Articles about AM2 new lobby proposal
========================================================= 7/1/2019
(Here is an email that was circulated last week)
Our new lobby, our new pit fall
The
cat is out of the bag! We are being sold a lemon.
The Board of Directors of Aventura
Marina Two Condominium Association, Inc. (“Association”) is asking for its
members’ approval vote for the renovation of the lobby without giving all the
detailed facts. The unit owners have not been provided with the final design
drawings, final project costs, or timeline but the Board is asking us to
approve the renovation although many unit owners still are not clear on what
the renovations will entail. The Board
called a meeting to discuss the renovations at 1:00 p.m. on Monday, June 24,
2019, knowing that many unit owners would not be available to attend the
meeting.
Notwithstanding that the final project
costs appear to be unknown, the memorandum dated June 18, 2019, regarding
“Owner Vote to Approve Lobby Renovation Project-Phase One Reconfigure
Entry Areas and New Lobby/Concierge Areas” (“Memorandum”), alleges that the
unit owners will not be liable for any assessments whatsoever as funds remain
from the concrete restoration project. That statement is prefaced, however,
with the phrase “the Board currently plans to pay for this entire
Project” with the surplus restoration funds, which leaves the Board with an
opening to assess unit owners.
Additionally, it has been learned that
no plans or other documents have been filed with the City of Aventura; and, as
none have been presented to the unit owners, it seems there are none. Consequently, it appears that the Board is
attempting to have the Unit Owners approve an “unknown” renovation to
ostensibly be funded by surplus funds earmarked for a different purpose. You will note that the Written Consent for
Phase One of Lobby Renovation Project enclosed with the Memorandum does not
expressly include use of those funds.
THEREFORE, THE BOARD IS ATTEMPTING TO GET YOU TO TACITLY APPROVE THE USE
OF THE SURPLUS FUNDS BY SIGNING THE WRITTEN CONSENT, OR THE BOARD IS TAKING THE
POSITION THEY DO NOT NEED UNIT OWNER APPROVAL.
It is also believed that the land upon
which the renovations will take place is not currently a part of the
condominium property and will have to be purchased and conveyed to the
Association by the current owner, which is believed to be Aventura Marina
Owners Association, Inc. The unit owners
have not been advised whatsoever about how the conveyance of the needed
property will be conveyed or its cost.
Another issue to emphasize is the
renovation effect on lobby side lower floors units. These units will have a
major adverse impact by the renovation and their owners will experience a
devaluation of their units. All units on
the lower level lobby side will lose natural light and the view of the
beautiful landscaping that was recently planted. They will have a
glass/metal/concrete structure in front of their units. In Mod A submitted with
the Memorandum, the front of the package room glass blocks wall will be removed
and replaced with a solid door. This will darken the interior of the lower
units near the lobby. Needless to say,
the negatively affected unit owners could bring legal actions against the
Association in the form of injunctions and civil lawsuits. The cost of such legal actions could be
ultimately be borne by the unit owners as well as any remedies directed by the
court, i.e., the payment to unit owners for diminution in value,
purchasing the affected units outright, etc.
These costs to the Association are unknown and could greatly exceed any
surplus funds from the concrete restoration, which surplus amount by-the-way,
was not a part of the Memorandum.
After solving the apparent obstacles an
architect can be hired to render the new lobby with inputs from the Board
(available budget) and the decorating committee (desired materials, color
scheme, furniture, etc). When the architect’s drawings and designer interior
plan are completed and published and all other facts and requirements are
known, the unit owners will have a good idea how the renovated lobby will look,
its cost and its timeline. It is then, and only then, that voting should take
place.
This project must be accomplished the
right way and it cannot be approved until all issues are resolved. YOU ARE URGED TO NOT SIGN THE WRITTEN
CONSENT. IF YOU WISH TO SIGN IT, VOTE
“NO”!
PLEASE
NOTICE: THE LOBBY
RENOVATION IS BEING PROMOTED AS A GRAND LOBBY, BUT WE ARE ACTUALLY RECEIVING A HALLWAY
TO ATTACH MOD A, B AND C. WE ALL WANT A GORGEOUS LOBBY BUT THIS IS THE
WRONG DESIGN APPROACH!!!
