HelenSometimesHolly

Work Order 7/12/18

Per Crystal's request on 7/11 I have attached a photo of my recycling in the trash dumpster. As we discussed, I have documented several instances of my recycling being thrown in the trash dumpster while the recycling dumpster remains empty or containing bagged trash. This is not an isolated instance.

While I appreciate the invitation to speak with Valet Trash at the annual Luau Pool Party, I was unable to leave my job where I work some evenings. And even if I were available, talking with Valet Trash about their poor service isn't how I want to spend my free time. I feel strongly that that is your job and am happy to leave it to you.

Again, as we also discussed, I appreciate you for having the leaky washer fixed and hope you will investigate the resulting smell of raw sewage.

#TheClubatIndianCreekOP

7/3/10 Work Order Hi Brea, Thanks for the phone call. I put my mostly empty Valet Trash receptacle in the hallway next to my recycling as instructed. This morning, it has still not been picked up. Please advise.

UPDATE 7/2/19 Brea called to tell me that I have to put my Valet Trash Service trash can out with my recycling, even if it's empty so that the trash guy knows I'm receiving the service. I asked if I could cancel the service and she said, no because it's a required service across all B&H Management properties.

7/2/19 Work Order: My neighbors trash got picked up last night, but my recycling is still sitting in the hallway. I believe it is properly contained. Will you please investigate why it didn't get picked up?

Thank you.

3/6/19 Work Order: Will you please either pick up my recycling, or communicate why it's not getting picked up? It's been in the hallway, at the designated time, in clear bluish bags, just like what you told me to buy, for three nights. It's still sitting there.This is the third time either my trash or recycling hasn't gotten picked up, while my neighbors trash/recycling has been. They'll sometimes pick up one, but not the other.

#TheClubatIndianCreekOP

7/2/19 Work Order: My neighbors trash got picked up last night, but my recycling is still sitting in the hallway. I believe it is properly contained. Will you please investigate why it didn't get picked up?

Thank you.

I haven't used the Valet Trash service and instead have been taking my recycling to my sister's. I haven't been to visit her for awhile and would like to use this service that I pay a required monthly fee for.

3/6/19 Work Order: Will you please either pick up my recycling, or communicate why it's not getting picked up? It's been in the hallway, at the designated time, in clear bluish bags, just like what you told me to buy, for three nights. It's still sitting there.This is the third time either my trash or recycling hasn't gotten picked up, while my neighbors trash/recycling has been. They'll sometimes pick up one, but not the other.

Work Order Closed: Helen, I just researched to find out why your pick up has not been happening. It looks like they are stating that the bags are not securely tied and this needs to be done so carriers can carry them without the risk of waste getting all over.

#TheClubatIndianCreekOP

7/1/19 Voicemail to Robbie Parker, Director of Facilities at B&H Management saying I've submitted eight works since 2/1 regarding the leaky washing machine. The most recent has been closed, saying that Snake n' Rooter would be out the same day. Nothing has changed and I don't believe they were actually called. I asked if this is typical B&H Management practice, or are they just not paying attention to what's happening at The Club and requested a call back.

Update: 9:58am Crystal from the office at The Club called to let me know that she personally saw Snake and Rooter on Friday, they were there when she left, they had contacted to ask her which building they were to work at, so maybe they worked a the wrong building. But it should be fixed and that if it continues to be a problem I should reach out to her personally.

#TheClubatIndianCreekOP

I used the washing machine on Saturday 6/29 after the following work order was closed:

6/27 – Work Order: The washer in the basement of 10308 still leaks. Not a dribble. It's a serious leak. Work Order Closed: Crystal J Jun 28, 2019 Snake n Rooter has been called. They will be out today. Closing out work order since work is scheduled with a vendor and will not be completed in house. Thank you for notifying us!

On the 29th there has been no change to the leak, no evidence that Snake n Rooter has been out. Since the work order has been closed, there has been no communication either way.

On June 24th Christopher Campbell was served with a 14/30 Day Notice to Vacate because they neglected to collect vaccination and license information on Mugz, Chris' dog. On Friday June 28th I took Mugz to KC Spay and Neuter to get his vaccinations up to date. I also got his Overland Park Licence updated and delivered those documents to the office where Ashley (I believe is her name) accepted them.

#theClubatIndianCreekOP

2/11/19 Work Order: The Washer in 10308 is not draining properly and the floor has standing, soapy water. Work Order Closed: No washer in this apartment.....

