The current (wind turbine) technology would appear to provide more of a sight and noise nuisance than benefit when used on individual lots within an area such as Wimberley
Note: City Hall Briefs, written and edited by Bob Flocke to inform the citizens of Wimberley about city activities, is neither an official nor an authorized publication of the City of Wimberley. City Hall Briefs is distributed by e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive it. Anyone who wishes to be added to the distribution list should send their email address to Mayor Flocke (below). The RoundUp has edited the Briefs for length and style.Send your comments and questions to roundup.editor@gmail.com, to Mr. Flocke at rflocke@austin.rr.com, 512.847.5421, or click on the "comments" at the bottom of the report
Council approves temporary ban on swimming pool construction in the city
In a 3-1 vote at its Oct. 6 meeting, the Wimberley City Council approved an ordinance prohibiting the issuing of building permits for new construction of in-ground and above-ground swimming pools within the city. The ban is temporary until drought conditions ease. Place five Councilman John White voted against the ordinance.
Current drought conditions are such that a growing number of area water purveyors such as the Wimberley Water Supply Corporation are prohibiting the use of their water to fill new pools and to refill existing pools. The city continues to receive occasional requests for permits to build new pools from property owners hoping to find the water needed to fill their pools once built.
City to lease voting machines for May '12 election
The city council approved a lease agreement for electronic voting machines for the May 2012 city council election. Under the one-year agreement, Election Systems & Software will provide the city up to eight touch screen voting machines along with various election materials and on-site support services needed for the election. The cost to the city will not be more than $11,640, and the city had the option of extending the agreement for a second year at the same "not to exceed" price. The city is in discussions with the city of Woodcreek and the Wimberley Independent School District about the possibility of contracting with Wimberley to hold a joint election in May with the participating entities sharing the costs of the election.
Blue Hole swimming area to close after Oct. 16
This coming weekend will be the last opportunity to swim at Blue Hole this year. The swimming area will close Sunday and will not reopen for the public until Memorial Day weekend next year. The swimming area is available for private party rental. This is the first year since the city has operated the swimming area that it has remained open after the Labor Day weekend. Since Labor Day, nearly 500 people have passed through the Blue Hole gates, putting the total attendance for the year at more than 22,000.
Planning and Zoning to consider boarding house regulations
At its Oct. 13 meeting, the Wimberley Planning and Zoning Commission will discuss the possibility of amending the zoning code to allow limited adult care facilities or boarding houses in residential areas, as a conditional use. Current regulations do not allow for such facilities in residential areas. The commission may recommend changes to the zoning code to the city council.
CAMPO board decisions a mixed bag for Wimberley
One Wimberley transportation project qualified high on the list for funding while another failed to make the list in Monday night Oct. 10 voting by the Capital Area Mobility Planning Organization's Transportation Planning Board. The panel had not taken action on a third Wimberley area project by press time.
CAMPO approved full Texas Department of Transportation funding for the $400,000 project to realign the intersection of Old Kyle Road and Ranch Road 12 on the Square. That project includes drainage, sidewalks, a left turn lane through the Square and revised entrances to the Square parking area. The project had been jointly funded by TxDOT, Hays County and Wimberley. Following Monday evening's CAMPO action, TxDOT will fund the entire project.
The CAMPO board voted to designate Wimberley as a "small center" for its 2035 Transportation Plan. Cities designated as small centers receive a higher priority for transportation project funding. Twenty-four cities in the CAMPO five-county area have the designation.
TxDOT's request for funding for a sidewalk project on RM 2325 was turned down by the panel. The $2.6 million project would have provided for construction of a sidewalk on the west edge of the Wimberley highway from its intersection with Carney Lane to its intersection with Ranch Road 12. It is possible for the project to be reconsidered for funding in the future.
A decision had not been made on the completion of a hike and bike trail from the Winters Mill Parkway/Ranch Road 12 intersection to Joe Wimberley Blvd. by the deadline for this newsletter.
CAMPO is responsible for channeling federal and state transportation dollars to projects in its five-county area.
Council bans wind turbines in Wimberley
The city council at its Oct. 6 meeting approved an ordinance prohibiting wind turbines and accessory equipment along with utility grid wind systems within the city limits. The ordinance was proposed by the Planning and Zoning Commission after considerable discussion about the possible development of regulations relating to the installation of turbines in the city. Published information about individual wind turbines indicates that such towers would range from 45 to 85 feet in height. In addition to issues relating to tower height, concerns have been expressed in some communities about the noise made by the turbines.
The Planning and Zoning commission indicated that it is possible that future technology will provide a less intrusive way of harnessing energy from the wind, but until then, the current technology would appear to provide more of a sight and noise nuisance than benefit when used on individual lots within an area such as Wimberley.
City to urge construction of a traffic deceleration lane on RM 3237 at Winters Mill Parkway
The city of Wimberley will urge the Texas Department of Transportation and Hays County Precinct 3 Commissioner Will Conley for construction of a traffic deceleration lane on RM 3237 north of Winters Mill Parkway for added safety. The city's Transportation Advisory Board recommended the action based on experience with crashes and near crashes between westbound traffic continuing toward Wimberley and traffic slowing in the travel lanes for a right turn onto the Parkway.
City plans brush-collection event
The city is proposing a one-time brush collection event to help prevent the start of wildfires and to slow any that might get started in the city. With a burn ban in place, residents have no current way of eliminating the large piles of brush they have gathered. The city staff has met with representatives of Texas Disposal Systems and Hays County in an attempt to develop the details of a proposed one-time community brush collection effort.
Join the annual Walk to End Alzheimer's in San Marcos on Nov. 5
The Alzheimer's Association will hold its annual Walk to End Alzheimer's in San Marcos on Saturday, Nov. 5. Visit the website at www.alz.org/walk, pick out the Wimberley teams and join one. Or you can call 512-738-7048. The non-competitive walk begins at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 5 at the San Marcos City Park Recreation Hall.
74 comments:
"In a 3-1 vote at its Oct. 6 meeting, the Wimberley City Council approved an ordinance prohibiting the issuing of building permits for new construction of in-ground and above-ground swimming pools within the city."
I don't see how the city (or any governmental entity) can prohibit construction of a swimming pool. They can prohibit filling swimming pools during a drought emergency, but I just don't see how they can prohibit building a swimming pool.
Where are the so-called property rights folks on this matter? No consistency.
First TSA, now the City of Wimberley.
Where will it end?
If ABIA installs full body scanners as planned, that will end my flying.
Dr. O'Dell, I find myself in a rare moment of agreeing with you. Although the ordinance is claimed to be temporary in nature, it still flies in the face of private property rights. In fact, I don't understand why you should have to obtain a permit from any governing body to install a pool on your own property in the first place. How many temporary laws and ordinances are still on the books from times past? What does the permit do for the property owner? I suspect not as much as it does for the City. In most cases it's just another way to fleece the citizens.
Although I have owned a pool in the past, I found it to be a money pit and full time job keeping it clean and functioning. I think anyone who wishes to own a pool and can afford it should be allowed to put one in without government permission. The water is an issue of cost and availability due to drought and dwindling supplies. Even the City has no authority to prevent you from filling your pool; that is the purview of the GCD through your Water Supply Company. Of course the City doesn't know its limitations as we have seen.
We are faced with an ever expanding Big Brother type of local governments that seem to have no qualms about ruling our lives and we must think before we sign on to these new controls. Thankfully, I live in an unincorporated area, where a City is not an issue; just a POA that can be even more be abusive since they hold the power of fines and foreclosure over you. It is a little known fact that in Texas, POAs can and do foreclose on a member's homestead for just a few hundred dollars in overdue assessments. A City does not have that power but they can find other ways to inflict pain.
I guess if you don't have a pool the kids will have to go to Blue Hole and pay a fee to the City. What a Plan!
OK, if Wimberley wants to prohibit the construction of new pools (yeah, temporary prohibition my ass!), then Wimberley should provide access to the Blanco River and Cypress Creek for swimming (besides Blue Hole, which has always been closed every time I go by). I have never been to Blue Hole, though I have lived here 25 years.
And next? Let's prohibit those rainwater collection systems and those ugly tanks.
