Are You Jealous of Capri by the Sea?

 PACIFIC TOWER NEWSLETTER  June - 2022

Boardie heard some hot gossip about our most envied neighbor Capri by the Sea.

Here’s what I learned:

·      Capri is the exact same age as Pacific Tower but has 140 units. PT has 118.

·      One, two, and three bedrooms pay different monthly HOA dues.

·      Dues for two-bedroom units are $971.87 a month, PLUS they’re looking to charge a $pecial Assessment on top of that to finance loan for 8.5 million to completely replace their plumbing.

Why am I spreading this juicy gossip and telling you how cheap you have it by living here? Well, we’re also about to ask you to agree to a loan, but THERE WILL BE NO SPECIAL ASSESSMENT necessary thanks to our recent dues hike.

The simple explanation: We have money in the kitty but need more money in the kitty for the future. We are seeking one million dollars. (There are more details coming in a very boring ballot you’ll be receiving soon.) Why do we need so much money? Inflation. Repair costs are now sky-high, and our building isn’t getting any younger (the big 5-0). We recently completely rebuilt our pool and deck, our pool equipment room floor, and we’re on the cusp of our biggest expense of all: converting a 1973 roof into a 2022 roof with all the bells and whistles that are now required, which costs a fortune. Blame the pandemic for the escalating cost of supplies plus impossible supply chain issues that still linger. We need 60 YES votes to approve this loan. If not, the membership would then have to vote to approve a one-time special a$$essment. 

SO VOTE YES ON THE LOAN!.

With the new roof in sight, we can take on our next bunch of jobs: the lobby remodel, balcony repairs and on our dream list: finally painting the exterior. I don’t have to tell you the value of your unit has never been higher. But the older you get the more it costs to be functioning and beautiful.

Despite all that, we love our home. We are so lucky to live here.

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Dear Boardie

Q. What does the Board do, exactly?

A. The board is actually the smallest form of government you can think of.

We are just seven elected representatives, and we vote on

A.   How the Budget is spent

B.   Approving Architectural renovations

C.   Evaluating Violation reports

D.   Supervising our staff

E.   Creating Committees of volunteers such as : Landscape 

F.    Hiring vendors after approving competing bids

Q. Is there any work involved?

A. Yes. Most of the work is reading emails or doing research on the Internet.

Q. Aren’t there monthly meetings?

A. Yes, but you can be on Zoom so you never leave the comforts of home or pajamas.

Q. What are the downsides?

A. Board gets blamed for pool repair delays, for instance, even though it’s not their fault.

Q. If I wanted to join the Board, what would I do?

A. Elections for Board of Directors are coming up. You will receive a notice any day where you can nominate yourself.

Q. Are there any specific requirements for Board Members?

A. You must be an owner and current on your dues. We also trust that each Board member be familiar with the CC&Rs and the Rules and Regulations and accepts the commitment of attending monthly meetings every month. Three absences and you are out.          

Q. Is there a lot of conflict and infighting?

A. We don’t agree on everything, but we all respect each other. Votes don’t have to be unanimous.

Q. How long does a person serve on the Board?

A. Two years.

Q. Why would anybody want to do this thankless job?

A. To help improve the building.

HOA MEETINGS

PT HOA meetings (for owners only) are on the 4^th Tuesday of each month on Zoom. Send your email address to KChavez@menas.com to get on the emailing list to get your Zoom invite. If you don’t have a computer, you can dial into the meeting using your phone. Meeting notice and Zoom phone number is always posted on the outer lobby four days before the meeting. Log on! At the beginning of each meeting, homeowners are invited to ask questions of the Board, raise issues or lodge complaints for five minutes per person. Find out where your dues dough is going. We’d love to have you!

 

*BOARD OFFICERS

Acting President – Karyl Miller.  Acting Treasurer- George Kyrala.  Legal Committee - Troy Krich. Director - Jeffrey Isaacs. Director - Vaught Adamson.  Director - Robin Del Pape. 

Newsletter Written by Karyl Miller and Edited by Yuka Asada

 

August 2020 Newsletter

         RUMORS THAT COVID - 19 WAS CONQUERED ARE FALSE!

Dear Boardie

    Q. PB is filled with people not wearing masks and partying like it’s 1999. So is the Covid scare         over?

    A. No! PB had a 120% spike in virus cases – the highest in the county. Time to go back in the            box!

    Q. What should I do?

    A. Wear your mask, wash your hands, practice safe distancing, ride the elevator alone, stay                 home if  you can and be careful all over again! It ain‘t over till it’s over!

