My lawsuit against former HOA and Social Club

For those who haven't heard what this is about, here is a quick history of events. On Nov. 19, 2007 El Dorado's HOA had over $9,300 that they took from the preceeding HOA that raised all of the money. The bank allowed them to transfer this money because the older HOA was not active.The newer HOA gave that money ($7,500+ that was left after spending some) to the Social Club, claiming they were legally disolving the HOA. Raul Torres was on both "Boards" and was instrumental to the taking of this money. This was done in secret by a small group of individuals. On April 1, 2008 a new HOA was formed. This HOA now represents 169 dues paying residents. The Board of this new HOA decided not to sue the old HOA and Social Club for this misappropriated money. I took it upon myself to sue them. My lawyer said I had a 50/50 chance of winning. I and Gayle Washburn felt differently. I played up my lawyers guess and spead that around as my feeling. I knew they didn't owe ME the money, but I wanted to put up a fight so they would not get away with taking this money with no resistance. I can't imagine any court in America that would award me $7,500 personally for something like this. At best I should get $30.33, my share of the original $9,300 divided by the 302 space in the park. Well, I lost my claim, as I expected, but made a big impact on the defendants. They totally lost their cool and spent about $2,000 to defend against a case they could win without saying a word. Charles Richardson, the Social Club president, was their lead person in this defense. He had a lawyer as a witness (about $1,000) and paid for 9 subpeonas and a professional proccess server (only 1 witness ever spoke, the lawyer). Charles was shaking like a leaf at the courthouse, his cockiness was in retreat. The judge slapped him down early on by telling him to let the court handlle things and that he would not be calling witnesses like he thought. Charles thought he was running the show, like always, and got shot down right away! When the trial was over his followers congratulated him and slapped him on the back. They had no clue that they just wasted $2,000 on a case they had in the bag from the outset. This group still thinks they won?! They are now down to $5,500 of that money instead of $7,500 and that's a win? hehe

Is Martin Farrell from Earth?

Ok, I'm a week behind on reading. I just read Martin's "Realities" rant about Jamey. Is Jamey just supposed to sit there and nod his head every so often or did we elect him to get a grip on the situation? Martin prefers the former. Get over it Martin, Steve is no longer in charge of the money spending machine. There really is a way to spend money without giving it to everybody who wants it. It's ok to turn down a project because we can't afford it. We don't have the unlimited revenue to match the unlimited spending of the last City Council. They spent $100 million! This is a small relatively poor town, give me a break! A million $ for a skate park on the wrong side of 126? Dumb! $26 million to treat chloride? Dumber! Tens of millions extra spent on a sewer plant? Dumbest! This city needs accountability more than ever and Martin wants us to close our eyes and just nod our heads. I say, Jamey and Gayle are just what the doctor ordered for this ailing city! By the way, on the Realities page Martin has an editorial ripping Obama, but on that same Internet page is an ad for a company selling "Super Obama" t-shirts. Martin's opinion sells for very little.

We have our town back!

Last night the choke hold on our fine town was released as the old guard was shoved to the side. I feel how easy it is to breathe again. Jamie, Patti and Gayle challenged the old ways and shook the Council Hall. They made it clear that it was going to be hard to spend our hard earned dollars! No spending $200,000 on a running track with 90 degree turns (90 degrees???). This track is a perfect example of how things WERE done. Not even a little common sense, just spend away. Jamie put City Management on notice that their actions will be under a microscope. Job descriptions of all managers, all city contracts and on and on. Tom Ristau was stopped so fast he went through the windshield. I left before the Roy Payne incident. I have it that Roy Payne's contract was also going to be looked at. Steve and Laurie protested wildly, I understand. It looks like there is something to hide, otherwise why should they care. Maybe they should have taken better care of OUR money! This is not the same City Hall today.

Fillmore Middle School

There have been widely spread conflicting reports about what is going on at the Fillmore Middle School. Neither one has been confirmed by this reporter.
Story one.
Since the rising tide of support for Gayle Washburn and Jamey Brooks, the old guard at City Hall has secretly been moving all of their dirt to the Fillmore Middle School and created huge mountains. I find this hard to believe as there must be more somewhere else. However, it is easy to spread dirt throughout all parts of Fillmore and get away with it.
Story two.
Several camels were seen walking about the sand dunes at Fillmore Middle School. Rumor has it that the old guard at City Hall has brought in the Taliban to take back our town. In what might be related to this, our 7-11 now has 240 employees. Reports also say that a mosque is being built just west of McDonalds and will be the new home of the Taliban- Fillmore Chapter.