=============================Version en español
¡El gato está fuera de la bolsa! Nos están vendiendo un
limón.
La Junta de Directores de Aventura Marina Two Condominium
Association, Inc. ("Asociación") está solicitando el voto de
aprobación de sus miembros para la renovación del lobby sin proporcionar todos
los datos detallados. Los propietarios de las unidades no han recibido los
planos de diseño finales, los costos finales del proyecto ni el cronograma,
pero la Junta nos solicita que aprueben la renovación, aunque muchos
propietarios de unidades aún no tienen claro qué implicarán las renovaciones.
La Junta convocó una reunión para discutir las renovaciones a la 1:00 p.m. el
lunes 24 de junio de 2019, sabiendo que muchos propietarios de unidades no
estarían disponibles para asistir a la reunión.
A pesar de que los costos finales del proyecto parecen ser
desconocidos, el memorándum del 18 de junio de 2019, relativo a “Voto del
propietario para aprobar el Proyecto de renovación del lobby-Fase uno
reconfigura las áreas de entrada y las nuevas áreas de lobby / conserje”
(“Memorando”), alega que los propietarios de las unidades no serán responsables
de ninguna cuota extraordinaria de pago (assessment), ya que los fondos
permanecen del proyecto de restauración concreto. Sin embargo, esa declaración
está precedida por la frase "la Junta actualmente planea pagar por todo
este Proyecto" con los fondos de restauración excedentes, lo que deja a la
Junta con una apertura para fijar una cuota extraordinaria de pago
(asesss) a los propietarios de las
unidades.
Además, se ha aprendido que no se han presentado planes u
otros documentos a la Ciudad de Aventura; y, como ninguno ha sido presentado a
los propietarios de la unidad, parece que no hay ninguno. En consecuencia,
parece que la Junta está intentando que los Propietarios de la Unidad aprueben
una renovación "desconocida" para ser financiada aparentemente por
fondos excedentes destinados a un propósito diferente. Notará que el
Consentimiento por Escrito para la Fase Uno del Proyecto de Renovación de Lobby
adjunto al Memorándum no incluye expresamente el uso de esos fondos. POR LO
TANTO, LA JUNTA ESTÁ INTENTANDO TRATAR QUE APRUEBE TACITAMENTE EL USO DE LOS
FONDOS DE SURPLUS FIRMANDO EL CONSENTIMIENTO ESCRITO, O LA JUNTA ESTÁ TOMANDO
LA POSICIÓN QUE NO NECESITA LA APROBACIÓN DEL PROPIETARIO DE LA UNIDAD.
También se cree que el terreno en el que se llevarán a cabo
las renovaciones no es actualmente parte de la propiedad del condominio y
deberá ser comprado y transmitido a la Asociación por el propietario actual,
que se cree que es Aventura Marina Owners Association, Inc. Los propietarios de
la unidad no han sido informados en absoluto sobre cómo se transmitirá la
transferencia de la propiedad necesaria o su costo.
Otro tema a destacar es el efecto de renovación en las
unidades de los pisos inferiores del lobby. Estas unidades tendrán un gran
impacto adverso por la renovación y sus propietarios experimentarán una
devaluación de sus unidades. Todas las unidades en el lado del vestíbulo del
nivel inferior perderán luz natural y la vista de los hermosos paisajes que se
plantaron recientemente. Tendrán una estructura de vidrio / metal / concreto
frente a sus unidades. En la Mod A presentada con el Memorándum, la parte
frontal de la pared de bloques de vidrio de la sala de empaques se quitará y se
reemplazará con una puerta sólida. Esto oscurecerá el interior de las unidades
inferiores cerca del vestíbulo.
No hace falta decir que los propietarios de las unidades
afectadas negativamente podrían entablar acciones legales contra la Asociación
en forma de interdictos y demandas civiles. El costo de tales acciones legales
podría ser asumido en última instancia por los propietarios de la unidad, así
como cualquier remedio dirigido por el tribunal, es decir, el pago a los
propietarios de la unidad por la disminución de su valor, la compra directa de
las unidades afectadas, etc. Estos costos para la Asociación se desconocen y
podrían superar en gran medida cualquier excedente de fondos de la restauración
concreta, cuyo monto de excedente no fue parte del Memorándum.
