level that is supportable by the current value of its assets. The PBGC also has the authority to provide financial assistance to the insolvent pension plan and to also exercise operating authority over the plan until all loans are repaid.
In the event that the CPTF should become insolvent, more than likely the PBGC would then have the final say on all decisions regarding the CPTF's expenditures at the Manors at Central Park, including the payment of Special Assessments.
As of December 2011, the CPTF stll owns 47 incomplete units and has no plans to begin construction on any of them in the forseeable future. The CPTF also controls two of the three seats on the Board of Directors of the Manors at Central Park Condominium Association. Full control of the Board has not yet transitioned to the co-owners and the third seat has been held by a duy-elected co-owner of a completed unit since January 2008.
In accordance with Federal Law, the CPTF employs a Qualified Pension Assets Manager (QPAM) to manage their investments for them, including the 47 incomplete units at the Manors at Central Park Condominiums as well as the operation of the Manors at Central Park Condominium Association. Titanium Real Estate Advisors of Chicago, IL has been the QPAM for the CPTF since August 2010 (prior to that Fifth Third Bank had been their QPAM).
Once full control of the Board is transitioned to the co-owners (planned to occur at the 2012 Annual Meeting on Jan. 18, 2012), Titanium will no longer be involved in the operation of the Manors at Central Park Condominium Association. However, Titanium and the CPTF will still remain responsible for maintaining the appearance of their incomplete units and are also responsible for paying any Special Assessments levied against their units for the completion of unfinished site improvements such as the final layer of asphalt pavement on our streets.
At the beginning of its 2007 plan year, the CPTF was 67% funded [see pg. 3 of this document], meaning that the value of its assets ($1.08 billion) were worth about two-thirds the present value of all accrued benefits being promised to the pension plan participants and beneficiaries ($1.61 billion). During the 2008 plan year, its funding fell below the Pension Protection Act's 65% "critical" threshold, placing it in the "red" zone and initiating the creation of a rehabilitation plan to bring it up to the 80% funded level ("green" zone) by the 2019 plan year [see pp. 4-6 of this document].
In a September 2009 report, Moody's Corporation analyzed the funding levels of the 108 largest union pension plans in the United States, which included the CPTF. A list of those pension plans and their funding percentage is reproduced here. Their report ranked the CPTF in 104th place, identifying it as being only 41.4% funded at that time.
In 2010, the CPTF was again assessed as "critical" and placed in the "red" zone [see pg. 1 of this document].
The CPTF is a multiemployer, defined benefit pension plan that is safeguarded by the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation (PBCG) under their Multiemployer Insurance Program. The PBCG is a Government Sponsored Enterprise, similar to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in that it was created by the US Congress and it carries the implicit financial backing of the US Government.
If the financial status of the CPTF should deteriorate to the point of insolvency, the PBGC will step in and mandate that they reduce their pension benefit payments to a level that is supportable by the current value of its assets. The PBGC also has the authority to provide financial assistance to the insolvent pension plan and to also exercise operating authority over the plan until all loans are repaid.
In the event that the CPTF should become insolvent, more than likely the PBGC would then have the final say on all decisions regarding the CPTF's expenditures at the Manors at Central Park, including the payment of Special Assessments.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Vehicle and garage break-ins
Nearly a dozen vehicle and garage break-ins have been reported this past
week in the Central Park community, mainly in the Gardens and Meadows subdivisions. They have been occurring
during the daylight hours around 4 PM as well as in the 10 PM and later
time ranges. Most of the vehicles were not locked. Access to some of
the garages was gained by using the garage door opener they found once
inside the vehicle. The perpetrator(s) also watch for open garage doors
and make a quick getaway with valuables from the garage and the
unlocked vehicles parked inside the garage. One of the daylight thefts
involved a purse that was left in a vehicle that was briefly parked in
the driveway while the owner went back inside the house to get
something. The Shelby Twp. Police ask that you please be vigilant and
proactive. ALWAYS LOCK YOUR VEHICLE when it is parked in your driveway
or on the street and keep your garage door closed unless you are actually in the
garage, the driveway or front yard. Also, it is best that you do not leave your
garage door opener or other valuables in plain sight within the vehicle.
UPDATE: On Feb. 28, 2012, a local man plead guilty on charges of larceny from a building and receiving and concealing stolen property in connection with these break-ins. He was sentenced to 30 days in Macomb County Jail and 1 year probation. More details can be found here and here.
UPDATE: On Feb. 28, 2012, a local man plead guilty on charges of larceny from a building and receiving and concealing stolen property in connection with these break-ins. He was sentenced to 30 days in Macomb County Jail and 1 year probation. More details can be found here and here.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
2012 Annual Meeting
Our 2012 Annual Meeting is officially scheduled for Wednesday evening,
Jan. 18, 2012 at the Shelby Twp. municipal building. Sign-in will begin at 6:30 PM and the meeting at 7:00 PM.
There will be two important elections held that evening. One will be to approve a final paving Special Assessment and another will be held to elect three co-owners to the Board of Directors
Look for an envelope from Kramer-Triad to arrive in the US Mail within the next week or so. It will contain full details about the time and location of the meeting, plus it will explain the Board of Directors nominating process.
There will be two important elections held that evening. One will be to approve a final paving Special Assessment and another will be held to elect three co-owners to the Board of Directors
Look for an envelope from Kramer-Triad to arrive in the US Mail within the next week or so. It will contain full details about the time and location of the meeting, plus it will explain the Board of Directors nominating process.
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