El Dorado Fundraiser

On November 29th the HOA had a fundraiser for it's Block Captain program. This program needed funds to buy equipment for emergency response. Many of the Block Captains are CERT graduates and will be among the first to help others in the park in case of a disaster. To do that effectively, they need the proper equipment. The Fire Department gave us a basic list of equipment that we need to get started. We estimated the cost of everything on the list at $1,500. Thanks to the generosity of El Dorado's residents, many of the businesses in town and all of the volunteers who helped with the fundraiser, we had a net profit of $1,118! WOW! This will bring the program close to it's goal. I want to thank everyone for the help. God Bless You All.

Obama Claim is Circulating

Below is part of an interseting email I received. What do you think?

Former Deputy Attorney General Philip Berg filed a lawsuit addressing the citizenship status of Barack Obama before the Democratic National Convention and copied Democratic Chairman Howard Dean. It should have alerted them that there was a possible problem before they selected their nominee. But that problem was ignored. Other lawsuits filed before Nov. 4 were also ignored, placing us in what could be a constitutional crisis.
The good news is the real election hasn't taken place yet. The Electoral College doesn't meet until Dec. 15. That gives us less than a month to find the answers to the looming questions regarding whether Barack Obama meets the constitutional requirements for the office of president.
The courts don't seem to be in any hurry to take up their responsibility as guardians of the Constitution, so now Congress must step in. You see, members of Congress are sworn to uphold the Constitution, and when they vote in January to confirm (or reject) the vote of the Electoral College, they can't very well do that unless they know for certain that the basic constitutional requirements for office have been met.
An ad running this week in the Washington Times Weekly asks three questions America needs to know: "Was Barack Obama really born in Kenya?" "Is he really a citizen of Indonesia?" And, "Does the Constitution still matter?"
As I wrote about last week, there are many reasons to doubt whether Barack Obama meets the requirements for the office of president. First, there's that pesky tape from Sarah Obama, Barack's grandmother, where she says, "I was in the delivery room in (Mombosa) Kenya when he was born Aug. 4, 1961." Secondly, there's the matter of U.S. law. If only one parent was an American citizen, as in Obama's case, the law at the time of Obama's birth required one parent to have been an American citizen for at least 10 years – five of which had to have happened after the age of 14. Since Obama's mother was only 18 at the time of Obama's birth, he would not qualify as an American citizen if his grandmother is right about him being born abroad.
Thirdly, there's no original birth certificate – just a "certification of live birth" posted on a website experts say is forged and altered. Fourthly, there's the issue of Indonesian citizenship, which is a prerequisite to attending school there. Add to that the fact that Obama's stepfather, Lolo Soetoro, is listed as his father on his Indonesian school records. If he had U.S. citizenship, according to Indonesian law, he would have lost it when he attended school there or if he was adopted by his stepfather as his records indicate.
As the ad proclaims, "The Constitution matters" and is still worth defending. All we are asking is that Congress takes their oath to defend it seriously. If Obama can prove he meets the basic but essential constitutional requirements, fine, he'll serve legally. But if he cannot provide simple proof, then he cannot. We're not asking for the world here, just the original birth certificate that each of us delivers when getting a passport, driver's license or Social Security card. If we can't tell the clerk at the post office to check out the digital photo of a certificate posted online, neither should the guy running for president. Members of Congress: If you have taken an oath to defend the Constitution, now's the time to keep it.

The Votes are in and the Dust has Settled a Little

Well, we got 5 out of 6 with the election. An intregal part of the realignment of our City Government, Gracy Donahue, didn't make it in. She would have been one we could trust to watch over the City finances. I'd like to encourage her to run again. The new City Council has begun the transition process and will hit the ground running. Better times are ahead.
It was great to see the will of the people tell our local government that they didn't like the direction we were being lead. America, 'ya gotta love it! This is what the world envies.
Right now, the economy has stopped much of the excessive building plans in Fillmore. Griffins huge development south of 126 has ground to a halt. I don't understand how they got permission to build there. The water table is very close to the surface. There is standing water right behind El Dorado from them moving some of the dirt! The City gave them that permit? This is the kind of careless thing that our new Council will put an end to.

Senior Center Saturday 12pm-4pm

There is an "Open House" at the Senior Center this Saturday from 12pm-4pm. All of our teachers will be there to give short demos and explain what their class is about. The classes we have now are- basic computer, yoga, crafts, water colors and a book club. Our library is shaping up and we have new furniture. The teachers will be there to answer questions and give you a preview of their class. As always, we welcome any suggestions and volunteers. Drinks will be served.

