Brad Stanton resigns from Steiner Ranch Master Association board.
Updated Editor’s note:
Brad Stanton, vice president to the Steiner Ranch Master Association board has resigned effective immediately. Stanton is the fourth elected SRMA board member to either resign or vacate their respective positions in the last 12 months. Another board member resigned early in September 2017. There are only seven board members that serve on this HOA board. Stanton takes time to share with Four Points News and the community his reasons for leaving the board after one year and before his term is complete.
It’s been a privilege and honor to serve the great citizens of Steiner Ranch and especially those that elected me in District 2. We accomplished two of the three goals to which we committed: the Steiner Stars swim team obtained one additional home swim meet, and the landscaping and parking safety was improved at Westridge Park.
But we failed miserably in one goal. To me the big failure of the board was stamping its approval for Route F. (Route F is a new permanent road that Travis County is proposing to build out of Steiner that has raised a lot of community pushback.)
Peculiar behavior of some of the board members are other reasons I am resigning.
The SRMA board is there to make sure the grass looks great, the facilities are kept up-to-date, and the trash and recycling bill gets paid. Of course, making sure the overall neighborhood is kept in good condition and people are not building chicken coops in their backyard, adding Schlitterbahn-like water slides to their pools, or parking their cousin Eddie’s RV on the street for long periods of time are also important.
I have found this board to be extremely self-serving and arrogant in not listening to the citizens, and is in no way transparent in its decisions.
Consider that the board recently approved a code of conduct not permitting a board member to speak about board business to the press. I just can’t get my head around that.
It’s the citizens we serve, not the board itself. Why should anything remain private except for maybe delinquency and PII-like data.
Some of the board members get irrational and hostile if you don’t agree with them.
I had one board member get in my personal space and berate me in front of other board members because of the article that ran in the Four Points News regarding where each board member’s position was regarding Route F. Another board member was upset of the same article yet takes to social media to share her opinions of why she voted for Route F.
The whole Route F is a complete debacle and just shows the incompetency of the prior and re-elected board members.
How do you get 800+ signed petition signatures from the residents stating they don’t want a permanent road, commit to the community you will provide data and more dialogue before a final decision is made, yet have a secret meeting with the county and then come to a decision in haste? That’s # crazy.
Not to mention, the highest ranking official of the board and another director, who resides in the golf community, had a separate, private meeting with county officials.
In my opinion, this board doesn’t understand the concept of servant leadership.
On a positive note, I believe the board made the right decision in bringing in the 3rd party management company, GrandManors, to manage the day-to-day business and operations.
All the citizens of Steiner should rest easy in that Melinda Schoch, general manager, is doing an incredible job hiring the right staff and leading accordingly for success.
I am hopeful that GrandManors will execute on its commitment for real time access to data such as ability to see traction on violations reported, variances submitted, etc. I would encourage all citizens to leverage the www.ciranet.com portal for any issues they experience.
The board’s progress on capital improvements has been satisfactory, in my opinion. Upgrades to gates, community entrances, sprinkler systems, and the management company getting involved with the water district regarding the water mess at the exit of Quinlan Park Road have been good additions.
I would however, recommend caution to anyone that reads the press releases usually shared via email authored by the SRMA president regarding cost savings. While homeowner dues did not go up last year, there was opportunity to decrease dues or provide a refund, yet the board decided to retain those cost savings for future capital improvements such as a new pool and an improved community center.
In closing, I have been positively impacted by the nice people and world-class businesses I have been able to work with. I think that Josh Yates is an excellent addition to the board as I believe he will speak up and fight for the residents.
It’s time for someone else in District 2 to take the reins and attempt to coagulate this board for the citizens of Steiner.