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Plantation Florida
Homeowners Newsletter
By the People, For the People
FAQ Did You Know? Elections Restrictions Paint Colors Year 2006 Year 2007 Year 2008 Year 2009 Pictures 2007 Pictures 2008 Katrina 2005 Wilma 2005
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Disclaimer: This web site is run by a homeowner living in the Quatraine III community. The views and statements made on this page do not reflect those of the current board of directors. In other words, it's my site, and me talking, not anyone else, This web site is not the official viewpoint of the board, therefore, think of it as a BLOG or FICTION. Listen to any radio talk show and you'll hear a similar disclaimer.
Next Meeting Feb 29th (Annual), Volunteer Park, 7pm. Future dates are Apr 25, Jun 27, Aug 29 (Budget Workshop), Oct 24 (Budget Meeting), Dec 19
Bulk Pickup dates are Feb 18, Mar 17, Apr 14, May 19,
Jun 16, Jul 14, Aug 18, Sep 15, Oct 13, Nov 17, Dec 15
City of Plantation Bulk Pickup Guidelines
Next Master Association Meeting Wednesday TBD, 6:00pm, Parc Court Clubhouse.
Quatraine III Latest News - 02/01/12
02/01/12 - A Master Association meeting was held at Parc Court Clubhouse. Repair of the fountain between QIII and QIV was discussed. It was decided to have an electrician take a look at the fountain and give a 2nd opinion on the needed repairs. A motion for tree trimming at a cost of $6,200 was approved.
12/21/11 - A meeting was held at Volunteer Park. No one showed up. It was 4 board members and the property manager. Collections and violations were discussed. The property manager read a paragraph from our docs that lets banks not pay the association on foreclosed homes. If the paragraph is removed, the banks have to pay. A proxy will be mailed to all homeowners with the election packet, explaining in simple terms, that if the paragraph is removed, we can collect more money on foreclosed homes. In the open forum, the towing company was discussed. Our property has used All County Towing for many years, but after the mess at the Sawgrass Mall, and the fact that the tow yard is located in downtown Ft. Lauderdale, it was decided to find another company. Superior has a tow yard in Davie FL near Costco. The tow company will have new signs made up at their expense which go at the two entrances of the property. We don't tow many cars, but it seems time to change.
12/10/11 - The fountain between QIII and QIV was repaired (master). The water pressure was low (clogged).
11/20/11 - The pool pump was repaired, it burned out and was making a loud noise.
11/02/11 - Sidewalks were grinded down, took 2 days. 22 spots at a cost of $2,200. This was much less than replacing entire sections, That job was done in March of 2010 and costed $4,512. Raised sidewalk spots come back, it's a matter of grinding when possible, then replacing sections when absolutely necessary.
10/26/11 - A meeting was held at Volunteer Park. The budget was officially approved with a motion. The fee stays at $125 a month. The dates for next year were discussed and agreed upon, they are shown up above. The December meeting date was changed, 1 week sooner, before the holiday week. Violations and AMFs were discussed. 2 homeowners came to the meeting, questions were answered.
10/21/11 - Orange lines were painted on the raised sidewalk parts to remind people to step over them. Eventually, these spots will be grinded down. A flood light was replaced at the main entrance. An LED light is being tested on the directional sign across from Central Park. This is part of the master. The light has a white color, as opposed to a natural orange. The LED light will last for 20k hours, a regular flood light will last for 2000 hours.
09/23/11 - The entrance fixture lights were replaced with LED bulbs. In the past, they burned out every 3-4 months. Now they will last for 20k hours. Not as bright as the old bulbs, but they'll last a long time.
09/03/11 - On this day I distributed newsletters to each home. posted a copy at the pool, and gave copies to the property manager to mail to the off sight homeowners (renting). The newsletter also has the rules and regulations on the back. This becomes proof the board has communicated our rules and regulations with all homeowners. The board spends a good amount of each meeting discussing foreclosures, dead beats, and violators. It is not fair to those who are doing the right thing and paying their dues on time.
08/24/11 - A meeting was held at Volunteer Park. Violations and collections were discussed. Motions for made directing Becky to instruct the attorney to start foreclosure proceedings on one home, and to compel the bank to take title on another. Approximately 10 addresses were discussed relating to collections. The budget was discussed, a motion was made to mail the preliminary budget to homeowners. The monthly assessment stays at $125. The budget will be voted in at the October 26th meeting. On this day, the shrubs were trimmed by Native Sun. Mulch was added to the planters at the front wall. New landscaping will eventually be installed. A wet test was performed by Top Shelf Irrigation.