P.S. Would this prohibition apply to a house designed to be run exclusively off of rainwater? collection?
Notice how the "road upgrade through the square" gets funded and the others do not. It makes me wonder where the City put forth most if not all of its efforts to acquire funding for its projects. We all know that the God awful polluted Square is so important to the Mayor, and others on the Council so I suggest they pushed hardest for it. When are they going to step up to the plate with their problem of the City polluting its only Creek with sewage and then it feeds to the Blanco River. A little bit of what?
@Anonymous 8:34pm
What does a POA foreclosing on property have to do with swimming pools? Have you ever heard of the laws governing homesteads? In the state of Texas no one can foreclose on a homestead only on other property. Also if these people would pay their legally owed fees then they would not have to worry about foreclosure.
You "sir" need to get on people to pay their debts and stop worrying about "Big Brother". If we have no government then who will take care of the roads and water and security needs of society that keeps us from falling into a state of lawlessness.
I for one am thankful that there are people who care enough for their fellow man or woman to run for office (both public and private). This is a thankless job that most of the time brings slander and hateful complaints and no thanks for trying to govern what at times seems like the inmates at the local mental hospital.
If humans could regulate themselves then we would not need laws and government or governing boards but history has proven that man can not govern his self. When left alone he will waste water and over use resources. Therefore we need rules and some one to enforce them.
"If you are not part of the solution then you are part of the problem."
Maybe we should suggest some other items for the City to get rid of....damn nuisance water wasters and noise makers
Shut the car washes and washaterias!
No more water wasting smelly fly-attracting livestock in the city limits!
No outdoor music of any kind!
No barking dogs!
No water ponds, all they do is waste evaporation and make mosquitoes!
No construction dust.
No leaf-blowers!
No well drilling!
No bongo drumming!
"I for one am thankful that there are people who care enough for their fellow man or woman to run for office."
Would you please identify one of them for me?
Too many run for office for special interests and self enrichment. Do I need to name names...again?
These folks just spend our money and say they are doing it because they care enough for their fellow man or woman.
They peddle their authority while in office and when out of office they peddle their connections to those in office.
What a racket! It's called by many names...Pay to play; A revolving door; Peddling influence; etc.
One thing its not called...good governance.
Anonymous 9:01 AM said... "Have you ever heard of the laws governing homesteads? In the state of Texas no one can foreclose on a homestead only on other property."
You need to do your homework; HOAs and POAs have had the power to Foreclose on Homesteads in the State of Texas since the 1987 ruling by the Texas Supreme Court in Inwood North Homeowners’ Association v. Harris. You are the victim of a popular misconception.
@ Anonymous 8:39pm
You sir have not done your homework. If you will read the Texas Property Code Title 11 Restrictive Covenants Sec 209.0092 passed in this legislative session - HOA/POA's can no longer foreclose on a property owners association assessment lien unless the association first obtains a court order. Ergo the HOA/POA can not foreclose without giving the homeowner their day in court. Which will end up costing them more than their unpaid fees, in most cases.
You have fallen prey to the false belief that all POA's will foreclose on a homestead for a small amount when in fact few to none do so. It is more practical to place a lien on the property and wait until they sell and then get their money. It costs the POA less money in legal fees and they still get their fees in the long run without the bad press.
Charles I could name many people who try to serve the people with honesty and integrity but you would find fault with each one. One of the facts of politics is that you can't please all of the people all of the time. Someone somewhere will accuse you of being crooked or stupid or in bed with one person or another. If you insist on seeing only the bad then that is all you will see. All an honest politician can do is the best they can do and accept that not everyone will appreciate what they are doing. The good ones accept responsibility for their actions. As my hero and mentor Harry Truman said "the buck stops here".
No one is perfect especially those who serve the public and the public they serve is not perfect for sure. Most people prefer to throw bricks at their public servants rather than trying to see what they can do to help. If you truly believe that your current politician is corrupt then get out and vote to remove them from office. Don't sit home and complain about them on a blog. Work for their opponent or better yet run for the office yourself.
Anonymous (October 13, 2011 10:41 PM), your comment, "Ergo the HOA/POA can not foreclose without giving the homeowner their day in court." should have read "can no longer foreclose" since they have engaging in non-judicial foreclosures for years with impunity.
At least one POA nearby actually forecloses on a member's property, then bids on and buys it at auction on the Courthouse steps.
Your statements were misleading which makes me believe you may have a stake in the foreclosure fraud of POAs. I hope the next Legislature will end the POA abuse of foreclosures in Texas forever.
I do however agree with your statement;
"It is more practical to place a lien on the property and wait until they sell and then get their money. It costs the POA less money in legal fees and they still get their fees in the long run without the bad press."
Please name the POA that forecloses on homesteads and then buys them back. I do not believe that any POA's in the area have ever done that.
I have nothing to do with the foreclosure "fraud" if it exists.
You however must have had someone in a POA rub you the wrong way at some time in the past. You do not appear to be very objective when it comes to POA's.
@Anonymous October 13, 2011 9:01 AM said...
What does a POA foreclosing on property have to do with swimming pools?
The poster was complaining about abuse by public and private government.
Have you ever heard of the laws governing homesteads?
Yes, have you? The Texas Supreme Court ruled that HOAs can foreclose on homesteads. The homeowners weren't actually represented before the court - only HOA attorneys were present. Since this decision, the HOA industry of management companies and HOA attorneys has enriched itself by threatening homeowners with foreclosure in order to extort fees that benefit only the vendors and which do not go to the HOA.
In the state of Texas no one can foreclose on a homestead only on other property.
You are incorrect. Unfortunately, you are not alone. There are plenty of homeowners that own their home outright who are unaware that HOAs can foreclose on a homestead. You better research a little bit more.
Also if these people would pay their legally owed fees then they would not have to worry about foreclosure.
What "services" do these people get for these fees? Were you aware that the HOA industry has been promoting giving HOA boards the power to borrow unlimited amounts of money? Homeowners' homes are effectively the collateral for this racket - and the owners never consented to authorizing the boards to heap unlimited debt upon them. Eliminate the HOAs or eliminate involuntary membership.
You "sir" need to get on people to pay their debts and stop worrying about "Big Brother".
I am not the author, but I am compelled to respond. The HOA debts are not the debts of the homeowner but rather the debt of the HOA. The HOA corporation is the biggest "undesirable" in the subdivision and it is the deadbeat. Worse, it creates debt that you don't consent to with your house as collateral.
If we have no government then who will take care of the roads and water and security needs of society that keeps us from falling into a state of lawlessness.
Lawlessness? What do you think HOAs were created for? They are not political subdivisions of the state. They are corporations that have improperly been given governmental authority without the limits imposed by the U.S. and state constitutions on government powers. This act in itself is unlawful and yet your local government is requiring these things in every new subdivision. "Lawlessness" was the creation of an illicit government.
I for one am thankful that there are people who care enough for their fellow man or woman to run for office (both public and private).
Yeah, right. Could it be that they care about their ego and their pocketbook?
This is a thankless job that most of the time brings slander and hateful complaints and no thanks for trying to govern what at times seems like the inmates at the local mental hospital.
The board members are the inmates. Truth is an absolute defense to slander.
If humans could regulate themselves then we would not need laws and government or governing boards but history has proven that man can not govern his self.
HOA governing boards are the perfect example of abuse of power.
When left alone he will waste water and over use resources. Therefore we need rules and some one to enforce them.
Who is "we"? A legit government should protect individual citizens from abuse by private and lower level public government. HOAs were designed to FORCE CONSUMPTION of resources, you fool. Consume grass, fertilizer, gas, lawn equipment, electricity, water, etc. Mandated consumption under threat of fine and foreclosure. How many HOAs are threatening homeowners with foreclosure unless the homeowners water St. Augustine lawns?
"If you are not part of the solution then you are part of the problem."
Anyone that believes that private government is a solution is a problem.
@ Anonymous October 13, 2011 10:41 PM said...
@ Anonymous 8:39pm
You sir have not done your homework.
