2025 Election Email No.2


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2025

GATEVIEW ELECTION

Gateview's Plaza in the background with a red, white, and blue

Dear *|FNAME|*,

This election might be one of the most important ones in a long time at Gateview. Most of the budget checks and balances which existed before (and usually guide other HOAs) have been eliminated since FirstService Residential took over. Directors are not being trained or told about their fiduciary duty to manage your dues with a requisite duty of care.

Instead, the focus has been on minimizing efforts of management and the board. When they both do less work, you get less value. And dues increase more than necessary. If this trend continues, it could seriously damage Gateview property values.

After serving 5 terms and working with 7 managers, I know what works and what doesn’t. Below are a few points you might weigh; you can reach out to me if you have questions. Consider stagnant unit prices along with rising assessments and how incumbents voted last year before you cast your ballot in this decisive election! 

Take care,

Steven Hoagland
Election Candidate

VOTE FOR VALUE

A Banner asking members to vote for Steven Hoagland and Karim Elmaaroufi.

YOUR PROPERTY

OUTLOOK

WHAT COMES NEXT?

POOR PRACTICE

HIGHLIGHTS

❌ No competitive apples-to-apples bidding

❌ Secretly funding new capital projects through Reserves and deferred maintenance

❌ Lack of vender oversight and accountability

❌ Non-essential "feel good" projects

❌ Directors not named when they sponsor items

❌ Directors micromanaging Management

❌ The board's unwillingness to discuss improving efficiency or seeking cost savings

 

Management Insights: Navigating Downward Property Values

This year one fact stands out: unit prices are down while dues are up. Without better practices and cost controls, dues for a 2-bedroom unit will soon break $1,000/month. Contrary to what incumbents want you to believe, my running mate and I believe inflation and rising insurance premiums were not the primary cause of the 2025 increase. We think it was largely a result of poor practices the board has followed in recent years.

Our management company, FirstService Residential, needs to step up to the plate and start leading the board by actively advising directors to adopt the same best practices it promotes in its professional publications. Certain directors should also spend less time in the Office directing the manager and more time doing their own homework on agenda items. Micromanagement wastes staff time and makes it more difficult to hold staff accountable.

A BALANCED APPROACH

BE A FIDUCIARY

I don’t believe drastic changes or cutting staff (as the board did in 2010) are necessary to achieve long-term savings—we can even improve property conditions at the same time we are getting better value for assessments by just following the same good practice guidelines other HOAs do. Karim and I are dedicated to respectful and courteous debate based on transparent facts and evidence. Unlike some incumbents, who gave a wink and a nod to personal attacks in ballots and at meetings against those who disagreed with them.

What we’re not big fans of is “harmony“ based on holding the shortest possible meetings with no regard for priorities, funding sources, cost controls, and opposing viewpoints. Or simply trading votes for support on pet projects. In 2024, over 95% of board votes were unanimous; according to minutes, there was just one opposing vote during the entire year!

That’s not how it’s supposed to work, and not how other HOAs operate. As opposed to genuine teamwork and real collaboration, it's more like a kid's game of Follow the Leader. Owners spoke loud and clear at this year's Candidate's Coffee; they want a board who can focus on wise savings and meaningful problem solving rather than business-as-usual politics.

Two interlocked white and green puzzle pieces labeled

CASE IN POINT

HIRE REAL EXPERTS

According to many residents, hot water delivery is worse today than it was a decade ago, needlessly wasting thousands of dollars on expensive gas and water. Despite what some incumbent candidates and the manager have claimed, there are no “engineering teams” working on this problem; only plumbing contractors.

When pressed at meetings, these candidates and FirstService staff told owners repeatedly that “no one wants to work at Gateview.” What that really means is neither the board nor management will do the work of getting real apples-to-apples bids from licensed professional plumbing engineers. Instead, they seem to prefer one-sided quotes from FirstService "favored" vendors instead.

A confused looking plumber in white overalls holding a pipe wrench and clamp.

PROCESS MATTERS

NO SHORTCUTS

Key to Success: Good Practices

SMART SPENDING

Cost controls and efficiency always matter. Diverse opinions strengthen a board and encourage informed debate about priorities and strategic planning. 


THINK AHEAD

Avoid unnecessary and costly breakdowns and emergencies like the old boilers and pressure valves by performing maintenance in a timely manner and replacing components when paid experts recommend.

DON'T MIX FUNDS

Don't use the reserves as a slush fund to pay for expensive new amentities or upgrades. Keep dues down by funding those through a capital improvement fund or by levying special assessments. 

LISTEN TO OWNERS

Before making big decisions, engage with concerned owners through polls and  committees. These committees should not involve directors, which invite their undue influence on recommendations. 

This email was sent to you by Steven Hoagland. To ensure delivery to your inbox (not spam or junk folders), please add my email address, [email protected], to your address book.

You received it because you are a member of the Gateview Homeowners' Association and your contact information is on the Membership list. 

Copyright (C) *|CURRENT_YEAR|* All rights reserved.

Stylized text for gateview.us which links to the website.
© 2025 STEVEN HOAGLAND. All rights reserved.