St JOHN VILLAGE Bansko Complex Management blog from Crown FM

Straight of the Back of the 2013/14 Winter Season

2014-06-09T12:30:00.003-07:00

They say there is no piece for the wicked, well there is certainly no rest for us here at Crown and straight of the back of winter we are right on it and the works at the complex, Obviously the Big, Big news and all thanks to the endeavours and connections of Yana and our electrical team we succeeded where others had faltered and despite the despicable shenanigans of others we got to the route of what had been done and undone it, proving once again that there is no task nor problem that with Crown determination and perseverance that we can not find a resolution to.

All owners now have the long missing and wrongly denied benefit of the basics of common area lighting and power and the long awaited road forward now lies open. Lift meters will be fitted during this week and testing of the lift system can proceed, in order the whole story & costs related to the re-commisioning and operation of them can be established.

All common area meters and paper work in place and lighting on to all stair wells.

The wood work timber replacement and refurbishment project is well under way with all the low level handrails and balustrades being the first area of activity. Pretty much as expected and in line with our experience to date the existing timber was at best in a sorry state and on average 60/70% of the timber had to be completely replaced, right now we are 70% through the program in this area.

Not even good for fire wood, with wet rot setting in good and proper internal to the timber through out, this occurs when in correct timber and glue-lam type construction is used, thats then compounded by incorrect treatment and lack of maintenance the water penetrates deep into the wood is allowed to remain and then turns in to wet rot, and by this time there is no amount of treatment that will save it and replacement is the only option.

new smirch wood the correct product for external use, ready for cutting to size. we have not used any glue-lam sections and all replacement elements have been formed from sold sections of timber.

Cut to size ready for re-asembly

Re-asembly

In to the paint shop

On site installation

Looking Damn good dont you agree, damn good

Following completion of low level areas the commencement of the Hill main Building timber refurbishment project begins covering some 7000 plus square meters of timber no small task but one Crown is properly up for and ready to deliver on, progress will be fully reported via this blog.

In the Park the entrance lobby areas have been under re-ferbishment from the water damage caused from before the Roof's where fixed and water tight. The job proved bigger than expected as due to the amount of water that had ingress and time passed a large proportion of the paster board had just deteriorated beyond the point of repair and thus a lions share of the existing board had to be replaced with new and completely re-decorated.

Removal complete of all areas affected by the damp essential in order proper repair be affected.

Then starts the re-enstatement process.

Them making good and finishing;

Like New :)

Other area's be completed is the stone works we where un-able to complete prior to the on set of winter and tempartures un suitable of proper technical completion of wet works.

Thus with condition suitable the safety wall and fire wood enclosure are under complete this is all over and above our Owners Association brief for the works and part of the added value that is Crown.

Your note the proper preparation of the works area, the proper application and selection of materials

Like all the low level stone work completed thus far the quality of our stone masons work is exceptional and installed to last, we are now preparing all high level areas over the Lobby entrance zones in the Park for repair of these areas as with the Hill progress will be covered on this blog.

Its a big year this year and one that will see significant improvements and steps forward for the complex as a whole please watch this space and our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/StJohnVillageResortBansko for on going reports and up dates.

Crown Insure

2014-04-04T03:46:00.003-07:00

Crown Services Group is proud to announce Crown Insure in partnership with the Allianz Insurance group, an exciting and key addition to the wide range of services already available from Crown, are now and have been for the last year a fully certified broker and the first expat company to be so, Allianz have very strict conditions for such representation and my professional qualifications, industry experience and our company history has enabled us to achieve this, and we are now in a position to offer all our clients great value European standard re-build and content insurance for every type of apartment or property.

We have already a large number of UK and European owners insuring there investments through our selves, we are also insuring a number of whole complex’s on behalf Owners Association’s as well as owners vehicles and just about anything and everything else you can wish or think for.

Crown is also a certified sub-contractor for Allianz for all insurance assessments, claims and repairs making for a greatly improved insurance experience.

If you are not already properly insured now is the time to be so, to-date we have already been able to offer comprehensive building and contents cover for the same cost as a 3rd party policy and that represented an almost 70% discount. Included in this comprehensive cover, are losses in income if your renting/letting the apartment plus alternative hotel accommodation for you or your guests should the need arise.

More offers are to come during 2014 and all Crown iPM clients get first hand notification of all special offers as they become available.

Interested please just let us know what your requirements are and we will do the rest, please don’t delay as the legal requirement to insure when letting/renting or even allowing friends to use your apartment will soon be mandatory, contact via info@crown-fm.com

Why Allianz you ask, first and for-most and a key aspect in the decision of our selves to take the brokerage. Allianz are one of the few international insurance groups to offer policies properly tailored to the Bulgarian market, that is a policy that is suitably structured to the property law of the country.

As we all must have realised by now the property ownership system/law here being essential germanic in origin is very different to the UK system and as such most International company tend

to unnecessarily over insure, meaning clients are paying far to much for there policies, in basic terms legally as an owner you are only responsible for the properties under your ownership as detailed in your ownership documents, 3rd party cover is afford your adjoining privately owned properties but common area insurance respociblity and cover is the liability of the related Owners Association or notarised common area owner.

Key benefits of the Crown Insure & Allianz partnership:

Ownership specific/focused policies.
Full country located presence and policy back up.
Correct and realistic market value rebuild costs, but with the flexibility for owners who wish to set there own valuation.
Built-in internal fixtures and fittings cover set as 30% of the re-build valuation but again with the flexibility for owners to set there own valuation should they wish.
Simplistic easy to understand quotations.
Concise terms and conditions no small print.
Temporary hotel accommodation provided, should an insurable event prevent on going use of your property, this cover extends to any guests of the owner using the insured property.
A documented 15 day claim turn around promise.
Professional and citified network of subcontracts including Crown available to expediently evaluate the damages related costs and facilitate prompt and proper like for like repairs.
latent defects are not automatically declined and each situation is assessed on its own merit. This is a major issue with many of the other international insurance houses and one often used to decline / reject policy holders claims.

For a detailed proposal, any further information and a quotation please email your request to info@crown-fm.com

*Additionally we are able to facilitate and offer both Wealth Management and Pension Asset re-assignment products that are also available from the Allianz Group these products take full advantage of the Bulkan Regions more advantageous legal and taxation régimes, interested then you can get further information by emailing us at info@crown-fm.com

Balconies Phase One completion

2014-03-13T14:03:00.003-07:00

Damn what a mammoth task but more than worth doing, phase one of the Balcony refurbishment project is drawing to its completion, and the results are there to be seen by everyone and in true Crown fashion nothing but the best and proper job is good enough.

Thank you to all Phase one participants, the tremendous response is really stating to lift the face of both the Hill and Park complexes. A lot was learnt and really as we all suspected the timber was in a hell of a state basically rotting from the inside out, and only our program and method of works can really achieve the finish, safety and long-gevity necessary to get the facade of the complex back on track and in to a sustainable maintenance regime.

On average we have had to replace 30% of the timber per balcony and on some of the more exposed balconies up to 50% of the timber, but true to our word and promise our costs where an all risk cost and no client has been charged any extra no matter how high the percentage of replacement wood.

Our custom made, heated and presurized spray booth has work right the way through the winter on this project, ensuring the integrity of the timber treatment and constancy of finish, this attention to detail is what backs up our 5 year warranty on all refurbishment works.

In this blog I would like to recap on the primary issues with the existing timber, the solutions Crown are employing and then showing the finished results.

Firstly the reasons why the existing timber is so bad, A side from no maintenance for over 5 to 7 years, essentially the timber selected for balconies during the construction period is whats called white pine, this is a construction timber not a form timber or finishing timber secondly it was never treated properly, with only a combined colour and sealer being applied.

All the above combined with a complete lack of maintenance has allowed the timber to die, and thats why you see the blackening of the wood when it rains, as in the images below. Unless this blackening is removed completely by machining (not possible to achieve proper removal via a in-situ rub down) the wood after dismantling.

Here you see the contrast between treated timber by crown
and existing timber untreated.

When timber is this blackened it is completely dead
and will not accept any treatment with out all the dead material either
being plained off or new wood being used to replace it, any treatment applied
to such wood will just be rejected and flake off.

Unfortunately when wood has deteriorated to such an extent, in order to attain any measure of desirable finish or an as new look plus achieve any measure sustainable protection and manageable maintenance regime there is in our opinion only one solution, below are a few examples in-situ works which whilst might give a cheeper short term solution in no way achieve a consistant finish nor offer stainable protection and will require further works as a minim in the short term and will not negate any safety concerns.

Security cabin from other complex hand prepared in-situ, whilst best endeavours are applied a cheep patch look is the result and the dead work that is inevitably left will reject the treatment applied and further deterioration of the wood will occur.

In-situ wood almost always results in a patchy finish and unnatural colour

Not sure what worst here the un-maintained timber or the in-situ treated section, either way visually neither is desirable nor stainable.

Not to difficult to see the Crown treated balcony, a good picture this as we see the state of the original un maintained wood , an in-situ treated balcony and a Crown project.

With over nearly 40 balconys under our belts already across both the Hill and the Park we really have the benefit of experience on our side and to be honest the level of rot and deterioration in the timber has even shock us, and its become evident that not only is the original timber sulection inapropriate and its treatment woefully in adequate, the glues used in the glue-laming process (this is a process where many pieces of small sections of wood are glued together to form a larger section, this is the process that has been used to create most larger section of balcony elements) also where suspect and we believe intended for interior use. Below your see a number of examples of wood root and your note that in the main its from the inside out, this happens when wood splits (glues fail) and water ingresses to the internal of the timber.

When wood gets to this condition fixing fail and the general construction losses all its integrity.

Nothing to do but replace it.

Glue-lam has failed

Pulls apart like butter

Rotten right through

Dry and wet rot

What to do with this

wet rot

With the balconies dismantled and in the work shop we determine what needs replacement what can be restored (no corners are cut as we have our 5 year warrantee to up hold). we then set to machining and preparing and forming new sections.

All replacement sections are formed from sold one pieces elements and sorced from properly dried and tested smirch timber,

After machining

into the spray booth, for spraying. Spraying does use more treatment and lacquer , but the wood absorbs the chemicals better and the resultant finishes are vastly superior.

In hanging each element/section every pat of the timber is treated and coated even the adjoining sections thus maximising integrity of the work and securing our warrantee.

New sections after forming are machined/routed in to match profiles

After proper drying periods all sections are lab led for re-instalation at there respective apartments.

damn we have got through some stain lacquer and primer but all in a good course

Ready to be distributed out to the apartments for reinstallation

You can see the great constancy of finish

Re-enstantment.

This is where properly managed dismantling and controlled work process pay off with all the right elements going back to the right apartment and all fitting perfectly back in place.

Looking good, looking real good.

Again you can see clearly the massive difference and wonderful impact the new refurbished balconies are having on the complex and the stark difference between the old and the Crown job.

In Detail:

At Crown we pride our selves on the quality of our workmanship and attention to detail in these images below your see clearly the quality and consiatancy of the finish achieved on the re-enstated balconies the craftsmanship of the re-jointing plus your see we have replaced all jointing brackets with new bronze non rusting elements that also match with the colour of the timber.

If You want a proper Job done, get a Crown Job

Phase two will be launched in the Spring of 2014 if your interested in a proposal please contact us at: info@crown-fm.com

If a Job needs doing!

2014-03-12T03:08:00.000-07:00

If a job needs doing! sometimes you just have to do your self, yes the municipality did get on and find and fix the big drainage problem (after some pushing) on the road up to the complex but the poor and incomplete repair has left the road of recent time all but impassable and when a poor visiter to the region lost the sump to his golf the other evening, as no one else had any interest in resolving as always Crown stepped up to the mark and effected a repair (at our cost) all be it temporary one, as still weather conditions do not allow a proper fix, however its a massive improvement on what the road had become. In the spring we will again push the municipality to effect a proper and sustainable repair and replace/repair the tarmac.

Before

Bring in the heavy weights to effect the repair.

