THE POA BULLETIN November 2005

Smart Money magazine often has a nice feature story entitled “The Ten Things That You Won’t Be Told By....”

Recent stories have featured “The Ten Things Your Butcher Won’t Tell You” or “The Ten Things Your Accountant Won’t Tell You.”

We started wondering about “The Ten Things The VHA Won’t Tell You.”

So, here, in the VHA voice, is the our list of “The Top Ten Things the VHA Won’t Tell You” or “The Ten Things the VHA Doesn’t Want You to Know:”

1. The developer started the VHA and the VHA owes its allegiance and support to him. We would rather have a cozy relationship with the developer than speak with an independent voice like the POA.

2. The developer said he will end his sponsorship of the VHA if we become a sounding board for residents’ complaints or support the residents on any major Residents’ Rights issue contrary to the will or best interests of the developer. The VHA needs the developer’s support and assistance and we don’t want to offend him.

3. The VHA will never go against the will or best interests of the developer on any Residents’ Rights issue. Sorry, residents, you rank behind the developer. So don’t ask us to support you on any of the issues listed immediately below in the next point.

4. The VHA doesn’t want to get involved in any controversy, or even comment, as does the POA, on issues like:

the $164,000 repair cost for the Lopez pond sinkhole,
the developer’s sale of common assets to the central districts at inflated prices,
the attempt of the developer with the assistance of the VCCDD to dump reclaimed sewer water from the sewage processing plant into Lago Del Luna for irrigation use,
the fact that residents cannot vote for central district supervisors or the top administrative official here in The Villages,
the bogus and unconvincing argument of LRMC for the Sumter County hospital tax,
the Morse family foundation’s grab for 20% of the Sumter County hospital tax,
the operating problems in the Villages Regional Hospital,
the Daily Sun’s biased, slanted and developer-friendly news stories,
the 60% of the monthly amenity fee going for debt service in the VCCDD administration area,
the Chula Vista Restaurant’s conversion to a recreation center,
the need to rebuild the Paradise Center,
reform of the Florida Chapter 190 statute that regulates CDDs,
the attempted intimidation of residents by the heavy hand of the developer in the Bob Evan’s Restaurant location issue,

5. The VHA likes the fact that the developer makes all of the big money decisions here in The Villages through his hand-picked supervisors in the VCCDD and the SLCDD. The VHA would not like to have residents running things in a democratic or representative-type government elected by residents.

6. The VHA doesn’t trust the membership to elect our top officers and directors. This is because “reformers” sympathetic to the ideas of the POA might someday get elected. Those of us with the power in the VHA prefer to self-elect the top officers and directors and perpetuate our rule and not displease the developer.

7. The VHA wants The Villages to be a “company town” where everybody is beholding to the developer, everybody toes the line, and nobody rocks the developer’s boat. Just play golf, and go to the squares, and be happy, and don’t notice some of what the developer is doing,, and don’t ask questions, and do pay your VHA dues.

8. At VHA meetings, when we require your written questions in advance, we end up dumping most of the questions anyway, especially those asking about Residents’ Rights issues or asking about anything potentially embarrassing to the VHA or the developer.

9. The VHA routinely schedules events like the Spaghetti Dinner, the scholarship programs, safety clinics, socials, fund raisers, etc., to divert your attention away from more important Residents’ Rights issues.

10. The VHA is absolutely petrified at the thought of having an open discussion/debate with the POA president for the following reasons (you pick the several reasons you think best explain our feelings):

The VHA doesn’t want an open discussion about the issues.
We don’t want to answer to Villagers about our lack of support for Residents’ Rights issues.
We are afraid of the POA.
We believe in censorship.
We don’t want the VHA membership or residents to hear what the POA has to say.
We don’t think the developer would allow us to debate the POA in an open forum.

Summary - If you are concerned about any of these points, why not consider joining the POA at its November 16 meeting?

Residents of CDD#3 recently voted on various proposals to either repair or expand the golf cart paths in their district along primarily Buena Vista Blvd. None of the several alternatives were inexpensive. The only proposal approved was the “repair as necessary” alternative.

The situation here is that the golf cart paths are used by everybody in The Villages. So, it seems an unfair burden to require the residents of just one CDD to shoulder the repair bill.

Mr. Pete Wahl, in his Pete’s Place column in the October 13 Daily Sun, said that there was no way to assess all Villagers, through either a “toll both” idea or some other type of general assessment, to pay for the needed repairs.