08/17/11 - The front wall was pressure cleaned and painted Shabby Chic by Tom Burke at a cost of $750.
08/03/11 - A master association meeting was held at the Parc Court Club House. A budget for 2012 was approved that REDUCES the amount each community pays. The budget was reduced by approximately 18k. How was this done? Savings were found by reducing insurance that wasn't necessary, and cutting other line items that were over stated in the budget. The extra money had been going into reserves, and the operating bank account. The new budget reflects actual spending. At the time of this writing, the master has approximately 45k in operating, and 38k in reserves. Discussion ensued about who will be responsible for the area along the back lake between QIII and QIV if tree branches fall down from storms. In the past, each property was on their own, but it's really master association land. A motion passed that makes cleaning up that area the responsibility of the master.
7/06/11 - The shrubs at the front entrance were removed by Native Sun. Bids are being reviewed to paint the Wall. Native Sun will then install Mulch.
06/24/11 - The electrician came out and found the problems with the pool lights. The breakers were arching and the bus bars needed to be sanded off. This was done, the lights worked, but the entire electrical panel needed to be replaced at a cost of $920, which the board agreed needed to be done. The pool leak was found in the light seal of the deep end, it was repaired. The pool was officially opened. 22 days for the job. Not bad, I estimated one month.
06/22/11 - A meeting was held at Volunteer Park. Violations and collections were discussed in detail. The pool remained closed due to a leak. The filter was set to auto fill the pool, but it would not go above the gutter. A pool leak company was scheduled to come out. The goal was to get the pool open by the July 4th holiday and let people use it even if the leak persists. Sprinkler repairs were discussed. A breaker was causing the east sprinkler pump to fail. Repairs were scheduled. The lights at the pool building were discussed, they were not working due to timer and photo cell issues. An electrician was scheduled to make the needed repairs. More discussion about the front entrance wall. It was decided to remove the dead shrubs, pressure clean the wall, and paint it Shabby Chic.
06/14/11 - A gator was spotted in the canal behind Beverly Hills Cafe. I called Pesky Critters and Plantation Police. Since the gator was in the canal, they said they couldn't send anyone. The gator was in it's natural habit.
06/12/11 - The pool resurfacing job was finished and it was filled with water over night.
06/02/11 - The pool was drained and the resurfacing job started.
04/27/11 - A meeting was held at Volunteer
Park. Violations were discussed. A master
report was given, new sprinklers will be installed along Cleary Blvd in front of QIV to water the brown grass in that zone. Turns out there were no
sprinklers on the inside of the sidewalk, that's why the grass in that area was
always brown. Financials were discussed, 12k was moved to a 3rd CD.
Pool Repair, the board was made aware of problems with the diamond bright of the
pool, and that certain things were not up to code. Two bids
were presented. One from Seminole Pool for 12k, and one
from Discount Pool and Patio for $13,800. The board like the bid
from Discount Pool and Patio and a motion passed to accept their bid.
Trash can lids were discussed, new lids needed to be ordered.
Discussion about the front entrance area ensued. The dead
plants will be removed, the walls pressure cleaned, painted, and new mulch and
plants installed.
04/15/11 - Dog waste canisters were moved away from the mail boxes, because the mailmen complained. Junk mail is to go home for recycling. Raised spots along the sidewalk were grinded down. A pest control person went up into my attic and found no termites. They treated the beams. So it looks like the only problem spot was my fascia board in the back of the house, which was treated and patched.
04/09/11 - My home was painted by Ken Mindala (954) 817-4546. Ken estimated he used 6 gallons of primer, and 8 gallons of paint. I went with the best. Ken mentioned that my home didn't need 10 gallons, because he painted it the last time using the best, and it held up well. For other people, they may need 10 gallons like estimated in the paint section of this web site. My house color stayed the same, it's AF-195 (Terra Bella). Turned out great, I pressure cleaned the roof, and applied Jo-Max. We did find termites in the fascia board along the back of the home along the roof. Had a termite specialist come out and treat that section. Homes are not tented any more. Instead, injections are done into the attic and along the fascia boards. If you are not having regular termite inspections, it may be a good idea to call someone to take a look.
04/06/11 - A master association was held at the Parc Court. Irrigation issues were discussed with the dead grass along Cleary Blvd. Asplundh is trimming trees along Cleary. A letter was presented to the board with information from FPL about the work being done. The letter states they will clear vegetation from the main power line, and that palm fronds cause most problems with lines being tripped. Replace two electrical switch cabinets. Replace lightning protection equipment.
