Mitch Waterman - latest
Evidence of the Dangers of having Mitch Nearby?
Mitch Waterman has earned many years of my disgust, and of course attention. He's not the only one -- but the guy some called "Bitch Waterboy" is a special case worthy of note. (Note for the lawyers -- please,please, please make this a public case open to discovery and public discussion! There is still time! I have preserved all of the evidence and much more than is published. I have all the screen shots, some video and images, and many perfectly legal audio recordings).
The following was found on Facebook. The bolding has been added to help highlight certain parts that might otherwise go under-appreciated. Screen shots available upon request.
If true, and I believe it is, this clearly demonstrates the recognized hazard that is a "disgruntled" former community manager named Mitch Waterman:
Facebook post Warning of the Unbridled Ex-employee
"It is standard practice to immediately release a Key Manager once they have announced their intent to resign from the Company - with pay thru the term of their Contract.
I am requesting the Executive Committee take the following actions immediately:
Remove Mitch Waterman from all SVCA Accounts and debit cards;
Change all administrative passwords to SVCA bank accounts, websites, and security cameras;
Immediately deactivate his company email account(s) or change password(s);
Ensure all keys are returned (and locks changed in areas housing sensitive information or equipment); and,
Ensure the return of all physical property belonging to SVCA, along with any confidential documents.
As Mitch Waterman has clearly stated, he has made the decision to resign, he should not be entitled to any severance nor a claim of Unemployment Insurance benefits. If he has expenses that are to be reimbursed, he must make a claim prior to his exit.
SVCAs attorney must draft an appropriate Exit Agreement with Mitch Waterman which protects SVCA from potential liability caused by Waterman. THE EXIT AGREEMENT MUST INCLUDE A REHIRE PROHIBITION. This will preclude him from being rehired as an employee or consultant for a minimum period of 5 yrs (20 yrs is my preference). This prohibition should include the provision that he will not return to work for SVCA in any capacity, even if he later becomes an employee of any SVCA contracted Company for the stated exclusion period.
The Executive Committee must meet swiftly with SVCA managers and staff. Conduct interviews with managers and key staff, and determine if their loyalty is with an obviously disgruntled exiting General Manager, or with the SVCA Corporation. If necessary, immediately release any managers or staff that may cause damage to or create liability for SVCA by, among other things, copying, downloading, or deleting critical data; misusing or misappropriating SVCA funds, debits cards, or bank accounts.
The Sudden Valley Community Association is a Corporation with annual revenue of approx. $4.5 million with assets totaling close to $12 million. Yet, the Executive Committee failed in their duties - by not only inappropriately hiring an inexperienced sitting BOD Director as SVCAs General Manager - but, the Executive Committee failed to respond to the years of complaints lodged against Waterman and certain staff. As current and former SVCA Board Presidents, Larry Brown and Leslie McRoberts were aware of the claims filed with the SVCA BOD and attorney based on Waterman's alleged acts of extortion, intimidation, and mismanagement. There have been Board Meetings and SV Views articles discussing accusations of Waterman drinking on the job; harassing, disrespecting and targeting certain employees and SVCA Owners; and, at least one complaint filed with the IRS surrounding several potential violations in which he was a direct participant.
Due to SVCAs Executive Committee's reluctance to act, the Sudden Valley Association and its Owners have been left exposed. We have no way of knowing the ultimate monetary damage to this Corporation simply by retaining inexperienced management for such a lengthy period. The resignation of Mitch Waterman, and the obvious animosity associated with the failure of the SVCA Board to renew his contract, require the Executive Committee take immediate action to protect SVCA Owners and our individual and collective Assets."
This web site chronicles a bizarre story that began with a simple traffic stop, and escalated into trumped up false charges totaling $1200 in fines (so far), repeated slandering of the accused (a resident of Sudden Valley), and what has been described as a combination of gross incompetence, bullying, attempted extortion, intimidation, violent outbursts, and an admitted effort by Mitch Waterman to "teach me a lesson".
The lesson I have learned is that if you live in Sudden Valley under this SVCA Board of Directors, this can happen to you.
I have also learned that if you rent in Sudden Valley, or are a Sudden Valley landlord hoping to profit from the current booming rental marketplace, your livelihood has been put at risk : your lease is an invalid and unenforceable, and can easily canceled by your tenant. More on that later.
Oh, and if you are a tenant, you can probably sue your landlord as well. More on that later.