3/26/19 Pulled from an email regarding other issues: The work orders I have submitted have included the slow bathtub drain. I ended up snaking it myself, as I never received a response. It was nasty with not only hair, but caulk and paint. This could have easily been taken care of during apartment cleanup. The shared washer in the basement still leaks, leaving a lake each time it's run. That work order was closed without resolution because “there is no washer in that unit”.

4/6/19 This is a PS to another issue I contacted the office about via email: PS The washer in the basement still leaks. If the company you contract that service out to has been to look at it, they didn’t address the issue entirely. Maybe they’re waiting on a part?

4/22/19 Work Order: The washer in the basement of 10308 Conser St. still leaks. It's not in an individual apartment, it's the shared washer in the basement. Work Order Closed: Ran drain clean through drain. 4/24/19: Resident response to closed work order: Thank you for working on this. I did a load last night and the washer still leaks a little bit, but nearly as badly as before. Now, the washer is out of order. The LED says “EnFlow Out of Order”.

5/5/19 Work Order: The washer in the basement of 10308 is out of order. 5/6/19 Work order response: Will be assigned to Jetz. 5/7/19 Called Jetz. They have put this on the schedule and should be out sometime before Friday 5/10/19. Closed work order: Closing this work order as work will be completed by the vendor that owns the machines.

6/15/19 I went to the office to add money to my Jetzervice account. Before leaving I stopped and talk the office assistant that the washer 10308 still leaked. She said she would open a ticket with Jetzservice. I responded that they had been out and that maybe it’s a plumbing issue. She responded that she would also have maintenance come look at it. I asked if I should also open a ticket and she said no, she was doing it.

6/27/19 I did laundry on 6/25/19. The washer still leaks, there has been no ticket opened, nor any communication regarding action taken. New ticket opened: The washer in the basement of 10308 still leaks. Not a dribble. It's a serious leak.

#theClubatIndianCreekOP

I looked at my apartment three times before signing the lease because I was having a hard time deciding between two complexes. On-line reviews were terrible for The Club, and only slightly better for The Highlands (which I've since learned is managed by the same company, B&H management).

B. from the office, said she would have maintenance look at three issues. They weren't issues I asked to have addressed; they were things that she saw me either notice, or heard my friend Jessica and I discuss, and offered that she would have it taken care of.

First, the kitchen light fixture was dripping with grease and full of bugs. This is not unusual, but I was looking, and may or may not have said something out loud. B. said, “I'll have maintenance take care of that before you move in.” Needless to say, it was not taken care of. Shortly after moving in, but having not yet cleaned the fixture myself, the bulb burnt out, forcing me to take care of it.

Taking the cover off to clean or change the bulb is a two person job. I did manage to get the cover off and cleaned, but the bulb is a specialty bulb that has to be replaced by maintenance. They sent someone immediately, so I took my dog for a walk because removing him is easiest for everyone. When we returned, I had a new bulb, but the cover was left for me to wrestle with. It's only by sweat and bad words that I got it back on. It was difficult and, without a second person to hold the cover while I screwed screws, I was at risk of damaging the whole fixture. I'm confident I would have been financially responsible had that happened.

Secondly, the gutters. I'm a homeowner and have experience with foundations and water issues. I take these issues very seriously. The two gutters were not attached to the downspouts, but frozen in huge puddles against the foundation. I expressed concern and B. said, “well, it's frozen, but I'll have maintenance take care of it when it's warmer.”

After I moved in, I placed a work order and a guy came out to “fix” the gutters. He didn't do anything I couldn't have done myself, didn't really fix them, and the gutters are, once again, on the ground, like trash.

Third, and most exasperating, is the storage space in the basement. Each apartment has a designated storage space and this feature tipped the scales for me. As we were looking in the unit, Jessica and I talking about the moldy boxes, bug carcasses, and piled up trash, once again, B. said “I'll have maintenance get this cleaned out for you.”

I moved in, got busy unpacking between work and the stuff of life. After a few weeks, I was ready to sort, organize, and decide what to store in the basement. The first step was to clean out the storage unit. Between the time B. said she would have it cleaned out and the time I was ready to start using it, someone had shoved more boxes of moldy books and other junk into the unit I was just about to start using.

When I contacted the office about it, I was told to just use a different one. OK. Except every single storage space is full of nasty, moldy, piles of junk.

None of these three things would have caused me to choose The Highlands. I would not have expected any of these three things to be taken care of until B. said that they would be. Her words set my expectation, and her words have since become lies.

And these lies sum up my experience living at The Club at Indian Creek in Overland Park. It's all been downhill from here.

