Projects Update - 08/30/13

1. Deck Update – the north deck and deck between Bldgs 2 & 3 was opened on Tuesday. The bollards were reinstalled in front of the Bldg 3 generator, the parking stops were put back in place by being glued down and sealed in. The epoxy sealer was painted over with deck coating material to make a very neat presentation. The north BBQ has been re-installed along with the picnic table. Planter pots were placed back along the pool fence and in the parking area between spots. The entire south deck has now been scraped of the old material. As of Friday, the high speed pressure cleaning is underway. Segment two will be given the primer coats and base coat. This should be completed by Tuesday.

 

2. Maintenance still has a list of items to finish up to complete the deck. These items include re-installing the hurricane tracks, window washing, painting the columns and wing walls, re-installing the wiring for the deck lights around the wing walls, among others.

 

3.  Six of the worst sit up chairs have been removed from the pools as requested. These chairs are old, rotted and generally eyesore.

4. Ten additional parking stops have been obtained to replace the broken and cracked ones removed during deck surface removal. One additional planter and 8 planter dishes have been ordered as well.

5.  Channel 4 TV Guide is currently out of service. MDU has been notified and it will be Tuesday before they can come for service.

6.  Manager and Christina walked the outside of the property to look for any items that needed immediate attention (see item 3 above). We were out of the office for about 20 minutes as it was very slow on Thursday. This is part of Christina’s ongoing training. Appropriate signage was left on the office door.

7. On August 23rd the management received a very nice letter from a long time resident about the current appearance of the property. Click HERE to read the letter. The resident's name has been removed for Internet security reasons.

(as per Jean Le Grys - Excerpts from the Weekly Highlights to board members, week ending 083013)

Important Deck Coating Project Update

 Can't Read It? - Click Notice to Enlarge





Monday Morning Humor - 08/26/13

Parking Area Striping - Buildings 2 and 3

Click on the picture above to view a video of the striping of the visitors and handicapped spaces on the deck between buildings 2 and 3.

In Memory - Herbert Johnston, 1920 - 2013

 

Herbert Johnston

1920 - 2013

Herbert passed away on Sunday, August 11, 2013.  He was an original resident of Ambassadors East, taking ownership in 1976.

 

Mr. Johnston was a veteran of WWII.  He was 93 years old at the time of his passing.

At his request, there will be no services held locally. He will be interred at Pinelawn National Cemetery in New York with full veterans funeral honors.

Condolences may be sent to his widow, Judy Johnston in Building 1. Please contact the AE office for the address.



Erin Fizzles Out

 

MIAMI (CBS Miami) – Tropical Depression Erin, the fifth named storm of the 2013 Atlantic Hurricane Season, has become a remnant low. As of 5:00 p.m. Sunday, the system was about 1,080 miles west-northwest of the Cape Verde Islands with maximum sustained winds at 35 mph. Erin was moving west at 8 mph.

Currently, there are no coastal warnings or watches in effect. The storm is not expected to impact land.

The National Hurricane Center has issued its last advisory on this system



Monday Morning Humor - 08/19/13

Do Your Very  Best

An older gentleman was on the operating table awaiting surgery and he insisted that his son-in-law, a renowned surgeon, perform the operation. As he was about to get the anesthesia he asked to speak to his son-in-law.

"Yes, Dad, what is it?"

"Don't be nervous, son. Do your best and just remember, if it doesn't go well, if something happens to me, your mother-in-law is going to come and live with you and your wife."

Tropical Storm Erin, So Far Probably Not a Threat

Click on Image for Larger View

 

As of 11 AM Saturday, tropical storm Erin is still thousands of miles from our coast and is weakening.  This is the first major depression formed off the coast of Africa which could have had an impact on our area.  As you can see by the image above (click to enlarge), Erin is now a Tropical Depression and seems to veering north away from our coastline.  We'll keep you up to date with any changes in direction .