If you will read the Texas Property Code Title 11 Restrictive Covenants Sec 209.0092 passed in this legislative session - HOA/POA's can no longer foreclose on a property owners association assessment lien unless the association first obtains a court order. Ergo the HOA/POA can not foreclose without giving the homeowner their day in court.
I'm not the author you are responding to but as someone who lobbied to prohibit any HOA foreclosure I think I am considerably more knowledgeable on this subject than you and your equivocal remarks.
HOA attorneys and management companies have engaged in i) the threat of foreclosure, and ii) actual foreclosure with impunity for nearly two decades. The primary purpose of this was to extort money from the homeowners for the benefit of the HOA attorney and management company vendors - not for the HOA.
Your claim about the "cost" is absurd. In reality, homes with large amounts of equity in them are targeted for foreclosure because it is a windfall for the industry vendors and their affiliates. Typically, the vendor will approach the HOA with a "contingency fee" agreement to control all steps of the collection process. Look up Captain Clauer or Wenonah Blevins. This is how HOA attorneys absconded with properties worth hundreds of thousands of dollars under the pretext of "representing the HOA".
Here's another case for you where the HOA attorney was demanding $25,000 over what was about a $350 debt initially. The term is "extortion" because the vendor is threatening the homeowner with great financial loss unless the homeowner pays the vendor this money. Ignorant boards are often easily conned into contracting with these HOA management company and HOA attorney groups.
Homeowner beats HOA attorney in court
The problem is that most homeowners can't afford to challenge these insidious practices so they just pay - and the industry knows it. The reality is that these "assessments" rarely benefit the homeowner to begin with. They are nothing less than an illicit tax by a private corporation.
The vast majority of all of these foreclosure actions were nonjudicial - meaning that the threats, etc. were all "off the record". The industry raked in lots and lots of money by demanding $3000 - $25000 over trivial alleged debts of say $300.
The law has been changed, but the process will be an "expedited" approval for foreclosure sale. The "trial" will be like a hearing on a HELOC foreclosure. Hopefully, however, it is beginning to help to curtail the industry abuse. I don't think the abuse will stop until "involuntary membership in a private corporation" is outlawed.
One local example of abuse is the WPOA. This despicable organization foreclosed on a number of properties for alleged failure to pay assessments. Then the WPOA transferred all of these properties (13-14) to the WVWA and adopted a resolution excusing the WVWA from having to pay assessments on all but one of the lots. If assessments were so important that you have to foreclose, then please explain this action? Who was WPOA serving? Certainly not the existing members who were foreclosed upon.
@ Anonymous October 14, 2011 9:30 AM said...
Please name the POA that forecloses on homesteads and then buys them back. I do not believe that any POA's in the area have ever done that.
No doubt you believe in the tooth fairy.
WPOA is an example of a POA in the area that buys them at the sale - even outbidding other bidders. Explain that one. The property was then gifted to the WVWA and the WVWA was then excused from having to pay assessments - the failure of which was the alleged basis for the nonjudicial foreclosure on the prior owner to begin with.
I have nothing to do with the foreclosure "fraud" if it exists.
You do if you support POAs foreclosing.
You however must have had someone in a POA rub you the wrong way at some time in the past. You do not appear to be very objective when it comes to POA's.
Here's something objective: they are bad things that offer nothing of value to the homeowners. They are a liability shifting and funding device that benefit the developer, local government, HOA attorneys, and HOA management companies, to the detriment of the involuntary funder members of the organization.
Why not search the Hays County court website to see how many lawsuits the WPOA has filed in just the last year. You decide who is really benefitting from the litigation. It certainly isn't the homeowners.
Wow, where can I buy the lots from WPOA. I can pay cash.
I want to be a predator banker as well.
Those commies over at WPOA should swap those foreclosed properties for the ATI water system and instead make the money screwing the homeowners.
That is what all HOAs are about: Power and control of the small homeowner. I pay $120.00 a year and what do I get?
ORomneyCare!
@Bambi Madoff said...
Wow, where can I buy the lots from WPOA. I can pay cash.
..What good would that do if they can take it back away from you to offer to another sucker. Wham, bam, thank you mam. Think twice before purchasing in a place that takes property from its members. There is a reason that membership is involuntary.
Anonymous 10:10am
You are funny! I can not believe that you really believe all those old saws that you were repeating. I have not been reading this blog for long but I have seen the same miss-truths repeated over and over with very lucid explanations of why they are wrong.
Do you appear in any comedy clubs in the area? You and Bubba S. should get together you and he would make a great comedy team!
Pay attention! It's called the Chamber of Commerce -- not Chamber of Civic Good Deeds. The business people who are the Chamber of Commerce and the City Council clamor for growth only because they want more customers for their goods and services. Growth enriches only shops and real estate agents, but all taxpayers foot the bill through higher property taxes required to provide schools, roads, and other services to the added population.
@ Patricia M. October 14, 2011 2:05 PM who said...
Anonymous 10:10am
You are funny! I can not believe that you really believe all those old saws that you were repeating. I have not been reading this blog for long but I have seen the same miss-truths repeated over and over with very lucid explanations of why they are wrong.
Spoken like a board member of an HOA. Let me guess, the WPOA board?
There is nothing funny about using foreclosure as the pretext to take property from involuntary members and giving that property to another alleged "nonprofit" which is then excused from paying assessments. The WPOA board shafted the former owners as well as all the remaining members of the WPOA. Why should anyone be forced to pay a dime to the WPOA? Indeed, more owners need to be informed so that they can work on unburdening their property from the HOA...section....by.....section.
You had the opportunity to provide your "lucid explanation" or to address all the lawsuits WPOA has filed over the past year. Failure to do so is a tacit admission of your inability to defend the indefensible.
The WPOA serves only its board members and the non-member VENDORS of the organization (attorneys, management, etc.) It's death won't be soon enough.
Who will you replace the WPOA with? WSP? That will be more of the same. Better the devil you know than the one you don't.
Anonymous 10:10am please site your source for the gifting of lots to WVWA after the WPOA foreclosed on them. I have seen that particular allegation on this blog several times and no one has ever said where they obtained that information. If it is true then someone should act on this issue. If it is not true then the issue should be put to rest and not be dragged out to be hashed over again and again.
Patricia M. said...
"Who will you replace the WPOA with? WSP? That will be more of the same. Better the devil you know than the one you don't."
Well, at least you admit the WPOA is the devil, and you should know, Prez. Just for the sake of argument,,, How about replacing it with NO POA at all. That seems to work very well for many unincorporated communities in Texas and elsewhere.
.
Clark Howard once told a caller on his radio show who was upset about her POA not enforcing the deed restrictions, that POAs were a democracy. He suggested she run for the board if she was so unhappy. The caller quickly ended the call. I had to laugh!
He was so spot on!
If you are so unhappy with your POA, run for the board. If you live in a subdivision with a POA find out what the process is to change your restrictions and try to change them.
It's up to YOU!
If you are not willing to attempt to remedy your own unhappiness and bring anything positive to the debate that is your problem.
Note that I use the word positive.
The constant regurgitating of the same useless and oftentimes false arguments adds nothing to the discourse.
And if you think taking a free ride on the backs of your neighbors who pay their fees is acceptable behavior, I think you should explain that deadbeat attitude to those very neighbors.
Prez POARG? I am sure I do not know what you are talking about. I am not "prez" of any thing that you belong to.
This blog is to discuss issues that affect the community. I was quoting an old saying that means sometimes you are better off with what you have than with something new. I wish to apologize to the WPOA and WSP if I offended them. I did not mean that either of those fine groups were "devil's".
Thank you PORAG for pointing out that we need to watch our language, especially print language. It is very easy to have things misconstrued when we are relying on the printed word alone.
POARG if the WPOA dissolves then who will fix the roads that the county does not own? Who will pick up dead animals on private roads? Who will stop your neighbor from fixing loud motorcycles at 2AM? Who will tell the neighbor running a daycare that the parents can not park in front of your drive? Who will tell your neighbor that they can't raise dogs behind a 8 foot tall fence or put in an enormous above ground pool in the front yard? How about the person who digs a water well with pump right next to your bedroom window. Without a POA/HOA they can do it.
