Message from APC Pesident

I must say, that I am disgusted by the arrogant way the APC President is addressing the Property Owners in Costambar.
“Usual suspects”, “Losers” and “strange bed fellows” are just part of the unacceptable content!
It might actually be possible that some people have stopped paying, because they don’t find this behavior acceptable in any way.. That is my case!
I refuse to be treated like this and I don’t want to be part of an association supporting people like this!
And the presidents letter is somehow “fantasy land”! This is getting completely out of hand and I am stunned that some people actually believe in its content!

I will always respect people , who are doing something GOOD for the community and I find it admirable, that some people gave money out of their pocket for a “new” truck.. I don’t like that the people are listed with amounts, because not everybody is able to donate high amounts.. A donation is voluntary and should be kept secret..(I never told anybody HOW much money I spent as a board member, but it was quite am amount. I did it, because I wanted to and not because I wanted to be “listed”)

And now that I am a “loser”, because I don’t want to be part of this association any longer I will tell you something: This is NOT legal!
If City Hall has any authority in Costambar, then we have to be treated like anybody else.. City Hall has NO authority deciding if I have to pay for a private security - this is a complete nonsense!
I pay my taxes in this country and then I expect to get some service for my tax money..(streets, cleaning of streets and borders, cleaning of the beach . Street lights and police control - like anywhere else in this country..) You might not like the authorities to take over, however this issue would belong to another discussion..

I WANT to pay a maintenance fee - I would be more than happy to pay even the amount that is paid in any other private community.. But I don’t recognize APC as the legal company in charge of Costambar …I have NO contract with APC and no City Hall can force me to pay to a social club - come on!
I don´t want any service from APC and somebody else is picking up my garbage and I clean “my” street and “my” surroundings myself so far:
And how can the President say, that he invited Mr. Vallarino to sit down with him and “iron out” their differences, when he is sending him a bill of 2.8 million pesos in maintenance fees? When did APC give maintenance service to Mr. Vallarinos company? Never! Sending out a bill like that is not at all a diplomatic way to “iron out” any differences.. It is pushing people away!

And the Junta de Vecinos is right! Off course the contract between APC and City Hall should be cancelled…The contract has a sentence saying, that if anybody in Costambar disagree with the contract it is voided…
Please tell the truth to the community!
And just ONE question: How come, that the APC employees are telling everybody that Mr. Vallarino (Los Mangos) is taking over the maintenance of Costambar? I just wonder, that YOUR employees are telling something else to the community than you do yourself!
What do we have to believe?

The following was posted by Raf Belliard to his message group. I have copied it here since it applies to this thread.
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Hello folks,

Former APC Board President Jose Polanco has asked me to translate his 4-1-11 note to current APC President Yash Aggarwal and forward the same to all of you, which I do now:

Distinguished Mr. Yash,

I do not know with what thought or reason you dare use mi name to say that I was at City Hall in a meeting with the Junta de Vecinos and APC; I feel it is wrong to use my name without my authorization, since it is a lie. Please correct your error in the same manner in which you made it, in other words, sending an e-mail to all recipients, because I have nothing to do with the Junta de Vecinos, you or your meetings.
I hope this does not occur again.
Grretings..

Jose Polanco

I have deliberately avoided posting anything on this forum because I want to avoid the petty politics that have torn this community apart in recent months. However, I take exception to being called a "usual suspect" because I attended a (public) meeting. The APC President has no idea what my reasons were for being present at that meeting. Could it be that I actually do care about my community (oh perish the thought) and was there just because I would like groups to work together for everybodies mutual benefit instead of being ruled by a dictatorship. I would also ask why it was thought necessary for no less than three "security guards" in full uniform to attend the meeting. Do we not think it would have been better if they had been guarding the gate because when I returned from the meeting there was only one guard on duty (dressed in scruffy jeans and T shirt) and both barriers were open. Good use of fees.
Also, my "delinquent" wife (as the APC President has deemed to call her in print) has asked me to point out that she has on numerous occasions requested a member of the APC board visit her to discuss some of the issues we have with the APC. (check back on previous posts in this forum). No one has deigned to follow up on any of those requests.
I would appreciate it therefore that in future the APC President refrains from both assumptions on my motivations and from schoolyard namecalling on this forum.
I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to those residents who have donated to generously to the new garbage truck and to the new moto for security. It is admirable and much appreciated. What I would say, however, is please do not look down on those who, for whatever reason, are not in a similar financial situation and who cannot just put their hand in their pocket for a thousand dollars. It does not mean we do not care.
Thank you.

