Aquarina Townhall Blog

The ACSA cabal continues its self-centered actions to secure its hold on the Aquarina community. As previously discussed in this Blog, the cabal assembled a community  vote to add Amendments to the current Bylaws and Covenants to increase the term of the Board Directors, and increase the pool of Board Director Candidates from individual neighborhoods.  The Blog was apposed to this manipulation of the Director election process because of its self-serving nature to keep Directors and its policies (which favor cabal wants) in place for a longer period of time, and insure that its acolyte Director candidates are not limited in number from the neighborhood where the candidates reside, or where they have positions held, which can result in a conflict of interest, e.g. if these candidates can become both ACSA Directors and neighborhood Directors, as is with, unfortunately, Egret Trace..

On the June date of the Amendments’ vote, it was determined that apparently the Amendments did not secure the needed majority of the votes. Remember, the Residents were bombarded with email reminders of when to vote, the various means to vote, mailers, and in some cases neighborhood Directors (who were also ACSA Directors) imploring the Residents the importance of voting for the Amendments.

Surprise, surprise, on the day in June of the voting results, the ACSA decided since the number of needed votes were not cast with a YES for the Amendments on this day of the vote, that the ACSA made a decision to maybe wait another month to count the votes again.  Was the ACSA waiting for some further electronic or mail-in votes to occur after the day of the vote? Or maybe the ACSA would decide to do another vote to see if the number of YES votes, on a second attempt, would occur, for the ACSA to finally acquire what it wanted. It appears that the ACSA has its own definition of a Democratic Vote, i.e. you keep voting until you achieve the what you want.

The Residents were rained upon with information before the day of the vote, and the importance of that day in June to follow and obey the ACSA’s marching orders. Voting on that day would not have occurred if a quorum was not established. Proxies were sent out to be completed with a ballot to vote, and email/electronic voting was available to complete the voting process. Yet we now find out, by hearsay, since the Residents were never notified of the voting results, that there were not enough votes to pass the Amendments, and a possible August vote would re-occur. What!!

Again, no official word to the Residents was communicated by email or mail on the results of the vote for the Amendments. Strange. It appears that the ACSA was not going to mention the apparent failure of its desired change to the Bylaws and Covenants. However, it has not denied the hearsay in the community of a re-vote on what the Residents decided and for which they voted, i.e. NO to the Amendments of change.  Are we surprised by this ACSA behavior? Not at all! It behaves as if it’s impervious to all.

The ACSA has now recently accumulated a monstrous lineage of serious failures, where not the ACSA, but the Aquarina Residents, have been abused both monetarily and with immoral actions, because of selfish and self-righteous conduct, which in some eyes, could be considered criminal. Let’s review the relentless transgressions, with apparent no recourse of relief in sight.

• The Lakeside Pool reigns as the most recent and possibly criminal act by the ACSA.  After 30 years of non-eventful and successful control of this limited common property and amenity for the three Pool Neighborhoods, the ACSA took it away from the Pool Neighborhoods under false pretenses. It enlisted shills from these neighborhoods who foisted falsehoods on the condition of the Pool Area, and laid a patchwork of lies on the maintenance that the Pool Residents were doing. Ironically, the Pool Residents, regrouped, came up with a corrective plan to address the real and not contrived matters with the Pool, and secured a licensed Building Contractor to remediate The Pool Area per county guidelines, in less than a two month period. The ACSA came up with further contrived and untrue excuses to deny this remediation, which would have been one half of the now $300,000assessment. Instead the ACSA continued its bullying approach, and the Pool Area and bathhouse were falsely presented to be a danger zone. The Pool Area was shut down, now going on four years.  There is specific and documented evidence to negate all the ACSA falsehoods concerning the Pool Area, and this bullied and created fiasco by the ACSA.

Apparently, an attorney not reviewed contract was signed off on by the ACSA for its remedy to this now closed and abandoned Pool Area, by an acolyte and shill chosen ACSA President, who was responsible for signing both the Brassie Grille renovation contract, and the Lakeside Pool contract. Interestingly, this President resigned after these actions. A remedy is still non-existent after two years from contract signing, and two years from paying an assessment of $300,000, and nearly four years of paying quarterly payments for a closed down Pool Area.  Further, the Residents’ collected and paid $300,000 assessment has not been disclosed in the Residents’ Budget, nor is there a disclosed Profit and Loss Statement for the Lakeside Pool.  The Pool Residents have finally sought professional advice, and have a Mediation agreed to with the ACSA. The ACSA failure here is to be its cavalier self, and not working with the Pool Residents and allowing and encouraging discussion on the attention of what the Pool Area really needed, which is now a nearly and not needed total demolition that currently has occurred. A path to have the Pool Area corrected per county code within a two-month period, as agreed by the Pool Residents, was denied by the ACSA. Here we are nearly four years from the denied repair.  Why? Because of the ACSA’s deceitful and bullying behavior, and silence on the location and Resident Budget disclosure of the Pool Assessment funds.