City Council Meeting

The Regional Water Board made a presentation at the City Council meeting last night. It was about an update on a plan to improve water quality (mostly chlorine) they will be sending us via the Santa Clara River from the fish hatchery. We will have to maintain that quality. This was obviously brand new to Cecelia. She asked a lot of questions that even I could have answered. You see, I was at the Water Board meeting several months ago at the Council Chambers when only Patti attended out of all the Council members. Patti took off work to be there, why didn't they. This is a big issue. Now that it's almost election day, Cecelia is concerned. Way behind the curve again. Steve, of course wants to throw money (ours) at it as a "step in the right direction". He wants to start building a $19 million water treatment plant now. Steve, your crew has just now learned some of the facts. It seems to me Steve was coached to say that. He immediately volunteered to be on a sub committee when it was suggested. I think that was so he could control it like he did to the rent control subcommittee. Spending our money is the first solution for Steve, no thinking needed. He wants to build another water treatment plant and send us the bill. Bert Rapp had a presentation months ago sighting salt water softeners as the main reason we will not comply with regulations and expose the City to fines. Wouldn't it be a lot cheaper to convert all salt water softeners to a safe home water treatment system? We should offer to do it free (City paid), maybe a year (or more) of free Culligan, too. Reducing pay for city management to more reasonable salaries would pay for a lot of it. Not having to pay a Fire Chief who is suspended would pay some more. Yes we're paying for 2. There are many places to get money without further burden to our citizens and businesses.

The League of Women Voters/ Fillmore Gazette Debate

This is my view of the debate, as unbiased as I can be.
The star of the show was easily Gayle Washburn. She had the facts, directions for positive change and the confidence needed for a City Council position. Next best was Jamey Brooks. His absence was not really a bad thing. I think we know where he stands. Unlike the rest of the candidates, he did not project any negative images. Marcos was pretty good but needed more homework to keep up with Gayle (who doesn't?). Norris is well meaning and seems to have his heart in the right place. When is he going to start his homework? After the election? There is a lot to learn. Royce and Omero are still in first grade and are a long way from being able to understand what is going on with the City Government. Steve looked unprepared. He had no clue what was going on with the packing house proposal. I guess the developers hadn't told him what to say yet. Cecelia, as usual, was all about how great SHE is. Spending $100 million in this little town is NOT something to brag about. She is way out there.

Lions Club Dinner Oct. 11

On Saturday October 11 I was fortunate enough to share a meal with the Lions Club of Fillmore. This was their yearly "Taste of Italy" dinner. Wow! What a meal it was. The food was terrific. Paul and Joyce Schifanelli hosted the meal and entertainment. Joyce could be a master chef anywhere! Delicious! Paul arranged to have Delaney Gibson sing and play keyboard and guitar for us. Delaney has the voice of an angel and composes her own songs that are so beautiful. Her opera number got a standing "O"! I want to express my appreciation for being invited and to all the hard work that went into this wonderful event. The Lions do so much to help people, please support them if you can.

Tuesday Candidate Debate

The candidates were asked if they would revisit Rent Control. Everyone said yes except Steve Conaway and M. Cecelia Cuevas with Norris withholding comment. Cecelia's excuse was that it created divisiveness in El Dorado. The park was divided long before the Rent Control issue of 2007. The anti-rent control group has been running things since 1994. Things stirred up because the HOA did nothing but declare themselves the boss. We wanted a real HOA and that rumbling turned into the Rent Control movement. On Oct. 17, 2007, over 100 El Doradoans came to City Hall Chambers, even with the fires all around town, to tell the City Council that we want Rent Control NOW! So Steve put himself on the sub committee to investigate RC. He then proceeded to delay things for months until Mike Cirillo (Park Management) could come up with a plan to defeat RC. The threats followed and our supporters stayed home. The opposition was able to muster about 50 people to be at the City Council meeting to end RC (temporarily). Now, 100 wanting RC and 50 not seems like a pretty healthy majority to me, but with Steve and Cecelia people don't matter. Somebody with big bucks wanted their help and they did as told! This is how they are with all of their decisions. All of the other Senior Mobile Home Parks in the county have Rent Control, because Seniors are on fixed incomes and need affordable housing and they have honest, caring governments which we lack.
Our park owner is worth about $400 million and Mike Cirillo is worth a ridiculous amount of money as well. Yet they have raised rents to obscene levels. It's hard to give away homes in El Dorado now, because the cost of living here is no longer affordable. It's all GREED and not based on business needs. We need to BOOT Steve and Cecelia out of power NOW! Greed must leave our town.

