Deep Harbour Boat Slips

Deep Harbour Marina

The gray slips are currently owned by individual owners.
The blue slips have not been released for sale and are under the control of Beazer. 
Slips include water and 30 amp. electric service.

Note: Ownership of Deep Harbour Marina Slips is limited unit owners.

You may also email your inquiry to mc900@comcast.net

City Council: Special Session, Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Special Regular Session
The Cambridge City Council will hold a special regular session on Tuesday, March 31, 2015 starting at 5:00 pm to discuss a PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) for renovations at the Housing Authority of Cambridge.  This meeting is open to the public.
Following this meeting, Council will hold a public work session on the budget.

http://www.choosecambridge.com/ 

Some background information:
A special session will address two of the older low-income housing projects from the 1960-1970s era.  Both of these are run by a local entity called the Cambridge Housing Authority (CHA) and they are funded through HUD.  CHA tried to raise money (original estimate $9M, now $21M) for renovations from HUD and perhaps other federal gov't entities but without success.  CHA has found some private investors to help them with the renovation funding.

CHA will be asking City Council to assist in providing tax relief and forgiveness.  CHA is supposed to pay the city about $15,000 per year in lieu of the $175,000 annual property tax due to the city and county.  CHA has not paid the PILOT (Payment In Lieu Of Taxes) for several years.

Without assistance, CHA could face foreclosure.

On Tuesday, March 31st, at 5:00 PM, there will be a meeting in Council Chambers to discuss this issue. The tax paying public is welcome.  Many residents of the CHA managed dwellings are expected to attend.

comments?  send them to mc900@comcast.net 

Next Master Board Meeting, May 2, 2015

The Deep Harbour Master Board Association Meeting was postponed.

Why?

Beazer was to present their findings of the financial audit; but, apparently was not ready.

The board wanted to see and review the transition documents before the meeting. These documents were not produced beforehand,  The BOD decided to cancel the meeting until the next scheduled meeting on May 2.

The Deep Harbour sub-associations will be engaging legal counsel to ensure a fair settlement and turnover according to Maryland State Law

Future DHMA Meeting Dates:

May 2, 2015 at 12:30 P.M.

July 11, 2015 at 12:30 P.M.

October 3, 2015 at 10:00 A.M.

December 12, 2015 at 10:00 A.M.

dates and times subject to change.

Master Board Meeting, Saturday, March 21, 2015; 9:00 AM

Master Board Meeting
Saturday, March 21, 2015; 9:00 AM

Christ Church Hall

601 Church St.

Cambridge, MD 21613

The meeting location had to be changed for two reasons.  The elevator in Sentry's office building is out of service and a larger crowd for this meeting is expected. 

Residents will be notified today. 

Send you comments to mc900@comcast.net

Master Board Meeting, Saturday, March 21, 2015

Reminder: DHMA Board Meeting
Saturday, March 21, 2015
location and time to be determined.

Please send your signed proxy as instructed in your recently received mailing. Without a quorum, the meeting will need to be rescheduled and no regular business can be completed.

Contact Sentry Management or a board member for assistance if necessary.

send your comments to mc900@comcast.net

Cambridge City Manager: Update, March 4, 2015

Dear Friends of Cambridge,

 

The city manager issue is back on the docket for the city council meeting this coming Monday. I do not know all of what will be discussed but have some information that you need to know.

 

Within the past few days the mayor and others met with the Dorchester Election Board, their staff, and their attorney. The purpose of the meeting included the city's request that the election board verify or certify the signatures on the petition that was presented to city council on January 26th. This request had been previously made and rejected and, apparently, was rejected again.

 

That moves the matter back to the city for it to make a decision on how to proceed to certify or verify the signatures on the petition. I have made a written request to review the petitions and possibly copy some or all of them but have not yet received a response to that request.

 

It is unclear what, if any, rules or guidance exist regarding how the signatures or the petition will be verified or certified so we will have to wait to see what the city council tells us on that issue.

 

If it turns out that the petition is certified or verified (the count may be done between now and the Monday city council meeting), there are at least two things that need to be decided  by the city council. The first is what the referendum question will be for the voters to vote on, and the second is when that vote will take place.

 

With regard to when a vote would take place, there are two options. One is to have the vote within 40-60 days of the verification/certification of the petition and the other would be to have the vote in May-June of 2016 at the time of the general election for the mayor and commissioners.

 

With regard to what the referendum question will be, it appears that that decision lies with the city council to draft the question based on how the issue is raised in the petition.

 

I plan to attend the meeting on Monday and would certainly encourage you to attend as well to be able to hear first hand what the current situation is and what next steps may need to be taken.

 

It is our position on when the vote should take place (if the petition is verified/certified)  that it take place within the 40-60 day period from the date of certification rather than waiting until more than a year from now. This is an issue that has now been discussed for over 2 years and needs to be decided sooner rather than later.

 

Steve Rideout

Troubles with the Fire Alarm System: February 14, 2015

This week has been a frustrating week, Last Saturday, February 14, a pump failure for the sprinkler system failed causing a general evacuation alarm. Without getting into details, the pump that maintains pressure in the sprinkler pipe line was replaced two weeks ago and only one week later, it is on the blink again.

Currently, we are waiting for the alarm system company to return with the parts.  The recent cold snap has had all of the service companies on the road all day.  No one seems able to break away, Pipes are bursting everywhere on the peninsula. (We are in no known danger of pipe freeze.)

Please understand that our fire alarm is working. all of the sprinklers on all floors are ready and will respond to a fire if needed.  If a fire occurs anywhere in the building, the sensors will sound a general evacuation alarm.

