(updated
1/4/24)Whaleshead Cabin Owners' Page
(updated
1/4/24)
PLEASE NOTE:
This website began in 2015 when Andrew Cramer took over ownership of Whaleshead. The website became stagnant in 2017 after a lot of issues were resolved and the need for the website diminished. But on November 1, 2023, Flintstone Properties became the new owners of Whaleshead and new issues have come up that need to be addressed.
The purpose of this website is for allowing all Whaleshead cabin owners to communicate their thoughts to other owners. As host of this website, I will post any communications from any owner as long as they are polite and respectful. Email me at ray@kawal.net with your attachment and I'll post it as soon as I can so others can read it.
I understand that there also may be a Facebook page regarding Whaleshead issues, but a lot of folks (like me) don't do Facebook. This website is not meant to compete with any Facebook posts, but it is available to all Whaleshead cabin owners.
If you would like to skip all of the previous conversation between 2015 and 2017, please click HERE.
Introduction
The owners of cabins at Whaleshead are a diverse group, but we all share common interests. We all bought our cabins for different reasons: either we wanted to live full time and enjoy the beautiful Brookings area, or we wanted a vacation home on the fabulous Oregon coast for our friends and family, or we wanted a cabin to provide some income through the Whaleshead rental program. When we bought our cabins, Whaleshead Beach Resort seemed the perfect place to allow us to meet our goals.
As the years passed, we have seen some problems develop. The owners of Whaleshead had financial issues, which appeared to force them into taking partners for financial backing. Infrastructure began to deteriorate, and communication between Whaleshead management and the cabin owners was mediocre at best. But cabin owners persevered, and as long as management stuck to the original agreements we all signed, we all hoped things would change for the better and we lived contentedly.
But that changed in June, when the new ownership of Whaleshead decided to begin arbitrary new fees in direct conflict with previous lease and rental pool agreements. All cabin owners are now worried about what might come next, and we wonder whether Whaleshead continues to be the place we want to be. Because there has essentially been no positive communication between the new park ownership and the cabin owners, we need a means of communicating more effectively. This web page will allow us to post our concerns and ideas, as well as pertinent documents that affect us all.
As you'll note from the documents and emails below, we met with Andrew Cramer, the General Manager, and tried to convince him that cabin owners want Whaleshead Resort to succeed. We would like to work with him and be supportive of future Whaleshead projects. I believe we got his attention, but so far we have not seen positive results.
I'll try to maintain this site as time permits, although my wife, Elna, and I travel a lot and we have kids and grandkids and other hobbies that take up our time. Please email me anytime at ray@kawal.net and I'll post your emails if you indicate that I should share them.
We wish you all the best,
Ray and Elna Kawal
Owners of cabin U-4
PREVIOUS SALES BROCHURES
(courtesy of cabin owner Bill Morrish)
*** This website is in chronological order. Please scroll to the end for the latest information. ***
This is the June 25, 2015 letter that started our need for better communication among cabin owners:
We received this letter on July 19th, and met with Mr. Cramer on July 22nd. Click HERE for my response after our meeting.
7/25/15 Text of email from Marianne Werner, cabins U-9 and B-16:
Hello Ray, I've been out and about knocking on doors and chatting with folks. Bottom line: almost no one is happy with the services they've had over the long haul and recently. They are also distressed about the non-occupancy fee...plus the cleaning fee going up to $100. Everyone I met is full-time, and all but one person supports what we are doing. I think your idea of sending out an email to the names we have and requesting that they find some more names is a good one.
7/27/15 Text of email from Marianne Werner:
I just spoke with a friend in San Diego who is an experienced Real Estate
lawyer. This is what he told me:
New owner steps into shoes of previous owner...is obligated just as he was. He
has no greater rights than owner he purchased from.
IF A NON-OCCUPANCY FEE IS NOT IN THE LEASE AGREEMENT, HE CANNOT ARBITRARILY
ENFORCE IT.
Trying to impose something not in the lease is a breach of the lease...thus,
illegal.
The governing document, the lease, which is a bilateral agreement, cannot be
changed unilaterally.
He suggested a letter stating why we are not paying--I'd use above language as
part of letter--and said we don't need a lawyer because we haven't been harmed
yet. If we don't pay, he can sue us and then we'll need a lawyer.
Does this help?
Best, Marianne
7/28/15 Text of email to cabin owners:
Dear fellow owners of a Whaleshead cabin,
My wife, Elna, and I first came to Whaleshead in 2007 and
enjoyed it so much that we ended up buying Unit U-4 in 2010. We remodeled
it completely, making the bathrooms bigger with granite countertops, a new
kitchen with new stainless appliances, new carpeting, new spa, then we continued
with keeping it in Whaleshead’s rental program. (Our neighbor’s
thought we were nuts!) We persevered for four years as we continued to
replace missing and broken items, damaged walls and furniture, and damaged
appliances and spa. Finally, last year one of the renters broke into our
private (locked) laundry room and walked off with about $1500 worth of tools and
personal items, so we had enough of the rental program. We advised Daniell to pull it out of the rental pool until Whaleshead could change their
policies to better protect the cabin owners. We have been enjoying our
cabin with our family and friends ever since.
Everything has been fine until July 17th when we
received a letter (attached) from Andrew Cramer, the new General Manager of
Whaleshead. The letter basically said we have to join the rental pool or
we will be charged an extra $150 per month on top of our already increased lease
fee. Since we have seen no changes to protect the cabin owners, we are not
ready to rejoin the rental pool, but more than that, I won’t be a subject of
extortion. So when we arrived at our cabin last week with our grandkids, I
immediately asked Daniell how I can contact Andrew Cramer to sort out this
demand situation. Daniell advised that she can’t give out Andrew’s
physical address, his email address, or his phone number – he insists all
communication must go through her. But she did say that Andrew was
probably going to show up on Wednesday or Thursday. So I made it a point
to make sure I saw Mr. Cramer to sort this out. On Wednesday, July 22nd,
my wife and I and Karl Kolthoff (owner of U-10 and a close friend of mine for
the last 50 years) sat down with Mr. Cramer to discuss this situation and find
out what is really going on with Whaleshead. I was hoping that we could
also talk to his partners or financial backers, but all we could learn was that
Whaleshead is now owned by TW Construction out of Portland. He has
financial backers, but no information was further divulged. There seem to
be no other partners, as Andrew seems to be the only person to make decisions
regarding Whaleshead. Our discussion lasted over an hour and we learned a
lot. The attached letter to Andrew Cramer was sent to him today (via
Daniell), so I’m passing this information on to other owners of Whaleshead
cabins for your own information.
Because Mr. Cramer refused to rescind his extortion letter,
he has alienated at least a third of the cabin owners at Whaleshead, which
includes our discriminated “group” of “non-resident” owners. The
other two thirds are those owners already in the rental program and the full
time residents. From his actions, it appears that he feels he can levy any
sort of charges for any amount for any reason. Obviously, other owners
either in the rental program or full time residents have expressed a lot of
concern over what may happen next. We tried to convince him that these
actions are not in the long term best interest of Whaleshead, but he still feels
his letter is justified and will attract more owners into the rental program.
Some of the owners immediately affected by “the letter”
have already contacted attorneys, but as of now, I’m trying to collect contact
information for all of the cabin owners (no matter what “group” you are in)
so that we will have a way to provide information and a way of communicating
within ourselves. This will allow us to know what is going on at
Whaleshead and what new directives are being forced upon us. We would MUCH
rather work WITH Whaleshead management, but that requires two-way communication,
which we don’t currently have. I hope it will change, but until then
email is the easiest way to provide information – hence this email and the
attachments.
Many owners have already been helping me compile
information to improve our communication. Marianne Werner of Unit U-9 has
helped go door-to-door to talk to other cabin owners and Peggy Titus of Unit
B-14 has spent many hours going through County records to provide cabin owners
names and addresses from the public record. All of the information we have
to date is shown on the attached Excel spreadsheet. But you’ll notice
that as of now, most of the owner’s email address and/or phone numbers are
still not listed, so we can’t easily communicate with those folks and let them
know what is going on. I’m sure many of them, especially those who
received “the letter”, are worrying what to do next, as well as what happens
more long term. We would like to get all cabin owners on board if
possible, if for no other reason to keep everyone informed. Obviously, no
one is forced to provide their contact information (and please advise me if you
would like to be removed from our list) but it is very difficult to pass on
information without an email address. I’m trying to call everyone first,
but please excuse me if I’ve missed an explanation call and you are on the
email list. Others are helping me provide this information and our list is
growing quickly.
What I would request of each of you, if possible, is to
contact an owner you know who does not have his email address listed (or at
least a phone number) and either have them email it to me or you could email it
to me. It is easy to update the spreadsheet whenever I get new contact
information, and you can request the latest revision from me at any time.
Whenever I have new information I will pass it on to everyone on my list so you
will be updated as often as you wish.
Regarding “the letter” I know there are at least two
attorneys who are aware of what is going on. In the coming days or weeks,
we can make a decision of who we would like to use to write at least a letter to
Mr. Cramer informing him that MANY owners are being represented, not just two or
three. If you have any thoughts about participating, please let me know.
I hope you will find this letter and the attachments
interesting and informative. We love Whaleshead and are definitely not
ready to give up on its future.
Best regards,
Ray
Ray and Elna Kawal, Unit U-4
268 Lakeview Drive
Sequim, WA 98382
(360) 683-3027
Text of 7/29/15 email from Nel Sprague, owner of cabins C-8, M-3, and M-4:
Great letter. About 95% of Whaleshead owners are upset with the mysterious Andrew, whose address is 12726 SE Division ST #25 Portland, OR 97236. From the Sec of State website. Keep us posted. thanks, Nelson
Text of 7/29/15 email from Sandra Parsons, owner of cabins, T-3, I-5, and I-6:
Dear Kawal family: My deceased husband and I bought our cabin here (I-6) on 8-8-98. It was a rental unit at that time. We continued to travel in our motor home and bought a place in Arizona for winter enjoyment in 2002. Col Parsons passed on in 2011 and I returned here. At the time the park was less than half the size it is now, and as I recall, our rent was $135.We left it in the rental pool for the first couple of years, until our CPA advised us that the IRS would be questioning the validity of that, as we were NOT making enough money to warrant being in the pool. I returned the cabin to the rental pool for about 6 months, but due to filth, theft, damage, and disappearance of belonging, I removed it. I now own three cabins here. T-3 where my daughter Candace lives and I-5 where I reside. I-6 is under contract with a Baptist Minister who ministers on the Appalachion Trail. GA to ME A couple of thoughts about renters. The 5 homes that have burned here were being rented and the fires were directly caused by the renters! The park does NOT check the backgrounds of renters, and this has become known as the PARTY PLACE! We were very fortunate that the nights of the fires here were very calm! If we had any wind at all, the whole park would have burned. I do not believe that permits were given to build these units so close to each other. I believe that the solution to this would be to charge MORE rent. One cannot even get adecent motel room for the price of these cabins! I feel that these new owners were amiss in nor calling the owners together before they took over,. I will forward your note to my daughter, Candace Ware in T-3 and ask if she has any suggestions for you. Sincerely, Sandra Parsons I-5
Text of 7/2915 email from Candace Ware, daughter of Sandra Parsons:
Hi,
Ray :-)
I am Candace Ware and I live in T-3, which is owned by my mom, Sandra Parsons
who lives in I-5. My phone number is 541-813-1348. Thanks for all your hard work
and the information provided. I'll be interested in how all this goes forward. The
adversarial position the owners have placed us all in is so unnecessary. I will
never understand why, when there are so many respectful and cooperative ways to
go about things, grown-ups who should know better still choose the hardest,
least-sensible way. Baffling to me. But, since they appear to have made their
choice in no uncertain terms, we must deal with the reality of that.
