Newsday.com - Long Island News:West Meadow Beach cottage conflict not over
The deadline for residents to leave their beachside villas is past but many say they won’t give them up
I have always been intrigued by the takings clause of the 5th Amendment to the US Constitution ("...nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation"). The idea is that property owners are protected from seizure of their property by government, which is required to pay fair market value for it. But here is an innovative use of the clause by, of all people, renters:
For eight years, Friday's date, Oct. 1 2004, has loomed over renters of the 93 cottages at West Meadow Beach. That was the deadline, set by 1996 state legislation, for the Town of Brookhaven-owned cottages to be vacated to make way for their court-ordered demolition...One motion, filed late Thursday on behalf of a group of cottage residents, challenges the 1996 legislation, which extended the vacate deadline to 2004. Thursday's motion argues that the eviction is an unconstitutional "taking" of property without compensation.
[more]
Saturday, October 02, 2004
TheDenverChannel.com - News - Granby Women Pose In Calendar To Help Rebuild Town
Here's an innovative approach to municipal fund-raising:
It was just four months ago when Marv Heemeyer used a makeshift tank to bulldoze through the town of Granby, causing destruction that would cost $5.5 million to repair.
Now, to help raise some of that money, some women in town are showing a little skin.
They may not be the same kind of women you'll see in the next issue of Sports Illustrated' Swimsuit Edition, but they soon be appearing in a calendar you can buy.
[more]
Here's an innovative approach to municipal fund-raising:
It was just four months ago when Marv Heemeyer used a makeshift tank to bulldoze through the town of Granby, causing destruction that would cost $5.5 million to repair.
Now, to help raise some of that money, some women in town are showing a little skin.
They may not be the same kind of women you'll see in the next issue of Sports Illustrated' Swimsuit Edition, but they soon be appearing in a calendar you can buy.
[more]
Friday, October 01, 2004
My Way News:Construction spending hits all-time high
WASHINGTON (AP) - Construction spending surged in August to the highest level on record, fresh evidence that the housing market is helping move the economy ahead.
The Commerce Department reported Friday that the value of buildings put in place clocked in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.02 trillion, a record high. That represented a 0.8 percent increase in August from July's level.
The strength exhibited in August in part reflected a strong showing in residential projects by private builders, which hit a record high.
[more]
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And of course that means that CIDs are still being built in record numbers, despite all the bad press they are getting.
WASHINGTON (AP) - Construction spending surged in August to the highest level on record, fresh evidence that the housing market is helping move the economy ahead.
The Commerce Department reported Friday that the value of buildings put in place clocked in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.02 trillion, a record high. That represented a 0.8 percent increase in August from July's level.
The strength exhibited in August in part reflected a strong showing in residential projects by private builders, which hit a record high.
[more]
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And of course that means that CIDs are still being built in record numbers, despite all the bad press they are getting.
Veto message for AB 2598
He says the intent of the bill is "laudable" because it would "protect homeowners from being foreclosed upon for small sums of delinquent assessments," the bill is "overly broad and could negatively impact all homeowners living in CIDs." It could, he says, "result in increased assessments for other howeowners," a point I have made here a number of times to the distress of some owner-activists. He says there should be "more open discussion between homeowners and their associations" to resolve conflicts. He accepts the CAI position that foreclosure should be "the last course of action." He says that the foreclosure statute needs to be clarified but through incremental change, and I must confess that I don't know what he has in mind here. I hope somebody does, because apparently it's back to the drawing board. After the amount of time and energy spent on the two bills (Ducheny and Steinberg) and putting them together like this, you'd think things were pretty well thought through, but not to the satisfaction of The Governator.
He says the intent of the bill is "laudable" because it would "protect homeowners from being foreclosed upon for small sums of delinquent assessments," the bill is "overly broad and could negatively impact all homeowners living in CIDs." It could, he says, "result in increased assessments for other howeowners," a point I have made here a number of times to the distress of some owner-activists. He says there should be "more open discussion between homeowners and their associations" to resolve conflicts. He accepts the CAI position that foreclosure should be "the last course of action." He says that the foreclosure statute needs to be clarified but through incremental change, and I must confess that I don't know what he has in mind here. I hope somebody does, because apparently it's back to the drawing board. After the amount of time and energy spent on the two bills (Ducheny and Steinberg) and putting them together like this, you'd think things were pretty well thought through, but not to the satisfaction of The Governator.