On this day my house was primed for painting. The painter noticed termites in the fascia boards. A pest control company was called out to look at the problem. It was said that when a house is tented, the termites run to the houses near by. The house behind mine was tented a few years ago. Houses are no longer tented, the repellent is injected into the boards.
03/26/11 - This weekend I pressure cleaned my roof in preparation for house painting. A neighbor had pipes break behind their washer/dryer, and it flooded the garage. I took pictures of the Polybutylene. The break happened at the fitting where the pipe meets the concrete slab. Workers had to dig out the concrete in order to repair the pipe. I have heard of others with the same problem, and there have been lawsuits. If you plan to go on vacation, it would best to turn off your hot water heater, and shut off the master water valve to your home. I usually turn off the washer and dryer valves, but never knew this problem existed until now.
Click each picture to make it big, then back to return here.
This is what lurks in your walls. It travels through the foundation,
walls, everywhere. You can see in picture 2, where the pipe broke.
It was at the exact level of the foundation where the fitting broke off.
Workers had to dig around the pipe in order to repair it.
Pictures 3 and 4 show the drain tube directly behind the washer, and more of the
polybutylene.
02/22/11 - The annual meeting was held at
Volunteer Park. 9 homeowners were represented by proxy, 5 board
members, for a total of 14. A quorum was not met and the current
board rolled over. A yearly report was entered into the minutes and
the meeting was adjourned. An organizational meeting followed with
new paint colors voted in. The Benjamin Moore paint is 100% acrylic
and mildew resistant. Two different types of paint, 8-10 year,
and a life time. They recommend a satin finish for cleaning
purposes. Quatraine III residents receive 10% off. The
estimated paint required to paint a 1500 square foot home (2 story) is 10
gallons (two 5 gallon containers). If primer is done, the same
amount is needed. At the time of this writing, a 5 gallon container (8-10
year) with the 10% off is $159.95. A 5 gallon container (lifetime)
with the 10% off is $227.45. The super
white, and rustic brick colors for trim do not change.
The brick trim can be painted Rustic Brick #2091-20 or Super White or the same
color as the home. The yellow
(Montgomery White HC-33) stays the same and does not have a darker color.
There are 4 new paint colors voted in, a slightly darker color for each
(skipping yellow).
Color Paint Name
Paint Code Darker Paint Name
Paint Code
Yellow Montgomery White HC 33
N/A
N/A
Gray Intense White
OC-51
Winter Solstice
1605
Beige Brandy Cream
OC-4
Shabby Chic
1018
Green Hint of Mint
505
Aganthus Green
472
Peach Pirates Cove Beach OC-80
Terrabella (Cortez) AF-195
Click this text Paint Colors to see the new selections.
02/02/11 - A Master Association was held at the Parc Court Pool house. Sidewalk repairs were discussed with each property on their own to make repairs. Planting of 11 new trees at the corner of Central Park Place East and in front of Parc Court were discussed. The trees were on order. New sprinkler bulbers will be needed when the trees are planted.
01/28/11 - The president, Becky, and myself went on a walk through of the property with Gasper from McKenna tree trimming company. All trees were looked at to make sure they had been trimmed properly. A few missed spots were noted and Gasper would come back and trim them. Also, orange paint was put down on spots where the sidewalk causes a bump. A major sidewalk job had been done last year, but tree roots are pushing up other spots. Approximately 4 places were marked with orange paint to warn people and stop them from tripping. The board will have general contractor Tom Burke look at them to see what can be done. I also checked the master sprinkler system and found 1 gusher, I e-mailed Terry from Top Shelf. The fountain between QIII and QIV is broken because the timer has stopped working. The electrician for the master has been notified.
01/26/11 - A meeting was held at Volunteer park. No homeowners showed up, which usually means the board is doing a good job. However, the meeting still lasted 1 hour with many topics discussed. Attorney, collections, violations, master association, sprinkler repairs, pool chair repairs, sidewalk repairs, moving the mailbox garbage cans, curb pressure cleaning, house paint colors, and the current tree trimming job were all discussed.
01/21/11 - Tree Trimming is under way. Robert spoke with Gasper from McKenna Tree Trimming about the job. Gasper assured Robert that all trees are being looked at for proper trimming. When Gasper speaks, it's in "tree language" and very complicated. Robert also met with Terry from Top Shelf Irrigation about the current wet test. Things are looking good, one valve needs to be replaced to increase pressure.
