2019 Meet the Candidates Remarks

In the interest of the short window of time we have before the May 1, 2019 election of three new directors, I am posting opening and remarks received from three of the six candidates who spoke in the April 15 Meet the Candidates night. As time allows, I will post additional comments. What follows are comments from: Zlatan Beca, Alfred Muller, and Elisa Siegel. NOTE: added are statements by James Whalen. by Babs Eisman, and by Molly Frantz.

ZLATAN BECA

OPENING STATEMENT 

Good evening everyone, great to see you all.  For those of you who don’t know me, I am Zlatan Beca and also go by “Z”.  According to my 9 year old son, my candidate bio is longer that everyone else’s and therefore, no one is going to read it.  For that reason, I will keep my opening statement brief.  I’ve had the honor of being the Elizabeth Condominium Association president in 2017 and 2018.  I sat in front of you two years ago and promised that if elected, I would run the Elizabeth like a $5.4MM/year business, would work on changing the culture of the building, would assemble strong teams to help the management get us over the financial bump, would work on reinforcing the building infrastructure and would do our best to take the Elizabeth into the 21^st century technologically.  Those two years really gave me a great opportunity to decipher the building into small details, compartmentalize, encounter all the different players, personalities and influencers, get my bearings in and paint a pretty clear picture of the direction we should be going in.  The assessment of all of the listed categories lies with each resident individually but one common denominator we all can agree on is that we are in a better place than we were 2 years ago.  The push made by the boards and the residents before us was just built upon further and we need to keep that momentum going.  Although the aforementioned challenges are still very important and will continue to improve further, my campaign today is all about the future, especially the next 3-5 years. 

The biggest challenges facing our community today are the following:

1.     Assuring the rest of the building is more in line with design of our lobby before the Amazon wave hits the area.  That means completion of the garage, hallway, gym and pool projects within reasonable means and time frame.

2.     Abusive behavior toward staff.  We need to continue handing out swift fines until people really start to feel them.  Eventually it will stop. 

3.     Replacing MaryAnn and Hollis with qualified professionals once they are ready to retire. 

4.     Having a healthy reserve and continuing to make drastic contributions to the payout of the outstanding loan.

5.     Keeping the condo fees steady and in line with the Cost of Living Adjustment.

6.     Improving communication between the board, management and the residents.

7.     Coming up with fresh new community engagement ideas.

8.     Underutilizing in house resources.

You notice that I did not say anything about the Fire Safety protocol and Storage & Bike Room Audits.  That is because I fully believe those are in line to be taken care of within months from now. 

In summary, we want to act as a channel that unifies the front.   I’ve said this before and I will say it again.  There is absolutely no reason why Elizabeth shouldn’t become the flagship building in the Friendship Heights pocket.  We are certainly a step closer now but if given the chance, I would continue to fight the battle and hopefully contribute to the effort of eventually getting us there.   Thank you.

CLOSING STATEMENT 

Fellow residents, please keep in mind that you are not casting your vote for an individual, but the best possible team that once assembled, will protect your interest, champion improvements and strive to move condominium well-being forward.  It is our fiduciary responsibility to organize a team that will co-exist as a cohesive unit and address all issues facing our community effectively, and logically.  Again, I stress the term unit.  I have always been a huge proponent of team work because I have seen greatness achieved when teammates striving toward a common goal are given ability to think freely and creatively.  I would love to see this type of culture further implemented here and believe I could be a great buffer for doing just that.  In my estimate, the Board spends more than half of its time fighting little meaningless battles. If I could help table that, the entire board could actually focus their entire time and expertise on Elizabeth’s affairs and improvement projects.  Now that would be nice. Our destiny is in our own hands. You need to look for leaders and candidates of strong character. Those are the type of people that will represent you to the best of their ability and for the good of all.  Everyone here has been around long enough to recognize those qualities.  It is up to you to decide if you want to continue building upon what we’ve started or go in the opposite direction.  You have seen the repercussions of some of the past choices we’ve made.  An experienced pair of eyes with a firm and fair perspective would not be a bad thing for the Elizabeth.  The problems facing our condominium were stressed in my opening statement.  The best way to resolve those is by assessing the issues at hand, prioritizing, evaluating recommendations from qualified experts, listening to the residents and staff, and working in unison with the Board and the management to reach adequate balance between the operating budget and the fund for capital improvements.  It’s been an honor serving here for the past two years. If given your trust again, I would be honored to help contribute to the team that will get us to the next level.  Thank you. 

