21 May 2021 – Research File (Transference of Responsibility From Owners to the DOA?)

Research File, 21 May 2021

Is Ona WimPen trying to transfer the overall responsibility of the resort from the Community of Owners to the DOA? 
It appears that Roger Barrow and his cohorts are manipulating the Development Owners Association (DOA) for their own ends and changing the DOA’s focus. The DOA has always been solely responsible for the governance, upkeep and control of the common areas of the resort. (See also the earlier research on this subject that follows this article.)

The group of owners opposed to the Club Committee, previously known as The Los Claveles Independent Owners (LCIO) has, according to its Facebook page, changed its name to the Los Claveles Association (DOA) but do they have any right in doing so? It is clear from the group’s FB information page that this is the same Los Claveles Development Association that has Roger Barrow as its President.

The aims of the LCIO, which are stated in its Manifesto, are to bring together Escritura owners and Club Members into one group with one Committee; thus ignoring Scottish and Spanish Law. This one group it seems will be the same DOA that is controlled by Ona WimPen and denies Club members any say in it. If this were to transpire then Ona WimPen would control the Club and Escritura owners completely and effectively control the whole resort.

This should not form any part of the DOA’s responsibilities.
 
The research article that follows was produced on 29 February 2020 after Mr Barrow published the result of the Spanish Provincial Appeal Court ruling that overturned the Club’s Arona Court judgment against Ona Wimpen for collecting maintenance fees without having a contract with the Club, and denying Club owners access to their property.  (Note: this ruling has been appealed by the Club to the Spanish Supreme Court)
 
Is Ona WimPen trying to transfer the overall responsibilty of the resort from the Community of Owners, (which has no elected representatives, no Statutes or AGM’s) to the DOA thus negating the need for the Club?

Wimpey/WimPen documentation clearly states that The Comunidad de Propietarios Los Claveles H38392122 (Community of Owners) is responsible for the whole development, collecting fees, employing staff and administering the bank account, something that the late Mr Pengelly had often confirmed. However, Ona WimPen appear to have shifted the focus of this onto the DOA, which they control at the moment.

This is evident from false claims made by the purported DOA President, Roger Barrow, in his ‘Los Claveles DOA Newsletter’ where he states that “The court recognises the Development Owners’ Association as the overall combined authority for the Club members and Escritura owners….”; but how is that possible, for Mr Barrow himself claims Club members are NOT members of the DOA? He later goes on to falsely claim “it is clear from this court ruling that control of the resort lies in the hands of the DOA…”

The fact however is that the DOA is only responsible for the common areas and not the whole resort for its Statutes clearly state this in Article 1.1 where it also emphasises that “For the avoidance of any doubt villas shall be and remain private property and shall not form part of the Common Parts.”

The combined overall authority that the court refers to actually rests with the Community of Owners as evidenced in a letter received by a Club owner from Wimpey in 1994 that states “As an owner you automatically become a member of the Community of Owners, the body responsible for the efficient running of the whole development.” Obviously the court were either bamboozled by Ona WimPen or deliberately misled by them.

Mr Barrow also claims that “all contracts and staff working in Los Claveles are registered with the DOA and Ona WimPen pays all these expenses on our behalf of the DOA”. That surely must be incorrect, for Wimpey stated in 1995 that employment of all staff at the resort had been transferred from Wimpey to the Community of Owners; the same year that the Comunidad de Propietarios was formed; also the management agreement states that the staff are employed by WimPen on behalf of the Community, Association and Club.

In fact, when applying for employment grants from the Tenerife Government, WimPen made the application on behalf of the Comunidad de Propietarios Los Claveles not the DOA.

Finally, if proof was needed that Ona WimPen is seeking to gain full control of Los Claveles, including the Club and Escritura Community, one only has to read the ‘Facts’ published by Roger Barrow in his DOA newsletters. The newsletters make it obvious that he and Ona WimPen are trying to convince everyone that the DOA is the ultimate body in control of the resort, a body of which Mr Barrow as its purported President and Ona WimPen control by the one-sided voting process which contravenes Spanish Law. (Note: the Club has raised a legal challenge to this practice in the Spanish Court.)

The truth is that the DOA is only responsible for the common areas; this is clear from its own Statutes where Article 1.1 states that “…For avoidance of any doubt villas shall be and remain private property and shall not form any part of the Common Parts”, but Mr Barrow states in the March 2020 Newsletter that the DOA has overall combined authority for the Club members and Escritura owners and that control of the resort lies in the hands of the DOA. Even Ivan Pengelly often reiterated at AGMs that the DOA was only responsible for everything outside of the external villa walls.

In the same newsletter Mr Barrow states that the DOA employs the staff and pays all the running expenses of the resort but this cannot be true, for as the DOA Statutes state, the villas do not come under the responsibility of the DOA so how can it pay for the villa cleaning staff and villa improvements?

In the summer 2020 DOA Newsletter he states that any increase in maintenance fees is a matter for the DOA AGM to decide but that has never been the case; the decision for any fee increases has always been voted on at the combined AGM by the Escritura Timeshare Community and the Club Committee under the approval of the next year’s budget; this is evidenced by numerous comments made by Ivan Pengelly in previous AGM’s, and at the 2014 Combined AGM the following resolution was passed:

12) RESOLUTION

The Chairman explained that the resolution called for an amendment to the Constitution allowing members to vote on the annual accounts and budgets as opposed to the current system whereby only Escritura owners can vote and the Club committee has the power to approve them.…..

The Chairman called for the vote and the total votes in favour were 363 and 136 against. The motion was therefore carried.
 
With special thanks to the Club’s researcher.
Albert Fletcher
Chairman, Club Los Claveles

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