Seriously, it is time to find a replacement. I have a great deal of knowledge to pass on. I am more than happy to work with someone to do that. This is the only way we can keep progressing. I’ve seen new directors walk into this job, not knowing anything about the issues and really struggling to get up to speed.

It really is a fun and rewarding job. As long as you don’t mess up. Ok, let’s do some updates. May run a little long just to catch everybody up.

Garage Electric

We are still working on this. We have changed consulting firms to mpe. They are the same firm, handling the electric for the new garage in montego. While we can’t increase the total power to the garages, we are going to get individual meters. Just a reminder, the cost to increase total power to all the garages (from sdg&e) was between 1.6 to 2.0 plus, million dollars. Or 15,000 to 20,000.00 per unit.

Landscaping

We are starting this winter’s heavy trimming. They will be trimming a number of the larger shrubs back, and lowering them. Some of the trimming will look a little severe, however, i can assure you they will come back healthier and looking great very soon. We will also be removing most of the mulch and replacing it with a small bark. This will give us a chance to check the drip irrigation as well as re-pin these lines below the surface. This month we will also be scarifying all the turf areas and overseeding with winter turf. This process helps keep the lawns healthy by removing all the thatch that builds up and prevents water and fertilizer from getting to the plant’s roots. We are also going through the village refreshing the landscape lighting as funds permit.

Rain Gutters

The hoa has gone through and cleaned the upper unit gutters. They will soon be doing the lower units in an effort to be sure we are prepared for winter. If you live in an upstairs unit, please check to be sure these are clean. We constantly get reports of clogged gutters which overflow onto the lower units and sometimes into the lower units. Leaves, doghair, old rags, golf balls are the typical items we find plugging these gutters.

Landings

These are the landings that service the two upstairs front doors. Several of these have been tiled over the years which have caused big problems. As you may expect, the current owners have no idea who did this work. We will be removing these tiled surfaces this year and restoring them to originality. Every time we have done this, we run into major problems with rotted wood under the tile, rusted metal trim, and sometimes stair issues.

Balconies

These are the upstairs, waterside patios. The hoa recently sent out a letter regarding weight limits. As you would expect, some owners only have a few items, and others quite a few more. I hope this helps. It’s a good idea to check the surface of these decks to see if there are any cracks or worn areas that might leak. We are scheduled to recoat all of the non-tiled balconies next year.Still have a few owners with tiled surfaces. They know it’s their responsibility to maintain it so that it doesn’t cause a leak in the lower unit. As we found out this year, insurance companies will not cover the cost to repair their units or the unit below. It’s considered a lack of maintenance on that owner’s part. Several have unfortunately had to spend thousands of dollars to make these repairs.

Dock Boxes

We have been looking for years to find a replacement for our existing dock boxes. Even to the point of checking custom boxes. Our current boxes have electrical panels in them, and the new way is to separate that from the box. Further, our boxes are designed to be in the inside corner of the docks. That’s why they are shaped like a triangle, and not a square. At some point they got moved to the head walk. While i know this is a project that needs to be addressed, there are some questions to be resolved. First, should we keep box boxes on the docks? As you may have seen, bahama is replacing all their docks. They are not replacing the old dock boxes, which is the same as most marinas. In fact, removing and cleaning out the old boxes became a real problem with the hazardous waste. Most of these boxes are full of old oils, fuel, solvents, cleaning supplies, etc. At this point, it will take buying four boxes per dock, as well as two electrical pedestals. It looks like a total cost around $105,000 to complete. Currently we don’t have that funding. Doing this piece meal also creates problems. As we’ve learned over the years, you buy something today and a few years later that model doesn’t exist anymore. It’s imperative we present a uniform look for the entire village.

Docks

I think at this point we have addressed all of the items bolted to the docks. Whether these floats constitute an additional shading of the bay, in an unassigned area, i’ll let the army corp. Of engineers or some other agencies resolve with those owners. Just as a point of clarification. Each unit is deeded a wharfage area, and a dock space to use exclusively to moor a boat. We are not deeded the dock. The docks are owned and maintained by all 108 owners. Like other marinas, we just can’t add, bolt on racks, hangers etc. While some owners keep and maintain their dock areas in a clean and neat condition, others, not so much. We’ve all seen the collections of old unusable watercraft, etc. Floating around these areas. Trust me, your neighbors see, and comment about it. Our efforts, my efforts, are simply to maintain a safe, stable, organized dock system in compliance with the laws. 20 years ago, there were only a few owners with dinghies in antigua, now we have quite a few. Only 15 years ago there were only a couple kayaks in all of the cays. Now we have hundreds. There were no paddle boards, now we have hundreds. Who knows what new, exciting things will be developed in the future. Regardless, all these items need to be placed or stored within your “wharfage area”, not placed on head walks, fingers or breezeway where the other 3 owners in the area have to deal with them.