The constant reply to this is the subdivision can pass deed restrictions and enforce them. Guess what you are then a POA! Just without dues or legal authority to enforce the restrictions.
Are you beginning to get the picture. There would be no one who would have the authority to do those things. The Sheriff's dept is stretched too thin to do all of these things and in some cases they can do nothing because they do not have the authority to enforce deed restrictions.
Think about this and if you still think you want no POA/HOA then call up some of your friends who live in close subdivisions like Woodcreek North and ask them how things are. You will be surprised. The subdivisions where no POA/HOA's work are those that the lot sizes are 5 acres or more. In small lot subdivisions no rules for homeowners does not work well. There are exceptions to every situation and I am sure that someone will bring them up. I would love to see how they make it work because maybe I could get some ideas from them.
I am posting this blog as my personal opinion and not that of the WPOA board. I am currently the President of the WPOA and would like to welcome any and all to attend any of our meetings.
Merry Merian
Anonymous said..."If you are so unhappy with your POA, run for the board."
What a timely suggestion. It just so happens that 3 members of the WPOA Board will have their terms expiring at the end of this year. The WPOA will be accepting nominations for Board members to fill those vacancies at their General Member's Meeting on Saturday Nov. 19 at 10:00am at the WPOA Office, 109 Woodacre Drive. You can nominate anyone that lives in the area covered by the WPOA including the Subdivisions of Woodcreek North and Eagle Rock. You can even nominate yourself. The nomination can be made from the floor at the meeting. A mail-out election will than be held and ballots will be sent out starting Dec. 1. There is no limit to the number of nominations that can be made. Come to the meeting if you want to make a difference!
@Patricia M. October 14, 2011 10:26 PM who said...
Who will you replace the WPOA with? WSP? That will be more of the same. Better the devil you know than the one you don't.
Well Pat, I would have to agree with POARG - you have created a false dichotomy "either WPOA or WSP". Step outside of your box. Homeowners don't need a POA.
The alleged "positives" about POAs are all myths -
I saw another myth from another Anonymous - the claim that POAs are democracies. Nothing could be further from the truth. The claim was made in an effort to justify and perpetuate involuntary membership POA corporations with the argument that they can be reformed as long as the "right people are in charge". I've got news for you. The right people will never be in charge. Your democracy is no democracy at all.
Even democracies have limits and protections for individual rights. No such thing exists in the corporate POA.
Homeowners have not even had the right to run for office or to vote in these things, ever. The right to run for board offices was forced by statute effective 09/01/2011. The right to vote will not be effective until 01/01/2012. These are being forced by statute because POA boards (like WPOA) are invariably run by individuals that wish to maintain a position of superiority and control over their neighbors. So much for the faux theories of democracy.
Most absurdly, the acts of POA boards is justified based upon aesthetics and the preservation of property values. The primary method of selling POA-burdened property is fear. You are even using fear to try to sell the concept that WPOA would be better than WSP. You obviously have a stake in the WPOA. Which board member are you?
People buy homes for THEIR shelter, use & enjoyment, and to raise families. POA corporations wholly disregard the fundamental purpose of housing under the false pretext of "property value".
What "value" did the WPOA confer on its own members by foreclosing on them? What effect did such foreclosures have on the "values" of other properties in the subdivision? At what point do you realize that restrictive covenants (or the real estate marketing gimmick "protective covenants") weren't put there for your benefit, have no correlation to "value", etc.? Of course you don't really care so long as a POA corporation affords you the opportunity to control others and impose hardships with impunity, do you. Did you also pick wing off of insects as a child?
Can you point to a single subdivision where you can prove that a POA corporation had anything at all to do with "value"? Oh, I know. The excuse will be that it's the economy. Well if it's the economy when things are down, then it's the economy (not the POA) when things are up. A POA is truly a burden and not an asset to the involuntary members. If it was an asset, membership wouldn't be involuntary.
You were correct in characterizing the WPOA corporation as the "devil" and it's time for homeowners to get that particular devil off their backs. No one but a few ego-ridden board members needs a WPOA.
By the way, all one needs to do is to visit the Hays County Clerk's office to get the official record on WPOA foreclosures, property transfers to David Baker's WVWA organization, and "resolutions" excusing Baker and his organization from having to pay assessments on the properties. Feel free to provide your "lucid explanation" at any time, Pat.
Any one can run for office in a POA if they own property in that POA. You do not have to live there to run for and/or be elected to the board.
The WPOA has always let any property owner who was current with their assessments run for the board. Under the current legislative changes the WPOA now will allow any property owner to run for office whether or not they have ever paid any assessment during the time they have owned their property.
The WPOA will be having elections to fill 3 upcoming positions on the board in Nov. If you are a property owner please contact the WPOA office if you are interested in serving on the board or any of our committees.
@Merry Merian who said...
POARG if the WPOA dissolves then who will fix the roads that the county does not own?
Turn the roads over to the county. WPOA owners pay taxes like other county residents. Do they get a discount for the roads in front of their homes? No. Owners get the added insult of having to pay assessments under threat of foreclosure - and a significant portion of those assessments do not go to road maintenance. Also, property taxes are deductible. WPOA assessments are not.
Who will pick up dead animals on private roads?
See answer above and use common sense.
Who will stop your neighbor from fixing loud motorcycles at 2AM? Who will tell the neighbor running a daycare that the parents can not park in front of your drive? Who will tell your neighbor that they can't raise dogs behind a 8 foot tall fence or put in an enormous above ground pool in the front yard? How about the person who digs a water well with pump right next to your bedroom window. Without a POA/HOA they can do it.
More fear mongering. One simply has deed restrictions that do not impose involuntary membership in a POA.
The constant reply to this is the subdivision can pass deed restrictions and enforce them. Guess what you are then a POA! Just without dues or legal authority to enforce the restrictions.
Partially correct. The subdivision already has deed restrictions. One can have deed restrictions WITHOUT a (W)POA, ...and without a kangaroo court, bad reputation, involuntary membership, and all the other things that are ubiquitous with a (W)POA.
Are you beginning to get the picture. There would be no one who would have the authority to do those things.
The owners already have authority to do those things to the extent the deed restrictions allow. To the extent the deed restrictions do not provide so, then the WPOA likewise does not have the authority. You are NOT the lone ranger. You are an illicit dictator wearing the mask of the WPOA.
The Sheriff's dept is stretched too thin to do all of these things and in some cases they can do nothing because they do not have the authority to enforce deed restrictions.
The county DA can enforce deed restrictions. and so can the owners.
Think about this and if you still think you want no POA/HOA then call up some of your friends who live in close subdivisions like Woodcreek North and ask them how things are. You will be surprised. The subdivisions where no POA/HOA's work are those that the lot sizes are 5 acres or more.
Fear mongering again, Pat? Try using empirical evidence instead of myth.
In small lot subdivisions no rules for homeowners does not work well. There are exceptions to every situation and I am sure that someone will bring them up. I would love to see how they make it work because maybe I could get some ideas from them.
You already have deed restrictions in your small lot subdivision. The owners do not need the WPOA.
I am posting this blog as my personal opinion and not that of the WPOA board. I am currently the President of the WPOA and would like to welcome any and all to attend any of our meetings.
Merry Merian
Who controls the agenda? The WPOA is a PERFECT example of how much of a failure HOAs really are. Owners should look at the Hays County Clerk's office records. Also look at the number of lawsuits the WPOA provokes in Hays County District Court with its own involuntary members.
Does anyone really think that WPOA represents the "owners" ? The primary profiteers are the board (ego), management (money), and attorneys (money) - all to the owners' detriment. The owners are suffering from abused spouse syndrome. They take a beating but falsely believe they can't live without the WPOA.
NEWS FLASH: The WPOA isn't doing anything for you. You won't start to live until you rid yourself of the WPOA.
@Merry Merian said...
Any one can run for office in a POA if they own property in that POA. You do not have to live there to run for and/or be elected to the board.
The WPOA has always let any property owner who was current with their assessments run for the board.
In other words, a dictatorial board previously decided who was allowed to run for office and to oppose them. Real "democracy" at its finest.
Under the current legislative changes the WPOA now will allow any property owner to run for office whether or not they have ever paid any assessment during the time they have owned their property.
