THANKS to those who have written to me to ask why I haven’t been posting and also for the kind and supportive words. I appreciate it so much. I have NOT resigned from the Ilikai affairs in any way. It’s just I have been very busy, mostly with work, with a major deadline looming next week. I will do my best to resume posting.
I will have some spare time this Friday-Saturday and will post notes from the Board meeting etc (I promise!) But here is a quick synopsis for starters of what we found out at the last Board meeting:
1) The Board decided to write off circa $800K of the Anekona delinquencies. This was followed by some incoherent talk about the remainder of the delinquencies. It was disgusting.
2) We also learned that the current Board Directors totally ruined rapport/ relationship with iStar. There was quite a drama towards the end of the Board meeting. We are talking drama, folks. Based on what was told at the Board meeting, the current Board apparently also repeatedly refused iStar’s repeated offers of assistance with common elements design and also assistance re the easements at the Yacht Harbor Tower. Did you see what this Board did to our elevator, with the ugly carpet on the elevator cab walls? The cheap faux flowers all over the lobby? That’s just some examples. And they refused the help of a professional designer (paid by iStar) that iStar was offering to them!
3) Did you know that eRealty wants to relocate that walkway in front of the ballrooms from the bridge over the Hobron Lane to our building? Apparently, our Board has known about this for a long time. What have they been doing about that, other than rejecting offers of help from iStar? What ever happened to the prescriptive easement etc?
It was surreal to watch this Board and listen to them. It’s just beyond belief.
Olga,
We need to begin referring to our old easement as an implied easement or common law easement. A prescriptive easement is one that is use without approval of the landowner. We had approval for more than forty years. I am told, but I don’t know this for a fact, that Hawaii’s common law period is 20 yrs. and we have exceeded that by a bunch. If we lose our old easement it is our Board’s fault. We can’t be nice about this if we want our easement. Our attorney should be getting a stop work order until it’s settled because it appears they are about to pour concrete on the old tennis court. They have already poured the pool. Lea made a comment after the presentation that it won’t be too hard to remove the bathrooms that are set to be built in our old easement area. However, due to the concrete that will be poured shortly on top, the weigh will require the support of all of the metal studs that are already in place. Once the concrete is up there the studs aren’t going anywhere. The time to act is before it’s done because a judge will ask why we just watched it happen without defending our rights.
Just like the Hilton roof … our Board doesn’t act until it’s too late.
Cheryl
Well, in terms of easements, there is actually much more to it. There are some highly enlightening and relevant law cases from Hawaii pertaining to easements. I don’t want to get into those intricacies on this blog, as sometimes information gets misinterpreted in who knows what direction. I take my statement re “prescriptive easement” back for various reasons. But the bottom line is this: We have several documented easements. This includes an unrecorded exchange of pedestrian ingress and engress dated January 28, 1966, by and between Ilikai, Incorporated and the Association of Owners, Ilikai Apartment Building. Interestingly, it appears – I am trying to find out more re this to confirm – that Chinn Ho exchanged a (relatively) narrow pedestrian walkway for a much wider promenade mall in front of the ballrooms at the YHT, i.e. that spacious area in front of the ballrooms that we got used to enjoy. The goal appeared to be to facilitate the pedestrian traffic between the Ilikai, the Yacht Harbor Tower, and also the Ilikai Marina building (via the bridge over Hobron Lane).
As we learned at the last Board meeting, our Board Directors have been having unannounced meetings with eRealty about this. iStar repeatedly offered assistance with this, incl. assistance of the iStar’s legal department. The Board refused the help and refused to share details. Let’s face it: this Board is hopeless. They couldn’t even get their act together to re-bid our insurance, we are now stuck with over $140K increase in premiums. Some of them, such as Directors Bill Moore and Lavonne West, and John Popovich (currently AOAO manager, previously Board Director), were also in charge when Shell started their timeshare operations here. At that time, there was also Frank Tokioka on the Board (from the Tokioka Family that owns the Marina Vacations business here). Where were all these people then? Our current legal counsel, Milton Motooka, was our counsel at the time timeshare got here. What role did Milton Motooka play at the time Forward One brought Shell and timeshare here?
Just a note to let you know that I informed the Board and John Popovich about the easement closure the first week of January. Lea said she was too busy gathering proxies, John P said “They’ll never do that.” Bill Lawrence said “I think you might be right. We better get on it in the morning.”… but never did. Bob Romo said, “I’m afraid if we complain they will close us off completely.” … and LaVonne said, “We’ll just have to wait and see.” How’s that for watching out for our building. Even when it’s laid out in front of their noses they can’t act.
Also, with respect to the delinquencies. I did title searches on quite a few properties that were severely delinquent back in June of ‘09. We already had liens on most of them. Other buildings take action after only 120 days … foreclosure proceedings, I mean. I bought one in the Marco Polo Building on Kapiolani. By late Nov. nothing had been done and there still were 2 pages of delinquent accounts in John p. office. LaVonne told me today that it was Hawaii firsts fault … Seems it is always someone else’s fault with this Board.
Aloha,
Cheryl Van Law
This Board had a whole year to prove themselves. What have they accomplished? It is one fiasco after another. And now they want to get re-elected and retain control of the Board?!
Because Bob Romo just called me on the phone to call me a liar (2/13/10), I am going to make this statement. What Bob Romo said to me on the phone a week or so ago was exactly what I said in my e-mailed to Olga (whom I have only barely met). My conversation with Bob Romo that day was in response to a call from Cindy Jacobson saying that Bob wanted to talk to me with regard to delinquencies, which I had worked on very hard last June at the request of Lea Sasak. When I specifically asked Bob about his position on the easement problem, he said he was afraid if we complained they might close us off completely. I then asked him, “How much experience do you have with easements.” He said, “Well … none. The only thing I know is the George Harrison (of Beattles fame) tried unsuccessfully to keep the public off the beach fronting his property on Maui.” I said, “That is a completely different situation. Let me give you a brief education on easements.” He said okay and we discussed different kinds of easements. Like the other gentleman who spoke at the meeting with regard to implied easements, I have had some experience with easements due to my experience investing in Real estate for so many years (33yrs. to be exact). Everything I said with regard to my conversation with Bob Romo is true. I have even spent hours in the Hawaii Law library uncovering the statutes in Hawaii on easements which I subsequently gave copies of to the Board members and anyone else who was interested. I did this on my own dollar and still have copies if any of you are interested. I had to throw these things in the Board’s faces and John Popovich’s face for 3 weeks before any action was taken. If any owners would like a copy of my findings at the Law Library you have my permission to knock on my door (#1202) and I will give you one. With regard to the comment made by Lea, it was Cindy Jacobson who relayed that comment to me. Also the comment made by LaVonne was via Cindy. Although Cindy is now actively working for “the group” … at that time she and I were on the same page. (If you remember, we sat together in the front row, at the meeting in the lobby with Michael Rock and representatives from ERealty.
I have no doubt that our current Board members mean well and want the best for the Ilikai …. but the age old and very well known saying applies here. “A watched pot never boils.” Our Board doesn’t watch the pot. Consequently, they are always on clean up duty after the mess has been made … and on your money.
Cheryl
I’m curious as to how much money I-Star is offering to put toward the common elements.If they’re paying for these common elements, then they should have a say. if not, they shouldn’t. I understand they’re not even paying for the torch lighting and music on friday nights. Shouldn’t they since these amenities are for the hotel guests as well?
I replied via a regular posting dated February 13, 2010.