Jackson Jambalaya

I still don't get why an HOA would have six or seven figures in the bank that could go un-noticed. Cut the grass at the entrance and blow the clippings. The rest is just vanity.

Yeah, I know it's Madison. Call me poor for asking.

Maintain the fancy gate and landscaping, power for gates, landscape lighting and streetlights (possibly), street signs, maintenance of clubhouse and pool, insurance, possibly maintenance of streets, security patrol. It adds up quickly.

It's probably a lot like the eastover foundation in northeast Jackson... Certain families give over 25 and 50k each year. I gave 5k this year and I'm considered white trash by the neighborhood on twin lake circle in eastover.

I love seeing rich people getting screwed over for a change. It's very satisfying. It would be interesting if the Lane's have the money in accounts inaccessible to the courts and that they are already in a country without extradition to the USA.

It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."
Mark 10:25

@7:24 PM - Prudent HOA communities have reserve accounts for the renovation of their clubhouse, pool, tennis courts, etc. They also must have reserves for resurfacing streets.

All of these items are expensive, hence the large accounts.

In a lot of cases, and depending on the community's amenities, the HOA is responsible for drainage, road maintenance, street lights, and clubhouse and pool maintenance. Figure an average of $200 per household and the dues really add up and can be a temptation for a not-so-honest manager. I don't live in an HOA community, but if I did, I'd demand transparency on how the money was being spent/invested.

@7:41 PM - It must be sad to live in a 2BR 1BA rental home in W. Jackson. Bless your heart.

Calls to the District Attorney’s office today went unanswered due to holiday. There was no voicemail. Rest assured that a complaint will be filed by this Palisades homeowner as soon as the office opens tomorrow to investigate all involved parties.

I'm not 100% positive, but is it not true that if you truly gate the neighborhood and restrict access, then you have to take responsibility for roads? Which is why many neighborhoods have "open gates"? If so, you would certainly need to build reserves.

Anybody seen Ridgway?

Hell... 200 dollars a household? That's nothing. In NE Jackson we pay at least 1k plus certain families pay over 50k annually.

I live in a HOA neighborhood that manages all its own accounts we have a board and all decisions regarding money must be approved by a majority board vote. Which btw is term limited to 2 years must sit off board for a year before being appointed back on board. Our treasures is an accountant that lives in neighborhood. And everyone in board has access to the bank statements and financials. No need for a management company to manage HOA if your board is to lazy to keep up with it and practice due dillagance would not be in their mess.

Love a commenter that "loves seeing rich people screwed over" then drops a Bible verse. Strong.

Fully gated communities are responsible for their streets. I’m sure the reserve account had money in it for street repaving and repairs.

The guy at Broadmoor got away with $300k over three or four years. The lack of accountability at some nonprofit organizations (Churches/HOAs) is ridiculous. The bigger the organization, it seems the less the accountability.

@8:36PM
You forgot the part ...for a change because rich people screw people all the time. They just tell themselves they are smarter at business while making money off of those with the least. From overpriced rents to payday lending.

The bible verse let's you know God's sentiments about the rich.

8:08pm is correct. Our gated neighborhood has been setting aside money for repaving our streets - it will cost anywhere from $200,000-300,000 depending on oil prices when we have to repave. It is a far smaller neighborhood than Bridgewater so they would have to keep a lot of cash in reserve for their street maintenance.

More HOAs are coming. This thing is going to be the next episode of American Greed.

Bridgewater - Steed Road location - dues are a little over a thousand - twice a year! Guard duties at our guard house gate entrance were terminated to save money. Now we know why there’s no money. The crooks took it all. I agree with a comment in this thread that says an HOA officer should serve no more than two consecutive years, take a year off, and then be forced to run for election again if they want their old job back. Make them earn their title. Prove it that you are competent. Are the board members and property managers trying to pull an ultimate con job in Bridgewater? Dig deep into the finances and services provided. Lots more to discover no doubt. Board members at the HOAs mostly serve their own interests. They run these places with an iron fist to look out for their friends and families. How could a sitting board president never have thought to look into actual bank statements for years until just a few weeks ago? Idiots!

@7:41 Judging someone by where the live only shows your stupidity. Unless you have financial statements from each person to back up your ignorant post, you have no clue if they’re “rich” or not. Maybe they work hard to pay their mortgage to provide the family a nice home and maybe you play on the computer and spend your money on cigs, tattoos & booze. Hate to tell you, but it’s not as simple to say someone is rich or poor according to where they live. The priorities and choices of one person might not be the same as another. You’d rather have a chip on your shoulder about what others have and quote scripture than to realize you’re being a hypocrite. I know people in NEJ and these neighborhoods who are so far in debit and can’t pay their bills. I also know people who juggle several jobs and work hard for what they have. Clean out your ears before you go to church next time because you including a scripture after your comment tells me you’re only hearing what you want to hear.