 FROM THE CDC:

Watch for symptoms

People with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported – ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. People with these symptoms may have COVID-19:

Fever or chills

Cough

Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

Fatigue

Muscle or body aches

Headache

New loss of taste or smell

Sore throat

Congestion or runny nose

Nausea or vomiting

Diarrhea

 When to Seek Emergency Medical Attention

Look for emergency warning signs* for COVID-19. If someone is showing any of these signs, seek emergency medical care immediately:

Trouble breathing

Persistent pain or pressure in the chest

New confusion

Inability to wake or stay awake

Bluish lips or face

*This list is not all possible symptoms. Please call your medical provider for any other symptoms that are severe or concerning to you.

Call 911 or call ahead to your local emergency facility: Notify the operator that you are seeking care for someone who has or may have COVID-19.

Find a testing site in CA https://covid19.ca.gov/

A/O 7.12.20: Because of the demand, it now averages 8 days for test results. Consider isolating yourself till the results come back – otherwise what’s the point?

 HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, JOSEPH!

July marks the 2-year anniversary of Joseph Arellano as our dedicated Building Manager. We think he’s doing a terrific job at what is not an easy job - fielding complaints and putting out fires (figuratively!) all day and sometimes on nights and weekends. When you see him say thanks! Remember, if you have any problem, no matter how small call or text him at 858. 339.3490.

ROOF NEWS

Dear Boardie,

    Q.  I thought the roof remodel would be started by now. What happened?

    A.  So much planning and so many factors have come together and there’s now a hold up on the        very first part of the roof job – the removal of the old roof. Stay tuned…

BOARD ELECTIONS

Dear Boardie,

    Q. What happened to the usual June Annual Party and Board Elections?

    A. Covid happened.

    Q. So what’s the plan?

    A. July 12, a notice came from PHOAC announcing the coming Board elections. A third-party         called  Ballot Box will be sending you a ballot. Elections will take place on Zoom, not in-                person.

    Q. Why should I vote?

    A.  The Board decides where your monthly $450 is going, so it’s an important choice.  We                    need at least 40 people to vote to qualify as a legit election.

 BONUS: As an incentive to vote we will raffle off a free month’s HOA fee to one voter. Odds are very good since there are only 118 possible voters. What have you got to lose?

Newsletter Written By Karyl Miller and Edited by Trish Mylet

 

Roof News

Dear Boardie,

    Q.  I thought the roof remodel would be started by now. What happened?

    A.  So much planning and so many factors have come together and there’s now a hold up on            the very first part of the roof job – the removal of the old roof. Stay tuned…

July 2020 Newsletter

Dear Boardie,

Q. Any updates on the roof?

A.  Yes! There’s good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?

Q. Good.

A. Okay. After months of extreme and intense planning we are finally maybe possibly getting our much - promised new roof. Yessirree. If you sense a lack of conviction in my voice it’s because getting a new roof is COMPLICATED. I won’t bore you with the gory details. We’re going to have a beautiful new roof! The most beautiful roof in Pacific Beach. A perfect roof with a railing around it. A roof that will protect us from heat and rain like you won’t believe. And our roof will have a Davit drop-down system so the window washers can stop making like Spiderman.

Q.  You convinced me. I’m in love with the new roof idea. What’s the bad news?

A. We’re completely removing the old roof and starting from scratch. It will be noisy and dirty. A chute will be built to carry the debris from the roof down to the street. That probably won’t be pretty. There will be trucks, cranes, stacks of building materials. Planter beds are vulnerable but Landscape Committee was planning an update anyway.

Q. What about the roof job vis a vis the pandemic?

A. There will be up to eight workers who will be wearing facemasks in the common area. They will be using only one elevator, will have their own porta john and their health will be verified.

June Newsletter

Dear Boardie,

Q. All we hear about is Covid, Covid, Covid. Isn’t there any other news in the building?

A. There’s plenty of other building news but the pandemic will still be with us by the time you read this.

COVID PROGRESS REPORT. At the time of this writing, we know of no person in the building who has caught Covid. That’s very good news, but not time to let down our guard against this highly contagious and deadly disease. Wash your hands 20 seconds as soon as you come home. Wash your hands immediately after returning from the Laundry Room. Wear a mask.

BUILDING MANAGER – Our dedicated Building Manager Joseph Arellano is now back full time, and we appreciate his daily troubleshooting. BUT please practice Social Distancing and do not enter his office. Stand no closer than his doorway to chat with him. Call or text him at 619.339.3490. The virus is no excuse to ignore a problem in your unit like a leaky toilet or hearing a sound that seems wrong. Call Joseph!

