Figuring out who’s to blame for the failure to keep up with the maintenance of some of Ocean Pines amenities is easy: the responsible parties are — everyone.

Rather than a culture of indifference, as Director Frank Daly asserted last week, it was the culture of disagreement on boards of directors that resulted in more routine matters, such as repairs and maintenance being ignored in favor of high profile issues.

Matters as mundane as checking for leaks, mold and structural problems — and fixing the aforementioned on a routine basis — got shunted aside as previous board members fought strenuously over competing visions for the community.

Dominating these agendas were grand themes and programs, as well as arguments over how to cure operational losses in one bold move, while the lesser concerns of routine maintenance and housekeeping got scant attention.

Unfortunately, there has been a tendency to look for the big quick fix to address whatever ails the association’s operations — the yacht club and beach club fiascos come to mind — but the little things, not so much.

One thing, though, is certain: whatever didn’t happen in terms of maintenance and the well-being of the community’s properties, it’s not the staff’s fault. It could only do as it was told, and mostly that was wait while directors sorted out their own priorities.

The good news is that the current board has the ability to address the maintenance problem the way it should have been done all along — by making a punch list and slogging it out line by line regardless of what other issues might arise.