• The current ACSA apparent  move for another vote on its Amendments is yet another dictatorial action, where doing what we want without consequence, continues its hold on the Aquarina community. Simply, imagine being involved with a planned and approved community voting process, and the results were not as the ACSA Board wanted, and it decided to apparently doing the vote again or provide more time for more voting to occur to see if it’s wanted result succeeds. Real democracy at work is not what occurred.

• Though it’s been a year or so ago, the $1M plus renovation of the once Brassie Grille, which harnessed more debt on the Residents without Resident approval, continues with the current restaurant being an up and down situation. Did the Residents sign up to be in the restaurant business when they purchased to be here in Aquarina?  There are longtime and successful restaurants within a short drive from Aquarina. Who decided a $1M plus restaurant needed to be in Aquarina to compete with these established and successful restaurants, which are down the road?  BTW – What about some transparency on the $1M plus Resident investment, e.g. is the current food business there have a lease? Is it part of the Residents’ available documents?

The original Brassie Grille was a sports bar offering quick comfort food, which was perfect for a golf course community, and for a course allegedly being open to the public. Yet, the cabal’s focus is for cabal members to use it as their private course, where the Aquarina Residents subsidize what the current membership fees do not cover for the golf course’s expenses. However, and commencing this year, free 30 yearly rounds of limited play will be provided to Residents for Resident use only, in the mornings (9 or 18 holes). 30 yearly rounds for tennis are also available.  It appears the cabal sees how appeasement to the Residents is now warranted, after years of the cabal’s selfish domination of the course. How about a professional marketing program to the public to increase the course’s revenue?

To close this post, be aware that the abused Pool Residents and Pool Neighborhoods, in every imaginal manner possible, were forced to hire an attorney to secure documents from the ACSA on the Lakeside Pool matter. Keep in mind that copies of HOA documents, by Florida Statute, are to be provided to its Residents upon request. You would think that an HOA, whose focus is to act in the best interest of its Residents, and have a fiduciary responsibility to these Residents, would have a process, e.g. completing a request form for document copies to access, what by law, the Residents have a right to see and have. NO. The ACSA refused to provide the documents, forcing the Residents to seek attorney assistance to navigate the apparent unreasonable procedure to acquire these documents, which finally occurred with an attorney costing the Residents a not needed significant cost for the documents. Further, the attorney has now instituted a Mediation with the ACSA to resolve the ACSA created Lakeside Pool fiasco. The ACSA, continues to implement attorneys, at the Residents’ expense, to stonewall the Residents on matters, and obfuscate its unjustifiable position of selfish behavior, and relentless spending of their funds

Isn’t an HOA a group of conscientious volunteers who are in a community to assist its Residents in matters that may arise for the benefit of all concerned, in a manner of working together?

Creating a community of contentious residents because of HOA dictatorial and selfish behavior does not define an expected harmonious community HOA, especially where fees are the highest in Brevard County.

The current ACSA, as a group, are an assembly of selfish brutes, whose reign will, hopefully, end soon, and Aquarina, which has been an established and desirable place to live community over the decades, will overcome and survive the current venom we are enduring.

Let truth and goodwill be the path ahead.

COMING SOON – IS ACSA CABAL SUBTERFUGE AT HAND FOLLOWING THE JUNE AMENDMENTS’ VOTE?

COMING SOON – RESIDENTS’ VOTE RESULTS ON AMENDMENTS NOT ANNOUNCED. WHY?

VOTE ALL NO‘S

The ACSA strikes again. A change in the Bylaws is being requested which basically serves the ACSA in its continual push to secure its grasp on the Aquarina Community.  There is a change proposed to increase the term limits of the ACSA Directors with the excuse that we need to keep knowledgeable and experienced Directors in their positions; another change is to increase the number of Director candidates to run for Directorship from any one of the Neighborhoods from 2 to 3, to foster taking advantage if a particular Neighborhood may have folks that the ACSA feels will better assist it. It also can be said that the information provided to the Residents reads unclear in its explanations for what is to be voted upon. The information lends itself to multiple interpretations, and what has been added and deleted from the Bylaws with the red-line technique was bungled. All intentional, or just being over the ACSA’s head in what it wanted to say.

