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Shouldn't our HOA elected officials be impartial?

Discussion in 'Broadlands Community Issues' started by Brewer, Mar 2, 2008.

  1. Silence Dogood99

    Silence Dogood99 New Member

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    Don't feed the gryphon and his faux outrage! He's just inciting you using inflammatory words and overreactions (i.e. his new favorite word is "hostile"). I'd like to see what would happen if everyone ignored him
     
  2. Thunderchild

    Thunderchild New Member

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    You guys just love beating a dead horse, it's sad. everyone has an opinion and from I read here not one of you is going to change their mind by the comments posted here. Let it go and find something else to talk about.

    Enjoy
     
  3. gryphon

    gryphon Banned User

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    Your post, once again, more than proves my earlier point that the some of the HOA's representatives seem to only display utter contempt when residents of this community DARE to ask a simple question about a decision that they have made. Also, if you hade bothered to read my post, you would see that, in no way, was I even coming close to saying that the HOA needs to stick its head in the sand and hide on every issue, and there will never be 100 percent agreement on every issue. However, I do think that it shows a serious lack amount of disrespect for the HOA to intentionally take up an issue that is known to be divisive, contentious, and political. The proper action would have been to not favor either side.
     
  4. flynnibus

    flynnibus Well-Known Member Forum Staff

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    Gryphon.. I recommend you run for the board on the 'do nothing' platform since you believe in it so strongly.
     
  5. gryphon

    gryphon Banned User

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    Once again, this latest response from one of HOA's representatives seems only to display utter contempt when residents of the Broadlands speak up and ask a question. As I have said repeatedly, I don't think the HOA should "do nothing." I expect that the HOA will do its duties with regard to community upkeep, maintenance, etc. However, why is there so much hostility and vitriol directed when residents ask why the HOA decided to weigh in on such a divisive and political issue when the reasonable course of action would have been to neither endorse nor oppose?
     
  6. Baywatch68

    Baywatch68 New Member

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    I'm not an HOA rep so...

    Gryphon.. I recommend you run for the board on the 'do nothing' platform since you believe in it so strongly.
     
  7. blue_devil

    blue_devil New Member

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    Has time shifted your memory towards your view point as well? I had the resident respondent percentage much higher than it actually was. You are noting a task force that was formed AFTER the HOA Board had made its opinion and was formed at the request of Dulles District Supervisor Hiatt not our HOA Board. Our HOA Board was asked to select the members of the task force. I give the HOA Board no credit for trying to open up resident dialogue based on your task force argument. In fact, having already taken a side they opened themselves up to bias claims when selecting the members.

    Do you agree that a task force prior to the HOA Board making an opinion would have been a better approach?

    The HOA Board could have done a much better job with respect to the hospital. The actions it took made the situation much worse. That's my opinion. It asked for input via the survey; but, did nothing to address resident concerns other than to write a letter after voting in favor of the hospital explaining why our concerns, in their opinion, did not justify opposing the proposed hospital.

    The lesson I took from it was the HOA Board should not be taking sides unless it MUST. You can argue that such a view is reactionary. I'd agree. You can argue that it is similar to some of the zero tolerance rules in schools because it's trying to strip subjectivity from the equation. I'd agree. If all you want to say is I'm crying sour grapes, then that's fine; but, it bothers me that those who "won" can't see the other side of how this played out within Broadlands.



    I'm going to take a little tangent here and note that as I reread the meeting notes of the task force that in the first meeting (Oct 3rd, 2002) there was "much discussion about the mental health beds and distinctions of adult and child beds." I was roasted on this forum in a previous thread when I brought up the mental health beds. It was a big issue to those close to the proposed location and thank goodness the concerns were addressed. Thanks to former supervisor Drew Hiatt for reaching out to the resident concerns BEFORE he might be called on to vote on the issue.
     
  8. Mr. Linux

    Mr. Linux Senior Member & Moderator Forum Staff

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    Last I heard, Steve was not voted into any official position on the HOA. He is a volunteer. As such, I would ask that you refrain from stating that his responses are from an HOA Representative. That's simply wrong and you know it. He's a volunteer and a member of the Tech Committee, just like other residents are.

    You want a response from an HOA Representative? Contact either myself, Cliff, Donna or Brian. We're your resident member representatives on the HOA. Don't try to bait people on these forums and try to make false claims.
     
  9. Chsalas

    Chsalas Active Member

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    Agreed, I didn't' think Steve was an elected official. However he does volunteer a lot of his time, and for that he should be commended.
     
  10. latka

    latka Active Member

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    Was there a meeting between our HOA president and Ashburn Village association several years ago to discuss the hospital?
     
  11. gryphon

    gryphon Banned User

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    Why in the world do you think it would be reasonable for the HOA to get feedback from the residents BEFORE making a decision that affects the community. (Sarcasm)

    Thank you for bring the conversation back to this point, as it is the heart of the matter. As I have said many times now, I am neutral on the issue of the hospital. However, I am absolutely disgusted at how the views of residents were disregarded by the HOA with its endorsement. The endorsement was unnecessary and, it appears to me, was solely intended to signal to many residents of the community that their voices count for nothing.

    The splicing of words about roles only serves to distract from the point of my posts. If you re-read my posts, I never said flynnibus was an elected official. Regardless, based on your note, I'll stop calling flynnibus an HOA representative. However, he has provided much service to the community, and I continue to be thankful for it even though some now appear to be making distinctions between elected official and volunteers. I value the contributions of all. That does not mean that I will avoid asking important questions, but I still respect both EQUALLY and don't make distinctions that some could read as being elitist.

