Some homeowners in the Shores wonder why Terry Brannon started the legal battle about the green belts. He claims to be a conservationist - but the condition of his construction site raises doubts. Maybe he is more driven by power-hunger, as some owners claim?

While many of these homeowners feel that they are being prosecuted by the board president for nicely maintaining the neighboring green belts without cost to the association, his company, FIRST COLONY HOMES LLC, seems to be clearly violating the deed restrictions of the community. And there are plenty of pictures to prove it. On two lots - 673 E BIANCA CIR and 671 POLO CT, belonging to the Brannon company according to the St.Johns County Property Appraiser's WebPages, the violations are just piling up - in the real meaning of the word. 

At 673  Bianca Cir. E. is a house under construction by Mr. Brannon, which for several months has sat idle with no apparent  work going on. There is no visible building-permit as required by regulation, but according to the St. Johns Building Department a valid permit actually exists. Expiration date : 11-15-2002.
This unfinished building had been surrounded by trash, visible to every passer-by. That problem was solved by dumping it all just around the corner on the Polo court lot. A clear violation of paragraph 4.06 of the Shores deed-restrictions, which reads :
No lot shall be used or maintained as a dumping ground for rubbish, trash, garbage, derelict vehicles or fixtures, and other waste shall not be allowed to accumulate and shall not be kept except in sanitary containers, which shall be maintained in a clean and sanitary condition.
 

This is a picture of the lot at 671 POLO CT, where the trash is just being dumped. It is an absolute unsightly view and definitely doesn't improve the property values of the neighboring properties, one even built by his company.
 

Looking at these pictures it is very clear why many homeowners in the Shores are talking about selective enforcement. Or are these violations considered the perks of being the president of the board? But, this doesn't seem to be all. Isn't this a violation of paragraph 4.07 ?

No tractors, trucks or trailers may be parked overnight on any of the streets, roads or lots in this subdivision. This is not just parked there over-night. According to other homeowners that seems to be a pretty permanent parking space for this vehicle.

If Terry Brannon is so adamant about enforcing the deed-restrictions and protecting the property values within the community, shouldn't he start with cleaning up his own obvious problems before filing expensive law-suits?

Homeowners, not involved in these legal affairs, are still trying to track down the minutes of the board meetings, where the board voted on setting aside the finances for these legal expenditures and the decision to file the law suits against these nineteen homeowners. So far, only unsatisfactory statements have been produced, obviously avoiding the real issue. And homeowners start to doubt that Terry Brannon jumped through the necessary hoops to make these decisions. The question still stays in the room :"Is the filing of these law suits consistent with his fiduciary duties?"

Are the attorneys hired by the Board interested in helping to solve the problem created by this board or are they just interested in running up a costly bill to be paid by THE SHORES RESIDENTS THRU THEIR MAINTENANCE FEES?

And the question nobody besides Terry Brannon seems to able to answer : "Why was the letter from attorney Sean Sheppard left unanswered?" Anybody who ever dealt with the legal system knows that a reasonable agreement between the parties is better than any costly legal action.

In an article in the St. Augustine Record - see below - the still developing story is been told, but so far nobody has answered the real questions. His fellow board members are obviously still playing along. The Rebuttal to Terry Brannon's statement in the article of the St. Augustine Record is another clear sign of frustration. The homeowners just don't understand why Terry Brannon and the other board-members prefer costly legal battles to reasonable communication.

The call for Terry Brannon's voluntary resignation is getter louder, hoping to avoid further legal wrangling in the community. 

Outsiders definitely don't see anything good coming out of this legal power struggle in the Shores. Being in favor or against homeowners' associations, one thing is sure: nothing good has ever come out of these legal struggles between homeowners and boards. Mostly they just left a big hole in the community's budget. Will common sense prevail before this happens in the Shores as well?

The St. Augustine Shores Service Corp. has filed a lawsuit against 19 Shores residents, charging them with trespassing and decreasing property values. 
The suit stems from the residents' long-term use of greenbelts, strips of land owned by the Service Corp. but lying next to homes. The greenbelts are supposed to be left wild, but people are mowing. The Service Corp. wants them to stop. 
The suit was filed Sept. 19. Since then, all but about five or six of the defendants have complied with the rules, said Service Corp. President Terry Brannon on Tuesday. The people who comply will be dropped from the suit, he said. 
On July 17, several residents received letters from the Service Corp. telling them to remove all items from the greenbelts and leave only native plants. They had to restore the land to its native state within 30 days, wrote Service Corp. Vice President Robert Medeiros. 
Violators were threatened with criminal liability. 
On the evening of Aug. 8, a St. Johns County Sheriff's deputy was called out to a meeting of the board to quell an uproar. Brannon said he had ended the night's meeting because of the words of John Geiszler, one of the residents who had received the letter. When Geiszler refused to leave the meeting, Brannon called the law. 
People were irate. 
Since then, meetings at the Shores have been icy. The board has a video camera to monitor the public during public meetings. Residents have published blistering attacks against Brannon and the board in The Record. Anonymous men have called The Record with stories of intrigue and alleged conspiracy amongst the board members. 
A week before the suit was filed, Geiszler and four other Shores residents wrote a public letter calling for the ouster of Brannon and the abandonment of the greenbelt restrictions. 
Geiszler is one of the 19 named in the suit. He could not be reached for comment Tuesday. 
These are the other 18: Lil Geiszler, John Faulk, Janice Watson, James Lee Sr., BJ Lee, James Lepick, Bill Tatel, Hubert McDowell, Elizabeth Wallace, Judy and William Ursell, Michael and Elisha Zuaro, Salvatore and Catrina Guarna, Rita Stark, Neil Cassmeyer and Alan Howard. 
Attorney Ron Brown, who is representing some of the residents, did not return a phone call from The Record on Tuesday. 
Brannon referred further questions about the suit to the board's general manager Joe Smith. He could not be reached for comment Tuesday evening. 
Improper greenbelt use has been a problem in the Shores since at least 1993, Brannon said.