July 29, 2011

You go away on a holiday and come back to hear that there has been a sea change down by the bay. Especially at the Union Bay Improvement District – UBID.

A new board has been elected, and the lone ranger from the old crowd threw in the towel last week I am told. Just quit. Left all his supporters out in the community in the lurch – who will advocate for them now?

And wonder of wonders, the administrator has packed it in too. I heard she took a leave of absence the day after the election that saw Anne and Carol elected.

But at the meeting last week (did I tell you the UBID meetings are now open to the public again?) Carol the chair let it out that the old administrator had been keeping a stingingly negative management report by the auditors a secret. She hadn’t even told the old board about it.

Apparently it even made reference to the nasty way she treated landowners who asked questions. Wonder if it included any financial irregularities?

But it was a damning report and could have been cause for dismissal. Is that why she packed it in?

But what has amazed me with all I have learned about the incompetent operation of the UBID is the 8 people who are suing Mary Reynolds provided no oversight into the work of the administrator.

The word trustee (root word is trust) has some serious expectations of elected officials. These elected officials operated in such a way that the administrator had no supervision and was allowed free reign. Make a landowner wonder what else will appear as the rocks are turned over?

These elected officials betrayed the trust UBID landowners placed in them over the years. And some of them had trumpeted their business acumen. They couldn’t run a peanut stand, let alone the UBID.

When it came to the UBID they literally didn’t keep their eye on the ball - or the administrator. That is the shame of it all – trust betrayed.

And some of those trustees still come to meetings?

Now Mary Reynolds has again made a comment on the current situation and it sounds like a pretty good summary to make up for my time away.

These former trustee incompetents should pay up that $17,000 for sure. Sooner the better or else landowners will have to dip into their savings. I don’t want to see that.

This is my last posting. I don't have the stomach any more to comment on UBID revelations.

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