In other words, the incumbent WPOA board can no longer prevent opponents from being able to run for office. Let's be real clear that the WPOA isn't "allowing" anything. They are now prohibited by law from preventing owners from running for office.
To clarify further, any bylaw provision or other "rule" that the WPOA might try to impose as a pre-requisite for an owner to be a candidate for a board position is VOID.
The WPOA will be having elections to fill 3 upcoming positions on the board in Nov. If you are a property owner please contact the WPOA office if you are interested in serving on the board or any of our committees.
Will the WPOA be publicizing the identities of the nominees beforehand so that owners can verify whether their nomination is being recognized? Probably not. ....to be real sure that your nomination doesn't disappear or get lost due to clerical error, prospective nominees should show up at the meeting and be nominated from the floor.
Work towards ridding yourself of involuntary membership in the organization. Be rid of the WPOA corporation and the threat that it represents to your home, your health, and your bank account.
Well, I certainly hope Realtors, property owners who have their homes and lots for sale or are considering selling their property, potential buyers, WSP, as well as the builders are reading this and laughing out loud at Mr. POARS rantings.
Woodcreek North and EagleRock are great places to live and that's a fact.
Alas, some people take on a certain negative persona early in life and will never change.
POARS probably would benefit from counseling to get over whatever happened to him in his childhood that has resulted in a constant state of anger and agitation.
Yes the WPOA has been forced to accept nominees and votes from its members whether or not they have paid for Assessments, are being sued, are not in compliance with Deed Restrictions, etc.
They used to say that you had to be a "member in good standing" to have any civil rights before the new law became effective. So, yes they did deny basic civil rights to their members before Sept. 1, 2011. Although they could have, they did not voluntarily make the change.
.
What happened with the ordinance to limit water usage for watering lawns, even if pumping directly from the river?
Did that pass?
Not so anonymous @ 1:19pm is running out of argument. Pulling the bogus civil rights argument is the height of absurdity.
To Anonymous Oct. 13, 8:35 AM, who said, "Notice how the 'road upgrade through the square' gets funded and the others do not."
Go to www.campotexas.org. Under "Adopted 2035 Plan," click on "2035 Regional Transportation Plan." There you find the 120-page plan up to the year 2035.
You probably know that CAMPO undertakes only projects on which the total CAMPO membership agrees. (Our member is Commissioner Will Conley.) If the Plan does not include something a locality really wants, the locality can request that project again -- and new ones -- at future meetings.
As you say, only the Square, in the Wimberley area, was even suggested for improvement. Conley is more interested in getting RR 12
made into a Parkway all the way from the Junction to San Marcos. That is already in the Plan. Making RR 12 "more impressive" will help Conley's land development contributors.
Read at least some of the CAMPO Plan. You'll find a world of info there that our elected officials hope we won't bother to dig into.
It is true that POAs don't do anything that the landowners couldn't do for themselves. It's just that some people would rather pay a fee for others to do things for them.
Deed restrictions say what can and cannot be done in a subdivision. An individual landowner can ask the courts to enforce the deed restrictions. It will cost the landowner some court fees, but the WPOA doesn't have money to take issues to court anyhow.
Anon at 4:57 said, "Deed restrictions say what can and cannot be done in a subdivision. An individual landowner can ask the courts to enforce the deed restrictions. It will cost the landowner some court fees, but the WPOA doesn't have money to take issues to court anyhow.
Yes, anyone can enforce the Deed Restrictions and they probably should if the job is to get done. Just look around the area and you will see hardly any enforcement from the WPOA. They haven't been keeping up with road repairs just a bunch of speed bumps and topping on 3 short roads in the Eagle Rock Heights Section.
The WPOA would have plenty of money if they didn't spend about 43% of their revenue on administrative expenses, most of which is in support of their 3 employees, The office manager alone eats up nearly half of the $100,000 employee portion. Less employees and better budgeting would make a big difference. Take a look at the 2011 Budget that was released last January, it's all there. It has been calculated that it takes over 800 property owners' maintenance fees just to support the employee's salaries, stipends and benefits.
So you think you can enforce your deed restrictions on your own. Are you ready to be called names, insulted and harassed all day every day. Also spend all your money on court costs just to lose to some lawyer. That is the reality of enforcing deed restrictions. Your neighbors hate you and take great delight in telling anyone who will listen how evil you are (among other unsavory titles). People hate the person who enforces the rules. You call the cops just to be told that they can not do anything for you.
If that is what you want then go for it. If you do not believe this post then I suggest you read the pervious posts against the WPOA and it's officers and staff. Ask yourself why do these people want to get rid of the WPOA. Do they really care about the property owners or do the have an agenda of their own.
My MY MY! Are we feeling paranoid today people!
Does any one know what the ruling was on the boarding house issue? I would love to know if we can now have people other than immediate family share our homes or do we have to get permission to have roommates from the city and our "nosy neighbors"?
Speaking of deed restriction enforcement someone in the eagle rock neighborhood please tell the "town crier" to clean up his place and quit bugging his neighbors.
The anonymous that thinks the property owners can enforce deed restrictions is living in a dream world. Up here in Eagle Rock we have a homeowner who has been in violation of the deed restrictions for as long as I have lived here. He has refused to clean up his yard or move his cars even when the cops tell him to. If the WPOA can't make him clean up his mess what makes you think the neighbors can. He trys to tell us we need to follow the deed restrictions all the time. I for one don't have the money to take him to court and everytime I call the cops they tell me there is nothing they can do unless we get a court order. Why don't you come talk to him Mr. Anonymous and see how far you get.
@Anonymous 10/15/2011 9:17 PM who said...
So you think you can enforce your deed restrictions on your own.
Any property owner can and so can the county DA.
Are you ready to be called names, insulted and harassed all day every day. Also spend all your money on court costs just to lose to some lawyer.
Perhaps you didn't have a meritorious claim to begin with? How much money does the WPOA spend in legal fees to provoke these disputes? How much money does the WPOA cost the homeowners that it sues?
That is the reality of enforcing deed restrictions. Your neighbors hate you and take great delight in telling anyone who will listen how evil you are (among other unsavory titles).
Really? So how does wearing the mask of the HOA corporation change any of that? Do you feel comfortable as long as you are wearing a hood? Do you think your neighbors are so stupid that they don't realize who is behind the WPOA lawsuit?
People hate the person who enforces the rules. You call the cops just to be told that they can not do anything for you.
If it is the rules that got you here then what good are they? Perhaps you should do a little reading on the Stanley Milgram's "Perils of Obedience". Milgrim was a psychologist that studied why people would mindlessly follow "rules". He was studying the behavior of Nazis. Sound familiar?
If that is what you want then go for it. If you do not believe this post then I suggest you read the pervious posts against the WPOA and it's officers and staff. Ask yourself why do these people want to get rid of the WPOA. Do they really care about the property owners or do the have an agenda of their own.
Hmmm. You really don't make any sense at all. Apparently it's okay to enforce "rules" as long as the enforcer is a corporation? How is that helpful to the property owners?
You are giving the WPOA credit where none is due. I haven't seen any elephants in the trees so I suppose the WPOA is responsible for keeping the trees free of elephants, too?
Those "fees" you are talking about are utilized on administration and arbitrary and capricious provocation of litigation. The WPOA does not represent you and it certainly doesn't represent the members that it sues.
Don't worry. The WPOA's geographic territory has been shrinking for a while. When put to a vote, an overwhelming majority of owners (virtually unanimously) wanted their property free of the burden of the WPOA.
I live in Dripping Springs. I thought it is bad here.
You WPOA people are nuts.
No wonder ATI can screw the homeowners.there.
Whew!! Someone definitely has his panties in a twist relative to the WPOA!! Does he have nothing better to do than to spew negativities. If this "anonymous" poster is who I think it is, "negativity" should be his middle name. (These posters leave a very definite footprint in their writings.) If Mr. Anonymous is SO unhappy with HOAs, POAs and the WPOA in particular, why doesn't he just MOVE! Or at the very least, come down from his Ivory Tower and try to find something POSITIVE/CONSTRUCTIVE to do and/or say. What truly is behind all of this; what is HIS agenda?