I am supportive, of course, but my voice in this is somewhat irrelevant since I
am not an owner. You've already heard from my mom that you have her support. I
share her opinion that the way to glean more financial benefit from this
business is to do a better job of protecting the cabin owners from the risks
inherent in renting the places out. SO MANY ways to accomplish that: Raise the
nightly rate to bring in a higher class of clientele. Make the rate a base rate
for 2 people and add a reasonable surcharge for additional guests. Require a
security deposit of $100-$150, refundable as long as there has been no damage or
theft. Inspect the cabins before they leave. Make it clear that the renters are
fully responsible financially for any damages they incur, and retain their
credit card info for such charges as may be necessary. There are countless ways
to put the burden of renting on THE CLIENTELE (where it belongs) rather than the
cabin owner. It's called good business. (Such a concept, I know!)
Anyway, I ramble. I think it is wise indeed to get all the owners working
together. I hope there will be better communication and a suitable resolution at
some point. If it takes legal action to achieve that, so be it.
Back in 2011, my brother and my nephew and I rented your cabin when we came here
for my step-dad's memorial service down on the beach. They came from Maine and I
traveled from Wisconsin where I was living at the time. We looooooved the place,
the renovations you undertook were beautifully done. A couple of years ago when
some friends of mine were on vacation, I recommended your cabin and they stayed
there, and loved it. When we stayed, and when they stayed, we took pains to
leave the place spotless and fully intact. I was so sorry to hear of your bad
experiences with renting the place out, but not surprised. What a world we live
in these days. :-(
I really, really hope that some sense can be talked into the heads of the dodos
who own this place.
Candace
Text of 7/30/15 email from Paul Pettigrew, owner of cabin OV-4:
Hi Folks: Confirming our phone conversation this
afternoon:
John Spicer of Spicer Law, Gold Beach has reviewed all of the various documents
that we've sent him. His opinion,
like ours, is that Cramer's $150 assessment
fee is not provided for in our lease contracts.
John states that our leases allow only for a 10% rent increase per year,
as we also believe. He is willing to draft a letter to Andrew Cramer, stating
that he represents us, and that the assessment is a non-starter, i.e.will not be
paid.
John needs a signed, faxed note from each of us stating that we're in accord
with his recommendation. He will charge us $200 for the letter.
No charge for the office time of his staff, who have organized our data
and spent time on the phone with some of us.
Nor will he charge for his review of our documents.
I think that this is eminently fair.
Please fax your signature, with a brief note telling John that you're "on
board", to Attention:John, Mary or Yvonne, at 541-247-0705.
If you have any questions, please call Russ, or me.
Thanks,
Paul
Text of 7/30/15 email from Jim Fischetti, owner of cabin U-24:
Good evening Ray.
My name is Jim Fischetti owner of U-24. Additional contact info is below. My
step father Marvin Nasses communicated with you some initial frustration that my
wife experienced upon arrival to our cabin a couple days back. We have since
determined that the original reaction was overstated and the cause of the
problem largely rests with the drought.
While we genuinely believe that the past 2 administrations of the park have not
always been the best of partners in the rental pool activity for a variety of
reasons from the seemingly deceitful actions of the original group to the
consistently sub-par oversight at times of both those groups and while we are
disturbed to see the desire to raise fees for the “rental poolers” I have
not had a chance to talk to Daniell to personally better understand things and
am not litigious by nature.
This cabin has been a wonderful source of fond memories for my family but it has
not been economically fruitful.
I intend to interface with Daniell sometime in the near term as an increase in
fees will require an increase in pricing.
I understand that sometimes collective negotiations may be of value and
certainly am grateful for your efforts. Please keep us in the loop as to things
and I will do the same.
Thank you.
JIM
Click HERE for scanned documents I received from Daniell on 8/3/15. Documents include Rental Pool Fee Increase, Non-Permanent Residents Update, "clarification" of Non-Permanent Residents Update, and new Rental Pool Agreement.
8/4/15 Text of Whaleshead Update #1 to all cabin owners:
Hello once again to all fellow cabin owners at Whaleshead,
Since my last email, in which I shared with you my letter
to Andrew Cramer, we have been getting more and more cabin owners to join our
communication efforts. If you take a look at the attached updated
spreadsheet, you’ll see that we now have over 40 email address on our
list. And this is just in a week or so. Some owners own more than
one cabin, so we are close to getting half of the owners on our
“bandwagon”. Thank you for talking to your friends and neighbors and
getting them to join, but we still have the other half to let them know what is
going on. So please keep sending me email addresses and/or phone numbers
until we have everyone on board. There are probably lots of out of town
owners who are similarly “mad as hell” (or at least “concerned”) but
don’t know about our efforts. We need to find them.
There are three basic “groups” of owners among
us: full time residents, part time owners not in the rental pool, and
owners in the rental pool. But we are all in this together with similar
concerns about new and arbitrary fees that the current management feels
empowered to create. My letter to Mr. Cramer mostly addressed owners in
“my group”, but owners in the rental pool have also taken a big hit, as the
attached new rental agreement indicates. It now looks almost impossible
for an owner in the rental pool to make any profit for a one night occupancy
with the new fee structure. Owners in the rental pool have likely already
figured that out. Only full time residents have not yet been served with
new fees (other than the recent lease increase), but who knows what is
next? So far, everyone I’ve talked to who received the “extortion
letter” for the $150/month fee if you don’t join the rental pool is refusing
to pay it, and I hope that others will see it the same way.
A number of owners have already contacted attorneys, and we
now have an initial plan of action, the purpose of which is to get Mr.
Cramer’s attention that we stand together as a group of owners (and hopefully
all owners, eventually). Although three attorneys have been contacted, a
few of us have decided to retain Mr. John Spicer in Gold Beach, Oregon.
Russ Jacobsen (owner of cabin C-12) and Paul Pettigrew (owner of cabin OV-4)
speak highly of Mr. Spicer, who conveniently works in Curry County. Gary
Hansen (owner of cabin OV-3) also wants to join. The other attorneys were
in Grants Pass and Medford, which is a slight disadvantage when compared to a
local attorney who happens to be familiar with Whaleshead and its history.
Mr. Spicer has offered to put together a letter to Mr. Cramer, advising him that
he is representing a large percentage of Whaleshead owners who will not tolerate
arbitrary fees and cost increases that are not justified or legally allowed in
our lease agreements. Mr. Spicer is very interested in our current
situation and offered to create the letter for a couple of hundred bucks, with
the objective of notifying Mr. Cramer that arbitrary and illegal fees will be
met with a huge resistance, not just a complaint from a couple of owners.
I don’t know the exact language of the letter because we
have not yet seen a draft, but the letter needs to indicate approximately how
many owners are being represented. Is it just the four of us (noted above)
or who else would like to be part of this effort? Obviously, the more
owners who would like to participate, the more impact the letter will have on
Mr. Cramer. If we could get 20-30 owners who are being represented in the
letter, this would be a huge impact. Plus, the cost per owner would be
“peanuts” if we participated in the letter’s cost. The intention of
the letter would be to represent all cabin owners, not just any particular
group.
For those of you who are interested in this approach, Mr.
Spicer asks that you fax or email your name and any concerns you might like to
express. It’s OK if you don’t have any particular concerns right now
but are just worried about what the future may bring. But he does need to
know if you want to be represented in the letter. You can fax a letter
with the subject “Whaleshead Group” to Attention: John, Mary, or
Yvonne at the fax number (541) 247-0705. If you would prefer to email him
with your information, please email me for his email address, which I should
have by tomorrow. I’m hopeful that quite a few of you respond.
Please don’t worry about the cost if you feel you can’t afford it – it’s
easy to cover this minor cost even with a few people.
If you have general comments or complaints that are
relevant to overall or particular issues of Whaleshead management, feel free to
forward these to me, and I’ll keep track of them for future discussion.
Some of you have expressed interest in a formal organization of cabin owners,
and this is certainly worth discussing. But what is most important is
maintaining a path for communication so everyone can keep informed. As we
add more and more email addresses to our list, we improve our means of
communicating our comments and concerns. Although you can certainly write
to anyone or everyone on our list, I’m willing to be the “hub” for
maintaining your email comments. I’ve already received a lot of emails
from individual owners – there has not been even one negative comment so far.
If you have any questions about the letter from Mr. Spicer,
please feel free to email me or call me anytime. Elna and I are in the
process of moving my 93 year old mother to an assisted living facility here in
Sequim, so that’s taking some of our time right now, but I’ll try to get
back to you in a timely manner.
Best regards,
Ray
Text of email copy 8/5/15 from Peggy Titus to attorney John Spicer:
Dear Mr. Spicer:
We are the owners of B-14 and are considered one of the
"49%" full-timers (we stay at our unit approximately 6-7 months a
year); therefore, at this time, are not affected by the arbitrary $150.00 per
month fee. This 49% is another one of his new arbitrary stipulations.
What our main concern is that Mr. Cramer is in violation
of the lease we all signed by attempting to add fees and stipulations whenever
he chooses. We all pay to lease the land that our unit is sitting on and as
owners of our unit, Mr. Cramer has no say in how often we choose to use it. If
an owner wants to pay to have it just sit there and seldom use it or use it
often, that is his right, since the unit is his property, not Whaleshead's
or Mr. Cramer's.
What we see possibly coming in the future is more
arbitrary, unlawful practices like these by Mr. Cramer. First the $150.00 fee
for what Mr.Cramer deems as a "Non-Permanent Resident" Fee, then the
outrageous rental pool fees-what's next? We thought that a lease agreement was a
binding contract-not changed on a whim.
We look forward to the draft letter and want to sign-on
but it is contingent on our review and approval of the draft letter.
Cliff and Peggy Titus
Text of email copy 8/6/15 from Mike and Sally Irish, owners of cabin U-19, to attorney John Spicer:
Dear Mr. Spicer,
We are full time residents at U19, Whaleshead Beach
Resort. We have lived here for almost 9 years full time. We think
what’s happening with the non-resident owners is wrong. We were once in
their position going between our home in Utah and our home here at Whaleshead.
We did not buy our unit with any consideration of having it a rental unit.
Our own personal things remained in it when we were away and there for us when
we returned. If we were renting it, all that would have had to
change. Renters ruin a home and make it a “rental” instead. We
have seen that evidence through our neighbors around us who have had items,
pictures, novelties, linens stolen with no repercussion to the renters who did
it. Buying a unit as your second home should be our choice. No one
should be forced to place their home in a rental pool just so the owners of this
resort can make more money off of them. All of these homes here were
purchased as single family units by individuals who then had a choice to live in
it themselves, either full time or part time, or at their choice, to put it in a
rental pool. There was no stipulation in our original leases or purchasing
papers that said you had to rent it if you didn’t live in it full time.
If that had been the case, we would not have purchased our place.
We were so hopeful that having a new owner was going to be
a positive thing for this resort. We still remain hopeful that this is the
case, but what he’s doing with these specific homeowners is definitely not a
positive improvement , either for the resort or for his image as a new
owner. We would like to remain informed on what is going on with all units
as a whole. Except for emails from Mr. Kawal, we would not have known
anything about these changes since we are full time residents and no notices of
any changes have been given to us. Since the purchase of Whaleshead, Mr.
Cramer has not met with the homeowners as a whole or separately as far as we
know, to find out what our wishes are for this resort.
Thank you for your time. We look forward to a
positive outcome from your advice.
Sincerely,
Mike & Sally Irish
U 19, Whaleshead Beach Resort
Text of email 8/6/15 to attorney John Spicer:
Dear Mr. Spicer:
I think you’ve likely seen my
correspondence to Andrew Cramer that Russ Jacobsen or Paul Pettigrew may have
forwarded to you. So you probably have a pretty good background on the
issues that the cabin owners at Whaleshead currently face. I don’t want
to overwhelm you with information, but I’m attaching some documents just for
your reference. I’m finding that as cabin owners learn of our
communication efforts, they are joining us quickly – I’ve already seen quite
a few copies to emails being sent to you to join in an initial letter that you
are composing to Mr. Cramer. We would like to see a draft of the letter as
soon as you can make it available.
Below is my first letter to the cabin
owners and I’ll forward you the second letter, just for your
information. Again, I don’t want to overwhelm you, but I think it’s
better for you to have too much than too little.
I’ll look forward to working with
you in the future.
Regards,
Ray
Ray and Elna Kawal
268 Lakeview Drive
Sequim, WA 98382
(360) 683-3027
Text of email 8/6/15 from Taylor and Donna Daniel, owners of cabin U-5:
Hi
Ray. Not sure if any of the following helps you. Donna & I
purchased U-5 last January and have not been to Whaleshead since May.
