Election Essentials: Candidates for HOA Board of Directors

Kevin Andrews

Kevin Andrews

My current experience as the Chairman of the HOA Finance Committee as well as a prior healthcare CEO and officer of a publicly traded company has equipped me with the financial and management skills, which will contribute to the duties of an HOA Board member.

My wife and I have been full time homeowners at Robson Ranch for over eight years. We love our community! After retiring, I joined a number of clubs including Support Our Troops, Gun Club, Rolling Ranchers Car Club, Bocce, and Pickleball Club, a prior board member and VP.

Most importantly, for the past seven years I have been a member of the HOA Finance Committee, vice chairman, and currently am the chairman of the committee. Therefore, I am very familiar with the financial challenges our community and HOA deal with on a recurring basis.

In my career, I’ve often been involved in balancing organizations’ wants versus needs. These same skills are necessary to apply in serving as the chairman of the HOA Finance Committee. At the end of the day, I seek solutions that are best suited for the organization as well as our residents. I will apply this skill as a board member.

The challenges we face as the community continues to grow will focus on demand for services and amenities and a balancing of our community resources such as operating budget, cash reserves, capital equipment, and aging infrastructure. These financial needs will be balanced against the community’s desire to keep the HOA dues as low as possible without diminishing the Robson Ranch lifestyle.

I ask for your vote! Thank you.

Francesca Romero

Francesca M. Romano

I am running as a candidate for a seat on the Board of Directors (BOD) for Robson Ranch (RR) Community.

My reason: To bring a progressive attitude and forward momentum to the community and the board as a whole. My major issues are as follows:

First, I would like to make sure that as a board member we give all residents respect by listening to them, then evaluating and progressing forward when important issues are at hand.

Second, as a board member I will remind our board to ensure respect and value for all our employed staff here at RR who work each day to do a terrific job to ensure that our community functions well. Respecting an individual’s performance in the workplace is very important.

Third, I would like to guide fellow board members to oversee the financial issues for Robson Ranch and to make sure that RR will be financially secure in the future. We all, as homeowners, have investments in our homes and want our investments to reflect national market values.

Lastly, I will look into progressive and inventive ways to help raise revenues here and introduce new inventive ideas. I have had much experience with this especially when it comes to fundraising.

As a board member I know I can be an asset by using my many previous board of director experiences along with a sense of good judgment.

My experience: I was a NYC high school teacher for 35 years; the last nine years I became the acting assistant principal for the art, music, industrial arts, home economics, and the business departments. Needless to say, supervising five different departments and their teachers and ordering supplies for each department in a school with almost 4,000 students was a daunting task. After my retirement I taught at St John’s University teaching art history, and I was a docent at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC.

As an exhibiting artist, I found time to be a board member at the Staten Island Museum for 16 years where I helped to fundraise $6 million for the museum’s new building. I was a board member of my former townhouse NY condo community for 12 years, holding the position of president. I was also vice president of the BOD for my Florida residence for three years.

In addition, I was a board member for the College of Staten Island Alumni Committee. I also had the honor of sitting on the board for the prestigious and historical Salmagundi Art Club and The Pen and Brush Society in Manhattan.

I was asked to become part of NYC’s 9/11 Commission where I was influential in convincing the panel to establish the Beams of Light that were used each year before the new construction was complete.

As you can see, I have had plenty of former experience which qualifies me to be elected to the Robson Ranch BOD.

I promise to do my very best to represent and to recognize the interest of homeowners without unduly impairing or imposing unfair treatment to RR employees.

Larry Varnes

Larry Varnes

I am seeking re-election to the Robson Ranch HOA Board of Directors. Service is in my DNA. I strive to be the catalyst for improving the quality of our community life while at the same time championing initiatives to help reduce costs.

Significant issues facing the HOA board haven’t changed dramatically during my six-years on the board. Key issues simply morph, recognizing changing environments and contexts.

1. Ensuring financial stability. We have successfully transitioned out of subsidy. An operating surplus is projected for year-end 2020. Robson Ranch Denton is the first Robson community to accomplish this objective in their initial year coming out of subsidy. At the same time, we are funding our Reserve Fund for future repairs and replacement of aging assets and infrastructure. We are financially sound through the board’s fiduciary oversight.

2. Building good communications. Oftentimes, good communications can be the difference between success and failure. I am central to the Unit Rep program that has become the instrument of timely, fact-based, outbound communications to residents on HOA issues. But the communications world is ever changing. We need to stay focused and current to keep the information flowing.

3. Enhancing resident feedback. Good management encourages timely resident feedback. We need to be good listeners to resident concerns. We need to be in tune with residents’ lifestyles as the demographics and psychographics of our community change.

I am uniquely qualified to continue leading these endeavors. I have proven that I have the skills needed to meet the challenges that lie before us. I understand the intricacies of interacting with Robson Community Developers. I face challenges with good listening skills, a calming presence, common sense, and with a sense of humor that goes a long way.