Hilarious! The hyperventilating repetitive, negative lambaster-in-chief resorts to calling people Nazis.
He's the first one to call out his neighbors for no good reason other than the fact they've asked him to leave them alone.
Someone here suggested he move if he was so unhappy.
Well, if he keeps up his lying assault on a wonderful community, the value of his home will plummet and potential buyers will just say no and the community will be stuck with him.
@Anonymous October 16, 2011 who said...
Hilarious! The hyperventilating repetitive, negative lambaster-in-chief resorts to calling people Nazis.
The only mention of Nazis on this page was with reference to Stanley Milgram's writings on the Perils of Obedience and the dangers of promoting blindly following rules. Do you support blindly following rules without regard to the substance of the rule?
He's the first one to call out his neighbors for no good reason other than the fact they've asked him to leave them alone.
Neighbors? No. The WPOA? Yes. Catch a clue. The WPOA is a corporation, it is not "the neighbors".
Someone here suggested he move if he was so unhappy.
What happened to the democratic processes described of promoting change? Change is already occurring. Laws have been changed to prohibit the WPOA from engaging in practices it was engaging in. More changes will occur as WPOA's geographic territory shrinks. A majority of owners doesn't like the WPOA. It's clear that the mentality of those that run HOAs isn't going to change unless forced by state law or rendered moot by owners getting together to remove the burden of the WPOA from their property.
Well, if he keeps up his lying assault on a wonderful community, the value of his home will plummet and potential buyers will just say no and the community will be stuck with him.
Where is the lying assault? The WPOA has already caused the value of the home to plummet - especially for those that it targets with litigation. The WPOA also interferes with member's use and enjoyment of their property and has divested quite a few members of their ownership of property via foreclosure.
The lawsuits that the WPOA files against its own members isn't exactly a selling point either. Is the WPOA disclosing all of those lawsuits on resale certificates as required by law? Educated buyers should say "no". Thanks for pointing out that the WPOA is not a "selling point" for educated buyers. The WPOA is one reason not to buy property in the area. The property will become far more valuable without the WPOA.
Anonymous 10/16/2011 12:02 AM said...
The anonymous that thinks the property owners can enforce deed restrictions is living in a dream world.
Not true. However, the deed restrictions must actually exist someplace besides your imagination.
Up here in Eagle Rock we have a homeowner who has been in violation of the deed restrictions for as long as I have lived here.
How long have you lived there? There is a 4 year statute of limitations on enforcing deed restrictions.
He has refused to clean up his yard or move his cars even when the cops tell him to.
Your imagination is rather active. First of all, the "cops" are not in that business. Were these "cops" or just WPOA board busybodies? Second, you haven't identified any deed restriction - only your dissatisfaction with someone else's property.
If the WPOA can't make him clean up his mess what makes you think the neighbors can. He trys to tell us we need to follow the deed restrictions all the time. I for one don't have the money to take him to court and everytime I call the cops they tell me there is nothing they can do unless we get a court order.
Oh, so this time the cops can't do anything but previously they could order him to move cars? I think you are confused. It's doubtful that there is any deed restriction being violated - only your sense of what your neighbor's property should look like. Why not focus on your own? You have, however, raise an interesting point about the likelihood of arbitrary and capricious enforcement of deed restrictions. The WPOA board picks and chooses who to sue based upon board affiliation or lack thereof.
Why don't you come talk to him Mr. Anonymous and see how far you get.
That would be difficult to do for 5 reasons: 1) I don't know who you are; 2) I have no idea who your neighbor might be or where; 3) you haven't identified any deed restriction violation; 4) to the extent that a violation might have occurred, the statute of limitations has passed if you have been here for 4 years or longer; and 5) good fences make good neighbors. Stay on your side of the fence and you'll both be better off.
@ Anonymous 2:58am
AMEN! brother (or sister)
@ Anonymous at 5:34am who said;
"Whew!! Someone definitely has his panties in a twist relative to the WPOA!!"
We just heard form a girl named ? ? ?
She didn't think we'd know who
Her name is what lawyers do
And a boy Johnny sang about too
Her writing style is uniquely made
Her vitriol so angrily portrayed
She attacks from a secret place
With words so devoid of grace
Good morning all:
Last evening it was brought to my attention that The Hays County Roundup had allowed an anonymous poster to post slanderous lies regarding my performance and livelihood as Office Manager of the WPOA.
I have been in that position for over 13 years. A year to year review of my salary and benefits will reveal my voluntarily giving up raises and benefits which under careful consideration I did so in order to allow more funding to go toward other budgetary items such as roadwork, signage, mowing, upkeep of common areas such as our children's park and entrances, brush removal, dumpsites cleanup, deed restriction enforcement, and other services that benefit the community including the need to have a legal budget.
I am not the reason for budgetary woes but rather a fudiciary watchdog when it comes to other peoples' money.
I will gladly sit down with any property owner in our areas of service to show how their $120.00 annual maintenance fee is spent from year to year.
I contacted the Department of Labor last month regarding two particular board members who have personally attacked me with lies and innuendo and created a hostile work environment. I have also explained my situation to my lawyer. I have rights and intend to exercise them.
The last time the not-so-anonymous poster attacked me personally on this site, I contacted the Editor and requested he reveal the anonymous poster's identity. He would not but he did remove the post that assaulted my honor and dignity.
However, I can and will file for injunctive relief and a motion to compel should I decide to take my case to court.
Afterall, it is my honor and dignity and my livelihood at stake.
The not-so-anonymous poster should be compeled by the Editor of this site to come out of the shadows.
Thank you for reading my post.
Regards,
Janelle Delaney
Thank you, 7:17 AM!! The hyperventilating repetitive, negative lambaster-in-chief (to quote your label) has been given entirely too much time feeding into his verbiage! Shut him down by shutting him out! Our Community needs not his useless rants!!!
PS: Apparently, there was a posting earlier today (at 5:34 am) to which a response was made
in the form of a "poem". Yes, my name is Sue and this "poem" alluded to a "Sue". After reading
all this ugly stuff today, maybe I'm being abit thin-skinned, but whatever you're slingin' out there,
it ain't stickin' to my wall. Not MY post!!
There's an adage that goes, "Follow the money" if you want to know what's happening. In politics it should read, "Follow the public money if you want to know who's being paid off."
Elected officials have plenty to say about where/how our public funds are spent. Politicians (the name "Will Conley" springs to mind) pay off their big contributors by seeing that public money is spent in ways that benefit those contributors.
Let's see:
Will Conley (our representative on Capitol Area Metropolitan Planning Organization - CAMPO) saw to it that $24.1 million is being spent to make a grand parkway on RR 12 from the Junction to San Marcos. Lots of visitors from San Antonio and Houston use that route to come to Wimberley, and land developers and real estate brokers would love that trip to be on commodious -- even grand -- roadways. "Done!" says Conley. (Campo 2035 Plan, p.80 --"reconstruct to 4-lane undivided roadway")
As I write this, 8.3 miles of Highway 290 West are beginning to be spruced up -- with a median, no less -- from RR 12 to RM 165, just past Henly. That road ($27.4 million) will then be a wonderful pathway to Henly, where HTGCD Board
president James Skipton III has over 200 acres he wants to develop. Oh, and Commissioners Court will decide on November 1 whether they will improve and take over roads in Mystic Creek Subdivision at Henly. Skipton III owns land there. A further fact: young hothead Jon Cobb, son of Bert Cobb, head of Commissioners Court, has been nominated to be a member of the HTGCD Rules Committee. Hm-m-m.
HTGCD approved a large amount of groundwater to be pumped by Wimberley Springs Partners (WSP). WSP said on its permit application that the water would be used to water two golf courses. But the WSP golf courses, by terms of a contract WSP has with Aqua Texas, will be watered by wastewater effluent from homes in Woodcreek North, Wimberley Springs, and perhaps elsewhere. The true use of the WSP water is to supply houses to be built on lots owned by WSP. Skipton has every reason to vote to give water to WSP since he himself may want to put in such a permit application when/if he develops his Henly acreage.
