Condo Association Meeting 1-21-2010

Because of a family commitment, I wasn't able to attend the meeting Thursday, but I did forward all of your concerns to Jerry and Jenni before the meeting, and asked them to address them at the meeting. Leslie attended and took copious notes, so I think I can accurately relay the minutes of the meeting.

The meeting was to address two issues: passing the budget and listening to owners' concerns. The budget was passed. Jerry distributed a list of revenues and expenses with actual numbers instead of estimated numbers. I will pass this on to you individually, in case you didn't receive a copy. The good thing about having a full building is that it gives us a good idea of the expenses and services that will be needed for the building in the future.

Trash - A question was asked about trash pick up. Right now, trash is picked up twice a week and the cardboard recycling is picked up once a week. Around the holiday, trash did get a little heavy, but besides that twice a week seems to be working well for the building. As always, Jerry said that if you have a concern, feel free to contact Blue Urban or your Director.

I had a concern with the large trash that was being left in the hall by the dumpster and on the dock. There is often furniture, Christmas trees, and other large items that the waste management company isn't picking up. The burden of the disposal then falls onto the building, which means that our maintenance guy is hauling trash to the dump instead of taking care of the building.

Jerry is looking into getting some sort of bulk pick-up for our building, but in the meantime Blue Urban will circulate a letter informing people that they cannot just dump their trash in our hall. This is already in the renters' leases. Two of the people who dumped their Christmas trees were identified by Blue Urban and fined for their actions.

Jerry is also concerned about the safety of allowing Christmas trees in the building because they could be a fire hazard. Next year, renters may not be allowed to bring real trees into the building.

A question was brought forth by James Leonard about the phones in the budget. (James has been an owner for a while, but this was his first condo association meeting) Motor has five phone lines (2 for the elevators, 1 for the HVAC, 1 for the front door, and 1 for the fire monitoring system) and because we are a company, we have to pay commercial phone rates, which are a lot more expensive than a residential line.

A few owners who could not attend the meeting had several issues that I asked Jerry to address:

Snow removal - An owner was concerned with the parking lot being cleared in a timely manner, since it is part of the condo fees.

Jerry's response was that, unfortunately, Blue Urban had switched snow removal companies the day before it snowed, so Motor was last on the list to be cleared. In the future, there shouldn't be a problem with snow removal. He also pointed out that plowing the lot isn't a great idea early in the morning with all of the cars still on the lot.

This also brought up a question about an initial response to snow removal for the people parking in the garage, because of the difficulty of getting out of the garage with snow on the ground.

Jerry said that Jake (the maintenance man) will try to keep the area in front of the garage clear during snow days from now on.

There was also another issue concerning ice on the ground in the area when you walk out the back door. This is caused by water dripping from the top of the building and freezing in that spot.

It was decided that a 5 gallon bucket of ice melt will be left by the door so that people can spread some in that area if it gets icy.

Another issue was window washing. An owner was concerned that their windows were not washed in October.

Jerry wants the owners to make sure that they contact Blue Urban immediately if they believe a service has not fulfilled by a contractor. That way Blue Urban can call the contractor to come out and rectify the situation. If you wait several weeks or months, there is less that they will be able to do.

An owner at the meeting commented that the window cleaning wasn't very thorough, and that the window sills do not get cleaned.

Animals defecating in the basement - This was an issue with which both the owners and Blue Urban were concerned, but I'm happy to report that the perpetrator has been caught and fined. This person wasn't a renter, but was a friend of a renter and the situation has been rectified. The renter had to sign another lease and pay an extra pet deposit. If this incident happens again, they will be evicted.

Jerry noted that it is all of our responsibility to keep and eye out for our building, and to report any behavior like this to Blue Urban. If you are not comfortable confronting the person, then pass along the information to Jenni.

Size and number of animals - One owner thinks that some people have too many animals, and that some of the dogs are too big.

Renters cannot have more than two animals and they cannot be more than 60 lbs. If anybody is out of compliance, report them to Blue Urban.

Owners, according to the charter (declaration 1:gg (pg. 6)), cannot have more than two dogs (not heavier than 70 lbs.), three cats, birds and fish. Also, according to by-law 12.12 (pg. 23) the Board can ask any pet to be removed from the building, or ask the owner to leave a pet deposit.

There was an incident with a dog-on-dog attack. The dog's owner was forced to remove the dog from the building.

Basement clean-up - A couple of owners are concerned with the rules that are not being followed regarding the new basement rules. There are still a number of people who have items in their parking spaces.

