Our report is late. As I spent time listening and transcribing the September Drainage Report, I was depressed and saddened by this sorry administrative mess. I went back to other reports and transcriptions and the path to putting the article together became long and disheartening. I think it is important to look back, prior to September 2013. Questions surface. Where did all the money go? Where are the results of all the money spent? Why hasn't any board learned from the lessons of those that have gone before them, as each board claimed to be the experts? Why aren't our residents demanding better use of our assessment dollars? Where are all the residents who declared that they wouldn't spend one dollar on the biggest, engineered drainage ditch in our association- the canals?
I took the time to transcribe every word of the September Drainage Report. I will use it as a guide in the article and pull a few quotes. The quotes will be in red and underlined. I will relate the report to the best of my ability. You should take responsibility and go to The Wedgefield Times and listen to the report yourself. You, listen to the self proclaimed expertise, the self righteous claims of saving money (AGAIN), the denial of self gain, and the brow beating of the one board member who wants multiple bids and real engineering experts. Your individual board members sit back and watch it happen again. Your President, McMillin, Garrison, and Barrier have all had previous experience of voting for previous projects that have abused our funds, brought failed results, and watched - or they themselves proclaimed the required expertise, while ignoring our governing documents, and sound business sense.
OVERVIEW OF THE REPORT:
DeMarchi opens the report with information on the Wedgefield Road drainage project. He then moves to another project in the Enclave. There have been a few projects there this year leading up to this next step. He has contacted several contractors regarding the work he is proposing. Only one bid has come in. He states, "I'll just read it. One bid received to perform work in Wedgefield Plantation, particularly Francis Parker Extension, the Enclave area. New homes are being built and a new home is starting so the drainage must be addressed. Two companies, no bid to project. I have one bid here which I received and it came in from C& D (?) ....& Back Hoe and they have a rate of $600 a day that is for two persons, a dump truck, a bobcat, and a tractor with a box blade. They have all their insurance, etc. I'm anticipating five days , so I would like to ....board at this time to approve, not to exceed $3,000 for the drainage work in that area, and if the company performs satisfactorily, as I hope they would, we will continue with other drainage projects." Cline says something about the fact that she has no knowledge of these kind of things. COMMENT: In the end you'll note that she votes for the project. Cline doesn't have to know how to engineer the project but as a board member she should be considering adherence to governing documents, the best interests of Wedgefield, and sound business sense. In the least, she can always abstain and not put herself in the position of being a recorded part of it. As for DeMarchi, why are we taking care of drainage for the new homes? Could it be because he bought land there for his own home? Could it be that on top of that that he bought additional lots, sold them, and built homes on some of them? How could this expert have bought these lots in such a poor drainage area?
DeMarchi moves on with the report. He says the project is quite extensive and the price is right. He is asked a question but I can't identify the speaker. He names the two companies that failed to bid and states he talked to others who were not interested.
President Walton states that we have a motion and asks if there is a second. Cline seconds. COMMENT: Yes, Cline who doesn't understand this business, seconds it.
Discussion begins with McBride. He states that Earth Works has a whole list of subcontractors and could even put together the specifications. He would like to see that done first. Later, speaking to lack of bids and possibly engineering, he states, "We did this once before that I recall and it just got all out of hand. To just have one person come in and give a bid....good, wrong then, wrong today....be patient, do the right thing, go to somebody who has the contractors." President Walton jumps in and we'll quote him to indicate his mind set. President, "John, with all due respect. If I'm not mistaken, we started working with the roads project. I think last month, we approved up to $1,500 just to get the bids. So we're going to spend half of what is proposed? I understand what you are saying. Al, I feel like you've done every thing that you can to try to get bids. I own equipment myself, and have to move equipment around. I mean it is just my personal opinion, I feel $3,000 is very reasonable for the..." COMMENTS: McBride has been the ONLY person at this table elected three times to serve on the board. He does have history facts in his favor.
