AN OPEN LETTER FROM THE FOUNDING AUTHOR OF THE BLOG
TO THE BLOG’S MANY SUPPORTERS
The generosity of your loyal readership, comments, e-mails and offers of support has been truly amazing, and I thank you. Apart from making the countless hours required by this endeavor more rewarding, your support has provided incontrovertible evidence that a new day is dawning for our shared community. Your overwhelming support is witness to the well spring of interest, concern and desire to participate that exists in the hearts and minds of everyone here at Glen Iris Lofts. (Continued...)
Please know that your continued support is appreciated, essential and will result in new leadership for
our Association - one with a genuine commitment to the well being of all who are expected to share in shouldering the responsibilities attendant to our community and who ought to be appreciated and respected for doing so in return. The Glen Iris Lofts that is coming is one that will reflect the values, voices and contributions of everyone. Together, we will get there and the Blog will continue to work tirelessly until that day comes.
TO THE BLOG’S PRESUMED DETRACTORS
Although the community’s response to the Blog has been overwhelmingly supportive – so much so that there hasn’t been a single instance of negative feedback expressed via reader comments or e-mails sent to the Blog, to-date – certainly there are a few among us that do not appreciate, approve of or otherwise acknowledge that any productive result may come from, the Blog.
Foremost among them, presumably, would be those who have spent years cultivating, nurturing and consolidating their position of dominance and power over the affairs of this community – namely, the Sutherlands. Naturally, the few that have been skillfully recruited, no doubt manipulated and sustained by a steady diet of disinformation, gossip and disparaging commentary about their neighbors, are likely among the non-supporters. And, presumably, there are likely to be a few who take issue not with the Blog’s objectives, but its methods.
To the Sutherlands, the Blog has simply this to say: had your actions evidenced anything other than a willful indifference to the rules and rights afforded to every member of this community - by state law and by decree as prescribed in our governing documents – and had they resulted in any improvement in the quality of life for your fellow homeowners that wasn't entirely incidental to your efforts to improve your own, this blog and the ire of its many supporters wouldn’t exist. Your actions, attitudes and your errant belief that this community is yours and not ours, only ensures an ever expanding chorus of voices that only change will silence. And if you don’t want to be lampooned by way of satirical cartoons, either act in a manner that doesn’t provide the essential element of their comedic genesis or don’t put yourself in the position of public office.
To their supporters of the day – and the day will come when you are no longer serving their interests and you find yourself among the their many former supporters, as the personal experience of many of your neighbors and a Board eternally plagued by serial resignations can attest – the Blog wants you to know that your fellow neighbors genuinely want, need and would appreciate your involvement, service and proven spirit of commitment, to help build a stronger community for all. Our door is always open – and you are welcome at any time, without judgment and by those who are facing forward only – toward a renewed spirit of cohesion and community for everyone that calls Glen Iris Lofts ‘home’.
To those who take issue with the methods used to focus the desire for change held by many, many homeowners, the Blog would like remind you how little change has been achieved thus far, via the few remaining avenues of ‘polite’ discourse that remain open and available to homeowners. However, I will be the first to acknowledge that there are a lot of really smart people living among us – people much smarter than I and who undoubtedly know of better, more effective ways to focus people’s desire to see and effect change.
If you know of a better way, then I implore you to embark on that endeavor without delay. Our community desperately needs your help. Maybe you would like to be a contributing author on the Blog? You would be welcomed with open arms. I’m simply trying to bring about change in the best way I have, thus far, been able to think of. And, after watching years come and go, each bringing fewer and fewer avenues of participation and only the continued erosion of homeowner rights, I finally realized that change wasn’t going to come about on its own any time soon, and that I didn’t have any right to continue to lament that fact if I wasn’t willing to roll up my sleeves and do something about it.
The generosity of your loyal readership, comments, e-mails and offers of support has been truly amazing, and I thank you. Apart from making the countless hours required by this endeavor more rewarding, your support has provided incontrovertible evidence that a new day is dawning for our shared community. Your overwhelming support is witness to the well spring of interest, concern and desire to participate that exists in the hearts and minds of everyone here at Glen Iris Lofts. (Continued...)
Please know that your continued support is appreciated, essential and will result in new leadership for
our Association - one with a genuine commitment to the well being of all who are expected to share in shouldering the responsibilities attendant to our community and who ought to be appreciated and respected for doing so in return. The Glen Iris Lofts that is coming is one that will reflect the values, voices and contributions of everyone. Together, we will get there and the Blog will continue to work tirelessly until that day comes.