The POA believes that this comment from Mr. Wahl skirts the important issues and is misleading.

The POA feels that this golf cart path repair issue shares many similarities with the pond sink hole repair problem at the developer-owned Nancy Lopez golf course.

In the Lopez case, the developer obtained a “hold harmless” agreement for pond repair costs from his hand-picked supervisors just after CDD#4 was formed. There are questions here whether the supervisors violated their fiduciary duties to residents or whether the developer used undue influence to get what he wanted. The final result: residents have to pay for what should have been a developer expense.

In this golf cart path case, we can see a similar pattern. The cart paths should have been common property since everybody uses them -- same as swimming pools, tennis courts, recreation centers, etc. But, somehow the developer shifted the responsibility for these paths, and the related maintenance costs, to the residential districts -- just like the Nancy Lopez situation. This really doesn’t make sense.

If the paths had been common property, the ownership and maintenance responsibility for these would have been eventually transferred to the VCCDD. Then maintenance costs would have come out of our monthly fees, just as they do for swimming pools, tennis courts, recreation centers, etc.

One problem, however, is that the amenity fee monies are now so overburdened with debt service (about 60% in the case of the VCCDD) that there is little left for the maintenance responsibilities for which we all thought the amenity fee was designed. We can thank the VCCDD’s purchase of over-valued common property and assets from the developer for this.

The solution still is to have the residential CDDs deed the cart paths directly to the VCCDD for the purposes of ownership and maintenance. The Sumter Landing cart paths can be similarly deeded to the SLCDD. This way the cart paths would become common property owned by the central districts.

There should be funds in the VCCDD and SLCDD budgets for these maintenance expenses. The VCCDD has sufficient money squirreled away in a variety of reserve funds to accomplish needed repairs to the cart paths. And, VCCDD amenity revenue goes up annually with inflation and should be able to anticipate repair expenses like this. The amenity fee was designed for just these kinds of expenses.

There is no reason to force this cart path repair burden onto the backs of residents in the individual residential CDDs. Cart paths should have been common property from the start.

Let’s right this wrong and get those cart paths repaired now rather than allowing them to completely deteriorate.

The VCCDD and Comcast Cable TV are conducting an audit of the addresses that qualify for free cable TV as a result of the lawsuit and settlement in 1991. That lawsuit secured for qualifying residents a benefit that had been contractually agreed to by Mr. Harold Schwartz in home sales going back to the 1970s. The POA is in contact with the VCCDD and Comcast and is trying to clarify the situation.

As of the press deadline for this Bulletin, nothing had been settled. Any additional information will be provided at the next POA general membership meeting.

The POA will celebrate its 30th birthday on November 20th!

Congratulations to all of us going back to the original pioneers in 1975.

The booklet entitled “History of the POA, 1975-1995,” described the event as follows:

“A group of concerned property owners met to consider options available to them which would provide an improved means for solving individual and/or group problems with the developer.

“The meeting was held in the home of Jack and Dessie Howard, at 1008 Vermont.

“The result of that meeting was the chartering of the Orange Blossoms Gardens Property Owners’ Association, Inc., as a non-profit corporation on November 20, 1975.

“The objective of the original charter and bylaws were to promote good will, friendship and understanding among residents, and to assist the developer in establishing a community which would be beneficial to both the developer and property owners.

“They were amended at a later date to broaden these objectives to include support of legislation at all levels of government, to protect the rights of residents, and to keep residents advised regarding any legislation which would affect their retirement lifestyle and property investment.”

The reader should notice in this last paragraph the first use of the phrase “rights of residents.” Today, the POA carries forward a tradition of working for Residents’ Rights that was established 30 years ago.

Today, the POA is a vibrant and rapidly growing organization with 2,700 members in all three counties served by The Villages. The Bulletin is home delivered monthly to most Villagers. The POA is at the forefront of the crusade for Residents’ Rights. We act as your watchdog, keeping our eyes on the developer and local governments. We speak out and relish our position as an independent voice for Residents’ Rights for all Villagers.

By Jan Bergemann

President, Cyber Citizens For Justice, Inc.

We are rapidly closing in on the 2006 session of the Florida legislature. It is important that we, the taxpaying citizens, make our wishes known to our local legislators.

Many of them have an open ear – if you make enough noise! You can read all the time that industry and lobbyists are running the show. That is absolutely true, but politicians still need votes! And that’s where you all come in! Always remember: The industry can easily outspend us, but they can’t deliver your votes to elect these legislators.