Gangways

We continue to repair, and in some cases, replace these components. As you know these are made of wood. Wood by its nature, located this close to saltwater is very hard to maintain. Wood rot, termites, sun damage etc. All take their toll. At some point we will have to replace them with another type. Many have selected aluminum ramps. You can see the new ones going in at bahama. However, these cost around 16,000.00 dollars on average, each. That would be around 480,000.00 for antigua to do.

Breezeway Lights

We have been working on finding a replacement for these fixtures. These are the lights on the ceiling of the breezeways and above the stairs. Our existing fixtures are no longer manufactured. Many of these, after 50 years, are rusting out. We have gone through dozens of combinations to try and get the best replacement. Over the course of the coming months we will be replacing many of these.

Pool

We will be replastering the pool this winter. It’s been well over 10 years since the last time this was done. You may have noticed the existing surface is failing. Also, we have now contracted with a pool cleaning service to take care of all the pools in the cays. Looking forward to an increase in our service level and a reduction in total cost.

Plumbing

We have completed inspecting or replacing all of the pressure regulators within the village. Should help with minimizing any slab leaks. We still get a few drain line leaks; however, it continues to be minimal by comparison to the past.

Palms

We will be trimming the palms in november before the winter storms. Still need to remove a number of these that have now become very crowded next to sidewalks. Again, i’m limited to what i can get done because of funding. We again fertilize the king palms and they are looking good. As you know, these (king palms) were planted over the years to replace the taller fan palms. Many of these are now at roof height and doing exactly what we wanted.

Electric Panels

When you enter the trash areas you see the electric meters and the metal electric breaker panels. These control not only the units, but the landscape lights and dock power. Recently we have had several that have now, after 50 years rusted out. Usually on the top where the sun and rain have hit them. Another project we will need to face in the near future.

Cays

As you know, the hoa is continuing to work on numerous projects throughout the cays. Building a new garage at montego, re-roofing and painting in mardi-gras, several landscape projects and finishing other dock projects. We are also focused on contributing our efforts and views to the city, for the park remodel as well as working with the port of san diego on efforts to improve and protect grand caribe park. There are a host of other issues that present themselves every month as you would expect. Disputes between neighbors, remodels problems, and constant violations of cc&rs and our rules. Dogs, kids and cars always seem to come up. Ah, part of living in this great community.

Dues

I heard a lot about the cost of our dues. Or at least at some point somebody will add that into a conversation. Just for comparison, here is a list of current 2024 dues at other coronado hoa’s. These are for, two bedroom, two bath units. Obviously, three bedrooms are more. The shores 1,565.00 (plus special assessments) the landing 1,500.00 (plus special assessments) on “c” street 805.00 the harbor club 1,759.00

As you see, we are far below these numbers. And in most of these cases, we have fewer units. Plus, we have other very unique issues and items (docks, nav. Aids, etc.) to deal with. As a director, i can tell you it’s frustrating not to be able to do, or complete projects simply because we don’t have funding. Many improvement projects can’t be done because we don’t have the funds. If you read our reserve study, i think we have captured all of the required items, however we constantly fall short of funds because of rising costs. As an example, we recently completed repairs and painting to all of our wood fences and trellis. These are 50-year-old, wood fences, in the ground. Many of the trellis have major structural problems. They have been sometimes maintained, and sometimes, not so much. That project cost over double the estimated amount. The estimated amount, in the reserve study, came directly for the cost we spent in 2017 as part of the remodel. The damage keeps getting worse, and the cost has doubled. So, i guess my point is, we are going to have to increase our monthly dues again next year. I don’t mind the time it takes to research these issues, figuring out the best valve repairs, or in some cases, cutting a few corners, however i refuse to put bandages on things. We can’t just leave it for the next director or manager. We live in a 50-year-old community, and those structures require some additional maintenance and repair to keep up.

All that said, it is still an amazing and truly unique community to live in.

Dennis