Crunching the Numbers

The budget process will begin in earnest in a few days. It might be helpful to review some frequently asked questions to refresh your memory about how this happens. This entry is devoted to basic budget questions. As we move through the cycle, I will provide additional updates.

WHY do we budget?
It costs money every day, to cut the grass, heat the pools, answer the phone, spray the bugs, clean the gutters, pickup trash, pay for cable and all the other things that keep Wildewood Springs going. The budget process is the formal evaluation and decision process that we use to plan what we believe it will cost to run this community for the coming year.

WHAT is the WWS budget?
The annual budget is the anticipated cost for the coming year. The total dollar amount is allocated by unit size to 558 units as maintenance fees.

The budget is comprised of two main sections.
The first section, Reserves, are monies we accumulate for capital projects such as roof coating, painting and paving.
The second section, Operating Expenses, are the everyday expenses incurred in running Wildewood Springs such as trash, water, sewer, electricity, insurance, administration and cable tv.

WHO creates the WWS budget?
The Budget Committee develops the budget with input from the Property Manager and from service providers. The Board of Directors approves the WWS Budget and the Owners approve the funding level for Reserves.

HOW is this done?
All those costs mentioned above are reported and tracked during the year. When the budget cycle begins, the current year's costs are reviewed and considered to develop the new budget. Anticipated rate increases for items such as insurance, electricity, gas, water and trash are factored into the equation. The schedule for large capital projects such as painting must be reviewed to verify we are accumulating reserve monies at an adequate rate to have funds when the projects are planned to occur.

WHEN does the process occur?
The budget process dates are tentative. Here are the milestones:

April/May
The preliminary Budget Committee meeting. This is generally an overview of the cycle.

August/September/October
There are a series of meetings where the budget components are reviewed and revised.

October
The budget is presented to the BOD tentatively in the October meeting.
The Board gives approval for distribution and budget copies are distributed to all owners.

November
Final Board approval is tentatively planned for the November meeting.


WHERE do the meetings happen?
The first committee meeting is scheduled for Tuesday September 8, 2009 at 9AM in the Wildewood Springs office. Watch for official meeting notices on the office bulletin board and additional notices posted on the cluster bulletin boards, Channel 95 and the reminder email notices. Budget Committee meetings are open to all owners. Additional meetings will follow and be announced in the same fashion.

A Blast from the Past

I thought it might be fun to devote this entry to some material I came across in the WWS office. I'm not certain who found these materials. But I enjoyed comparing them to current photos of the same locations and I hope you like it as well.

The first item on the left is a photo postcard from Wildewood Springs. It must date from the late 70's and might have been created as marketing material for condo sales. The photograph is Pool 3 looking toward the rear of cluster G. On the right is a recent photo taken from approximately the same location and orientation.
























The next pair of photos shows Pool 1 in the same approximate time frames as the photos above. This view looks toward the rear of cluster B. The old photo is from a WWS marketing brochure.



































The most striking difference for me was the lack of mature trees in the early photos. I had thought the trees we can see in the later shots were always on the grounds. It's easy to see the visual impact of a mature landscape for this property. It looked nice then, but it looks wonderful now. Maybe this place was named 'Wildewood' because someone had a crystal ball. Enjoy the photos!

Looking Up

There's been much activity recently at Wildewood Springs. But unless you're accustomed to looking up, you may have missed it.

Tim our roof specialist has been working on the most recent round of roof cleaning. As you may recall, Tim was hired to provide a constant monitor on the new roof coating that was completed in 2007. Under his watchful eye, potential problem areas are identified and given appropriate remedial attention on a proactive basis. The result; we've had no billable roof maintenance since Tim has taken over this task. Plus the incidence of plugged gutters and has fallen virtually to zero.

The palm tree trimming has recently been completed. This is done each year in the mid summer. Removal of the dead fronds, flowers and seed pods eliminates debris that fall on the sidewalks, stairs and roof and may become projectiles during any high wind. The tree contractor also removed a number of dead trees and trimmed a a few problem trees on the grounds. The grounds look beautiful.




Special Meeting Information

We've finally been able to establish a date for the Special Meeting for the Documents Revision Mini Project. The Special Meeting is set for November 10, 2009 at 2PM. The location is not yet established.

We've also set aside two dates for workshops on the two amendments we'll be voting on.

• October 12, 2009 9AM Workshop Bylaws 4.3 Director Terms
• October 19, 2009 9AM Workshop Article X Insurance.