I ser where WLBT is finally reporting in this. Better late than never I guess.

My folks live in Bridgewater. Their HOA dues are $2400 a year. Considering the number of folks there, that's a lot of money, annually. I have talked to them about this issue.

Board members don't get paid, I know this. But I bet that Ridgeway/Lane Christmas list is pretty extensive . . .

If you give a pig a key to the corn-crib....guess what? Everybody with access to these cookie jars has either pilfered from them or has considered it.

Now we'll hear from the righteous in 3..2..1

HOA's generally don't pay for street lights or road paving, but I suppose they can elect to pave the roads. Swimming pools and club houses are very expensive to maintain.

I think the question is not why an HOA might have a half million or a million in the bank, but how can they have so much in the bank that a half million goes unnoticed for any period of time?

8:12 TRUTH

If people in these neighborhoods had to earn the money they have, they might pay more attention to such details. So much inherited wealth in this area.

If the financial statements presented at board meetings were "audited", who were the CPA's who audited them. Ridgway Lane cannot audit the statements.

5:56 Usually, if the community is gated, the streets are turned over to the HOA and it is their responsibility to maintain them.

@6:15
No they really worked hard for it! Seriously!

6:15 am

I agree

We should tax estates at 90% over 1 million and stop treating corporations as people.

That way no inherited wealth at all

Who knew Bernie hung out here?

@6:15 What a ridiculous statement to make! Be assured that “these people that live in these neighborhoods” work hard and do actually earn their living ! What a snob you are!

I've got news for some of y'all. If you have to go to work, you're not rich. There are very, very few families in Mississippi that are actually wealthy. Sure, there are some families bringing in $500K a year, but it's because they have an earner (or two) at the top of their game who has finally made it to a senior level at work. How long does that last before someone gets ill or gets downsized or the business dries up? Put a couple kids through private school, save enough for them to go to a good college/grad school, and save enough to cover anticipated health care/retirement, and there ain't going to be anybody living off an inheritance. Places like Bridgewater appear a monolithic representation of "the rich" in the mind of some, but what they don't realize is the massive turnover within the neighborhood (go take a look at all the "for sale" signs sometime). Mississippi's got some folks that might string together 5 good years in a row but, if you're really and truly rich, you GTFO of Mississippi.

Just for clarification, are their multiple Bridgewater's? The piece makes it sound like there is Bridgewater Proper and Bridgewater @ Old Agency.

Ridgeway Lane managed multiple Primos Developments for those asking what other Rankin County HOA's may come forth.

@4:41 (and others) ... this is fraud, RL produced fraudulent docs which made everything seem hunky dory. I doubt the HOAs ever gave RL any authority to do most of the things they were doing.

Give me the names of gated communities where the municipality has advised they will maintain the streets. If this were the case, how come the Board of Supervisors recently paid to repave the roads in Madison's Northbay where a county supervisor, the mayor's attorney and the new chancellor of Ole Miss live?

And most of these prissy neighborhoods are NOT 'fully gated' and the 'guard shack' is a cosmetic out-house, at best.

The good news for Bridgewater homeowners is bad news for the socialist haters:

A half a million $$$’s divided by the number of lots won't be much of a hit at all to the vast, vast majority of Bridgewater owners.


7:08AM, your comment "We should tax estates at 90% over 1 million and stop treating corporations as people. That way no inherited wealth at all" is idiotic.

Now, if you ever decide to get serious and want to bust up those fake foundations run by trust fund kids like the Kennedy's, Rockefeller's, etc., sign me up.

Pop quiz: Who thinks Leftist Anderson Cooper's Vanderbilt wealth had nothing to do with his landing that CNN gig? Can you say “Leftist White Privilege?”

In case you ever wondered, if a gated community is truly gated and the public does not have access, then the HOA takes over responsibility for the roads. But 3/4's of gated communities have a gate that you pull up to and while you wait for it to open, a camera gets a shot of your tag. Its a great deterrent to crime, but the city or county still maintains the road.

I live in a smal development with an HOA. Our fees are reasonable and are used to maintain the common areas. We don’t use a management company. I’m not really a big HOA fan but it does help keep property values up by requiring homeowners to maintain their property. If you want to put your “junker” on blocks and use your yard to grow hay get 5 acres on route 4, no problem.

@6:15 - what a misinformed statement. I work hard for my money. I have to fly all the way to the Cayman Islands to consult with my wealth manager, and my private Gulfstream 550 jet consumes a lot of fuel.

So lighten up, Francis.

PS - are you our pool boy?

PPS - It sure is nice here in the Caymans right now. You won't see a "30A" sticker on our AMGs.

