April Newsletter Observations

The April newsletter touched on legal costs, roof leaks, driveway repairs, balcony inspections, meetings, and the HOA budget. Residents should know the driveway project may be delayed due to County sewer work, pool repairs are reportedly underway, and balcony inspections were reportedly completed earlier this year.

The newsletter declared that the balcony inspections were completed.  What it did not note is that the board paid a contractor to perform the inspections when they were on notice that the law clearly requires the inspections must be done by an architect or an engineer. 

The board reports “unexpected legal costs” involving legal counsel and insurance counsel, but never explains that these costs stem from ongoing disputes regarding the HOA election process and governance issues.  If the board is incurring legal expenses, don’t they have a duty to explain to the members what the legal issues are that we are paying to address?

The roof leak section again cites vendor availability and scheduling problems, while also referring to “unauthorized reasons” that delayed repairs last year. No details are provided about what those “unauthorized reasons” actually were or why the board does not rely on Lordon Management to provide available vendors. Most HOAs streamline their repairs by using their management company to provide and schedule vendors, but for some reason the board at Stonewood manages and schecules vendors directly.

The meetings section includes a warning about “misleading information,” but does not explain what misleading information has been spread. The newsletter asserts that homeowners do not have the right to record board meetings, again without citing any authority or explaining the legal basis for the claim. Several members have requested that the board make meetings available via the internet for convenience, but the board has refused.  

The budget section states Stonewood now has the highest reserve balances in its history and suggests no assessment increase is needed. However, no reserve funding percentages, long-term projections, or repair obligation details are provided for members to evaluate that conclusion independently.

Members raised questions for clarification about these issues at the last open meeting, but no answers have been provided by the board yet.