• CALL TO ORDER AND OPENING PRAYER
Chairman Lanpher called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. and introduced Chaplain Gerry Palmquist who offered the opening prayer.
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• ANNOUNCEMENTS
1. The Chair reminded all Court Representatives to return the intra-office mail folders to Joyce Heckber for future re-use in distributing Minutes.
2. Court Representatives were reminded to post the notices regarding the School Supply Fund.
3. The Chair thanked Brian Gainey, Set up Technician – Woodlands – for the fine job he did in setting up the meeting room for today’s Resident Council Meeting.
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• ROLL CALL OF COURT REPRESENTATIVES
The roll was called with those present listed above.
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• APPROVAL OF MINUTES
OF MARCH 2, 2011, RESIDENTS’ COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AND APPROVAL OF AGENDA FOR TODAY
On motion duly made, seconded, and unanimously passed, the Minutes of the Regular Meeting of Shell Point Residents’ Council of March 2, 2011, were approved as submitted.
The Proposed Agenda for the Residents’ Council Meeting for April 6, 2011, was distributed to each Court Representative, and on motion duly made, seconded, and unanimously passed was approved.
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• STAFF REMARKS
PETER DYS
Peter Dys, President of Shell Point, introduced Dr. Roger Hirchak, Vice President Medical Services of Shell Point, and Dr. Robert South, a Licensed Physician Assistant with a Ph.D. in Epidemiology (Department which investigates diseases) with the Lee County Health Department, a part of the State of Florida Department of Health. There are approximately 100 diseases that are investigated and when any one case appears, it is reported to the Epidemiology Department for investigation under Florida State Rule 64D-3. Legionella is one of these diseases.
DR. ROGER HIRCHAK
Dr. Robert South – Lee County Health Department
In view of the recent announcement that two Shell Point residents had been admitted with a possible diagnosis of Legionella to the hospital, Dr. South spoke about the matter and updated information relative to the diagnosis of Legionella bacterium. Legionella bacterium is one form of pneumonia and is successfully treated by the administration of antibiotics.
This matter has been addressed by Administration on Shell Point Television providing all known information to Shell Point residents. Dr. South will appear on Shell Point television with Dr. Hirchak on Thursday, April 7, 2011, to further discuss this matter.
Dr. South explained his association with the procedures of Lee County Health Department which is primarily concerned with community health rather than the health of an individual. Every year there are several cases of Legionella. Most affected by this disease are folks over 50 years of age whose immune systems have been weakened.
Lee County Health Department has been working very closely and consulting with Dr. Hirchak and Shell Point with this health matter. Dr. South met with Shell Point staff for approximately two hours and reviewed all the things that might be of concern as far as the individuals: where they live, with whom they might have come in contact, things that are similar, and things that are different, in order to ascertain whether or not these two cases are actually connected. Nothing at this point has convinced Dr. South that they are connected, except that the two individuals are from the Shell Point area. They live in different apartments, in different locations. They do meet in common areas.
The hospital has performed special testing over the past week for patients from the 33908 zip code area. The results of these tests have indicated no evidence of Legionella. Shell Point also provided information regarding patients with similar symptoms who have not been hospitalized. Again, there is no evidence of Legionella and there have been no other cases of Legionella reported in Lee County.
To date, the point source of the current matter has not been found. Once the disease is identified, it is investigated, and mitigated. Legionella is NOT transmitted from person to person. Engineers from the Lee County Health Department have been to Shell Point and have done site testing. These test samples have been sent to Jacksonville State Lab. Those test results should be available by April 12 and upon receipt of those results, Administration will convey the information to Shell Point residents. Areas where Legionella may be found include fountains, lakes, water heaters, and showerheads. It is not unusual that tests do not determine how the folks got Legionella.
Dr. South further clarified the situation regarding showerheads. This organism is a hearty bacterium unaffected by chlorine. It can live in temperatures of 140 degrees. It can live in water heaters and showerheads. It can harbor itself in certain areas such as spas/hot tubs. If the organism gets airborne, the vapors can attach itself for you to breath in the micro droplets. At home, the organism can get lodged in a showerhead and as you shower the water is dispersed and you could breathe it in. BUT IT IS NOT TRANSMITTED FROM PERSON TO PERSON.
The mortality rate of this disease can be as high as 40%. However, these rates are based on National studies. People over 50 years old have a higher morbidity rate to deal with this. This disease is fairly treatable with regular antibiotics. It is very important to get it diagnosed early when it is simple to treat. It can be extremely dangerous if you wait for a diagnosis and treatment, especially if you are in 60’s – 80’s. If you have a fever, ache in arms, chest congestion, coughing – any of which you cannot identify – CALL YOUR DOCTOR.
