The below describes my four primary goals for 2024-2025, and with the right Board all four will happen:

1. Improve Financial Discipline. Financial Discipline is KEY for ensuring HOA fees are not substantially impacted. I will improve financial discipline in two ways: a) getting End-of-Year (EOY) projections every month like we used to as part of the monthly financial report. I’ve raised the issue 10+ times to the current Board and Management Company but nothing has changed. Getting EOY projections every month would provide greater insights on overall financial health, make it difficult to sell a good news story on a month-to-month basis, and promote the ability to recover when falling behind. One problem with the current financial reporting is we won’t know we’re over budget until months later since the reports are always 1+ months behind. EOY projections will promote an active budget management process in that anytime budget shortfalls are projected, “get well” plans are developed to get back on track. This will promote smarter decision-making and a focus on the most critical priorities during times when budget shortfalls are projected. EOY projections would be easy to do if everything is properly tracked and managed to include all incurred and projected expenses. b) operating leaner by using part of the $650k+ cash balance. Using these funds for critical needs would promote stronger financial discipline – people tend to be much looser with finances when having a substantial cash balance and eventually the cash disappears completely. Applying the cash balance to key priorities – putting labels on where to apply cash and tracking it – would promote stronger financial discipline, tracking, and accountability.

2. Resolve Key Building Issues. This involves actively resolving issues while they are small instead of waiting until they become large, expensive problems. 2024 is the 4th consecutive hurricane season with the same 3 major building weaknesses – I have actively engaged 3 different Boards to try to get these resolved: 1. The Stormwater System is clogged and the likelihood of our building getting flooded in a hurricane is high. The building flooded in 2016 for the same issue, and it can happen again. Our building nearly flooded during Hurricane Ian in 2022 – even with the illegally connected pumps running full blast. Had we lost power during the hurricane, the building would have flooded by several feet or more. 2. The roof is in poor shape and has leaked several times even after the latest repairs were performed in September 2023 – and has leaked in just average thunderstorms. Over the past 3 years, the roof has been tarped multiple times, repaired 3 times, and has continued to leak. And these temporary fixes costed $178k and continue to accumulate. These are throwaway costs which could have gone toward a permanent fix (roof replacement). 3. No surge protection which means our electronics could get fried like they did in 2022. Insurance won’t help us with items 1 or 2, so we’ll be on our own. If we experience a flooded building, it could cost 100 times as much ($1M+) as taking care of item 1. And the $1M+ is only from flooding – it will cost much more if we also experience damage from the roof, burned out electronics, and lawsuits from the affected parties. Neglectful Boards forcing these risks on owners is why catastrophes happen, and owners could lose their homes/investments as a result. You can read more about these issues here: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/uptown-place/three-major-building-weaknesses-in-hurricane-season-yet-again-for-the-3rd-time/

3. Immediately Fix and Take Ownership Over Rental Management Function to restore the synergies that existed prior to the function (and staff) being removed from Uptown Place. 2 of the 3 Board members comprising the Board majority drove this – they ignored the mandated Board decision process by directing these changes on their own which had several impacts to include more vacancies and lengthier vacancies in the building, as well as increased risks to the units themselves, the common building areas, and surrounding units due to: 1) not being able to promptly access rental units to address unit issues, and 2) delayed maintenance/repair/replacement actions. Such delays can cause small problems to get much worse. As such, these changes were detrimental not only to those renting out their units but also to resident owners. The vacancies and other issues substantially impact rental prices and property values at Uptown Place. If you’d like to know more about how this went down and witness firsthand the underhanded ways certain Board members do things, please click on the following link: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/uptown-place/information-on-why-krissy-was-removed-from-uptown-place/. In addition to the above, I received several complaints in 2023 and tried repeatedly to get the Board to act on these. However, the Board majority’s position was we needed to stay out of Rental Management affairs and leave it up to the individual owners. I strongly disagree with this “hands off” approach – especially since 65% of our building is rented out. The Board must take complete ownership over everything associated with the Uptown Place building/community: Association Management as well as the Rental Management side of things.

4. Promote Inclusion. This involves obtaining owner feedback before moving out on non-emergency items which affect the community and providing the utmost courtesy and consideration to Uptown Place owners and making them the primary focus of the Board/staff. Because the owners are who we (the Board & Staff) represent and support.

I’ve been on the Board since 2022 and if you want continued leadership, open communications, accountability, and success, then I’m a good person to have on the Board. I’m a resident owner and have owned my unit since 2007. Advantages of having resident owners on the Board include greater awareness of Uptown Place issues, making timely, effective decisions and experiencing the consequences firsthand, and taking actions which promote a stronger, warmer community. I formed the UPTOWN PLACE OWNERS GROUP back in 2020 to give owners a “voice.” Please join us at https://www.facebook.com/groups/271140264182209 or joe.brennan85@gmail.com. To find out why I’m a good person to have on the Board, and why new Board members would benefit Uptown Place (and you as an owner) go here: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/uptown-place/.