PRESIDENT’S REPORT
ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING
March 8, 2010

Thank you for attending the membership meeting. We continue to have excellent attendance at all our meetings that demonstrate our residents are interested in the welfare of Seminole Lakes.

Thanks to our directors for their many contributions during their term in office.

Thanks to our committee chairs and members who again performed a great service to our community. We have twelve major committees and including their members total over 100 volunteers. You will get the details when the committee chairs give their report later on in the meeting. It is also reassuring that for the first time in two years, every committee has a chairperson.

Star Hospitality, our management company, continues to perform at a high level and continues to give the board guidance when deemed necessary.

We issued a new two year contract with Greenscapes at a reduced annual cost. Our landscape committee and I oversee their operations. We send out timely notices to update residents when pesticides and fertilizer are applied. Greenscapes follows "Best Management Practices" and after having our soil tested, we have reduced the amount of phosphates applied. Phosphates are the biggest contributors causing algae blooms in water. No, we have not achieved perfection in lawn care and doubt if this is possible in Florida.

The lawsuit filed against the POA by Semlak was settled, and this was only achieved when the judge ordered mediation. Our request for mediation previously was rejected by Semlak. Settlement terms were presented to our residents at one of our board meetings. This dispute has spanned the terms of three boards, and what hurt our cause was the discovery of a previous settlement agreement between Seminole Lakes, Inc. (the developer) and the owner of the plaza in 1991. As this agreement was never recorded nor turned over to the POA during the turnover in May 2001, we were not aware of it. However, the dispute is now settled and the easement is being constructed. The terms of the settlement will be monitored to ensure terms are kept.

I represent Seminole Lakes on the South Charlotte County Coalition and was appointed Vice President. This is a group of eleven homeowner associations formed to promote the welfare of their residents. Fred Eyrich has been appointed as the alternate from Seminole Lakes. You will soon be seeing reports on these activities in our newsletter.

I continue to represent Seminole Lakes on City Land and Development Review Committee, which gives us insight and up-front information on what the City is reviewing in issuing or changing ordinances.

Our attorney, Becker & Poliakoff, continues to provide information to us on proposed changes to those statutes that affect Homeowner Associations. They head up the Call (Community Association Leadership Lobby) and represent 4000 associations in Florida. They are our representative when the State proposes changes to the statutes. They also represent us in protecting our interest in those homes going thru the foreclosure or bankruptcy process (We presently have nine). Each year they sponsor two seminars locally which deal with the latest changes in statutes that affect associations and give recommendations. They also review recent case laws which gives us insight on what we can or cannot do. The seminars are great, but you have to attend to receive the full benefits.

Seminole Lakes are also members of Community Association Institute (CAI). They provide education, tools and resources to those persons that govern and manage Homeowner Associations. They have a local chapter in Ft, Myers that provides seminars which they sponsor twice annually. Needless to say, you only get these benefits if you participate fully on their web sites and attend the seminars.

Communications:  Yes, our communications are excellent, and our web site has a high ranking from Regenesis, a nation wide recognized web site. We subscribe to this. Out of over 200 websites, Seminole Lakes ranks above 150 for quality and information provided. Thanks to Linda Huber for this great effort.

Our newsletter is of a high quality, and this is due to Linda Huber’s efforts. We follow the format of the newsletters issued by Homeowner Associations that belong to the Coalition including BSI and PGI. The format we follow is also recommended by Regenesis. The newsletter is focused on long-term positive, community building contact and is focused on community news.

The Association does have a dispute with the developer over who is responsible for the maintenance of the environmental resource permit. This is presently under review, and an update will be given at the April board meeting.

In summary, Seminole Lakes remains a great place to live and we are fortunate to have the high quality persons living here. The properties of Seminole Lakes look exceptionally good due to our committees ensuring that proper maintenance is done when required. We are truly thankful to all our residents and especially over one hundred that serve on committees.

Thank You for listening,

Bob Toth