12//24/10 - Mulch was installed in the entrance island at a cost of $25 by a board member. Year end newsletters were posted at the mailboxes and at the pool.
11/17/10 - A meeting was held at Volunteer Park. The budget was passed, the fee stays at $125. The amendment to screen renters did not pass. 65 voted yes, 7 no, for a total of 72. 114 yes votes were needed. 6 homeowners attended the meeting, the board listened to them regarding the amendment. What the board found, was that homeowners did not want the board to make the final decision on whether someone could rent or not. Most homeowners who rent screen on their own. Some people can have bad credit due to the economy, yet they are good people. A credit check by the board could disqualify them. One homeowner pays a realtor one months rent to screen. One homeowner said they screened, the renter's background was great, but they still destroyed the home. Another issue with the amendment was the 30 day waiting period for approval. A homeowner spoke up saying they can't keep the renter waiting that long. The board agreed the approval time should be 7-10 days.
11/14/10 - The board walked the property two weekends in a row collecting proxies. We've found there are approximately 39 renters, and 5 empty homes.
10/27/10 - A meeting was held at Volunteer Park. A tree trimming bid from McKenna Property Mgmt was approved for $20,803. A bid to pressure clean the sidewalks, curbs, and the roof at the pool by Busy Bee Pressure Cleaning service was approved at $1,300. Cars can not park in guest spots or along the cul-de-sac circles when the pressure cleaning is being done. Notices will be placed on doors to warn people. If the cars remain when the pressure cleaning job starts, they will be towed away. The proposed budget was changed to reflect anticipated spending, which kept the over all budget the same as last year. The first budget submitted by the property manager had the fee going up to $129. The president and VP was not happy with this and found ways to reduce the budget. What does this mean? The budget remains at $255,000 and the monthly fee will stay at $125. This figure will be voted in at the budget meeting November 17th. The monthly assessment fee has remained at $125 since 2006. The amendment for screening of renters is ready. The board will send out proxies to the homeowners, then go door to door collecting signatures. No homeowners showed up at this meeting, it was only the board members and the property manager. The meeting duration was 1 hour and 20 minutes with many issues discussed besides those mentioned above.
10/22/10 - Shrubs were planted around the sprinkler boxes between QIII and QIV. This was a job done by the master.
10/0610 - A master association meeting was held at Parc Court. A motion was made to remove and replace 11 Beauty Leafy trees, 4 located across from the entrance of Parc Court along the Jacaranda Point side. 7 located at the corner of Central Park Place East and Cleary Blvd (Next to the lighted directional sign). The cost of this job was approved at $6,000.
09/22/10 - Emergency Meeting was held at the Secretary's home. Motion that upon a unit owner’s delinquency in any monetary obligation due to the Association, that in the event the delinquent unit owner leases their unit, the Association may make demand upon that delinquent unit owner’s tenant to pay their rent to the Association as permitted by Florida Law. It is the intent of this motion this policy of collecting rent from tenants be continuing in nature against all current and future delinquent unit owners. Motion passed unanimously. Motion to send letters to homeowners for vote to screen renters for credit and background check. Discussion: the motion to renter screening requires changing the Association documents. Proxies will be made up and board members will go door-to-door if necessary to get the proxies signed. Motion passed unanimously.
09/09/10 - On this day, the new signs were installed at the entrances of the community. This gives Plantation Police the power to arrest anyone who is trespassing. People are entering the community through the bushes at the SouthEast corner of the community, near the sprinkler pumps, walking along the lake, entering the pool area, and hanging out. If you see people trespassing, you may call Plantation Police.
9/01/10 - On this day, the trees out front were trimmed by the master association (2nd to None). This will reduce the mess caused by the black olive trees. I sent an e-mail to Keith Shriver asking about trimming the trees in the Comcast lines, he didn't return my e-mail. The problem here, is that arborists won't trim the trees under power lines, they cite safety reasons, On the other hand, Asplundh trimmed the trees away from the upper power lines, but that's all they will do. So we have a catch 22 when it comes to trimming the trees along the power lines. The cable lines you see along the bottom in the trees, are Comcast lines, and they are not powered. The FPL lines are up high on top. I have spoken to another arborist about this situation. They are not happy about the "V" shape of the trees under the power lines. The center section of trees is hacked out, leaving only the sides to grow. Then the arborists are told not to trim under the lines because of the safety reasons.