ALFRED MULLER

OPENING STATEMENT 

When I was a medical student--- many years ago--- I was taught that one of the most important ways to make a correct diagnosis was TO TAKE A GOOD HISTORY.  Listen carefully to the patient and collect all the information you can without jumping to conclusions.

I have tried to follow that sensible advice in relation to my non-professional life, including years of volunteer service, for 26 years as our village Mayor, --- when we paid off an inherited $2 million debt, while simultaneously creating 2 parks, a shuttle bus service and a community center,  AND lowering the tax rate to the lowest permissible by law.  I have followed that advice in service to The Elizabeth for the 27 years I have lived here,  both as a non-Board member (working on committees), and at other times as the Board VP or its Treasurer. 

In all these positions I have gained much experience, and have specific institutional memory which can prove helpful in future discussions on the Board. I know our successes and I know our failures.  We can learn from both.

I have tried to diagnose problems in our building by listening and respecting the many diverse opinions but also trying to collect facts and not be swayed by personalities or cliques. I compliment others when I think they have done a good job, and I offer constructive suggestions when I think there can be improvement.

A major responsibility of the BOD is its fiduciary responsibility. I have always stressed the need to keep three goals in mind regarding this responsibility:  1) to maintain, repair and replace our building infrastructure;  2) to have adequate reserve funds for capital improvements and unexpected emergencies, and 3) to assess condo fees which are fair for our owners and competitive regarding sales and rentals.

(I was raised by parents who lived through the Great Depression and have always been a proponent of " pay as you go".  I believe we should borrow only in rare times of an emergency, not simply to do a capital expenditure 1-2 years earlier than when reserves would so allow.)

If you give me the privilege to continue service on the BOD I promise to continue listening to every opinion and come to conclusions only after an impartial analysis of all the facts that I can obtain.  I shall remain an independent voice on your BOD and continue to work very hard on your behalf.

CLOSING STATEMENT

Thank you all for attending this important meeting. I urge you to evaluate the following four qualities in the candidates for Director:

1) experience:  mine is institutional memory from living in the building for 27 years and serving at times as VP or Treasurer of the Board of Directors where I learned the financial and intrastructure challenges of the Elizabeth;

2) hard worker: all my present colleagues on the Board have worked extremely hard; many of you have witnessed my hard work in bringing the smoke free amendment towards approval; I would work equally hard to see corridor renovation completed during my term on the Board;

3) analytical: my training as a physician has taught me to base decisions on reviewing all facts carefully before arriving at a conclusion, and not rely on emotional appeal;

4) independence: I have voted with a majority of the Board more than 90% of the time, but am not hesitant about voting in the minority when I believe it is in the best interest of owners;  I am not part of any of the cliques in the building who have their own agenda. I weigh each issue on its merits, not on who is supporting or opposing it.

If you agree that these attributes are important for a Director to possess and that I have demonstrated them for many years, please vote for me. I will do my best to vindicate your support,

ELISA SIEGEL

OPENING STATEMENT

Good evening. I’m Elisa Siegel, and it’s my honor to run for The Elizabeth Board of Directors. 

I’ve owned my unit, 1813, and lived in the building since 2015.  When I was looking to downsize from my home on Leland Street, The Elizabeth, with its beautiful lobby and prime location, amenities, and sense of community, lured me in.

 

The four years since then have been difficult ones, with a lot of repairs and disruption.  I also personally experienced the effects of the building’s disrepair when a flood nearly destroyed my unit, just as I was completing a top-to-bottom renovation. 

Like many of you, I’ve watched our property values decline, and our condo fees go up as the board took the necessary steps to turn The Elizabeth’s finances around, stem the constant water damage, and make sure we maintained our insurance. 

While these changes were difficult, they were essential.  So I am grateful to recent boards for their courage and the steps they have taken to restore the building’s financial stability and crumbling infrastructure.

I am running for the board, because there is another important step we need to take – restoring The Elizabeth’s reputation as a well-managed, vibrant, luxury community in the heart of Friendship Heights.

If elected, I would contribute my skills and experience from a 40-year career in communications and marketing to tell the story of The Elizabeth’s renaissance.  Together with my colleagues on the board, and other interested residents, we could develop a new brand for The Elizabeth that positions us much more competitively with our neighbors at The Carleton, 4620 N Park Avenue, and The Willoughby.