LAUNDRY ROOM – Try to be alone. If someone is folding their laundry, come back later. Sure it seems unfriendly, but this is the new friendly.

POOL – The new Covid pool rules are working. No more than about ten swimmers can occupy the pool area, NO GUESTS. Our lounges will be washed down twice a week. Please remember to limit your sunning to 2 hours so others can enjoy the pool too.

ELEVATORS – This Covid rule needs to be taken more seriously. This is a time to NOT do the polite thing and invite strangers to crowd into the elevators with you. This is the time for Social Distancing. Try to ride the elevator alone or with your partner or take the stairs. Please don’t take offence if the elevator stops on your floor and the riders inside hold up their hands in the Stop Sign – choosing to ride alone. Forgive them. They are just being safe.

MASKS – Please for the sake of your health and the health of others, wear a mask. A mask will also create barrier so you don’t inadvertently touch your nose or mouth (which is how the virus gets in). 

PIZZA DELIVERY – If possible, meet your delivery person in the lobby so that less strangers from outside are in our elevators and hallways.

BUDDY SYSTEM – We thank our volunteer Buddies who have been helping residents in various ways such as computer coaching over the phone, getting groceries for people, going to the post office, rolling up notices and putting them on 118 doors and posting notices on the laundry room bulletin boards. If you are sequestered and need a Buddy’s help, contact Buddy Coordinators Brandt Montgomery or Karyl Miller. 

OTHER BOARD NEWS:

ANNUAL MEETING - Due to uncertainty about the virus we were not able to schedule our normal June Annual Meeting and Board Elections. Elections and Annual Meeting are postponed till possibly August or September.

There are also new State rules governing HOA Elections (having nothing to do with the virus) that must be adopted by the board this year. You will be getting a special mailing informing you about the elections and inviting you to nominate yourself. The annual meeting will probably take place on computer using Zoom and you will be given a notice on to how to log on.

Incentives to vote: As usual, we are offering one free month ($450) dues to one lucky voter. So vote!

UPDATE - ROOF! FINALLY! Our new roof project will begin around June 15 and will go on for about two months. First the old roof will have to be removed. A trash tunnel will be set up going all the way down to the street. It will be noisy and dirty and we are sorry for the inconvenience. Due to the virus precautions, roofers will be wearing masks in the common areas, and will have their own portable toilet

Newsletter Written by Karyl Miller and Edited by Trish Mylet

                             WHAT’S  WITH THE  &*%$@! LOBBY?

Dear Boardie,

QUESTION: What the #%&*! happened to our lobby?

ANSWER: The problem with the lobby is the roof.

EXPLAIN PLEASE: Both the lobby and the roof needed remodeling. After the Board interviewed lobby designers and architects and zeroed in on a design, we started with the most basic change in the lobby (raising the ceiling). By that time, the Board realized getting a new roof before the rainy season begins had to take precedent. Timing is everything.

BOTTOM LINE: It was a simple case of age before beauty.

QUESTION: When will the roof be finished?

BETTER QUESTION: When will the roof get started?

ANSWER: Hopefully by the time you read this the roof job will have commenced.

IS THAT A PROMISE? No.

WHY NOT? Not only do we have to completely remove the 1974 roof, we have to create a 2020 roof that meets new OSHA standards and Building Regulations.

FAIR WARNING: The roof job will take eight weeks and will be dirty and noisy. Free earplugs are available in the Lobby Office.

WHAT’S THE HOLD UP? Your Board, since committing to the task and educating themselves as to the best type of replacement roof and then finding the best contractors to do the job, have encountered more restrictions and regulations than a dog has fleas. Also, there are different inspectors for various parts of the roof, and surprise surprise, some agencies are understaffed. So before we even start, we have been forced to play the waiting game.

IS THE BOARD DUMB?

SHORT ANSWER: No.

LONG ANSWER: The six board members and your president are Pacific Tower owners, just like you. Dispite their busy lives, they are and have been amazingly generous with their time. These volunteers shoulder the great burden of making decisions that will affect all of us for years to come. They don’t take their duties lightly.

Both the roof and the lobby are huge headaches involving interviewing experts, surfing the web (to get an education about boring stuff such as types of roofs) and learning about (Ugh!) compliance codes for what was a modern building in 1974. They’re doing their best to improve the building. They should be thanked.

TRICK QUESTION: What if roof delays push us too close to the rainy season?

ANSWER: We’ll pull the ole’ switcheroo and finally get our beautiful lobby! And that’s a promise.

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