08/25/10 - A meeting was held at Volunteer Park with attorney Peter Meitzer present. Regarding collections, Peter stated that 45 days after a demand letter, a lien is filed if the homeowner does not respond by that time. The board approved more sod for 9th ct and the north part of 98th ave. The board approved a sidewalk repair in front of the community where a piece is sticking up. The board agreed that the gray curbs in front of the pool look better than the dirty white curbs. The board will move forward with having the curbs pressure cleaned and painted gray. Curb stops will be painted white. The board discussed amending the documents to screen renters. It will take 2/3rds of the 170 homes (113) to make this happen. Two homeowners asked about the ruling regarding street repair due to tree damage. The board explained the ruling saying homeowners are responsible for the repairs. .
08/13/10 - Newsletters were distributed. The fountain between QIV and Parc Court was repaired (fuses) and centered in the lake.
07/22/10 - The fountain between QIV and Parc Court started working on this day. More sod was installed along 98th ave.
06/23/10 - A meeting was held at Volunteer Park. There is a new law which states that renters must pay the association the rental amount if the owner is defaulting on home payments. The renter can not be evicted for doing this. Sprinkler repairs are on going. The cat problem was discussed, there is no way to remove cats at a reasonable cost. Services want $25-$30 to remove each cat, and the community has many strays coming from the Publix shopping center. The only thing the board can do is tell homeowners not to feed stray cats. Pool trespassing signs were discussed. If signs are displayed, the police can be called. Trespassers are entering the pool by walking through bushes near the sprinkler boxes on Cleary Blvd, traveling along the back yards, and jumping the back pool fence. More sod was approved to be planted along 9th CT.
06/18/10 - The curbs in front of the pool area were painted gray as a test to see if this is better than white.
06/09/10 - 3 pallets of sod were installed on 98th and 99th ave to fill in space around the trees and bare area along the fence. If the grass holds, the board will consider doing more areas that need to be filled in, such as 9th Ct
5/30/10 - The entrance lights at the front entrance were replaced, it seems they only last 6 months before they burn out.
04/28/10 - A meeting was held at Volunteer Park. Driveway repairs were discussed for those homeowners who have roots coming up. The board will walk the property marking spots that need repair. This does not include the edge of driveways which are damaged from normal wear and tear from cars driving on them. Landscaping for the entrance island and the entrance walls was discussed. New plants and shrubs will be chosen (to replace the dead areas) once the board can see how much the driveway repairs will cost. Ferral (wild) cats continue to be a major problem. The board discussed companies that capture the cats, and neuter them. Ferral cats make a mess with droppings, and they break into garbage bags looking for food.
04/07/10 - A master association meeting was held at Parc Court. The officers were elected. The signs along Cleary Blvd and Central Park Place East were replaced with new signs. A motion passed to approve a new fountain between QIV and Parc Court for a cost of $2,750 (electrical) plus $10,981 for the fountain to be installed by the Cascade Group.
03/24/10 - The sidewalks were repaired. The total cost of this job was $4512 and included fixing the bathroom door closers at the pool.
3/22/10 - Top Shelf repaired the sprinklers in the center entrance island. Lack of water is one reason why the plants died. New plants will be installed and this time there will be enough water. There are 5 sprinklers covering that area providing plenty of water.
02/28/10 - BUSTED ! ! ! Click the pictures to make them big, then back to return here. Thieves put a car on blocks and took the tires. Fortunately, the neighbor was watching, called the police, and stayed on the phone. The police were waiting when the thieves drove away with the tires in a blue minivan. One person ran back to the same house, where police arrived with K-9 units. 3 people were arrested. The tires were recovered. The owner called AAA and had the tires put back on the car in the morning. Please remember to lock car doors and report suspicious activity. The board would like to thank the neighbor for calling the police.
02/24/10 - The Annual Meeting was held at Volunteer Park. A total of 13 members were present, 7 homeowners, 6 board members. A quorum was not met for the membership meeting and the current board rolled over. The organizational meeting happened next. Native Sun is still scheduled to install 3 pallets of sod. Irrigation repairs are on going. Bathroom door closers at the pool will be repaired. A bid to repair the un-even sidewalks will be obtained. The entrance island will eventually be replanted once the rainy season starts and the sprinklers in that island are working. Violations were discussed involving roof repairs and pressure cleaning. Homes with tree root damage were noted. Becky has worked with a road maintenance company and she will get a bid to repair the damaged sections that are coming up The issue of stray cats was brought up. The problem is being caused by a woman who is feeding the cats, even when told not too. There's isn't much the board or Becky can do about the problem but put the topic in a news letter and ask people not to feed the cats.
The previous year is here.
To send an e-mail, click here quatraine3@bellsouth.net
QUATRAINE