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JoyceS1
(Indiana)

Posts:107

06/29/2006 4:52 AM
Has anyone had experience with holding an open forum once a year for homeowners to ask questions and vent frustrations and provide suggestions? If so, is it even a good idea? Our annual meetings turn into a gripe session every year. I'd like to institute a forum mid-year for such airing of gripes and concerns so that our annual meeting can be more pleasant and less stressful. Although homeowners are invited to attend BOD meetings throughout the year, none do so. I'm not sure they would even take advantage of this opportunity. I'm trying to find a way to bring civility to our annual meetings while giving homeowners the opportunity to ask questions, provide their ideas and make suggestions for the betterment of the community.

GeraldT1

Posts:0

06/29/2006 5:18 AM
JoyceS1, My community has 1 open meeting, and 2 BOD workshop sessions a month. All meetings are open to the community, unless there is a private matter. At the end of each open meeting there is a unit owner forum session/speak your mind/raise an issue, etc. We are a new community, still in transition, with volunteers on a board that are unseasoned in making motions, and for the most part don't understand the implications of amending the governing documents. So you can imagine, things can get out of control. What helps is that there is a method to communicate to the board mid meeting via email, or letter to board members care of our management company. What works for us in meetings is when the chairman (usually the President) places a time limit on the open session, and does not allow for side-bar conversations, or arguments. In other words, structure and discipline. It probably sounds hokey, but a strong community is built on a two way street, where there is a healthy flow of communication btwn. the residents and the board. Communication, feedback, results, volunteerism, and even constructive critiscm have paved the way to many of our successes. Sounds like the owners have a lot on their mind in your community. A mid-year will most definately help with some of that. Good idea. GeraldT1

JoyceS1
(Indiana)

Posts:107

06/29/2006 6:03 AM
Thanks for your input GeraldT1. The HOA president had to resign due to health reasons. The board has asked me to fill her position until the annual meeting. Since I was planning to volunteer to serve on the board next year anyway, it seemed natural for me to step in now. <aside from the fact that no one else wanted to take over> I'm a bit nervous about being bombarded with years of frustrations, but I think it is needed. It'll occur either now or later anyway. The community is suffering due to gossip, misunderstandings and misinformation circulating constantly. Word of mouth is relied upon as fact as opposed to the published newsletter and the meeting minutes. This will be the first time something like this has been tried, but I'm hoping it will be worth the <stress and> effort.

JulieS
(Georgia)

Posts:412

06/29/2006 7:08 AM
Our annual meetings are total chaos and very negative. It is always the same people with the same complaints year-after-year. It has gotten so bad that no one wants to come and those who come for the first time cannot believe the situation. We have even been kicked out of the library. The meeting last year was so bad that it resulted in absentee proxies not being counted, overturning the election results the next day. The people who thought they were elected then petitioned the neighborhood and a special meeting held. This cost the association a lot of money and ill-feelings. The same people that show up each year literally suck the life out of the meeting. When it came time for the annual meeting in February, I decided we needed to do something to keep control of the meeting and to keep it more positive. Since the annual meeting is required to hold an election, we decided to put together a PowerPoint presentation and hold an election. We informed the community of the format and that a town hall meeting would be held three weeks prior to the annual meeting to allow for open discussion. The town hall meeting had a number of the same residents who always complain about the same things and there were also some others with legitimate concerns. A few weeks later, we held the annual meeting with the presenation and election. The group of regular complainers were not at the annual meeting. Since the meeting was completed and adjourned within 20 minutes, we did take some questions afterwards. The entire event took half an hour and everyone was very pleased with how things went, residents and BOD. I am planning on the same format again in February and hopefully more people will attend the meeting than in the past.

JoyceS1
(Indiana)

Posts:107

06/29/2006 7:16 AM
JulieS Our annual meetings are as you described your's were, so I am encouraged by your success to puruse this avenue. Thanks for the success story!