Please
refer to Mr. Cramer’s letter dated June 25, 2015 to all owners who are in the
rental pool (attached). Effective Sept. 1, Whaleshead Management fee
will increase from 30% to 40% of net monthly occupancy revenue.
Mr.
Cramer’s letter states: “our average tenant in the rental pool program
is receiving in excess of $1,500 per month in net income”. if this
number is correct, Mr. Cramer is also charging the owners who are in the
rental pool an additional $150 per month ($1500*10% =$150).
I
am not sure of the number of units at Whaleshead which are affected by the cost
increase of $150 per month. However, if 100 units are affected the
additional annual income to TW Construction will be $180,000.
($150*12*100).
I
believe Mr. Cramer has the right to increase fees charged to owners who are in
the rental pool (Rental Agreement par. D & K) and that he is trying to pass
the increase to part time residents who have declined to be part of the rental
pool.
Have
the full time owners received the same $150 increase?
Mr.
Cramer’s letter talks about staff diligently cleaning, etc. Haven't they
been doing this? He also talks about substantioal cost increases due to
superior management. I always thought superior Mansgement would reduce
costs while improving the Park assets and and its reputation!
We
would like to be on the list to be represented as we will not be in the rental
pool after September 15, 2015. It is possible we would rent the cabin next
summer.
Feel
free to forward this e-mail to others.
Taylor & Donna Daniel Unit U-5. (805) 343-2591
Text of email 8/7/15 Whaleshead Update #2 to all cabin owners:
Hi all,
Just a quick note on a couple of issues:
1.
Quite a few of you (over 15 at this point) have contacted
John Spicer’s law office wanting to sign on – great! And we could use
more too. But I have seen a draft of Mr. Spicer’s letter, and it does
not cover what all we need. So I have asked Mary, his legal secretary, to
not distribute the letter until we work on it some more. I am working
closely with Paul Pettigrew and Russ Jacobsen to make sure the letter covers our
concerns, and it’s not there yet. Paul has some excellent background on
these matters, so he is a great contributor. But please be assured that
everyone who “signs up” will get to see the letter before it goes out, since
you are being represented. Of course, you will also have a chance to
“bow out” if it doesn’t meet your needs. Paul and I are pretty busy
this weekend, but we’ll get to it as soon as possible.
2.
I’ve been getting a LOT of emails from cabin owners expressing
their concerns – that’s also great. But many of you want to share
those thoughts with others, so rather than forwarding every email I get to every
cabin owner, which would overwhelm your inbox, I’m creating a Whaleshead
Cabin Owner website so I can post every email you’d like to share. That
way you can choose when to look at it at your convenience. This should be
up and running early next week.
Regards,
Ray
Text of two emails received 8/8/15 from Scott Holland, owner of cabin B-8:
Hi
Ray,
I
own and reside at B8 with my wife, Gina. Trying to be helpful… resolving
disputes with facts & fairness is what I do for a living.
Call
if you like.
Hi Ray,
Getting real feedback and quantifying ROI and equity valuation
are to main goals of owners and the resort.
Call if you like.
I spoke with Andrew and he seemed (do not know the man) quite
receptive to the other e-mail I forwarded to you. He has not seen this
attachments. He is going to call me Monday and set up a meeting with me
Wednesday.
I’ll keep you posted.
Scott
W. Holland, Legal Strategist/Researcher
19921 Whaleshead Road – B-8
Brookings, OR 97415
541 255 2355
Cell (Gina) 530-340-0141
sholland0000@gmail.com
and Scott's email to Andrew Cramer on 8/6/15:
Hi
Andrew,
Just
looked at the new rental pool sheet. Here are my comments.
1.
Stating $1,500 to owners and increasing is… sorry… basically
fraudulent inducement and/or deliberately deceptive. You are risking legal
trouble in my opinion.
2.
40% plus fixed cleaning fees and sheet purchase will not leave
much for owners on a yearly basis after HOA fees & electric/gas. You simply
do not want an owner’s rebellion… which from those I spoke with may be
coming.
3.
Owners I have spoken to are upset you have not had an owners’
meeting, in general, and before raising rental pool rates.
4.
What I would do is state real numbers (you do not have to
identify the actual cabin) for the highest “net” income, middle, and low.
Then list the features of each… ocean view, hot tub, tv size, bed size…
anything that other owners can consider as to improving their rental return.
5.
I believe your improvements (terrific job to date) lend
themselves better to focus owners on increased overall occupancy yearly (which
gives everyone more money; the expected appreciation in their home value in the
coming years due to improvements, America’s energy independence and becoming
an exporter of energy along with drought & fires in CA; and, reversing the
40%.
Summary:
With real numbers high/mid/low so owners can quantitatively see what may (or
does) makes the difference in greater occupancy/net income, and touting the
expected increase in home value due to reasons in #5… is honest and makes
inherent sense to owners.
You
have a great sales pitch… why toss what people see as total bs out there? And
why not meet with owners to introduce yourself, and get feedback for
consideration… you may learn some valuable things.
Personally,
I would be marketing this place to Wyndham, Four Seasons, Indian tribe
(casino/small convention center) etc. and let them put in a convention center
and market it year round. Does not take a lot of time to see if there is any
interest. Year round nice weather, gorgeous location, no traffic, health
orientated, lots of actives within 10 minutes year round. Might not be at all
practical… just tossing thoughts out there.
Hope
you find this helpful. People are upset and feel the new rental pool letter is
deliberately misleading – that cannot be what you want circulating in the
behind the management owners’ circles. It decreases the equity value and
discourages buyers.
Sincerely,
Scott
W. Holland, Legal Strategist/Researcher
19921 Whaleshead Road – B-8
Brookings, OR 97415
541 255 2355
Cell (Gina) 530-340-0141
sholland0000@gmail.com
Note:
Scott's
emails were intriguing and his letter to Andrew Cramer was thoughtful, so I
called Scott and we talked for some time. After speaking with Andrew on
the phone, Scott has a meeting scheduled for Wednesday, August 12th with Andrew
to discuss his letter. Scott feels that he is highly qualified to discuss
the disputes we have with Andrew and hopefully he will be able to discuss and
resolve these issues rather than the onerous need for an attorney. I
emphasized that Andrew would, at the very least, have to rescind his letter of June
25th, and he should reconsider his rental pool fee increases as well. I am
anxious to hear of Scott's results.
Text from email 8/8/15 from Bill Morrish, owner of cabin C-7:
Ray
Thanks for heading up a homeowners hub to deal
with our new owner, Andrew Cramer. He is getting off to a bad start with his
owner/partners and the sooner he figures this out the better. Please include us
in the homeowners group. We are also in the rental pool. We live in Ashland. We
may want to sign on to the letter from Spicer once we have seen it. Please send
it along when it is ready. Of course, if we do, we shall want to share in the
cost. I am sending separately a copy of the letter which I sent to Andrew,
first to the Whaleshead office and then again to his office in Portland . He did
not respond to either one (strange behavior).
Click HERE to view Bill's first letter to Andrew.
Click HERE
to view Bill's second letter to Andrew.
Text of email 8/8/15 from Scott Holland:
Hi
All,
Here’s
a good “fact” as to why litigation is worthless, except for lawyers. http://www.legalteamusa.net/civillaw/2013/01/03/what-are-the-odds-a-case-is-going-to-trial/
The
parties end up settling, without any law being “enforced” or “orders”
from a court… typically once the easy emotion-based money is gone. It is a
simple fact that should be considered. Why?
Because
it shows we should settle… that is… work together towards common goals.
The
goal of Whaleshead and homeowners and employees are the same:
1.
Increase
Whaleshead’s reputation (social media rules in 2015 as to where people spend
their precious vacation time & money)… so that:
2.
We
increase yearly occupancy rates;
3.
Which
allows an increase next year in rental rates;
4.
Which
increases Whaleshead’s and homeowners’ Return on Investment;
a.
That is the main yardstick by which the equity value of
Whaleshead and the owners’ cabin will be based.
5.
All
of which allows employees to earn a bonus and/or raises for providing great,
friendly customer service;
Further
conflict between Whaleshead, homeowners, and employees… will only destroy any
hopes of achieving mutually beneficial goals and result in the polar opposite of
said goals. Period.
Let’s
work together. It can be done. It is the only smart, logical, fact-based course
of action that is in everyone’s best interests in achieving these goals.
Not
everyone in all three parties (Whaleshead, homeowners, and employees) will ever
be completely happy. But the choice is… sink divided or rise to the surface
together.
All
comments are welcome and appreciated… so long as they reasonably work toward
mutually beneficial goals. Sound reasonable? Why or why not?
And
to homeowners who are not in the rental pool, can you please give me facts
as to (seems logical to find out why people will not drink the Cool-Aid, since
you all drink from the same bowl eventually… before you try to force them
to… lol ;-):
NOTE: Not including any consideration of the new $150 fee,
which personally I strongly believe will disappear on its own. Why? Because I
cannot imagine someone going into court and asking a judge to agree that
coercing class of homeowners into a rental pool – those who use “the
least” management, water, sewer, trash, and general wear and tear –
should be supported by a court of law, if not on procedural grounds, upon
grounds rooted in centuries old equitable law… it may even technically be a
crime, I have not researched that… but I will tomorrow. My point is, I would
not lose a lot of sleep or happiness on this issue, certainly not at this point.
Let’s find out what it would take for you to “want” to join the rental
pool… first. Andrew is better than the last owner… let’s work as a team,
please):
2. If you were, why you withdrew. Facts.
3.
What
would it take for you to consider re-entering the rental pool WITH the
ASSUMPTION the fees and rental % went back to the status prior to the recent
sale of Whaleshead.
My
comments and suggestions are merely that. For consideration by all affected. I
like learning: I do not mind being wrong because it means I learned something,
but please make any comments/suggestions based upon facts that are explicit in
said comments/suggestions. And for the purposes of my assistance, please focus
on the common, mutually beneficial goals, and do not clutter this with minor
(even if quite important and correct) gripes at this point. It will hamper my
strategy designed to achieve the above goals with all working as a team.
Thank
you. Take from this what you like… ignore the rest! ;-)
Scott
W. Holland, Legal Strategist/Researcher
Text of email 8/9/15 reply to Scott Holland:
Hello Scott,
I read your emails thoroughly and agree completely with your goals and strategy. But I think that the previous emails I just forwarded you from Bill Morrish will give you an idea what you might be up against. Bill wrote two thoughtful letters to Andrew without any response. And I understand that others have written as well without a response. My letter to him posted on the new website has yet been unanswered (although it is pretty recent). I completely agree that we all need to work together and I believe you will find that the cabin owners want to be helpful as well. No one on "our side" wants a lawsuit. But so far, our communication efforts have been completely one sided. The only real communication from Andrew has been a few letters to "everyone" telling us about his "superior management" and the great things he has done so far, coupled with higher fees for his rental pool owners and the ridiculous "non-resident occupancy" fee of $150 for those of us not in the rental pool. So I wish you all the luck in the world when trying to discuss these matters with Andrew, but you've got a tough road ahead of you. If you succeed, you'll be the hero of a hundred cabin owners. I'd like to think we've "softened him up" a bit for you, but without any feedback from him, who knows?
You asked for "facts" about the rental pool. While there are many other owners with similar experiences, here are ours:
1. We continued with the rental pool when we bought our cabin U-4 in 2010. At that time, Whaleshead had more competent employees and more of them. Johnny (don't remember his last name) worked with Vic and knew the park as well as Vic, as I recall. Johnny patrolled the park and knew what was going on with the rental cabins. Anna and Liz worked the office, and they too were excellent and knowledgeable. When something was "not right", like perhaps a dog in a no pet cabin, or smoking in a non-smoking cabin, Liz was right there to put a stop to any poor behavior. There were also more maintenance people around, so the park looked better and was "policed" more effectively.
2. We lost Johnny to a serious accident, and Liz and Anna left for their own reasons, which could have been low pay, but I'm not sure. But in general, Whaleshead employees seem to be low paid so Whaleshead is not attracting the best employees. This seems to be especially true with the maids. They come and go often and it is a common joke when Vic finds them watching TV in a cabin they are supposed to be cleaning - and of course charging the cabin owners for their time.