AB 2598 Assembly Bill - Status
Just to confirm that AHRC had it right...
LAST HIST. ACT. DATE: 09/30/2004
LAST HIST. ACTION : Vetoed by Governor.
VETOED
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In other news, I have just been notified that I passed the Illinois Bar Examination. Yowzah.
Just to confirm that AHRC had it right...
LAST HIST. ACT. DATE: 09/30/2004
LAST HIST. ACTION : Vetoed by Governor.
VETOED
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In other news, I have just been notified that I passed the Illinois Bar Examination. Yowzah.
Thursday, September 30, 2004
From AHRC News Service: SCHWARZENEGGER VETOED ANTI-FORECLOSURE BILL AB 2598 TODAY
Hot off the presses. This is the Steinberg bill. I've noted a couple of times that rumors were circulating to the effect that CAI was lobbying The Governator heavily to veto this. I've also noted that he lives in a gated community. Looks like he has his own idea about the HOA foreclosure power. This is a major setback for the California activists. Arizona and Florida brought victories on this issue, but it looks like the industry still has the inside track in California.
Hot off the presses. This is the Steinberg bill. I've noted a couple of times that rumors were circulating to the effect that CAI was lobbying The Governator heavily to veto this. I've also noted that he lives in a gated community. Looks like he has his own idea about the HOA foreclosure power. This is a major setback for the California activists. Arizona and Florida brought victories on this issue, but it looks like the industry still has the inside track in California.
The HOA Citizen
Check out George Starapoli's newsletter, with the lead story, "Mortgagor works with HOA foreclosure."
Check out George Starapoli's newsletter, with the lead story, "Mortgagor works with HOA foreclosure."
Wednesday, September 29, 2004
Tuesday, September 28, 2004
Sierra Vista Herald: American Border Patrol told to move from neighborhood
Many thanks to Fred Pilot for sending along this truly fascinating story that has one form of privatization pitted against another. You see, this is not the U.S. Border Patrol. Nothing so simple. It seems that "The ABP is a nonprofit organization dedicated to addressing border issues. It is not associated with the U.S. Border Patrol, but it does its own surveillance of the Mexican border and tracks down illegal immigrants, turning them over to the BP."
And with that intro, let's look at the story:
BISBEE - Glenn Spencer won't be using his home in the Pueblo del Sol Subdivision as headquarters of the American Border Patrol much longer.
Spencer's attorney, Michael Johns of Sierra Vista, told Cochise County Superior Court Judge Stephen Desens on Monday afternoon that Spencer will be vacating the premises he rents by the end of October.
Spencer and Johns were in court in response to an injuction filed on Aug. 24 by the Pueblo del Sol Homeowners Association against Spencer and REB Enterprises LLC, the owner of the house at 4814 Equestrian Ave. Roger E. Barnett is the managing member of REB Enterprises.
The association, represented by Sierra Vista attorney Joseph DeFrancesco, was granted a preliminary injuction - effective immediately - by Desens to preclude the defendants from conducting a business in the residential subdivision. Business activity are prohibited by the association's covenants, conditions and restrictions.
[more]
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So what we have here is an HOA--a private government-- evicting a tenant who was running a business enterprise called the American Border Patrol--a private police force--from his rented unit. Seems the ABP doesn't mind being evicted because they have found a better spot from which to police the border. But the point is that things along the border have begun to resemble something from Neal Stephenson's "Snowcrash." Yowzah.
Many thanks to Fred Pilot for sending along this truly fascinating story that has one form of privatization pitted against another. You see, this is not the U.S. Border Patrol. Nothing so simple. It seems that "The ABP is a nonprofit organization dedicated to addressing border issues. It is not associated with the U.S. Border Patrol, but it does its own surveillance of the Mexican border and tracks down illegal immigrants, turning them over to the BP."
