I believe most of us have read the article of ''Not so civil war brews in Circle C'' on Sunday?’s newspaper of Austin American-Statesman. This article was done practically based on one person, Mr. Jeff Niemeyer?’s interview with the reporter Mark Lisheron. Mr. Niemeyer is a pet of the Board. I am sorry to use the word ?“PET?”, but I could not find another more appropriate word to describe Mr. Niemeyer. I was amazed and angry to see that Mr. Niemeyer used the newspaper to lie to all 7,000 Circle C homeowners.

Could you all read this article one more time and highlight the areas you are very certain they were inaccurate? I want to send a letter to the editors and demand an investigation and redo a follow-up article to set the matters straight. Won?’t that be good to let Austin American-Statesman to hire their own accountant or auditor to look into the books of Circle C HOA, so that they can write an accurate, informative report?

The following are the information I am 100% certain they are false:

(1) Niemeyer said he checked the homeowners?’ association books and found them in good order. All the chat room talk of corruption, he added, is baseless and irresponsible.
(2) And Niemeyer has news for the political intrigue crowd on both sides. The vast majority of residents of Circle C don?’t care, either, he said. Most don?’t know who Gary Bradley is?…?…?…?…

Most of the Circle C homeowners are not aware of the corruptions going on at our Association. All of us would care if we are well informed.

Re: Accuracy of AAS article

I've read the article twice, and both times I read Mr. Niemeyer's statements as his OPINION. One can disagree with his opinion, or question the facts it is based on, but that does not make his opinion ''false'' or a ''lie''.

For example, the above is my OPINION.

Just because Mr. Niemeyer's opinion was printed in the AAS doesn't mean it should be accepted as FACT. Newspapers print opinions all the time, on and off the editorial page.

IMHO.

Interesting, but too narrow

I found the article a pleasant surprise and I immediately wrote to the author (it's nice when they have an email address).

I agree that 90% of the Circle C Ranch residents have no idea what's going on in their HOA and that most don't vote, either. That's so sad, because voting is the only meaningful way to get a politician's attention. If I were raising a family, driving the family everywhere, shopping, and doing housework, I doubt that I'd have time to read about and keep up with neighborhood level activity, either. Internet or not. Most of the wager earners are at work or stuck in commuter traffic - again, little time to keep up on things. I think our community is lucky to have 5-10% participation in HOA activities.

Voter turn out has been even lower. However, I believe that the Internet access will help grab more attention. Email is easy to work with - you can read it anywhere and anytime. Web sites can do a lot to keep timely news on top, as often as events dictate.

I think Jeff is right - the vast majority of the residents don't care about the HOA board or what they are doing. They never bothered to read the Declarations or By-laws, either. They simply trusted the board members to figure things out and make them happen.

In deed, I would never have been so interested, had the builder and closing ageents not been able to supply me with a copy of the deed restriction when I closed on my house. Appaently, no one has gotten around to writing them up in a portable paperback format, like many other HOAs do.

Audit - AustinAmerican-Statesman


Mr. Niemeyer said that he had checked the homeowners?’ association books and found them in good order. This should be the fact, not an opinion. Mr. Niemeyer also said that all the chat room talks of corruption were baseless and irresponsible. This could be his opinion in despite of all the evidence laying out on this Web site. If a person intentionally sticks his head in the sand and screams to the whole world that the sky was in dark brown color, there is really not much anyone can do about it.

On the other hand, I am convinced beyond any reasonable of doubt that there is more than corruption going on at CCHOA. This is not my imagination or delusion; I have rock hard evidence. And the evidence was not created by me; they were the copies of CCHOA?’s financial statements, auditors?’ reports, invoices, billings, vouchers, check stubs and other related documents.

Do you think it would be a good idea if we request Austin American-Statesman to step in and conduct an audit of CCHOA?’s books? The Board should welcome the audit if it has nothing to hide. The newspaper is a third party; it will conduct the audit in a fair way. And the result should be accepted by all of us.

I would like to contact the editors and request for an investigation in CCHOA?’s books, but I doubt they will take my solo request seriously. A lone voice won?’t move the rock no matter how loud I would scream. How about let all of us contact the editors and see whether they would do a good deed for 7,000 Circle C residents.

Mr. Niemeyer:
Would you like to participate? If the audit result proves that there was no wrongdoing committed by the Board, I would be glad to offer you a public apology for calling you a pet of the Board.

Here is the editors?’ e-mail and slow mail addresses:
editors@statesman.com
letters@statesman.com

Letters to the Editor
305 S. Congress Ave.
P.O. Box 670
Austin, TX 78767