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Sunday, September 26, 2010

More Changes and a New Website!!

Hello CSH Homeowners!

The board has had a lot of activity since my last post!  Gutters have been installed on the 448-454 Meadow Hill building.  We have received multiple proposals for management of our association from four local management companies.  We have planned a second garage sale.  We have received a new manager by McGill Management.  Projects for next year have been discussed and ironed out.  We created a new website to increase communication with homeowners and the board.  This has been an action packed and work filled month for all the board members.

As you may have noticed gutters are FINALLY going up on 448 to 454 Meadow Hill!  I assure you, this has not been easy.  This board has been riding management everyday, sending emails and calling to get this done.  It finally took a very pointed letter to the contractor with a final date, threatening a stop payment, to get it done.  They will be completed on Monday, September 26.  This has been our #1 priority since August 11th and to see them go up finally has been a dream come true.  I know the residents in this building have been suffering for a long time and we know how patient you have all been.  Let this board say...THANK YOU! 

We have received proposals from four companies to manage our association.  This was a high priority for our voters coming in and we took it seriously.  We have received and reviewed the proposals from four companies.  All are very competitive with our current managers pricing and offer a lot more.  We have met with one company and will be meeting with one more that fits our criteria for the future of CSH.  We are holding a special town hall meeting on October 16th at 10am in the Round Lake Beach Civic Center to go over the specifics with our you, the homeowners.  Although McGill has been our manager for over 24 years, a change in management will make for better living in CSH and carry us into the next decade.

We have planned a second association garage sale for the weekend of October 23rd.  It will take place from Oct. 21 to Oct. 24th.  We hope it is as big of a hit as the first one.

McGill Management has given us a new manager.  Her name is Deborah Nixon and she can be reached at Deb@mcgillmanagement.com or by callin McGill.

The Board has had a lot of discussion about projects for next year.  I am happy to report we are resuming Gutter Cleaning, Seal coating and the Painting and Caulking Project.  We are also working on details to receive a grant from Lake County Stormwater Management to repair our detention pond.  More can be read about this on our new website under "projects".

Cassie and I promised to increase communication between the board and the homeowners.  In an effort to do this we have created a new information only website for the HOA.  Check it our at www.countrysidehillshoa.org .  There will be a new blog started there at www.countrysidehillshoa.org/blog. .  There will also be a forum on the site for everyone to voice their opinions and ideas for bettering our association.

Finally, Thank you all for reading.  I want you all to know we are working very hard to improve the subdivision and make CSH living better.  This board takes its role seriously and we still need your help.  Look under the "news" tab on the new website.  We are looking to create some committees for the association.  If you are interested in helping out around here, let us know!

Thank you,
Joshua C. Grubbs
HOA/BOD President

Friday, September 10, 2010

More Board Changes!

HELLO MEMBERS,




Bradley has submitted his resignation from the Board of Directors and it has been accepted by all members. This will be official at the October meeting.





IN OTHER NEWS…



The board has selected positions and they are as follows:





President: Joshua Grubbs - Joshgrubbs1981@yahoo.com

Vice President: Robert Radle  - RobertRadle@yahoo.com

Treasurer: Renee Dodson -  Rmail2030@sbcglobal.net

Director: Cassaundra Wendt  - Ckemp122@gmail.com



Now that Brad has resigned there is a board position available. We will be speaking with other members who ran in the recent election to see if they are interested in the position of secretary.



FROM THE PRESIDENT…

SIDING PROJECT

I (Josh) am contacting Cynthia Miller of McGill on a daily basis until this project is finished. Lombardo has been impossible to contact and they are not holding to the schedule they submitted for repairs to the 454-448 Meadow Hill Building. I have instructed Cynthia to find a new contractor and get these repairs completed by September 30th. McGill is contacting our Lawyer to see what course of action is best for dealing with Lombardo’s’ lack of action. If there is no response from them within 24 hrs of our next contact (Monday or Tuesday), we will be seeking a new contractor. This is deplorable and unbelievable that Homeowners are still dealing with this fiasco. This board considers it unacceptable and it is ALL of our top priority to see it repaired by September 30th! We realize the severity of the situation and are doing EVERYTHING in our power to solve the problem. I would not dare ask you to be patient, because we know you already have been. Just know that we are working hard for you.



LIENS

The liens on the Meadow Hill properties have been lifted. The Releases are posted on the CSH McGill Management website at http://www.mcgillmanagement.com/. The board will be working with McGill Management to contact credit reporting agencies on behalf of resident who received a negative rating due to these liens. There will also be a letter sent to homeowners for your records.



These are terribly unfortunate situations that this new board is attacking head on and at full speed. There has been a learning curve for us newbie’s but we are learning fast. We will make these items right.



FUTURE

In other news there are a number of great projects we are working on for next year. These are all in addition to continuing our yearly painting, caulking and pavement sealing programs. We are looking to purchase a sign for the entrance of our subdivision. This would be viewable from the intersection of Countryside and Meadow Hill and would provide updates on the association meetings and events. We are also trying to obtain a grant from the Lake County Storm Water Management Commission to match us in our effort to repair and improve the detention pond area. We hope to make it drain better and look nicer. We are still paying off the loan from Lombardo for the siding project and that may slow or stall our efforts on these other items. However, we are working hard to achieve our goals and keep our assessment even. This may not be possible but it is our goal. New mailboxes will be going up next week for those of you with old boxes. You should have received a letter on how to get your new key (keys will be at the post office). If you did not get this letter please contact management.



CONTRACTS

Our contract is up at the end of this year with Landscape Concepts Landscaping and McGill Management. We are currently seeking bids for a new landscaping company. The board is also meeting with multiple Management companies over the next month in order to make an educated decision on who to retain as our management company moving forward. We hope that you will bare with us during this process and know that we are working toward a full overhaul of management operations even if we retain McGill Management.



Thank You,

JOSHUA GRUBBS

PRESIDENT

CSH/BOD