    The real matter here is that some of the HOA's board, committee members, or other contributors recently have seemed to me to have a visceral and hostile reaction whenever official HOA actions are questioned. A case in point is that HOA Board's endorsement vote, which, to any reasonable human being, had to be know in advance to be political, divisive, and controversial. Again, that is the real matter here.
     
  12. gryphon

    gryphon Banned User

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    How about they just focus on keeping the community looking good, keeping the pools open, and making sure the other things that HOAs are supposed to do get done. Staying out of politics and controversies relating to public policy would be a welcome change for our HOA.
     
  13. vacliff

    vacliff "You shouldn't say that."

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    blue_devil-
    You contradict yourself here and are incorrect. In the first sentence you claim the HOA reached it's decision before the task force was formed (the HOA decision was published May 2004.) You later quote task force minutes from Oct 2002. The task force meetings were well before the HOA decision.

    In addition to organizing the task force, the HOA conducted several meetings to discuss the hospital, as well as spending a lot of time researching the issue.

    I guess since we didn't reach the same conclusion as you, that the HOA did a poor job. I'll bet that if we decided to oppose the hospital, you'd be praising what a wonderful job the HOA did. I cold be wrong, but that's the impression I get from your comments.
     
  14. flynnibus

    flynnibus Well-Known Member Forum Staff

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    The survey was done in Dec 2003. The task force was meeting before that.. in fact you can read minutes of one of the meeting in newsletter here on a meeting that took place October 9th, 2003 at the Visitor Center (community center). The survey was sent out and recieved by residents the start of Dec 2003. See this thread

    The survey results and the statement from the HOA were published in May 2004 in the newsletter here.

    Now I don't have the HOA board meeting minutes (they aren't online AFAIK..) but meetings noted that were happening back in Oct 2003 seem to be before a statement published in May 2004, and a survey that happened in Dec 2003.. and since the survey was referenced in the statement, I assume the opinion was voted on AFTER the survey was done. So if that is correct, then we can conclude there were meetings held prior to the survey and opinions published.

    Do you expect the HOA to drag residents out of their homes by their hair? There was plenty of activity going on at this time period - those that chose not to get involved... what would you have preferred to have been done?

    Based on what I showed above, I believe it was.

    What concerns are you referencing? Are these concerns that were brought before the board? I think the statement put out by the HOA tried to methodically address the points raised.

    I think the HOA needed to be involved in the process, its happening right on our front doorstep. With better resident involvement with the HOA, they'd have even more influence and for those who feel the HOA didn't represent their ideals, maybe things would be different if more people were engaged. I'm happy that people both for and against in the community were and have been very active in the total process - even if they are not associated with the HOA. I think it would be worse if something just plopped down with no input at all from the community.
     
  15. flynnibus

    flynnibus Well-Known Member Forum Staff

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    It's simple gryphon... you propose there is a problem. I proposed a solution to your problem. Either you are interested in trying to solve your proposed problem, or you are just ranting. How about focusing on solutions rather then ranting?
     
  16. msflynn

    msflynn New Member

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    Blue devil I am not sure where you are getting this information but the task force was in place over a year prior to the board taking a vote. If you go back through the minutes of both the task force and the board, the 1st task force meeting was in October 2002 (as you stated) and according to the newsletter the board issued it opinion in 2004 over an entire year later.
    The hospital was announced in May 2002. At Cliff's instance Drew Hiatt pushed HCA to work with a task force of residents to help better inform the community what was going one. Yes Drew Hiatt did the insisting but not on the HOA's part but on HCA's and at that point in time there was no board opinion rendered. I believe the task force had 8 or so meetings over the next year. It was at that time that the task force created a survey that was mailed out to the residents. Once the results of the survey were tallied then and only then did the HOA board issued its opinion.

    I guess I am just not sure why there is all this outrage now. All these decisions were made over 4 years ago and only 1 of the 3 people that made it are still on the board. So talking about what should or should not have been done is moot. And besides it obviously did not have a big impact on the Supervisors as they still voted against it. To me this just goes to show why all residents need to be involved in their community whether it be actual time and energy donated or just attending the HOA annual meeting and voting for your representatives. Remember the next annual meeting is coming up in May

    Staci
     
  17. gryphon

    gryphon Banned User

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    Once more, a post with the same hostile attitude. You proposed a solution, but that is not the only one. Why is your first and only reaction to force others to do as you dictate?
     
  18. flynnibus

    flynnibus Well-Known Member Forum Staff

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    I never said it was the 'only' solution. I said it was 'a' solution. You can continue with this "I'm a victim" attitude all you want and try to spin the world around - but I'm not going to play.
     
  19. gryphon

    gryphon Banned User

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    Can you me and the others in this community a single instance where I have used the "I'm a victim" comment that you incorrectly attribute to me above? You can't. In fact, I've taken many steps to say that I am not a victim of the endorsement since I neither support or oppose the hospital in question.

    Rather than trying to change the topic by making incorrect assertions, can we stick to the real point: the HOA Board's intentional disregard for the resident voices of this community with regard to the endorsement.
     
  20. flynnibus

    flynnibus Well-Known Member Forum Staff

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    I didn't say 'comment' I said 'attitude'. And that attitude is well documented and I'm not going to rehash it here.

    Stick to the topic? Not making assertions? Have you reviewed your own posts lately?

    For your 'real point' - I think the only board member who is still part of the board who was part of that vote has addressed the specific comments made. If you want to continue to beat a dead horse by acting like if I say it 10x it will somehow change, continue. The facts have been outlined and commentary addressed. What more would you like to hear about the 'real point'. Logically discussions would move onto the next phase.. not continue to sit and repeat themselves endlessly. Are you ready to move past square one?
     

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