Nils Kindgren
My wife Alecia and I have lived in the Lakes for over 20 years, raising our children and benefiting from the friendly ambiance and Lakes community spirit.
In the past, I have participated with the following LCA committees: Swim team, Fishing and Boating committee, and in 2011, the Ad-hoc Election review committee. Recently, I decided to increase my involvement in the Association and run for the Board. I believe that it is crucial that our Association flex, adjust and continue to improve the elements of our Lakes' lifestyle to satisfy our present owners and their families but just as important, we should be mindful as a community to attract those new homeowners who will buy into our association.
As President of a Property Management firm, I have managed Hotels, Apartments, and Commercial properties in Arizona and Colorado. I am experienced in all aspects of operations, finance, maintenance, real estate and asset management.
In conjunction with my career, I have served on various Boards. Most recently, I retired after 6 years from The Board of Directors of Best Western International, the large national hotel chain. I believe that I can contribute to the Lakes Community Association a solid business sense, as well as utilizing my working knowledge of Arizona Corporation Law and Board procedure.
As a Board member, my strong listening skills and business experience will assist in ensuring a comprehensive review and analysis of the Association's infrastructure problems and budget challenges.
One of my goals would be to develop a fair and balanced prioritization of the limited assets and resources of The LCA, while seeking internal cost control and resisting increased assessments of homeowners.
My bottom line goal would be to make sure that our Association acts in ways that both stabilizes and enhances our individual home values while the Lakes Community Association continues to maintain, improve and fine-tune its "quality of life" attributes and image as a Premier community.
Steve Koppen
My wife, Pat, and I have lived in Tempe for 37 years, the last six years in The Lakes. When we were searching for our next home, we were impressed with the renovations and the pride of ownership at the LCA.
During my career, I managed computer systems for banks, manufacturing firms, and an Arizona state agency. I was responsible for their budgets, staff, and customer service. For 12 years I was president of a consulting firm which served banks in six states, IBM, and an Arizona university.
During 20 years with the State of Arizona, I served on committees with Arizona agencies, cities, counties, vendors, Federal agencies, and other states. I learned the value of cooperation, negotiation, and compromise.
For 10 years I managed a large computer system that performed business and accounting functions for several dozen Arizona HOA's.
I recently retired so I now have time to be active in LCA activities. Since retirement, I have spent more time on my hobbies: remodeling homes, traveling, reading, volunteering at the Phoenix Zoo, baking bread, and playing banjo, ukulele, and mandolin (poorly). I recently remodeled a house in Tucson for my daughter and am now working on a small cottage in Prescott.
Pat and I owned a home in Tempe's historic Maple/Ash neighborhood for six years, where I was able to closely observe the inner workings of the Maple Ash Neighborhood Association and its very diverse membership.
I recently served as the organizer and facilitator of a Lakes study committee. I was motivated to investigate an issue that has widely diverse views within the community to find a mutually beneficial solution. I believe that it is only by facing such challenges that The Lakes can move forward.
For six years I have observed the operation of The Lakes Board of Directors and its committees. I have come to understand the Board's challenges and opportunities. I believe my diverse business experience will allow me to contribute to the Board and our community.
My primary goal is to make sensible, effective use of the LCA's limited funds. I want The Lakes to remain one of the premier communities in the East Valley.
Dave Smith
We moved to Arizona in 1983 and decided that we liked the Lakes the best of all the places that we looked at, due to the well-maintained lush green ambiance, the serene lakes, the easy freeway access, and the proximity to facilities such as the airport. We bought our Lakes home in 1984.
I have participated in Lakes activities for the last 15 years. I served on the Architectural Committee for 4 years and developed a software program to process the homeowners' applications, served on the Ad-hoc Tennis Court Repair Committee when there was a problem and a similar committee for the swimming pool. I was on the initial Infrastructure and Maintenance Committee and the 2010 Nominating Committee. I was also deeply involved with the Boardwalk Repair project 2007-09. I have made a point of attending Board Meetings to keep abreast with events in the Lakes.
In my earlier life, I earned a degree in civil engineering with honors from Leeds University in England and subsequently obtained Professional Engineer registration in Arizona and also earned an Arizona contractors license.
My career involved many construction and design projects requiring travel and several family relocations, including to Brazil, Venezuela and Mexico. I was in charge of some $100 million construction projects.
We came to Arizona to build a 30-unit townhouse project in Mesa. Doing this, I learned a lot about CC&R's, and how HOA's function. After that I started my own construction consulting business; in addition to engineering and construction, I became involved in hiring, payroll, taxes, workers compensation, health insurance and safety training. In this electronic age, I now rarely travel on business, am reducing my workload and have more leisure time.
I believe my experience and engineering background will be beneficial on the Board. The Lakes is now 40 years old and major repairs normally would be expected and will need some technical understanding such as mine. I also hope that I can help smooth over some of the frictions that currently exist in the community.
Jay Williams
I'm interested in LCA Board service as a means to insure a sustainable life here at Tempe Lakes. By sustainable I mean continuing possession of a beautiful/healthy lake and environs, operation of recreational facilities with appropriate staffing, and "livable" CC&R regime - all while not pricing Lakes home owners out of their own homes. Put another way: sustainability fosters, in my view, an environment where you can raise your kids; stay for the retirement; and not be overwhelmed by runaway assessments.
LCA members - those who actually live in the Lakes, obey the CC&Rs, and pay the freight with each assessment check - should have a greater voice in the decision making process. As it is now, "Big Ticket" projects are kept quiet and, unless you happen to show up at a board meeting, you may only learn of large spending through project updates posted in the Lakes Log. Long after decisions have been made and money spent.
Now, a little about me: I'm a Computer Programmer, and have been for about 30 years. During my career I've developed and maintained computer software for large commercial banks, state governments, and was among the first in the United States - if not THE first - to use IBM PC (Intel platform) for real-time flight test data acquisition and reduction (used in development of experimental Boeing and Sabreliner aircraft). Nowadays I write and sell computer software - kinda like a self-published author.
I moved my family to Tempe in the early 1990's and we've lived in the Lakes continuously (including all those long . . . hot . . . summers) since June 1993. Our kids are veterans of the Rover - Fees - Marcos de Niza circuit.
Finally . . .
There are those who advocate for an automatic assessment increase each year. A 1% or 2% increase whether or not we actually need the extra cash. In my view, assessment increases should be on a basis of actual need rather than fanciful notions of anticipated spending. If we, as a community, need an extra bump of assessment money for, say, an emergency repair, then an override recommendation from a credible LCA board should be all that is necessary. So, for me, credibility is everything, and I hope to join with the other LCA board members to polish that credibility in the next few years.