Urine antigen is one of a multiple of tests utilized which produces rapid results and is used to determine whether there are antigens in the body which are fighting against a particular bacteria; in this case they are looking for Legionella. It has a 24-48 hours turnaround time. Other tests include chest x-rays, blood tests, sputum cultures.
Dr. South’s telephone number is 239-332-9580 (Disease Control). The Department of Health/Epidemiology’s main telephone number is 239-332-9501. There is also a web page available and may be found on Google. You may ask any questions regarding immunizations, water quality, or any matter that needs clarification. Inquiries are answered on a timely basis.
Responses to inquiries from Resident Council members and audience:
1. Were the air conditioning ducts in the apartments of the subject individuals checked? Air ducts are usually not a factor in Legionella UNLESS you have water cooling towers where the water is sprayed into the air and takes the heat away into the atmosphere and the water drains back down and it is re-cooled. Private home air conditioning systems are different and do not have a condenser. They are not susceptible to this particular organism.
2. Were the pools, spas and Jacuzzi areas tested? Dr. South does not know which areas were tested; however, generally swimming pools are not a particular problem. Hot tubs and Jacuzzi tubs could be a problem. When test results have been received, Shell Point residents will be informed of such results. Persons with real immune problems should talk to their individual’s physicians. Dr. South did not recommend changing anything at Shell Point. Drinking water is monitored all of the time by the Department of Health and has never had any kind of bacterial problem whatsoever.
3. Shell Point has traditional hot water heaters. It does not appear that they have been maintained. Dr. South recommended residents who have a concern contact the Facility Operations Department, voice your concern, and ask about flushing out the water heater.
Dr. Hirchak thanked Dr. South and further stated that the medical staff at Shell Point is on top of this matter and is on “hyper alert” for all patients. We have x-ray services available on premises for immediate tests. Legionella is very treatable with four common antibiotics that we most often use for pneumonias.
PETER DYS
1. Menus for Shell Point Restaurants: Proceed online to www.shellpoint.net and by the middle of each month the menus for the following month will be available. For example: After April 18th, you can link onto the top of April 2011 menus and find the menus for May 2011.
2. Intra-office Paper Saving Process: All Departments are complying with previous request to save envelopes, paper, etc.
3. Golf Cart and Car Speeding: There is an on-going effort to work especially with Shell Point employees.
4. Blue Bus Route Transportation: It is standard operating procedure to always take the Lakewood and Parkwood residents to the Commons and the Arbor prior to leaving the neighborhood. Residents should make it known to the bus driver that they want to go to a particular location within that system, and the driver will accommodate residents. The drivers rely on the passenger to make any special needs known and will try to respond to the request as best they can. If you have any questions regarding this matter, please call Dianne Morton in Transportation.
Other Items covered by Mr. Dys:
Mr. Dys distributed copies of the Morning Assurance Reports to the Court Representatives. The Pavilion presently has 182 occupants. The Assisted Living facilities have one or two vacancies. Currently, 93.7% of our units are drawing revenue and it is anticipated that it will be 94% by June. There were 18 Sales during the month of March for which we are thrilled. At the end of March there were 99.4% of the units sold or occupied. Out of 1204 independent apartments, 7 are not sold. There are 28 on the “Will Advise” list and we are now dealing with that on the right of first refusal basis.
Mr. Dys announced that a Shell Point Thrift Shop is expected to be established and will be opened off site by July 2011. All details are not available at this time, but additional information will be forthcoming in May. Soon there will be a search for an employee to handle the Thrift Store. It is anticipated that it will be operated with volunteers. The proceeds will be used for the Benevolence Fund to assist Shell Point residents. The Thrift Shop concept was developed due to residual items left to Shell Point. Shell Point has no major storage areas and we would like to put these resources to good use. For an example, when an apartment is renovated there might be quality carpet, appliances, cabinets, etc. which would be sold at the Thrift Shop. Additionally, items for sale will include furniture, clothing, etc. A Lease Agreement has been negotiated for an area near Planet Fitness across from Big Lots.
The plans for Country Inn and Suites have been submitted to the County as of last week. No further decisions have been made. The plans will be in review process for approximately the next 45 days at which time we will be in a position to set forth an anticipated timeline. There might be revisions, etc. at that time. Architects are working closely with Shell Point.
SCOTT MOORE
Mr. Moore thanked all residents of Shell Point for their patience during the time Shell Point has worked with CenturyLink to try to genuinely improve the cable television service for residents.