Not perfect but a damn sight better than it was

Crown FM there for you when you can't be, sorting the problems no one else can.

What been going on at St John Village

2013-11-29T13:33:00.001-08:00

A busy and what we believe to be a successful year at the St John Village, Park and Hill and all in-spite of inherent residual difficulties and the complex turbulent history thats all been played, for no good reason nor owners benefit over the past few years.

Well despite all this we have as always dug deep and held strong to our belief in greater and better things and its all starting to pay off and new life and a presentable face is starting to emerge at St John.

In this blog ill set out and show some of the works we have actioned and completed, plus how they where done and before and after pictures.

St John Hill.

Following consecutive court case & appeal win's that all serve to properly validate the Owners Associations legal as well as moral right to manage the St John Hill section of the complex, more and more owners are seeing for them selves, that despite the difficulties the great job, the OA are doing and results we are delivering on, on theirs and you the owners behalf.

Low level walls and steps
Here we would have made much more progress & and completed in full our objective, had not a curtain party decided to be all bitter and twisted and have all the common area electrical meters removed, out right selfishness at best. However as always we find away to over come and for works at the Hill have now invested in our own mobil 240v generator, when we are committed we are committed nothing will stop us getting this place back on its feet.

In the Hill the primary course of stone cladding failure has been an inappropriate & porous sub structure and no application of stone water repellent thus water has been absorbed by the sub-structure expanded and contracted result in whats termed popping of the stone work. In repairing those areas where stone work has dislodged we have first cleaned the areas completely then properly primed and sealed the sub-structure thus offering an appropriate key on which to applie the replacement stone work, the cement used is also frost resistant and flexible to further protect the installation. The resuts i fell your agree and pretty good.

typical problems

same for steps

cleaning and peeping and are for work critical for success

two of the team

making ready for primer

the primer and keying agent so important particularly with such a substructure

thats better

as is this

this

and this

Rain water down pipes:
Around the buildings a number of rainwater down pipes had become dislodged and had disconnected them selves from the building fabric. Poor fixings and no securing method between the down pipe sections where the root course of this and where ever this is the case we re-secured and a re-fixed.

all present and correct

Roof repairs:
As with the lions share of construction problem here and generally in Bulgaria the route course is in a combination of inappropriate and poor material selection compounded by un-skilled/trained and un-managed labour performing said installations.

The roof at the Hill is no different and despite the relatively simple design & construction the same finishing material selection issues exist meaning that after 5 years of neglect and zero maintenance the extreme weather has taken its toll on the roofing felt which given that its basically a shed type felt has not done a badly as it could have. the poor fixing detail had left the weathered felt exposed the hi-winds experienced here and circa 400/500sqm of felt had completely lifted off, taking with it in some areas the copper flashing.

we have completely replaced all damaged areas with a new specially imported roofing felt designed and manufactured to cope with the extreme weather and temperature fluctuations, which as well as being mechanically fixed has a special addisive that ensures secure placement.

large areas across most of the blocks had just come loose

Slow degradation of the roofing material means it looses its integrity and finally fails leaving the wind to it blow away

copper flashing also dislodged as part of the general deterioration

thankful the under felt and retained re-usible integrity

just rotten

All properly repaired now, unfortunately whilst the roof looks great, the bad weather on this day don't show the balcony timber well, but does give a further indication of quiet how bad balconies are, when they blacken like this the wood is dead and serious remedial works are necessary.

Basement:
Water ingress primarily from the major mains water burst was the biggest contributer to the resultant mould growth with in the Hill basement area but as with most building basement areas are poorly insulated agains ground water ingress and the Hill is no different and rectifying this its one of the primary projects to get under way, moving forward.

The Hill basement is quiet a large space and safely removing this amour of rotten plater board and framing was no small task.

Unfortunately again the removal of common area power has significantly delayed the final completion of works here and whilst the complete strip out off contaminated material is finished and removed from site we have still to complete the doored barriers to the spaces, our new generator will enable this to be facilitated ready for the season.

Interestingly the space that we are left with down there is significantly greater than i expected and actually with proper space utilisation could be very functional in the future.

Pathway and Steps repairs:
Essentially the same issues with the low level wall cladding exist with the stone steps and we have employed the same solutions up until common area power was lost. below your also see the extended repairs we have done to the stone pathways etc in and around the reception area.

As a direct result of the below ground mains burst the sub soil suffered a subsidence and the main path sank, in the repair works we under pinned as much as was possible but where left with a clear sink line.

we cut back the existing tile line and re-set to fall between the old and new levels

we did this all the way through and did quiet a nice job of it

main reception and spa area steps repaired

Block steps repaired

again

we also significantly tided up this area also

St John Park

Roof repairs:
At at the Hill poor material selection bad detailing and unskilled installation works are the primary course of all the latent defects evident in the buildings, however in the Park the roof issue is compounded by the magnificent architecture as really the build was not up to delivering on the Architects vision. Repairs to this roof really took some effort and a whole to off input and management as everyone now's its more expensive and difficult to put right a bad job than do it right first time.

The elegant gothic nature of the roof line made access and works complicated at best and at times more than a little hairy.

We used a variety of specialist materials designed to offer the requered interiority but also the latent flexibility to retain that flexibility through significant temperature changes.

getting to where we need to be

no wonder it leaked just a small example of the dreadful workmanship we had to deal with

fixing the problem with superior materials and detailing

no thats a proper installation

you have no idea how much we had to put right up there

Stone cladding:
This has been the biggest visual success thus far as the amount of cladding that had fallen away from the facade was conciderible and gave a feeling of the complex being derelict well no more we have successfully repaired all the lower level stone cladding areas and what a difference, the problem was for all the usual reasons plus an overt amount of stone cement had been applied to compensate for walls being out of square floor to floor.

What made the process most successful is we managed to secure a very good quality primer and keying product and german manufactured light weight stone cement and with our properly skilled stone mason performing the works the park has a brand new face.

In the spring we tackle the high level areas above the lobby entrance which have until then been made safe with all loss material have been removed.

a proper mess all round

the a mount of cement used originally in the application of the stone cladding is mind boggling

the prima and keying gadget we sourced was a real winner and was fundamental in the success of the repair works

work n progress

filling out the large voids left by dislodged section of sub structure

making sure it all stays in place

WIP (work in progress)

not posible to make more of a mess of the original installation

And now to the finished product, ill not make any individual comments as I feel the pictures speak for them self, transformation! and these are jus a small part of the works

Fire officer:
Further to the installation of the fire extinguishers we have now completed the process of compiling with the statutory requirements for emergence escape signage through out the Park complex blocks A to D.

Signage:
Make the complex ever more functional through out new directional, and level signage indicating apartment to each floor has been designed by my self and placed logically around the complex blocks A to D, it might be a small job but its non the less important in getting a felling of sustainability and order around the place plus a little splash of colour.

Lifts:
But by far the biggest step forward in bring the complex to life and making it function is the lifts project which right now is in the final stages of commissioning, and believe my this was no small task.

Firstly in the Park the lifts had never been run and we had found no evidence that they had even been commissioned, that said I have had considerable experience with lifts during my career (i had been involved in the R&D of the Ottis GEN2 lifts many years ago) both in respect to design and installation and a informed inspection of these hydraulic units told me that what we had at the Park and Hill where a reasonable product with the parts in the main coming from Italy and being assembled here in Bulgaria.

So we set to work with a local lift company in running up one of the lifts to test it and see what we where contending with, and actually i was pleasantly sup prised aside for the fact that contrails wise they are very basic making floor levelling immensely labour intensive and laborious, really given that they had sat here for 5 years they where in remarkable condition with only the obvious things failing like seals, and the oils needing to be completely changed.

Comfitable we could make then run the big issue was that there was not emergence call system installed and to run them in the service of the owners and the complex a solution to this had to be found. No mean feet in a country where such a basic health and safety requirement is really seen, i my self had been trapped in a lift in a sofia office block with out such, only getting rescued when i managed to get a signal on the mobil and connect with my college.

Most companies we spoke with did not wish to get involved, then good old EU legislation came to the rescue making the legal requirement of emergence call systems in lifts compulsory as of 2015 in all lifts, if you wish to operate them and thus the door opened to engineer a solution, i want bore you with the nitty gritty but nearly 18months later we are now able to install and operate said solution.

Given the time energy and money spent to deliver on operational lifts we though it only far that usage should be managed such that only paying OA members are able to benefit from lift operation and so have again engineered the solution in an elegantly simple smart chip that when passed in front the retro fitted in built controller will enable lift operation.

and so for the season 2013 / 2014 we have fully operation Lifts.

Here comes the 2013/14 Ski Season

2013-11-26T00:00:00.002-08:00

After a great summer season and a year in which there has been significant changes and improvements in Bansko all benefiting both the summer and winter season some of which i would like to highlight in this blog.

First though Ulen officially announced (21/11/13) this seasons opening and closing dates these being 30th November 2013 to 13th April 2014.

Official opening ceremony will be 20th December with Alberto Tomba (http://www.albertotomba.com) will be doing the honours.

And these are the season ski pass costs as we have been advised.

And as we wait for the predicted massive dump of snow during the next couple of days the season is really ramping up in the town with all the old regulars and a host of new players setting up their stalls for the action, bring new restaurants, clubs, shops and supper markets some of which we will show below.

Firstly summer 2013:

As i have always advocated summer is the hidden gem with Bansko, yes its the top bulkan ski desitnation and fast climbing the world ranks, but summer to is just not to be missed perfect weather great events and a hoist of things to see and do, and it seems more than a number of key hotels and complex's agree with the number of out side swimming pools and facilities this year over doubling. this is no small investment nor commitment and shows that faith & confidence in the summer and all it has to offer is growing.

Some of the Great new and refurbished out door spaces to be enjoyed during the summer.

One of the big news items for me is the arrival of Carrefour in Bansko the first mall has been let to a very serious business group and their anchor tenant is Carrefour this means the big players are finally taking the resort seriously, its no small decision for such a company to invest here and it bods well for the future expect some other serious retailers here in the shopping centre and else where.

The Municipality has with the benefit of significant EU funds, kicked of a significant Street refurbishment program along the main streets of bansko, and not a bad job being done it all kicked of a little late but primarily as a result of late funding but they are having a damn good go at finishing. Along side this is there is a major overhaul and upgrade of the sewage/drainage infrastructure through-out the town again its a bit late and no chance of finishing for the season and before the big snow and freeze so expect some disruption to getting around town, a pain yes but infrastructure has to be improved for the long term benefit and expansion of the resort.

Also during the year a major river management upgrade took place again EU funded, any stores you may have heard of the EU abandoning Bulgaria are grossly over stated and generally circulated by the haters and nay-sayers.

The biggest new investment in the town is the new shopping and entertainment centre being constructed on the plot exactly opposite the kempinski, no small investment nor commitment and from the plans we have seen very a very exciting project set to bring a new level of facilities and benefits to the resort, it has meant that all the non legal retail sheds in this area have had to be dismantled but this is for the greater good of the resort.

a massive endeavour

Progress has been great expect a season 2014/15 opening

Some other things going on is the refurbishment of the municipal building in the church square a lovely building, not 100% set as to what will be here but it was the old cinema for the town and word has it it could be again if the right operator can be found this would be cool. In the centre square / coffee area a new audio visual screen has been placed bring more information to visitors.

We have a feeling this season will be the best season ever, dont forget if your planning to come and enjoy bansko and your property the Crown Services Group can cater for all your needs.

From the airport and back with Crown Lux Transfers, all your internet and media needs with Crown Connect plus anything and everything to make your Holiday all you could want with Crown IPM, for information on either of the above and anything you could need please enquire on info@crown-fm.com

More Exciting News and posting leading up to the season and during it.

2013/14 Season, Gondola Run and Transfers

2013-09-29T06:18:00.001-07:00

In our continuing efforts to push the St John Village Complex forward Yana and I have invested in a beautiful Veto for the Gondola run during the season as well as airport transfers, which along with our Mercedes ML and soon to arrive A class (LWB) will also be operating in our Prestige Transfer Services available to all our clients new and existing.