ValerieC
(North Carolina)

Posts:24

06/29/2006 9:01 AM
VERY INTERESTIING topic! and timely too. Thanks so much. There is a move afoot in my neighborhood to call a special meeting. I think the group will have enough support to require me (President) to call the meeting. Our documents say how to do this. I have a couple of questions in advance. The purpose of such a meeting is required to be stated in the notice. I know the major issue of concern is our newly established and applied policy of fining residents who are in violation of the rules. We have one such case currently. Even though members have had unlimited opportunity to weigh in on the fining issue, no one has. Suddenly they are up in arms. Even one of the board officers is supporting the hysteria. Should I attempt to keep the stated purpose of the meeting to a very specific issue, such as our policy on fining, or let the stated purpose be "general venting". The agenda of this meeting would then be limited. Our annual meetings have recently been subject to several members attempting to use them to vent and this is very unproductive and unpleasant. Should the board try to control or just "let her rip!"? I am anxious about this since I don't know what to expect.

SwanB
(Washington)

Posts:194

06/29/2006 9:05 AM
Our annual meetings are four hours long and can turn into complaint sessions but we follow the rule that everyone has agreed to; if you have spoken once, you do not get to speak again until everyone who wants to speak on the topic is heard. In the debates, we also follow the 'for' 'against' rule; hearing one 'for' the motion and then one 'against' before we move on and we don't hear from someone who has spoken once already unless no one else is willing to speak again. Anyone can 'call the question' to end the debate. Our annual meetings may sound long but we cover a ton of business and we get through it. Part of it is the 'Question and answer' period after the Board of Director's reports and this is really an open forum for our members to question the previous years work and bring up their issues and desires. If those things haven't come up during this time; then they certainly come up during the debates over the bylaw amendments or the capital budget approval proceeding or the Board election. Our Board meetings are monthly and are usually no more than 2 1/2 to 3 hours long. We start out with a community member's question period and allow any member who has chosen to attend to address the Board with questions. Those questions may end up in a Director's report for action or on the agenda under New Business. Either way, any issues brought to the Board meeting by a community member is assigned to a Director and the member is assured they will hear from the Board. The previous Board was tabling most things brought to them by members and not following through on members' concerns. This was causing alot of conflict. The current Board has remedied this problem by passing a resolution that any member's concern, question, issue or correspondence with the Board will receive a response within a week and we have stuck to that timeframe. The key to the meetings is a facilitator or chair who runs them in a no-nonsense manner. One who sticks to the item on hand and does not allow the members to get side-tracked, use offensive language or attitudes, who brings the members back to the items of concern with recaps of what has been brought up, etc.

PaulM
(Pennsylvania)

Posts:1347

06/29/2006 9:38 AM
JoyceS1--we had a town hall forum meeting and it went OK but it got a little boisterous without any structure. This type of meeting has to be monitored carefully or they (residents) can get out of hand, even with each other. A suggestion might be when you send your notice of the town hall meeting that you invite residents to submit in writing the topic they wish to present openly at the meeting. Include a deadline date prior to the meeting date when these written submissions have to be in to you. This would alert you to what the present 'gripes/concerns' are, allow you to comment with any background info you have if you care to, and have more structured discussion/feedback from all residents. Suggestion: It may be that you want to allow the resident to raise the topic (that he has already submitted to you in writing), give him a time limit (2-4-15! minutes) and then open the discussion to other residents for comments on that one issue. Then move onto the next topic. You could advise prior that all concerns raised will be 'taken under advisement' and brought to the proper committee people for their consideration. Also, I understand that a town hall forum-type meeting requires no minutes so there would be no official file record of discussion/solutions. Certainly, the issues can be addressed with the full board/committee people at the appropriate BOD meetings later and solutions arrived at, if warranted. The solutions or 'plan of action' can be part of a future newsletter or info flyer to all residents, even those who did not attend. This forum-type meeting would also serve you very well in getting 'your feet wet' prior to your official Presidential role--would give residents some confidence in your abilities and willingness. I'll be interested to hear what the rest of the hoa forum has to say. PaulM

JoyceS1
(Indiana)

Posts:107

06/29/2006 9:50 AM
Thanks folks! Whew! I hadn't considered the fact that there needs to be some guidelines on how to conduct the forum....yes, I can see where the meeting could get out of hand. Thanks for the heads up on that aspect.

JulieS
(Georgia)

Posts:412

06/29/2006 10:19 AM
Valerie, Regarding your special meeting, your documents are pretty clear on what is allowed. The petition was delivered to my door by a group of residents. They failed to name a date so the board did. The purpose of the special meeting can only contain what is specified by the papers calling for a special meeting. Ours was to remove four named board of directors therefore, nothing else was discussed. Two of the four board members were removed and then an election immediately held to replace those two vacancies. Meeting took about 3 hours.

JulieS
(Georgia)

Posts:412

06/29/2006 10:23 AM
Our annual meetings were miserable. A question would be asked to the board or MC and we couldn't even answer. Everyone would start talking and yelling, and it was just pure chaos. We just sat there watched and couldn't do anything. The interesting thing is that the townhall meetings are more civilized for some reason. Maybe because of who is there and who isn't....it's not fight to be heard. Bring a timer to the meeting in case there needs to be some better managing of folks who are out of control.

GeraldT1

Posts:0

06/29/2006 10:35 AM
ValerieC, In response to your question that related to sticking to the agenda , "Should the board try to control or just "let her rip!""? My recommendation is to control the special meeting portion that you are being petitioned to hold, and conduct a unit owner forum session after the special meeting. Reason I say this is the requirement is upon the owners to petition for a specific purpose so you can publish it to the community in an agenda. If the topics discussed stray from the published agenda during the SPECIAL MEETING portion, and something official results, it may seem unfair to the owners that didn't attend the meeting. I don't know how your state works, and I'm not sure if the following applies to you but it may prove interesting: New Jersey has a Department of Community Affairs (DCA) that is very specific on adequate written notice to the community no less than 48 hours in advance of a meeting with a posting or mailing of the agenda to the extent known. If something official arises at a meeting that is not on the agenda, owners must be notified of the results within 7 days. The following is an excerpt that governs my HOA: Special Meetings. Following the Transition Elections, special meetings of Owners may be called by the President whenever he deems such a meeting advisable, or shall be called by the Secretary upon the order of the Board of Directors or upon the written request of Members representing not less than twenty-five (25%) percent of all the votes entitled to be cast at such meeting. Such request shall state the purpose(s) of such meeting and the matters(s) proposed to be acted upon. Unless Owners representing at least fifty (50%) percent of all votes entitled to be cast request such a meeting, no special meeting may be called to consider any matter which is substantially the same as a matter voted upon at any meeting of the Owners held during the preceding twelve (12) months, which determination shall be made in the sole and absolute discretion of the Board of Directors. GeraldT1

SwanB
(Washington)

Posts:194

06/29/2006 1:06 PM
Our documents require notice of special meetings to be sent out a certain number of days before the special meeting occurs, stating where and when the meeting will be and what topics the meeting will be about. Based on this information; our special meetings would not be allowed to go off the agenda as stated in the notice. You should check your documents.

GeraldT1

Posts:0

06/29/2006 5:42 PM
SwanB, Not sure if your reply was to my reply to Valerie. If it was, the agenda is TO THE EXTENT KNOWN. Yes, you can have a meeting and have topics arise and be discussed that are not on the agenda. But a Special Meeting of Unit Owners is different than a regularly scheduled Open Meeting of the Board because with a Special Meeting there is usually a very specific topic and not a wide array that occurs at Open Meetings. GeraldT1

PaulM
(Pennsylvania)

Posts:1347

06/30/2006 4:53 AM
JoyceS1: CAREFUL! In reading over what the forum has written, there have been several responses on holding a 'Special Meeting'. This is not to be confused with a town hall forum which you actually asked about. Your documents should have very clear specifics on the how-to for a 'Special Meeting' usually requested of the Board but by resident/s for the single purpose of a specific gripe/complaint. So...back to town hall type forums. You are free to hold this as you wish, for the 'pleasure of the residents' and normally with no parameters from your documents. However, be careful and think over how you want to loosely structure it so it doesn't get out of control. See my previous thread on suggestion for 'control'. Let us know how it goes. I think it's a good idea and it puts YOU in good standing with the residents. PaulM

ValerieC
(North Carolina)

Posts:24

06/30/2006 6:09 AM
Your comments are so on target. I really appreciate you all as a resource. In my case, the disgruntled members are circulating a form and the 20 required signatures are eached asked what topic they would want discussed! I hope I have the freedom to take those topics and combine them into a more concise topic, limit their discussion, control the time and number of people speaking (as suggested in your replies), and not feel like the board members need to respond in that forum; rather, we would hear and record comments made and take them to a regular board meeting for review. Does that sound feasible?

SwanB
(Washington)

Posts:194

06/30/2006 6:30 AM
We considered orchestrating an open forum at the end of our recent Annual General Meeting with the purpose of allowing our members to bring up topics and issues of concern for them. We have a strong chair who handles the running of meetings very well and has the respect of the members and establishes the rules and conduct of the meetings at the beginnning. When things waver or get off track, a simple reminder or recap of where the group is helps get things back on track. Use a gavel to get everyone's attention. When voices are raised, ask for a moment of silence to bring temperatures down. Remind everyone the purpose is to allow everyone's voice to be heard. As our AGM progressed and the members's time came to question our Directors' reports we realized there wasn't a need to offer an open forum because the members were bringing their issues and topics forward at this moment in our meeting. Whatever you decide to do; do not allow the body of the meeting to control it. As the chair you must control the flow of the meeting for it to be productive. If the purpose of the town hall forum is to allow members to express their concerns then a climate for their expression without recourse for that expression must be maintained.

JoyceS1
(Indiana)

Posts:107

06/30/2006 7:27 AM
Thanks PaulM I was aware of the deviation in discussion from my original inquiry...Special Meeting vs. Open Forum..... I'm finding it very helpful to be apprised by others on this forum of all the pitfalls that I may encounter. I'm hoping I'm strong enough to handle them. I can only try and since this has never been done before, it'll be a learning experience for everyone. If the forum idea takes place and I'm still alive (smile) I'll post the outcome. Thanks for your interest. JoyceS1

GeraldT1

Posts:0

06/30/2006 7:49 AM
ValerieC, In response to your question and your circumstance, the disgruntled members are circulating a petition that requires 20 signatures with topics they want discussed. I clasify this as a special meeting, very different than a town hall meeting or an open meeting of the board. In response to your situation only, I would not recommend taking those topics in the special meeting and combining them into anything other than a format that covers each of the disgruntled owner's topics. Just take what they give you, see if there request complies with the requirements of calling a special meeting. If it does not, tell them they are not in compliance and provide them the requirements. If they are, and a special meeting results, provide everyone a copy of the procedures to be followed for compliance to a special meeting. Calling for a special meeting should never be made easy. Therefore, I would hear and record comments as you plan to do, I would provide time limits and structure, but I would not take what occurs in this meeting to a regular board meeting for further action. I recommend that what occurs in this special meeting needs to be resolved in the special meeting, and minutes be taken, and perhaps published audio taping be done by notifying the community in advance that it audio taping will occur. GeraldT1

ValerieC
(North Carolina)

Posts:24

06/30/2006 7:55 AM
So, GeraldT1, you are suggesting we allow them to be heard, say "thanks for your input" and pretty much let it go. I know that is simplifying it, but since there have been many opportunities for the membership to express themselves and they have not taken advantage, they are not to be taken too seriously?

GeraldT1

Posts:0

06/30/2006 8:33 AM
ValerieC, No no, not suggesting a brush off "thanks for your input and let it go" at all. I'm advocating the exact opposite. If their petition for a meeting complies, I'm advocating they be heard and a resolution to their requests be accomplished in the special meeting, and end it for once and for all. I'm advocating it be done on their terms as much as possible as long as they comply with the governing documents for calling a special meeting. GeraldT1

SwanB
(Washington)

Posts:194

06/30/2006 8:34 AM
While GeraldT1 is very capable of restating and handling his own comments, I think you need to reread what he posted to you ValerieC. No where do I read in his post 'not taking too seriously' what your members bring. He also says the issues they have brought forward with their petition for this meeting need to be resolved at this meeting. I don't see that as pretty much letting it go.

JulieS
(Georgia)

Posts:412

06/30/2006 9:56 AM
We had our town hall meeting set as an open discussion. We welcomed everyone and then let someone ask a question. We would answer it then have discussion between everyone at that time. It allows for the residents to share their ideas and thoughts, get answers, and be heard. You can get some good feed back, ideas and get a feeling of how residents feel. If there is a question that we couldn't answer, we told them we would find the answer and get back with them. When I wrote the newsletter following the townhall meeting, I put some of the items from the meeting in it. Not all of the complaints and issues were with the BOD or MC, many were with their neighbors (dogs, speeding, etc.). The townhall meetings are another way of communicating with everyone and I think helps, especially if there is some trouble brewing. It can help clear the air and ease tensions.

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