The Agreement with CenturyLink will be terminated. CenturyLink did make improvements. There are, however, some residents who are not “all set”. There are also some customer service issues. CenturyLink did not and cannot reach a consistent level that is acceptable for what we consider cable television service as part of our basic package. There are 39 Shell Point residents who upgraded to the additional 50 digital channels, which will no longer be available. They will be contacted individually to discuss their package options.
After talking to a third party cable consultant, it was determined that there are two choices available: The first choice would be to install a satellite dish utilizing existing cable infrastructure on each building. Each television set at Shell Point would require a set top box in order to go totally digital. That version will require approximately a 1% increase in the monthly maintenance fee. The second option is to go back to the previous method that we used and there would be no cost increase. We have chosen to go with this option.
Several providers were considered: Tight Connections Incorporated and Senior TV, the previous provider. Because both providers are so close in what they offer, we are going to go back to Senior TV. They will also provide a level of customer service that we are used to, which CenturyLink did not. Senior TV will provide new dishes at the Chiller Plant which should reduce the sun spots and rain fade. They have a modulator built into their receivers that actually modulates the sound. We will start with approximately one third of these modulators in place now and add the modulators on all channels over the next three years.
The channel lineup will be the same as before and will include AMC and Turner Classic Movies. The NFL network and Disney Channel will be added as well as a couple of other channels. A draft of the new channel lineup will be attached to these minutes and a laminated card of the final lineup will be distributed to residents at or about the time the switch is made, which will be the week of April 25th. Immediately following the switch we will have maintenance personnel, in-house tech support and contracted technicians to help with the individual reprogramming of the sets.
This will be announced on Shell Point television.
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• REPORTS OF THE REPRESENTATIVES OF COURTS, KING'S CROWN, ARBOR, AND PAVILION
Jerry Nanfelt submitted a copy of the Larsen Pavilion Resident Council Meeting, Notes from March 3, 2011, a copy of which is attached to these Minutes.
Pat Straub, Court Representative of Macoma, received a letter regarding the noise level of the delivery trucks between Macoma and the Pavilion.
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• OLD BUSINESS
Report of Election and Procedures Review Committee
Chair Jerry Ingalls reported that the Committee met several times and reviewed substantial ideas from many residents which were appreciated. Although many ideas were good for a particular Court, they did not apply to every Court and it was decided not to include them in the process. Court Representatives were encouraged to continue to do the special things each Court needs to do such as term limits, minimum length of residency, resumes, etc. There is a special process for selecting representatives for King’s Crown, the Arbor, and the Pavilion which should continue as it is. Mr. Ingalls thanked everyone for their comments and encouraged each Court to include them in the special requirements.
Court Representative Carol Ann Ormes thanked Mr. Ingalls and his Committee for the work they did regarding this matter. On motion made and seconded, and unanimously approved, with the addition of the following paragraph to be incorporated therein, the Report of Election and Procedures as previously submitted to the Council in March 2011 was passed and approved:
"For clarification and fine tuning of the election process for certain courts, court representatives are encouraged to tailor the process in their courts so that the election process works smoothly and efficiently for their residents."
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• SUGGESTIONS FOR THE GOOD OF SHELL POINT
Joan Perry, Court Representative for Harbor Court, reported receipt of an inquiry regarding whether the yellow parking bumpers are required by law as recently residents have been tripping over them, some hurt quite badly.
Several additional items brought to the attention of the Council were directed to individual Shell Point Departments. Residents are again encouraged to call and discuss matters with the various appropriate Departments, i.e. Transportation Department, Maintenance Department, Sales Department, etc. Most matters are resolved by this process. If no satisfaction is received, then contact your Court Representative for further action.
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• NEXT MEETING DATES FOR SHELL POINT RESIDENTS’ COUNCIL
The next Regular Meeting of the Shell Point Residents’ Council will be held Wednesday, May 4, 2011, at 8:45 a.m. at the Social Center on the Island.
Following is the Residents’ Council Regular Meeting Schedule for 2011*:
--May 4 Social Center Island
--June 1 Social Center Island
SUMMER BREAK
--September 7 Social Center Island
--October 5 Grand Cypress Room Woodlands
--November 2 Social Center Island
--December 7 Social Center Island
*ALL MEETINGS START AT 8:45 AM – EXCEPT ALL MEETINGS AT THE WOODLANDS START AT 9:00 AM.
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• CLOSING PRAYER AND ADJOURNMENT
The Closing prayer was given by Chaplain Palmquist.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:13 a.m.
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Respectfully submitted,
Linda Nickerson, Recording Secretary