Like everything Crown we try our best to raise the game and set new standards, hence a better class of vehicle for a better class of complex, giving owners and there guests more reasons to stay and enjoy.

All vehicles are fully equipped, with leather, AC, and the Veto has air suspension to even out those Bulgarian roads, PLUS and we believe Uniquely all vehicles will run with Wireless Internet for you journey, in the mountains & remote areas this service may drop of but for the majority of the journey your be able to fully benefit from free internet & all at the Same Value Prices everyone enjoyed as last year.

Further we have invested in 2 brand new babe seats for visitors with young children, available on request.

For full details of Prices, availability and bookings please contact us via: info@crown-fm.com

An evening town drop of and collection service will also be available up to 12 midnight.

During the summer period all vehicles will be available for hire at competitive market prices with the added benefit of free airport pick up and drop off, so no need worry for getting lost or vehicle change overs.

Discounts on all our services and priority booking is available on request to all Crown IPM clients.

Another Great Balcony Refurbishment Completed

2013-09-28T12:38:00.000-07:00

We are really rock and rolling with our balcony refurbishment projects and with so many owners signing up this along side our stone cladding repair program we are really changing the face of the complex.

Crown doing it RIGHT, doing it to LAST, and fully standing behind our workmanship with our 5year warrantee

A huge amount of balcony to this penthouse apartment and difficult to do as it adjoins another apartment but like always we so such issues, and the balcony just looks and feels brand new

You can see the contrast here

Balconies on two sides of this apartment, this face is right into the prevailing wind and weather of the forest and the upper hand rail had to be completely renewed, had it just been rubbed down and stained its lack of integrity and thus ability to retain fixing would have meant a potential safety issue, doing the job right is not an option for us.

The difference is clear for us

Slowly but surely it all starts to come together

This apartment is also presently subject to a stunning interiors & furnishing make over and fit-out from Crown pictures from which will be issued soon, on our Interiors Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Crown.Interiors.and.Furnishing so watch this space.

Balconies update

2013-09-18T07:17:00.000-07:00

Thanks to a massive response to our Balcony refurbishment program phase 2 we are very happy to announce that assuming all clients that have requested and received one of our proposals over the past few weeks actually sign up, everyone will be entitled to a 10% discount against our quotation.

Those that have-not seen our 5 guarantee document its show below, your also note that for all our IPM clients there is a 7 year option available, this will also be open to any new IPM clients as well as our existing client base.

In preparation for this important work and in the knowledge that the weather will shortly be closing in and thus be less than favourable for timber treatment particular if you're doing an in-situ job.

As we completely dismantle we have the distinct advantage of an off site location where we have created a dedicated work base thats enclosed, ventilated and heated creating an almost idea environment for such works activity and thus we are able to fully stand behind our 5 year warrantee and optional 7 year warrantee for all IPM clients.

During our inspections and survey activities we have already had to revisit a number of balconies clients had, had in-situ jobs completed on and payed for and where now already less than 18 months down the line they are having to payout again for a proper job by our selves.

In response to the many questions we have been asked we set out visually accompanied by short text where we see the differences and short comings of an in-situ solution against our complete solution.

As you see here the dead timber remains and the new stain/vanish has simply been rejected and damaged areas continue to show through, which is not only short term but the general appearance of the facade remains unsatisfactory.

Despite only having been completed less than 18 month ago the old damage is showing through and new finish pealing of, with-out taking back to a live wood finish any in-situ work is only ever going to be a short term solution.

even with a top coat of new stain the damage shows through and the resultant finish remain a tired and unsatisfactory one

Here a good quality stain and varnish was used on top of an in-situ rub down, but still the wood rejects the treatment and we are back to square one.

With the moisture allowed to still penetrate the wood via surface splits and any remaining dead wood areas any hand applied in-situ treatment or finish will have a limited life span and internally the timber will continue to deteriorate and in a very short period will have to be re-done again.

As you see on this in-situ repaired balcony whilst it has a new top coat the damage shows through and there is no constancy in the finished product, with the over all appearance still messy and unpleasant at best, the damaged areas will in a mater of time reject the top coat and the wood will continue to deteriorate.

This is a balcony shown below we repaired some 3 year ago and here we are still looking great, further it remains very easy to perform on going ppm maintenance, thus our offer to all our IPM clients to extend our warrantee to 7 years such is our confidence in what we do.

When properly executed a timber referb job delivers a consistence visual finish even after 3 years.

Proper and complete treatment that is prep, prima & finish with UV protection mean longevity and thus value for money

Visual and weather protection constancy front and back

A proper job, a Crown job

Here are a couple off recently completed balconies & weather boards from phase one, as we finish more and more balconies they combined with our on going efforts and works on the stone facade's are starting to lift the face of the complex for the future.

Block A, Hill see the Crown job what a difference

and at the Park, all starting to come together

Trust in Crown, working to deliver on better more sustainable, long term solutions for all our clients every day.

Balconies

2013-08-24T08:25:00.000-07:00

We all know they need some urgent attention.

A side from the obvious, that is zero care and attention for the last 5 years +, the primary issue's with the balconies at both the Hill & Park is the initial inappropriate selection of timber for the works by the builder that is white pine (this is generally used as a construction timber not a finishing timber, it can be used for finishing works but in this type application its critical, that its properly dried, treated and then maintained), as well as this the initial poor, basic and insufficient application of all the essential treatment requirements for delivering, properly on an external wood solution that is impregnation, primer, colour and top coat with weather and UV protection, all compounded by a general poor installation and finishing, has lead us to where we find our selves now.

Current Balcony condition

You see where the wood is blackened here it is dead already, and any measure of protection has completely failed

In this condition damp and moisture enters the core of the wood and it rot's from the inside out.

When it rots internally and the wood dies it looses its ability to hold its fixings as the wood fibbers no longer have any structural retentive properties, and as above the sections no longer hold together and any integrity of the installation is lost and becomes potentially dangerous.

Close up, if you remember when you knock a nail in to wood the timber fibbers grip it and remove is difficult, at the stage the timber has got to above it has lost its ability to do this, and thus must be replaced.

Here at the Park is a balcony where you see it is obvious the timber was never dried at all so totally inappropriate for such use, you see the sap is / has worked its way out the wood as its dried in-situ, this means any initial treatment is completely useless as is this section of wood.

Dilapidation is all over the complex Hill and Park worst areas are blocks A, B and K Hill plus A, D and rear B Park but its every where and to a certain extent a little bit of a lottery as quality of the timber, wood treatment and workmanship was totally hap-hazard, also over the years and depending of aspect of the apartment deterioration has varied, some apartment in what you might think where low risk area's have proved also to be in condition where wood section needed replacement. And the full extent is not know until sections have been dismantled.

After a hell of a lot of experimentation, time and effort we have arrived at what we believe to be the perfect solution, in respect to process, procedures, materials and finishes all coming together to essentially bring a tired at best, neglected and poorly sourced / selected wood back to life, fully repaired, looking beautiful and ready to serve and survive the next 5 years.

Currently we have a significant program of Balcony refurbishment work for owners well underway and all looking great, thus slowly but surly we are collectively lifting the face of the complex back to where it should be.

Here is a selection of some of the internal wood damage we have come across

Where the wood has split water penetrates and the obvious damage ensues

Bad here as you see

Not possible to see this internal damage with out disassembly total replacement needed, zero integrity to the section

rot right through

And again

Here you see the variations in deterioration and as the sections have been formed out of the clue-lam process that is sticking smaller sections of timber together to form a larger section, when failure sets in and the glues used cheep if not internal type the elements come apart, water ingress occurs and rot happens.

Not possible to either see the full extent of this rot with out demounting and certainly not possible to properly treat or repair.

This is a small up right and you see water has attacked it through the failure of the timber section above, any fixing not possible and at some point this will just fall out.

Rotten to the core

Another small upright section

Here you see an existing section that has failed and the sections of timber that make it up coming apart from each other, not repairable, if you want both surety of any additional life with in the balcony as a whole and a warrantee of 5 years. Next to existing section is our replacement element your see its one piece and totally dry Please also notice we section sections and wood with as few knots as possible.

As most owners already know of us we are very passionate about the St John Village complex and our work here, as such we have put together what we feel is the right and proper works specification for the balcony repair program and consequently are able to offer a meaningful 5 year Guarantee against the works done on each balcony project. And this its a proper and meaningful warrantee as we are here and there is no escaping our responsibility nor our accountable to both the Owners Association and each and every owner.

To dismount and repair or repair in-situ

There has been a lot of discussion on this subject, Crown for one given our on site experience to date, as seen above, and with the timber in general by our assessment being far beyond a simple rub down and lick of stain, a side from obvious issues in respect to damage, an in situ solution would not provide any measure of longevity, as access to facilitate the works is not appropriate, a by hand job would not allow proper remove of the dead wood element for this you need to take the timber down at least 3 to 5mm if this is not removed, it doesn't matter what impregnation, primer of finish we specify the results will potentially be as you see below.

Here owners have been sold or instructed an in-situ job and as you see the dead wood remains, it is unable to absorb properly any treatment applied and the latent discolouration will show through, and any on going protection limited as rot will continue internally and eventual failure inevitable.

With the best will and endeavours in the world at best a patchy finish is achieved and the stain colour will not be true to the manufactures literature

Additionally the constant visuals we are looking to achieve are not meet, and whist a measure of additional life is gained the over look is all most worst than the untreated look of the existing timber.

Not a bad in situ job here but still your see the colour differential and the dark dead areas of wood showing through.

Our Works Offer & Proposals

Below we set out what Our Offer for repair and re-instatement of Hill and Park Balconies entails and show example’s of the problems we have faced and over come, plus the various stages of these works ending up at the finished product.

Given the poor selection of woods, poor initial installation, complete lack of on going maintenance and the high levels of wood rot to date we have uncovered we strongly recommend that in order to ensure, first and foremost a safe balcony, & the surety of no further deterioration plus protect the on going visual integrity of the complex the balconies have to be completely demounted in order to first fully understand the complete extent of the problems / deterioration of the wood and secondly properly facilitate the refurbishment and on going integrity of the wood thus guarantee it for the 5 years that we provide.

For the Owners Association and all owners we have derived a Linear Meter Rate for the balconies including any Juliet’s and a separate Linear Meter Rate for the weather boards. If a number off owners wish to get together for such works as a collective we have also advised the OA a % discount rate for groups of 15, 30 and 60 owners, please contact Stewart Burn’s for details.

Included in our offer:

Works stages, process and inclusions in our offer.

1. Complete remove of all balcony sections from the apartment to our factory.

2. Complete disassembly of all elements

*All sections that make up each balcony are completely disassembled

3. Completely machine sanding down each off the elements back to the live wood surface of the timber. Where the wood has been left so long untreated and originally so poorly treated, the external circa 3 to 5 mm of the timber has died, this is why is looks gray, and when it rains turns black, this part of the wood will never now accept treatment and is beyond hand repair. This is why we disassemble and those sections where rot has not set in remove complete this part of the wood (as below).

BEFORE

AFTER

4. Included with in our linear meter rate there s a 20% allowance for the replacement of any rotten sections that we might come across. We have selected and stored quantity lengths of pre finished timber, all tested for dryness, ready to be cut to size and incorporated into the finished balcony project.

All replacement balcony sections are one piece taken from well dried and tested wood source, even for the Hill where header sections are 150 mm x 100 mm

5. Once all wood elements have been properly plained and sanded back to live wood plus those elements needed replacement have been remade. We re-assemble the panels (with all new screws and fixings) as they make up the balcony from which they came. These sections/elements are then hung/suspend with in our paint shop area and fully spray finish first with the impregnator, two coats primer and then two coats finishing (as per the OA specification derived buy our selves on behalf the owners and OA). We choose to spray finish, one as the wood better absorbs the treatment and finishes this way, second the finish is far more durable and thirdly the over all look is vastly superior and consistent.

Now ready for treatment.

Thats what I call a proper job.