Changes are not achieved by sitting on the sofa, watching TV, and complaining to your neighbor that you have given up because “They don’t care anyway!”

Believe me -- they DO care, if we make our requests for changes in an organized way.

And this is the reason why organizations like the POA and CCFJ are needed. We find out what our neighbors want, put it together in a bill proposal and talk to our legislators. Admittedly, some legislators are more willing to listen than others. Sometimes you just have to mention that there is always a next election – and that you have a long memory!

But if we, the citizens, work on it in an organized manner, we have a good chance to make quite an impact on Florida’s legislature.

In March, 2006, in Tallahassee we are aiming for

several important bills that will definitely influence consumer protection in mandated properties.

Our friends living in condominiums need more protection against abusive lawsuits, mismanagement and financial problems.

Citizens moving into Community Development Districts need to be fully informed about what they are getting into. Potential buyers need full disclosure prior to purchase, not a bad awakening after they have moved in. Full Disclosure, not Caveat Emptor, must now be the "Buy Words" before contract for sale and during real estate transactions in CDDs.

Community Association Managers must be more strictly regulated – the enforcement is lacking and allows financial mismanagement, kickbacks and abuse of owners. We need law-abiding managers running our communities!

Our main target for the upcoming legislative session will be the regulation of homeowners’ associations. I guess we all have already laughed about Banana Republics. Here in Florida we have them right next door -- they are called “homeowners’ associations.”

HOA boards and their attorneys often knowingly violate the statutes. You ask why? Easy answer: There is absolutely no enforcement and no accountability! This has to change! None of us has money, time, and energy to waste on lawsuits. Especially retirees and people on a fixed income who do not have the finances to file a lawsuit every time their rights are violated!

To protect members of these homeowners’ associations, it is imperative that legislators enact laws that will:

Create A Government Agency With Enforcement Power
Create An Ombudsman Office
Stop Abusive Liens And Foreclosures In Associations
Enforce Fair Elections In Associations
Reduce Costly Litigation
Educate Board Members
Protect The Vested Rights Of Florida’s Real Estate Property Owners

Without these safeguards members of homeowners’ associations don’t even have the rights guaranteed by our United States Constitution. Our rights all disappeared under the cover of “Contract Law”!

By helping each other, we citizens have the power to create the necessary changes to protect all our rights. We can’t outspend the industry and we can’t outspend the attorneys, but we can get organized and fight together for our rights:

UNITED WE STAND!

Please join our cause and help to make Florida a better place for all of us to buy a home and to live in peace and harmony!

You can contact CCFJ, Inc at their website: http://www.ccfj.net

The POA Bulletin often uses a variety of abbreviation and acronyms. Here’s a summary of key terms with definitions:

CDD - This stands for Community Development District, which is a form of special purpose government in Florida. CDDs are somewhat similar to other forms of government such as towns, municipalities, and cities. In The Villages, there are ten residential CDDs and two commercial CDDs. Read the Bulletin article entitled: “CDDs - The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly” in the CDD section of the POA website for additional information.

VCCDD - This stand for the Villages Center Community Development District. This is the primary form of government for administration of The Villages area north of highway 466. The VCCDD is a CDD and is often referred to as a commercial CDD. The boundaries of the VCCDD are roughly the downtown area around the Spanish Springs town square and encompasses the area bounded by Avenida Central and Highway 441/27. There are no residents in the VCCDD. Because of this, the developer of The Villages, being the primary landowner in this area, elects the five supervisors. The VCDDD administers CDDs #1-4, in Sumter and Marion Counties, and also has Villages administrative responsibility for the areas of The Villages in Lake County. The district administrators of the VCCDD are Ms. Monica Andersen and Mr. Pete Wahl.

SLCDD - This stands for the Sumter Landing Community Development District. This is the primary form of government for administration of The Villages area south of highway 466. The SLCDD is also a commercial CDD with no residents and basically encompasses the downtown area of the Sumter Landing Square. The SLCDD administers CDDs #5-10 in Sumter County. We sometimes refer to both the VCCDD and The SLCDD as “central districts.” The district administrators of the SLCDD are Mr. John Rohan and Mr. Wahl. Ms. Janet Tutt has just been hired as the co-manager, with Mr. Wahl, of the central districts.