Basically the response to this is that those people were fined. They have been given notice that they must pay their fine and clean up their spaces or Blue Urban will begin the eviction process. (For owners, a lien will be put on their property until they pay)

Renting properties is a legal minefield. Blue Urban cannot just do whatever it wants. They cannot just move people's property without their permission. Only after a person has been evicted can they begin the process of moving that person's stuff out of the building (at their expense).

As evident in the basement rules that we defined, there should be no items stored in the inner ring parking spaces. Only the owners will be allowed to store things in the outer ring of parking spaces, with a few exceptions. Because of legal reasons, the people who signed a lease and stored things in the basement prior to the rules being put in place will be allowed to keep their storage until their lease is up. At that time, they must sign a new lease, which will not allow them to store items in the basement.

Blue Urban is also looking into power washing the basement in the near future.

Smoking - Owners can smoke in their units, renters cannot. Nobody can smoke in the common areas. If you see anyone smoking, report it to Blue Urban. This also includes pot smoking. One owner took exception to people smoking pot in the building. If you believe your neighbor is smoking pot, contact Jenni to rectify the issue. If Jenni is not available, she says to call the police. She says she has only received one complaint so far about a person smoking pot in their residence, and that issue has been addressed.

Security and Cameras - Cameras will be $8000 a year. Blue Urban is considering placing three cameras all in the parking lot.

Some of the owners questioned the effectiveness of cameras as either a deterrent or as a way to identify criminals. Some people wanted a camera in the lobby too.

Lobby - Packages are still being stolen. This was addressed at a previous meeting, and Blue Urban's position is "get packages delivered at your own risk". It's probably not a good idea to let packages sit in the lobby for a long period of time. Either pick up your packages immediately or have them delivered to Blue Urban, and pick them up during business hours.

There have also been a lot of issues with the trash can in the lobby. People have been dumping large amounts of trash and dog poop in that tiny can, so Blue Urban has decided to remove it from the lobby.

Renting out your unit - If you would like to rent out your unit, Blue Urban would be happy to assist you in leasing your unit. There will some management fees involved. Contact Jenni for more information. If you'd like a copy of the lease, that can be provided.

Rec. Center - Kevin is in the middle of a project at the old DCC site. He had been in touch with his bank, and they will discuss the rec. center for Motor after construction begins on the old DCC project. No promises, but it sounds promising.

One owner told me to pass along the concern that rules are not being followed by everyone in the building. Blue Urban asks that you contact them with any of your concerns when you see something that is wrong. They would like to point out that the fines and warnings given out for the Christmas trees, dog pooping in the basement, and storage in the basement are proof that they are concerned with the building and that rules are being followed.

Annual Condo Association Meeting

For those of you who missed the meeting Thursday night, here's a recap:

According to Kevin, it's only necessary at this stage, to meet once a year to have an official meeting. The two main things we need to do every year are elect officers and approve a budget.

Chris Mattler (the author of this article) was re-elected as your Director. I enjoy improving this building, and look forward to helping make this development a nice place in which to live. Contact me with any of your concerns.

The budget is basically the same as last year - estimated round numbers for services like cleaning, trash, snow removal, etc. It was approved.

One set of owners wished to see specific numbers for the budget, so they could see how their condo fees were being spent. Blue Urban tried to get us that list by the meeting, but couldn't because of time restraints. They promised to present us with a detailed budget in the near future.

Right now, renters account for about 75 % of the budget and owners make up the other 25%.

Now that the building is almost full, Blue Urban has decided to charge the owners the full condo fees ($0.14 / sq. ft.) This means that your condo fees will now double. The extra money will go toward improved services.

Billing was discussed. Some owners had two concerns with billing: They weren't getting bills, and their checks were not being cashed in a timely manner. It was decided that a date would be given for payment, and envelopes would be given at the beginning of every year for all twelve months. Christine said ACH would be set up eventually. (Personally, I've been paying with ACH since my second condo fee. I just set up the payments through my bank.)

Services were also discussed at the meeting. We now have a full-time employee for cleaning, whose services are divided among our building, GW, and Packard. Before this, we just had cleaning services once a week. The advantage to a full-time employee is that we can have an immediate response to something like a spill on the floor.

Some specific cleaning questions were asked about the elevator. The rugs will be removed from the elevator, and the curtains will be cleaned. The curtains will remain in the elevator until the last four units are rented.

There was also a question about window washing, and we will have another one before the end of the year. Blue Urban promises to give us all notice, so we are not in the middle of something naughty when the window washers come around. If, by chance, your windows do not get cleaned, contact Blue Urban immediately so they can get the window washers to remedy the situation.