To get the best and most complete finish assembled sections are hung for spraying and treatment

Half way through the process, and starting to look the part

6. With everything properly dried, all elements are inspected for constancy of cover and finish then released to the site installation team to re-install and finish the works

Ready for re-installation.

7. Full making good of the areas where the timber connects with the fabric of the building are all made good is facilitated and finished back to their original status, if not better where original finishing and workmanship was lacking.

And the finished job is we feel Bloody great and slowly but surely change the face of the complex for the better and the future

8. We send staged images of the works/process so you can ensure proper adherement to the process.

A little sample of our detail and the quality of our finishing.

BEFORE

AFTER / Crown doing the right job

With all the above complete each and every balcony project completed by Crown carries a 5 year warrantee we full and proper accountability.

For any inquiries and detailed cost please email info@crown-fm.com

WoW Well what a Season that was

2013-04-07T11:16:00.000-07:00

Sunday 7th April see's the end of the 2012 / 2013 winter season and as if by some wonderfully poetic manipulation of the universe, It also see's the start of a new dawn for the St John Village complex with us finally taking just and rightful possession of the block keys to St John Hill. As we all know, a long and difficult year has just past and all really for no good, nor justifiable reason. But thanks to the dogged determination and shear hard work of the Owners Association and Hill comity along side our partners UBB, Justice has been served and finally we can get back to the work of turning the complex around and setting it back on the path we all wish for it, and all owners can freely enjoy un-encumbered there hard earn't investment.

A major and heart felt thank you from Yana, Chantal, my self and all the Crown FM team for all the support, encouragement and loyalty extended to us during this period and we can promise you all, our every endeavour to create, much brighter days from here on in and in to the future.

This seasons weather was almost the perfect wave, with plenty of great snow nearly all season and wonderful ski conditions up top on the slops, whilst down in the town we only had one week of sub -10 Deg conditions and only lost the operation of one apartment for a week during the whole season, whilst the loss of use of any apartments is not great, given where we are on our road to recovery with the complex, we where very happy with our winter watch management procedures and hope to have no apartments un--operational for next year with the implementation of the next phase of planned remedial activities.

Occupation levels at the Complex have been fantastic, even given the unwarranted disruptive issues that where ever present and it has kept Yana, me and the whole team fully occupied to say the least and i feel everyone enjoyed both the complex and all the new and old favourites Bansko has to offer, and as a resort i really feel its taken huge steeps forward at every level. Yes there are problems but its still a young resort and given the world economic climate, its done remarkably well, even managing to attract new and not insignificant investment.

Yes the Gondola queues particular during the Christmas and New Year period where bad some times horrendous, and during these periods we provided guest alternative transportation up the mountain which worked very well. The rest of the season however things where manageable. What must be remembered is unlike most other western European resorts, once you are up top getting around is marvellous.

Everyone knows we need another Gondola and additional slops to unlock the full potential of the resort, and no one more than Ulen who have pushed at every political and ecological level to achieve this and finally on 19 February 2013 it was approved at Government and European level, being announced across the media as such, unfortunately as all to often happens politics has got in the way, and the CEZ (electrical company) scandal that has brought the government down has meant this along with everything else in the country has been put on ice until the new elections May 12th 2013 are concluded.

The latest we have is that who ever makes up that government will have to pass the approval again, however knowing Ceko Minev (owner of Ulen, Kempinski and a hell of a lot more) i suspect he is canvassing every political persuasion in order to make it happen, i personally believe bye season 2014/15 latest 2016 a new Gondola and slops will be here.

And so to the Summer we are very excited here, i personally love the summer and believe its the real undiscovered future for the resort as a whole and with the complex back under rightful and proper management, we are set and ready to get under way and full range of idea's and opportunities for all owners, friends and guests.

On our next post which will be very soon all the information for these and so much more will be detailed along with lots of other exciting stuff thats going on.

Hope to see you soon.

Busy, Busy, Busy

2013-01-24T06:09:00.000-08:00

Dam nearly at the end of January 2013, what a great start to the New Year and 2012/2013 season it seams like only yesterday when we where celebrating bring in the New Year with our friends and owners at the Hill and Park, St John Village, at the Euphoria New Year bash, Huge thanks to those that came and Euphoria for a great night, all agree we must do this ever year and bigger and better each time.

And a Dam fine time was had by ALL

Ment to do this post much earlier but as the title of this post tells you it is wonderfully busy at the complex and this despite all the unwarranted and unjust issues going down, but as i think we have proved we at Crown along side the Owners Association and owners are a resilient bunch and do not succumb to any form of intimidation nor tolerate any actions nor behaviour meant to, or intended to undermine all the good work achieved to date on our journey to getting the complex as a whole back to where it should be and as you all know major and significant mile stones both legally and morally have been achived in partnership with UBB this year and please rest assured that we will neither deviate nor falter in our resolve to see truth and justice prevail.

New Years day is always very interesting here in Bansko and this year was no exception, the Kukeri where out to scare and drive away all the bad and evil spirits, from the year just past (they did a special pass via the complex for us :) as the chief Kukeri is a good, good friend) the out fits are made from the hair and skin of a special breed of Goat, and are of a considerable value and highly prized.

Scary or what

smile

better looking than me or not :)

to the beat of a gypsy drum

Here is a short movie of the action that i put together not James Cameron yet:

Snowing again today and heavily, up top conditions are great and feed back is that slop preparation and conditions have been good and numbers skiing just on the limit of comfitable bring more and more pressure to bare on the relevant parties to approve and kick of the next Gondola. below are some links to recent articals regarding the subject, my personal view is that its coming, airport would not kick off if these investors had not had the nod and to many players in town spending good money, we have the word on a number of new options for the gondola and very interesting, so watch this space

Mayor of Bulgaria's Bansko Seeks Expansion of Ski Zone

http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=146192

Bansko Residents Rally again for Resort Expansion

http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=146846

Bulgarian PM Endorses 2nd Gondola Lift in Bansko

http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=146908

So to sign out and say to all owners on there way, see you soon, and those not planned to as yet get out here soon and enjoy.

Welcoming in the New Year Crown Style

2012-12-31T08:45:00.000-08:00

Since 2005 we have been here in Bansko for the Winter Season but Never has it been so, so busy crazy busy and the City is in an amazing buzz, huge numbers and people of all nationality i have meet and talked with South Africans, Australians, Chinese Japanese really no joke along with the usual Macedonians, Serbians, Romanians, Russians here in there droves plus half of Greece or thats how it feels, the Rich and Fashionable of Bulgaria, from Sofia, Varna and Plovdiv in massive numbers more S class Merc's Range Rovers and Cayenne's than ever and off course the good old English contingent.

All in all a great start to the 2012/2013 season, obviously there are the usual queues at the Gondola but worst i am sorry to say much worst. Our Ski hire partners actually run out of equipment and their quota of lift passes for the week.

But never fear Crown is here, and for our IPM Clients we arranged a mini bus and other transportation up the mountain and passes via an inside friend ;) and great skiing has been had by all, up top weather is stunning and ski conditions fab.

However the numbers and Gondola queues have as if by design, added huge weigh to the credibility off the recent local protests that closed roads to the town and local business petitions (of which we where part off) to the government for permit's to start the next Gondola so pressure mounts all round and we believe these are the political shows that will see soon the start of construction.

More new and exciting business are opening including a great specialist wine's spirits and Cigar shop with just a stunning and exclusive selection of beverages and for all Crown IPM clients there is a 10% discount.

Really a great selection

Wines, Whiskey, Cognac's Port Champaign and cigars if there your thing

A new Italian designer shop owned by a Milan design house, (Yana went mad, forth coming birthday present already chosen) a fab French owned and run, French Sandwich Shop Le Retro (http://www.le-retro-bansko.com) serving sandwiches and quiche's to die for really, a pre order and delivery can be arranged and delivered to the Park reception either direct or via reception.

Thus far the new restaurants and hang-outs have proved to be great and constant in their food quality and service and our favourite remains Euphoria, great atmosphere good food lovely service. The mehana's remain as always a lovely tourist adventure with the potential for great food but a possible down on service and sometime price so please be carful.

For New Year we have a lovely number of owners in both Hill and Park and have arranged for everyone a great Crown New Year bash at Euphoria with transport to and from the complex, should be a great night watch out for the pictures on the blog.

So all that remains it to do is thank everyone for working with us during this last year and we hope the coming New Year brings everyone Good fortune, health, Love and wealth and that together we can continue to take the complex forward along its road to a more solid and sustainable future where everyone can enjoy and benefit form the potential it has to offer.

HAPPY NEW YEAR ONE & ALL

Winter & the 2012/13 Ski Season Well & Truly Here

2012-12-11T13:50:00.001-08:00

Looking Fab Bansko's Town Centre, Winter Wonder land

Its been snowing hard for 3 days now and the slops are open, and by end of the week even the run down to the town will be fully operational a great start to the season and the Town is a buzz, as reported in our last post lots of new clubs bars and restaurants and even the existing ones have upped their game with major improvements our current fav place to be is Euphoria, food greatly improved on from last year, great friendly staff and a cool atmosphere, lets see how they hold it together through the season.

Chateau Antique open and looking great, the Friendly bar now Penguins (the name doesn't do the interior justice) not sampled the delights of either yet but will and will let you know our thoughts. But considerable time and money has been invested and serious people are at the helm of each endeavour.

Château Antique

Penguins

Also improved finally is the road leading up to our region YES its been properly made and tarmaced finally, no more 2 mile an hour through it in the Crown Smart, and yes the corner hotel (no release as to whats its to be called yet) is nearly complete and they have done a great job a million times better than that concrete eye-saw that been there for so long.

Roads done and what an improvement

Opening soon.

At the St John Complex we have been seriously busy also, at the Hill the mains water pipe has been properly repaired and path way re-enstated, still some small finishing works to do but the weather beat us, and we will pick up these in the spring, UBB came to the party and properly contributed their share of the funds necessary to complete the works.

To match the stone work we had to source from the Strandza mountains in the far south of Bulgaria near the Turkish boarder

In the Park the big project has been the roof repairs, major works there and when we set to it what a mess, but with the right people proper materials and me being on the roof far to many time for my liking , not the easiest roof to get a round on, it looks beautiful and dramatic form the ground and believe me its pretty dramatic up there also. With the weather closing in rapidly and temperatures dropping fast it was a bit of a race against time and conditions but we got all OA areas properly secure along with Block entrance lobby roofs and now they have the required integrity, i believe we did a proper belt and braces job and even worked in Vaka Flex as a finishing element to pick up the excess movement potential between the existing materials and new, its a wonderfully resilient roofing material suitable for the extreme temperature differentials the Bansko region endures.

a remade valley

Remade double pitch valley

Some of what we had to deal with

Just got the lobby roofs done and complete before the first snow came.

One of the more difficult areas of repair the construction joint between blocks

Moving forward we are testing emergency lighting to all common areas Friday, pre season common area glazing cleaning well under way, IPM winter watch in place, test running lifts for winter operation small issue with hydraulic oil temperature, on first morning operation floor levels are out of sink working with supplier for solution this will be a temperature control system in the motor rooms and adjustment controls setting, other wise very happy with the lift and when emergence call system put in place confident full operation can be had across the complex.

Working on a number of cost effective and efficient heating and hot water solutions for apartment please contact for information, as well thermal efficiency ideas for apartments. Heating solutions will consist of 20, 25 and 50% consumption saving options for hot water 40% saving potential.

Our G4 internet and TV solution is just about to get better with a smart TV conversion solution for all HDMI ready TVs, so no need up grade the TV to get all the benefits of G4 technology, watch this space.

Other Big news for the resort and region the NEW Airport starts construction summer 2013 YES you heard it right Pirin Airport the former military airport near the village of Musomishte in the municipality of Gotze Delchev start summer 2013 see web site http://www.hwreit.eu/en/contents/pirin-airport for more detail.