Pole Creek

Have you seen what Griffin is doing about Pole Creek? It looks like they are making a spillway for Pole Creek to empty into the Santa Clara River. If this is what they have going on, then they will eliminate a bunch of new homes and maybe need a bridge to cross the spillway. Does anyone have an insight into what they are doing?
The improvements that I see on the north side of 126 for Pole Creek seem inadaquate for rains like 2005 had. This town has had worse rains than that. Water rules and I think many buildings are in harms way in Fillmore. There needs to be a much wider opening under 126 to keep debris from blocking that opening. South of 126 needs at least as wide of a channel as the opening below 126 to keep thing flowing to the river. That's my view from seeing the problems of the past 21 years.

These People Listen To Citizens, Not Developers!

I completely endorse the following candidates and measures:

Gayle Washburn! City Council
This lady really cares about US. She gives her time to teach seniors how to use computers. She works endlessly researching ways to save US money. She puts her money where her mouth is.

Jamey Brooks! City Council
Jamey is all about helping people and has dedicated his life doing so as a pastor and friend to all. From that he saw the need to help the community on a bigger scale and dove into learning the nuts and bolts of city government so he could help more people.

Gracy Donahue! City Treasurer
Gracy is a superb accountant who wants the books open to all so WE know our government has nothing to hide. She will insure honesty with disclosure of our city's expenditures. She also wants to expand her duties for more hands on responsibilites.

Clay Westling! City Clerk
Clay is a great organizer who we can ALL count on to give us a fair shake and honest answers. He has worked tirelessly to promote the truth in government and will help lead us down a better path than our current one.

Measures "H" & "I"
The current residents of North Fillmore do not want the plan that City Council and City Management has forced upon them. They like the more moderate plans "H" & "I" offer. I believe we all moved to Fillmore for it's small town charm. We need these measures to help keep away the urban sprawl from our great little town.

Dave

THE Forum To Attend

City Council Candidate Forum
By Gazette Staff Writer — October 1st, 2008
When: Tuesday, October 21 at 7:00 p.m. Where: Fillmore City Council Chambers
250 Central Avenue,
FillmoreForum: Fillmore City Council Candidates
CoHost: Fillmore Gazette Newspaper

Remember 9/11/2001

This is the 7 year aniversary of the most shocking event I have ever seen. It blows away the Kennedy assasination for impact on me, and that was a biggie.
Please say a prayer for America, and the children fighting to save us from a repeat of 9/11.

Monday's HOA Meeting Minutes

VOICE OF EL DORADO
MOBILE HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION

Minutes, September 8, 2008
Special Meeting, 7PM

Present: Paul Schifanelli, Pres.; Trisha Harms, 1st V.P.; Sam Langham, 2nd V.P.; David Roegner, Treas.; Kathy Wyand, Bd. Member; Bill Thompson, Bd. Member. Sandra Pella, Sect’y arrived late.

President Paul Schifanelli, acknowledging the sixty residents in attendance, called the meeting to order. Sam Langham led everyone in the Pledge of Allegiance. Paul stated the business of the special meeting; the funds leftover from the previous, and now defunct HOA, the transfer of those funds to the Social Committee, and the request from Voice of El Dorado HOA of those funds to be used for community purposes. Paul offered everyone attending, an opportunity to voice his or her opinion, requesting strongly, decorum and respect. He also directed the audience to a display of various correspondences between certain park residents and attorneys regarding the legal status of the previous HOA, recent correspondences between Voice of El Dorado and the Social Committee, and applications to join Voice of El Dorado.