Después de resolver los obstáculos aparentes, se puede
contratar a un arquitecto para que presente el nuevo lobby con los aportes de
la Junta (presupuesto disponible) y el comité de decoración (materiales
deseados, esquema de colores, muebles, etc.). Cuando se completen y publiquen
los planos del arquitecto y el diseño interior del diseñador y se conozcan
todos los demás datos y requisitos, los propietarios de la unidad tendrán una
buena idea de cómo se verá el vestíbulo renovado, su costo y su cronograma. Es
entonces, y solo entonces, que debe tener lugar la votación.
Este proyecto debe realizarse de la manera correcta y no
puede ser aprobado hasta que se resuelvan todos los problemas. SE LE PIDE QUE
NO FIRME EL CONSENTIMIENTO ESCRITO. SI DESEA FIRMARLO, VOTE "NO"!
=========================================================
6/11/2019
The board and management held an open meeting for owners to
convene with the decorating committee and the designer to review the future
renovation of our lobby (that will cost a minimum $400,00.00) on 1:00 pm
Tuesday afternoon?
Are there any logical reasons for the scheduled time? The
majority of owners that reside in AM2 have a full time job during workdays. How
could these owners attend a 1 p.m. meeting?
The board and management should have more consideration for owners,
whose money they are spending, and hold all owners participated meetings in the
evening.
Fortunately, a few owners attended this open meeting. The
following is a summary highlights from the meeting:
First, the
$400,000.00 budget for the lobby renovation is a rough estimate only. We will not know the final cost until we
receive the engineer report and all of the materials are selected for the job.
This is not a typical way a complicated lobby renovation precedes. Usually,
when a budget is presented to the owners, all materials including the engineer
report are incorporated in a total price with design details are made available
to owners.
We are all owners of an attractive building with beautiful
views and stunning layouts. We should not skimp on materials for a new lobby. All
our present lobbies have marble floors, that the standard in a fashionable
building. If the budget is tight and there is not enough money available to
design an elegant lobby with stunning and quality materials, we should defer
the implementation of the lobby renovation.
Beware; the lobby renovation will impair front balconies
views of some units. Currently, frontal balconies of lower level units near the
lobby, view a landscape area. There will be an abrupt change for these units.
Their view will either be the roof of the new addition, a concrete wall or a
glass wall.
Another topic discussed at the meeting was the objectionably
effect of move in/move out on lobby seating. A decision was made that no move
in/move out will occur in the lobby area. The designer agreed to incorporate
into the lobby renovation another door placed between new front entrance and Mod C for the purpose of move in/move out
for Mod A and Mod B.
A topic not discussed is the impact of this lobby renovation
on the security and safety in our building. Moving the concierge desk near the
center door will move the concierge further away from the package room. While
the concierge attends to packages, guests will be able to enter building and
have access to the entire building including Mod C, while the concierge is
busy.
Before the lobby renovation can be intelligently reviewed
and voted on, all details including final cost must be made public. A final
review to the owners should be scheduled to include final drawing showing the
additional move in/move out door, samples of selected material, final engineer
report and a more accurate cost and time schedule for completion.
=========================================================
5/8/2019
Dear Residents,
The new lobby renovation 3D depiction looks quite
impressive. However, are you prepared to
have your guests sitting (Mod A lobby) waiting for you in the new space while a
move is taken place with boxes and carts pushed right in front of guests?
When your guests enter through the new center entrance door,
will you be happy to see your guests pass an uncovered area when its raining and
be soaked?
Right now we live in a beautiful building, but these few dysfunctional
changes could lower the value of our units.
Don’t be fooled!!!
Wake up and open your eyes before it is too late
Regards,
Investor
=========================================================5/1/2019
Dear Bulletin representative,
I would appreciate if you would place this commentary on
your blog and distribute my thoughts to AM2 owners. I don’t understand how our board, manager and
designer would even consider the proposed lobby renovation plan.