I live in a neighborhood in Rankin County that uses Ridgway Lane, but it's a much smaller neighborhood with a much smaller bank account balance. But, I hope our board is has been looking at things and is on top of this. I've said for a long time that I've lived in my last neighborhood, and now that this fiasco is unfolding, I feel more strongly about that. When I decide to sell my house (if I can sell it), I will NOT move into another neighborhood.

I live out in the county, so I only get screwed by the Board of Supervisors... LOL —welcome back Karl and Rudy... tee hee

How did turn into a hate fest against those living in gated communities? BTW, I don't live in a gated community or feel any animosity towards those who do.

@9:05...good effort, too bad all of your concept of wealth is based on the Pelican Brief...Cayman Islands? This isn’t 1987.

Were the Lanes investing in Madison Timber or what?????

My suspicion is that false account statements are how this fraud, if true, went undetected by the various HOA Boards for as long as the embezzlement has allegedly been going on. Bernie Madoff/Enron/Lamar Adams style. This is some old school fraud. Ok, Boomer. I also cannot wait for the American Greed episode on this. CNBC could get a two-for-one with Lamar Adams timber Ponzi.

Our relatives live in Bridgewater. They told us last night the embezzlement situation is not Bridgewater's only money woe. There was some kind of issue with non HOA lake repairs costing the HOA just about as much as the embezzlement amount in question. Do like a lot of us -move out to the country.

How do these people think that this will not catch up with them one day. Money can can be taken like this for a while but not forever. If the system work as it should one year is about as long as this should happen. I wonder where the bonding company is.

Quoting Bible verses selectively out of context is just bad form, especially if you're not even religious. This one is high on the list of those used in this manner.

23And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! 24And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. 26And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved? 27And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.

So, it is possible, it says it right there (if you're a Bible believer). Might want to back up and punt here.

David Lane and Ridgway Lane used to manage the Reserve HOA as well, but thankfully the relationship ended several years ago. What people are saying about him and his persona is what many of us saw many years ago when he appeared at the annual HOA meetings.

Ok, Boomer.

Ok, Loser.

@10:09 AM - I didn't want to give up a well kept secret. But, as we are just friends speaking confidentially off the record, it's Barbados, not the Caymans. You are correct, the Caymans are so 1980s.

Anyway, keep this to yourself.

In an earlier post I asked that someone provide a list (or even the name of one) of the HOAs who have been advised by the municipality that it will NOT maintain sewers and streets in the community. The County recently paid to re-do the streets in Madison Northbay, where golf carts are allowed even though there is no golf course.

I believe I've read that municipalities in the metro all have ordinances that prohibit 'full gating'. If an area is fully gated and the municipality has no responsibility for road maintenance or repair, one might assume the police don't even have the authority to enter. But, I guess those who live in the silk-stocking areas would know more about that than I.

This is my favorite verse:

The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee.

2:35,In fully gated subdivisions, Police and Fire must be allowed to enter as needed.

Originial 3:33... You gonna pull the trigger too... Jules said it better...

3:40 is correct. If you listen to the police radio long enough you will occasionally hear PD, FD, or EMS ask dispatch for the entrance code to a gated subdivision or apartment complex.

The dispatcher will read the gate access code back over the radio to the officer. Basically renders a gated community nearly pointless.

Yep. I listen to the police scanner and write down each code. Then, I go to the gate and see if it works. If it does, I ride through and look down the driveways or drop someone off to look in unlocked cars. When I returned, the gate had shut and I had to stop and wait on the gate to open. I panicked, so I went out of the gate and came back in. Then, we returned the items we borrowed. I learned that if I have to stop twice, I’m not going back. Just too easy for someone to see me. I’m a police officer and I sell gate codes. All the break-ins that are reported from gated neighborhoods are probably because of me.

Gates are really not pointless. They deter lots of crime because of time and it’s essence.

Are there two neighborhoods? Heck yea - Bridgewater Proper and Bridgewater @ Old Agency. Friends who live in the new part told me the older area closed access to their part of Bridgewater to the newer area so they have to drive around the long way. This is a mess, but the fact that Bridgewater has clear tiers of top and bottom in their new rich neighborhoods is a little funny. Don't know anyone who grew up here that lives there or wants to live there. It's a haven for small town people or out of staters who have been successful and come to the city. People who have the blessing of being comfortable in their own skin/environment have no interest in living in there - even though they can certainly afford it. Pretty obvious with the dropping price point and stagnant sales. I do NOT dislike the neighborhood, just the sad class system where people who do well desperately want to prove it and establish "elite" neighborhoods full of every day people. Nothing wrong with that, but the own internal class structure war in BW does make me snicker a bit.

@8:50 obviously cannot afford a house in either section of Bridgewater. V