Chapter 190 - This is the Florida statue passed in 1980 that authorizes and continues to regulate Community Development Districts (CDDs). See the direct link to and the comments about Chapter 190 on the POA website in the CDD section. Be prepared for a long read -- Chapter 190 is over 40 page long. But, it is required reading if you want to understand our government and how it functions.

The Villages - The residential community where we live is referred to as The Villages. The developer of The Villages is the corporation of the Morse family known as The Villages of Lake-Sumter, Inc. We often refer to Mr. Gary Morse as the developer of The Villages. Mr. Morse is the son of the founder of The Villages, Mr. Harold Schwartz.

Let’s say your boss just bought a great new yacht. Then he said he wanted all his people who helped make him a success to use the yacht for pleasure trips as a reward for helping to make him a success.

Wouldn’t that be great!

Well, dream no more – because we have that exact situation here in The Villages.

But, it is not exactly your boss – it is Gary Morse, the developer of The Villages.

And, the yacht is the 147 foot Cracker Bay megayacht built by Hakvoort Shipyard, The Netherlands. The engines are twin 970 hp Caterpillars, and it has five staterooms.

The five staterooms include a master suite outfitted in walnut, gold, and marble appointments. A number of speciality rooms include “The Havana Room,” a library with fireplace, and the skylounge. Five forward cabins make a perfect home for the crew of nine. (I wonder if they pay a monthly fee?)

This floating extravaganza splits its time between its home port of Georgetown, Cayman Islands, and Bay Harbor, Michigan. Maybe soon on Lake Sumter or Lake Miona.

The captain of the yacht, Rusty Allen, said in an interview published in the Petoskey News-Review in Michigan, that the yacht is an executive “thank you” to employees in Morse’s Villages retirement community in Florida. He went on to say that Mr. Morse’s philosophy is: “These are the people who got me where I am, who got me the boat.” It is his way of giving back, Allen said.

Actually, wasn’t it all of us residents here in The Villages who made it happen and got Mr. Morse where he is today? So, when can we go on a yachting vacation?

OK – I’m ready to go on my yachting vacation.... Where do I board?

Every now and then, now more often than not, Villagers are kept in the dark about some important happening in our community.

Case in point – the mysterious departure of Maestro William Doherty from various duties with the Villages choir in the Church on the Square and other musical groups.

A comment in a recent newspaper article about this quoted a concerned resident as saying that the developer owns the Church on the Square with the implication that the developer can do whatever he wants.

Gary Morse apparently won’t talk or meet with residents about this; same for Gary Lester, the usually uncooperative Villages information czar.

And, frankly, we in the POA have no insight into the issues or causes of this action.

But, we have a bad feeling that the developer has again arbitrarily made a decision in our community without consulting with or advising residents beforehand or allowing residents to express their opinions.

This is another example of a violation of issue number 10 in the Residents’ Bill of Rights (see page 2).

This is our community and the developer and/or our central government should advise residents before making any changes in or additions to our community.

He owns the Church, and if he wants to get rid of somebody ... well, you know the story. And, don’t bother asking why....

We were going to publish a list of places that will administer flu shots. However, the list changes often, and you need to have a reliable and up-to-date listing.

We found a website that lists places, times and phone numbers for local sources. We suggest you consult this often to find the best alternative for you.

Just type in www.findaflushot.com to get to the main page. Then enter your zip code in the box in the upper left hand corner. If nothing close to home looks good for your schedule, just input a wider range of miles from your home below your zip code. At last count there were 22 locations and dates listed within 10 miles of zipcode 32159.

You should also check with all of your doctors to see if you can get shots there.

The regular POA monthly meeting for November 16 will again be in the Hacienda Recreation Center in the Ricardo Montalban room. The December meeting will be moved back to the Saddlebrook Rec. Center.

If you see Bulletins laying in the street or the gutter after delivery, or if you know a house is unoccupied, please pick up the Bulletins and either hold them for the resident’s return, or discard them. Thanks.

We have the entire local database in a 3-ring binder for viewing at POA monthly meetings.

If you need help on any elder healthcare issue or problem, please call the Shine Elder Help line at 1-800-963-5337. You can also call Harold Barnes, a Villages resident, at 753-8810. Or you can talk to Harold personally at any one of the POA monthly meetings. He has a table display and is ready to talk or help.

Renew your POA Membership, or join for the first time, with the form on page 11, upper right hand corner.

We have received about 500 surveys thus far. But, there are probably many more residents who would like to respond. So, let’s go at least another month or two. Please spend a few minutes filling out this form. You can respond even if not a POA member.