Hello APC Members:

There are several developments that you may or may not be aware of.

1. New Garbage Truck (see photographs)

APC just bought a used garbage truck with compactor. We were able to procure it here in DR rather than having to import it from abroad. It is doing its rounds and is much more efficient in collecting garbage having a 5:1 capacity of compacting the waste material. Many thanks to all those who contributed. Attached is a photograph of the Truck with some of the donors who contributed more than RD 10,000. You should recognize the familiar faces. Many more are missing from the picture. Here is a list of all who contributed. names are in alphabetical order in the first two categories.

One Thousand Dollars or More:

Aggarwal, Hemu and Yash
Byrne, Lois and Mike
Dilorenzo, Janet and Gene
Inoa, Denise and Abby
Melatti, Lisa and Gino
Orlando, Michael and Patricia

Five Hindred Dollars and More

Bosco, Margerie and Filippo
Cavallaro, Amalia, Cosmo, and Sarah
Harrison, Deanna and Richard
Jacobs, Jenny
Santillo, Italo and Mrs.

Two Hundred Fifty Dollars and More

Vicari, Thelma and Joe
Oulllet, Patricia and Gerard
Sandro Fella
Cameron, Jack
Gallant, Archange and Melvin
Toppetta, Eddy
Timo and Juanita - Los Charos Restaurant (Pledged)


RD 5,000 Pesos or less

Helping Hands for Costambar, Francesco Talarico, Lucy Roge, Maria Venditelli, Mario Macri, Gerald Planten, Carol Brucce, Barbara Georde, Stefano Arcorocci, Robert Goulet, Enrico Ugliano, Angie Lapenna, Ron Moran, R.J. Demeis, Mary Melatti, Angelo Pinchiartt, Gaeteno, Luigi Mastromonaco, Roger Leon, Ginette and Peppe.

I am sure I have misspelled some names. Please forgive me if your name is not correctly spelled. We were able to collect almost RD 500,000 in a record time- enough to pay for the truck that cost about the same - RD500,000 with transfer taxes and insurance. A little more than 53% of the contributions are outright donations and the rest are advance payment of dues; an outcome better than we had expected. I hope I have not left out anybody. If yes please let me know and I will send out a special e-mail.

I thank all donors irrespective of the amount donated. Every bit counts. But I want to single out two persons who not only contributed substantially themselves but induced others to do so. First mike Byrne for being the first person to contribute RD50,000 pesos and pleading others to do the same. Lisa Melatti went door to door in her neighborhood and collected RD55,000 from 20 contributors. Many thanks to Lisa. It is also gratifying that at my behest two Board members Sandro Fella and Jack Cameron came up with significant contributions.

Ayuntamiento and Junta de Vecinos

The last few days have been hectic appearing before the City Council on two separate occasions. The Junta de Vecinos of Costambar (JVC) appeared before the Puerto Plata City Council last Friday. I received a call intimating me of their intervention. I along with Amadeo Luciano, Jack Cameron and Sandro Fella rushed to the City Hall. We waited five hours before the JVC and APC was given the opportunity to speak. The JVC was represented by the usual suspects but also included Mark Gill, Ken Fisher, and Jose Polanco. JVC spoke first claiming that APC lacked legal status and that the contract with Ayuntamiento should be cancelled.

I followed JVC, debunked their false claims against APC and explained to the Council the common interest of the strange bed fellows - not pay APC dues and get free services at the expense of others. Also, I brought to the Council's attention the fact that the JVC along with Costa de Ambar, S.A. (Vallarino) had elaborated a plan to "Rescue Costambar" in which they are seeking US$500,000 from the Dominican Government so that they could start providing the same services that APC is now providing. To add insult to injury their operational costs would be 50% more than APC; their board of directors will have 9 members just as APC; and all those who are now paying to APC will be forced to pay to this new entity. I guess they are day dreaming if they expect to get this kind of money from the Dominican Government to do precisely what APC is now doing.