Visually this plan may look very appealing but it’s dysfunctional. We all want a beautiful lobby but it needs to
meet the needs of the owners. Be
prepared for future increases of costs, even though the board is saying no
assessment now. We were given a rough estimate of the cost. Most likely there
will be future additional assessments. This plan has many possible major costly
issues that will need to be addressed.
A major issue is the emergency door for Mod A and B.
According to the plan, we will have to use three sets of doors to exit during an
emergency. During an emergency, you will
first use the existing emergency door to go from inside (Mod A and B) to the
outside area where the garden will be. Then you will go back to the inside lobby
area near the concierge desk. Finally you will exit to the outside using either
the existing covered front entrance or the new uncovered front entrance. Can
you imagine all the residents racing thru the lobby during an emergency?
Another major issue is the red sprinkler system pipes near Mod C that according
to state specification cannot be relocated.
I would be very concerned living in Mod C when the board is considering moving
the sprinkler system pipes. The new lobby area will also require additional air
conditioning. Also, keep in mind that most of the renovation will be
glass. It will require constant cleaning
and hopefully meet hurricane code. It would have been useful if the board,
manager and designer considered discussing the building needs with owners before
submitting a renovation plan.
Before a board and manager of a condominium agree to spend our
money on a lobby renovation they should consider their fiduciary duty and focus
on needed and useful items that are not present in our present lobby. The owners’ needs are not being met. A new
lobby should have plenty of storage for packages, enough seating for residents
and guests, valet attendant’s room and rain coverage for guests when entering
or exiting our building while it’s raining. At the present time a gap of
roughly 16 feet roof coverage, so guests will definitely get wet when exiting
car at valet. Our valet area will be
impacted and interfered with because the move in/out door is relocated from the
existing emergency door to the existing Mod A/B front door. The new renovation plan
will probably cause the valet service to relocate to the garage from the
present front of our building. We need to keep a competitive edge with comparable
buildings that have the spectacular views like us.
In my opinion, our lobby must be done the right way.
Our building can have the Wow factor and still have a functional
lobby.
Regards,
A caring owner=========================================================
4/2019
New Lobby - Overview
As a follow up from the AMll lobby renovation meeting, major functional flaws exist in this new lobby design. We’ll be spending over $300,000 for a non-functional lobby that doesn’t solve our current problems like a compressed small package room and valet service that has no quarter but outside in front of the lobby. The new design has major flaws like the move in/move out traffic flow, area and concierge desk. If we are spending over $300K for a new lobby, all these items must be addressed to improve traffic flow and also present a lobby that is architectural beautiful (without the red sprinkler pipes sticking in the middle)
Below are all the functional flaws in this design plan for the lobby. The design plan shows 2 sofas with a coffee table for seating. However, movers will be pushing crating boxes in front of seating waiting guests. Do we want such a scene? Right now move in/move out for Mod A and B use the emergency exit doors, not interfering with lobby traffic.
A new center door will become the main entrance door for all, Mod A, Mod B, and Mod C. There will be a gap in the rain cover between the third floor walkway and the new main entrance; possibly soaking guests and residents when it’s raining. The concierge desk will be relocated near center door, and since main package room remains at same present location, security will be absent when concierge carry packages to/from package room (a long walk back and forth). Our security and safety of our building will be compromised even more. The possibility of using present center emergency door for moves still requires going through new front center door, obviously, not a realistic possibility. Another issue with the new lobby design is that it significantly hinders the valet service. Moves will interfere and obstruct the operation of the valet service. Maybe, requiring the relocation of valet stand farther away from the entrance.
=================================================================3/2019
AM2 lobby design (Spanish is on bottom of page)
In the last AM2 Board Meeting on 1/15/2019,
a group of owners raised the topic of the proposed lobby design. It is
important to mention that such an important issue to our building, that will
effect the value of our units and burden our building’s budget and reserve,
wasn’t considered important enough issue, to be even mentioned by the board to
owners. If owners did not inquire about the lobby renovation, not a sole would have
known that the board already signed a contract for the lobby renovation.
