Need Strategy to Keep our Mailroom Bulletin Boards

This has to be the pettiest "problem" you'll see in a while!

I'm on a 7-member board & our meeting is Tuesday night. Our PM claims that some residents don't like the bulletin boards in the mailrooms--they look "tacky"-- and she's recommending we remove them. The agenda item wording is vague by the way in an attempt to discourage more homeowner attendance. I suspect this request comes from our older snootier owners, one of whom is on the board too. She happens to be someone who'd just as soon have closed board meetings and isn't much interested in our members communicating with one another

We're two high rises and the mailrooms are attached to the two differenty-configured lobbies. Passing by, all one sees are are the aluminum banks of about 100 mailboxes. At any given time about 20% of them have delivery notices stuck on them.

There's a glass enclosed bulletin board for HOA notices like meeting agendas. There are a nice wastebasket and a blue rubber recycle container. In each also is a cork bulletin board about 4'X3' for residents messages to the community, e.g., parking space wanted or for rent; pro baseball tix for sale; furniture or pets for sale or even for no cost. We also have some talent here & their performances, flamenco, stand-up comic, etc., are advertised. Several business cards are tacked up in a neat column on one side.

In addition, there's a 3'-foot wide book shelf in each on which are larger ads for services, dry cleaning, a monthly free downtown newspaper, etc. The top of it holds our newsletter and it's where I and others also sort our mail. The PM wants those removed too.

I'm going to argue for keeping them because it's really the only way members of our HOA can communicate with one another. They also, to me, provide us a friendlier atmosphere and supply a little sense of community.

If they are removed, we'll have two 7X7 stark rooms with nothing in them but wastebaskets and mailboxes that are quite "tacky" enough with notices plastered on them.

Does anyone have any additional arguments for me? Or other ideas? Thanks much!

Remember to have copies of the requirement (from both your governing docs and applicable laws) with you to provide to the Board members.

Thanks, Tim. We do have a glass-enclosed bulletin board in each mailroom for such notices (as required by CA law) as I mentioned in my waaaay too-long post.

So far, I'm thinking I'll stay away from aesthetics & try to stick with the importance of residents having a way to communicate with one another.

Looks like a good opportunity to poll your community and ask whether or not they want to keep the homeowner bulletin board. You shouldn't listen to the wishes of a few people.
Jeanne

Carol

I wouldn't exception to your comment. IMO, the PM is to convey the information from the owner and only volunteer a course of action when asked. I got into this business because I saw too many instances of either wrongdoings or ineptness in managing associations.

Carol, sorry but I didn't see your post before and I know your meeting is tomorrow but it seems to me the easiest thing to do would be to post a notice on the free board that on Tues the HOA Board would be discussing removing the free boards from both mail-rooms and inviting interested homeowners to attend and make their thoughts both pro and con known.

Well, the free admission ti to the comedy club certainly are gone.

I think what bothers me, Richard, is that the PM indeed has a written recommendation on her Management Report to us directors to remove the BBs & shelves. This, even though she often writes "Management has no recommendation." So she often remains neutral especially in cases like this one that have nothing to do with her or her job or the management of our staff, buildings, etc. It's strictly by residents for residents.

I'm sure you're all waiting with bated breath re: this crucial issue ; )

In the end, I didn't post anything on my tower's BB. Turns out it was, in fact, two directors of the older, prissier persuasion who wanted the BB's removed. They argued that their tower's mailroom BB is solely loaded with junky ads with nothing useful to residents. The managers' offices also are in that tower's lobby. I live in the other tower. This was our last agenda item.

In a nutshell this discussion probably took 10 minutes. The two women suggested a BB in the gym, which is used by perhaps 20% of residents, on the manager's BB in her office, or in our monthly newsletter. For obvious reasons, these "solutions" were one by one rejected by me and a 2nd director. , who also lives in "my" tower.

We argued, instead, that as suggested here, that we put a strip notice on the upper wood border stating that all materials will be removed on the 1st of every month. We also pointed out that we use the top shelf of the bookcase to sort mail, residents leave unwanted magazines on the shelves that others do want. The ads for dog walkers, housekeepers, etc., on the BBs are in fact very useful for new residents, etc.

We prevailed 5-2. At our second Open Forum at the end of the meeting, I asked the 15 or so HOA members who attended what their opinions were, and not one said they wanted those things removed from the mailrooms.

I think there's a lesson here. As directors or committee members we should try to keep what's best for our communities always at the front of out minds. Our personal preferences or tastes need to be set aside.