Also big changes around the access to the gondola which will now be, for foot and vehicle access via the Glazne river bridge entrance at BRT, and sets the precedence for what we are told will be the new and exciting location for the next Gondola which if true will set the stage for the next evolution of the resort, including additional ski runs etc, when we here your hear it next.

The new mayor and his team have started to put in place proper resort management structures and this has included the introduction of proper blue zone parking areas in place through out most of the town and active from 7am to 10pm at 1.2 leva an hour not bad value and perhaps finally we can move around the town properly with out having to worry for crazy parking antics of our European friends, we as always remain excited for the future and believe the resort is starting to make it way towards being a real and serious contended amongst other more well know and well established resorts, and we believe and are working towards taking the St John Village complex along that road also.

100 Years

2012-10-19T11:51:00.002-07:00

Its my first blog for some time i know, and its not because i haven't wanted to, nor that i have nothing to say (i always have something to say, ask the wife) but since the success of the AGM in August and all that was achieved during at that time and since, and believe me despite what you may or may not have been told or may or may not believe, your Owners Association all the owners involved and the committee have by Bulgarian and actually any standard, particularly given all the many complications that exist at the Village, have done remarkably well, and for this period we have chosen, “as felt it was right” to step back a little and let the wheels turn and the OA establish its mark and rightful position at the Hill and Park. During this time we to have been extremely busy preparing our strategy for the coming season plus planning and prepping the essential repair works program necessary to get the complex to the next stage, that has meant designing and establishing repair solutions and selecting appropriate materials required to properly expedite the works. Which as you can imagine is not a straight forward task given the extent of the issues, the poor original material selection and the even worst application of said materials this combined with the limited funds available has meant that following on from our LCR (location condition report) a carefully planned remedial works strategy has had to be put together between ours selves and the OA, that best improves the integrity of the buildings and serves the needs of the owners, and this month we are happy to advise that we have commenced the process of rolling out this program of remedial works activities.

To be honest i am not the best self publicist, and as a rule preferring to DO rather than TALK.

Whilst i love the written word, as a dxlexic it frustratingly, does not come easy for me and for me to get things from my mind to the page, it has to in the first instance just feel right. This is why i choose now and why i choose to title this blog 100 years, as this week past saw Bulgaria and Bansko celebrate 100 years since the end of 500 years of Ottoman / Turkish rule / slavery, yes 500 years you read right and when you also remember that during this last 100 years 44 of them, from 1946 to 1989/90 where spent in communism that means as a nation, out of the last 600 years only 56 years where enjoyed as a free people! and only 23 years have passed since the end of communist oppression. Think about that!

My Dad always told me (and he traveled a lot, he was a merchant sea man) when in Rome do as the Romans do, i also have been lucky enough to have traveled well and worked abroad extensively and have taken my Dad words and advise further and believe that to enjoy a country, any country best and to get the most from it you must understand and respect its people, not just turn up and expect a mini England, get immersed enjoy it for what it is, this doesn't mean forgive the waitress / waiter for being either rude or generally miserable nor trying to rip you off, or the developer that took you money and run, no amount of oppressive and dreadful history forgives this, but more understand and more knowledge about the place in which you have invested and like to visit cannot be a bad thing, to this end i have put a number of links below which you might like to read, like us English its a nations History that shapes us and makes us who we are.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulgaria

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulgarian–Ottoman_Wars

http://www.mongabay.com/reference/country_studies/bulgaria/HISTORY.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_period_in_the_history_of_Bulgaria

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People's_Republic_of_Bulgaria

http://www.victimsofcommunism.bg

To celebrate this 100 year the Bansko municipality has erected a very appropriate and quiet elegant memorial, with a lovely sculpture that depicts a contemporary image of the mountain flower Edelweiss

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leontopodium_alpinum a wonderfully interesting flower that is quite prevalent and very well protected here. Chantal with her school attended the unavailing which was presided over buy the Bulgaria parliamentary speaker.

Complex General repair works activities moving forward:

With the massive swing in temperatures we have experienced in Bansko last season 2011/12 withtemperature down to -35deg and this year summer up to + 40deg then again as the autumn has drown in during the day temperature reaching over 20deg but at night in the minus the Buildings and there materials as the Park and Hill and right across the region have suffered massive movement in expansion and contraction stretching to the limit even the best and most well built developments to the limit with most suffering fabric break down in some shape or form. Here at the Village most of the problems have occurred with the tiling systems both internal and externally floor and cladding the roof also have suffered significantly. The problem is that its never practical nor cost effective to replace everything and start again thus we have been working with our partners and friends at Baumit (baumit.com) the number one german building material supply specialist to select the absolute best materials necessary to fix each issue we have before us, this means one solution for in side, one for external, one for floor one for wall one for roof etc, etc

Our first target was the Hill Main Steps which have become a right mess and more than a little dangerous, this presented a great test for the products we have selected and if you see the images below we feel looking good, we even re-done the timber hand rails and re secured them.

A vast improvement and a good place to start in ernest the
remedial works program.

We are now moving internally and from next week will be working through each block intern at both the Hill and Park, repairing all common area floor tiling. In our survey of the works we found movement in some instance in excess of 15mm huge in construction terms.

Reinstatement of the mains water pathway area.

Further to our repair of the Hill 4 inch mains water pipe outside reception we are this week coming starting the ground works and reinstatement project, again carful and considered planning was required as in the process of uncovering the damaged pipe serious flaws in the construction of the reception steps where uncovered and under pinning of these was considered necessary as part of the ground works, proper support of the main pipe will be engineered in and allowance for suitable expansion made, further the area of reinstatement we be future proofed as correct footing will be put in place such that this section will suffer no further subsidence. Also to be built in to the project will be correct drain away provision and detailing in order to minims potential for further water ingress to basement areas.

Progress and update images during the project will be posted.

The next major project to get under way and will also start during next week will be the roof repair at the Park serious project here also, with the majority of the issues arising out off the typically poor initial, material selections and bad installation practices and detailing.

By working in new BS type construction detailing and installation methods we will by the end of the project regain the necessary roof integrity currently missing from the complex.

Just love this time of year the sky and mountains provide assume sights.

One beautiful early morning sky from the balcony

Along side all this and as most of our IPM clients are already aware our pre winter season checks and reports are going out making sure that not only is the complex in as good a shape as we can get it but also the apartments with in it.

Very pleased with the Hill sign, i surprise my self some times

You know when you have got something right when people use it, particular when its the locals

Up dated Park sign

Our new and Exciting IPM packages will also be released very soon with full details of our Internet and Smart TV packages bring G4 streaming internet and TV direct and wireless to your apartments. Plus many, many more great initiatives exclusive to Crown IPM clients.

Crown Interiors has also been very busy and over the next few week we will be reviling some of the wonderful project we have completed and are currently working on.

Bansko what's going on:

Having just finished what was the best summer season ever in Bansko certainly in my 7 years here (summer here being my favorite period, so much to do and see) Ulen excelled with their summer program and extra facilities plus making the gondola fully open all summer. And yes THE BUZZ is back in Bansko and the town is a wash with new investment and new investors, Both home grown and international with at least 10 project that that we know of that have sat dead for years springing into action and not insignificant project either at the start of the hill coming to the St John Village, a Bulgarian invest from Varna is completing this project and a good job there doing of it, our friend in the Russian Villas opposite us have re-kick of there development planning to complete their spa and conferencing facility for march next year, and many many more in and around the town.

A vast improvement, i feel we will be one of the first regions to complete construction in Bansko

New restaurants that are promising an additional diversity to the Bansko night life will be ready for this season (more details soon) a new improved super market at the beginning of the town, that is selling a vastly improved range of products. the golf course is just a different place now and alive the new hotel with is great restaurants and wonderful boutique spa, which my girls all 3 of them said was like chilling in Paul Getty’s personal spa, bless them.

A very interesting new build restaurant, the interior also interesting done in the style of an old church

The narrow gauge railway has a new investor a swiss/uk group looking to make a proper tourist attraction out of this amazing and unique line, the second highest in Europe and one of very few operating narrow gauge lines in the world.

New improved Super market at the beginning of the Town and a good improvement at that

Additional shop units added

Why you ask and why now, well its like this Bansko is a beautiful place Mother Nature saw to that and that has, and will never change, but the word on the street and thats local street, is those with the money always know when to spend or can pay for the information necessary to know when to spend thats the same world wide and right now the word is something big will be announced very soon if not per season certainly in the new year and that something is very important to the future success of Bansko and the region, you must remember that some very important and very powerful people have invested heavily here and see this resort as there legacy, and what we do know is that a collective of these very powerful and influential people have placed a petition on the desk of the prime-minister pushing heavily to sign off on the new Gondola, now its never over until the fat lady sing as they say, but with one major investor sinking in the region of 600 million into the town over the last 18 months you have to think it might just happen!

Who wouldn't like it here

Thats it for now, thank you for choosing Crown and thank you for letting us serve you.

What's possible at the St John Village

2012-07-22T11:34:00.001-07:00

You all know and hopefully love already Crown FM, and you might know a little about our Interiors division, over the next week or so your get a look at exactly what we have been up to at the Village with our Interiors and furnishing, you will have seen a couple of apartments (via face book) but your going to get a load more of where we see the future, and yes its the same vision as you all brought into when you first invested at the Village be it Hill or Park.

LUXURY & Life Style

Accept now you have a company that can deliver for you Crown.

Before:

Great potential uterly undelivered on

AFTER: Until now

Not a 100% finished yet, but we are loving it, however a 100% of what you see, is Designed, Manufactured and Installed in House @ Crown Interiors, YOU WANT ONE DONT YOU

Millionaire row, the first proper luxury resort and the most sort after place to be in Bansko / Bulgaria thats our Vision.

Good for us great for you

Watch this space

No water at the Hill

2012-07-22T10:14:00.000-07:00

As advised currently there is no water service at the Hill we have been pushing the water board for action, and we are advised Monday 23rd July they will be on site to dig up an area out side the complex biuldings around S block, to check / search for what is believed to be a broken pipe.

Obviously we are pushing as hard as possible but relationships with the water board have been seriously undermined buy the unnecessary shenanigans and unwarranted behaviour of ill meaning and selfishly driven parties that it appears would see the complex in ashes in the pursuit their own ends.

Crown however in-spite of no water service have had there cleaning team working from water bottels all weekend to ensure that as soon as normal service is resumeed we are a head of the game in getting things properly prepared and ready for owners and guests during August.

This is called Commitment not to be confused with being committed.

Everything and anything in order to get the job done

Balcony Refurbishments

2012-07-22T09:55:00.000-07:00

For some time now there has been a lot of pressure to haphazardly repair weather beaten and ill maintained balconies at the Hill and Park, however unlike a number off other parties Crown have held back on a rush repair that might impair the long term good of the complex, potentially ending up with a patchwork quilt effect on the out side of the complex, no good for any one. In steed we have been working with branded suppliers and specialist to find a proper and considered solution thats right for the repairs we need now, making balcony safe and secure, protects them for the future summer and winter and when the time comes enables a complex wide coordinated finish worthy of both the original intent and the complex as a whole.

To this end we have started a program of works mostly with owners who at best have been hood winked by others and parted from good money to either receive nothing or a part of and an incorrect job.

We at Crown dont do this, we despite the balls up left by other have rescued a number of balcony and have both properly repaired them and set them in place for the future, this means removing from site proper factory repairing filling and replacement of area's not suitable for restoration, correctly primering and impregnated with both weather protection and UV protection, then securely re-enstating.

THE RIGHT JOB

See the difference

A proper job, weather board looking great
and will not bow in the future

You can't see the join between old and new

As it should be

Correct filler selection is essential in order the
wood doesn't reject it, we have imported a
Finnish product, custom made for extreme enviroments

For all Crown FM / IPM customers/clients we have derived a liner meter rate for this services and its related works, individual prices per apartment available for everyone upon request.

WHAT NOT TO ACCEPT
How another party left a balcony refurbishment job.

Cowboy Job at best (being polite) and a right mess, courtesy of you know who! that now needs to be sorted out properly.