The problem is with the sprinkler system in the attic space above the fourth floor.  The smoke sensors and sprinkler heads in the attic will trigger an evacuation alarm if a fire occurs; but, the pipeline in the attic is normally dry. Normally, the system should open the water valve automatically to charge the attic system.. Until repairs are completed, charging will need to be done manually.

A team has been assembled to maintain a 24 hour "Fire Watch" for the fourth floor. Every hour, someone walks the fourth floor making observations. Right now four residents are on the "Watch",
(saving you some money.)

The beeping sound in the entrance foyer is a "supervisory" alarm. This is a diagnostic alarm and will continue to "beep" until the system is back to 100%.

We expect to be back to normal by week's end.  Trust, that management has explored multiple options to resolve this problem.

This web site will report when the system is back to normal.

Comments? send them to mc900@comcast.net

How cold is it?

If you're not in Cambridge today, the photo below tells you how it feels.

This is the first time this year that the creek has frozen. 

What you can't see in the 20-25 knot NW winds 

that have been persistently blowing for two days.

Chill factor?  feels like this..

Water Heater: More information on how it works.

Information on our water heaters:
This is a story about your water heater and how it works.

Let's start with the main water shut-off. Do you know where yours is located? Look in you utility room. You should see a square access cover a near eye level. If you pull on it, the shut-off valve is revealed. Knowing where it is and how to close the valve could save you hundreds of dollars of water damage.

To shut off all of the water to your unit, turn it perpendicular to the pipe. The one below is shown OPEN.















Our next stop is the water heater. the water heater does two jobs. It supplies hot water to your spigots and also recirculates water to a heating unit located in your utility room.

Your heating unit is a hot water fan-coil unit located in the duct-work in the utility room. Fan-coil means exactly that. A fan blows air across the hot water coils and forces it through the ducts to your room registers. The same fan also blows air across another coil used for air conditioning in summer.

The water heater in your closet heats the water and maintains the tank temperature all year long. The water temperature can be adjusted but it really only affects the recirculated water that flows to the fan-coil unit. Gas is used to heat the water.

On the tank, you will see the recirculate inlet and outlet connection on the right hand side.

On the top you will find the cold-water inlet and hot-water outlet. SHut valves can be used in summer to prevent hot water going to the heater coil.

A high pressure relief valve is located on the front. Its job is to prevent the tank from erupting in case of a control malfunction. The plastic pipe leads the water down to a catch pan that is expected to minimize flooding in the event of a malfunction. NEVER stopper the relief pipe.

The temperature of hot water in the recirculating tank can be adjusted from the front control display. (OK, ask somebody if you're not sure that you know what you're doing.)

(This will not make your spigot water hotter. I'll get to that later.)

Find the operator manual. read it. .......

Now that you have read the manual, check the current setting. Press, both the "HOTTER" and "COLDER" at the same time, now you can adjust the RECIRCULATING WATER TEMPERATURE. Chances are you do not need to change it. Unless you are unhappy with your heater's response, you should not touch it.  You can lower the setting in summer. Please note, that it need not be higher than A. Someone in the building had it adjusted it to "C" and the heater popped its high pressure relief valve. Water. water, everywhere.

Recirculating water temperature control: It controls water that goes to the heater and the holding tank.














The hot water temperature for you spigots is controlled by MIXING VALVE above the water
heater.
 Since the water exiting the heater is too hot for skin contact, it is mixed with cold water. On one side cold water enters. On the other side, hot water enters from the water heater. The water that exits the mixing value is delivered to your spigots, shower heads, and washing machine. In most municipalities these safety mixing valves are required by code.

The spigot water temperature can be adjusted by turning the knob on the valve. Any adjustment should be made in small increments. This device is meant to prevent burns. Once again, read the manual.






HOT = Copper left

COLD = Copper Right

Hot Tap Water = Bottom to plastic pipe






Expansion Tank

This is the weakest link in the system.  This is a simple and inexpensive device. It purpose is to accommodate the expansion of the water and trapped air in the recirculating water lines.  Why it leaks after several years speaks to the quality of the tank's lining.  The tanks is easily replaced. Screw it off, screw on a new one.

This is mine,  Good for another two years, I hope.

Safety Concerns with Natural Gas:

Lastly, remember that we are burning gas all year long for hot water and heat in the winter. Gas is safe if all of the equipment is in proper working order. Your heater is equipped with a flame-safeguard control that will shut-off the gas is the flame is lost.



Go one step further, get a Carbon-Monoxide Gas Detector. Locate it nearby the water heater closet. Many people are asphyxiated by malfunctioning gas furnaces every year.

Best Regards, Uncle George



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When will yours fail? The clock is ticking!

Below are photos of expansion tanks that were replaced after springing leaks.

Just this past week, the owner of Unit 104 had no heat.  Why? Because a slow leak from their expansion tank was dripping on the electronics atop the main tank. These folks were lucky.
They only had to replace their heater.  The complication is that the installed A.O. Smith Promax heaters have been discontinued. No replacement parts are available.  Cost? about $3000

On a previous failure, a leaky expansion tank caused damage to the owner's unit and the units below. Guess who was liable?  Yes, the unit owner with the leak.

In July, 2012, replacement service was offered. Not everybody took advantage.  The cost was under $200.  Talk about an ounce of prevention! 

Mid Shore Plumbing has provided pictures of expansion tanks they removed previously. You will see from the photos that these tanks could have burst at anytime. This is even more of a reason for each and every owner to replace theirs. It was also recommended that these tanks be replaced every four years as a precautionary measure.
For replacement, contact Mid Shore Plumbing directly at 410/228-9003. They will not be available until February 23, 2015; but, you can leave a message.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do not take this advice lightly.  A penny today can save a dollar(s) tomorrow............................

This is mine. I believe that it is good until 2016. 

Tick...tick..tock...Drip...drip....drop

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