SHELL POINT RESIDENTS’ COUNCIL
Regular Meeting
– Grand Cypress Room
September
3, 2008
ATTENDANCE BY COURT:
Arbor Betty Rinderle
Cameo Sharon Bermel
Cellana Gayle Richardson
Coquina Gene Loughran
Eagles Preserve Paul Williamson
Harbor Court Joan Perry
Junonia Shirley Naugle
King’s Crown Jim Butler
Lakewood Bill Staples
Lucina Dean Nickerson
Macoma Pat Straup
Nautilus Mike Klein
Oakmont Bill Lanpher
Palm Acres Ted Rodgers
Parkwood Floyd Jamison
Pavilion Nita DeWeese
Periwinkle Rob Waltz
Rosemont Richard Maass
Royal Bonnet Carol Palermo
Sand Dollar Gus Ormrod
Sundial Chris Gooden
Tellidora Anne Wills
Turban Dick Rockstroh
CALL TO ORDER AND OPENING PRAYER
Chairman Rockstroh called the meeting to order at 8:45 a.m. and Ted Rodgers gave the opening prayer.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
There were no announcements.
ROLL CALL OF COURT REPRESENTATIVES
The roll was called with those present listed above.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF JUNE 4, 2008 RESIDENTS’ COUNCIL MEETING
AND APPROVAL OF AGENDA FOR TODAY
A motion was made and seconded that the minutes be approved. The motion carried with one dissenting vote.
A motion was made and seconded to approve the agenda, which passed unanimously.
STAFF REMARKS
PETER
DYS
Dr. Dys first expressed his appreciation for the privilege of meeting with the Council. He mentioned that he had just returned last night from a few weeks of vacation during which he had his mind on those of us at Shell Point during the hurricane Fay threat and he expressed his appreciation for the fine work of Tim Ficker and his organization and the excellent cooperation of the residents during the existence of the threat.
He said that he had just spoken with our meteorologist to get an update and was told that Hannah should not be a problem here. Ike is the one that we have to keep our eyes on. The path looks similar to Andrew but the hope is that it will go out to sea. It’s the one to watch.
Dr. Dys then gave an update on occupancy at Shell Point and the Amendment 5 issue. On occupancy he said that the summer is normally a slow time and we are seeing some of that with 92.7 % of the apartments occupied or drawing fees. Those that are sold and/or occupied amount to an excellent 97%. The critical problem is with 42 units where people are still waiting to sell their homes. Appointment schedules are looking better for September. We are ahead of budget and if we hold our own through September we will be in an excellent position by October or November and hope to find ourselves in a position of scarcity again.
On assisted living, Kings’ Crown now has 8 units not occupied, and the Arbor 3. We normally have 2 or 3 in both cases that are in process. The Pavilion is doing well with 151 beds occupied out of a budget of 142, and by the latter part of the year we will have another 30 to 40 beds when the first floor is finished.
Dr. Dys then turned to a discussion of Constitutional Amendment No. 5 which, along with other proposed amendments, will appear on the ballot this fall. This amendment was put on the ballot by the Tax Reform Commission which acts with very little in the way of hearings and which is not responsible to anyone. It is an insidious proposal because on the surface it reduces property taxes by about ten billion dollars, but then requires that the legislature make up the loss by imposing additional taxes, which would very likely be the sales tax rate or removing sales tax exemptions. If passed, this could have a significant adverse impact on Shell Point, mostly on Shell Point Residents directly. But it would also affect residents by imposing a sales tax on Founders Fees, Monthly Maintenance Fees and Meal Plans. This is a HUGE issue for operators and residents of retirement communities.
A lawsuit has been filed to remove this from the ballot which is now going through the court system and will likely go to the Supreme Court. Also, a Miami Senator is leading an effort to oppose it because of its misleading language. None of this is accessible in Ft. Myers, but Dr. Dys is working with our State association to have hearings set in Southwest Florida so that we can express ourselves.
One large negative factor is that state revenue overall is suffering and the legislature will be looking for ways to make up the revenue loss. This is likely to filter its way back down to local counties that will have to cut services or increase local taxes.
Note on the Above: The day after the Residents Council meeting it was reported that the Florida Supreme Court had ordered that this item be removed from the ballot.
TIM
FICKER
Mr. Ficker first expressed his thanks for the excellent response by residents to hurricane Fay. The suggested evacuation of the first floor of the Garden Apartments worked well for this storm and made the point that each hurricane can present different challenges. The response of neighbors of the affected units and the hospitality of Arbor residents and staff was very helpful and much appreciated.
He then displayed a sample of the fiber optic cable that comes into Shell Point and which was accidentally cut on Thursday, 8/31 during the utility pole replacement project. It caused numerous problems for our systems, mostly in the Woodlands and Eagles Preserve. Florida Power and Light assumed responsibility and repaired the damaged area quickly.
Mr. Ficker then reported on several things which occurred over the summer. We lost the Sky Angel channels last Spring; two have been restored and the third one should be back on the air within the week. Scott Moore’s team has been working on the second level deck coating at the Garden Apartments. They have tested several products and have engaged a paint specialist to find the best material for that particular surface and hope to have that project completed soon.
The work of the Village Church roof went well for awhile until the storms came. The roof will be finished by Halloween, although it is already water-tight. By the end of November the rest of the renovation for this phase will be concluded, including painting, and some stone facing. The Pavilion dining renovation has gone better that expected. They are about two-thirds of the way through and have had very few complaints from residents and family members about the adapted meal service, which has been accomplished through the combined efforts of the nursing and dining staffs. He is still confident that they will be back in the Pavilion by late October so that the Residents’ Council’s November meeting can be in the Social Center. He also reported that the Bank of America has finally decided to install an ATM machine outside of the bank but the exact location and timing are not yet established.