3. As time progressed, we would find more and more damage to our cabin when we returned to Whaleshead to use it for our family and friends. We had spent over $50K remodeling our cabin, and when we would return we would find dents in the new appliances, marks on the walls (once even a hole in the sheetrock where someone had kicked a hole in the wall), scratches on the new furniture, damage and missing parts to the new spa, and sand in the new carpeting. There would be scratches made purposely in our new solid wood doors. Full time neighbors told us how renters would pull the mattresses off the beds, haul them outside on our deck, and use them for trampolines. We had a guestbook that initially overflowed with wonderful comments from the renters how much they enjoyed our cabin, but as renter "quality" declined, the guestbook comments disappeared. Whaleshead clientele was changing for the worse.
4. Upon each return to our cabin, we would first have to inspect our own cabin to see what was missing. EVERY time we would return, something would be gone -everything from a missing knife in the knife block to small appliances on the kitchen counter or in the cabinets to decorations in the living room or bedrooms. We don't know if it was renters who walked off with our belonging or the maids, some of which had questionable integrity. Daniell can verify all of these experiences, although she tried hard to rectify them as best she could.
5. Financially, the income from the rental pool was OK, but not great. Upon every return to Whaleshead, we would first have to make a trip to Fred Meyer and replace the missing or damaged items, which took both time from our stay and the money it cost us for replacement. During the summer months, rent was obviously better, but we also wanted to use our own cabin during the summer with our kids and grandkids, so we had to block out times during the "high season". During the winter months, rent would be low, as expected. In Andrew Cramer's letter, he spoke of rental owners averaging $1500 per month - I'm afraid he's dreaming, even with the old rental pool fees. Basically, income wasn't worth the trouble we were having.
6. Finally, we had a renter (or a maid) break into our private and locked laundry room and steal about $1500 worth of tools and other personal items. They appeared to selectively go through our private belongings and take what they wanted. It was only when we returned to the cabin after a few weeks did WE notice that one of the normally locked doors was found unlocked. Whaleshead was unaware of the entry until we notified them and the Sheriff's Office. Since there had been seven renters in our cabin during our absence, there was no way to identify who could have been the burglars. After a hassle for a few months, insurance covered our financial loss, but by that time we had had it with the rental pool. We asked Daniell to pull it out and we've been happy ever since. Sure, we miss the income, but it's so nice to come back to our own cabin that is exactly like we left it.
So, Scott, there are some "facts" about our experience in the rental pool. Other cabin owners have some other horror stories as well. One owner told me that he had renters from another cabin come over to his vacant cabin to party in his hot tub. Some even described their renters as "animals". Still, after all of this, we told Daniell that we might be interested in rejoining the rental pool if conditions changed. But the "extortion" letter from Mr. Cramer put a stop to this interest. We will join voluntarily if we can determine our cabin will be protected and better clientele use it. Previously, we found that some renters loved our cabin and were hugely disappointed when it was no longer available to them. Those are the type of people who respect other's properly and are grateful for being able to use it. We enjoy sharing our cabin with those who treat it well and appreciate it. But Whaleshead needs to find a way to accomplish this goal. Perhaps a security deposit, or perhaps cabin owner screening might be an option, maybe VRBO where cabins owners can help select renters. I'm sure other cabin owners can come up with other ideas, but Mr. Cramer must participate and solicit these ideas so we can all see what works. It is communication between the cabin owners and Whaleshead management that will solve these issues. It won't be one sided edicts and increased rental fees to the cabin owners that help attract new owners to the rental pool.
I hope this helps you a bit if you actually do get a chance to discuss these issues with Andrew. We wish you luck.
Regards,
Ray
4.
Hi
All,
Andrew
was very receptive to all comments. He agreed to the following:
1.
No
live branches will be cut unless they pose a safety hazard and in that case WH
will seek input from a cabin owner who will have sun/shade affected; AND, owners
who will have their view affected. Let common sense if live branches should be
cut for safety rule, please.
2.
A
crew is coming next week and will repair (or determine what is needed for
supplies, and very soon after repair) roads.
3.
The
cabins put in by WH… are in. Whatever can be done externally to make them
“as compatible/nice” as reasonable will be seriously considered. Removing
the cabins… just not practical or realistic. Sorry. It’s water over
the damn thing… let’s control what we can.
4.
The
$150 fee for non-resident not in rental pool. Gone.
5.
The
40% is needed currently ONLY due to not enough cabins being in the rental pool.
Andrew said if 15 more units come into the rental pool, he’ll drop it to 35%.
If 30 units (or I believe something close) come in he’ll drop it back to 30%.
Sounds fair to me.
6.
Theft/vandalism:
a.
WH will look into liability insurance to cover any such
theft/vandalism.
b.
WH owners will make up an inventory sheet that will be checked
upon each departure so any guilty renters will pay, and if not, WH’s insurance
(if they can get it) will cover/replace/pay for it.
c.
WH will develop a procedure for cleaning that includes a
“supervisory” check list “after” a unit has been cleaned.
d.
Cleaning fee will revert to the old system. $50 for an hour
and perhaps a one night stay… that alone is 100% of an the owner’s profit? I
forgot to address this exactly, however the only thing WH said about not rolling
everything back to what it was… is the 40% (SEE #5).
i.
Personally, I feel the cleaning should be incorporated and
paid for from WH’s % of the rental fee.
7.
We’re
going to get a pool and small convention center, contingent on securing debt to
finance it. Any owners interested in an investment note? Banks only pay 1% for
CDs.
a.
WH agreed the best place for a pool is right in front of the
restaurant/office where the driveway is now… it will tie in perfectly to the
existing deck/view.
b.
A pool and convention center will allow WH to book small
corporate (& other, weddings, etc.) (the restaurant wins too!) events from
Silicon Valley to Seattle. Anyone with contacts at any corporation or whatever
who might book such an event… put some calls in… positive feedback will no
doubt speed up a pool/center.
8.
The
septic and building (the one that looks like a crack den/shooting gallery! ;-)
will be addressed very soon, possibly with a construction black web fence until
completed.
9.
Every
effort will be made to restore the laundry facility as soon as possible.
10.
Homeowners
are encouraged to go on Yelp and TripAdvisor and write your own 5 star
reviews… free marketing in the right place for free… just a little bit of
time.
11.
Homeowners
are encouraged to raise their rental fees. I agree, as does WH, this is too much
of a bargain at this point.
a.
Homeowners are encouraged to go on VRBO (vacation rentals by
owner) and Craigslist and run your own rental ad… when people respond, refer
them to the new online automated reservation system… it is YOUR MONEY TOO!
b.
WH said they will hire an additional grounds person. Nice.
c.
Homeowners are encouraged to do any tidying up, plant things,
paint/stain… upgrade TVs/etc. and interior… WH will take steps to safeguard
as above.
d.
WH will look into a rate for high speed internet in all
rentals… people expect it with higher rental rates and it only takes one night
at an increased rate to cover this for the month.
Send
dinner certificates to Scott & Gina! Lol
I’ll
help WH and homeowners as much as I can… free… makes me happy… great
investment of my time in my cabin!
Nobody
is perfect… Andrew was very nice and receptive… and now truly understands
this can be a world class resort.
Let
bygones be bygones… let’s all do what we can to help.
If
there is something not addressed… please do not panic. Nicely let people know
what it is. There may be some mistakes in the above… do not think so… but do
not panic if it turns out there are.
Thanks…
teamwork… WH, owners, & employees. We all sink or swim together. ;-)
Scott, Gina, Simba & Spock
Second email:
WH
was also very receptive to a Christmas bonus pool for employees based upon
occupancy, rate increases (due to better everything), and social media
reviews/reputation (Yelp, Trip Advisor, Expedia… wherever).
We
fix the place up, WH, owners and employees all do what they can to that end. Add
a pool/small corporate conference room, raise rates, raise occupancy, raise
participation in rental pool… and we have a complete winner for all.
Scott W. Holland, Legal Strategist/Researcher
Text of email 8/9/15 reply to Scott Holland:
Hi Scott,
Your email is very encouraging news for sure. Andrew’s
lack of previous communication and extra fees has built up a lot of distrust
among the cabin owners. But perhaps he is willing to listen to other ideas
from the cabin owners, and this is a very positive sign.
It’s very good news that he dropped the $150 fee for
non-renters, and I hope he’s willing to listen to cabin owners in the rental
pool. I’m sure they will have some good ideas and if those ideas
can be implemented, hopefully the rental pool can be made profitable for both
Whaleshead and the cabin owners. In order for cabins owners to join the
rental pool, it obviously has to be financially attractive to them.
Good job, Scott. I hope to meet you on our next trip to
Whaleshead.
Best regards,
Ray and Elna
Click HERE for an update from Andrew Cramer regarding the $150 "non-resident occupant" fee. Andrew has rescinded his fee, and he appears to want to work together with cabin owners by surveying their needs and issues. Let's hope this improved communication helps improve our mutual best interests.
Text of email 8/13/15 from Scott Holland:
Hi
Ray,
Thank
you. Andrew could not have appeared more interested. He readily acknowledged a
lack of experience in a high level (potential) resort facility, and at the same
time really seemed to understand this is one (w/improvements). Daniell was
present during the entire meeting and she can confirm the discussions/attitude.
Could not have been more productive.
I
really hope people will give him a chance by putting units in the rental pool…
and to that end… if you plug “0” in the spreadsheet for income… all that
is left is expenses.
Personally,
I think dropping the rate back to 30% will get more units in the pool faster
than “get in the pool at 40% and hope for the best)… and achieve what he
wants faster while building more goodwill with owners.
In
my case, we are moving soon as my mom is in and out of hospice in FL. Maybe in 2
weeks. Based upon what I heard, I do not want to sell my unit, and will put it
in the rental pool. If I break even with HOA fees, mortgage, and utilities…
that is a lot better than $1000/month out of my pocket while my unit appreciates
(and I really believe the next 2-3 years will be very good to WH).
My
suggestion is have as many people enter the rental pool, give him a chance.
It’s like we want him to climb this mountain (fix everything, which he is in
agreement with)… but we are not going to give him any food (cabins in rental
pool) to help him get there. For him to get the pool and other improvements, we
also need to help him. And get enough people to come in and everyone’s % goes
down.
And
when you give someone the resources “they” say they need… it puts the
burden of performance squarely on their shoulders.
Seems
worth a try to me… people can always change their minds later.
Scott
W. Holland, Legal Strategist/Researcher
Text of two emails 8/13/15 from Tom Miller, owner of cabin T-12:
Good morning, we recently received your letter in regards to issues with the new owners of Whaleshead in regards to "non-resident owners". We do have our unit , T-12, in the rental pool. As you might be aware, the new owners also recently sent a letter to those in the rental pool which essentially raised charges for cleaning and hot tub maintenance as well as increased their percentage take of the net from 30 to 40%. I haven't run the finally numbers yet, but I expect the net result will be to nullify the slight profit we have seen this last year ( we have owned for a little more than a year and use our unit for about 2 weeks a year as well). I do appreciate the overdue improvements/neglected maintenance work the new owners have undertaken but I would expect they figured at least some of that expense into their purchase price. The combined actions of raising charges to both non-resident owners and those in the rental pool as much as they have would seem to be counterproductive. If the increased charges to the rental pool owners eliminate any profit, not with standing problems with repair/theft you mention in your letter, it may be more cost effective for rental pool owners to pull out and simply pay the $150 a month extra resulting in the elimination or significant reduction of the resorts rental income. Do keep me posted and I appreciate your correspondence including the tone.- Tom Miller, owner t-12
Email
to Daniell:
Good
morning and thanks to Daniell for listening to me today and suggesting I
put my comments to writing. First and foremost, I due appreciate the
improvements the new management have undertaken and my wife and I have always
found the staff helpful both when we stay at our unit as well as handling our
cabin's rental (T-12). In regards to the proposed fee increases please take into
account the following comments/suggestions;
Cleaning and
laundry fees- although an increase charge overall I like the
simplification and see the merit on your side to productivity by eliminating the
need for staff to count and justify minutes.