St John Village / Locus Amoenus

2012-06-09T12:31:00.001-07:00

From the latin for a pleasant place it is a term which generally refers to an idealized place of safety or comfort. A locus Amoenus is usually a beautiful, shady lawn or open woodland, sometimes with connotations of Eden. A locus Amoenus will have three basic elements: trees, grass, and water. Often, the garden will be in a remote place and function as a landscape of the mind. It can also be used to highlight the differences between urban and rural life or be a place of refuge from the processes of time and mortality.

When i first started to visualised the garden project for the St John Village and when i considered my vision for where ultimately i wanted to take it and what i wished it to become, i drew on what i felt about the area and location in which the complex sat, asking my self what was it that drew me here and why does it have such a emotional hold on me; as with all things untangible and difficult to define, the latin language manages to define both perfectly and poetically, and thus we endeavour to create our own Locus Amoenus and a project was born.

Good garden centres are few and far between here still, and i wanted
something different i wanted to plant indigenously and with a twist an
Asian twist, given that this is the cross roads between east to west, friend
told us of this place right of the beaten track and boy was it of the beaten
track but what a place run by a mad man but what plants, here's Chantal
posing as a gardener. I love Acer's and they had a species i never see
before a flamingo acer and i got 2

It is said that to be happy for an hour get drunk, to be happy for a year get married, to be happy for a life time make a garden, boy am i one happy bunny i have a 19000sqm garden to make.

As you all know already Yana, Chantal and me now live on the complex and our apartment project will be subject to a separate blog, obviously part of our obligations as the FM prover is to tend to and care for the gardens however we wanted to develop it, and it will probably come as no surprise to those that know me that gardens and plants are one of my many passions, and to kick things of and start our vision for the future Yana and I decided to invest our own money and time in to kicking of this vision, why i here you ask when so much more needs to be dealt with, i tell you why, this place was dead in the water and looked like a collection of derelict building with no soul, no feeling no nothing, so our phylosiphy is that with some love and attention a little well conceived and planed planting and the beginnings of a proper management/maintenance process for the garden and thus the complex will come to life and so it is and now it feels alive and some where you would want to go/be, so much so that many locals and other development owners come bye and visited to have coffee and chat and say what a great job we are doing (yes i will blow our own trumpet) even the local police have reception down as a drop of and chat destination (and not just because of Yana's legs :)) even the developments around us have started to lift their game and have ask us for advise and praised us on how things have dramatically improve. The Bank Security have asked if they can work for us, workers at other complex ask if there are jobs available etc etc, St John Village is starting to be back on the map and because we are putting it there.

I love a hanging basket dont you

If we are to have any hope of attracting future investors people to let and holiday here it has to have kerb appeal and people have got to want to come here and something a simple as a great garden does this if only to start people realising that its not a white elegant any more or at least starts the ball rolling, yes probably there are great more pressing issues on paper but we are looking beyond this and using what resources and skill we have to start to make this place what it can be.

The design intent with the two parts of St John Village whilst connected are conceiver to reflect not only the feeling of the area but also the Architecture and in this they have as they do architecturally there own personality. With the Park it is essentially a blank piece of paper the Hill however is more about developing and enhancing its existing presence and personality.

Architecturally there is more drama inn the Park with its stunning roof line and so i was able to visualise a more diverse planting and integrate more unusual planting and a related scheme, here i will be as the project develops integrating a lot of my own personal items, brought over for my UK garden, which aside form my other 2 girls in England was one of the hardest thing to leave, i had had the opportunity to work with Dermot Gavin on it and it had been fettered in own of his books as well as a TV show, these have been housed at Yana's Nan's since we can to Bulgaria so its exiting for me to final have a place to put them.

The Hill has a more classic architectural stance and also an establish planting infastructure that like the Park (all be it not as bad) had just been totally neglected and dreadfully maintained. As with the Park (which it must be remembered has had the benefit of the end of last years summer and a 4 month head start on the Hill under our care) the Hill need a well considered and strategic plan to get it back under control and starting to look like the Locus Amoenus it could be. The dreadful weather we have had these past months the wettest in living memory (great for the new planting at the park) no good for starting a planed mantenance regime for the Hill, however at every given break in the weather we did our thing and it started to pay off this week.

Not looking bad ah

Still loads to do but getting there

The Hill brick patios have been a major issue as has been the path ways, weeds have been allowed to establish them selves, and the only way to deal with these is weed killer and dam good weed killer, obviously the rain has severely delayed the application of this and we need the weeds body in place to have max effect on the dam things, so we had our window a week or so ago what a difference.

Many more areas to cover but proper and planned management of the process always delivers results and results that last.

For additional planting at the Hill we are taking a very organic approach and seeding with indigenous mountain foliage and wild plants in those areas not designate for leisure i.e: severely banked areas close to the Pirin Park border, such that we blur the border between urban and wild life.

We all know the Park signage and i am really pleased with the plant we have put in place to complement it, which as it establish its self with further serve to blend the organic nature of the sign in with the nature, in from the sign we have transplanted from the forest wild foliage and herbs these can all be harvested to make Chi (Bulgarian for tea, very cool, and available at reception on request.

The Hill signage has been a little more challenging for me, as i wanted a similar feel as the Park but the architecture of the Hill is less cohesive with such and i needed something a little more grounded, and during my walks in the mountains with Ronin (my Husky) i found it the perfect rock.

I know its difficult from the picture but the natural line of the rock almost mirrors that of the building roof line, we will add some timber uprights as with the park and the signage will link with the build, will look fab.

It must be said that in the moment at the Hill payments are very, very slow at best and this makes it difficult for us to do our job and also for us to invest as we would like to and as you can see we have, please all owners that have not payed PLEASE PAY its in everyones interest and to everyones benefit, and those that know owners that have not joined the OA and are not part of the FM initiative, get on their case, as not only are they harming their future there are harming yours and the complexes future.

Friends with machines help; see in the images, a brief visual snap shot of the Hill stone's journey from the mountains to its proper place in life.

There is as you can imagine a long long way to go and as things unfold and the project develops at the Village (Hill and Park) we will post for everyone to see. But finally we really will have our own Locus Amoenus

Acer's along side indigenous Plum trees and some strategic solid architectural elements

In the Park we are able to give each entrance its own character and as and when cash flow allows hang baskets will be place across the complex Hill and Park, just adds that little something and a welcome splash of colour.

my Flamingo Acer's happily taking hold after much care and attention, and actually the biggest problem we have had is the unusual amoute of wind which Acer dont like as burns their leaves, however we are through the first 4 weeks and all plants are liking there new home and all showing growth and new shots, i do talk to them a lot, as like the dog they listen, alway agree with me and never answer back.

2012-05-07T12:34:00.000-07:00

Blog Latest Update:

Spring is well and truly here and are we happy; got to say there is not a better place to be than St John and Bansko when it’s like this, the Swallows are nesting and all about in the air.

We know their nests can be a nuisance but they are a protected

species and you really must not touch their nests, on request Crown will happily clean any mess left around and associated with their nests, free of charge for all our FM/IPM clients, for non IPM clients, prices are available on request.

So here’s what we have been up to these days/weeks.

Fire Certification:

A lot of work as you can imagine, 17 blocks, 85 floors, each block needing its own registration, boy they love their paper work here, the Fire office has been great though, and we can now confirm that as of 1st May 2012 the St John Hill and Park complex’s are now fully fire certificated.

Park Extinguishers & Hose reel

All extinguishers are in place, missing hose reels at the Park installed and

maintenance / ownership stickers have been put in place.

The Complex is now covered by a full fire certificate that is right up to date and in line with all new legislation enforced as of 1st May 2012 , as part of this, all operating apart-hotels, hotels and any buildings requiring a fire certification will be required to enter into a maintenance contract with the legalised and certificated fire office in order to ensure both ongoing compliance and proper condition of all extinguishers. Crown FM has entered into this agreement with them and has absorbed the additional cost within our present agreement with the OA, to be included at our next review in September.

Hill Extinguishers

Official FO labelling + Sj John OA

Under this maintenance agreement his team will attend site every month and report to ourselves insuring that at all times the complex and the health and safety of owners and users is a priority.

Additionally we have instructed the Fire officer during this month to train our staff in emergency evacuation procedures and will be placing emergency evacuation notices / maps at every floor through out the complex. Update training and regulation compliance testing is to be performed every 6 months.

Apartment Fire Safety

Following on from the complex compliance we are now focusing on the apartments and how to upgrade the cover to best match an expected European standard, not only is this the correct way forward in respect of the owners health and safety but also if we are to be serious about lettings we must start to set our selves above the rest and start to move the complex forward to where we would wish it to be. In this respect we are producing, for all our FM/IPM clients, a life safety and emergency escape procedure with the assistance of the fire office for certification, and to ensure all legalized lettings procedures are adhered to and met. This we are doing free for all Crown FM/IPM clients. FM only clients using alternative IPM

providers can contact us on info@crown-fm.com for related details and costs to have their apartment compliant.

We have also sourced a Bulgarian supplier for kitchen fire blankets, apartment fire extinguishers and battery operated smoke alarms.

Cost and full details on how to purchase to follow shortly:

Condo Act progress;

As expected the heavy work here has been Initially the gathering of the documentation necessary to take us through and Yana and the team have been hard at it, as always the municipality records and manner of holding those records is, lets say different. However we have now got all Park documents together and complete and at the Hill we are promised all architectural drawings by mid-next week. Thank you to all owners for the prompt response in getting your completed Notary details to us.

Apartment labeling;

All FM and IPM clients particularly in the Park where apartment numbering has been missing have all now their own unique Crown apartment identification.

Block floor labeling;

Following on from above we are planning to label all floor levels across the complexes, in the next week or so.

External entry system labeling;

We are also going to properly label and assign the entry systems to each Park and Hill block.

Garden;

The weather has turned wonderful and I mean wonderful, long sunny days, clear blue sky’s, fresh mountain air. Now is the time to sort out the gardens, and the gardening team are hard at work, so add the smell of freshly cut grass to the above and your in heaven.

We have finalised the project for the garden areas out side the Park all 2500sqm of it and it has turned out to be a bit more of a task than we first anticipated (no change there then), when we tested the soil it seems our friends Bulkanstroy thought it proper to dump all the construction waste material and all unused construction sand, thus we are having to completely turn over the grounds remove all weeds and bring in and mix good quality earth throughout order the hardy Canadian grass we have purchased will take properly and last.

We are then of to our garden supplier this weekend to finally select the planting, sulected to fit in with our landscape plan and will complete the planting before the real hot weather sets in.

Internet / TV;

We now have the complete fibre proposal in and having gone through both the technical and logistical aspects of it, it looks great and will for sure future proof the complex, but right now we have far greater priorities, this is where Crown Connect comes in, we have been testing and running a number of 4G Ethernet solutions (its what our reception area Wi-Fi hot spot operates on, and very well) and all thus far has been great, so for owners and guests we have invested in a number of these portable plug and play solutions that will offer super Internet coverage that allows TV channel access and unlimited downloads for movies and just about anything else you use the internet for. There will be two levels of service available for rent and depending on what band width and access you require is which model you choose.

Connect 1. Use Internet unlimited and also receive:

6 GB email

IPTV with over 50 TV and radio programs

Speed up to 10Mbps

10 euro a week hire / 100 euro deposit

Connect 2. Use Internet unlimited and also receive:

6 GB email

IPTV with over 50 TV and radio programs

Speed unlimited

15 euro a week hire / 100 euro deposit

Owners or visitors wanting a device please need to book one month inadvance of their stay to secure a unit, as a limited amount of units are available right now, however if demand increases we will invest further to meet client demand.

"Smart" for hire:

The Smart Passion car is here with all logos, huge fun to drive and perfect for around town, so for those quick trips to the supermarket or any where else you need the freedom to get to, she will be available to rent at 15 euro an hour and 25 km radius travel limit. Booking is on a first come first serve basis and is available in person at reception or via the email at the reception email address.

