UPDATE! A few days after I wrote this we received an email from the community manager. The annual meeting apparently was "eventful". The person who had announced their intentions to seek election to the board withdrew their candidacy. And some time after that, the board president resigned, citing disappointment with homeowners' attitudes toward each other and the board. Yipes, maybe don't say that out loud...? Anyway, we are now board-less and headed to receivership unless some folks volunteer at the next attempt at an election, which will happen as soon as the manager finds meeting space. Something may or may not be rotten in the state of Denmark, but it's getting a bit whiffy in my community. Last year a board member resigned abruptly for what were termed "personal reasons". A week or so later this announcement was followed by an admonishment from the community manager that homeowners with issues or questions should contact the manager for help and not individual board members. Liability was mentioned. Eyebrows were raised. Some months later the remaining two board members announced that they were looking for a replacement board member. At least one homeowner volunteered. A couple months following that, the board announced that they had appointed a resident who appears not to be a homeowner to - one assumes - an officer position since only owners may serve on the board. At this point, alert and experienced former board members should be going "hmmmm..." Shenanigans involving the election or appointment of community association board members are not unusual. Generally they involve a few power hungry folks who like being in charge and who make every effort to remain that way, damn the bylaws and state laws spelling out how board members are to be chosen. Another way they remain in charge is by controlling who can challenge them. Obviously this can result in decisions that are narrow and possibly uninformed since a diversity of opinion and information was not considered. Also obviously, homeowners whose opinions aren't being represented in the usual fashion will resort to more drastic efforts: they'll rally their neighbors and try to unseat the recalcitrant board members. Some states such as California have detailed laws stating how elections are to be conducted, including the hiring of a third-party election inspector to make sure that associations are behaving themselves. But not in my state. Per the bylaws, our annual meeting is to take place during the first calendar quarter of the year, with notice mailed or delivered to the owner's residence of record at seven (7) days prior to the meeting. Nominations for candidates to the vacant board position(s) are to be made by a nominating committee. None of this happened this year. We finally got an email announcement of the impending meeting at which the membership would elect a single board member. About that. The unfilled director position from last year did not expire this year. One of the other two positions did.. This means that there should have been two openings. Was the board choosing to keep that third spot unfilled? It appears that way and it's a problem. Many communities have trouble filling board positions - it's a tough and often unrewarding job, and lot of homeowners refuse to get involved. So sometimes empty positions remain that way for some time through no fault of the existing board members. But if that third spot is unfilled by choice, that's a whole 'nother kettle of fish. Alert and experienced former board members should now be going "ruh roh"... No announcements have been made about the results of the election. Expectations are low. Comments are closed.
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