Hot tub fee- I
expect you have done your analysis and it is justified so I can live with
that.
Management fee-
Going from 30 to 40 % percent of net ! Implementing such, in
combo with these other changes results in almost a 30% decline in our net, way
too much. Unlike what you have stated in your letter our June net income this
year was almost identical to our net income last year. Given the higher level of
maintenance and repairs we must undertake due to rental use it maybe more
economical to exit the rental pool and take a tax loss even given what I have
heard to also be proposed as a monthly fee increase to nonresident owners not in
the rental pool. Less participants in the rental pool, less income to the
resort. IF indeed the proposed booking improvements result in measurable
increases year to year for rental pool participants then bring back this idea.
As I earlier stated, we haven't experienced any increase in income and we have
invested moneys in replacing appliances and flooring as well as other items.
Thoughts about
counting dishes and charging for breakage- Sounds good but
probably not worth the effort. Yes, dishes and the like break, and guests
sometimes take things. My suggestion would be to have staff just inventory the
big items like TVs, microwaves. Otherwise each cabin would have to the same
type/number of plates etc. And don't forget to add staff time and costs for staff
to tae inventory each time.
Anyway, these are my comments and hopefully you will listen.- Tom Miller, owner
T-12
Text of email 8/13/15 from Les and Loretta Stilwell, owners of cabin T-8:
Hello Ray and Elna,
We just received a hard copy in the mail today of
your letter dated August 6, 2015 regarding the problems at Whaleshead.
We are Les and Loretta Stilwell and we own T-8.
We ordered our unit in 2003 and took possession and began a 25 year lease
in 2004. Our lease contains no requirement to join the rental pool and we
have never been in the rental pool. We have absolutely no desire now, nor
have we ever, to be in the rental pool.
We also received "the letter" from Andrew
Cramer attempting to impose the $150 a month "Non-Permanent Resident"
fee. Our lease does not have any provision which would allow Mr. Cramer to
impose this or any other fee beyond the monthly rental fee. We have
attempted to correspond with Mr. Cramer through email several times, but have
only received a response one time which reiterated how wonderful he felt the
rental pool was and all the improvements he has been making. It did not
rescind his attempted fee.
Needless to say, we were very upset by these
attempts to coerce us into the rental pool. We had a relative who is a
California lawyer (since we live full-time in California) look over our original
lease and all the email correspondence. While he is not necessarily fully
versed in Oregon law, he did advise us that Mr. Cramer's actions could well be
considered retaliatory in nature and his attempt to impose this fee was not
legal.
The last correspondence we sent to Mr. Cramer, with
a copy to Daniell, was dated August 3, 2015. We stated clearly that our
lease agreement does not have any provision for a "Non-Permanent
Resident" fee or any other such fee. We reminded him that we had
previously requested confirmation in writing that the fee had been rescinded;
but to date, we have heard nothing further from him. We also again
reiterated that we have no desire to be in the rental pool and that his attempts
to force us to do so will be considered retaliatory.
We also stated that if Whaleshead pursues this
attempted fee, contrary to the lease provisions, we would pursue whatever legal
remedies are available to us and that we would seek reimbursement for any fees
or expenses incurred by us to enforce the lease provisions.
We also have asked repeatedly for the name and
contact information for the actual new owners of Whaleshead Beach Resort but
have not received anything.
We were most interested to receive your letter and
definitely wish to be kept in the loop regarding any future developments.
We will include all our contact information at the bottom of this email and have
no problem with you adding our info to your spreadsheet.
We did not, however, receive anything but your
letter. We received none of the attachments you referenced. Could
you please send them to us via email?
We were very interested to hear that you actually
met with Mr. Cramer and would love to hear more about your conversation with
him. How was it left with him? Since you say he refused to rescind
his letter, did he say what he intends to do next? We would also be
interested in hearing what the two attorneys you mentioned have to say about the
whole situation.
We also enjoy Whaleshead very much.
Everything was fine until Mr. Cramer tried to coerce folks into the rental pool.
As we mentioned in an email to him, there have been two multi-unit fires
over the years at Whaleshead that destroyed units and in both cases the fires
were started by renters. We have observed over the years the abuse of the
various properties by renters and the failure to honor rental policies in the
units. We have also observed poor cleaning and maintenance over the years
of the rental units.
So, thank you very much for reaching out to us
regarding this issue and we look forward to the receiving the attachments as
well as being kept informed by any further developments with yourselves or other
owners.
Warmly,
Les and Loretta Stilwell
Text of email 8/14/14 from Les and Loretta Stilwell:
Hi Ray,
After looking through most of the great
info you have put together on the owner website, we were glad to see that Mr.
Cramer appears to have backed off the $150 fee.
You may post our email if you wish, although it
seems it may be a moot point now with the fee rescission.
As other owners have referenced, however, his
actions to this point have generated a good deal of distrust. The wording
in his rescission letter, which we have not yet received from him or Whaleshead,
carries the qualifying words "until further notice." We truly
hope that he has realized the inappropriateness of any such fee, in light of our
leases, and that he is truly rescinding the fee permanently and not just
temporarily until he tries to reinstate it under cover of different wording.
If there is still a $200 fee remaining with Mr.
Spicer, we would be interested in making a contribution towards the cost.
Thank you so much for all the effort you and others
have put into this. In years past, we lived in a community with a
Homeowner's Association. There was a problem with the management company
and the accountant, and Loretta was actively involved in a grass roots effort to
protect the homeowners. So we are very well acquainted with the level of
time and effort that is necessary to undertake efforts such as you have here.
It has been very difficult for us to stay in the loop since we live so far away
and only visit several times a year. We have both since retired and hope
to be able to spend more time there at Whaleshead, although we too are dealing
with the difficult issues of the failing health of elderly parents.
We hope to be able to meet you in person when we
are all up there at Whaleshead and to thank you in person.
Thanks again.
Les and Loretta Stilwell
Text of email 8/14/15 from Scott Holland:
Hi
Ray,
Can
you try to solicit feedback, cabin by cabin:
1.
Do
you have any interest in joining the rental pool, on any terms? If not, no
problem, enjoy, I think WH will see a nice future with better amenities for all.
If yes, please answer #2 explicitly.
2.
What
would it take to have you join the rental pool, again, explicitly with suggested
solutions?
We
all win big if we increase participation, increase rates (I think now… before
Fall salmon season), and increase occupancy year round.
Getting
enough units now not in the rental pool, into it, will allow a clear financial
path to putting in a nice pool and small corporate/event center.
Due
to Andrew’s very receptive attitude and understanding this is not an RV park,
but a mismanaged world class potential resort/vacation home property… I am
putting my home in the rental pool and delisting it for sale.
Thanks.
What a better looking future! Can’t wait for a pool overlooking WH beach!
Scott,
Gina, Simba & Spock
Scott
W. Holland, Legal Strategist/Researcher
19921
Whaleshead Road – B-8
Brookings,
OR 97415
541
255 2355
Cell
(Gina) 530-340-0141
Text of email 8/16/15 from Steve and Sandra Medaris, formers owners of cabin U-17:
Hi,
We are Steve and Sandra Medaris of U-17. Our unit burned
down last November so we are no longer cabin owners at Whaleshead.
However, we wanted to respond to your letter.
It has always been our belief that the cabin owners at Whaleshead would
greatly benefit from having a homeowners association. It seems to us that in
order to have any influence on the management it needs to come from a
significant group not just one owner. We
applaud the steps you are taking and believe the time will be well spent in your
behalf.
Our experience with the rental pool was not bad for the
first several years but in the last couple there were many problems, including
constant theft. We believe there is
a great possibility that some of the staff was involved in these losses, but
management simply shrugged their shoulders. The attitude of the owners and
managers of Whaleshead toward the owners of the cabins has alway seemed to be
less than satisfactory, to put it mildly. We
think the owners en masse, have a very significant investment in the park, (in
fact, cabin owners' investment far and away exceeds the value of the park
without the cabins!) yet in our experience, management tended to dismiss owners'
issues and concerns. This reality
figured heavily in our decision not to rebuild and to abandon our lease.
We miss our cabin, but feel relieved to be free of park, rental and
management issues.
The contact information we have for Andrew Cramer is:
Cell 503-438-8622, office 541-813-2501, e-mail acramer04@gmail.com.
We hope this is of some help and wish you all the luck in this endeavor.
Steve & Sandra Medaris
Text of email 8/17/15 from Scott Holland:
Hi
Ray,
Andrew
e-mailed me and asked for feedback on this idea:
What
are owners’ thoughts on taking the 10% increase in rental fees and putting it
in a dedicated escrow account towards a pool in front of the restaurant and tied
into the existing deck?
I’m
in.
And
I believe with the increased rates/occupancy he will drop the rental fee back to
30%.
Having
owners on board and getting a pool… we all win… both in enjoyment of WH and
increased rates/occupancy.
Can
you float this and get feedback?
I called Scott and advised him that at this point I would not want to ask cabin owners, or any group of owners, to support any increase in fees for a pool, because there is too much mistrust among cabin owners towards the management. Until some more important issues are resolved, like increased rental pool fees and perhaps future lease agreements, there are no cabin owners who will be receptive to new fees for new amenities. The first thing that has to happen is that communication and trust must be restored, and this is not an easy task in itself. For a new pool, or other amenities, we should first ask the cabin owners for their opinions and certainly take those opinions into consideration. I received a copy of the following email from Scott to Andrew Cramer:
Text of email 8/17/15 from Scott Holland to Andrew Cramer:
Hi
A,
Just
spoke with Ray. He, by chance, ended up being the focal point of the owners’
rebellion.
He
had a good point I agree with. Increase the monthly fee to pay for the pool, to
be rolled back upon full funding. And WH benefits quite a bit too… so WH has
to put the first funds in (whatever that amount may be) to show good faith.
Sadly,
you came into a new situation you were not familiar with (high end resort
potential) and were undoubtedly crazy busy (and personally I think you have
accomplished a lot of valuable things)… did not consult owners, jacked up
fees… and people are now “emotional” and “mistrusting.”
A
meeting with Ray (who says he was a land developer for 30 years and is the one
who said, if the water issue was truly solved, he would have considered putting
together an offer to buy WH) where he can see/feel the attitude I did… will
really help you and all.
Can you do an August 26 meeting? Ray has to drive down from Washington.
Hi
All
I
would greatly appreciate the chance to meet! Could we do Sept 2?
Also,
what do you think of converting the old office unit (next to the lobby) into a
mini spa/massage area? Might be another nice amenity and a great use of
that home since it doesn't really work as a rental...
Thanks
Text of email reply 8/17/15 to Andrew Cramer:
Hello Andrew and Scott,
September 2nd will work. We’ll likely come
down the previous weekend and stay for part the following week.
I want to clarify Scott’s email a bit. I didn’t suggest
increasing the monthly fee to pay for the pool. What I said was that if an
amenity, such as a pool, or any other amenity for that matter, was to be added
to the park, the cost should NOT be shouldered by any specific group of cabin
owners – in this case, owners in the rental pool. That would rightly
cause an immediate opposition to the project by those owners. Amenities
that could be used by all should be shared by all. The cost of such an
amenity could be a basis for a lease fee increase, within the bounds permitted
by the lease agreement.
Since there are about a hundred cabin owners, we all know there
will be lots of opinions about the desirability of a pool, where it should go,
and how much it will cost. And I’m sure Andrew doesn’t want to get a
hundred emails with everyone’s opinion. BUT, these opinions are
important to consider in order to have the support of at least the majority of
the cabin owners or we will be right back in the situation we are now in, with
almost total mistrust by the cabin owners. Once trust and good
communication between Whaleshead ownership and the cabin owners can be
reestablished, most cabin owners will be amenable to understanding increased
costs that are well explained and supportable. I could volunteer to serve
as a liaison for a cabin owner’s group if they so desired such a group.
Of the hundreds of emails I have received in the past month or so, many have
expressed the desire for a “homeowner’s association” or some such group.
The main purpose for this group would be to have a means of communication so
that everyone can have a voice if they choose to contribute. So far, it is
working excellently, with everyone who writes and volunteers their email address
so they can be kept in the loop.