Let’s take a look at each one of these requests of which a vote will be placed for a Yes or a NO.

Remember, we are dealing with a political machine that wants to continue its hold on the community, as it has over these past several years, where rampant spending, without Resident input, has gone wild, as it has been chronicled and reported in this Blog. These decided, discretionary and exorbitant costs have been blatantly forced on the Residents, e.g. the sports bar turned into full restaurant at over $1M cost, and the decided, unneeded, and currently stalled total renovation of the Lakeside Pool, at over $300K with this assessment amount sitting somewhere, but the ACSA won’t disclose where.

As alternative, how about crafting an Amendment to the Bylaws requiring a community vote to approve or not a requested expense amount offered by the ACSA Directors, if it’s over a threshold amount? The Directors would need to sell its spending amount to the Residents, where the Residents would vote Yes or NO. Further, the threshold amount could be agreed to by the Directors, which they would include in the Amendment. I’m sure with this process, they would not exercise foolishness with placing a ridiculous amount in the Amendment to be voted upon. If they were foolish, then there is the NO Vote.

Increase Directors’ Terms.  VOTE NO

If you have a successful and powerful political machine, then wouldn’t you want to keep it. The longer the hold on a Directorship, the more time you have to secure it.  If the excuse is that a particular Director is so valuable, then certainly after a fruitful term for the cabal, the Director can serve in a consultancy role, where another respected Resident can serve in the Director position. With the current and disastrous Lakeside Pool fiasco, do we really want the current Directors to have extended terms?

Increase ACSA Director Candidates from a Neighborhood.   VOTE NO

Again, if a particular Neighborhood is full of followers for the current political machine that is in place on the ACSA Board, then certainly you want an Amendment to increase the number of like followers a Neighborhood could provide as Director Candidates. Be forewarned, the Egret Trace Neighborhood has been usurped by what this Amendment would do to a Neighborhood.

Egret Trace has three Directors, like many Neighborhoods, three to four Directors are the Neighborhood norm. Of the three Egret Trace Directors, two are ACSA Directors also.  These two dual Directors therefore can vote together from an ACSA perspective on Egret Trace matters. BTW, and unfortunately, the third Egret Director, apparently is an ACSA follower.  It could be said that the ACSA oversees the Egret Trace Residents. With the current Lakeside Pool issue, where does that put the Residents of Egret Trace?

Here is an example of what can occur. Spoonbill Villas approached Egret Trace and Blue Heron to assist them in requesting Lakeside Pool documents from the ACSA, as is their right per Florida Statute. The ACSA ignored the request. Blue Heron passed on the Spoonbill Villas’ invitation. The Egret Trace Board of Directors refused to participate too; HOWEVER, this invitation was not disclosed to the Egret Trace Residents by its Directors.  The Directors made the decision not to participate on their own without the Egret Trace Residents having the chance to participate with Spoonbill Villas, as a Neighborhood or individually. Why no participation? Maybe because the participation would not be in the ACSA’s interest. Hmm.

The Egret Trace Residents never knew about the invitation. As an Egret Trace Resident, I never was told by any means. This situation is a full stop conflict of interest for these Egret Trace Directors, and they apparently showed where their loyalty lies as a result of this matter, and it shows how Neighborhoods can be not properly served with Directors having two roles, one for the ACSA, and the other for their Neighborhoods.

The further irony is that Egret Trace is a Lakeside Pool Neighborhood.  There is obviously an “Us and Them” scenario now among the three Pool Neighborhoods and the ACSA. The dual Directors existing on the Egret Trace Board of Directors certainly has made their loyalty choice known to their Neighbors.

Laying the groundwork for dual Directorships in a Neighborhood is the proverbial “letting the wolf into the chicken coop.”

VOTE  ALL  NO’S

COMING SOON – ACSA’s COMING VOTE ON CHANGING THE BY-LAWS FOR DIRECTOR TERMS AND ELECTIONS SEEMS UNUSUAL, BY CALLING THE VOTE AFTER MOST RESIDENTS HAVE LEFT. BLOG DISCUSSION TO FOLLOW.