To go directly to the website which gives this data click on the link below:

http://www.weather.com/weather/hurricanecentral/tracker

Ongoing Projects Update - 08/16/13

1.  The Bldg 3 garage has been ‘dried-in’ as all the joints and cracks have been sealed. Plastic tarps are no longer necessary for the cars in the two rows from the Bldg 3 entrance. The tarps will be collected from this section next week.

 

2.  The new Bldg 3 gates should be completed and operational next week.

 

3.  The section of deck between Bldgs 3 & 2 was coated this week with the two coats of prime, base coat and the first coat of color along with sand to add texture. In some areas, the color coating was applied too thickly and resulted in ‘crystallization.’ The Tremco rep was onsite to inspect and gave the crew the solution to correct. This work was processed all day on Friday. If there is no rain Friday night, the next coat will be applied on Saturday.

4.  Seagate Parking - Temporary parking has been restored in the Seagate lot. Parking is limited to the south guest spaces. No pick-up trucks or vans are allowed.

5. There have been several reports of residents propping the south pool gate open with a chair. The same has been done in the Bldg 2 Social Room. This has been noted. Once striping is completed in the north lots, hopefully next week, the north pool gates will be reopened and the BBQ replaced at the north end. Bldg 3 lobby doors will again be operational.

6. The office has been collecting bid proposals to have the lobby furniture and hallway carpets cleaned on all floors. This will be presented at the next Board meeting for consideration.

7. The new Saturday/Sunday guard's name is Samuel Jackson. Welcome Samuel. He has indicated that many residents have already stopped by to say hello. 

(as per Jean Le Grys - Excerpts from the Weekly Highlights to board members, week ending 081613)

Surface Work Near Completion Between Bldgs 2 and 3

 

Today provided the dry weather we needed to proceed with the deck coating project. This short video shows the process of applying the first coat of tan paint to the deck between buildings 2 and 3.  Yesterday, the battleship gray base coat was applied to the deck.  Today the tan paint was applied over the base and sand was added to for stability. Three workers applied the paint and two came behind them with the sand.  They completed the entire deck between the two buildings in about 3 hours.  

 

 (The following paragraph in italics was added after new information came to light in Wednesday's board meeting)

 

Weather permitting on Thursday,  two additional coats of paint will be added to the one applied today. We expect that parking space striping and replacement of car stops to be completed in the north parking lot and the lot between buildings 2 and 3 sometime next week. Striping for handicap spaces will conform to the new configuration for such spaces. With the completion of the striping, these lots will be opened up to normal parking. 

 

Click on the picture to see a short video of the process.

 



Board of Directors Meeting Scheduled for Wed, 08/14/13

A Board of Directors meeting will be held on Wednesday, August 14th at 7 PM in the Building 3 social room.  Much of the meeting's agenda will concern progress on the ongoing deck coating project, the installation of the Building 3 gate arms and the completed concrete project. This will be the first formal meeting of the board since May.

Ongoing Projects Update - 08/12/13

 

1. The north parking lot and front parking of Bldg 3 have been completed with the deck coating products (see Friday, August 9th post picture). A review of the expansion joint filling revealed that there is a trough situation. The Association engineer has instructed the vendor to further fill the joints in order to prevent a ‘ponding’ situation. Striping will be done when the complete area between Bldgs 2 & 3 is completed. The workers are currently working on finishing the prep work on the cracks and expansion joints between Bldgs 2 & 3. (see photo above). The old deck coating is being stripped from the south lot. The BBQs have been removed from the south lot.

2. The installation of the Bldg 3 gate arms is underway. Plants have been removed, the electricians are running the necessary wiring and the pavers are being removed for the underground sensor.


3. As reported in an earlier post, Seagate has rescinded the temporary parking privilege due to the fact that the beach access will be cut off during the time that the south lot is under construction and being coated. Office staff is working to resolve or find other parking. Once the north lot is open, the need for the Seagate spaces should go away.

