Oakmont – What Is Next?
Kevin Hubred resigned as general manager of Oakmont in August, and Steve Spanier, President of the OVA Board of Directors, has given his notice of resignation for later this month of November.
For the first time in the history of the village, the community finds itself without two members of the top leadership in both legislative and executive positions.
These vacancies are occurring at a critical time during which Oakmont faces important decisions. Having bought the golf operation with its two golf courses – the board most recently only concluded a 10-year lease agreement with CourseCO, a Petaluma based golf management firm.
On the drawing board lie the preliminary plans from Archilogix for the redevelopment of the core area, including the fate of the Berger Center. And crucial bylaw changes are awaiting to be voted upon.
To add to these challenges, Oakmont was severely affected by the recent Glass fire with the loss of six dwellings. The annual recurring fire events have led to a board mandate to remove all of the ubiquitous juniper bushes and to a directive for a five foot defensive space around each house under the newly enacted OVA Firewise Landscape Policy.
It is safe to assume that Tom Kendrick, Vice President of the OVA Board of Directors, will assume the presidency, with a new director to be appointed in short order.
Remaining open are four OVA board seats to be filled by next April. At this time nobody has announced publicly any intention at a candidacy.
Serving on the OVA Board of Directors, calls not only for manifest skills and proven experience, but, moreover, demands the requisite time to do justice to the job.
These are uncertain times for the nation, as well as our own village. Leading the community through a once in hundred year pandemic, threatened by annual and devastating fires, and dealing with Oakmont’s future, require skillfulness and total commitment.
It is hoped that among almost 5,000 residents there are qualified, selfless and willing members to come forth in order to serve their community in these major posts.
There are certainly some major challenges approaching in the next term. I am hoping for more conservative board members to deal with these issues. The fire risk is huge and I was happy to hear Mr Spanier worked with city officials to obtain an alternate exit. But, I don’t know how to get to the Channel Drive exit, and nobody announced that it was open during the last evacuation. Mr Spanier described in the Kenwood paper how he used this alternate exit in the last fire evacuation. Great, but I wish he had told us that it was open and how to access it. Please somebody tell me how to access it so I am not stuck in traffic for 2 hours while our leader slips away on his private exit.
Another great read by Yvonne Frauenfelder. Shows us what plight we REALLY are facing beyond the wildfires and Covid19. Our simple little OVA, that should have been retained as an easily administrated nonprofit concerned with common area maintenance, resident services, recreation centers, pools, and tennis/pickleball courts, has been converted to “The Oakmont Corporation” and has taken on millions of dollars of debt, owns two golf courses (with a 10 year management contract), and a restaurant/event venue that actually all should be run by experienced professionals, not volunteers from the community. This is what the present Board has brought to Oakmont and our financial future will be dependent on doing this thing right. Eventually it will be at all of our expense.
Now that both the professional and volunteer leader have resigned, the community’s future falls to corporate manipulator Tom Kendrick (read his book ~ in its second printing: https: //www.amazon.com/Results-Without-Authority-Controlling-Project/dp/0814417817) and see who and what the entire community is controlled by at this point. We all have been had. And I can’t imagine that many people who moved here to have a leisurely retirement, or worse, newer, younger residents who still are working will have the time or make the effort to be part of a corporate board in charge of millions in holdings, millions in debt, and the management and financing of two golf courses. It certainly is not what I signed up for…….