COMING SOON – IN WHAT ACCOUNTS ARE ALL THE LAKESIDE POOL FUNDS IN THE ACSA 2026 BUDGET BEING HELD?

FURTHER CONCERNS – ARE THESE FUNDS BEING HELD AS GENERAL ACSA RESERVE FUNDS, WHICH MAY BE NOW USED FOR A GOLF COURSE RENOVATION?

REMEMBER THE $300,000 OF SET ASIDE RESERVE FUNDS MEANT FOR THE COMMUNITY POOL, WHERE FUNDS WERE SPENT ON RENDERINGS AND PLANS? WHERE ARE THE BALANCE OF THESE FUNDS?

NOW A PROPOSAL OF UNLIMITED TERM LIMITS FOR DIRECTORS?

THE ACSA CABAL APPEARS TO BE TIGHTENING ITS HOLD ON AQUARINA

WE NEED EXPLANATIONS AND A DIALOGUE!

SEE CONTINUAL UPDATES WITHIN THIS POST ON THE QUESTIONABLE BOARD OF DIRECTORS’ ELECTION

Let me first say that Aquarina as an entity and a community will survive and is bigger and will outlast the petty politics, and grade school behavior (from my personal experience with ACSA Board interaction) of those now in control of Aquarina’s administration, i.e. the ongoing Board of the ACSA, its operatives, the AGI, and First Service Residential.  Aquarina is bigger than the minions attempting to run Aquarina’s operation. Certainly, there are those among the administrative circle who have good intentions, and occasionally perform appreciated deeds for the Residents; however, and unfortunately, it’s those among the self-serving cabal, who have reigned misery upon the Residents with its failures because of its narcissistic and its incompetent conduct.

As an ongoing Resident here for decades, I had assisted the German developer, the Warsteiner Beer Family, selling their product of residences, i.e. condos (Tidewater and Egret Trace), and townhomes (Blue Heron). When the Germans sold its development to another developer, other residences, including single family residences emerged, and continued to grow, and there is still space for more growth.

Aquarina is unique to Brevard County in its composition, both in design and location.

There can be two areas to evaluate when you have a community like Aquarina.  Its resort characteristics jump out first, e.g. private ocean access, river access, 18 hole golf, gated, clubhouses, pool, etc. This is all great stuff, but being great stuff, it requires oversight, and, more importantly, knowledgeable maintenance. Then there is the entertainment aspect, which can be a narcotic, especially, when you factor in a socialization and wanting to belong enticement. Golf, tennis, fishing, biking, various social clubs, all contribute to this enticement to gather, and have friends; it’s expected and natural.

However, it would seem that the administration of the maintenance would be a priority.  BTW – this priority also includes Expenses and Reserves, and to a lesser extent, Betterments (costly additions to what is thought to be improvements to the community). It’s the Betterments where the ACSA has apparently focused, and where an enormous amount of our funds has been spent without Resident input. You would think the mindset for Betterment would be tempered with the current local and country-wide state of the economy. With rising inflation, rising insurance costs, and new Florida requirements for buildings, was there a concern on the financial stress that could be suffered by the Residents?  Were these indulgent and discretionary decisions creating immense costs (e.g. the un-needed renovated restaurant and the un-needed totally renovated Lakeside Pool) acting in the best interests of the Residents and practicing a fiduciary responsibility for the Residents Funds. This was the oath these ACSA Directors pledged to be Directors.

Keep in mind that in addition to maintaining the infrastructure of a resort like Aquarina, there is the continued cost of two possibly revenue generating businesses, golf and tennis. The caveat here is that these two businesses can be socially driven and also revenue driven. To further stir the pot is that there is almost $3M in yearly maintenance fees that are available to whomever is in charge of administrating the funds. Now let’s summarize what we have here, 1) A resort type community with an infrastructure of certainly costly and valuable assets to maintain and operate, and 2) A band of concerned and enthusiastic Residents materializing through a political atmosphere to seize control, through the means of an election to secure directors to run the community from their band of volunteers. The possible result is that this band of volunteers now have placed themselves in a position of control to oversee a resort to enjoy for themselves, and with anyone else from the community who enters their cabal.  Remember, there is an annual and continuing war-chest of nearly $3M that must be managed by guess what?  The name of this scenario is an HOA (Home Owners Association), all done by volunteers.