#theClubatIndianCreekOP

I moved to The Club at Indian Creek on January 2nd despite terrible on-line reviews. Because my dog Max is 100 lbs, there were only three complexes to choose from. Some of the issues seemed to have been addressed, and the space is perfect. I assume it was once an upscale condo with a fireplace and a storage unit in the basement. Most importantly it's a garden apartment with a very large patio where I can get my hands in the dirt and Max and I can sit outside together.

When I moved in, the patio was a sterile combination of gravel and weeds. Someone had laid down weed barrier and a ton of gravel, so planting anything takes a long, back-breaking time. Because of this I can only buy as many plants as I can get in the ground at one time. It's slow going, but we're getting there. I'm excited for next spring when the gangley starts have filled in a little and might offer blooms.

Because I walk Max a lot, I get to see how different people are using their patios. Some have created beautiful extensions of their living space, as I am trying to do. I must seem a voyeur as I peek through the fence slats for ideas. Others grow weeds taller than the 6 ft. privacy fences.

Friday night I discovered that my native clematis had snuck three of its tenderest new leaves through the slats to the outside. The lawn company wouldn't have had to look very hard to see that the vine is intentional and that I am maintaining the space nicely. They doused it in poison and it is slowly dying.

This sums up my experience at The Club.

#theClubatIndianCreekOP

Residents at The Club at Indian Creek are required to pay for valet trash service. This sounds like a good idea, and for some, a great value at $25 per month or $300 per year. It's not a service that I want, as I recycle and compost and generate very little trash, but I understand why The Club requires it.

There are 274 apartments in the complex. At $25 per month (there are a lot of vacancies as turnover seems to be pretty high) that's less than $7000 per year. I suppose that's kind of a bargain for a years worth of trash service except that residents don't seem to actually using the service.

One of the deciding factors in moving here for me was on-site recycling. This is a service included in Valet Trash, so I weighed my resignation at paying for the service against looking for an apartment without Valet Trash that would also allow Max, my 100 lb dog.

I move in, put my first bag of trash out, where it remains for several days. I open a maintenance request asking why. My trash was bagged in a dog food bag. It was not filled all the way and the top was rolled closed so that trash wouldn't fly everywhere. But this is why it remained in the hallway. I am required to purchase a new trash bag that can be tied closed. I don't agree and feel that I should be able to reuse bags that are headed to the landfill anyway, but OK.

Office staff kindly gave me, as an example, two of the bags required for recycling pick up. I dutifully purchase some and put my recycling in the hall as directed, where it remained for several days. Again, I open a maintenance request asking why my recycling isn't getting picked up and am told the bags are too full and they have to be tied completely closed.

This makes no sense, as bagged recycling goes directly to the landfill and does not get recycled. This is common knowledge but I check my thinking with Johnson County Health and Environment. Not only is it true, JCHE offers to call The Club to discuss corporate recycling programs that work. When JCHE reports back, they've been told by office staff not to worry because the trash service is unbagging all recycling.

I have photographic images of bagged recycling in the only two, (of 23 total) recycling dumpsters on The Club property. But let's assume a resident improperly disposed of those bags. I'm still required to purchase a non-recyclable bag that then goes directly to the landfill. This obviously defeats the purpose of recycling.

Now that I'm here, I don't use the Valet Trash service at all. I take my recycling to my sister's house where she enjoys unbagged, curbside recycling. I also take my own trash out, usually when I've disposed of something that might encourage Max to investigate.

When I moved in the office manager told me residents here don't recycle and I found her comment curious. On any given day you'll see people taking their own trash out. On multiple occasions I've observed my upstairs neighbor loading trash bags into his car, so I asked him why he doesn't use the valet service. “They're slow and lazy.” I'm not sure what this means, but that's what he said.

While recycling may not be important to you, I bring this issue to light as one example of a service residents of The Club pay for, but don't receive. The attitude of office staff is that the service is required and it doesn't matter that it's not working. They won't fix it.

#theClubatIndianCreekOP

Grandpa's Dandelions

The only man I ever knew who wore a beret and plaid purple pants well kept a pocket knife at the ready to make his assault, anywhere, anytime.

He could always be found, stooped to the ground digging the roots. He had to get it all. His aim to rid the world of those billowing lion heads spreading their seed and flowers beloved by children.

It’s spring, my yard a blanket of yellow flowers. A travesty to that warriors memory, a family embarrassment

Forgive me grandfather. I love bees, and you would strain your back just to see their first food.

#poetry #jocowrites