Update 2018: The announcement that Mitch Waterman of Sudden Valley was removed from his position as General Manager was good for some lols, but seems to have been taken down from the Sudden Valley website. Oh well. It noted that the community rejected his contract renewal, but it also went on to invent a new history claiming all the great work he had done. It even suggested he was leaving because he was a creator, and his work re-inventing Sudden Valley was done, lol. What a load (the article, not Mitch Waterman. Although, actually, if you think about that... sigh).
Happy to see Mitch Waterman no longer in a position to abuse administrative power. HOWEVER, his mistakes of the past will continue to haunt. Forever. You don't get to lie and exploit, and harm other people, without consequences. And when you literally choose to deceive and avoid responsibility for your mistakes, turning a minor issue into a major cost for the community, karma (with my help) will be sure to extract a fee. The degree to which that public image cost will also harm Sudden Valley residents remains to be seen.
UPDATE 12/2016: Does the Sudden Valley Community have any idea how much of their money continues to be spent on lawyers defending Mitch Waterman and the corrupt participants in these schemes? It seems as if there are no limits to the amount of money they will continue to spend, with no apparent effort to address the core problems causing all the costs.
Do the people of Sudden Valley even know about the ongoing costs, bills, and fees?
Do they even know if Mitch Waterman was a private contractor (operating his own LLC under contract to the SVCA) when he first foolishly fabricated false charges and began the coverup of his mistake?
Did anyone in the community ever look at how that may have been abruptly changed, so that Mitch Waterman was documented as an employee of SVCA, likely shifting liability for his actions to the community, instead of Mitch Waterman, LLC? Was it changed by Larry Brown? Was it backdated? Was it documented in the association records properly?
You all pay the bills... do you have any idea what you are paying for?
UPDATE 03/2016 : The SVCA would like everyone to think this matter is resolved, settled, etc. and has posted a clever "summary" to the SVCA website. Within that are more of the lies.
I was not notified that I would be a witness at AJ's second hearing, so it is a lie when they publicly claim I failed to show up. AJ discussed the option with me, but we both agreed it was not only unnecessary but risky, since all the board had done so far was accuse and indict, despite testimony and proof provided at earlier "hearings".
While your board would LOVE the public to believe it followed due process and some tenant was simply belligerent and irresponsible, that is NOT the case, as has been outlined extensively. Your board has published an official restatement of that history on your website - including these lies - which is a coverup.
Following the abusive, deceptive, and fraudulent activity of Mitch Waterman and the SVCA Board, we have quite a few outcomes so far: Azam Nader of SunMark Realty has listed her Sudden Valley properties for sale (including the realty offices), and the landlord has listed her house for sale at a very substantially reduced price.
There's more. I will be updating this website.
UPDATE: If you are looking for the extensive eye-witness notes from the landlord's appeal hearing, click this link or visit http://www.docdroid.net/4U0eK8x/sv-aj-s-hearing-notes.pdf.html Note: these notes were submitted by several different people, with requests that they be published. The link above was NOT provided by the landlord, although I have been told the SVCA board has tried to claim that, in order to further bully the homeowner.
UPDATE: Following the elections where the Chairperson and a few Board Members were voted out, Sudden Valley residents are debating a number of important issues. When you consider these issues, please do not ignore the FACTS of this website.
Despite all of this, the SVCA board upheld the charges. Any law suits that are filed will have be paid by SVCA homeowners. Do you have any idea how much of the annual budget is already spent on insurance and law suits? It is quite considerable.
You can debate all the issues you want, but you cannot afford to overlook these facts.
UPDATED 1/28/2016 :Sudden Valley Community Association Rewrites History, Continues to Hide
The SVCA Board held a second "hearing" last week. I am told they blocked any questions from the audience. They have now issued a new message to the public on their website. It re-asserts their claims, and re-writes some of the history in their favor, to try and make things look legitimate.
So sad to see this board so corrupt, including whatever "new board" approved this message
Anyway, this will now all have to be sorted out in another much more expensive venue, but here I do want to address some of the very specified lies and misdirections they are putting out in the public messaging:
1. When the SVCA says "When Security subsequently learned where he lived, they sent the citations to his address. There was no response to the letters, and so a copy of the notice of violation was sent to Ms. McCormac who is the owner of record of that property" they want you to believe they technically acted responsibly. They want you to assume that this is true, when in fact it is a lie.