Perhaps we can discuss the above at our September 2nd
meeting?
Regards,
Ray
Hi
Ray
Sounds
great I look forward to discussing with you; the only caveat I would add would
be that cabin owners IN the rental pool arguably stand to gain more than the
other owners since their occupancy rates and lease rates could increase with the
addition of the massage/spa, pool, community center, etc.?
Having
said that, my ultimate goal is to get all non permanent residents into the
rental pool anyway, so I'm open to suggestions!
As
far as a homeowners association, I couldn't agree more; all my other properties
have elected tenant organizations to liase effectively with management; its best
if I stay out of the formation of such a group other than to say I would
strongly support it, and will recognize any such group provided the appropriate
formation, voting procedures are undertaken (there are several online resources
on how to set these up).
Thanks!
Text of email 8/17/15 from Bill Morrish, owner of cabin C-7:
Dear Ray
Having read your recent letter again and more
carefully, I agree that perhaps the best course to follow, at least for the
present, is to share ideas among our fellow cabin owners in hopes of reaching
consensus on some issues, and presenting them to management as from a
group rather than as ideas from single individual. Perhaps we will get to the
point where a Cabin Owners group will arise and specific proposals will be made
to management but that does not appear to be on the horizon at present.
The attached letter to Kathy and Anna was written in
2011 when it appeared that Management might be interested in improving the Parks
public perception. Anna, in particular, seemed eager to do something.
Unfortunately, she was soon let go and nothing came of the suggestions made.
Now, nearly four years later, Whaleshead continues to receive negative comments
on Yelp and Trip Advisor, often receiving guest ratings of 1 on a scale of 5.
Moreover, the comments appear to be justified. When I mentioned this to
Daniell, she seemed surprised and said she would look into the matter.
Apparently it had not occurred to her to do so on her own.
These suggestions will be of interest principally to those
of us in the rental Pool. Management has stated that they want to increase the
Park’s rental income. A good way to do this will be to improve the
visitors’ Park experience. This often appears to be disappointing or
worse for very simple causes, often just plain “dirty”. For those interested
in our latest ratings, you can go to the Internet, look up Whaleshead Beach
Resort and open the pages identified as Trip Advisor and Yelp. Of course,
these ratings are highly subjective, often rambling and are more likely to be
posted by those who were unhappy than by those who had a good experience. Still,
they do represent a public perception, often to our detriment.
A personal experience may be instructive.
Several years ago a person whom we did not know bought a two night stay at our
cabin at a fund-raising event . Several days later we received a call from the
purchaser who read us the riot act over the ‘phone. “I’ve just read up on
Whaleshead on Yelp and on Trip Advisor and it appears to me that the place is
anything but a resort, it sounds to me like a dump”. We had some fast talking
to do. They enjoyed their stay and have returned several times. The cabin
pleased them but they were less complimentary toward the Park.
Should some of the ideas expressed
in the attached letter be embraced by other owners in the rental pool, I don’t
know what the next step should be. But it may be worthwhile to at least consider
them and see where that leads us.
Please do post on our new website
Many thanks
Bill
Click HERE for a copy of Bill's letter.
Text of email
Hi Ray & Elna,
After checking out your website, there are a few things
I would like to add and hope they will be helpful. If anyone is considering
putting their cabin in the rental pool, I highly recommend they carefully check
out the WH insurance coverage required for all units in the rental program.
Warning: it is some 180 pages long and is (deliberately) confusing.
We found Liberty Mutual impossible to deal with after our loss.
It took 6 months for our settlement and we had to fight for every cent.
If you look at your insurance rider and it says you are covered for a certain
amount you need clarification as to exactly what replacement value vs current
market value is. The agents from
Liberty Mutual were masters at stalling. The local agent from Brookings was no
help at all. I will say that Andrew Cramer was very helpful in finally getting
the claim settled.
I am hopeful that the promises being made are in fact
kept. For all their talk about superior management and cleaning, there are
reviews from this year with negative comments about both on Trip Advisor. I find
the suggestion that owners should go on Trip Advisor and write their own 5 star
reviews totally dishonest. Make the
Park earn 5 star reviews first. Renters
will know when they have been scammed. Problems
at the Park started with bad management. That's where the improvement has to
start.
It appears that you are making great progress and have
some experienced people working with you. We both believe Whaleshead could be a
great place with the right
management and hope you are successful in reaching that goal.
We have no problem with you posting our e-mail if you
wish.
Good luck,
Steve & Sandra
Text of email reply 8/17/15 to Steve and Sandra Medaris:
Thank you Steve and Sandra,
I found it interesting that you also had problems with
Liberty Mutual. When we had our
locked and private cabin laundry room broken into last year, about $1500 worth
of personal belongings were stolen. This
is nothing compared to what you lost, but it also took us about six months to
get our claim settled. Over my long
life, I've had a few claims with insurance companies in the past, but never one
as bad as the one with Liberty Mutual - most all with other companies were
settled quickly and easily. Now,
when my wife and I see ads on TV for how great Liberty Mutual is, we laugh from
our horrible experience.
Actually, in our case, the local Brookings insurance
folks were somewhat helpful, but they weren't able to help much.
It's encouraging to hear that Andrew Cramer helped in your case.
But we'll never choose Liberty Mutual if we have a choice.
Thanks again for your emails.
I'll post them on the website for other cabins owners to see.
Best regards,
Ray and Elna
Text of email 8/18/15 from Wendy Ray, owner of cabin OV-10:
Hi Ray. Glad you
have a meeting set up with Andrew, I had a few thoughts and suggestions, please
share any with him that might be helpful.
Whaleshead does get comments on Yelp, Trip Advisor etc. Former manager
Bill used to sometimes respond to them. Does Andrew read them and will he
respond? Does Whaleshead have a policy on this?
restaurant is nice, owners should use it. It is in all our best interest
that it succeeds, many renters were disappointed when it closed last time (per
comments in my guest book)
White Rock cabins just over the border are very similar (although right on
ocean) and rent for more than Whaleshead. Andrew might want to investigate
what they are offering and look at if Whaleshead can use some of their ideas.
I think they have wifi and cookies but still......
Wifi would be a nice addition for us and more landscape cleanup and maintenance
to improve park appearance. A pool could be very pricey-would we need a
lifeguard too? an outdoor pool wouldn't be used full time and would cost
to maintain.
I have never -not even once-netted $1500 in a month of renting my cabin.
My cabin is small but it rents often. I am guessing that most rental pool
owners need/want their cabin to cover its expenses-space rent, electric,
propane, taxes, insurance and some repairs and improvements and replacement
costs for broken and missing items. Some things cant be avoided but a
brief inventory checklist when renters check out is worth considering and for
rental pool cabins that have locked cabinets cleaning staff can lightly test to
make sure they haven't been broken into (this happened in my cabin and by the
time I discovered it several parties had been in and out) Common sense
dictates not having very valuable items in a rental cabin of course but I have
had the oddest things go missing( an old hairdryer, an old cookbook, 2 small
wine racks and 3 or 4 bedspreads etc-go figure!)
My family and I love our cabin and really enjoy the time we spend there. I
think it has the potential to be even better and hope we can all work together
to make that happen.
Wendy Ray OV 10 owner
Text of email 8/24/15 from Jan and Dave Nickum, owners of cabin U-1:
We are pleased that the new owners of Whaleshead have a
vision of improvement for the property.
It’s good to see some infrastructure items are being addressed and it’s
wonderful that the restaurant is now open.
Hopefully the restaurant menu will continue to evolve and the shop/boutique area
will expand its offerings.
We’re happy to hear that Mr. Cramer would like
Whaleshead to become a 5 star resort. Maybe it can be so but that seems a
long road from here.
As a basis of local comparison, take a visit to Tu Tu’ Tun resort in Gold
Beach or check out their web site http://tututun.com/
Whaleshead is a great location. The stunning beauty of the Oregon coast
nearly says it all. People from all over the world tour our coastline and
there is no reason why this resort could not become a highly desirable vacation
destination.
Some very basic items we would like to see addressed include:
1) Upgrade the laundry facilities. Two of the five
washers have been out of service for over a year. The dryers are nearly
ineffective.
2)
Make the restroom/laundry facility a smoke free zone.
3)
Add the Whaleshead logo to service vehicles to enhance the image
of care, maintenance and ownership of the property.
4)
Provide a fenced pet exercise area complete with poop scoop bags
and garbage cans.
Text of email 8/24/15 from Tom Miller, owner of cabin T-12:
Hi Ray, again much appreciate your work in
maintaining this forum for thoughts and suggestions . It appears to be
somewhat of a trend to consider adding a "special charge" to
those in the rental pool for new amenities which everyone, all cabin owners and
new resort owners, will benefit. The comments I have read is that
supposedly only this group will benefit from increased rental use. Perhaps
there might be some rental increase....but I can't imagine the benefit will
exceed the cost. This is the Oregon coast and not the central valley....and
again the benefit, if there is one will benefit all, thru direct use, increased
value of cabins, increased value of the resort, etc. I truly doubt there
would be enough income from the rental pool to service debt of such
improvements. If there is a desire to provide for more amenities there clearly
needs to be more detail as to costs as well as representation from those in the
rental pool. Feel free to post. Tom Miller, owner T-12
Text of email 8/25/15 from Joe Adams, owner of cabin U-9:
Concerning
the month to month rental agreement now being required of
all new owners at Whaleshead: several
questions/objections should be
directed to Cramer: 1)
are buyers and/or realtors informed about this
loss
of lease protections? 2)
Can Cramer arbitrarily change the nature of our
community from “55 and above park” to
a “family” one? 3)
do we all
understand how the above changes will impede the future sale of our
properties - making them hard to
sell, without the clarity and protections of
a lease, and thereby lowering their market values?
Hopefully,
all owners will resist the above
scenario and organize ourselves into
a cohesive effort to protect our leases.
Post this if you want to.
And thanks
for your organizing efforts, so far.
J
Adams
U9
Text of email 8/26/15 sent to Andrew Cramer:
Hello Andrew,
Elna and I will be arriving at Whaleshead this Saturday,
and we are looking forward to our meeting next Wednesday at Whaleshead.
Karl Kolthoff, owner of cabin U-10 (whom you met before) will be joining us.
To give you a “heads up”, attached is a list of issues we’d like to
discuss with you. We can go into detail on each item as much as your time
permits. And of course, please feel free to bring up any other items you
feel is important – we have plenty of time.
Best regards,
Ray
Ray and Elna Kawal
owners of cabin U-4
268 Lakeview Drive
Sequim, WA 98382
(360) 683-3027
cell phone 360-460-6668
cabin phone 360-504-9785
Click HERE
for Meeting Agenda items for discussion.
8/26/15:
Today I received a number of documents from Daniell, including a 99 year lease agreement, a monthly rental agreement, a rental pool agreement, and another untitled document. At this point, the purpose of some of these documents is not clear. A very important issue and agenda item for our meeting is to get clarification of Andrew's intention. Perhaps we can help modify or combine some documents to make them more understandable for not only existing cabin owners, but future cabin owners. Clarification of these documents will have a definite impact on any future sales of Whaleshead cabins.
Click HERE for the 99 Year Lease Agreement.
Click HERE for the other documents.
Text of email 8/26/15 to Karl Kolthoff, Paul Pettigrew, and others regarding monthly cabin expenses and rental pool income:
Hi folks,
At our meeting next week with Andrew, I’m going to hand
the attached document out, the purpose of which is to show Andrew that renting
your cabin at Whaleshead is not going to make you rich. Certainly these
numbers are arguable, and they could be very different for each cabin owner, but
these happen to be my numbers for the last couple of years we were in the rental
pool. The expenses are about what we end up paying every month.
As can be seen, it costs us a minimum of about $1300 a
month to keep our cabin. And rental income for two years in a row was only
about $1000 a month. So the point is to Andrew, that even when the
owner’s take was 70% (instead of the new 60%), renting your cabin for income
is no money maker. That implies that the cabin owner wants his cabin for
reasons other than income. In most cases, the cabin owner wants it for his
residence or his personal enjoyment or his family’s enjoyment.
