The lawyer assigned to restoring sanity to roughly 2,000 residents of Success Village co-op has hired On The Mark Management to oversee daily operations.
Residents are familiar with the firm. They ran things until let go a few years ago by then board director Ty Bird. After that things unraveled: millions spent on lawyers and consultants rather than fixing the antiquated boiler system that failed to deliver heat and hot water to approximately 1,000 units, the number one priority to resolve in the short term until a modern system is in place.
Knott is also performing an audit of finances to determine more precisely where the money flowed. That is expected to be completed end of October.
In a letter to residents, Knott informed that the Board of Directors “is no longer an operational” entity.
Split between Bridgeport and Stratford, owners monthly common charges that had built up a reserve of about $2 million two years ago were drained down to just over $3,000, according to Knott. Bridgeport and Stratford government has loaned roughly $650,000 combined to provide some breathing room while common charges rebuild bank accounts.
Judging by comments on the Success Village Community Facebook page, residents are responding favorably to Knott’s early decisions.
I care about how basic needs are met by Bridgeport neighbors. Things like food, water, shelter, healthcare, and education are basic to caring for oneself and family. Attention to rule of law as set by governance, and overseen regularly and currently is required of elected and appointed officials who must deal with failures in one or more of these categories.
Success Village as one path to building equity in your own property has failed to maintain its self-governance status. And Bridgeport, at least, has failed to maintain through Mayoral appointments, a Fair Housing Commission for more than 20 years. Ignorance? Hardly! Lack of energy or concern? Probably. Or a re-ordering of Charter authority, in the mind of the chief executive who favors autocratic rule and power, where no one raises questions relating to GOVERNANCE, especially self-governance responsibility, in a City with an appalling display of active regular relative to eligible and enrolled VOTERS. Civics is not a subject for discussion until the failure of hot water, heat, and respect for CT Court opinions of the past two years becomes so obvious.
There is a “qualified Receiver” who has been entrusted and comprehensively authorized to bring order and hopefully some facts, information, and justice to the residents. He will report comprehensively, on a regular basis. Hopefully part of his findings will provide an avenue for democratic self-governance to occur, with candidacies, elections, officers, notices, agendas, and meetings once again. That would be very healthy for the owner-residents and the community at large inasmuch as reports of condo mismanagements in self-governance are popping up today. Continued curiosity and questions are worthy values. Seek and ye shall find!! So is patience. Time will tell.
This is where the State of Connecticut should step in and supply portable Heaters for each unit!