Mitch Waterman claimed to have sent the letters but they were never received, and when challenged immediately on that, Sudden Valley failed to show any evidence they had been sent. This was noted from the very beginning, and raised during 4 appeal hearings.
I think the SVCA has been advised to rewrite this part of history so there is less of an appearance of extortion against a landlord, with an active avoidance of the tenant and actual witness to the event.
2. When SVCA says "The tenant appealed his fine and received a hearing by a three member panel of the Board. This panel reduced his fine. He then opted for an appeals hearing before the full Board, minus the three Board members who had heard the original appeal. The tenant didn’t show up for that hearing so the reduced fine was upheld". Mr. McRoberts and the SVCA board are, again, attempting to rewrite history.
The tenant (me) appealed the fine, yes, but via a corrupt court where information was purposefully withheld from me, including the details of the mysterious "speeding ticket" Mr. McRoberts wants you to believe existed from the beginning.
I don't use the word "corrupt" lightly. When one of the board members actually has to ask ME what fines the hearing is about, and has to ask Mitch Waterman to correct her own paperwork about the fines being addressed, and a second (of three) board member has to openly state that I was not given and am not to be given a copy of the materials under review at that very "hearing", it is by definition corrupt.
3. When SVCA states "This panel reduced his fine" they do so in a context that suggests the reduction was an outcome of the appeal hearing. I suppose they want you to think they were reasonable.
In fact that fine was reduced BEFORE the hearing, which is in writing from their own lawyer. In fact, the board members themselves didn't even know the purpose of the appeal hearing before I asked them AT THE MEETING and Mitch Waterman made it up, on the spot (clumsily, I might add).
As has been previously outlined in testimony, they made up these fines as they went along... first there were then 3, then 4, some reduced, added, changed... as fit their needs. Some were backdated, and falsly witnessed... which they admitted in an appeal hearing.
This new public messaging from SVCA suggests they feel a strong need to cover up their actions and and sway public opinion towards a new, crafted version of history.
4. Perhaps most telling is the final paragraphs... where Mr. McRoberts attempts to explain away preventing the "full board" from deliberating on what was supposed to be a "appeal before the full board", and reducing fines. The saddest part is where he paints AJ McCormac as unruly and discourteous... disgusting behavior from this board and especially it's board chairman, in my opinion.
I note that they carefully attempt to "repeal" the defamatory letter of June 10, claming that to be a gesture of good will. Unfortunately, it is not so easy to "take back" lies and libelous letters like that... they are a matter of public record, for which Mitch Waterman and the SVCA Board should be held accountable.
Let's get that "letter of June 10" up into the public eye, shall we? Soon enough.
Sudden Valley Landlord Appeals
Tomorrow, Thursday evening Jan 14, the SVCA Board will meet (again) to listen (again) to a landlord describe how Mitch Waterman fabricated a dramatic fake story, compelled his staff to lie to support him, and used his administrative position to push fines and penalties onto a tenant and a landlord in Sudden Valley.
This is a "second appeal" because the first appeal led to nothing. The tenant's separate appeal also led to nothing but continued false charges and this website.
Despite overwhelming evidence of foul play on the apart of SV staff, and zero evidence of wrongdoing by the tenant or the landlord, the SVCA Board allows the false charges to stand, maintains a slanderous claim against the tenant's reputation, threatens the tenant with Small Claims Court, and even increased the fines for the landlord.
Any reasonable person would be ashamed of these proceedings, and aghast at the outcomes thus far. Reasonable people doing just that so far include an elected County representative, lawyers, two deputies, real estate professionals, professional mediators, business people, scientists, and other Sudden Valley residents.
Yet the board persists in pushing the false charges, and the NOT ONE BOARD MEMBER acknowledges the problem in public, despite a very smart and honorable professional negotiator trying very hard to navigate some outcome that is better than these embarrassing and most likely illegal actions.
All of this on your dime, by the way. The legal costs this far have been substantial, according to a report of comments allegedly made by a concerned board member. And these legal costs are not part of a defense against a lawsuit (which insurance might have covered). This is your SVCA Board spending real money to pursue these false charges over and over, through 4 appeals, despite overwhelming contrary evidence, as if driven by a vendetta (or fear of liability for the initial lies).
Where is the leadership in Sudden Valley?
