ST. AUGUSTINE SHORES -- When this subject first flared up I went to Rosemary Yeomans, the County Zoning Manager for a ruling. Her statement was that the PUD allows: landscaping, grass, fences or natural vegetation and that the Shores is responsible to the county for violations of this. i.e. structures in the green belts. She also said that no changes to further limit the PUD have ever been made. This has been true for 30 years.Her letter with this information and a letter certifying approval to landscape behind 751 Medina from Ron Jockers was sent to the board in letters of 5/28 and 6/8. NO RESPONSE WAS RECEIVED.

On7/17 the Board demanded that 19 homeowners restore green belts to original or legal action would incur. Several of us demanded the source of the Board’s authority. NO RESPONSE WAS RECEIVED. We then engaged council.

On 8/2 our attorney filed a detail response to the demands and asked for the source of the authority for the board. He also defined to the board the potential costs to the board and its individual members for the likely law suits that would be brought by the homeowners. It’s good to note that as of now the Legal cost for the Shores, that’s us the homeowners, is about $40,000. We the defendants have spent about the same.

In mid-August Jockers came down from Atlanta to go over the County files to find a document he knew existed that supported our position. He and I spent several hours and he found it. Rosemary was delighted since it fully supported her ruling. The recorded document is a 1985 "Declaration of Restrictions" issued by the Deltona Corp. to put restrictions on all the common land in Units 1 through 6. It details that the green belts are restricted in the same way as does the PUD. It also makes change difficult and protects homeowners from damages due to such changes. Copies were supplied to the Board with requests to settle the matter per the documents. NO RESPONSE WAS RECEIVED. It should have ended then!!!

On 9/23 the shores attorney filed suit for an injunction and damages against 19 homeowners. To which our attorneys filed a response and a demand for the source of the Board's authority.

Since then:

On Feb. 11th the Shores attorney filed a slightly revised suit, but still w/o showing the source of the Boards power. This 3 month delay was without justification and then they only filed at the demand of the court.

Our attorney filed another motion to dismiss with the court. It’s pending.

President Brannon was removed from the Board by nearly 1000 homeowners signatures. Be careful, he and Rudy Esser are both running for the board again.

The outcome of the suit is in the courts. 

The damage to the community is all around us.

The final costs to the homeowners is likely to exceed $100,000 if it continues.

Would it not be cheaper to talk to one another?

......................Yours for a peaceful Shores
                       John Geizler