McBride goes right to the heart of this and states, "Why are we doing this when everybody else has to purchase their own drainage? You purchase the lot and you are responsible". President Walton jumps in once again and says, "I can understand that John, providing that you have your drainage in place. The problem they have over in the Enclave is the drainage was never suitable to start. I mean, my opinion, they were rough. It wasn't even fine graded......numerous times, especially after a heavy rain, it doesn't drain properly, and it was just left to WPA, with no drainage what so ever, - my feeling" COMMENTS: First, McBride is correct in asking why we are doing this. During other board meetings he has spoken from his own experience. He bought a lot, accepted the surrounding drainage conditions, and paid for his drainage plan to be prepared and submitted it to the board for approval. He then paid for his drainage. Our governing documents support this. Why isn't this the case for DeMarchi, the lots he sold, the houses he built in the area? Let's say that I want to buy two lots. I buy one in the Enclave and one on Wedgefield Rd. I have the same governing documents to live by and the same applications to make to ARC when I build. I will be required to pay the same assessments on both lots. According to this discussion, aided by our President, it appears that I will pay for drainage on the plan for my Wedgefield Rd. lot, and I'll be aided by this board on the lot in the Enclave. Why? Good governance requires consistency in applying the governing documents and financial charges to the membership. In the least this looks like poor governance and an insult to those of us who buy into this association and don't have the ear and wallet, our wallet - assessments, of this board. Read on, we are about to get the blame game. "The old board that accepted the conditions of the Enclave." Wait a minute. President Walton, Garrison, McMillin, Barrier, and DeMarchi were involved in keeping the Arbors out of the association, because they felt it didn't meet our requirements. Really????? Take a ride through the Arbors. Take a look at the roads, drainage, etc. It is better there, than anywhere in the association. It was politics, and nothing more. They didn't want the majority lot owner to have that many votes! The decisions made about drainage at the September meeting are nothing more than politics at our expense. Wait, this same board has us subsidizing lot maintenance. WHERE ARE OUR GOVERNING DOCUMENTS, WHERE ARE OUR BOARD MEMBERS, AND WHERE ARE YOU?
Now Garrison gets involved. He speaks to Earth Works and the work they are doing for a road project. He says, "The second problem with Earth Works is that they take between one half and three quarters of forever to get anything done. It took what? Two to two and one half months to get the drawing for Duck Pond. We've been in contract with them to get the bids. A month later, there still aren't bids. I would love to have more bids. I agree and it would be terrific to have 15 people coming here working to do this, but the reality is, it is not the case. It hasn't been the case, with virtually any project in the last, I can't remember how many years. I'M SURE DANNY BLAKELY WOULD BE GLAD TO COME BACK, but I suspect there aren't to many people who would think too much of that. So, if there aren't that many people around and Earth Works has access to some other, but they're not going to be local, transportation cost is likely to cost more. I don't see any point in dragging it out, when we've got something that needs to be corrected. Something that as Al said, we were left with. Most of the problems with this goes back to the third developer when that road was put in and that area.....so as much as I would like to have multiple bids, I just don't see it as very likely and wait another month or two, or spending money on Earth Works to have them come up with people. They still haven't done our roads and I don't think it is particularly fruitful."
COMMENTS: We have to stop here. I couldn't believe that Garrison threw Blakely's name on the table. He did open the door though to previous boards, their claim to expertise, no engineering, and fickle choices to contractors, and what residents will benefit. Look back in our recorded history. Quit letting these board members lead you around like you have a ring in your nose. There was a 6-8 year period, prior to, and up through 2008 where almost $800,000 was paid to one vendor- Blakely. Admittedly, that company had a grounds contract. To be liberal, deduct $200,000 to $250,000 from the total and call it grounds maintenance. THE REST WAS DRAINAGE! What did it benefit us? We have drainage messes all over this association that most of us are forced to live with. No one is coming to save OUR individual areas. If they did, with this history, wouldn't you want it engineered and bid properly, and overseen by non self interest firms, that would get the job done right? Have you been on Swamp Fox after heavy rains? I was at a party last spring on Ricefield and arrived during a big storm. We got in safely. Approximately 3 hours later we waded in water over our shoes to get to the car. One of the drainage areas on my road, William Screven is filled with huge piles of dirt with tall weeds growing out of them. It has been that way for over a year. It is on a board member's property - McMillan's. RUMOR is that he won't spread the dirt out until DeMarchi approves lifting the height of a drain basin. Where is the emergency in any of these areas? Why isn't the board self disciplining their own members - McMillin?