Hill & Park Heating / Hot water solutions,

With the outrageous electrical utility costs here in Bansko, combined with the integrity and operational issues related to both the heating and hot water systems at the Park and Hill, we have been on a mission to review each complexes problems in particular and see if we cannot source an engineered solution best suited to both, that resolves Hill problems such as water leaks, pipework prone to freezing, and combined Park and Hill problems, like poor heat distribution, Energy consumption and space management, And we think we have the solutions.

We have already covered at some length in past blogs, Hill issues and whilst inherently the electric boiler system is in principle an appropriate approach to the electrical heating of an apartment, water having a greater specific heat capacity than air 4.2 kj/kg as apposed to air at 1.212 kj/kg, and thus a more efficient medium for the transfer of electrical energy to heat. Its installation and application is wholly flawed. That said, the switch to a simple point of use convective electrical element heaters is also unsatisfactory due to the potential inadequacies of the electrical distribution system and the fact that these units by their nature will cost more to run, thus be warned a simple change could be a case of out of the fire and in to the frying pan.

With the Park the issues are more simple, and are really focused on energy consumption. With basic water boilers generally heating water you don't need or use plus are slow to react and provide hot water when you do need it. Heating in the Park is in the main via very basic electric element panel heaters, and whilst

there 100% efficient in converting electrical energy into heat energy the way they transfer this energy to the space and the persons occupying it is hugely inefficient, in simple terms if you have 10 KW worth of electric radiator panels in your apartment you burn 10 KWh of electrical energy 100% of the time they are on, resulting in big bills.

Energy consumption and energy usage awareness is an issue irrespective of cost, but cost here and now is our primary concern, this is particular relevant when we are considering lettings of apartments as the single biggest issue that eats in to any potential income you may earn, are utility costs and largest by far of these is the electrical cost.

This initiative of ours is particular relevant as in our experience when people are renting an apartment for their holiday they very rarely care to much for energy consumption or managing the operation of the water boiler, and in most cases particularly through the winter leave everything on, in order to keep

every thing roasting hot for them.

So to my mission, during my engineering days one of my specialties was energy management, and via these old contacts I have been discussing and researching in order to find not only an energy conscious solution but low maintenance, easy control and reasonable capital cost solution.

The Details and full costing proposals we will cover in depth in a dedicated blog to be published with in the next month or so, as we are currently testing said solutions in order to make sure the operational characteristics of the equipment. we are proposing, match with and operate within the capabilities/restraints of the existing apartment electrical installations.

Hill fire place chimneys;

Unlike the Park a large amount of Fire places installed in the Hill by the developer are not able to function correctly, from the units we have inspected we have assessed/identified the following common faults (the actual fire place units themselves are of a very good quality and by a very reputable company) mostly as a result of poor and incorrect installations, in the main the primary issue is stack sizes being incorrect resulting in a lack of buoyancy in the stacks, in others flue connections to stacks are not sealed properly leading to leakage. The good news is that with the help of the Fire office we have devised solutions to all the issues, please if you have a fire place you cannot use or are concerned about using, contact ourselves via info@crown-fm.com and we will advise the right solution for you and related costs.

IPM;

Huge thanks’ to all those FM clients that have chosen Crown to be their IPM provider, also we are grateful for your confidence and valued additional custom, as a result we are a long way forward towards being the sole IPM provider at the Village, a mission we make no secret of, as we and others including most insurance providers believe this is the best way forward for the long term stability and operational continuity of the complex as a whole.We will be holding over our 50% discount offer to all FM clients and feel that at 130 euro (or £2 a week) this is a great value service, particular as over the next few weeks new improved services will be coming on line,Including but not limited toWeekly IPM reporting.

IPM news letter: (in conjunction with FM news letter for FM/IPM clients)

Client comment forms: for all clients to contribute/comment, constructively towards what we are doing and what they would like to see us doing and or improving on.

Energy watch service: management of occupiers use of utilities during lettings periods.

Swallow’s nest management: (where applicable)

Reception Skype Address:

We have now set up a dedicated St John Village Skype address: stjohnvillage where you can connect direct during normal working hours with Veronica, to ask any questions, impart any information or Skype chat all for free, please in-order for Veronica to manage this service properly if you are requesting a Skype chat with her, my self or any one of the team please book in advance.

FM news letter:

We are currently working on a suitable format for a monthly complex news letter and during this process would gladly welcome any suggestions from owners as to content / format / visuals.

Crown Interiors projects:

Another huge and we mean huge thanks to all those clients that have allowed us into their apartments to create their interior designs and deliver on the subsequent furnishings, its been a huge privilege and a joy to work with you all.

We will not pretend the winter did not give us more than its fair share of problems and that we have been on a serious catch up until now but the projects are looking great, please see images from a great Park, 2 bed penthouse maisonette, where we had some serious space planning issues to address, but in dealing with these we managed to converted the apartment to a comfortable sleeps 8 unit.

See all the images from this project and detail @ www.facebook.com/crown.interiors.and.furnishing

More from our completed projects images coming soon when i can get round to doing my David Bailey thing. In the mean time please check out our Facebook page:

Crown Sofa's / Sofa Beds

I was in Sofia the other week for a site inspection, we have a super project there at the moment, and whist i was there I took the opportunity to visit the new Ikea super store on the ring road, now believe it or not I am a Ikea fan, not of everything they do but some of the stuff they do is design wise great, and generally what they do they do great, and really they are not our competition, we do interiors and design of a much more personal, bespoke nature and individual style.

But anyhow I was quiet excited about seeing what they were up to these days and where the Bulgaria version measured up to, as the last time I walked round an Ikea was some 10 years ago, “wow really is it that long ago” well like so many (comments in media etc) I was, i must say more than a little disappointed, design wise and style wise they really had not moved on at all, (forgive me for being a purist, cant help it) it was like a time warp and I could have been standing in the Wembley store 10 years ago!! now it might be my age, and may be I just don’t get it any more, but surely a business as large as this cannot be fed by students furnishing their bed sits and first time buyers love shacks alone!!

The other thing that really struck me was the prices, not the expected bargain basement costs at all, in fact quite the reverse in fact and I could not help but compare ourselves despite being at the opposite end of the design and quality scale. most notably the sofas, see below a pretty shabby looking 2+ sofa (not a sofa bed) at 2149 leva (1102 euro) and compare to our Manhattan Sofa, elegantly dignified instance and a sofa bed to-boot, complete with Ottoman,Crown price 950 euro delivered and installed to your apartment, with a wide range of colours and finishes available plus custom sizing available on request.

A current Sofia project just about to complete with our Manhattan Sofa and ottoman

The Manhattan Sofa bed an elegant style designed by my self completely made in house

the rather tied looking ill finished over priced ikea unit, 2140 leva & not even a sofa bed!

Sofa delivery Crown style, getting full sized custom sofas at great value prices straight into your apartment, no problems with corridors, stair cases or doors.

There she goes straight through the window no problem, find another furniture company willing / able to do this and at no extra cost.

So if you need to upgrade from that communist style, uncomfortable furniture pack sofa bed looking sorry for its self in your apartment (sorry cant find anything nice to say for them) please contact us at info@crown-interiors.com and we will happily advise on the range of colours and finishes available.

Last but by no means least,

The Mace family and more, move into the St John Village Complex :) Yes putting our money and commitment where our mouth is and moving in to the Park, lets be honest we spend so much time up here and our little Chantal love-her spent so much time alone, when the opportunity arose we grasped it with both hands, and we are loving it, best move we have ever made so Hi to all our new neighbours.

We have also negotiated a long term let deal with an owner in the Hill for two of our key staff from Plovdiv to live here also and believe it or not our bank manager aswell, so really we are breathing life in to the complex.

We will also be actively looking for other long term let possibilities

So now we can really say we are looking after your investments as if it was our own home,

BECAUSE IT IS.

Onwards, Upwards and to the Future

2012-04-09T11:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter to all from everyone at Crown

For Bulgaria and all other Christian Orthodox countries this weekend was pass over and next weekend is Easter, Easter its their most important celebration on the religious calendar and one of my favourite time of year, a time when all families come together.

Hirscher wins Bansko slalom

This season has been a testing one at the St John Village to say the least, but the resort as a whole has experienced near perfect ski conditions- possibly the best yet, since Bansko went international. Visitor numbers to the resort as a whole, based on the feedback from other hotels and businesses and what we have seen for our selves, has been beyond expectations and with the season officially open until the 17th April, Bansko is well and truly on the winter resort map.

The men’s and lady’s downhill events were hugely successful and congratulations to Ulen, even given the loss of the lady’s Saturday events due to the extreme windy conditions. Millions watched on TV and I think we can safely say Bansko is on the international events calendar.

In addition, the development of new bars and restaurants in town means Bansko is likely to be back on the investment map and the future as we at Crown see it is bright, yes bright - we believe in St John Village and in turn Bansko and for us St John Village is an integral part of Bansko’s future.

This season has been a mighty learning curve, and with the experiences we have been through at St John Village this year we are already actively preparing for next year and assessing what we need to put in place in order to minimize any repeat of the problems of this year.

To this end we have outlined the following bullet point headings with brief description of proposed actions.

Primary issues:

Water supplies: moving forward -working with water board and monitoring their progress and activities, trying to get assurances on system redundancies. Looking at BPP existing dedicated reservoir status and investigating if it is plausible to be brought on line to service the complex as a whole.

Hill / Park Pipework and system leaks: As we all know there are major issues here, but after our endeavors we are pretty confident with where the majority of these issues lie, where they coming from and how to resolve them. Mainly the cause lies in poor plumbing both in the original works and in works carried out at the Hill since the development went operational; therefore we feel that across the Hill and Park a general PPM strategy should be considered and implemented.

Pressure management valves- Park: At the Park one of the major problems has been the pressure regulating devices in the basements of each block, we have already replaced block A and Block C devices, and believe B, D and F should be considered for replacement as good PPM practice, we have had recently a situation in block C the Park when pressures went up to 8 bar and blow of plumbing fittings. And exposed serious flaws in the integrity of the pipework installation, also leading to a major leek with in a cleaners cupboard block C.

Insulation: The extreme weather not only exposed weaknesses in the plumbing installation it also showed the woeful lack of integrity in the insulation, particularly on those service ducts set on the internal perimeter of the buildings, too many pipes are over exposed and liable to freezing even during normal winter conditions. It would be too difficult to hard lag all lacking areas in the pipe systems, we feel that a program of soft filling the riser area with loose insulation, whilst pocketing the meters would offer the best and most effective protection and should be considered.

Drainage: In Block B Park we had a significant drainage blockage and as with most issues at the complex the problems are as a result of poor and or incomplete works, in this instance it was builders rubbish left in the system that allowed sewage to gather and finally block. This issue also highlighted that a full CCTV survey of the system is required in order to best identify any future problems and to prevent further similar issues.

Hill LCR: With the weather now turned and spring firmly in the air we shall commence our LCR document for the Hill complex as a whole, and plan to issue during May 2012

Roof: There are roof integrity issues right across the complex but they are particularly prevalent at the Park, however with the roof trace heating system in operation at the Park this season the impact was managed and additional ingress and apartment deterioration limited, however unprotected areas like block lobby entrance roofs did suffer water ingress and will need to be reviewed and repaired.

Cladding Timber/stone: Timber and stone cladding remain an issue for the whole complex - timber being a priority at the rear of block A the Hill and stone cladding at the Park, blocks C and B.

IPM coordination: Put bluntly a lack of cooperation and general resistance to working with our selves, most notably at the Hill, has made a difficult job even more difficult and increased the potential jeopardy for the owners and their investment. We would very much advise a move to a single service single provider situation and believe irrespective of the obvious business prejudice that others could draw from this, we genuinely feel this will guarantee the future of complex and provide the best management solution for all owners. To this end we have extended our 50% discounted offer to all payed up FM clients for another year, where at 130 euro / 110 pound per year it represents great value as well as good management sense.