Paul gave a brief accounting of events including the inactive status of the previous HOA, the written requests last fall by several residents for new elections and status and financial accountings, the lack of response to these requests, the privately paid for and acquired legal status of two previous HOA’s and their corresponding corporations. He also recounted the events of November 18, 2008, his attempt to revive the old HOA, the disbanding of the old HOA and the transfer of $7,561.02 (the balance after attorney’s fees) to the Social Committee by the three remaining board members and a newly appointed board member for that purpose, without notification of park residents. He went on to tell of Charles Richardson’s phone call that same day, to Social Committee board members for acceptance or rejection of the transfer, the Schifanelli’s objection to depositing the funds until park residents were notified and permission was granted, and the subsequent meeting the next day, Monday, November 19 to vote. At that meeting, the Schifanellis again expressed their opinion that the old HOA had no right to transfer funds without notifying park residents, and that in their opinion; the Social Committee could be in legal jeopardy by depositing those funds. They recommended holding the funds until permission by a majority of park residents was obtained. The Schifanellis subsequently quit the Social Committee after everyone else voted to accept the funds without notification or permission. He told of June, 2008 correspondences from Voice of El Dorado to the Social Committee, attempting to bring the community together by requesting both groups work under one umbrella, and transferring the funds to the HOA to benefit the entire community, and the negative responses to those requests. At this time, Paul opened comments to the floor.

Gloria Henderson, space 100….long term resident who paid HOA and GSMOL dues to previous HOA for many years, wants an apology from the previous HOA as she never wanted her money to be gifted to the Social Committee, and wants it given to Voice of El Dorado.
Allan Hair, space 301….upset over letter from Social Committee stating that they will be better able to spend the money than the new HOA. He pointed out that the new HOA, regardless of membership, services all 302 spaces in the park, citing the need for emergency gear and supplies for disasters, while the Social Committee serves less than 70 spaces for social events. He feels the old HOA disbanded illegally, and that the Social Committee accepted the funds illegally.
Mary Barrington, space 34….questioned why the Social Committee does not work under the auspices of the HOA as in most other parks.
Bobby Donald, space 322….explained that the Social Committee was created first and that the HOA was not formed until the 1980’s.
Linda Roberts, space 84….a resident who sent letter to old HOA requesting status and working and financial information but received no response. Questions the Social Committee’s legal authority to accept the funds and use them.
Robert Denmead, space 76….agreed that the former HOA did not hold meetings and elections and did little to benefit the community. Questioned what efforts the new HOA were making to benefit the community and wants the money to be retained by the Social Committee.
Paul Schifanelli, space 309….listed the new HOA’s projects including, legally setting up the HOA with State and Federal, Helping Hands program, Weekly Shopping Day, Emergency Block Captain Program, CERTS classes, meetings with Griffin Industries, meetings with on site management and Star Management to open dialogue to benefit all.
Ken Creason, space 310….questioned the Social Committee’s refusal to turn over community money to the new HOA, and was one of four residents who wrote letters to the president of the old HOA. After no response, he retained an attorney to determine the status of the old HOA, finding that both previous HOAs were in suspension with the State. He feels that the previous HOA was closed down illegally, as it was not in compliance with corporate laws and ignored their own bylaws.
Terry Timmons, space 163….new resident, wanted to hear from both sides.
Jim Heady, space 108….33-year resident, not an active member of previous HOA, asked to join the board shortly before disbanding. Asked to review attorney’s recommendations, and agreed to implementation. His opinion is to keep the Social Committee separate from the new HOA.
Raul Torres, space 123….former board member of the old HOA says he contacted an attorney amidst threats of lawsuits, and was advised to dissolve with the option to disperse the funds, due to the length of time from when they had been collected. He felt that the Social Committee should benefit from the money because it is his opinion, the Social Committee is a non-profit organization, is not political and does not cost money to join.
Charles Richardson, space 218….two term president of Social Committee, opined that the Social Committee should not be part of the HOA because of its long-term, independent status and can better spend the money than can the HOA. He criticized Paul and Joyce Schifanelli’s positions to not accept the money without prior residents’ notification and permission, and for resigning their positions on the Social Committee. After questioning Paul Schifanelli’s leadership, he enumerated the projects the Social Committee discussed throughout the summer including; drawings for Von’s Gift Cards, Gas Gift Cards, two hours of free labor at coaches, new curb addresses, new Bingo board, paying for some coaches to be washed, and many other projects, to commence in October. He also claimed that the new HOA board threatened the Social Committee with lawsuits, but could provide no proof of such claims.
Joyce Schifanelli, space 309….Took exception to Mr. Richardson’s description of her’s and her husbands behavior, reiterating their feelings about the Social Committee accepting money from a questionable source before notification and permission from a majority of park residents. She also recounted questions at the time, of legal jeopardy to the Social Committee upon depositing the money.
Beverly Fox, space 191….suggested sharing the money so the HOA could prepare much needed supplies for a major disaster.
Mary Farcas, space 245….was and still is, very angry over the previous HOA’s gifting of the funds to the Social Committee. She recounted a specific conversation with Mr. Richardson after the transfer, claiming he reassured her that the money would be turned over to the new HOA when it became a fully legal entity, which it is. Mr. Richardson refuted Ms. Farcas’s claim by saying he would need a board vote.
Tom Brooks, space 311….felt the old HOA did not act in good faith by not asking park residents how to disperse the funds. He questioned who served on the old HOA board and served and still serves on the Social Committee. The answer was Raul Torres.
Kathy Wyand, space 325….the old HOA board should have notified the park of its actions before they happened and if the Social Committee had communicated with the new HOA about their planned community giveaways and programs, this situation could have been avoided. She suggested forming a committee of members from the new HOA and the Social Committee to work together on how to best spend the money.
David Roegner, space 307….says that the HOA serves the people but the Social Committee serves food!
Trisha Harms, space 22….is very impressed with the new HOA and all the programs they are working on, listed by Paul. She feels that the HOA should have the money to purchase needed supplies for emergency and disaster relief, and that more residents should become members and volunteers for the good of the community.
Sandy Pella, space 308….feels that both the HOA and the Social Committee do good things for the community and should join forces, share and work together.