Trash collection was another issue. Currently we have trash picked up twice a week, and cardboard is picked up once a week. Some felt that it was not enough, and Blue Urban is aware of the concern.

The trash chute was also discussed. Part of the reason we got the cardboard recycling is to prevent people from clogging up the trash chute with cardboard. Kevin candidly said that in most of his other projects the trash chute has been eliminated from buildings because people don't use it correctly, and clog it with items that are not meant for it. I'm guessing if people are not responsible with this trash chute, it too will be closed.

A question was raised about whether the renters knew rules of the building (like cardboard in the trash chute) and Jenni assured us that not only were rules provided, but she personally walked them through the building, showing them where everything was.

The pool / rec. center was also discussed. Kevin showed us plans for a rec. center that would include a pool, sand volleyball court, BBQ / picnic area, and a gym. A likely location would be the building in our parking lot. There are still many hurdles to get past in this process (especially obtaining money from banks in a recession) but Kevin is optimistic that it will eventually happen. There is also a possibility that the building across Washington could still be a club too. In the mean time, Kevin said he would not object to a temporary recreation area being placed in an area like the wedge-shaped area next to the basement parking garage door. The budget will eventually allow us to purchase some things like picnic tables, etc., but Blue Urban will probably wait until spring to make these purchases. Someone also asked if we could perhaps have access to another McGowan property's amenities. Kevin said he'd try, but the owners probably wouldn't be too keen on sharing. If a club is built, it would add another $0.05 to your condo fees.

The basement rules were proposed at the meeting. Blue Urban presented us with a finalized version of the rules. I'll send the owners a copy. Review them and tell me any changes you would like to see in them. Probably at the beginning of November we will ratify these rules. After passage, owners will have a few weeks to make storage arrangements before the rules take effect. These rules might potentially apply to the renters as well, but Kevin is thinking of taking it a step further and not allowing any storage by the renters.

According to the new rules, bikes will be allowed in the basement, but they are encouraged to be kept in the bike room in the lobby. Only owners will have access to this room with the exception of three renters who were given keys. Jenni is aware of who has these keys. A bike rack could eventually be added to the bike room.

Packages / security cameras was another issue discussed. Kevin's opinion seems to be that in any building, whether is has owners or renters, there is the possibility of theft. He thinks cameras could be a deterrent, but would be would an added expense that still might not work. He suggests not getting packages delivered at all to your residence, and either picking them up at the delivery service's building, or having them delivered to your job.

Some owners objected to people parking in the loading zone by the stairs on 22nd Street. Blue Urban plans to have this area striped as a no-parking zone, and will try to tow people who constantly park there.

This brought up the issue of parking and towing. Jenni says the towing company Blue Urban uses, usually can arrive in about five minutes if someone parks in your spot. Since she knows most of the cars in the lot, she can usually resolve issues before it comes to removing the cars. A release form from Blue Urban needs to be signed before the towing company can remove a car from our property. If Jenni is not available, it was suggested that the Director has the power to enforce towing. The Downtown Children's Center will no longer be allowed to park in the residence's parking lot.

Both Abby and Debbie brought up ideas about removing unwanted junk from the building. Abby is going to call the Salvation Army for a scheduled pick-up soon. If you have something you would like to get rid of, contact me, and I'll ask her the details of the collection.

Someone wanted to know if Kevin could be available for more meetings. Due to time constraints, he will probably only be available at the annual meetings. This does not prevent us, as owners, from meeting to discuss issues and come up with solutions. I plan on having meetings outside of the annual meetings when enough issues come up, but feel free to contact me if you feel you would like to meet as owners, and I'll set up a meeting. You can also contact Kevin at kevin@blueurban.com, and he'll respond to your concerns.

Any other minor issues - like cleaning, trash cans for the basement, etc. contact me, and Jenni and I will resolve them.

One final thing, Jenni will begin sending out a monthly newsletter in the form of an email that will update all of us on issues dealing with the building.

I'm looking forward to another year with a nice group of people in our great building!

Meeting with Gateway Greening

As you can see by the title, I met with Gateway Greening today, and we discussed Motor Lofts getting involved with the garden across the street. Here's the details of that discussion.

