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Newsletter |
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| Volume 1, Issue 4 -- Fall 2001 |
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FROM THE MANAGER’S DESK
Aloha from sunny Maui…. Jim.
On with the news.
BOARD MEETING
Your Board of Directors will meet again on October 13, 2001. The October meeting usually centers around financial issues since the 2001 budget will be finalized and approved at this time. This promises to be another challenging year for the budget committee as we are facing some stiff increases in utilities and insurance.
Board meetings are never really complete without owner input. If you have an issue you would like discussed, please put it in writing to any Board member or myself. Every effort will be made to visit these requests.
TRANSIENT RENTAL RULING
Mayor James "Kimo" Apana recently announced that Transient Accommodation in Apartment Zoned Areas would be considered legal if the project was permitted on or before April 20, 1989. Since the Kaanapali Royal was completed in 1980 this ruling would allow the continued use of vacation rentals on property.
NEW POOL FILTERS
What started as an attempt to reduce labor costs associated with cleaning pool filters turned out to have an unexpected benefit.
Almost everyone who has visited the pool lately comments on the clarity of the water…"just like diamonds" says John Applegate…"you can read the lettering on he drain" comments Rene Miklethun.
Turns out the old diatomaceous earth system filtered so fine a particle that lotions and oils would actually plug up and reduce water flow. The new sand filters allow a much larger molecule to pass thereby increasing filter flow. What happens to the oils?…we now add a polymer to the water that clings to the lotion making the molecule large enough to be trapped in the sand. Presto…clear water!
SHOPPING CENTER UPDATE
If you haven’t visited lately you will be very surprised at the size and progress of the new strip center just north of us.
A&B Properties is the developer of the Fairway Shops. Eric Smith, the leasing agent, tells me there will be 35,000 square feet of retail turned over to the tenants in November, and that the project will be completed before the end of the year.
Smith states there will be a family style restaurant on the south end, and a coffee shop on the north end with various retail shops in between. Smith was unable to share information on specific tenants.
ANNUAL WATER HEATER NOTICES
Our by-laws state…"Every Owner from time to time and at all times shall perform promptly all repair, maintenance and alteration work within his Apartment the omission of which would adversely affect any common element or any other Apartment, and shall be responsible for all loss and damage caused by his failure to do so…."
On June 1, forty letters were sent to owners of various units where our records show their water heaters to be past seven years old. Thirty-two owners responded by replacing their old water heaters.
Last year our insurance carrier paid damages in excess of $10,000 in a single claim where the heater failed. All owners share this cost in increased insurance premiums. However, where negligence can be determined the insurance carrier is able to recover these costs from the negligent party.
Since it is the desire and responsibility of management to control costs we will continue tracking water heater replacement and sending annual notices.
NEW CENTRAL AIR CHILLERS
At the time of our last newsletter we were just completing the installation of our new Multi-Stack central AC water chillers. Both north and south units have now been operating since mid May, and other than a few start-up issues have been pretty much trouble free.
These chillers were selected with the primary focus on energy savings. With only two months history we have already seen energy savings averaging 18,000 kwh. This is a savings of $3,200 monthly.
Maui Electric was shocked to see our energy reduction at almost three times what they projected initially. Earlier this month MECO asked permission to document and publish our experience to share with similar users.
WHAT’S WITH THE RUBBER TREE?
Hardly a week ever passes where I don’t get questions about the rubber tree. "How big’s it gonna get"?…"When are you going to trim it"?…"It’ blocking my view"!… "Are the roots doing any damage"?
All good questions. Everyone needs to know that the rubber tree is a bigger problem than meets the eye.
It was planted years ago as an eventual solution to prevent flying golf balls from entering the pool area, and at this point it does a pretty fair job of that. It’s unfortunate that the tree wasn’t planted back another twenty-five feet as the root structure is now so developed it is threatening our spa and pool plumbing.
Earlier this year I consulted with a local arborist to see if there were solutions to the root problem. One idea was to trench in the root zone and pour a concrete wall, or install a chemical barrier. This is a common fix for such problems. The arborist felt that we are about five years too late for such a fix as the tree is now too large and too close to get any benefit from that approach. He further stated that he rarely recommends tree removal, but he sees it as our only solution.
I asked him to "fast forward" fifteen years and give us an idea of what this tree could look like. He stated that the trunk at maturity would be 70% larger than it is today, and the roots would extend past the "E" building. He thought we probably would have flowers where the spa used to be, and the pool area would make a good spot for a garden.
Clearly the tree needs to come out. That leaves us with the golf ball problem. The solution is either a net, or working with the golf course to modify play on that fairway. Management at the golf course has been very cooperative, and we are currently working through various options, but we do not yet have clear solutions.
The "little old ant" is not going to help us with this very complicated issue. More later.
OTHER UPDATES
The painting project continues on schedule. Roberto and Jessie have rounded the corner and are now working in front of the "M" building.
The oleander hedge along the driving range has responded quickly to a new irrigation line with loads of new growth.
The hibiscus plants at the pool and in planters along the "G" and "Q" building were heavily pruned and fertilized this summer, and are now in beautiful full bloom. Romeo and crew have finally stopped calling them "low-biscus".
Aloha.
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