For those in the rental pool, squeezing more out of them
will make it an almost certain money loser. Who will want to join the
rental pool under those circumstances?
Ray
Click HERE
for example document.
Text of email 8/26/15 from Bill Morrish:
Ray
Thanks for bringing us up to date on your plans for
meeting with Andrew on Wednesday. You have an ambitious agenda. Like you, I
wonder if we can find out his intentions for the park. So far he has not been
forthcoming.
As you have mentioned in your most recent post we,
and I would expect many others, did not buy our unit at Whaleshead for the sake
of making money. The rental pool income has enabled us to pretty much offset our
operating costs. It is a woodland retreat for us ( C for Creekside -7). We come
over from Ashland roughly once a month for two or three days, walk the beach and
hike the Boardman Park trails with our dog, make side trips, do some dining out,
and always tackle a few projects to keep the cabin in top shape. We get
very nice reviews in our guest book from visitors. We are not really interested
in major “amenities” (e.g. dog park, swimming pool) nor in
substantially boosting our rental occupancy. Instead, we would like Whaleshead
to address the numerous maintenance and service problem we and others have
consistently identified. These improvement by themselves should over time boost
occupancy and can be done without major capital improvements ( I am not familiar
with the water problem, that may be another matter).
One further consideration prompted by your
earlier post: should we be looking for another insurance carrier? Not every
insurer will cover RV Parks(including our carrier, USAA) but there may be better
ones than Liberty Mutual.
Best wishes for a successful meeting on Wednesday.
Bill Morrish C-7
Text of email 8/26/15 from Bridget Williams, owner of cabin U-12:
Hello Ray,
Glad that you have added my name to the new WH members website and you may post
my phone number if you want: 707-464-3114. There has been a lot of
interesting and great responses on the new WH members website. I am still
uncertain about many issues that have surfaced...new lease, fees...management
can set rental rates...? I will be coming to WH soon. Better get my reservation
made, sounds like there is a new rule about that too. Looks like the 60/40 split
is still in the works for September. As stated by several of the rental
participants, my monthly net is definitely not $1500 either. Now it will
be even less. I relayed that fact to Daniell when I called...which was the same
day that I got "the letter". One of the things that I am unsure
of...the new billing for "cleaning"...$50 for two people, is that
including laundry? Not sure how this is structured to work. I just got my rental
proceeds check for July yesterday. I would like to see a date set for us to
receive it just as we have deadlines for paying our lease. Only fair that we
expect to get paid in a timely manner just as they do. There is a mistake on my
statement, wonder how many I miss. At one time there were many days that I never
got paid for at all. I matched the names on the statements to the guestbook. At
a meeting with Bill Dukes I told him of my discovery and asked how I could be
compensated. His reply was to get in line...I wasn't the only one who was
missing money. Still feeling uneasy about what is really going on...so happy
that there is now a forum to voice concerns and issues. Thank you and the others
that have taken the time and effort to make it possible. You are welcome to post
my emails if you like. Sincerely, Bridget Williams U12
Text of email 8/27 from Scott Holland, regarding the meeting with Andrew on 9/2/15:
Hi Ray,
What would you like to accomplish?
I would like to nail down:
1. Long term rental terms; 2. Short term rental terms; 3. Schedule & plans for laundry; 4. Schedule & plans for treatments building; 5. Plan for non-junk yard vehicles; 6. Plan to ensure consistent dress code in WH uniforms; 7. Plan for pool; 8. Plan for water; 9. Consider not having "for sale" signs on homes; instead have Ron Reel place one sign that will be seen when entering WH. I believe it will benefit Ron and WH owners: It will drive serious buyers to call Ron's office so he can ask relevant questions and make informed suggestions; it will make it seem like the "supply" is less… too many in your face signs scares a lot of people. 10. Marketing plans.
Unfortunately, at this time, I have little trust in Andrew's words. I had an older brother, top salesman… but would tell you whatever "you" wanted to hear… and then it meant little or nothing to him. Pathological liar… rationalized whatever/however "for his needs."
And there is not really a good solution for people like this in my experience. I sincerely hope I am mistaken and believe forming a homeowner's committee is paramount to WH's future.
Just wanted to touch base to ensure as productive a meeting as possible. Thank you so much for driving down. Very nice.
Scott & Gina
Text of email reply 8/27/15 to Scott Holland:
Hi Scott,
I have sent the attached Agenda
Items to Andrew. What I want to discuss are those issues for which I
have received hundreds of emails and phone conversations from other cabin
owners. These are the big issues that must be discussed for a path
forward.
I first want to explain our communication efforts and the cabin
owners group, noting that we now have all but about 20 cabin owners on our list,
and we are working towards 100%. I want to point out that there are three
general groups of owners (residents, non-residents in the rental pool, and
non-residents not in the rental pool). But all of these groups have a
primary interest in protecting their investment and the lifestyle they chose
when they bought their cabins. So all cabin owners are tied to Whaleshead
and Whaleshead is tied to them, like it or not.
Andrew has been discussing a Five Star Resort, and I want to get
his views on what that means. But overwhelmingly, the cabin owners view is
that five stars to them means a well-managed place that looks good with a solid
infrastructure and deserves a five star rating when they visit Whaleshead.
There is little or no interest in extras like a pool, spa, etc.
We MUST get clarification on the new lease and rental agreements.
I have all of the documents and it is unclear what the intention is for some of
them. I want Andrew’s view on these and hopefully we can omit, edit,
and/or combine some documents so they will be acceptable to both Andrew and
future cabin owners.
Regarding rental pool fees, I have a handout to give that shows
that cabin owner monthly costs are higher than rental income, even at the old
70/30 split. This will show that it is difficult to break even as a strict
investment. Squeezing the cabin owners more will have a negative effect on
gaining more participants. I also want to point out that of the 30 or so
owners not in the rental pool, his goal of 100% participation is impossible,
when in fact very few, if any, are interested no matter what the fees are.
There are quite a few suggestions from cabin owners on how to
improve the resort. We would like to participate in developing a survey to
be sent to all cabin owners to provide feedback to Andrew.
I want to discuss the infrastructure, especially the water
system. The water system can’t even handle present guest loading, much
less Andrew’s vision of more guests. This must be a top priority.
I’ll ask what Andrew’s plans are and offer to help, since part of my
engineering background included developing and maintaining water systems for
property developments.
I want to point out that Whaleshead and the cabins owners MUST
work together to be successful, because we are all tied together. When
Andrew bought Whaleshead, he also bought an extra 100 partners because we
can’t move our cabins. The only solution is to work together rather than
as adversaries.
Finally, we’d like to ask to a schedule for future meetings if possible.
Karl Kolthoff, owner of U-10 and a friend of mine for 50 years,
will be attending as well. I’ve suggested to Daniell that our meeting
be in our cabin to give us more space and she thought that a good idea. I
guess it will be up to Andrew. I don’t know a time, but likely after
noon on Wednesday.
Regards,
Ray
Text of email 8/27/15 from Paul Pettigrew, owner of cabin OV-4:
I have read all of the WH website correspondence to this
point. I must say that I have spoken/corresponded with many of the various WH
owners, rental pool and non-pool alike.
You have captured the very essence of the concerns and
fears of the different groups. I can say with great assurance that we agree with
your summary of points to discuss with Andrew on 9/2.
The lease and rental agreements are of paramount
importance. Infrastructure
improvements are top priority. Andrew's realistic long term plans/goals for WH
are an important concern. Uniforms and swimming pools aren't even on the list.
Many of us, myself included, bought our home as coastal retreats.
I can say with great confidence that the majority of part-time, non-pool
owners will NEVER place their units in the rental program.
Yours truly,
Paul Pettigrew OV-4
Text of email 8/27/15 from Terry McGraw, owner of cabin S-1:
Hi
Ray,
Good
job on the agenda for your September 2nd meeting with Andrew Cramer ( herein
after, the Company). I concur in all of your talking points.
Here
are my thoughts and concerns about the seemingly arbitrary Rental Pool fee
increases and related matters
I
believe that the fee increase notice should have been accompanied by a
statement as to the needs of the Company for increased revenue.
If
the need for increased revenue is due to unanticipated infrastructure expenses,
those costs should be shared by all cabin owners, perhaps by means of a limited
term mutually agreeable assessment..
I
strongly object to the increases for Cleaning and Laundry. Depending on how
these increases are applied, these increases could range from 43% to 122%
of current costs and could result in negative monthly cabin income to cabin
owners. If the current fee structure is inadequate to cover the actual
costs, the rates should be increased to cover the actual costs.
I
also object to the Management Fee increase to 40% of net revenue, in addition to
the above increases could reduce owner monthly income by 25% to 53%. One would
have to ask; What is the point of being in the Rental Pool or even owning a
cabin at Whaleshead?
The
current fee structure has enabled owners in the Rental Pool to maintain the
condition and appearance of cabins to the benefit of cabin owners as well as to
the Resort owners .
As
to the idea of building a swimming pool at Whaleshead. I believe that if
there was a real interest among a majority of owners, such a project would be in
the very distant future and should be based on a cost/benefit analysis.
Wishing
you a pleasant and productive meeting with Andrew.
Terrence McGraw S1
Text of emails 8/28/15 from Peggy and Cliff Titus, owners of cabin B-14:
Hi Ray,
Cliff and I believe your agenda for the meeting covers
the most important issues concerning the owners of all groups here at Whaleshead.
You explained it thoroughly in your 8/27 email to Scott Holland. We agree with
Paul Pettigrew's text of 8/27 which also emphasizes the most important points.
It should be an interesting meeting. Anything that
Mr.Cramer agrees on get in writing! Though we know from all that has been
transpiring since he purchased Whaleshead can be changed on a whim.
Thanks for all your hard work,
Peggy and Cliff Titus
Hi Ray,
Safe trip! Look forward to finally meeting you.
I know I have emphasized this before, but please keep in
mind that Cramer's main goal, as he has stated, is to get all non-permanent
residents in the rental pool. Somehow, he needs to be convinced
(nicely) that this is not going to happen nor can he
force anyone to by either arbitrary fees or whatever.
The other thing that still resonates in my mind is the
"until further notice" concerning the $150.00 fee or any other
arbitrary fee he chooses to implement. I'd like to see that removed-permanently.
See you soon,
Peggy
Text of email 9/3/15 to Andrew Cramer after meeting with him on 9/2/15:
Hi Andrew,
Thank you for your time yesterday at our Whaleshead
meeting. Many cabin owners are very interested in the results of the
meeting, so I would like to send the attached summary to all cabin owners and
post it on our website. Before I do that, however, I would like you to
take a quick look at it to make sure your recollection is the same as ours.
Please let me know if I need to make any changes.
See below
for the summary of the meeting.
Text of email 9/3/15 from Andrew Cramer responding to the summary:
Hi Ray,
This looks like a great
summary and thanks for putting it together; I look forward to continuing to make
good progress like we did yesterday!
Text of email 9/3/15 to all cabin owners:
Hello fellow cabin owners,
Yesterday Andrew Cramer drove down from Portland for a meeting to discuss a number of important issues. The meeting agenda was posted on the Whaleshead Cabin Owners website last week.
Attached is a summary of the meeting, which we felt was
very productive and should alleviate many of the concerns we cabin owners have
been discussing during the past few weeks. When Elna and I get home this
weekend, I’ll post the meeting summary on the website, but I thought you might
find the attached interesting.
We would have liked even more time to cover some of the
subjects in more detail, but soon after our meeting Andrew had to turn around
and hit the road back to Portland. I don’t envy his schedule.
You will note, when you read the meeting summary, that we
have some work to do regarding a number of the documents and a survey that
Andrew would like to send to all cabin owners. Please email me your
comments.
Also, we still have about 15-20 owners who have not yet
responded to our requests for their email addresses. Those folks likely
will not have a clue as to what is going on at Whaleshead. If any of you
know the owners listed on the master spreadsheet that don’t have email
addresses listed, please contact them and get them on our list. It’s
easy to keep them informed once they are on the list.