And with that intro, let's look at the story:
BISBEE - Glenn Spencer won't be using his home in the Pueblo del Sol Subdivision as headquarters of the American Border Patrol much longer.
Spencer's attorney, Michael Johns of Sierra Vista, told Cochise County Superior Court Judge Stephen Desens on Monday afternoon that Spencer will be vacating the premises he rents by the end of October.
Spencer and Johns were in court in response to an injuction filed on Aug. 24 by the Pueblo del Sol Homeowners Association against Spencer and REB Enterprises LLC, the owner of the house at 4814 Equestrian Ave. Roger E. Barnett is the managing member of REB Enterprises.
The association, represented by Sierra Vista attorney Joseph DeFrancesco, was granted a preliminary injuction - effective immediately - by Desens to preclude the defendants from conducting a business in the residential subdivision. Business activity are prohibited by the association's covenants, conditions and restrictions.
[more]
----------
So what we have here is an HOA--a private government-- evicting a tenant who was running a business enterprise called the American Border Patrol--a private police force--from his rented unit. Seems the ABP doesn't mind being evicted because they have found a better spot from which to police the border. But the point is that things along the border have begun to resemble something from Neal Stephenson's "Snowcrash." Yowzah.
Las Vegas SUN: Woman sues as homeowners association tries to sell her condo over unpaid fines
Here's another one of those "looks-like-foreclosure-abuse" cases that people in the industry keep telling us don't really happen. I don't know more about it than is in this article, and there may be another entirely different side to it, but read it for yourself and see what it looks like to you.
A woman has sued her homeowners association after receiving notice it planned to sell her condo -- which she owns free and clear -- for alleged nonpayment of $1,785 in fines.
Shaun Haydon and her attorney Orin Grossman will go before a Clark County District Court judge today and argue that her Henderson property should not be sold.
Haydon alleges that she was assessed more than $1,700 in fines because of broken lights and items left out on the back porch of the condo, in the 500 block of Sellers Place. Haydon rents out the 20-year-old condo that she bought in 1987 for $43,000 and that she said is now worth about $80,000.
She alleges that when she tried to pay the fines, the Summerfield Homeowners Association and its management company, American Family Real Estate Inc., refused to accept the payments.
[more]
Here's another one of those "looks-like-foreclosure-abuse" cases that people in the industry keep telling us don't really happen. I don't know more about it than is in this article, and there may be another entirely different side to it, but read it for yourself and see what it looks like to you.
A woman has sued her homeowners association after receiving notice it planned to sell her condo -- which she owns free and clear -- for alleged nonpayment of $1,785 in fines.
Shaun Haydon and her attorney Orin Grossman will go before a Clark County District Court judge today and argue that her Henderson property should not be sold.
Haydon alleges that she was assessed more than $1,700 in fines because of broken lights and items left out on the back porch of the condo, in the 500 block of Sellers Place. Haydon rents out the 20-year-old condo that she bought in 1987 for $43,000 and that she said is now worth about $80,000.
She alleges that when she tried to pay the fines, the Summerfield Homeowners Association and its management company, American Family Real Estate Inc., refused to accept the payments.
[more]
Monday, September 27, 2004
Yahoo! News - New Home Sales Jump 9.4 Pct in August
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. new home sales jumped a surprising 9.4 percent in August, the fastest acceleration of sales in almost four years, as a fresh dip in mortgage interest rates attracted buyers, a government report showed on Monday. Sales of new single-family homes climbed to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.184 million units from a downwardly revised 1.082 million units the month before, the Commerce Department (news - web sites) said. It was the sharpest climb since December 2000.
[more]
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This is pretty impressive. As the story notes, given the storms in Florida nobody really expected such strong figures.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. new home sales jumped a surprising 9.4 percent in August, the fastest acceleration of sales in almost four years, as a fresh dip in mortgage interest rates attracted buyers, a government report showed on Monday. Sales of new single-family homes climbed to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.184 million units from a downwardly revised 1.082 million units the month before, the Commerce Department (news - web sites) said. It was the sharpest climb since December 2000.