TO THE BLOG’S PRESUMED DETRACTORS
Although the community’s response to the Blog has been overwhelmingly supportive – so much so that there hasn’t been a single instance of negative feedback expressed via reader comments or e-mails sent to the Blog, to-date – certainly there are a few among us that do not appreciate, approve of or otherwise acknowledge that any productive result may come from, the Blog.
Foremost among them, presumably, would be those who have spent years cultivating, nurturing and consolidating their position of dominance and power over the affairs of this community – namely, the Sutherlands. Naturally, the few that have been skillfully recruited, no doubt manipulated and sustained by a steady diet of disinformation, gossip and disparaging commentary about their neighbors, are likely among the non-supporters. And, presumably, there are likely to be a few who take issue not with the Blog’s objectives, but its methods.
To the Sutherlands, the Blog has simply this to say: had your actions evidenced anything other than a willful indifference to the rules and rights afforded to every member of this community - by state law and by decree as prescribed in our governing documents – and had they resulted in any improvement in the quality of life for your fellow homeowners that wasn't entirely incidental to your efforts to improve your own, this blog and the ire of its many supporters wouldn’t exist. Your actions, attitudes and your errant belief that this community is yours and not ours, only ensures an ever expanding chorus of voices that only change will silence. And if you don’t want to be lampooned by way of satirical cartoons, either act in a manner that doesn’t provide the essential element of their comedic genesis or don’t put yourself in the position of public office.
To their supporters of the day – and the day will come when you are no longer serving their interests and you find yourself among the their many former supporters, as the personal experience of many of your neighbors and a Board eternally plagued by serial resignations can attest – the Blog wants you to know that your fellow neighbors genuinely want, need and would appreciate your involvement, service and proven spirit of commitment, to help build a stronger community for all. Our door is always open – and you are welcome at any time, without judgment and by those who are facing forward only – toward a renewed spirit of cohesion and community for everyone that calls Glen Iris Lofts ‘home’.
To those who take issue with the methods used to focus the desire for change held by many, many homeowners, the Blog would like remind you how little change has been achieved thus far, via the few remaining avenues of ‘polite’ discourse that remain open and available to homeowners. However, I will be the first to acknowledge that there are a lot of really smart people living among us – people much smarter than I and who undoubtedly know of better, more effective ways to focus people’s desire to see and effect change.
If you know of a better way, then I implore you to embark on that endeavor without delay. Our community desperately needs your help. Maybe you would like to be a contributing author on the Blog? You would be welcomed with open arms. I’m simply trying to bring about change in the best way I have, thus far, been able to think of. And, after watching years come and go, each bringing fewer and fewer avenues of participation and only the continued erosion of homeowner rights, I finally realized that change wasn’t going to come about on its own any time soon, and that I didn’t have any right to continue to lament that fact if I wasn’t willing to roll up my sleeves and do something about it.
GREAT NEWS!
The Blog has received several requests to participate directly as contributing authors. This is an exciting development that will greatly expand the number of viewpoints, voices and ideas that the Blog is able to present to its readers. This change will also enhance the breadth of content and resources available to readers as well. Please join me in welcoming your neighbors and new post authors as they join the Blog over the coming days!
Scott Reno
ReplyDeleteDear Blogger,
keep up the good work! I go to almost all of the monthly board meetings and try to give and comment on the concerns of our community and the maintenance and up keep of our property. I am starting to run into a brick wall. A week and a half ago I sent an email to the board that then the Mitech guys were testing the fire system that they flooded the dog run with the black sprinkler water from the sprinkler pipes. This is very dangerous for our pets. It is also vary easy to remedy.
15 feet away from the sprinkler drain is a storm drain, all they need to do is hook a hose to the drain and dump it into the storm drain. This is common practice for sprinkler and testing companies. I have complained to the board about this same issue in the past but our pets must not matter to them.
So to get back to the story, I emailed the board and never heard back from them. Usually Maggie replays to my emails but I am guessing that the board has told her not to reply to me any more.
I guess my professional opinion is not important. The board we have does not have the construction building experience, and thus in my opinion has been making many wrong and costly maintenance calls about our property. We need experience and some board member to manage contractors wile on our property, just like any other business.