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Article
Courtesy of The Ocala Star-Banner
By
LAURA BYRNES -- THE
LEADER
Published December 15, 2005
OCALA
- Members of a newly elected Majestic Oaks homeowners association say they are
poised to restore dignity and harmony to their community, which was badly
damaged in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
The damage was caused not by the storm itself, but by the maelstrom of
controversy kicked up by the former association's decision last September to bar
residents from taking in hurricane evacuees. In the subsequent swirl of media
attention, the ban was recanted and an apology issued, but not before the
community was ridiculed by "The Drudge Report," Fox News' "Hannity
and Colmes," CNN and Time magazine.
During the Dec. 6 election, property owners narrowly voted in a new, five-member
board, which met for the first time Saturday.
Henry "Hank" Ware, new HOA secretary, said he considers the outcome of
the election a "mandate of the people" triggered by the hurricane
housing ban.
"What they did gave the entire community, not just Majestic Oaks, a black
eye," Ware said of the ousted board. "We're hoping to forget the past
and start anew."
That's board President Cliff Daley's plan as well.
"We are not going to go back there, at least I'm not," Daley said when
asked about the earlier controversy. "We went into this whole thing with
the idea that we're going to work for the people. We're not going to do things
to them; we're going to do things for them."
Only about 20 percent of eligible property owners participated in the election.
Former Treasurer Merrill Theviot and former board President Bob Watson say it
was Triple Crown Homes' 31 votes that made the difference for the challengers.
"That's not a 'mandate.' There's some change, and I have no problem with
that," said Theviot, who had served five years as treasurer.
The top vote-getters in the election were Calvin Lee, who is now the board's
vice president, and Greg Hofmann, director of business affairs. They garnered
130 and 128 votes. Ware pulled in the third-highest vote total with 109,
followed by 103 for Daley and 100 for Bill Lamb, the board's new treasurer.
Absent Triple Crown's votes, however, Lee and Hofmann would still emerge as
winners, followed by incumbents Theviot, with 96 votes, and Ron Wallace, with
86. The five-man board would have been rounded out by Ware, with 78 votes.
Without Triple Crown's votes, Daley would not have been elected. Watson, who
finished with 77 votes, would not have been elected either way.
Triple Crown President John Plunkett attributes speculation about how he voted
to "sour grapes."
"We're like any lot owner in there," he said. "We don't have any
more say than anyone else who owns property."
Plunkett said he did not cast all his votes for the new board, noting that he
voted for at least one of the losing candidates, Arno Proctor. He also said the
HOA "probably lost a really good man with Merrill (Theviot), who did a
great job" as treasurer on the former board.
"I just hope the healing can begin because it's really a great place and
they really took it on the chin," Plunkett said. "What happened after
Katrina was a sad piece of history. The biggest problem faced by Majestic Oaks
is they were led through fear."
While other communities throughout Florida and elsewhere welcomed Hurricane
Katrina's storm-weary survivors, those in the 600-home Southwest subdivision
were told by their HOA board that deed restrictions prohibited them from housing
"additional families." At the time, other deed-restricted communities,
including Oak Run, Saddle Oak and Spruce Creek Preserve, relaxed age
restrictions so residents could offer temporary housing for evacuees.
In the furor that followed, four directors resigned, and the board issued an
apology imploring the community not to judge Majestic Oaks too harshly for their
mistake.
Majestic Oaks homeowner Fred Malmsheimer, who complained at the time about the
hurricane ban to Fox's Sean Hannity, said of last week's election that a new HOA
board was "way overdue."
"Some members (of the old board) were responsible for really embarrassing
this fine community and causing all kinds of grief," Malmsheimer said.
"I certainly wish them (the new board) well. Unfortunately, some friction
will probably remain, but I just want people to know this is really a nice
community, and the great majority of people are wonderful people."
While Watson admits the former board "made a mistake this year, we
goofed," he said the new board has already made its share of mistakes.
An unsigned letter sent Dec. 11 on HOA letterhead lists a number of items passed
by the board at its organizational meeting, including meeting bimonthly and
replacing the "Majestic Oaks deed restricted" signs at the entrances
from other subdivisions with "Majestic Oaks, welcome" or "some
more neighbor-friendly message."
The letter also says: "We sincerely hope that a smooth transfer from the
former board to us can be accomplished. We are at their disposal as to . . .
unfinished business, financial material, insurance records, committee records,
etc."
Watson said it was illegal for the new board to have conducted business at its
organizational meeting other than selection of officers and setting up
committees.
"If they go ahead and do their job, what more can you expect, right?"
Watson said. "Problem is, this letter here isn't doing their job. If this
is the first step and direction they're headed, we've got problems."
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