These workshops are established to help owners understand each amendment and ask related questions. More information will be published regarding these meetings as the dates approach.

Setting the Record Straight Part 2

or Everything you wanted to know about the Insurance Amendment

The Board of Directors has voted to submit two proposals to the members for a vote. The purpose of this entry is to discuss the reasons why the Board of Directors felt that the adoption of those two proposals would be in the best interests of the community.

This entry will also rebut and reject certain erroneous statements made by an anonymous author in the July 2009 Owners to Owners Community Newsletter.

This is part 2 on the upcoming Documents Revision. This article deals with the proposed Insurance Amendment.

Insurance Amendment

This is a difficult subject. The WWS Association Attorney recommended that we amend the Declaration to better address insurance. Excerpted at this link is a portion of WWS Attorney's Letter of January 14, 2009. That excerpt explains the risk associated with staying with the current Documents and the reason for the change to our current Documents.

The following section will address the OTO errors in regard to the insurance article.

Excerpts from the July 2009 OTO Newsletter will be in “italics”:

The OTO Newsletter article states that ”condo owner insurance is now the responsibility of the condo owners. The Association is not responsible for buying condo insurance for owners that do not have coverage”.

This statement is true. See Section 10.2(a) of the proposed amendment that lists the specific items that must be insured by each unit owner. The type of property insurance policy issued to a unit owner is typically referred to in the insurance industry as an HO6 policy. The Association has no intention of buying a property insurance policy of the contents of any unit if an owner fails to do so.

The OTO Newsletter article also states that “If in our documents we just say “per the 718 statute” we could not have to change our documents every time the state of Florida changes the law”.

This gross oversimplification misses the point entirely as to the significant underlying reasons why we want to rewrite our insurance provision. The statute does not supersede a poorly conceived documentary provision that requires the use of an insurance trustee, or approval of a mortgage holder to the insurer or settlement of a claim. We need to amend our Declaration to get rid of these undesirable provisions. Further, we need to be consistent with the many complex statutory requirements. Simply citing to a statute is not going to provide the necessary direction to management, board members and owners and there are some discretionary issues under the statute that will be determined by our documents, not the statute.

Now let's consider a scenario. Assume that for 558 units, there are 50 banks represented as mortgage holders. Assume we have taken the OTO advice and voted 'no' on Article X. In September 2010, Hurricane Pistachio blows Oakview Village into Palm Tree Village. 15 of the 50 banks challenge our current Documents because we don't have pre-approval by mortgage holders for the Insurance proceeds distribution. From this point we can expect a lengthy court process as 15 banks and their lawyers demand an Insurance Trustee to protect their interests before any reconstruction effort begins. Is this what you want?

If you vote 'no' based upon the erroneous OTO advice consider the following:

A 'no' vote on Article X gives control of our Insurance Proceeds in the event of a catastrophe to bankers and bank lawyers not WWS BOD and owners. A 'no' vote is shortsighted, irresponsible, and dangerous.

Aside from the fact that the anonymous OTO author has clearly made a number of inflammatory and false remarks with intent to damage my integrity or question my motives, the anonymous OTO author's material regarding the Documents change is inaccurate and misleads, misinforms, and misguides the readers.

The source material for FS718 is readily available online. We have reviewed both Articles in open WWS Committee and Board meetings within the last four months. What excuse explains the inclusion of such blatantly inaccurate material as the basis for the OTO recommendation?

You be the judge.

If you wish to vote 'no' on these items, make a well informed decision based upon the correct information, not the OTO propaganda. Understand clearly, the ramifications of your choice. Since the Special Meeting is not yet scheduled and voting materials have not been distributed, ask OTO Leadership why they have intentionally provided erroneous information about FS718 in lieu of waiting for the official materials and explanations.

The Special Meeting (date TBA) devoted to these Documents items will include a presentation about the two items to be voted upon. At least two weeks in advance of that meeting, voting materials will be provided to all owners regarding the two items. There will be ample opportunity for owners to ask questions.

WWS Update

I hope everyone is enjoying a relaxing summer. For those of you in the north...Yes, it is hot & steamy here. For those of you still here... You know what I'm talking about. As you know, the BOD doesn't conduct regular meetings during the summer. Despite that, a few projects continue to move forward. I want to give you a quick update on some items we've been working on.