Before I continue with examples of the results from which I just described, and possible alternatives that could be implemented to neutralize the narcotic driven actions Aquarina has been experiencing, I will tell you where my point of view on resort communities was derived.  For over the past 43 years I have been, and still am, a real estate broker in both Florida, particularly Brevard County, and Hawaii, particularly on the island of Maui. I have companies in both locations, and I commute back and forth overseeing these companies and my agents. The Hawaii company has been downsized, with less travel there, but the company here, Premier Properties Real Estate remains very active.  I worked with mostly Resort properties on Maui, and Residential and Commercial properties here in Brevard. I have served on multiple HOA’s in all officer rolls here in communities in Melbourne Beach, including Aquarina.

Now to review what we have experienced, and in some cases endured, here in Aquarina, the following are examples.

• The Aquarina Bylaws provide that the Board of Directors decide from the maintenance fees, which amounts are spent on expenses, reserves, and betterments, betterments being improvements and major repairs. The big ticket items for betterments that have been spent are a new maintenance building for golf, a water well for golf, and new equipment for golf. The betterments continue with the gym being relocated to the administration building, and the auditorium for the Club House expanded. Further betterments spent were the total renovation and expansion of the Sports Bar, the Brassie Grille to a full-blown new restaurant, where a current restaurant business, is hopefully paying the Residents with a lease. I am sure AGI is a filtering device for any lease payments. Have you seen a restaurant lease among the contracts appearing in the Aquarina website? Hmm.

These betterments were well into six figures, with the Brassie Grille falling into the seven figures. These expenditures were all determined by the Volunteer Directors. There was no Resident vote. There was no Resident and Board discussion.  Shortfalls arose with the restaurant. The Board beseeched  its cabal of followers to make loans to the Residents, probably for construction overruns, that would be repaid to the followers with a market interest rate.  What about the Residents that did not want a $1M plus restaurant? They were forced to pay on a created loan by a fellow Resident that they would have to pay back plus interest.  You could call this a win-win for the cabal. Hmm.

SOLUTION

Many HOA’s have in its Bylaws that when an expense rises above a threshold amount, a Resident vote is requires to approve or not approve the expense amount. Aquarina could create such an Amendment.  We need a Board and a process to suggest that approach.  Residents could request that such an Amendment be crafted.  It makes sense not only to control the spending, but it also provides an avenue for a discussion about the need for the expense.

• An interesting matter has arisen that appears to have occurred with our recent Board of Directors’ election.  The Bylaws are very specific on the qualifications for a candidate to run for a Director’s position. Article V Section 1 states a candidate must be a Member of the Association, i.e. an Aquarina property owner, or an officer of a corporation that owns an Aquarina property. One of the elected Directors may not be a property owner per the County records. If this is the case, then the vetting process by First Service Residential and the ACSA Board did not occur.

 SOLUTION

There would need to be an Amendment to our Bylaws to make an exception to Article V Section 1. This writer could not fine such an Amendment. If it does exist, or if there is another explanation, then can someone share it with our readers?

This fact has been broached now four days with no response, which means that we may have a non-property owner ACSA Board Director , a Bylaws’ violation. It would be appropriate to clear this situation asap.

Bottomline – The Brevard County records do not show an elected Director as a Aquarina property owner. Please explain to the folks the justification for this situation.

Day six with no response to the apparently irregular ACSA Board of Directors’ Election. The evidence is available to demonstrate this irregularity, and it will be offered by request. Does silence to a Resident’s question to an important event’s procedures establish culpability?

• With a community, such as ours, Handicap concerns should be a priority and should be addressed without delay. This has not been the case with our ACSA Board. The lift/elevator in our beach clubhouse has been inoperable for the most of the past decade. Repairs were made and failed. Now it is allegedly fixed; however, an 8.5” X 11” sheet of paper is taped to the elevator door to provide instructions for its use. What! I have seen one button elevators for up and down use in residential homes with less space available for an elevator than what the Beach Clubhouse offers. Over $1M spent on a restaurant renovation for fun, but a simple operational elevator for handicap Residents for use of their Beach Clubhouse is an afterthought.

In addition, the existing handicap ramp for beach access was nearly not completed because the permits were left to apparently expire, until someone reminded the ACSA of the soon terminating permits. Again, the priorities of the ACSA Board are Entertainment, and its Administrative responsibility in many cases is put off to be a quickly addressed burden. First Service Residential is a responsible party too. Along with AGI, the two are no more than pawns and shills in the ACSA cabal’s focus for fun and control.