Carol Palermo commended an employee named Reagan Bauman, the new Construction Supervisor, regarding her response to a recent water heater leak.
Dr. Rodgers and Carol Palermo both reported problems of people missed during the most recent Code Red call. Mr. Ficker said they are looking into these matters.
STEVE
MINNIEAR
After passing out the morning assurance lists Mr. Minniear reported that the renovation of Kings’ Crown is moving along very well and he hopes to have it all finished by Christmas.
He pointed out that the program of inviting first floor residents of the Garden Apartment to the Arbor as the hurricane approached was Rita Southern’s idea and he commended her for that. He said that it was an amazing night and he read a letter from one of the guests who raved about the treatment they received from the time they arrived until they left the next morning. The guest said that the employees were wonderful, dinner was delicious, the piano concert and sing-along provided by Dot Whiteman and Dot Beard was terrific and they enjoyed a hearty breakfast. Mr. Minniear said that Rita did a great job, as did all of the Arbor employees, and that the residents of the Arbor were also very nice.
Mr. Minniear then reported that they have hired a new Program Manager for the Memory Care Unit on the second floor of the Pavilion whose name is Mark Tesoro and who is doing a very good job. He has a Masters Degree in Psychology, has spent some time at Johns Hopkins and is trained in dementia care and related programs. He will be a big help as we move forward for accreditation in memory care.
REPORTS OF THE REPRESENTATIVES OF COURTS, KING’S CROWN, ARBOR AND
PAVILION
Floyd Jamison expressed his thanks and appreciation to Al Slickers and Mike Mongoven for the restoration of the South side of Parkwood.
Nita DeWeese reported that the minutes of the last three meetings of the Pavilion Auxiliary were handed to the Recording Secretary.
Carol Palermo said that the residents of Royal Bonnet wanted to express their appreciation to Tim Ficker for the resolution of some apartment issues and express their thanks for the visit to The Arbor during the hurricane’s short visit.
Ted Rodgers reported that while Shell Point TV, which was down for August, was reactivated for reporting on the storm, the reactivation did not cover Palm Acres so Lynn Schneider sent him a personal e-mail which he had to relate to residents there. He also reported that when a Code Red message was sent about a recent outage some received a caller ID message saying “No number provided” and that since this was at election time the Code Red call was almost ignored by some recipients. He talked with John Dattilo
who said there was nothing he could do about the number not being shown on individual telephones.
Rob Waltz then made a thorough presentation concerning communications during hurricane threats. He reminded the Council that at the meeting held the morning of the special Council meeting members were told that there would be instructions given on SPTV at 10:30, but that did not happen, and that made his responsibility for prompt communications to his residents very difficult. He called SPTV but got no answer, and when he got the information later it was more difficult for him to get the information to his residents. He said that he had the same problem during Charlie. He suggested that Code Red might be used for communications, but he also suggested that someone be made responsible during hurricane threats to see that when something is promised on SPTV that it actually happens. Chairman Rockstroh responded by saying that it is very important that communications that are promised during emergencies be made as promised if we expect residents to respond properly.
OLD BUSINESS
a. Reflections on “Fay” Experience. This was covered earlier.
b. Employee Christmas Gift Update. Chairman Durrell reported that contributions to date total about $45,000 which is a little more than this amount at this time last year. They are currently working with Lynn Schneider to set up two TV programs, one for next week or the following week and another for the week of November 10 and another for
the second week of November after the Bakeless Bake Sale. They are also working on an article for Shell Point Life and other internal publications.
Chairman Durrell also reported that they are finding that many of the residents who moved in after March are hearing about the Employee Christmas Fund drive, but are having trouble learning what it is all about, particularly those in Eagles Preserve. They will get some preliminary information hopefully on SPTV this month, and more details starting in the middle of October after the Bakeless Bake Sale. In the meantime he suggested that the court reps might want to set up a meeting to bring their residents up to date and answer their questions. He said the he and his other committee members, Myrtle Hearn, Betty Mueller and Herb Wilcox are more than willing to participate.
Chairman Rockstroh commended Chuck and his committee for the fine job they are doing.
NEW BUSINESS
There was not any.
SUGGESTIONS FOR THE GOOD OF SHELL POINT
Ted Rodgers mentioned that on several occasions he was not able to get the Eagles Preserve gate to open in response to the code. He spoke with John Dattilo about this and was told that you have to do it quickly, but Ted said that several of the occasions were at night and there is insufficient lighting to see the key board clearly. Mr. Dattilo said that there was nothing that could be done to improve the lighting situation.
ELECTION PROCEDURE
Chairman Rockstroh said that he did not feel that additional discussion was necessary in view of the earlier discussions with the Council and reminded the Court Reps to pick up their election supplies before leaving. He thanked Joyce Heckber for preparing the election packets for each Court.
NEXT MEETING DATE
The next meeting will be on Wednesday, October 1, at 8:45 a.m. in the Grand Cypress Room in the Woodlands.
CLOSING PRAYER AND ADJOURMENT
The closing prayer was given by Ted Rodgers and the meeting was adjourned at
10:05 a.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Earl Mallick, Recording Secretary
Attachment: Pavilion Auxiliary Minutes for June, July and August all in one document.
Memo from Peter Dys on Amendment 5