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Madelyn and Wedgefield Residents,
To get a better understanding of the duties of each board member in Wedgefield, I went back to the policy manual for a refresher. I want to discuss the "Job" Description of the President and Vice President which basically are one of the same. The Vice President simply steps in during the President's absence. I think it's important for residents to be more aware of this information because it's very telling....
So let's look at these descriptions and then decide whether if you think our President and Vice President are fulfilling the duties of their job to the best of their ability and in the best interest of our community. Is your quality of life better under this board? Is your house increasing in value? Is it time to ask these men to step down?
WEDGEFIELD PLANTATION ASSOCIATION POLICY MANUAL
SECTION IV 12 Appendix IV-5 VICE PRESIDENT- JOB DESCRIPTION
The Role of the association Vice President assumes duties as defined by the Board of Directors and the associations governing documents.
1. The Vice President is charged with all the powers which are required to perform the duties of the association President in the absence of the President.
2. The Vice President works very closely with the President in establishing association goals for the future.
20 PRESIDENT- JOB DESCRIPTION
The role of the association President is wide in scope.
The ultimate goal of the Board of Directors is to increase the overall standard of living of the membership and to increase the value of the property within the association. The President is charged with leading this effort.
- Many residents are complaining about a decline in their property values for various reasons. The lack of respect for our covenants is Wedgefield's biggest issue. Neither Mr. Walton or Mr. Garrison are doing the jobs they were elected to do. They are not enforcing the covenants that protect properties from deteriorating or home values from declining. They have little regard for this very important duty/goal. In the real world people get fired for poor job performance, failure to produce positive outcomes, and abandoning their duties. But for some reason beyond my belief, these two were re-elected to the board last year to continue the cycle of decline. Do you believe Mr. Garrison and Mr. Walton are working hard to achieve the "ultimate goal" of the Board of Directors? Has your home value increased under their leadership? And how is your standard of living as a Wedgefield resident?
An Overview of the President’s Role:
1. The President is tasked with working closely with the other Board members, property manager, and membership to determine the overall goals of the association.
- What goals? Seriously, what goals?
2. The President must have a good understanding of the association’s governing documents.
- These gentlemen apparently don't have a good understanding of the governing documents because I repeat they don't enforce the convenants. Whether they don't care, they simply find the task beyond their capabilities, or their personal standards aren't consistent with the written rules. Whatever the reason, the job isn't getting done.
- Policies and procedures aren't always respected by the residents and the board complains, if they are even aware of the situation. But depending on who the culprit is, they may sit back idly and do nothing. But with effective leadership, this issue could be resolved for the better of our community.
3. In the broad view, the President is responsible for the association’s fiscal well-being. This includes the collection of assessments, guiding the budget process, and making sure reserves are adequately funded.
4. The President is charged with making sure there is adequate insurance coverage to protect the association from liability and other hazards.
5. The President finds and develops potential volunteers and future association leaders.
- The President and Vice President appoint their cronies to head committees and to push their agendas. They do not involve or seek out new leaders or residents in our community who would bring in fresh perspectives and could possibly do a better job. They don't engage residents in the community decisions, but complain about their lack of participation. There is little regard for residents who volunteer for the good for our community.
- A group of neighbors have been volunteering/ mowing several fairways with lawn tractors since last fall. Shamefully, the board hasn't made any effort to find out who they are and to thank them by name. They've simply mentioned a couple times in board meetings that there's a "group of guys out there mowing". But they have no desire beyond this statement to show a deeper gratitude and get out there, shake their hands and actually find out who they are, (and they would discover that a hard working woman is part of that group of guys). Again, they simply fail at fulfilling the duty of developing potential volunteers and future association leaders and show little regard to those who step up without being asked to volunteer their time for the good of the community.
6. As necessary, the President maintains a close working relationship with the property manager and other association vendors to make certain of the efficient operation of the association.
7. The President presides at board meetings and other association meetings. The President prepares meeting agenda and makes certain that proper voting procedures are used.
- Mr. Walton puts forth the minimal effort into the preparation of meeting agendas. Board meetings are typically uninformative and the agenda is predetermined so that residents have no input. You seldom get a straight answer to a question and some new business turns into old business for months on end. If you attend the board meetings on a regular basis, you will discover that the same photocopied agenda is handed out to residents from month to month.
8. As the representative of the association, the President must be an effective communicator.
- Neither Mr. Walton and Mr. Garrison have this very important qualification. They speak to residents in a condescending manner, they bully, and they shut down conversation. They immediately go on defense and get personally rattled at anyone who questions their practices or decisions. They lack good listening skills. Resident emails are ignored and any suggestion to use technology to improve communication between the board and community is negated. How would you rate your interaction with this board? I've sent several emails to them that were ignored and most likely deleted. It's evident that the board responds to some resident needs but not all. How can I get in this club? Or should there even be a club? We all pay the same $525.00.
Shirley Peterson will be accepting resumes from applicants who want to run for the board. Watch out for this notice in the upcoming Wragg and seriously contemplate a run. It's time to make some positive changes that will improve the quality of our lives in Wedgefield. I'm certainly not benefiting from Mr. Walton and Mr. Garrison's leadership. Are you?