Although prior to the meeting, Charles Richardson requested that Social Committee speakers be treated respectfully, which they were, he himself chose to launch personal verbal attacks while he had the floor, and provocations during comments made by other speakers in favor of the HOA.

Paul closed by saying that he believes a strong Homeowner’s Association benefits residents and management as well, citing that if such an organization existed in the past, many problems might have been avoided. The meeting was informative and served to define the attitude and path of the Social Committee.

Respectfully submitted,
Voice of El Dorado, Board of Directors

Scott Lee Gives Me "Run Around"!

Just kidding! He actually gave me a drive around. After Tuesday's City Council meeting, Scott asked me if I'd like to tour Fillmore's storm drainage system. I had asked him why we needed the huge pipes under Central Ave. a few weeks earlier. I agreed and he drove me all over town showing me some pathetic drains and what the water flow was in town. North Fillmore gets run off from from the rest of northern Central Ave. The run off coming down Central takes a right on 3rd, 2nd and I think, 1st and dumps into North Fillmore. When the Central Ave. project is finished, what ever makes it past 1st will drain into this pipe, They want to continue the pipe to about 3rd to relieve some of the volume that goes to N. Fillmore. I've had North Fillmore residents tell me that it has never flooded there, so why spend the money. So go figure. I know that when the next big rain happens, I'm driving over to North Fillmore to see the truth for myself. I'll probably cruise the rest of the town to see the drainage system work or not work. With all the conflicting stories in town, I want to see the truth for myself and so should you. For now I believe the residents, because if they were getting flooded they would scream bloody murder at City Council meetings to get it fixed and I've never heard of that happening.

Old HOA's (Residents) Money

These are the facts. The old HOA- Fillmore El Dorado Homeowners Association, IS still a corporation and has been in suspension for years. Being in suspension, they have no right to move or spend money. They needed to comply with the law and file financial reports with the state, which they did not do, to get out of suspension. Charles Richardson says the money was "gifted" to the social club. It was illegal, under corportate law, for them to even be offered the $9,100+ of the El Dorado residents money. Therefore, this money does not belong to the Social Club. The Social Club is not incorporated and has no legal standing with the state. The Old HOA spent $1,500+ on a lawyer when they had no right to spend any money. Being suspended, anything they did with the money was on a personal basis only as they could not act on a corporate level. The residents of El Dorado deserve their money back! There are residents in the park who will sue and return the money to the rightful owners, the residents of El Dorado. The perpetrators of this act are within a hair of suffering the consequences. They have been given every chance to "right their wrong".

El Dorado HOA Meeting With Mike Cirillo

Park management and the new HOA may be getting married. The Voice of El Dorado Mobile Homeowner's Association ( a mouthful!) Board of Directors and El Dorado's Head Manager, Mike Cirillo (he came from Orange County to be with us), held a meeting Monday evening, August 18th. The Board showed Mike the recent poll we took about things the residents would like to see happen in El Dorado. Mike was very receptive to us and said he would try to do what the residents asked. This includes helping with our financing of the emergency block captians program. The emergency program, headed by Allan Hair, is the most important thing any HOA can do. It can save lives. Mike is on board with us within a year of the rent control (now over) fiasco. Our HOA is here to serve everyone who lives in the park.