1. If you would like to have your own section, we need a few volunteers. Bethany has already expressed her willingness to participate, and Leslie and I would also help out. In order to get a grant and be given our own section, we will need a few more people dedicated to this project. If enough people do not volunteer, then our participation would probably be limited to helping out with the existing gardens already in place. Basically, they're not going to put a bunch of resources into a project that might fall apart if those few people stop participating.
2. If you'd like to participate, you will need to sign a waiver to work on the land. Gateway Greening is leasing the land from a private owner, and he wants to be free from liability on his land.
3. If we do get enough volunteers for a project, those people would need to fill out some paperwork in order to get a grant. Apparently, the paperwork takes a little time to fill out. They want you to make a plan for what you are doing, who will be helping, what days they will be working, etc. They want to see that your commitment is thought out, and put on a calendar.
4. If you would like to see all of this happen, the deadline for applying for the grant is November. Once the grant is approved, resources (dirt, lumber, seeds) would be given to us in the spring.
5. If you'd like to help now, contact me, and I'll put you in touch with Alicia, who is in charge of this garden. She needs people to help water and weed. Alicia also said that she will be clearing out some beds soon, and she could probably get us started on something for fall if we wanted.
6. One final thing - Gateway Greening asked me to ask you to please respect their gardens. Apparently people are letting their dogs poop in that area, and it creates difficulties for them since it's a place where children are present, food is growing, and they have to work and walk.

If you'd like to have more space to grow more than what's on your balcony, contact me, and I'll get you in touch with Alicia.

Motor Lofts Owners Meeting
April 29, 2009

Attendees: Bethany B., Brian M., Debbie F., Gary V., Katie L., Krista K., Tony M., Leslie R., Matt R., Chris M.
Topics:
· Packages
o The consensus seemed split over having Jenni receive all of our packages. Some concerns were: Will she always be there to receive packages? Will we have to change the address for shipment?
o Could the owners help? Matt offered to take packages to his unit because he gets home early.
o Could bicycle storage be converted into package storage?

· Cameras
o Less than half of the owners present were in favor of cameras
o Nobody was in favor of cameras if it increased condo fees
o Nobody wanted to subscribe to a monthly service
o If cameras are needed, Brian suggested a system that recorded to a hard drive. It would be around $3000 + installation. This could also include keycard access to stairway doors and the elevator.
§ Most people wanted access to the other floors in case they wanted to see friends, and were against keycard access to each floor
§ Some did suggest keycards for the basement
§ If we were to try and get cameras, Brian suggested a trivia night or other fundraiser to obtain the money
o If cameras were installed, suggested locations would be: Front entrance, lobby, parking lot entrance, garage door, and in the basement

· Call Box
o Perhaps an email could be sent out asking people not to give out the code for the call box?
o Camera on the call box isn’t working for most people.

· Tenants
o Some owners had concerns with tenants smoking
o Everyone was receptive to a meet & greet with the owners and tenants. The idea of a BBQ was brought up.

· Floors and elevators
o Perhaps someone from Blue Urban could give out rules or supervise new move-ins. This would prevent the floors from getting scratched, and damage occurring to other parts of the building
o Could the curtains in the elevator be taken off until someone needs to move in?
o Could a deodorizer be installed on the elevator because it can be stinky at times?

· Condo fees
o Nobody wanted an increase in condo fees
o There was a request for actual numbers. Condo fees paid vs. expenditures
o Are there “grass roots” ways of improving the building without raising condo fees?
§ Could we have access to the building in the parking lot or the old sales center?
§ Could we set up a recreational area with some chairs, BBQ grill, maybe even a pool in an area? Suggestions included the area by the garage door (between the fence and the building) and the roof of the vacant building
§ Could we put a garden in somewhere?
§ Bethany volunteered to head a committee for these types of activities
o Hardly anybody was in favor for an eventual discretionary fund for future parties, etc. because of the cost and the problem of who gets to decide what to do with the money

· Basement
o Most people agreed that pulling up all the way is the best solution for any future problems that will occur when the basement eventually fills up
o The best way to do this would be to move the parking bumps if necessary
o Nobody wanted a length restriction on cars
o People were, however, in favor of a system that would let people know if their car was sticking out too much, causing a problem. This would include:
§ Having someone put an official note on the car as a warning the first few times
§ After repeated warnings, fining individuals whose car sticks out too much
o There were also a few concerns about people who damage cars when they pull out.

o Storage didn’t seem to be an issue. Most said that they were not in favor of any rules regarding storage in the basement.

o Almost everyone was in favor of a rug in front of the elevators in the basement, and trash cans by the elevator in the basement and lobby

· Dogs
o Most people at the meeting don’t have dogs, but thought the dog station could be a good idea. Bethany volunteered to investigate if the city could install one for free

· Blue Urban keeping us informed
o Most thought that misunderstandings could be avoided if Blue Urban made an effort to keep people up-to-date on building issues. This would involve regular meetings between the Association Director and Blue Urban, and emails or Blog posts sent out by either party.
o Facebook could be used for more informal, private discussions of building issues