(as per Jean Le Grys - Weekly Highlights to board members, week ending 080913)


Monday Morning Humor - 08/12/13

Dog For Sale

A guy is driving around the back woods of Montana and he sees a sign in front of a broken down shanty-style house: 'Talking Dog For Sale '.  He rings the bell and the owner appears and tells him the dog is in the backyard..........

Click on "Read the Rest of This Article" at right to continue.

Deck Coating Color - Completed North Deck

Click Picture for a Larger Image

 

Here are two views of the deck coating on the North side of building 3 (facing east and west).  So far, the color is a hit with most residents who are here now.



Seagate Parking - Urgent Notice

 

The Seagate Condominium has revoked their permission for Ambassadors residents to use their guest parking spaces without notice.  Residents who have been parking in the guest spaces must cease doing so immediately.  They will begin towing on Friday, 08/09.

 

Please park along the drive or in any of the empty spaces in the garages. This is a temporary measure. Should someone be parked in your space in the garage please visit the office.

 

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Humor For a Monday Morning - 08/05/13

A Well Planned Life

Two senior ladies met for the first time since graduating from high school. One asked the other, "You were always so organized in school, did you manage to live a well planned life?"

"Oh yes," said her friend. "My first marriage was to a millionaire; my second marriage was to an actor; my third marriage was to a preacher; and now I'm married to an undertaker."
 

Her friend asked, "What do those marriages have to do with a well planned life?"

"One for the money, two for the show. three to get ready and four to go."

 

Signs Not Always Heeded

 

As you can see by the picture above taken just a few minutes ago at the end of a busy Sunday beach day, several of our beach chairs were abandoned near the water line.  We urge all residents and their guests to return the chairs to the dune line when they are finished with them as instructed in stencil on each chair.   Thank you.   

 

We will try to get someone to move these chairs ASAP as a couple of them are very near the water line.

Tchaikovsky Flashwaltz

 

Tchaikovsky Flashwaltz at Hadassah Hospital

 

This video post may be a little off-topic for our newsletter, but I think you will find it as heartwarming as I did and I wanted to share it.  With all the trouble in the world today, this restores my faith in the kindness, ingenuity and talent  of the young people who will be taking charge of our world in the future. 

Click on the picture to view the video.

Valle Ingram, Editor T.A.N.

Ongoing Projects and Maintenance Update - 08/03/13

1. After heavy rain on Monday night, on-site maintenance provided support to the deck coating crew to dry up the north parking lot so they could continue with the primer coat. The first coat was applied on Monday. The second coat will be applied perpendicular to the first. The base coat around Bldg 3 was improperly applied on Wednesday. The Tremco rep was onsite and issued instructions to remedy. A second base coat was applied at no additional cost to the Association. The first coat of color in the traffic lane was applied on Friday. Due to pending rain storms, any further work has been delayed until Saturday. (Saturday editor's note: heavy rains are occuring again today due to remnants of TS Dorian).

2.  There was a loss of power on Sunday evening. This resulted in a washer in Bldg 3, third floor to over flow as the water flow started from the beginning of the cycle. Ariel responded and took care of the problem.

3. As a result of heavy lightning, there were several light strings throughout the buildings that burned completely. In-house maintenance was able to complete the re-wiring and return the lights to service. There were also several ballasts and photo cells blown out (one was in the gatehouse). These have also been replaced. Lights along the drive were also repaired. The buildings should be protected from this kind of disruption by having surge protection installed on the main panels.

4. The fence at the west side of the south pool has been straightened. It has been leaning for several years as a result of Hurricane Wilma. The fence that runs along the ocean side by the sea grapes will also be straightened.

5. Work in progress at neighboring condominiums: Seagate is installing columns with lights at their driveway entrances. There are no plans at this time to install gates. Villa Mare, our neighbor to the north is undergoing a $40,000 landscape upgrade. They have also updated their pool by resurfacing it.

 

(as per Jean Le Grys - Weekly Highlights to board members, week ending 080213)