Regards,
Ray
Text of email 9/3/15 from Tom Miller, owner of cabin T-12:
Thanks Ray. I appreciate your leading the way on this. It does sound like a productive meeting and I believe Andrew benefited from the experience and insights you and others offered. It is also good he exhibited sound judgement by rescinding some of his earlier decisions. As far survey suggestions, I recommend that the owners be asked if they support Whaleshead setting rental rates, or at least strongly recommending or reviewing and approving rental rates after the other resort survey is completed. Some standardization makes sense to me both as a member of the rental pool as well as if I were a person seeking a rental. It has got to be strange to call Whaleshead seeking a stay and being advised of such an array of rates, some of which have little to do with the offering. Also, I agree with Andrew's request that we form an organization so that he deals with a collective voice. To keep it simple to start with, I recommend you ask all those on your e-mail list to give a vote of confidence to you and at least 2 others whom you have confidence in to continue to act in all of our behalf until we collectively form a Cabin owners association, or something similar. Say for the next 2 months. If you need support in any way to accomplish such, including a monetary contribution, please let me know.- Tom Miller
Text of email 9/4/15 from Bill Morrish:
Ray
Just a short note of
appreciation for your taking the lead in representing us cabin owners in dealing
with Andrew. Your report is thorough and your conversational writing style gives
us something of the feeling of having been present at the meeting. It appears
that Andrew has recognized how “out of synch” with the owners he has been
and has made a number of concessions. I hope we can count on some sort of
communication from him confirming the conclusions reached during your
discussions.
Your report seems
to confirm my earlier conclusion that Andrew is trying to run Whaleshead “out
of his back pocket”: no time, no staff, no backup, no solid business
plan, no clue on how to deal with his homeowners, at least until now. Some
of the ideas he has suggested so far ($250k pool, spa) seem, at best, to be
naďve. Not a good start, it seems to me , for a run at the 5 star rating. I
would be happy to see us reach a solid 3 star rating, which under present
circumstances, seems a considerable reach by itself.
Text of email 9/7/15 to all cabin owners:
I need some help with a few things:
1.
I don’t like sending out mass emails to people who don’t
want them. For those of you who would prefer NOT to get emails about
Whaleshead, please email me and let me know. You all have access to the
Cabin Owners Website, so you can always pick up whatever new is posted by simply
going to the site and reading the latest information.
2.
In our meeting with Andrew Cramer last week, we discussed all of
the latest documents that cabin owners sign when buying a cabin. Two of
the documents are very important, and we need to resolve issues with them.
The first (and easiest) document to “fix” is the 99 Year Lease Agreement,
posted on the website. The other one is the new Month to Month Rental
Agreement that appears to have a lot of conflicts with the lease agreement and
likely is not even relevant to a cabin sale.
A.
Since the 99 Year Lease Agreement is fairly straight forward and
relatively easy to edit, I would like to have some volunteers to help edit the
document so we can present a better document to Andrew for his approval.
Fred Caldwell, owner of cabin T-17, has already offered some suggestions.
I would appreciate any cabin owners who would like to join a small
“committee” to edit this draft for presentation to Andrew. Please
email me if you would like to help. We can then email just between
ourselves instead of bothering every cabin owner with the details. Of
course, once a modified document is completed and accepted by Andrew, it will be
posted on the website for all cabin owners to see.
B.
The other document, the new Month to Month Rental Agreement, is
more of a problem. We explained to Andrew that it doesn’t even seem to
pertain to cabin owners, and Andrew stated that “if it is a real problem” we
can address it. I think it IS a real problem, but we didn’t have time to
get into the specifics of why. Personally, I would just like to see it
eliminated altogether for cabin sales, but we need to go through the document
and point out the conflicts and problems areas. Again, I’d like to have
a committee to resolve this issue and present something to Andrew. Maybe
the same committee that addresses the 99 year lease agreement can do this one as
well, but I’d like to tackle the easier lease agreement first, so we can show
Andrew we know what we are doing, then present the more difficult document
editing (or elimination). Would those of you who would like to help out
with this editing please email me?
C.
If you want to join either or both of these committees, please
email me with a subject line “Document Review Committee”. You
can download both documents from the website.
3.
Another issue discussed in the meeting was developing a survey
from Andrew to the cabin owners so he can get feedback from all of us, or at
least our group. We, as a group, need to make sure that the survey
addresses all of our concerns, so I would like to assist Andrew in preparing the
survey. I’m not sure the best way to accomplish this, but again, perhaps
we should form a core group of cabin owners to evaluate and select questions,
and maybe even a format, for the survey. If you are interested in joining
this group, please email me with a subject line “Cabin Owners Survey”.
4.
Finally, if you read Tom Miller’s (cabin T-12) email from 9/3/15
on the website, you will see that he suggests a small group of cabin owners to
be able to communicate with Andrew Cramer. I don’t think it’s
appropriate that only I have access to him, but he obviously does not seem to
have the time to meet with a large group of owners – this is very unfortunate,
but it seems to be a fact of life. This group will have to be small, it
has to represent the concerns and attitudes of as many cabin owners as possible,
and very importantly, it must be constructive in nature. It can’t be
just a bunch of complaints about what we don’t like about what’s going on.
We have to think carefully about what we can do as cabin owners to influence and
assist Andrew in making decisions in the best interests of Whaleshead.
It’s hard to form such a small group because cabin owners are spread out all
over the country, but let’s think about how we should accomplish this.
We’ll have to cover this in a future email.
Thank you and regards,
Ray
Text from email 9/7/15 from Bill Morrish:
Ray
I have not given close
attention to the Month to Month document but in my mind, it appears to fail the
first test: are we cabin owners temporary or long term lessees of our spaces in
the park? If short term (such as the trailer spaces) we sign the Month to Month.
If we are long term (cabin owners) we sign the 99 year lease. It cannot be
imagined that a future buyer of a cabin might consider a purchase with no more
than a three month lease. Nor can I imagine a long term owner signing both a 99
year and a Month to Month Lease. Which would govern? I wonder if Andrew
has written them, appropriated them , read them or even understands them
himself.
I am finding
Andrew’s behavior to verge on the bizarre. On the other hand, your patience in
dealing with him verges on the heroic. For example, he appears to have
delivered to us three documents which he wishes to have us execute. But there is
no transmittal (that I know of), no explanation of their intent, essentially no
communication at all. It appears as though he has dumped them on the conference
table, looked at his watch, said” I have to be on my way now” , you guys
figure these out and get them back to me”. Other examples verging on the
bizarre: lopping of perfectly healthy and pleasantly screening spruce boughs in
the lower park to eliminate “widow makers”, drilling 5 dry holes in search
of water for a cost (I’m told) of $12,500 only to claim later that the park
does not have a water source problem but merely a water storage problem, moving
on to the burned-out cabin site a structure whose only redeeming feature is that
the designer forgot to include the crescent moon over the door, advertising
the(cheap, non-conforming) new structures he planned to introduce to the
park as though there would be a land rush to claim them, telling you that in the
event cabin owners were to host a get acquainted barbecue, he would (deign
to) attend (if he had any class he would be the host), entering the
office/restaurant building each time he comes to the park without noticing (in
his quest for 5 Star ranking) that the entrance looks like the rear
entrance to a thrift shop , in a bad part of town, etc. etc.
Well that’s about all
for the present. I enjoy our correspondence Ray, and repeat my admiration
for your willingness to rally the troops.
Thanks
Bill
Text from email 9/8/15 from Joe Adams:
Ray: Bill Morrish E-Mail dtd 9/7/15. Bill has perfectly summarized the most
important and confusing Cramer issue, so far. Hopefully, everyone will
reread paragraph one and seek a written answer from Cramer to clarify
things: why provide two documents that contradict one another? what is
the monthly rental one being used for? will new buyers be discouraged by
WH's apparent ineptitude and/or dishonesty? This puzzle must be solved
and removed before the value of our lease protections become lost in the
fog of rapprochement.
J Adams
9/10/15:
Two new letters to the cabin owners from Andrew Cramer are being mailed to owners by Daniell.
The first letter discusses some positive changes to the rental program that should please those in the program.
The second letter discusses Utilities and the Water System.
Click HERE to download the two letters.
Text of email 9/11/15 from Bill Morrish:
Ray
I believe Andrew’s two letters are very well
done and reassuring. I have revised my opinion of his management style and
ability . I think we should be able to work with this guy to our mutual benefit.
I don’t doubt that your meetings with him have brought about this
transformation and thank you again for leading the way.
Regards
Bill
Text of email 9/23/15 from Vickie Dishman, owner of cabin I-8:
Hi Ray,
I didn't know if you'd seen or heard about the new "homes" that Whaleshead brought in from North Dakota. They have put six down in the lower area on Orca Loop, and Vic says that they have plans to put in more in the lower part of the park. Needless to say, they don't look anything like the park models that are here - even the new one they put on top looks better, if that gives you any indication. I'm attaching a couple of pictures so that you can see them. Plain old storage containers look just as good.
Our concern is that we don't know if Andrew Cramer is intending to try and sell or rent, because of course, he doesn't communicate his thoughts with anyone (other than you, maybe). We've heard that they intend to rent, or maybe sell, but either way, we believe that the kind of clientele they will attract will be bad for the park, meaning if they're priced low enough we could get a criminal element in here doing drugs, etc.
Right now, there's a lot of concern that these will decrease the value of everyone's property, not just the homes in the lower loop, and that when people try to sell, it will become very difficult to do so.
If Whaleshead gets a reputation that there's some drug activity going on, it will be very hard to get rid of it. We speak from personal experience because my husband and I used to be on-site property managers of a mobile home community in South Lake Tahoe. When we first got there, there was a lot of drug activity, police raids, etc. It was nearly impossible to get these people out oft the park. We were successful in getting some of them out, but it seemed like when one of them left, another moved in.
Could you voice that concern to Andrew? Knowing that he and his partners own "trailer" parks that have had criminal activity, I just don't think they thought this recent acquisition through completely!
CLICK ON PHOTOS BELOW FOR FULL SIZE IMAGES:
NOTE: We hope to address these cabins with Andrew Cramer at a future meeting.
On another subject, text of email 9/29/15 sent to Andrew Cramer regarding a new Space Lease Agreement for cabin owners:
Hello Andrew,
At our meeting last month, we advised that we formed a documents review committee to try to improve and clarify some of the various documents that cabin owners are asked to sign when they purchase a cabin. Most important to tackle first is the Space Lease Agreement, since many parts of the SLA were unclear and seemed to be outdated. There are many sections that are not written well, nor do they appear to serve the best interests of either the Lessor (you, as the owner of the park) or the Lessee (the cabin owner).
Seven cabin owners volunteered to join this committee, and over the past few weeks we've spent considerable time rewriting and modifying the SLA with many revisions. Last week Elna and I drove down to Whaleshead to meet with other committee members who also drove to Whaleshead from California and Nevada to complete our task. We think we have a very nice document attached that certainly meets the needs of the cabins owners and we think will also meet your needs. We would appreciate you looking this over carefully and if it meets with your approval, please adopt this for future lease agreements for cabin spaces. It is a Microsoft Word .doc file, so it easily editable. If you find that something needs to be changed or added, we can easily modify the document for a final form.
Please note that our next task is to improve the Statement of Policy form, because there are some conflicts with both the old and new lease agreements. If you find that you would like to add something, depending on what it is, perhaps the change or addition might be more appropriate in the Statement of Policy rather than the lease agreement.
Also attached is a second document, the "SLA Highlights". You might want to read that first, since it summarizes the changes from the old SLA and describes the reasons for the changes. This is intended to make it easy for you to understand the differences so you don't have to compare both the old and new documents side by side and read each word.
After finalizing the SLA and the subsequent Statement of Policy, we will then take a look at the Month to Month Rental Agreement. Our first impression is that it is not well suited for a cabin owner because the cabins are a permanent fixture at Whaleshead and can't be moved, hence cabin owners need a long term agreement. It seems to be much more appropriate for short or long term rentals of spaces for movable RVs. But we are happy to further evaluate the document and see if we can improve upon that one as well.
We are anxious to get your response to our efforts, and we will continue to help where we can.
Click HERE for the modified Space Lease Agreement. Click HERE for a second document, the SLA Highlights.
Text of email 10/13/15 to all cabin owners:
