Facilities – Montevideo Neighborhood

End of Year Letter from the MIA President -2023

Holiday season has arrived, along with lots of house decorations and lights. This year’s Halloween night seemed busier than ever, a good number of folks attended the Tent or Treat night, and the last monthly social
with support from “Rare Vintage” was well received too.

Lots has been going on at the Community shared space this year. The Poolhouse remodel, which admittedly got off to a slow start with SJ City asking us to revisit our permits, has now progressed well. You can see the photos in the regular Community board meeting notes. (Apologies for the “porta-potties” this year – we will be all finished and ready for when the 2024 swim season arrives). The new fencing and access gates are also finished and working. We’ve also purchased a large TV for the Clubhouse, as well as arranged to resurface one of the courts, with lines for Pickleball, Badminton and Volleyball.

On the Pool front, we’ve narrowed the field to two design architect firms, and are discussing with each of them how they might help us get a number of costed concepts drawn up in the next few weeks, with the ambition of starting work in the winter of 2024. Our current pool condition is such that we either need to start work on a new pool, or we will need to address the existing pool in time for the 2025 season. With both loan interest rates, and construction costs, rising, it’s looking tighter than it did a year back.

Talking money – we’ve set the annual dues for next year at $954, based on the CPI inflation rate of 3.2%. You’ll see this in your annual invoice coming soon. There are also still Semi-Annual, Quarterly, and Monthly schemes which I encourage people to use to help spread the cost through the year.

Regarding improvements of a different sort – there have been a number of residents making external modifications to their homes out of line with the guidance set out in our Community Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions (which can always be found on our website). To maintain the character of the Community, we will be more actively regulating changes from here on, as per our legal duty – and will be posting an updated Architectural Approval form on the website in the new year. Please note that our CC&Rs require homeowners to submit changes for approval by the Architectural Committee prior to starting work.

We’ve had a few people living in their cars in the pool parking lot – which have caused many headaches to our Facilities team. Break-ins, property damage, theft, etc. We’ve had support from our local police to move them along – and we’ve put up signs warning that vehicles parked there can be towed. Please don’t feel that it means you can’t use your Community parking lot. However, please also don’t park your car there for longer than 24hours without informing Kerry, our Clubhouse manager.
Our first 2024 Community Board meeting will be on the 6th February. Come and give us your input, feedback, and support. If have some thoughts you want to share through the year, you can contact us at board@miahomeowners.com anytime. If you’d like to join the Board, please contact us before Jan 1st 2024.

Finally, I want to take this opportunity to thank Kerry, and the whole lifeguard/swim coach crew, for their support this summer. Their hard work was noticed and appreciated. Thank you all.

Happy Holidays and best wishes for next year,

Your board,

Tom Winton, President
Paul Sims, Vice President
Ron Blumstein, Treasurer
Leslie Norrie, Secretary
Ben Seiden, Member At Large

Swimming pool reminders and updates

The MIA swimming pool is open for business 1pm to 8pm, everyday of the week with hours subject to change depending on the availability of lifeguards.

For the safety and comfort of the entire community, each household may bring up to 10 guests (non-residents) and if you have more, you must reserve the BBQ area (up to 30 attendees) for $75. Each guest costs $2 and payable to the lifeguard in cash or using the QR codes at the the check in station.

We are happy to welcome back Swim Lessons offered by our lifeguards most mornings of the week and Morning Lap Swim on Tuesday & Thursday Mornings. Both require advanced reservations that need to be made through the shop.

The pool house construction continues and we hope the work is complete by the end of summer. Portable toilets are available in the parking lot when the clubhouse is rented.

Pool Repair Survey

Happy Holidays! As we look forward to a new year, we are faced with many challenges and many opportunities. One of which is ensure the fifty year old swimming pool lasts another fifty years, preferably more. Unfortunately, due to the pool leaking in various places, cracks and leaks at the skimmers, the pool decking being extensively cracked and damaged, and old pipes that have had two major ruptures in the past year alone and are corroded similar to the clubhouse pipes, the pool and surrounding infrastructure has reached its useful life and will need to be replaced in the near future.

The board needs the community’s input on how to proceed before we move ahead. The association can replace the pool in its current shape or can replace it with a different shape. Each one has has its pros and its cons. Either replacement can be done without increasing dues beyond annual CPI.

In the coming days, please look for a survey in your postal mail that will help guide the board in its decision making with respect this shared community asset. We ask that you read the enclosed letter, and mark a choice on the return-addressed stamped postcard and drop it in the mail by January 12, 2023. We welcome your comments and feedback if you would like to write them on the card as well. The mailers are only going to the homeowner’s address that we have on file.

We know that the holidays are a busy time, so we will be sure to send out additional reminders after the holidays.

MIA Pool House Remodel Update

After a lengthy permitting and contractor selection process, work has officially begun on redoing the pool house to improve the bathrooms, reclaim the unused sauna space, and fix the plumbing, safety, and accessibility issues. Both restrooms/changing rooms will be accessible from the front of the building. Outdoor showers are being added. Work is expected to take three to four months.

The galvanized water pipes are completely rusted and corroded inside leaving barely 1/4 inch for water to travel and increasing the risk of leaks.

We tested for asbestos and lead. The good news is only a small amount of asbestos was detected and only in the drywall tape in the water heater closet and under the paint in the office. It will be removed by qualified professionals.

We will keep you updated on the progress.