[more]
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This is pretty impressive. As the story notes, given the storms in Florida nobody really expected such strong figures.
Sprawl May Harm Health, Study Finds (washingtonpost.com)
"Suburban sprawl affects your health," said Roland Sturm, a senior economist at the Rand Corp. of Santa Monica, Calif., who led the study, which is being released today. "That's really the take-home message."
...
The increase in health problems is presumably due to the fact that sprawl discourages physical activity, increasing the chances of being overweight or obese. In addition, sprawling communities tend to have more air pollution, Sturm said.
"This really seems to be due mainly to air pollution and physical activity," Sturm said.
[more]
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So, "sprawl," whatever that is, "discourages physical activity"? I wonder how come the further my family and I move from Chicago the more physically fit we become?
"Suburban sprawl affects your health," said Roland Sturm, a senior economist at the Rand Corp. of Santa Monica, Calif., who led the study, which is being released today. "That's really the take-home message."
...
The increase in health problems is presumably due to the fact that sprawl discourages physical activity, increasing the chances of being overweight or obese. In addition, sprawling communities tend to have more air pollution, Sturm said.
"This really seems to be due mainly to air pollution and physical activity," Sturm said.
[more]
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So, "sprawl," whatever that is, "discourages physical activity"? I wonder how come the further my family and I move from Chicago the more physically fit we become?
Sunday, September 26, 2004
New York Post Online Edition: business: IS FANNIE MAE SCANDAL DEMOCRATS' ENRON?
Actually, I'd say the bigger question is whether Fannie Mae will melt down and need to be bailed out at taxpayer expense. If that happens, does it really matter whether that sorry event would help or hurt Democrat political interests?
September 26, 2004 -- Is the growing scandal at Fannie Mae about to become the Democrats' Enron? That's the hot question in Washington this week as regulators painted a scary picture of the huge home lender, detailing accounting shenanigans, including "cookie jar" reserves that smoothed out volatile results and paved the way for tens of millions of dollars in executive bonuses. For those, including Alan Greenspan, who have warned that this government-sponsored lender is a ticking time bomb, the revelations seem to indicate that Fannie's own management believed its operations are a lot riskier than they let on... The next few weeks will likely tell whether the scandal at Fannie Mae will blow over, or whether it threatens to blow up into a bigger mess that could potentially leave U.S. taxpayers exposed to a mammoth bailout. It will be interesting to see if Fannie's ties to the Democrats get as much ink as Enron's ties to the Republicans.
Actually, I'd say the bigger question is whether Fannie Mae will melt down and need to be bailed out at taxpayer expense. If that happens, does it really matter whether that sorry event would help or hurt Democrat political interests?
September 26, 2004 -- Is the growing scandal at Fannie Mae about to become the Democrats' Enron? That's the hot question in Washington this week as regulators painted a scary picture of the huge home lender, detailing accounting shenanigans, including "cookie jar" reserves that smoothed out volatile results and paved the way for tens of millions of dollars in executive bonuses. For those, including Alan Greenspan, who have warned that this government-sponsored lender is a ticking time bomb, the revelations seem to indicate that Fannie's own management believed its operations are a lot riskier than they let on... The next few weeks will likely tell whether the scandal at Fannie Mae will blow over, or whether it threatens to blow up into a bigger mess that could potentially leave U.S. taxpayers exposed to a mammoth bailout. It will be interesting to see if Fannie's ties to the Democrats get as much ink as Enron's ties to the Republicans.
The New York Times > National > In Dying Desert Town, Residents Eagerly Await 'Terror Attacks'
Who says government is wasteful? Seems that Homeland Security has found a use for a ghost town--a planned community from the 1970s that has only about 50 people left in it. It will be a place to simulate terrorist attacks and how to respond to them.