I very rarely, if ever, post here but feel I must break my word to myself. I feel I must come to the defense of myself and my co-workers at the WPOA given the ugly things I have seen over the past couple of days being posted here.
First: Janelle Delaney, the WPOA Office Manager and my immediate supervisor. Janelle is a fierce, strong-willed, dedicated employee and champion for our Community. She has given up much for our Community but continues to give back in many ways. She has gleaned more knowledge and history of our neighborhood during her tenure than any us will in our lifetime; her capacity of retention is remarkable. She guards the WPOA finances, along with the Treasurer, most judiciously and as checked on by an audit committee of your peers. She has, indeed, given up vacations, monies and benefits in order to assist the WPOA and its residents. All of this is recorded in public documentation. In the past, there have been issues of wrong doing among Board members regarding embezzlement: Janelle did NOT back down when these Board members tried to force her out of her position in order to hide their transgressions. She will not, cannot, give up her principles and integrity. She is to be lauded for this in a time when so many will give that up for a dollar or a dime. In my very humble opinion, she deserves every blessed penny she gets in the way of salary and whatever small benefits the WPOA can offer her. I say this as a friend and a co-worker.
Mr. Bill, our maintenance man, gives also above and beyond. During this present season to next Spring,
he works a week on and a week off...to save the Organization money. But should he be needed for
whatever in the way of a maintenance call, he IS available. Yes, he does receive a flat rate gas stipend for the use of his own vehicle in doing WPOA business.
As for myself: I serve the WPOA and the Community in 2 areas. First as an administrative
assistant to the Office Manager. I have served in this position for almost 4 years.
During the many years prior to my move to Texas,my honesty, integrity or adherence to principles was never
called into question. I have learned much from my neighbors and from Janelle. I have taken much time to read about this organization and its past via notes going back to the early 1980s. While so much has changed with its growth, there is much that remains the same regarding what it takes to make a community a neighborhood. Even then with way fewer residents, there were those who could not see the benefit of cohesiveness or the benefit of working together. I am pleased with what we are
accomplishing from within our office; always an uphill battle against those who would speak ill
of us. I, too, have taken a pay cut and work more hours. I do not have any "benefits" as such
working for the WPOA, other than a short commute.
My second area of service has been on the Board for the WPOA. Here, again, I am proud of what
I do in this regard. Most recently, I have been the Chair for the New Vision Committee with
others in the Community on the continuing development of the Jacob's Well Community Garden.
This has been both a physical and mental challenge to keep this project alive and progressing over the
last 18 months.
We do try to do our very best with what we have to work with. Should there be folks out there
who really need an issue discussed, worked on, solved, wouldn't it best to bring it to the front
door rather than bringing it here under the cloak of "Anonymous"?
Wow, an informational post from the Mayor of Wimberley turned into a very nasty close to record beating Roundup comment section about the WPOA.
How sad and cantankerous the residents of the WPOA have become.
It has gotten so bad I am compelled to quote LA police beating victim Rodney King:
"Why can't we all just get along."
Clearly, this mess needs to be sorted out at the next few WPOA meetings. Such grumbling and hostility about the WPOA both anonymously and with real people is why any person considering moving to Wimberley and Woodcreek needs to think twice about doing so.
This type of growing community poison will only destroy what property values and renting ability we have left in WPOA (I own a rental property there), especially after all the stuff about WTI raping homeowner pocketbooks with extremely high water utility fees.
I don't know about the rest of you WPOA residents, but I want to eventually either 1) sell my rental property with some value left, 2) live there in peace at some point, or 3) be able to rent it out to a good family or couple at a fair rate with civil neighbors.
In other words, all you WPOA residents etc, need to stop acting like dysfunctional immature children and work this stuff out.
Janelle, if you or someone else would please post in the Roundup when the next WPOA meeing is, I would appreciate it. Thank you.
I personally would prefer to sign my name to any post but after reading the extremely negative post's this weekend I am afraid to sign my name. The negative anti-WPOA people are bullies. They hide behind anonymous postings and slander good people. If they really believe what they preach then why not sign their names. I guess they are afraid too. I can understand that.
@ Janelle Delaney 10/16/2011 10:06 AM said...
Last evening it was brought to my attention that The Hays County Roundup had allowed an anonymous poster to post slanderous lies regarding my performance and livelihood as Office Manager of the WPOA.
1. The proper word for written defamation is "libel".
2. Calling something a "slanderous lie" is inaccurate and redundant. In any event, truth is a defense to defamation.
I contacted the Department of Labor last month regarding two particular board members who have personally attacked me with lies and innuendo and created a hostile work environment. I have also explained my situation to my lawyer. I have rights and intend to exercise them.
Well do it with your own money. If you find an attorney that is actually interested in counseling you rather than simply taking your money, you would likely be advised that i) no defamation has taken place, and ii) discovery can be rather unpleasant when those you sue are then empowered to look into all your activities at the WPOA for the past 13 years.
Oh, and there will likely be a number of questions about those WPOA foreclosures, conveyance of properties to the WVWA, and all the lawsuits that the WPOA has been involved in.
However, I can and will file for injunctive relief and a motion to compel should I decide to take my case to court.
Injunctive relief for what? You cannot obtain an injunction to prohibit speech - such prior restraints on speech are constitutionally impermissible. A motion to compel is relevant only if you sought something in discovery and the other side refused to produce it. Of course your request had to be reasonable. Based upon whatever has been posted here so far, you do not have a case. There is no shortage of attorneys perfectly willing to take your money, file suit, serve discovery, file a motion to compel, and then tell you he's sorry when the court refuses to compel.
Afterall, it is my honor and dignity and my livelihood at stake.
So, I suppose you oppose terminating the WPOA because you would be out of a job? Is that a legitimate reason for people's homes and property to be subjected to perpetual liens and all the other bad things that come with being burdened by an HOA corporation?
The not-so-anonymous poster should be compeled by the Editor of this site to come out of the shadows.
No one mentioned you or your job. The closest thing that might have been there was a comment by another poster on how much of the WPOA's revenues are spent on administrative personnel including the office manager. You did not dispute that comment. If true, keep in mind that truth is an absolute defense. If false, well exactly how would you be harmed? You might want to re-think whether your claim of "slander" (i.e., libel) has any merit to begin with.
Regards,
Janelle Delaney
Thanks for asking Rocky.
The next WPOA board meeting is being held this thursday, Oct. 20 at 2:30pm in the WPOA office in Woodcreek North.
Everyone is welcome.
It is truly sad when a few people with their own agendas can disrupt a informational blog. I hope these people will come to the meeting and air their grievances in an open meeting face to face instead of involving the entire community in a, for want of a better term, cat fight.
I would like to assure the community that these few negative people do not represent the community as a whole or the WPOA board and staff.
Please be assured that the WPOA board and staff are there to serve you and listen to your concerns. We strive to do our best for the property owners and be good neighbors to the entire valley.
I and the board and staff look forward to seeing you this thursday.
@Rocky & @ Sue
Rocky said:
I don't know about the rest of you WPOA residents, but I want to eventually either 1) sell my rental property with some value left, 2) live there in peace at some point, or 3) be able to rent it out to a good family or couple at a fair rate with civil neighbors.
Hey Rocky, people don't reside in a corporation. However all three of your apparently mutually exclusive options would appear to require elimination of the WPOA corporation. What do you think decreases value? How can you live in peace with a contentious organization dictating your use and enjoyment? Do you consider an organization that takes your property via foreclosure and gifts it to WVWA to be a civil organization?
Hey Sue who said:
Most recently, I have been the Chair for the New Vision Committee with others in the Community on the continuing development of the Jacob's Well Community Garden.
Jacobs Well is county property which raises the question in this forum as to what the heck you are doing. However, how about elaborating on that "new vision" of foreclosing on residents and gifting property to the WVWA?
Should there be folks out there who really need an issue discussed, worked on, solved, wouldn't it best to bring it to the front door rather than bringing it here under the cloak of "Anonymous"?
Really? "Bringing it to the front door" simply fosters a continuation of the same bad conduct. "Keeping it in-house" perpetuates abuse. WPOA's own president ("Merry") admitted that the board changed its practices only when state law (i.e., outside forces) forced it to do so. "Merry" tried characterizing the Board's new policy as some beneficient act of the board. You can bet that the WPOA board would never have relinquished its ability to dictate the outcome of an election until is was forced by law to allow owners to run for office.