I also would improve The Elizabeth’s online presence by developing a mobile-friendly public website and improving our social media reviews.  Currently, The Elizabeth does not have a public website, and our reviews on social media are poor.  If our building is to remain competitive with our neighbors, and compete successfully for new Amazon employees, we must have a better online presence.

We have a great story to tell, but we need to tell it ourselves; not leave it to others.

Before we can do this, however, we must renovate the hallways as well as improve the condition and maintenance of our lobby and other common areas, which are now showing signs of wear and tear.

These steps are all essential to improving our property values, which is one of the board’s primary fiduciary responsibilities.

But even with our problems, The Elizabeth is a great building.

So I am very optimistic about our future.  I believe we have a unique window of opportunity to increase our property values by continuing to restore the building’s infrastructure, finances, hallways, and then, our reputation as a vibrant luxury community in the heart of Friendship Heights.

Thank you for listening, and I hope I have the opportunity to serve you as a member of the board of directors.

CLOSING STATEMENT

As owners, we have important choices to make in this election for the board, and we are fortunate to have candidates who offer diverse skill sets and experience. 

With my background in communications, public relations, branding, and marketing, I offer a skill set not yet represented on the board.

In addition, as I noted in my candidate statement, I have many years of executive and leadership experience for a large organization, and know how to manage a large budget and staff, as well as serve on a board. 

I believe that my career success is due to an ability to objectively consider all the facts and make decisions that take into account diverse needs and viewpoints, for the good of the whole, without regard to personal interest. I am also an excellent listener and believe strongly in the benefits of transparency.

Recently, in a board meeting for my association, the Association of American Medical Colleges, which represents all the nation’s medical schools and major teaching hospitals, someone shared a quote about the role of boards of directors that I’d like to share with you now:

The role of the board is to protect the future from the present. 

If elected, you can count on me to take a fiscally responsible approach to balancing the essential needs we have today with the important work we must continue to sustain our future, including rebuilding our reserves, completing necessary repairs to our infrastructure, undertaking preventive and regular maintenance, completing much-needed renovations to our hallways, and rebuilding our brand as a luxury building.

These are the steps we need to take to ensure that The Elizabeth once again becomes a growing asset in our financial portfolios, a community that we all enjoy, and above all, a home in which we all are proud to live.




JAMES WHALEN
OPENING STATEMENT

The Elizabeth is an incredible community. In my first year and a half living here I have met so many amazing people and begun to cultivate relationships that I know will carry on long into the future. The Elizabeth is the place I call home and I want to utilize the skills acquired throughout my career in finance to help the community and the people therein. I know that my experience in financial matters can help to improve the Elizabeth’s overall profitability and positively influence the lives (and property values) of its residents.

When I first moved into the Elizabeth in September of 2017 I shared the same concerns that many residents have surrounding our financials. I recognized that there was a significant amount of work to be done in order to bring us back to a state of profitability and positive cash flow.

I became Chairman of the Budget and Finance committee in 2018 and over the past year have helped guide the Elizabeth in financial decisions that have been crucial to our future. We have reconstructed the Monthly Financial Reports received by residents and the Board in order to make them more concise and easier to review. We have built out an investment strategy for our excess cash which includes a laddered CD portfolio. The portfolio consists of CD’s with varying maturities in order to ensure we optimize investment return without sacrificing the liquidity required for expenses. Most importantly, we have paid down a significant amount of debt and have a plan in place to further reduce our liabilities by the end of the year. 

In my career as a financial advisor, I serve as both the main point of contact as well as support to many of my firm’s most complex ultra-high net worth client relationships. I am responsible for customizing financial solutions designed to meet clients’ individual needs, goals, and wealth objectives.

I have experience in budget creation/review, investment portfolio construction, asset allocation, and plan implementation. My disciplined nature and eye for detail help to ensure exceptional and consistent outcomes. I feel that my ability to bring a personal understanding to complex situations can help ensure that the Elizabeth continues to progress both financially and as a community even when difficult times may arise.

I earned my Bachelor of Arts degree in Business and Economics from Rhodes College, where I played on both the Varsity Football and Lacrosse teams and was a member of the Kappa Alpha Order. I am a Certified Financial Planner™ professional and passed the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Series 65 exam.

Outside of work, I enjoy being outdoors and participating in community service activities. I am an active member on the Board for the Autism Speaks National Capital Area and the head of recruitment and development for the Autism Speaks to Young Professionals organization. Over the past three years, I have helped to raise over $100,000 for autism and autism research.


BABS EISMAN
OPENING STATEMENT

The reason I am running for the Board is there are areas that I would like to see

fine tuned.

