The CotoBuzz Journal, Community Journalism

Hello All: I just threw the Delegate Election form sent by CZ in the trash. I refuse to participate in a process that intentionally disenfranchises our members. Clearly, we have taxation without representation in Coto/CZ.

I suggest that all send tea bags to Xochi Yocham since she is President of the CZ Board. Xochi, until you bring direct popular elections to Coto, you are part of the problem; not part of the solution.

The Delegate Electoral system we have now is corrupt and always has been corrupt. It has led to three dues increases in five years that are the result of fiscal mismanagement. We have interest groups feeding at the trough. Gosh, sounds just like Sacramento and Washington DC , doesn’t it? Yet, there is no long term strategy to deal with landscaping renovation in Coto. And we have Reserves at 50% or less when they should be at 75% or more even after three dues increases. It is shameful. Joseph Morabito, former member CZ board of directors

Comments.

Hi Joe:

Like you, I have longed argued that the current delegate system is not only arcane, but allows suppliers to dictate to the board what should and should not be done: The actual election for the board of directors is meaningless. By that time, the delegates have already decided on the board, which is why for the last decade, we have been able to forecast the board composition, prior to board elections

Interestingly, Keystone employees, for whatever reason, have managed to mangle my applications for delegate.

There is no doubt that suppliers benefit from a weak, incompetent or lazy Board. The fact that CZ does not have a standing Supplier Selection and Contract Management Committee to implement regular bidding of contracts using procurement processes common in business works to advantage our suppliers. The last thing the suppliers, including the property management company want, is a knowledgeable group of HOA members focused on their pricing and contracts. And, when I first served on the CZ Board, I found contracts that were a mess and not written to protect the interests of our members. We had to hire an outside attorney that was not tied to the HOA industry to deal with contracts because of the cozy relationships that exist between all suppliers including the HOA attorneys in the industry. I hope those contracts are still in use; however under Varo/Mezger, I would bet they went by the way side. Why is it that the current CZ Board refuses to set up a Supplier Selection & Contract Management Committee as I have recommended for years? Are they weak, incompetent or just lazy? Clearly, what I am suggesting is just common sense and good business; yet it has not happened at the same time that we have seen three dues increases in five years that all could have been avoided or drastically reduced. Those dues increases and the failure to properly fund core functions and Reserves should have been a wake up call instead of a letter in the mail to our members asking for more money. JM

P.S. We have the same story in Sacramento and Washington DC . Send Xochi Yocham and the crooks in office in Sacramento and Washington tea bags on April 1 so they arrive by April 15. They are all birds of a feather wasting our money.

LETTERS

Another Corrupt Coto Election