Please rate each question with your opinion on a scale of 1 to 10 where 10 would be your highest, best, or most satisfactory rating – all the way down to 1 which would be your lowest, worst, or least satisfying rating. A rating of 5 would be an average, or middle-of-the-road, answer. If you have no opinion or no information about a question, or it does not apply to you, please put in “NR” (No Rating) for that question.

Then, either bring this form to our next meeting or mail it to: The POA Survey, P.O.Box 1657, Lady Lake, FL 32158.

Thanks in advance for your help in completing this survey. Results will be published in a future issue of the POA Bulletin.

Survey Form

Rating

1. _________ Entertainment Programs on the Town Squares

2. _________ Overall Safety and Security in The Villages

3. _________ Traffic in The Villages

4. _________ The Cleanliness of Villages Streets and Common Areas

5. _________ Landscaping in Common Areas throughout The Villages

6. _________ The Neighborhood Watch Service

7. _________ The Villages Trash (Garbage) Service

8. _________ The Villages Water Utility Service

9. _________ Emergency Fire Services

10. _________ Emergency Medical Services (EMS)

11. _________ The Villages Regional Hospital

12. _________ The Lifelong Learning Center

13. _________ The Monthly Amenity Fee

14. _________ The Yearly Assessments in Your CDD or Town

15. _________ The Original Construction Bond on your Property

16. _________ The Daily Sun Newspaper, in General

17. _________ The Daily Sun Newspaper, Objectivity of Reporting

18. _________ The Villages TV Station, in General

19. _________ The Villages Radio Station, in General

20. _________ The Property Owners’ Association (POA), in General

21. _________ The POA Newsletter, The Bulletin

22. _________ The Villages Homeowners’ Association (VHA), in General

23. _________ The VHA Newspaper, The Villages Voice

24. _________ The Community Improvement Council (CIC), in General

25. _________ The Villages District Manager, Mr. Pete Wahl

26. _________ The VCCDD District Administrator, Ms. Monica Andersen

27. _________ The SLCDD District Administrator, Mr. John Rohan

28. _________ The Developer of The Villages, Messrs. Gary or Mark Morse

29. _________ The Villages Center District (VCCDD) Government

30. _________ The Sumter Landing District (SLCDD) Government

31. _________ The Local CDD or Government Unit in Which You Live

32. _________ If you live in Sumter County, Your Board of Commissioners

33. _________ If you live in Marion County, Your Board of Commissioners

34. _________ If you live in Lake County, Your Board of Commissioners

35. _________ If you live in the Town of Lady Lake, Your Board of Commrs.

36. _________ Condition of the Executive Golf Courses

37. _________ Condition of the Championship Golf Courses

38. _________ The Priority Golf Program

39. _________ Greens Fees on the Championship Golf Courses

40. _________ Idea of turning Chula Vista into a Recreation Center

41. _________ Plans for a new Hotel behind the Rialto Theater

42. _________ Idea of a Tax to Support The Villages Regional Hospital

43. _________ Adequacy of Disclosure Information Given to You when You

Bought Your House Here in The Villages

44. _________ Developer’s Idea to Have Residents Pay to Fix Sinkholes

45. _________ Adequacy of Important Information Provided by our CDDs

46. _________ Idea of Mail Delivery to Homes rather than to a Postal Station

The various CDDs in The Villages meet monthly at the Laurel Manor district offices of the SLCDD on the following schedule:

First Friday of the month:

VCCDD at 8:30 a.m.

CDD # 6 at 10:00 a.m.

CDD # 8 at 11:30 a.m.*

Second Friday of the month:

SLCDD at 8:30 a.m.

CDD # 1 at 10:00 a.m.

CDD # 3 at 11:30 a.m.

Third Friday of the month:

CDD # 5 at 8:30 a.m.

CDD # 7 at 10:00 a.m.*

CDD # 9 at 11:30 a.m.*

CDD # 10 at 1:00 p.m.*

Fourth Friday of the month:

CDD # 2 at 8:30 a.m.

CDD # 4 at 10:30 a.m.

Meetings market with an asterisk (*) will only meet as necessary.

Please watch the Daily Sun Announcements section, or the Pete’s Place column, for notices of schedule changes. Holidays can alter the schedule, and special meetings may be held at other days and times.

These worthwhile meetings show our local governments in action. Residents should attend who want to know what’s going on, ask questions, or give input on government issues.