PLAYAS, N.M., Sept. 20 - The Phelps Dodge mining company pictured a suburban utopia with a Southwestern flavor when it built this town for its employees from scratch in the early 1970's. It incorporated a six-lane bowling alley, a rodeo ring, a helicopter pad, a shooting range and a swimming pool into the community of 259 ranch-style homes.But the company shut its nearby copper smelter because of sluggish prices in the late 1990's. And these days, more animals than people can be found wandering the streets.
...
So the residents of Playas, all 50 or so of those remaining from the peak of 1,000, say they are more than ready for their town to become a target for pickups laden with explosives and simulations of suicide bombs, water-supply poisoning and anthrax attacks. In what might be the beginning of Playas's renaissance, the Department of Homeland Security is channeling $5 million to a small New Mexico engineering school to buy the entire town. The school, in turn, aims to turn the town into one of the country's top locations for antiterrorism training.
[more]
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Who says government is wasteful? Seems that Homeland Security has found a use for a ghost town--a planned community from the 1970s that has only about 50 people left in it. It will be a place to simulate terrorist attacks and how to respond to them.
PLAYAS, N.M., Sept. 20 - The Phelps Dodge mining company pictured a suburban utopia with a Southwestern flavor when it built this town for its employees from scratch in the early 1970's. It incorporated a six-lane bowling alley, a rodeo ring, a helicopter pad, a shooting range and a swimming pool into the community of 259 ranch-style homes.But the company shut its nearby copper smelter because of sluggish prices in the late 1990's. And these days, more animals than people can be found wandering the streets.
...
So the residents of Playas, all 50 or so of those remaining from the peak of 1,000, say they are more than ready for their town to become a target for pickups laden with explosives and simulations of suicide bombs, water-supply poisoning and anthrax attacks. In what might be the beginning of Playas's renaissance, the Department of Homeland Security is channeling $5 million to a small New Mexico engineering school to buy the entire town. The school, in turn, aims to turn the town into one of the country's top locations for antiterrorism training.
[more]
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Saturday, September 25, 2004
Bright future for professionals behind the communal garden gate / Homeowners groups in need of managers, lawyers
This is an article by Deborah Rich that just appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle. She graciously quoted me:
Looking for a surefire way to make money over the next 10 to 20 years? Try homeowner association litigation. Or if you don't cotton to going back to school and cramming for the bar exam, become a professional property manager instead. No degree or certificate necessary; a business card will get you in the door.
Both lawyers and property managers are certain to be in high demand as the number of Americans living in developments owned and managed by homeowners associations swells.
...
"Homeowners associations, being private organizations, cannot violate the Constitution, no matter what they do. They can tell you to take down your Christmas decorations, your American flag, whatever," says Evan McKenzie, political science professor at the University of Illinois, Chicago, lawyer and author of "Privatopia: Homeowner Associations and the Rise of Residential Private Government'' (Yale University Press, 1995)
...
"People go to see a new development and say, 'Wow, isn't this beautiful,' " says McKenzie. "They say, 'We have a pool, we have this, we have that, and it's all clean and neat because someone is enforcing all the rules and nobody is going to put a trailer in their front yard. Isn't this wonderful?' And, yeah, it is. And guess what? You have to run it. And the other thing is, isn't it nice that your neighbor's house looks so clean and neat and orderly and uniform. And guess what, yours has to look the same way."
----------------
It's a long article, and I think it is interesting and well-written. And this McKenzie fellow sure seems to know what he's talking about.
This is an article by Deborah Rich that just appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle. She graciously quoted me:
Looking for a surefire way to make money over the next 10 to 20 years? Try homeowner association litigation. Or if you don't cotton to going back to school and cramming for the bar exam, become a professional property manager instead. No degree or certificate necessary; a business card will get you in the door.
Both lawyers and property managers are certain to be in high demand as the number of Americans living in developments owned and managed by homeowners associations swells.
...
"Homeowners associations, being private organizations, cannot violate the Constitution, no matter what they do. They can tell you to take down your Christmas decorations, your American flag, whatever," says Evan McKenzie, political science professor at the University of Illinois, Chicago, lawyer and author of "Privatopia: Homeowner Associations and the Rise of Residential Private Government'' (Yale University Press, 1995)
...