Insurance: Apartment and Buildings - as with the IPM there is a common agenda here. A single negotiated provider would be in the best interests of the owners and complex. We have had a number of meeting in respect to claims with inter-sure these past weeks and have worked with them in the past, and believe they are the most mature and owner focused providers in Bansko right now, interestingly they have strong views on complex/building management and believe also that a single FM/IPM provider is the future and provides a more secure, structured and productive approach to property management in general.

Heating systems Hill: As most owners know there are more than a number of issues with the incumbent heating system to the Hill apartment, as set out in previously issued reports, however we have had significant success with those system where owners have entrusted us to repair and upgrade the system. We believe a coordinated program of such works across the complex would be beneficial as the system is inherently sound and just need to be attended to properly.

We are aware however that other IPM providers are offering Electrical Panel Heaters as a solution, whilst a potential solution we must say that it should not be considered with out a proper electrical integrity test to the relevant circuit being connected in to and the related circuit breaker serving the circuit is of the appropriate size and type, both the SC (starting currents) and FLC (full load current) of this system are completely different to that of the incumbent heating system, and not to perform such checks and by a qualified electrician is both irresponsible and derelict of the providers duty of due care. We all know all installation with in the complex are at best limited in scope and on the limit of what is fit for purpose ill conceived modifications not properly considered to any part of these systems could lead to dire consequences. Please if you have had such works completed request the providers electrical certificate of worthiness for the system/circuit taking the additional load and request they provide a written warranty for competence of the installation, and ask if they will also put in writing that they take full responsibility for the works. Exactly this type of irresponsible non professional approach to works and the clients property at the complex is why we have the mess we have now.

Common area floor tiling: In both the Hill and Park the extreme weather and in particular the huge shifts in temperature combined with a lack of proper expansion provision and no use of flexible cement all further compounded by water ingress as a result of leaks, has resulted in a significant area of floor tiles across the complex having popped and a need for tiles to be reaffixed correctly with expansion provision correctly worked in. this is also true of the external areas and steps around the Hill, a program remedial corrective and repair is now being planned.

24/7 operation: Even though the complex was in a semi operational status the lack of 24/7 reception operation did present a lack of continuity to our service levels provision and we consider this essential if we are to move forward to a more fully operational status and serious lettings.

Security: Considering the situation, we work reasonably well alongside the UBB security however it is a compromise and as with 24/7 cover we believe we need to move towards our own security provision.

And now for the new stuff:

Yes there are a lot of issues and problems to deal with, prioritize and resolve - however we have a great mission and program of events and ideas which when implemented will add further value and potential to the complex.

Hill signage: shortly we will be installing our complimentary Hill signage to tie in with what we have already provided at the Park. It will have a similar classic, stylish feeling, but have its own identity and look.

IT / TV / Cinema / telecommunication and internet solution: we have worked hard and gone to great lengths to prepare a design for a complete multimedia solution for the complex. We have aimed to future proof as far as possible and thus have derived a package that delivers a 150TB fibre supply that is totally IP based and gives the best IT and TV complex solution and management system, that will offer live streaming movies, unparalleled internet access and a great security system and management tool. Once we have worked our way through all the technical aspects and fully understand its integration with the current infrastructure and driven costs to a palatable position we will be releasing a detailed proposal.

Crown Connect: in the mean time as of May via our Connect brand we will have a range of USB internet providers and wireless G4 packages available for hourly, daily or weekly hire from reception for owners and clients wishing to have internet in there apartment. Prices and availability on request, booking in advance via the reception email.

Planting will included Japanese cherry my favourite
blossoming tree along side silver birch and indiginous
architectural pine like Mura

Gardening / planting: As originally pledged we will be carrying out a planting and small land scrapping project out at the front of the Park and expect to plant during May assuming weather conditions allow. We will also be looking to tap into the underground water source as a way of limiting gardening costs, as we utilize the mountain relief stream. a program of seeding and ground leveling is also proposed where required.

The scheme we are currently design will include indigenous plants and forest breeds along side carefully selected, world spring / summer / autumn blossoming plants and architectural trees.

Summer: With summer fast approaching and it being our favorite time of the year for being in Bansko, we are wish to encourage owners to get out here and enjoy everything that is on offer from mineral water swimming pools, mountain biking, horse riding etc and are presently working on a program which will include activities such as the Jazz Festival, wine tasting, wine tourism, Spa, history tours, horse riding and golf -where would arrange discounted rounds and access to Pirin golf facilities with a view of even possibly arranging a St John Village Golf tournament.

Crown Diamond Network: Mid summer and in time for the summer holiday season we will be launching the Diamond NW, this is a crown endeavor to collect some of the better Cafe’s restaurants, spa’s and other quality providers together, those business looking to raise the standards in and around Bansko, and make our FM, IPM and Interior clients a wear of them also offering discounts, priority booking and any other special offers.

Condominium Act: A key step in the future of SJV and we must be clear on what we hope to achieve and the best solution for the complex now and into the future. From the meeting I attended with Sara it appears there are more opportunities than we might have first realised and proper and full examination of these is essential.

Lettings: As with the Condominium Act a cohesive and targeted approach is needed that sets out our position in the market, Yana has collected all the necessary paper work for legalization and structure of the project, but if we really want to collectively and effectively market and sell the complexes to the full potential all aspects must be coordinated and presented as a whole. This must included IPM, security, attendance, web site, lettings values, facilities etc, etc this is a big task and must not be underestimated, however where we position the complex now sets the value and potential for the future. To properly service and all other aspects of the lettings potential at the Village we have set up Crown Resorts as the brand front for the endeavor.

Making the OA stronger / Missing owners: The Block Captains initiative is working well and helping to create a real sense of community amongst the owners, Yana is at the municipality next week to see what further information can be found and we will issue an update on current owners schedule with an update on payments made and by whom.

Crown Interiors & Furnishing: We currently have some great projects under way and have completed some stylish designs and installations which we believe are setting the standards in respect to quality and appointment worthy of the St John Village, blog updates to follow shortly.

New Interiors Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/Crown.Interiors.and.Furnishing

Dont forget we have our own sofa and sofa bed manufacturing facility so if you need to or are considering replacing that tied and uncomfortable unit take a look at what we can offer.

Crown Transfers: As always we are here to offer that more discerning and personal collection from the airport be it Sofia, Plovdiv or any of the Greek airports you might be considering, and can cater for 1 to 8 persons, prices and vehicles available on request. also during your time in Bansko vehicles are a valuable for hire with or with out a personal driver.

Hot of the press we have just invested in a great little runner round for the complex our new Crown Smart, with the complex being over a kilometer long she will make apartment cleaning, linen changes and attendance to clients needs more efficient, she will also be available to owners and clients for short shopping trips and any other local needs at an all inclusive hourly rate, prices and bookings available via the reception email.

Crown St John Properties (coming soon): With more and more people visiting the complex of the street and inquiring out properties and generally showing interest in the complex we have decided it would be in the interests of those clients that wish to try and move there apartment on for what ever reason to offer a coordinated property sales endeavor wholly focused on St John Village properties in this we will have focus, knowledge and position something other agents will not be able to offer, full details to follow soon.

As can be seen from above we are as a business wholly focused on St John Village and all its needs and are and will work tirelessly to bring the best and deliver on the best for the complex. Always looking for new ideas and way to best services all our clients needs.

Site Update 3/2012

2012-03-18T13:25:00.002-07:00

With the Hill block entrances now secured, sustainable FM management is now able to be put in place and we can really start to move forward with the OA's and our plans for St John Village as a whole, bring both the Park and Hill in line with our PPM and RM regimes.

Wow what a few weeks these last have been, a major drainage issue block B Park, not pleasant to deal with, basically as a result of more bulkanstroy short cuts and cowboy antics, builders rubbish left in the system lead to build-up and thus blockage, with no non return valves in the system wast waters backed up in to the basement. needless to say we fixed the problem and facilitated the necessary clear-up.

The dramatic warm up and subsiquent shift in temporatures has caused significant issues during this past week and truly exposed the failings in the plumbing systems and in block C we have an un-believable amoute of uterly deplorable workmanship with us uncovering dry joints in more than a number of locations , and we have had to be a little bit of a Sherlock Holmes in order to locate and fix the problems. Luckily our daily inspection regime is catching the majority of the problems early enough to limit the collateral damage potentualy resultant for the problems. We have also had the assistance of the bank in these endeavours as in response to our requests, security has stepped up their inspections and walk rounds in conjunction with our selves, following a number of significant incidents in their areas.

With the season farming down and weather improving, demands on the water system has backed of, however this has brought new problems, and ones at the other end of the spectrum we now have to much water pressure particular at the Park and we had a spike thursday this week, that took the Block C park pressure regulating valve out an issues we had had previously in block A prior to the season, pressures had reached concerning levels prior to us shutting it down, as with block A the internal mechanism had failed, and as with A this is mostly due to the long period of non use, to this end and to not risk a un-managed even we will be asking the commity to initiate a PPM initiative and change the valves to block's B & D.

This week the fire safety measures will start to be put in place across the complex and emergence exit and fire drill procedures adopted, we are aim for the installation to be complete by the end of the week and the relevant certifications in place by the end of the following week. Thus marking another significant step towards the future.

During the season one of the key issues we had was communication and the identification of owners property management provider, please we would respectfully request that if Crown are not providing your IPM services please ask your provider to place their contact details on the door frame of your apartment, as we do for our client please see image below.

Don't forget that as an FM client all owners are entailed to a 50% discount from our standard rate for the complete IPM service and at 130 Euro per year (110 pound per year), yet another great reason to choose Crown, so if you don't have a provider in the moment or are thinking of changing in the near future please consider our selves. We wont let you down and there be many more advantages down the line as the complex matures and develops.

Hot 2011 / 2012 Season Extention News

2012-03-15T08:23:00.001-07:00

Great news for everyone that has not managed to get some skiing in as yet, Hot News straight from the horses mouth, Yana and I where at a reception evening last night and a senior Ulen representative advised us that due to the great snow falls this year and amazing ski weather condition plus great visitor numbers the 2011/2012 Season will be extended to the 17th April 2012 making it the longest season in many, many years fantastic news for ski maniacs and the resort as a whole.

We are already planning for the 2012 / 2013 season and will be issuing our lessons learnt and moving forward report soon.

Thanks for all the support from the Owners at the Hill and the Park Yana, I and all our staff really apresiate and it has for sure helped get us through the season and everything thats gone down during it.

Open for Business

2012-02-26T13:17:00.000-08:00

Despite all the issues and all that Mother Nature and the complex could throw at us, we are flying the flag and open for business and Owners and there Guests are having FUN.

Proving that by working together anything can be achieved.

Owners Association Members Reception

2012-02-13T10:00:00.000-08:00

Reception

Yes the Owners Association Members Reception is here and operational and we are loving it. The design intent was to create a feeling off modern day luxury, refinement and style yet connected to the past, future and culture of Bansko/Bulgaria being organic, ergonomic and tactile, the furnishing style has come from our Urban range where we re-invent, re-use and bring to life beautifully forgot timber that have been waiting for the Crown magic to be worked. We hope we have derived a comfitable and functional environment to be enjoyed and used by all OA members.

G4, Wi Fi is now available and all your enquires and needs can be tended to by the Crown FM attentive staff. English Tea, Bulgarian herbal and fresh ground coffee can all be enjoyed on request.

All enquires at the reception should be directed via the new dedicated email address reception@stjohn-villagebansko.com and or the dedicated telephone number +359 (0) 74 959 119

In what is a contemporary space we mixed reclaimed wood with real wood walnut veneer's to achieve a welcoming but stylish feeling everyone can enjoy.

I love to bring old wood, everyone else has passed bye and giving it a new lease of life.

New glass door/partition making it easier to heat the space and providing delineation to the area.

Loving the old army skies from 1903 how cools that.

See the beautiful colours pop out of the cherga on the walls

The urban style cherga bench give a great introduction to the space.

All the art work around the room is from our own collection and from well known Bulgarian artists

I feel we got the mood right for the space mixing old with the new, and traditional butter churns make great finishing/dressing pieces.

I just love this bench but the fabric is very difficult to work with.

Our new St John Village clothing range available at the reception