Behind the scenes, I have been told of this board person and that board person agreeing with the evidence, feeling the charges were made up, disagreeing with the board votes, disagreeing with the board members that are leading this scam, and disagreeing with Mitch Waterman's methods and claims. I've even heard of apologies expressed... yet the appeals happen, the votes get counted (allegedly), and the charges stand.
There is no outcome from this blind pursuit of ego, ambition, fraud, or cover-up that is good for Sudden Valley residents, Sudden Valley real estate values, or the community.
The only right move is to acknowledge the mistakes, express a sincere intent to improve things, and plan to move forward with integrity.
What will the board do this time? Tomorrow is their last official opportunity to fix the problem, or choose to make it worse.
Update: No word on whether this "hearing" will be public or not, or whether recording will be permitted. One day before and it's not clear if it will be another "closed to the public" meeting with no transparency.
They Made A Commercial about Sudden Valley Washington!
Living in Sudden Valley! lol but not really laughing, more like crying
They hate this video, but it's so very true in Sudden Valley. You don't have to believe me... you can just live there yourself and dare try to trim a tree, plant a bush, adjust a window sill, or object to a "committee" decision. And the roaming nits with clip boards? REAL! And they travel in packs!
Sun-Mark Properties (Sun-Mark Realty)
Property manager Azam Nader of Sun-Mark Properties initially had little influence over these proceedings, positioned as another victim of the lies and intimidation. What could she do in the face of threats of a lien being placed on a property? How can she handle a landlord-property manager relationship when the HOA alleged the tenant is a problem, produced false claims backed by false eye witness testimony, and demanded eviction action?
Better than she did, that is for sure. In fact, after pretending not be be involved, Azam worked behind the scenes reportedly insisting (over many phone calls) that the landlord AJ McCormac evict the tenant, with Azam's help.
In cases like this the homeowner-property manager relationship is destroyed. The tenant-property manager relationship is destroyed. The lease between Property Management company and Tenant is invalidated. The business contract between landlord and property manager is invalidated.
The integrity of the business ecosystem that is Sudden Valley is threatened when the very administrators that were entrusted with managing a set of policies and procedures corrupt that process and abuse the proceedings. And dishonest realtors, property managers, and landlords don't make things any better.
The truth is... Azam Nader chose sides in this issue, and revealed herself to be untrustworthy, dishonest, and a despicable human being. Oh this is not simply more hear-say nor mere bad-mouthing about Azam... there's been plenty of that separate from this issue. But her actions and the facts associated with her actions in this case are well-documented, and available for disclosure and discussion. Time passes, but unpaid debts do not go away... they become more expensive. How ugly can this get for Azam?
Azam Nader and Sun-Mark continue to win the "Worst Realtor in Bellingham" award from the people we surveyed. Year after year, her lackluster performance as a human being is rewarded over and over, in negative reputation points. Her initial selfish sub-$300 decision to side with the liar (and join in) continues to come back in negative rewards. How was that for an investment? Was it worth it, Azam? You knew what you were doing... were you just too blind to see how much it would cost you down the road, or are you really that low character?
Andi Jo McCormac
Andi Jo McCormac owned the property (with Donald W. Hammons), and was the landlord during this dispute. While initially AJ McCormac was kindly and respectful, she did choose to cease communications, attempt to hide behind hasty corporate restructuring, and ultimately sold out her tenant (coordinating with Azam Nader of Sun-Mark Realty (Sunmark Properties).
The price to pay for this? Well, how can you price a lifetime of shame and the stigma that will of course follow it? AJ was given a plenty of time to settle into her position, and it is now quite clear her choice was to participate in the collusion, and ultimately profit from it.
Alex Moffitt is a young security guard with Pacific Security, said to have been contracted by Sudden Valley for security services. Alex Moffitt is the only Sudden Valley security guard involved in the event, where a resident of Gate 2 declined to show ID to an unknown, armed, private security guard provided by an outside company recently hired by the Sudden Valley Community Association.
Pacific Security is a division of Parker Corporate Services, Inc. of Bellingham. Joe's Database says that "Parker Corporation is located at 2009 Iron St, Bellingham, WA 98225-4211. It has around 10 - 20 employees. Its revenue is around $2.5 - 5M. Description: Staffing firm provides security services, answering services live or voice mail, janitorial services, temporary services, and employment opportunities." According to LinkedIn, Chad Parker of Bellingham is President at Parker Corporate Services Inc.