"People go to see a new development and say, 'Wow, isn't this beautiful,' " says McKenzie. "They say, 'We have a pool, we have this, we have that, and it's all clean and neat because someone is enforcing all the rules and nobody is going to put a trailer in their front yard. Isn't this wonderful?' And, yeah, it is. And guess what? You have to run it. And the other thing is, isn't it nice that your neighbor's house looks so clean and neat and orderly and uniform. And guess what, yours has to look the same way."
----------------
It's a long article, and I think it is interesting and well-written. And this McKenzie fellow sure seems to know what he's talking about.
AP Wire | 09/24/2004 | Governor signs bill aiding buyers in private communities
JIM WASSERMAN
Associated Press
SACRAMENTO - Prospective buyers eyeing homes in California's 37,000 private communities won new help Friday to get clearer pictures of what they're getting into financially.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, responding to numerous complaints of real estate agents, signed legislation requiring homeowners associations to better explain the true costs of living there.
The California Association of Realtors sponsored the bill, saying too many buyers are complaining of unexpected hikes in their monthly or yearly assessments soon after moving in. The bill makes associations specifically spell out for potential buyers the amounts of monthly dues and precise amounts that dues must rise in years ahead to maintain the community.
...Backers said the bill will help buyers in the private neighborhoods that represent 60 percent of California's new housing determine if they can afford both a mortgage and monthly dues that may rise in years ahead. Most Californians pay between $100 and $200 a month in assessments that maintain streets, buildings and landscaping held in common by all the residents.
...Schwarzenegger also signed legislation expanding the rights of associations and residents to mediate their differences instead of going to court or hiring an arbitrator. The bill, by Assemblyman Tom Harman, R-Huntington Beach, allows residents to appeal decisions made by their association boards, and says the board cannot refuse to meet with a resident over a dispute.
But the governor still has not taken a position on the year's biggest homeowner association bill, which would ban private communities from foreclosing on members' homes over unpaid debts under $2,500.
----------------
Good for the bill's sponsor, John Laird, and also three cheers for the Governator, because this is a good piece of legislation. And now we'll see what he does with the big enchilada--the foreclosure reform bill. He has only until September 30, so we don't have long to wait. CAI is reportedly lobbying him to veto it.
JIM WASSERMAN
Associated Press
SACRAMENTO - Prospective buyers eyeing homes in California's 37,000 private communities won new help Friday to get clearer pictures of what they're getting into financially.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, responding to numerous complaints of real estate agents, signed legislation requiring homeowners associations to better explain the true costs of living there.
The California Association of Realtors sponsored the bill, saying too many buyers are complaining of unexpected hikes in their monthly or yearly assessments soon after moving in. The bill makes associations specifically spell out for potential buyers the amounts of monthly dues and precise amounts that dues must rise in years ahead to maintain the community.
...Backers said the bill will help buyers in the private neighborhoods that represent 60 percent of California's new housing determine if they can afford both a mortgage and monthly dues that may rise in years ahead. Most Californians pay between $100 and $200 a month in assessments that maintain streets, buildings and landscaping held in common by all the residents.
...Schwarzenegger also signed legislation expanding the rights of associations and residents to mediate their differences instead of going to court or hiring an arbitrator. The bill, by Assemblyman Tom Harman, R-Huntington Beach, allows residents to appeal decisions made by their association boards, and says the board cannot refuse to meet with a resident over a dispute.
But the governor still has not taken a position on the year's biggest homeowner association bill, which would ban private communities from foreclosing on members' homes over unpaid debts under $2,500.
----------------
Good for the bill's sponsor, John Laird, and also three cheers for the Governator, because this is a good piece of legislation. And now we'll see what he does with the big enchilada--the foreclosure reform bill. He has only until September 30, so we don't have long to wait. CAI is reportedly lobbying him to veto it.
Homes: Protecting homes, protecting people
The role of homeowners associations is changing with society in the early 21st century, and more change is on the way.