Please scrutinize carefully the
lobby renovation plan because it will limit and prevent our building from
becoming a luxurious, modern, expensive and state of the art condominium. This plan must be rejected as it will
devalue our units’ value and its final cost is unknown and may lead to a huge future
assessment.
Described below are some major
problems that this design plan will cause:
Selecting a competent design
company to undertake a complicated and complex project such as our lobby renovation
requires the following verification and validation.
The designer company should be
capable of taking responsibility of the whole project from the design stage
until it is implemented and finished. The design company should be able to supply
a detailed design plan, give prudent time line, and guarantee a total price for
the entire project broken down by stages with a payment plan. The selected Design
Company experience and past performance must be verified and references must be
reviewed.
Unfortunately, our board took a
different approach. They selected a design company that does only the design,
gets paid for it and then recommends subcontractors for each remaining
construction task to complete the project. Time line isn’t known and total expense
isn’t known. The board will have to negotiate separately with each contractor
for price, availability and schedule. No one entity takes collective
responsibility for the entire project. This is a bad decision that will have
bad consequences and unpredictable results. No sensible board will choose such
approach.
Here are additional points, to
think about the new lobby renovation design:
The existing main entrance in MOD A
will become a service door. It means that now, the move in and move out will be
thru what was the front entrance door. Guests and owners will have to pass by
cardboard boxes and movers as they enter the new entry doors. As you drive into the community and come
close to AMll, instead of seeing guest/residents walking thru the old front
doors, you’ll see new move in/move out for the Mod A and Mod B buildings. This
lobby design makes absolutely no sense and will devalue our luxury condominium.
The move in and move out will
impede the valet service requiring relocating from current position. As residents or guests drive toward AMll to
valet car, a move will interfere. Cars will be backed up causing chaos at the front
entrance not pleasant scene for a luxurious condominium. Our building is a
luxury condominium with custom features, many amenities and stunning sweeping
views of the Florida Riviera.
The lobby renovation plan specifies
a roof enclosure connecting Mod A, B and C. It will be very costly since it
must be built very strict state hurricane standards. It will enclose the windows
of the ground floor units (owners must agree to that), AM1 has to agree to
render the ground from AMO ownership to AM2. Permits from city fire department
etc must be obtained, priced and clarified before any penny is spend on
renovation.
The concierge desk that is
presently near the front entrance to Mod A will be relocated near the walls of
Mod C and Mod B (the concierge desk will be placed between the present service
door and Mod C’s staircase). Arriving guests will see a concierge desk to the
right and behind the desk they will see two apartment bedroom windows and the
valet cart door. Typically, a beautiful piece of art is placed behind a front
desk on wall.
In Conclusion:
A competent designer would not
conceive a plan like this. This plan will be costly and only devalue our
building. Please become involved, a STOP must be put to this plan before any additional
money is spent.
Diagram of the new proposal:
En la última reunión de la comisión directiva de AM2,
realizada el 15/01/2019, un grupo de propietarios planteo la consideración del
tema del diseño del Lobby.
Es importante mencionar, que un tema tan importante como
este, que tiene importancia cardinal para el valor de nuestros departamentos, así
como para los presupuestos y el fondo de reservas, no fue considerado como un
tema suficientemente importante por la comisión de propietarios, y de no haber
sido por una pregunta, no nos hubiéramos enterado de que la comisión, de hecho,
ya había firmado un contrato para la renovación del Lobby.
Por favor, examine cuidadosamente los planes de
renovación del Lobby (vestíbulo) ya que podría limitar e incluso prevenir que
nuestro edificio se convierta en un edificio lujoso, moderno, de última
generación.
Este plan o proyecto debe ser rechazado, ya que va a
devaluar el costo de nuestras unidades de vivienda, su costo final es
desconocido, y puede involucrar grandes gastos en el futuro.
A continuación, vamos a mencionar algunos problemas que
este diseño puede causar:
Seleccionar una empresa de diseño que
sea competente para poder llevar a cabo un proyecto complejo y complicado como
el de la renovación de nuestro Lobby, requiere la siguiente verificación y
validación:
La empresa de diseño debe
ser capaz de tomar la responsabilidad en conjunto de todo el proyecto, desde la
etapa en que comienza, hasta su complementación.