Documents Revision:
We're working on firming up the date for the Documents Mini Project Special Meeting. At this point it looks as if the meeting will be in August. Once the date is established, the voting materials will be distributed to the owners.

Remember, the reason for the meeting is that we've identified two items that require special consideration apart from the remainder of the Documents revision. The first item deals with Director terms and we will be voting on it now so that, assuming owner approval, it can be effective for the 2010 elections. The second item deals with insurance. We will be voting on it now because it will require a lengthy mortgage holder approval process after the owners approval.

Newsletter: We've regrouped the Newsletter team. Kay Levy (Oakview) has agreed to take on the role as editor. Kay Wilder (Springdale) will be assisting. The first issue is planned for October 2009. Deadline for submission is September 1, 2009.

Kay is looking for regular contributors as well as one time articles of interest. She is planning to include a quarterly calendar of upcoming events so if you are active in an organization and would like to include your event listing, please contact one of the Kays with your information.

The BOD has approved to include advertising in our newsletter to help defray costs. Advertising is $5 per newsletter for business card size ad.

From Kay Levy: 'We welcome all suggestions. Even if you don't want to write it, let us know if there is an area of interest you think should be included or especially liked in the old newsletter and want to have continued.'

Contact information to submit articles or ask questions:

Kay Levy - wwseditor@aol.com
732-271-1796 (until October)
941-758-6960

Kay Wilder - kmwriver22@verizon.net
941-755-7806

Documents Revision Mini Project

By now, I'm sure you're heard that we are in the midst of a Documents Revision Project. Here's a quick review. Last year Florida Statute 718 was significantly changed by the Legislature. As a result, the changes required in our Documents were extensive. Our attorney, Chad McClenathen, recommended we do a complete update of our Documents to incorporate all 35 previous amendments as well as the new law changes into a new revised document. You can imagine the work this entails.

An Ad Hoc Document Committee led by Mr. Bob DeBruin was charged with the huge task of reviewing of the proposed document package and presenting a working revision to the BOD for consideration. During the past few months, Mr. DeBruin and the Committee have completed their task. The next step would be for the BOD to begin the review process. This step is also expected to take a number of months and won't begin until the BOD convenes again in the fall for regular monthly meetings. But some strategic issues have come to light at this juncture of the process.

The Document Committee has identified two sections of the proposed Documents which will require special consideration in advance of the remainder of the project. The first section, By-Laws Article 4.3 deals with the election of Directors. Director terms will continue to default to one year until this section is approved. This section must be approved by the BOD and 60% of the owner voting interest before mid December 2009 for it to be effective for the 2010 election.

The second Document section to be considered is Article X and pertains to insurance. This section is being handled separately because it must also be approved by the mortgage holders. This means that after the BOD and 60% of the owner voting interest have approved this section, it must be sent to all mortgage holders of record for a final acceptance. We anticipate this to be a lengthy process.

The BOD has considered and voted on these two named sections in a meeting on May 28th in the WWS office. Later this summer, a Special Meeting will be convened for owner consideration of these items. Owners can expect to receive information regarding these two amendments and the announcement of a Special Meeting sometime in the next month or two. You will receive updates via email as the dates of the mailings and meetings are announced.

WWS Potpourri

Summer is fast approaching. Most snowbirds have flown from Wildewood and the parking lots are looking very empty. Here's a quick update of the latest news:

Pool & Spa
The Virginia Graeme Baker updates have begun. The photo below shows the new contoured drain cover on the left and the old flat drain covers on the right. Most drain covers have been replaced at this time.


This is a drain cover being replaced in Spa 1

And this is how they replace drain covers in the pool. Yes he is holding his breath.



There's some great news to report on the State portion of the Virginia Graeme Baker (VGB) Act. WWS has applied for and received an exemption from Manatee County which changes the status of our pools and spas. We are exempted from installing the State portion of the VGB modifications. That's an estimated $140,000 expenditure that we have now avoided. As a result of our new status, the Association takes on more in house responsibility to monitor our own pools and spas for compliance to health and safety regulations.

Vials of Life Distribution
The Vials of Life have been distributed across the community. If you have not received your packet, check with your cluster advisor. If you are a snowbird, you can collect your packet when you return in the fall. If you want more information about the program you can follow this link Vial of Life

Chico Harpo Groucho
A few of the neighborhood kids outside my lanai.



We'll soon be announcing upcoming meetings for the Documents Mini Project that will occur over the summer months. Watch for the notices.