By JUDY STARK, Times Staff Writer
Published September 25, 2004
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Time was when people thought their condo or homeowners association existed simply to collect the monthly maintenance checks and keep the guy next door from painting his house purple.
But that's changing, a result of demographics and events in society, experts say.
After the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, people in master-planned communities said that safety and security were their No. 1 priorities. They didn't want to leave what they believed were the safe confines of their community for the dangerous wider world. They began to look to their associations to provide entertainment and activities, said Randy Jackson, a planner from Costa Mesa, Calif., at last month's Southeast Building Conference in Orlando.
"Formerly, associations were there to enforce the rules. Now, they're there to put on social events," he said.
[more]
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Let me see if I understand this. After September 11, people decided they needed a homeowner association to coordinate their social lives because they were too frightened of terrorist attacks to go off the HOA property? Yeah, sure. If you say so.
And they keep telling us that the mainstream media have all these layers of oversight and scrutiny to keep pure nonsense from getting in print. Dan Rather, calling Dan Rather...what is the frequency, Kenneth?
The role of homeowners associations is changing with society in the early 21st century, and more change is on the way.
By JUDY STARK, Times Staff Writer
Published September 25, 2004
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Time was when people thought their condo or homeowners association existed simply to collect the monthly maintenance checks and keep the guy next door from painting his house purple.
But that's changing, a result of demographics and events in society, experts say.
After the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, people in master-planned communities said that safety and security were their No. 1 priorities. They didn't want to leave what they believed were the safe confines of their community for the dangerous wider world. They began to look to their associations to provide entertainment and activities, said Randy Jackson, a planner from Costa Mesa, Calif., at last month's Southeast Building Conference in Orlando.
"Formerly, associations were there to enforce the rules. Now, they're there to put on social events," he said.
[more]
------------------
Let me see if I understand this. After September 11, people decided they needed a homeowner association to coordinate their social lives because they were too frightened of terrorist attacks to go off the HOA property? Yeah, sure. If you say so.
And they keep telling us that the mainstream media have all these layers of oversight and scrutiny to keep pure nonsense from getting in print. Dan Rather, calling Dan Rather...what is the frequency, Kenneth?
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
News-Leader.com True Ozarks Mosquito-breeding basins annoy residents, officials
Here's an item sent along by Fred Pilot that illustrates what I think will become a regular occurrence: HOAs asking for some sort of help from municipalities to perform functions that were originally given to the developer or the HOA. In this case it is about mosquito abatement. The article explains that the developer created an HOA but it never got going or collected dues. Now there are these nasty little detention ponds on the subdivision property that are home sweet home to zillions of skeeters, and no developer or HOA to fix them.
The city is turning to the courts to address problems with neglected detention basins in Turnberry Estates. But any permanent solution to the development's problem with swarms of mosquitoes bred in the basins remains elusive, and tension between residents and city staff has escalated.
Janell Milton, a Turnberry resident, appeared before the Ozark Board of Aldermen on Monday night, demanding city codes be followed. "For the city to enforce the law, it's every citizen's right," said Milton, who brought in a petition signed by more than half of the 297 households in Turnberry.
But the city faces a harsh reality. The company that developed the subdivision and retains the title over common grounds — Buster-Hayes Properties — no longer exists.
[more]
Here's an item sent along by Fred Pilot that illustrates what I think will become a regular occurrence: HOAs asking for some sort of help from municipalities to perform functions that were originally given to the developer or the HOA. In this case it is about mosquito abatement. The article explains that the developer created an HOA but it never got going or collected dues. Now there are these nasty little detention ponds on the subdivision property that are home sweet home to zillions of skeeters, and no developer or HOA to fix them.
The city is turning to the courts to address problems with neglected detention basins in Turnberry Estates. But any permanent solution to the development's problem with swarms of mosquitoes bred in the basins remains elusive, and tension between residents and city staff has escalated.
Janell Milton, a Turnberry resident, appeared before the Ozark Board of Aldermen on Monday night, demanding city codes be followed. "For the city to enforce the law, it's every citizen's right," said Milton, who brought in a petition signed by more than half of the 297 households in Turnberry.