Guess what? Starting January 1, 2012 the board can no longer disregard owners' votes using "secret ballots" and excuses like "good standing" or "no violations" at the whim of the board! The right to vote and have it counted is now also mandated by state law - because HOA boards were not about to change their stripes, were they? No doubt the board president will issue some statement about what the WPOA is "allowing".
Merry, Merry quite contrary
How does your (W)POA grow?
With no running and no voting rights and foreclosed homes all in a row?
Perhaps RoundUp would find an interesting story suitable for its own article regarding WPOA and its involvement with David Baker's WVWA.
Follow the transfer of properties to WVWA and the resolution excusing WVWA from having to pay assessments. Meanwhile WPOA forecloses on other members over assessments.
Check out the Hays County Clerk's office and please give the WPOA board ample opportunity it doesn't really want to explain its actions.
to Merry Merian (WPOA Board president):
Did the entire membership of WPOA vote to give some foreclosed-on lots to WVWA, or was that merely a decision of the WPOA Board?
Jacob's Well Community Garden is on private property NOT belonging to County. So named because of area; like new elementary school.
Also, Merry, what was the reasoning behind not making WVWA pay the $120 per year per lot "maintenance fee" that every other landowner in WPOA pays? And did the total membership vote on that?
Sounds like an arbitrary and capricious enforcement of restrictive covenants. Any other owner that want to to be excused from paying maintenance fees should submit a request to be excused from paying maintenance fees to the board via certified mail, return receipt requested.
Anyone that is a defendant in litigation with the WPOA where the WPOA is seeking "foreclosure" should also raise the defense of arbitrary, capricious, and discriminatory application of the restrictive covenants. There is more than a little bit of explaining for the WPOA board to do.
If the WPOA is so willing to give these perks to organizations like the WVWA, one can only wonder if the board members are excusing themselves from having to pay assessments. Why not demand the maintenance fee payment history on board members' lots from the office manager? Will the office manager refuse to provide records showing that the board members themselves have been paying (or not) their assessments?
Excusing the WVWA from paying assessments is the same as distributing dividends from the WPOA to the WVWA. Has the WPOA been reporting these dividends to the IRS?
Is Wimberley Springs Partners paying $120 per lot per year on its many, many lots in WPOA-land?
@ the Anonymous 10/17/2011 1:03 PM who said...
Jacob's Well Community Garden is on private property NOT belonging to County. So named because of area; like new elementary school.
"Private property" - you mean property titled to WVWA? This is the same property that David Baker owned and then profited from by unloading it to WVWA (whose unwitting contributors paid for it). Then your former county commissioners gave WVWA $3 million of taxpayer dollars for this same land and additional property and allowed WVWA to retain title to the property!
1. County taxpayers paid for the property but David Baker's WVWA retains title at taxpayer expense;
2. WVWA is given a preferential property tax rate;
3. WVWA is excused from paying assessments to WPOA;
4. the WPOA board is improving it at other WPOA members' expense;
5. the WPOA might even be paying to lease the property from the WVWA
Can the other members of the WPOA demand that the WPOA improve their property? WIll the other members get paid to have their property improved?
The WPOA board might be working for David Baker, but it certainly isn't working for the rest of the members.
At the October 11, 2011 meeting of the Hays County Commissioners Court, the judge and commissioners made their appointments to the Citizens Committee for the Hays County Transportation Plan. Judge Cobb appointed Winton Porterfield (local head of Wimberley Springs Partners, Dwain York (Supt., WISD), and Warren Kettleman. Commissioner Will Conley appointed Glen Straube, Michael Moeller, and Jeffrey Jewett.
I guess Conley didn't want to be the one to appoint Winton Porterfield, his buddy and a land developer, and so he got Cobb to do it.
@ Merry Merian who said...
It is truly sad when a few people with their own agendas can disrupt a informational blog.
What agenda are you trying to disrupt this blog with?
I would like to assure the community that these few negative people do not represent the community as a whole or the WPOA board and staff.
The WPOA board and staff speaks for itself. Really. Itself... not for any other individuals of the subdivision.
Please be assured that the WPOA board and staff are there to serve you and listen to your concerns.
Equivocally stated. Reminds one of a Twilight Zone episode entitled "To Serve Man". Extraterrestrial visitors claimed they came Earth to "serve man"... promising the elimination of societal ills. They read from a book the title of which was translated as "To Serve Man". Earthlings were invited to travel to the visitor's planet.
While boarding the visitor's ship, one of the passengers finds out too late what the book really was. The book, "To Serve Man", was a cookbook. Man was the main course.
To Serve Man
Don't be the main course for the WPOA.
We strive to do our best for the property owners and be good neighbors to the entire valley.
Which property owners would that be? Just David Baker's WVWA? How about the owners that WPOA sues? What about the owners WPOA foreclosed on or threatened foreclosure on?
"HOA Community" does not represent any community. He or she is a disturbed individual.
Take you Meds and stop attacking decent people with your vengeful ignorance. The more you write in this blog, the more disturbed you become.
We all know what you have to deal with in the middle of the night - YOURSELF!
If I were the WPOA I would have security at the next Board meeting.
Hey Anonymous,
HOA corporations don't equate to community at all. The WPOA is a corporation run by board members and their agents for the benefit of those controlling the board - NOT the involuntary members of the WPOA.
You know as much as Rocky complains about corporatocracy in his blogs, you'd think he'd have something to say about having his Woodcreek rental property burdened by an involuntary membership corporation.
To the extent that the WPOA corporation is a "person" under the law, it is at best ONE member of the community in that area - not the whole community and certainly not representative of the community of individuals in the Woodcreek area.
How blind must you be such that you can't event distinguish between a corporation and the owners out there? Where is the attack on "the community"? The owners (aside perhaps from the WVWA) have not been attacked at all. In fact, their plight as VICTIMS of the i) WPOA corporation and ii) WVWA organization is what is being disclosed.
If WPOA were a "community" then it would be quite cannibalistic as it feeds mercilessly on its own members. Wake up. An involuntary membership corporation is not the people of Woodcreek. The corporation is simply another "resident" of the area - and a real deadbeat bully at that. It always demands money from all the other owners and threatens them with foreclosure. It then spends that money collected on just about everything EXCEPT what the money was taken for in the first place.
The only people that need security are the homeowners and they need to be protected FROM the WPOA corporation. Hopefully, the owners will vote to remove the WPOA from their property and their lives. They can do this by voting to eliminate the restriction that burdens their lots with involuntary membership in the WPOA ....section....by....section. They don't need permission from the WPOA corporation to do so.
I'm confused is the WSP and the WPOA charge the same fees why are you not mad at them too?
We who are members of WSP's Wimberley Springs Community Association pay the same as the WPOA property owners, $120 per year; thank you for asking.
Anonymous says to me:
"You know as much as Rocky complains about corporatocracy in his blogs, you'd think he'd have something to say about having his Woodcreek rental property burdened by an involuntary membership corporation."
All three subdivisions I have lived in since I moved to Texas in 1989 have had an HOA. I clearly don't have the same problem you do with the HOA concept.
These HOA fees (roughly $100.00 a year) are not like condo fees that add up to $ Thousands a year. They have been generally more helpful than fascistic - as you imply.
What I would like to know is why do you live in Woodcreek North if the WPOA is so repressive?
As a homeowner under WPOA I have a much bigger problem with ATI that WPOA. To me WPOA looks more like a financial mosquito than a bloodsucking vampire bat.
The truth is I would pay twice the HOA fee of WPOA if I could have the non-profit Wimberley Water Company provide the water (although the wastewater treatment would still be a problem to be solved).
Finally, in my mind there is a huge difference between an "involuntary membership corporation" like WPOA and a overcharging predatory corporate water monopoly whose decision makers are faceless suits in some other state that is wholly owned by distant corporate charter shareholders.
At least I know the people at WPOA.
It's apples and oranges to me. But then again, I don't live in Woodcreek North full time.
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