Hi Neighbors,
Wishing you all safe and wonderful Holidays!!!!
The Village will be having a Holiday Party, sometime between Christmas and New Years, with a final date to be published by the end of the week. More to come…
Overall, as a neighborhood, we have been doing a much-improved job of taking care of the Village’s assets and landscaping.
Am happy to report that according to Landscaping personnel, as dog owners, we have been much more responsible in picking up after our pets and preventing them from digging in planted areas.
Am also appreciative of neighbors politely pointing out common areas in need of care or that have developed conditions one might consider to be ‘problem areas.’ Your input is helpful and always welcome, so please keep it coming.
Solar Project – Cast a Vote PleaseWanted to take a moment to remind everyone to cast a vote on the pending solar initiative. We’re presently short of the quorum, and as a result are considering means to extend the deadline for ballot submission but please submit your ballot by 2:00 pm tomorrow the 12th if you haven’t done so yet.
If you cannot find your ballot, please call the HOA and they will arrange to email one to you ASAP.
Recognize many of us are suffering ‘election overload’ so the idea of casting another ballot is probably not very appealing. Totally understandable. But the Village would really benefit from the majority of our neighbors taking the time to cast a ballot.
Apologies for this bit of campaigning but am hopeful that we can muster enough votes to approve the project.
Yes, I said “approve.” Unlike many HOA expenditures, this one is intended to – and will – produce a savings for the Village over the life of the system. In my opinion, a substantial savings given the direction the cost of electricity continues to head. Let’s save some money, shall we?
Prioritizing Cost Savings and Reducing Expenses
Not surprising, many of you have reinforced a common Village interest/objective – prioritizing measures that control spending and cut costs. While our monthly dues increased this year, hopefully you noticed that the portion attributable to JV expenses increased less than 3%, with the bulk of the monthly fee increase derived from an increase in general HOA costs – 14+%.
I take very seriously the responsibilities the Village has entrusted to me, perhaps most importantly the sound and responsible use of our collective funds. Like many of you, am extremely sensitive to these increases and the impact they can have on the neighborhood. Along with our JV Committee members – Finance and Capital Projects – and our talented CCHOA Finance Committee member (John Barber), we all examine the budget, reserve, and proposed capital projects/expenditures with an eye toward maximizing our ‘Village ROI,’ so to speak, and overall expenditures.
The solar project has not been an exception to that process.
Please Support the Solar Project
The vendor had been selected and the project had been approved about 6 months before I became a director. Nonetheless, before the project was permitted to proceed, I insisted that JV’s Committees have a chance to assess it independently and determine for ourselves the prudence of the investment. We did and as previously reported the system pencils out; it is a sound investment for our neighborhood, one that will produce increasing savings as the cost of electricity invariably continues to rise.
The delay in approving the project also allowed the Village both to vote on the improvement and to obtain additional system features within the budgeted cost – two Tesla batteries which will further increase system efficiencies and provide a powered gathering point for the community in the event of an emergency.
Unlike many villages that have made common area improvement or repairs, this expenditure is not being funded by a ‘special assessment’ from each or us, nor a reduction in reserves, but will be funded by an allocation of this year’s operating budget that will not compromise either necessary services or improvements.
Am hopeful that JV is a neighborhood that recognizes and supports plans for reasonable expenditures that will actually produce substantial savings for our Village as a whole.
Am more than happy to answer any questions my neighbors have about this project, the vendor, or the process in general.
Again, many thanks and happy holidays!!!!
Drew J. Couto
Director for Jamaica Village, Coronado Cays