My Stand on the November Election

This November we have the opportunity to rip the money out of the BIG spenders hands. That would be the present City Council. I recommend Gayle Washburn and Jamie Brooks to replace Steve Conaway and Cecila Cuevas. Grace Donahue should remain the Treasurer. Clay Wesling would be an excellent City Clerk. These are all honest people that care about your pocketbook, unlike the present crew. I am confident that they would all make our lives better if elected. I also see the North Fillmore Initiative as a much better plan than what is in place now. The present high density plan will create more problems than we can afford.
My 2 cents.

Computer Class Update

The first session of classes is now over. Gayle and I are taking a week off. The following week will have the basic computer classes on Tuesdays. On Thursday, we will have open classes for practice, questions and more advanced teaching. We hope we have enough seats for all who want to attend. See you there!

Senior Center Computer Classes

The response to the Basic Computer Classes has been teriffic! Gayle Washburn and I are the teachers and we have 7 students. The waiting list is growing. The Beginning Internet class has 5 students. Gayle and I are considering combining those 2 classes into 1. We are all having a good time. We will soon have 1 or 2 computers for the main room of the Senior Center that all can use. I'm having a hard time finding enough time to put the public PCs together, so this has been delayed. I encourage all to take our class and then you will have a computer to use at the Senior Center, all free of charge! Gayle and I are discussing other ideas for the classes and I'll keep you posted on what develops.
Dave

El Dorado Street Cleaning

Some of you may have noticed a crew washing down El Dorado's streets. This crew was sent by Griffin Industries. They will be doing the whole park.

On June 13th, Paul Schifanelli arranged a meeting with the HOA Board and Griffin Industries. Roger Campbell also attended the meeting. The HOA Board made a presentation to Griffin explaining and showing photos of all the dirt that is stirred up by the building activity behind us that settles on our streets, homes and into our lungs. Griffin committed to cleaning our streets and trying to water their work areas better. I think we all should applaud Paul Schifanelli for making this happen for us.

Joining the HOA helps make things like this happen to give us all a better place to live.

Thank you all for your interest.

Marie Wren V.P.!

I have on good word that Marie Wren has accepted the office of Vice President. The board is now complete and ready to contribute what we can. I think this is an excellent board who can make a lot of good things happen. I can't wait to see what the future brings. I hope all will be patient with us, as change doesn't happen overnight.

Senior Center Board of Directors

On June 28th the Board met to determine the 4 officers of the Board. Loretta Dunehew was the acting President and will be the President for the next year. Marie Wren was nominated Vice President, but is away on vacation, if she accepts, she will be the V.P. The Secretary is Geri Lee. The Treasurer is Dave Roegner, me.

We have 7 signups for the computer classes and have 7 computers available for the classes. There will be 4 weeks of classes in each session. All signups from now on will be for the next session. Gayle and Annette are trying to get a computer lab so that all the machines will be the same. Right now we are using computers that Gayle and I have plus the laptop that Harry Williamson is bringing. None of these will be the same, so teaching and learning will take extra effort because of the confusion it may cause. We hope the students will forgive us.

News and Opinion

The Senior Center had their Board meeting yesterday. Again, we had a big turnout! Even Roger Campbell through in his hat for support. He gave a wonderful speech promising to help all he can.

Five new Board members were installed and one resigned. We have a total of 7 Board members now. All of the new Board members are enthusiatic. I am one of them.

There will be a Board member's only meeting on the 28th to determine what role we will all play. Then on July 28th there will be a regular meeting for all to attend announcing the results.

Computer classes will begin on July 15th.
The classes will be:
Introduction to PCs on Tuesdays from 10am-11:30am.
Surfing the Internet on Thursdays from 10am-11:30am.
There is a signup sheet at the Senior Center Bulletin board. Gayle Washburn and I will be the instructors.

A goal has been established to have the Senior Center open until 8pm or 9pm. As we add activities this will have to happen. We want the seniors of Fillmore to want to come here! We're looking for this to be a fun place to be.

Scott Lee (City Council) is the liason for the City Council to the Senior Center. He has 12 years experience doing that. He gave a wonderful speach and promised his support.

Rent Control and New HOA Working!

In spite of the fact that we didn't get rent control, there have been improvements in Park maintenance. Some streets have been paved (from the rent control effort) and some of the Park's trees have been trimmed (from HOA's effort). Of course, things are only getting half done, just like the half truths when management talks. As soon as the rent control issue went away , the plan for repaving the whole Park went away. This is the kind of people we have to deal with, unfortunately. The new HOA will be addressing the issue of Park maintenance and will do all it can to be successful. Our HOA is the best tool we have right now to help the people of El Dorado. If you haven't joined yet, please do. If you can't afford the $12 per year we can help you with that.
Dave

Rent Control is not over!

