Community Lighting

From the Property Management Office:  

Six additional lights poles have been installed in front of build 26 (West side of neighborhood, adjacent to Cleary Blvd).  This is "adhering to the "candlelight" rule of city of Plantation." 

Construction Progress: July 2008

Una traducción española está disponible en Web site: www.TAJWatchSpanish.blogspot.com

Construction on Building 26 is finally complete, it seems, and it is now waiting for paint (above, left). The construction project started sometime before the first of the 2008 year. Jim Miles' crew was at a fast pace for a long time, but then slowed to a crawl by the end.

Sources say that more refurbishment projects are in the works. The plan, apparently, is to work first on the buildings that that can be seen from the streets outside the community. That means that the next buildings to face refurbishments are Buildings # 28 & 42 (pictured above, center and right), 1*, 6, 7, 10, 11, 15, 16, and 17.

It is clear from the pictures of buildings 28 and 42 that there are still some buildings that have a big need for refurbishment work. It seems that especially sundecks are vulnerable to water intrusion and subsequent rot.
[click on pictures for larger images]

*building 1 is actually not scheduled for renovations in the next phase of construction, but will be considered at a later date due to its relatively better condition than many other buildings at TAJ. I apologize for any misunderstanding or inconvenience caused by this mistaken information.

Construction Progress

Building 26 (above) has progressed from being covered with tarps in the left had pictures to being clad in plywood as pictured on the right. When the T-111 was removed from this building and Building 44 (below) there was no plywood beneath it, leaving the studs and insulation exposed. The tarps served as very temporary protection but were quickly replaced with the plywood. Hardi-panel boards will be the final outer-layer, with a layer of plastic or tar-paper between it and the plywood.

Jim Miles reported that Building 26 had "hurricane straps" already installed, but that Building 44 had none. Hurricane straps are fairly small metal strips that are nailed into the tops and bottoms of wall studs all along the second story of the building, with the outcome that the roof is thereby connected to the foundation. That makes a building much more resistant to wind forces, much less likely to blow apart when a hurricane force wind blows through our area. Those straps are not only a good way to protect our homes, but they are also required by the local building codes, I am told. Before the reconstruction work in TAJ is done, every building ought to be outfitted with hurricane straps.




Building 14 (above) is making steady progress. Hardi-panel has been installed and the building is beginning to look very nice.

Special Assessment Meeting

Last night the BOD passed the following Special Assessments (amounts are approximate):

• Building 22: $989 ($166/unit) [hurricane expenses]
• Building 25: $192,642 ($32,108/unit) [building refurbishments]
• Building 26: $354,754 ($29,563/unit) [building refurbishments]
• Building 44: $206,135 ($34,356/unit) [building refurbishments]

Apparently owners can arrange to make payments over a 10 year period, or they can pay in whole before Jan 15th to avoid fees associated with the Association's construction loan. Specific information will be mailed to each unit owner affected by the Special Assessment.

Buildings 28, 29, and 42 are invited to a pre-Assessment meeting on January 10th, which will be followed by the Special Assessment meeting on January 17th.


The meeting was attended by the Property Manager and the following Board members: Manny, Prentis, Ben, and Bryan. Unit owners from several buildings were also present.

Next buildings in line for Renovations and Special Assessments

According to the BOD meeting minutes of 03 October 2007 (see post at that date) buildings 25, 26, 28, 42, and 44 are the next phase of construction to begin at TAJ. The paperwork is being prepared that will be sent out for competitive bids by general contractors (GCs), one of whom will be selected for each of the above named buildings. Soon thereafter each building will be given a Special Assessment to cover the cost of paying the GC for the work they perform.

Because TAJ has been fortunate enough to have a line of credit with a local bank for construction, the BOD has been able to offer somewhat flexible payment terms to unit owners in some of the past Special Assessments.

Refurbishments and Re-roofings

Building 1 (above) has a new roof and looks excellent from University Drive, putting a much better face on the TAJ neighborhood than has existed since hurricane Wilma two years ago when much of the old and worn roof was damaged by the wind. A year of opposition by building 1 unit owners resulted in increased maintenance and engineering costs (some estimates are that the delay and repetitious studies cost unit owners a combined amount of over $10,000.00) and was finally put to rest when the BOD recently voted to replace the roof on Building 1, as is being done on other buildings throughout the community.


Building 26 (above and below) is getting a new roof. This building is on the Southwest corner of the neighborhood and is the first thing many passers-by see of TAJ. The new roof will help our community's "curb appeal." It will also correct many leak problems that I was told exist in that building. In the picture above can be seen the large crane they use to haul material up to the rooftop. Below can be seen some of the crew that was working on Saturday. Click on the picture below to see a larger image and you may be able to see where the workers are replacing a portion of what they call the "roof deck" (the plywood that is under the shingles).



Building 27 (above) is nearing completion of the majority of refurbish work. JM Construction faced a delay due to materials, I was told, but they are back on track. Sun-decks appear to be the final stage of the work to be done.


Building 14 (above) is being prepared for re-roofing (shingles piled along the peak) and refurbishment (sun deck walls removed, scaffolding erected).


Building 21 (above and below) is also being prepared for refurbishment. Scaffolding lines the front and back of much of the long building.


Rotted plywood (above) is evidence of water intrusion over the years in building 21. Fortunately there is a concrete truss that is impervious to water-rot (seen under the rotted plywood). Hopefully the other trusses made of wood have avoided the decay that has typically been found in other buildings. Hardi-panel and rain gutters are part of the plan to reduce the amount of water intrusion and the resulting rot that will happen over the next several decades.


A building 27 resident has replaced their windows (above) with hurricane-proof windows that are made with safety glass and wind-rated frames. They are attractive as well as functional.