. Sense of Community can be fostered by having house rules that are enforced.

    For example, polite and proper behavior at meeting and dealings with staff.

. Considerate behavior in the usage of the trash rooms.

. Have an updated directory so you know who your neighbors are.

. Restart the "Conversations with the Board" committee

Part of a wish list would include:

 .User's Manual for how to handle various issues/problems, e.g. who to go to

    for the answers so we understand the roles and responsibilities of our staff.

 . Have (2) people on the front desk during peak hours

 . We have a great back patio, but access is difficult

 . Odorless organic cleaning products

 .  Improving the layout of the gym - removing walls

Naturally, we have to finish the garage, but before starting work in the halls,

I want to be sure our infrastructure is sound, and that burst pipes do not undo

this investment.  Also, look into why there are such fluctuations in temperature in the hallways, which might compromise finishes.

As a long time owner with business, real estate and design experience, I ask for  your consideration.

CLOSING STATEMENT:  (best as I can remember, nothing was written)

I  want to thank everyone for coming and participating in tonight's event.  This is our home and everyone's  responsibility.  I have served on the Board of Directors for HEROES INC., Hebrew Home - including Ring House and Landow House, and the International Association of Chiefs of Police.  All these Boards had the same basic goals: where are we now, how do we maintain our mission and how to plan for the future.

If anyone knows non-resident owners, please contact them to send in their votes and proxies.

Thank you for your consideration.

MOLLY FRANTZ

OPENING STATEMENT 

Let me briefly introduce myself. The Elizabeth has been my home since January

197 5. During those 44 years I have twice served on the Elizabeth's Budget &

Finance Committee and on the Board for 15 months; recently I Chaired the Ad

Hoc Committee on Air Filters and- on behalf of75 Owners- submitted the

petition resulting in the upcoming vote to change the Bylaws. This change would

require all Board Directors to be owners of the Corporation. In addition, along

with Margie McNerney, I coordinate the donations of the resident's no-longerneeded

furniture and useful household items to A Wider Circle who, in tum, gives

these items to families just moving out of homelessness. And I contribute Helpful

Hints to the residents through the monthly Newsletter.

There are those who ask me why do I want to serve on the Board at all. Others

point out that I did not complete my term on the Board and question if I would do

this again. Both are legitimate points of view. The atmosphere is quite different

than in 2011 and I certainly have no intentions to resign early. I am sure others

did not expect to resign early either.

The number 1 problem in the Elizabeth is why is the environment still toxic. This

adversely adverse impacts The Elizabeth's reputation. I believe I can help push

the Board toward even more transparency, and more opportunities for the residents

to air their concerns. The Elizabeth's return to financial stability and the recent

large capital projects and with finally getting to the much-needed hall restoration

have and will go a long way to improving our home's reputation. But it won't

solve the problem without every resident and every employee and every leader

acknowledging their role in this problem and the solution.

We all need to step back and focus on the substances and legitimacy of the

problems owners and residents raise. While it often seems the only successful way

to get resolution on one's problem is to be the squeakiest wheel, getting to that

point is frustrating for everyone involved. Having operating problems repeatedly

raised at Board meetings rightfully makes the Directors feel under attack. Ideally

Board meetings should be about major problems and policies. But what choice do

the owners and residents have if they feel - rightfully or wrongly - that their

concerns are not being taken seriously. After all, putting a "MY" before a

problem automatically moves it up the importance scale. Right!!

In the first half of The Elizabeth's life we had an Operations Committee that

serves as a buffer between the residents and management and the Board. This

group met monthly and had the time to hear the whole story, listen to see if others

had the same concerns and - perhaps most importantly - to understand why this

person was so upset - or ideally to address the concern before the person becomes

frustrated. This Committee then formulated recommendations for either

Management or the Board for action( s) to be taken. In my years living in the

Elizabeth I am constantly amazed how many others have experienced the same

problems but never raised them. And I am sure I am not alone in this feeling.

As you listen to each of us tonight and read our statements, I want to urge you to

also read or reread Z's remarks in the March Newsletter about what qualities a

Board member should have. He urges you to do your own due diligence. And

while he didn't say it this way, he is urging you not to stay in your information silo

-your Fox News or MSNBC so to speak. Ask us questions about why we have

done things, if not tonight then on a one-on-one. Board Directors have enormous

authority to make decisions impact your finances and your quality of life. This is

one of the times you get to make the decision, not assign it to someone else.