The next move to get rent control is to get a good City Council in place. In November we have that opportunity. Gayle Washburn and Jamey Brooks will be running for 2 seats and they have demonstrated a strong desire to help El Dorado. We need all the help we can get to ensure their election. With them in office (January 2009) we will get rent control! Better late than never. The present City Council majority was against helping the residents of El Dorado. Gayle, Jamey and Patti Walker WILL be our friends and help us as much as they can. Talk to everybody you know about the importance of getting Gayle and Jamey elected.
Dave

Allegations Sent to DA

David Reeves announced that he has sent information to support allegations of Elder Abuse, Blackmail and Extortion against Nancy Watkins and Star Management. He is hoping that the DA's interpretation of the law is the same as his and mine. The manipulation of the homeowners of El Dorado must come to an end! "Seniors for a Better El Dorado" are doing their best to protect us all from the intimidation that management has applied. Management has gone to the extreme and we must match the strength of their moves in an attempt to bring fair play to El Dorado.
Dave

A Vote on Rent Control

The January 22nd City Council meeting includes rent control on the agenda. The agenda item reads as follows: Mobile Home Report of the City Council Sub Committee; Discussion,
Deliberation, Direction for Preparation and Consideration of a Rent Control Ordinance.
We need big numbers to show city council we are not giving up, so everybody's attendance is important! Remember, rent control is not going to be forced on anyone if we are successful. El Dorado's long term lease will always be available for all to sign and it exempts rent control. Rent control only gives us the option to have it work for us. It will not replace what we already have, it will just be a choice that many of us want.

Jan. 16 City Council Speech by Dave

I want to explore the actions and words of our mayor, Steve Conaway. On October 23rd at the City Council meeting about 100 El Dorado residents stood up to proclaim they want rent control. Mike Cirillo could not brave the fires, but little old ladies did. City Council then tasked Steve Conaway and Patti Walker with the duty of researching rent control and reporting back to them their recommendation. The mayor said they could easily accomplish this in 6 weeks. They also asked us to form a subcommittee of 2 from our group and Star Management to form a subcommittee of 2. During those 6 weeks, Mike Cirillo wanted to hold his own election of homeowner representatives and the mayor condoned this ridiculous idea. Next Cirillo wanted 4 members in our subcommittee, because only 2 members of Seniors for a Better El Dorado were nominated and the mayor obliged Cirillo and ignored the council order and allowed that. When Cirillo claimed he wasn’t ready for a subcommittee meeting, the mayor granted his wish, no question about “How can you not be ready when you are in the business?” By the time that finished, the 6 weeks were over.
Apparently, by Cirillo not being at the October 23rd meeting, the mayor couldn’t accurately figure out what Mike wanted, which is stall by any means possible. Now, with that done, the mayor set out to arbitrate a lease. My lease specifically says that all arbitration or mediation will be done by the Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Service, Inc. or the presiding judge of the Superior Court of Ventura County. But, Mike Cirillo would probably rather have the mayor do it. At the last City Council meeting the mayor now says that he will not discuss rent control until he is done mediating a lease and would not put an end date to the mediation. The residents of El Dorado and the City Council never asked for a new lease. What happened to the 6 weeks? Is it that the mayor found out Cirillo didn’t like that idea? Why is Patti the only City Council member challenging Steve on this? Well, I think causes for lawsuits abound and reelections are to be lost! You. Mayor Steve Conawayourmoney, have shown your real face. Thank you.
fraubro

Seniors take on City Hall!

On January 16th Seniors for a Better El Dorado, led by David Reeves went into attack mode. This is just the beginning. The seniors quest for sane rent increases was ignored by mayor Steve Conawayourmoney. His actions can only lead to questions about payola. Patti Walker is the only council member to offer a fight against Steve's unreasonable actions. We need to replace 4 council members with reasonable, accountable, above board people. The 4 in place are out to help only themselves and this needs to be in the face of every Fillmore citizen. Speaking out is the only way we can defeat the big money that will be thrown at them. Fillmore needs to be run FOR the people, not with them as the obstacle. Our fight for rent control is dead with Steve at the helm and Cecelia and Laurie backing him up. I'm ok with Scott and love Patti. Scott, as I understand it, is not running for reelection. Seniors for a Better El Dorado want a better mobile home park and a better city. We are well organized and have great communications. We offer our help to all who share our goals.
fraubro