Gardeners

The Gardeners will soon be completing their contract to clear up Mi Sol, everyone I have spoken to has expressed their satisfaction with the work.

A problem has come to light though, it seems that after finishing clearing various circles, some Owners have then been pruning tress, etc on their own properties and dumping their rubbish on the cleared areas.
Clearly this is dis- heartening for the Gardeners as they keep having to go back to clear this rubbish away, something they were not contracted to do.

Another problem has been caused by tenants of Clara, it is the dumping of mattresses, household rubbish and junk in the Gardening skip. The container hired by the Gardeners is only allowed to hold garden rubbish, so this will now have to be cleared out into another skip, meaning more work for the contractors which they should not have to do.

I recognise that in the past when we employed a Gardener on a full time basis, he would clear away any rubbish he came across in his daily work. However we now employ contractors, whose work is to keep MI SOL land up to scratch, they are not employed to clear Owners private rubbish away.
This is the situation in all other Communities I visit on a regular basis. The main reason for having the Park cleared of weeds and grass, apart from the aesthetic point of view, is so we can control the Mosquito population by regular spraying. Owners dumping rubbish on Mi Sol land defeats the point of spraying.

At the Committee meeting held on the Bar Terrace on Tuesday 25th March it was agreed to accept the Contractors quotation of Euro 800 per month to maintain the Garden areas of the park and spray regularly to prevent mosquito infestation. Apart from the general gardening this would also include the roads being swept with a professional machine once a month.
The contract would be on a month by month basis.

The Committee felt that at Euro 9,600 . 00 per year, this was a much better option than employing a single Gardener full time at a cost of around Euro 12,000 . 00 to Euro 15,000 . 00 per year, when things such as Social Security, insurance, Accountants fees, and the running and maintenance of the car and trailer were taken into consideration.

Committee member Mrs Lin Foley has agreed to take responsibility for ensuring the Gardening Contractors carry out their work satisfactorily.

Hopefully we will now be able to maintain and improve the appearance of Mi Sol and save money as well.

Mi Sol Park Newsletter No 3

Here is issue 3 of the excellent Mi Sol Newsletter produced by Mrs Mo Taunton.

Essential Minimums

You will recall from a previous post that a delegation from the other faction visited me recently, where in a calm atmosphere we discussed how a reconciliation might be achieved. The meeting ended with a request that they send me their proposals in writing in order that they may be discussed with the Committee and we could hopefully move forward.

Yesterday, I collected a certificated letter from the Post office, addressed to me, sent by Paco.
A copy is attached here.

It is in fact the same letter he sent before, and posted here under the title "Letter" on Sunday 18th November 2007. The comments made then, still apply, therefore I will not repeat them here.

I have not been able to determine yet, whether these are the proposals asked for, sent by their Committee, or just sent by Paco under his own initiative. If it is the former, then clearly we are NO nearer a settlement. I will advise you here when an answer is available.

Social Security

After a tense wait, finally a demand for payment has arrived from Social Security.
As you can see the demand is for Euro 3,607 . 20, payable within 15 days.

The frustrating thing about these invoices is the fact they do not tell us what the demand for payment relates to. It is to be hoped that this is finally the last demand from the previous administration, but there is no guarantee of that.

Bar Update

I have spoken to Mr Morans, who has returned early from his holidays.
He has explained the mix up with the monthly payments, and the deficit has been paid into Banco Popular.

He is keen to open the bar again as soon as practicable, however he is still awaiting the approval of the Insurance Company before work can begin, hoped to be in about a weeks time.

In the meantime activities continue to take place on the Terrace, quizzes, darts, etc.
Mr Morans assured me that the Insurance policy is still in force until May this year, therefore the toilet facilities of the swimming pool will be available for use by Owners attending these functions.

Hole in the Wall

Attached is a photo of damage to the perimeter wall, which seems to have occurred during the last 24 hours. It would appear a vehicle on Paque Naciones has backed into the wall, but as usual there is no proof available regarding the culprit

Interestingly, not all the cars in the photo have their rear bumpers intact !!

Fence Damage

Someone has cut a hole in the perimeter fence at the bottom of the Park. It was clearly done with bolt croppers and measures some 6 feet by 4 feet.

Speculation abounds as to who did it and why. Interestingly the the piece that was cut out has not been found.

Bank Statement

Here is the latest statement from Banco Popular. Things are looking much healthier, but it must be remembered that Euro 20,000 has to be paid to the Contractors repairing the Swimming Pool by 1st July 2008, subject to approval at the next Committee meeting. We still need around Euro 8000 every month for basic running costs. We are still waiting to see whether Social Security are going to take the Euro 8000 they are owed from this account.

Plot For Sale

I have been asked to give you details of a plot for sale, it is owned by a Spanish couple who are keen to sell to any British people who are interested, because they do not want to sell it to Clara who is wanting to buy it, which would obviously bring even more undesirable tenants to Mi Sol.

No 388 - 75 metre plot with caravan and building in one of the nicest circles on the Park.
Asking price Euro 45,000. This plot has an existing Escritura.

Contact phone numbers :-
Spanish 866758388
Spanish mobile 627018240
Spanish mobile 600617808 English speaking

or email me :-

misolpark@gmail.com

Clara

Tenants of Clara are causing an increasing level of inconvenience and worry to Owners staying on Mi Sol. Latest reports speak of fighting and prostitution.

I have spoken to Clara on the subject, she says she can do nothing until their contracts expire, they have more rights than she does. she also said she rents to two people and twenty move in !!

A few nights ago I removed from Mi Sol a couple who were sleeping in a car outside the flats, they also had some connection with Clara´s tenants.

Clara has been informed in no uncertain manner that the behaviour of her tenants is intolerable and steps will be taken to stop it. Her reaction was to say telephone the Police when things untoward are spotted. This has been done, the Guardia Civil are showing interest, and driving round Mi Sol at regular intervals.

Forms are available in the Office for Owners to register their protest, a copy is enclosed. Hopefully enough Owners will sign to make the protest significant. In the meantime all avenues are being explored to see how this problem can be stopped.

Committee Meeting

A Committee meeting was held on Tuesday 4th March , because of the Bar being closed it was held on the Terrace. A large number of Owners attended.