Deberá poder proporcionar un detallado plan de diseño, dar
una idea de los tiempos para completar la obra, y garantizar el precio total
del proyecto, así como un plan de pagos.
La empresa seleccionada deberá tener experiencia y sus
referencias deberán ser adecuadamente revisadas y confirmadas.
Desgraciadamente, nuestra comisión directiva, tiene otro
enfoque diferente de la situación.
Seleccionaron a una empresa que solo hace el diseño,
recibe el pago por lo hecho, y recién a partir de ahí, recomienda subcontratistas,
para cada uno de los distintos temas de la construcción, para finalizar el proyecto.
Los tiempos para completar los trabajos y el coste total
son desconocidos.
La comisión tiene que negociar de forma separada con cada
uno de los subcontratistas, los precios, la disponibilidad de dicho
subcontratista, y las tablas de tiempos en la de deberá hacer la obra. Esto
trae como consecuencia, que no hay una entidad que pueda asumir la
responsabilidad colectiva de toda la obra.
Esta es una mala decisión que pude tener consecuencias
nada buenas, e incluso acarrear resultados impredecibles.
Ninguna Comisión Directiva seria y sensata elegiría este
enfoque.
A la vez, hay otros puntos adicionales para considerar
con respecto al diseño de la renovación del Lobby:
La principal entrada del MOD A, se convertirá en una
“puerta de servicio”.
Esto significa que, de acuerdo con el nuevo plan, las
entradas y salidas serán a través de lo que fue la entrada principal. Visitas y
propietarios tendrán que atravesar zonas con cajas y aparatos para mover
mercancías, hasta atravesar las nuevas puertas de entrada.
Cuando Ud. este manejando y aproximándose a AMII, en
lugar de ver visitas y/o residentes caminando frente a las viejas entradas,
vera gente y elementos logísticos entrando y saliendo de las puertas de entrada
de los edificios de los MOD A y Mod B.
Este diseño propuesto no
tiene ningún sentido y solo lograra devaluar el alto estándar de nuestro
condominio.
Lógicamente debido al entrar y salir de los residentes o
invitados, al aproximarse con vehículos, requerirá una reubicación de los
servicios de valet.
La posible acumulación de vehículos producirá un
embotellamiento, frente a la entrada principal, panorama no muy agradable para
lo que debería ser un condominio de lujo.
Debemos recordar que nuestros edificios son parte de un
condominio de lujo, con características especiales, con diversas amenidades y
vistas espectaculares de la Rivera de la Florida.
El plan de renovación del Lobby incluye cerrar el techo
de los puentes desde los MOD A, B y C.
Este es algo excesivamente costoso, ya que debe cumplir
con los requerimientos de las muy estrictas normas contra huracanes que están
en vigencia.
Quedaran parcial o totalmente cubiertas las ventanas de
las unidades de vivienda que están en la planta baja (para ello los
propietarios tendrán que dar su consentimiento), AMI tiene que estar de acuerdo
en transferir tierras de AMO al AMII. Los permisos del Departamento de
Bomberos, y otros, deben ser obtenidos, clarificando sus costos, etc. antes que
un cent es gastado en los proyectos de renovación.
El mostrador de la conserjería, que actualmente se
encuentra cerca de la entrada principal (MOD A), va a ser reubicado cerca de
las paredes al fondo, del MOD C y del MOD B (el mostrador de la conserjería
será ubicado entre la presente puerta de servicio y la escalera del MOD C).
Las visitas o propietarios que arriben verán el mostrador
del conserje a la derecha y por detrás, dos ventanas de las habitaciones de un
departamento y la puerta del cuarto dende el valet guardo los carritos de las
valijas.
Todo esto, cuando lo que se estila, es ver una bella
pieza de arte sobre la pared detrás del conserje.
En Conclusión:
Un diseñador competente
nunca hubiera concebido un plan como este.
Este plan será altamente costoso, y logrará solo devaluar
nuestra propiedad.
Por favor, llamamos a todos a involucrarse y tomar parte
en contra de este plan, el cual debe ser Detenido antes que haya otros gastos
inadecuados.