Condo Media - January 2017 - 46

Volunteer Spotlight

Hail to the Chief

Incoming CAI-NE President Bob Keegan Shares His Expertise
The White House isn't the only institution that
will witness a transfer of power this month. The
New England chapter of Community Associations
Institute (CAI-NE) will also be welcoming a new president: Bob Keegan, CMCA, AMS, PCAM.
Keegan currently serves
as vice president for
DIRIGO Management
Company of Portland,
Maine. But he launched
his condominium-industry
career almost by accident.
Nineteen years ago, he was
looking for work when the
parents of a friend of his
offered him a job in their
small property management firm. He accepted-
and discovered a world he
hadn't imagined before.
"There are misperceptions
regarding the value of
the industry to property
owners," he declares. "I
want to provide a clearer
understanding of the
legitimacy of this industry
and career, as well as educate the public that it's much
more than collecting dues and making sure that the
lawn is mowed."
In that spirit, he became involved in CAI. His term
as president marks his fourth year on the board of the
New England chapter. He has previously served as
clerk, vice president, and treasurer. "Bob has been an
invaluable resource to the chapter in identifying and
addressing issues of concern to both professional managers and board members in the state of Maine," says
Claudette Carini, chapter executive director of CAINE. "Through thoughtful review and evaluation of the
various issues and consideration of all stakeholders,
he offers practical and sound recommendations to
address sometimes very difficult and controversial
decisions."
A focus of Keegan's volunteer work on behalf of CAI
has been-and continues to be-the Maine Legislative Action Committee (MELAC), where he has been
instrumental in developing and implementing the only

amendments to the Maine Condominium Act since the
early 1980s. These include giving associations the right
to assign future income to borrow money and allowing
associations to utilize electronic communication. He
has also testified before the Maine legislature on behalf
of priority lien legislation,
which has yet to be passed.
In his new role as president
of CAI-NE, Keegan hopes to
oversee the streamlining of
the organization. "My vision
is to look for places where we
can gain efficiency and scale
within the organization, while
maintaining its overall effectiveness," he says.
He also hopes to "get the
ball rolling" on the licensing
of property managers-an idea
that has wide support among
managers and attorneys in
the region. Why? "To ensure
consistency in the quality of
services offered by the profession," he explains. "There is
much to learn in terms of regulation and industry dynamics. I
want to see more experts in the field."
He adds that, because Massachusetts has the greatest number of homeowner associations and managers
in the New England chapter, the idea is to focus on
instituting licensing in that state, then roll it out to the
other states in the chapter.
In addition to his responsibilities as chapter president, Keegan will continue to serve as a member and
co-chair of the Maine State Advisory Committee. He
is also a frequent speaker and program sponsor at the
organization's forums in Maine and at training workshops throughout the region.
"Bob is a committed chapter volunteer leader and is
always seeking ways to improve chapter operations and
member benefits and services," says Carini. "Serving
now in his second three-year board term, he continues
to address those issues not only of importance in his
home state of Maine, but is always seeking to learn
more and identifying how to better serve the needs of
all New England chapter states."

BOB KEEGAN, CMCA, AMS, PCAM

CONDOMEDIA

Condo Media - January 2017

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