But the city faces a harsh reality. The company that developed the subdivision and retains the title over common grounds — Buster-Hayes Properties — no longer exists.
[more]
Tuesday, September 21, 2004
Chicago moving to 'smart' surveillance cameras | CNET News.com
So, what was that all the lefties were saying about John Ashcroft being a threat to civil liberties, and those crazy folks living in gated communities having such an irrational fear of crime? You were saying, Michael Moore? Come on, I can't hear you.
A highly advanced system of video surveillance that Chicago officials plan to install by 2006 will make people here some of the most closely observed in the world. Mayor Richard M. Daley says it will also make them much safer.
...
Police specialists here can already monitor live footage from about 2,000 surveillance cameras around the city, so the addition of 250 cameras under the mayor's new plan is not a great jump. The way these cameras will be used, however, is an extraordinary technological leap.
Sophisticated new computer programs will immediately alert the police whenever anyone viewed by any of the cameras placed at buildings and other structures considered terrorist targets wanders aimlessly in circles, lingers outside a public building, pulls a car onto the shoulder of a highway, or leaves a package and walks away from it. Images of those people will be highlighted in color at the city's central monitoring station, allowing dispatchers to send police officers to the scene immediately.
So, what was that all the lefties were saying about John Ashcroft being a threat to civil liberties, and those crazy folks living in gated communities having such an irrational fear of crime? You were saying, Michael Moore? Come on, I can't hear you.
A highly advanced system of video surveillance that Chicago officials plan to install by 2006 will make people here some of the most closely observed in the world. Mayor Richard M. Daley says it will also make them much safer.
...
Police specialists here can already monitor live footage from about 2,000 surveillance cameras around the city, so the addition of 250 cameras under the mayor's new plan is not a great jump. The way these cameras will be used, however, is an extraordinary technological leap.
Sophisticated new computer programs will immediately alert the police whenever anyone viewed by any of the cameras placed at buildings and other structures considered terrorist targets wanders aimlessly in circles, lingers outside a public building, pulls a car onto the shoulder of a highway, or leaves a package and walks away from it. Images of those people will be highlighted in color at the city's central monitoring station, allowing dispatchers to send police officers to the scene immediately.
Sunday, September 19, 2004
TheStar.com - Ambulances endure rough ride
A dozen speed bumps along Toronto's tony Bridle Path and Post Rd. are delaying critically sick or injured patients from reaching Sunnybrook hospital, say paramedics and residents in the Don Mills area.
Homeowners along the mansion-lined Bridle Path thoroughfare insist the bumps are needed to control traffic and reduce speeding.
For seven years the issue has simmered, but now ambulance, fire and transit officials are lining up with residents' groups in the Don Mills area in a campaign to "dump the bumps." It's a battle that pits concerns over emergency response times for thousands against safety and tranquility in one of the city's most exclusive neighbourhoods.
...
Bob Rose, former president of the Bayview Heights Residents Association, which represents homeowners in the area of The Bridle Path, says the traffic-calming devices are there to protect children.
[more]
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How many of you believe the part about "it's for the children"? That has a vaguely Clintonian ring, doesn't it?
A dozen speed bumps along Toronto's tony Bridle Path and Post Rd. are delaying critically sick or injured patients from reaching Sunnybrook hospital, say paramedics and residents in the Don Mills area.
Homeowners along the mansion-lined Bridle Path thoroughfare insist the bumps are needed to control traffic and reduce speeding.
For seven years the issue has simmered, but now ambulance, fire and transit officials are lining up with residents' groups in the Don Mills area in a campaign to "dump the bumps." It's a battle that pits concerns over emergency response times for thousands against safety and tranquility in one of the city's most exclusive neighbourhoods.
...
Bob Rose, former president of the Bayview Heights Residents Association, which represents homeowners in the area of The Bridle Path, says the traffic-calming devices are there to protect children.
[more]
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How many of you believe the part about "it's for the children"? That has a vaguely Clintonian ring, doesn't it?
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