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This newsletter is sent to all property owners of Sunshine Acres in the interest of a greater awareness and understanding of events and happenings in our community. It is funded by SAPOA annual dues.

Sunshine Acres Property Owners Association

P.O. Box 824, Sequim, WA 98382

Fall 2005

President’s Message

and finish up those items on the contractor’s punch list first. Remember the membership voted down the opportunity to borrow funds at a measly 2.5% to pave the road this year and chose to wait until next year at the earliest.

        What’s next?  Well, the first step the Board has taken is to restructure the Beach Road Committee. We made the decision to move forward with a smaller group of advisory members who will work closely with the SAPOA Board of Directors to complete this project in a timely manner at the lowest cost possible without sacrificing long term durability. Please consider that some maintenance costs will always be present no matter how well the project is completed. Will the project be completed on schedule, i.e. in the summer of 2007?  We believe so. However, given the events of the past 12 months, I hesitate to make that promise. All the SAPOA Board can promise is that we will do our absolute best to make it happen.

 

Respectfully,

Dave Taney

Mark Twain has been quoted as saying, “The reports of my demise are greatly exaggerated.” The same could be said about the Mussel Beach Road Project.  Yes, there has been little, or more accurately no activity there since April 8th of this year. Since then things have stagnated, with the emphasis regrettably shifting to legal rang lings and recall petitions, wasting this summer. Hopefully those issues are now behind us and SAPOA can refocus our energies toward moving forward again.

        Let’s look at where we’re at! Olympic Excavation, the contractor hired to do the project did a final inspection walkthrough with Mussel Beach Road Committee members. A nine item punch list was determined as items to be corrected by the contractor. Also, as a result of a membership approved ballot vote, the contractor was paid $12,000 against the Board’s wishes, for a disputed rock wall. In the ensuing four months, despite numerous requests from the SAPOA Board, the contractor has steadfastly refused to communicate with SAPOA and/or address those nine items.  SAPOA has therefore not paid the contractor the 7.5% holdback funds of $8,800. Those funds were held back to address any shortcomings by the contractor relative to the project. We have notified the contractor that we will now use those funds to secure the services of other firms to complete the first phase of our project.

        Where does that leave us? We currently have $6,100 in the Mussel Beach Road Account. Remember we owed the contractor $8,800.  Yes we had and still have a cash flow problem even after substantial advance payments.  2005–2006 dues will be due after September 1^st. That will bring some additional $18,000 to $20,000 into the account and provide us with funds to resume work on the project and move into the next phase. You were promised a drivable road this summer. Obviously that has not happened.  While the road could be driven by many vehicles, the Board believes the risk to the road’s surface and vehicles is not worth the benefit at this point in time. We still must complete work on the parking area at the foot of the road