· Smoking
o Most thought an ashtray outside would be a good idea
§ This could also keep butts from blowing into DCC’s playground
o Perhaps there should be a designated smoking area or distance away from the building that people would be allowed to smoke

· Committees
o Since there were a lot of creative ideas brought up at the meeting, the idea was brought forth to start up committees for areas of people’s interests
§ Urban Renewal / Garden – Bethany
§ Fundraising – Brian
§ Garage Sale – Bethany
§ Recycling – Chris
§ Parties- I’m sure this will be a popular one, so I won’t put anybody’s name just yet
§ Art in the hallways – This could be a floor-by-floor committee
§ Pets

· Gardens
o Bethany volunteered to get in touch with Gateway Greening and see how we could get involved with the garden across the street
o Bethany also volunteered to plant some flowers in the unused flower box at the front entrance

· Swap meet, garage sale, etc
o This was offered as an idea as a good way to get rid of some junk, or get something from another person who is not using something
o Perhaps we could team up with Packard and GEW on some of these projects
o Someone suggested a bulletin board for these types of news items

· Recycling
o Could some bins be placed in the basement?
o Volunteers to take the recycling back so far are: Wendy, Chris, Krista
o If we get cash for our aluminum, perhaps we could put that into a fund for a party committee

· Social Ideas
o BBQ
o Could the owners have a storage space to put stuff like a large grill and other party supplies?

· Art for the hallways
o Can we hang it on the walls?
o Can we get free art from local artists?
o How can it best be protected?

Downtown Resident's meeting hosted by the Partnership!

Downtown St. Louis…What's Next?
A Dialogue About the Future of Downtown St. Louis

Where:
Crepes in the City
500 North 14th Street

When:
April 28, 2009
6:30-8:00 pm

Who Should Attend:
Residents, Businesses, Developers, Property Owners
Talk about our downtown's turn around and offer input on what needs to happen next to maintain momentum for continued sustainable growth. Ten years ago, leaders adopted the ambitious Downtown Now! Development Plan. Since then, downtown has experienced more than $4.3 billion in investment, 5,000 new residents, more than 100 new shops and restaurants and 2500 new hotel rooms. While this success is noteworthy, there is still much work to be done to sustain that success well into the future and now is the time to talk about what comes next.
This is an important opportunity to engage in a dialogue with staff of the Partnership for Downtown St. Louis and with your neighbors, with downtown’s businesses and investors about what needs to be done to make our downtown a better place to live, to work, and to do business.
Please join us!

Association Meeting

Tonight the owners met with Kevin McGowan for the first meeting of the Motor Lofts Condo Association. Topics covered in the agenda:

Renters will soon join our ranks - Kevin wanted to assure us that the renters will be thoroughly screened, and will help with the payment of condo fees, etc. There will be rules for the renters, and the building should fill up eventually. If you would like to rent another parking space, contact Blue Urban.

The annual budget was ratified - You received a copy of this in the mail. There were a few questions asked about the budget. Window washing occurs twice a year, and they will look into this soon. The phone budget is for the elevators and the front door. You're supposed to be able to access the front door long distance or through a cell phone, but some said they were having problems with this. Another question brought up concerning the front door is the video. You are supposed to be able to see who is at the front door on a channel on your TV. This function does not work and they are going to also look into this.

A new director to the condo asssociation was elected - Chris Mattler (the author of this article) is your new representative on the association.

I want to make myself available to listen to everyone's concerns regarding the building, and help develop resolutions that make everyone happy - or at least content.

Another aspect I'd like to develop is the sense of community in the building. Judging by the good nature of everyone at the meeting, and those of you I've met before, it shouldn't be a problem getting everyone talking to one another and developing relations. Maybe we could eventually plan community events within the building. Even Packard Lofts expressed a desire to communicate with our building, so we could eventually foster relations with our sister building...

I want to say I'm honored to be elected, and will do my best to represent the owners of the building. Feel free to contact me with any concerns. (You can access my email address though this blog)

MW Club - The topic of the fitness club was addressed. The original plans to make a club in the building at Washington and 22nd will not be completed. There is a tentative plan to move the club to the building behind Motor Lofts. This would involve tearing down part of the building in order to install a pool and putting a gym in the rest of the area. A question was raised about whether there would be a bar in the gym, and we're all hoping there will be one!

Property taxes and condo fees - A question was asked about how low property taxes were this year. The short answer is, yes they are correct because of some adjustment, but probably will be re-assessed next year, so expect them to go up next year. Condo fees, which are at $.07 per square foot right now will eventually go up to $.14 when the building fills up later on. Christina said that she would work on setting up ACH payments so you can make automatic payments.