We resume with McBride asking, "You said that this company was local. Where is this company? I looked them up and their address is actually Myrtle Beach." I can't identify the voice, but someone on the board asks who he looked up. McBride repeats the name of the contractor. President Walton says that their business card says Georgetown. DeMarchi says the contractor has done work in the plantation before. McBride says that he is not saying the contractor hasn't and that DeMarchi has just hired him. DeMarch tells him that the contractor has just finished up three jobs for private residents here. McBride gets to the heart of the matter, saying
, "I think, do what ever you want. You have 5 votes to do a job like this. $3,000, $2,000, whatever it is and not have...bids, and not really go after bids, to me is ABSOLUTELY WRONG....We are responsible along the way. We have this record that we know. We ...fund this kind of work without multiple contractors, done under the same specifications, involving engineering firms. Sure money is..." Garrison says something about Earth Works never saving us a nickel. DeMarchi goes on to talk about contractors. He says two came out and looked and then didn't bid. He feels he sought bids. He discusses the projected work and the economic benefits of their hourly fee and all that equipment. Garrison starts speaking to McBride saying, "My suggestion for you would be come back with some bids" McBride will be happy to come back with bids if they give him a budget. There is talking at the board table that can't be made out. I was there. They were talking amongst themselves and not for the membership. Then DeMarchi tells him that he has $3,000 and he can do what he wants. So McBride can seek engineering and a firm to manage biding but he has to get it all done for $3,000. COMMENTS: Go back to the Huggins road project. McBride wanted engineering. Garrison sang the same song. Then they did what they wanted to do. We are redoing some of it now. Then DeMarchi throws this out. I don't think he means it and I don't think the rest of the board would let it happen. DeMarchi says, "I'll be glad to relinquish this job. I spend more time between.... than anything else I do in my life." McBride tells him he is not going to take over drainage. COMMENTS: McBride has consistently tried to get this board to follow our governing documents. He has taken a lot of guff from this board. As a resident I respect his constant efforts to do the right thing. I admire him for staying with the honest fight. This time if I had been McBride, I would have said OK, I'll take drainage and next month I'll bring a list of committee members to the table for approval and then we will bring projects to the table for approval. I suspect your board would have dropped the offer immediately. I am tired of hearing about contractors not coming to Wedgefield. I believe it is due to this kind of ridiculous administrative behavior by our board. If Garrison can't remember how long it has been since we've had contractors bidding, I can. The former hero in securing bids was McMillin. If you attended Candidate Night, prior to the 2008 annual meeting, you know that seeking qualified bidders was one of the issues that McMillin ran for board on. He named names, detailed his investigations into certain contractors, etc. I personally watched him prepare requests for proposals, require sealed bids, etc. There was never a project too small for him to secure the required bids. His process was out in the open and sterling. When did that fall apart? When he tied himself to many on this board. If Garrison thinks about it, I assume he would be able to recall it if he wanted to. McMillin votes and stays quiet while all of this goes on. Well the board did allow him to bill us and subsidize lot mowing for another year.
We resume. Garrison tells McBride to get bids. McBride doesn't have any specifications. Our President suggest they cut some information off something and provide that to McBride. COMMENTS: Why wouldn't they just hand him the request for proposal? Trust me I asked to review the first work that DeMarchi had done in the Enclave a few months ago. There wasn't a document you could call a request for proposal. Are you thinking $3,0000 isn't much? This will be about the third project this year in the Enclave area. The costs are mounting and we don't have engineering to make sure it is correct. Do we really want to look back at $500,000 + again, with claims that it wasn't done right? We listened to the supposed "experts" at the table. Additionally, we had work done in the Enclave area in 2011. McMillin was drainage chair. It was an emergency, had to be done immediately. A transcription of the drainage report for Oct. 9, 2011 is provided at this site. Please take time to read it now. History really does repeat itself. Look up the lot numbers involved. Who built the homes mentioned in the report? Was this about the time that McMillin was reporting on working with DeMarchi on the clean up and planting of the cul-de-sac in front of DeMarchi's house? Access the transcribed report by going to the bottom of the blog, look under 2011 and read "WPA September 19th Board Meeting - Drainage".
Back to the meeting. After our President offers to provide the paper mentioned above with cut off areas, McBride says he will get with an engineering firm and then work to get bids. Again he asks what his budget will be. The cat and mouse game played by the board is too long to type from transcription. DeMarchi tells him he has to do it all for $3,000. McBride reminds the board that he needs a budget that allows for proper engineering and drawing of specs. He tells them he isn't insured and isn't going to stand behind something that he can't be insured for. COMMENT: Great point. Why doesn't this concern your board and all their expertise????? Wait, we will resume with your president speaking to his expertise and DeMarchi's as well. Residents, the following song has been sung to many times at our expense, prior to the blame game played out by subsequent boards.
We resume with the President speaking to expertise, saying, "I don't mean to be sarcastic in any way.....I've been a builder contractor for 35 years. Al has been a contractor...We're NOT ENGINEERS, but WE KNOW WHAT IT'S SUPPOSE TO LOOK LIKE" COMMENTS: Really????? What kind of recommendation is it that DeMarchi bought multiple lots in this poorly developed area, sold the lots, and built some homes for others there?????? What kind of recommendation is it for our president who knew what it should look like and voted for a road contract without engineering a few years ago that included Duck Pond and now we are hiring engineers to design and seek bids according to proper specifications. How did that work for saving us money over the long haul? Garrison had the same type of discussion with McBride at that time. How can you allow this to happen again?
We resume with Barrier asking for a vote. DeMarchi declares we are wasting time. They vote and then DeMarchi says, "Change my vote to abstention because some of this work is involved in the Enclave where I live. I don't want it deemed that I was getting monetary gain"
COMMENTS: Your board ought to be embarrassed of this whole mess. Read your Reserve Study. The contractor instructs the board to seek engineering and contractors to manage project contracts. Your board continues on against advice. How is it that we have engineering for roads and not drainage? The unfortunate part is that we have three slots to fill board seats in the next election and only three candidates. Two of them were speakers during this ill conceived vote on this project. That means more of the same unless someone sues them, or lets them know we don't want any more of this. What can you do under these circumstances? When you get your proxy vote NO on each of the candidates. I'm not sure what it would do, but some of them have bragged since the last election that they had a mandate. Let them know that they don't.