The Council made a decision to create a commission of 5 council persons, hear both sides, and reach a decision that would have the force of law. Both parties were asked to deposit papers which I did on past Monday. On Tuesday the commission heard from both parties separately. Sandro and I represented APC and spoke for more than an hour and JVC was represented by several including Ortega, Gonzalo, Ricardo, and Mark Gill. We were clearly told that JVC cannot legally provide services and that the major question is whether the APC dues are reasonable. We made our case as to why they are reasonable and that they could be lower if these non-payers paid their fair share.

We also made our case on the local television. On Monday Amadeo and myself went to the studios of Canal 3 and sought and got a lengthy interview. The reporter promised to send a team next day to Costambar. They did. Sandro and I took them around Costambar photographing the front gate, the security guards, and the new garbage truck at work.

Now, we just have to wait for a decision by the Council.

Costa de Ambar, S.A. (Vallarino) - His Lawsuit

Apparently Vallarino's lawyers filed a complaint with the an Attorney of the Dominican State )in Santiago) having jurisdiction over of real estate matters that we (APC) was occupying his land in Costambar. This Attorney sent us a notice to vacate the land that supposedly APC was occupying illegally. After considerable research I was able to locate where exactly the order originated from (the order did not have any addresses or telephone numbers). I faxed to the office of the State's Attorney a response denying denial all allegations. Apparently the office of the State's Attorney did not like the fact that I did not appear personally in Santiago or hire a lawyer to respond to his illegitimate order. He sent me a new order to appear on Tuesday, April 5 at his office in Santiago for a "comparacencia" or reaching an agreement with the claimant. There is nothing to negotiate because the accusation is totally false. Most probably Hector Luis will accompany me to Santigo. Jack Cameron and possibly Don Docker will also be going but they will use the opportunity to buy two guns that we need for the Security Department.

Despite his law suit (on which we are not spending a dime in attorney fees), APC has formally invited Vallarino to sit down with some Board members to iron out our differences especially since Hector Luis Rodrigues - who has good relations with him - is now a member of the APC Board. The ball is in his court and if really understands where his interests lie he would join forces with APC rather than toy with such losers who do not want to pay their fair share for the services they receive.


APC Financial Health

The good news is that substantially more property owners are paying their dues than in the recent past. I estimate that APC is receiving more than 65% of all the dues payable or billable. This is a substantial jump from the roughly 50% that was apparently the norm in the past. I attribute this success to the measures we have taken to enforce payment. At the present 31 non-payers have received notices from the City Hall's legal department to pay their debts to APC or face consequences. Many more are in line to receive them shortly. APC is always willing to sit down with the delinquents and reach a reasonable settlement. If not the future course of events will decide the fate of the debtors, including the seizure of the properties by the City Hall.

Additionally, I went to see the Judge in an open public session responsible for the test case against Villa Mexico. He assured me that he will have a judgment soon.

Miscellaneous Issues

Edenorte continues to do its work. It has replaced many meters with new ones. It is installing aerial high tension lines. In short work is going on.

Security is working well. The measures to control noise pollution are being implemented, but our security personnel are somewhat lax in enforcing them. The Security department has acquired a additional used motor bike for only RD10,000 that was paid for by a fund-raiser organized by Helping Hands for Costambar - HHC - a new fund-raising committee that raises funds for all worthy projects and not exclusively for a single purpose. For example, the proceeds (RD 15,000) of its Brunch and Bingo fund raiser last Sunday were split RD10,00 for Bike for Security and RD 5,000 for the purchase of the garbage truck.

The office has not moved as yet. Only one of the shops is currently available. We will move the library first and the the office.

Bethania has an assistant after Junior was let go.

On the issue of contamination of Costambar beach waters, I have sent letters to the Ministry of Tourism in Santo Domingo and in Puerto Plata. No response as yet; nor do I expect one.

Thank You all. Keep the faith and APC and we all will prevail.

Yash Aggarwal
APC President