Yet another failed matter is the water supply at the boat ramp. We have a wonderful launch and fishing area here in Aquarina. The water supply has been down for weeks because of an alleged water leak, and certainly is an important feature of that facility to address asap, and to provide updates as to its resolution. Nothing has been announced on its return of use.

SOLUTION

We need a meeting before a Board of Directors’ election, where candidates can be quizzed on their priorities, and provide answers to a Meeting of Residents, i.e. a Townhall Meeting. Having a social gathering with adult beverages is not the path to determine the feasibility of a candidate’s focus before a group of Residents, and for the Residents to make a clear decision on which candidates will work for an Administrative focus, whereby Residents approve large spending decisions, and the candidates have a focus for the well being of the whole community.

• First Service Residential (FSR) needs to be re-evaluated for its performance.  Its participation and its complicit behavior of the past flaws in the ACSA’s decisions shows its allegiance, and the result of its incompetence is well documented. Its representatives stay huddled in the Administration Building.  Do you ever see them in the neighborhood overseeing the daily condition of the community, or engaging Residents? Probably once or twice. We do pay their salaries; however, the ACSA cabal controls their actions; they are its confederates and spokesperson.   

In addition, the flag of failure, now hovers over the ACSA with the Lakeside Pool debacle. This Blog has provided the narrative of this disaster, and the Lakeside Pool area remains a scar and a festering boil on the Aquarina community. It’s not what you would expect to see in a Resort community, and it’s going on for nearly three years.

The current status is not good. We were told the pool area would be leveled and cleaned up, and construction materials brought to the pool site – weeks ago. As of a few days ago, the Brevard County Permit Office shows 4 of 5 requests from over a month ago still stand unanswered from the pool contractor.

The Pool Contract, which was heard to be not reviewed by Aquarina paid attorneys, (and if it was reviewed, then that’s a further problem,) is unclear and worded to be open ended.  August 15 2024, appears to be the commencement date of construction; however, the two year period to complete construction commences at the time the slab is poured, which was to occur “on or about” August 15, 2024. The slab still does not exist to this date.

Again, this could be interpreted to be an open ended contract, which means it could be contrived to go on and on, and it appears to be going in that direction.

SOLUTION

The question becomes, when will the Pool Residents say “Enough”?  How further will the knife need to be deepened into the Pool Residents, until their patience becomes over? Unfortunately, any legal action would not help speed this endless process, rather it would bring the process to a standstill.  It’s a standby situation on this dilemma; the ACSA needs to fess up to its blunder, provide transparency for its efforts to correct what it’s done with weekly updates. If this action is not done, then it’s a further slap in the face on the Pool Residents., and demonstrates the evil of which this cabal is capable.

• Further festering facts –

The Pool Contract with Phoenix as agreed to by the ACSA has been a disaster for Aquarina, and especially the Pool Residents. The Lakeside Pool debacle is the “Poster Child” for how the ACSA behaves.

Check the Aquarina site for the 2026 Aquarina Budget and a Lakeside Pool P&L, to find a required accounting for the Lakeside Pool, i.e. name of bank holding and showing the balance of the initial $300,000 assessment, and the expenses accumulated.  If it is found, then share where in the Financials the information exists, or even where it’s buried. I have looked and asked to no avail.

If you go through the conspiring and perpetrating participants in the ACSA’s Lakeside Pool debacle, you will find that all have left Aquarina, are selling their property, or left their positions in the Aquarina community. Hmm.

SOLUTION

A Final Note on what requires investigation is to have the golf course professionally managed. AGI’s participation does not lend itself to an arm’s length relationship for a business connection. A social aspect may be between the golfers and AGI, but the management aspect should be solidly separate.

Further, it’s the marketing operation of the management that needs to be addressed, to increase the golf revenue rather than having the Residents continually subsidize the golf’s operation. The golf maintenance has always appeared a solid part of the golf’s operation, the marketing needs to follow. If you are the cabal, does it make sense to encourage public play to generate revenue when you know that all the Residents are required to pay for the golf course among their maintenance fees?

Actually, the same should exist with the current restaurant business in our new renovated $1M plus renovated building. The Residents’, and particularly ACSA’s focus, needs to be collecting checks from a golf management company, and the restaurant business owner, with no intermingling where favors emerge.

Your thoughts?

COMING SOON – THE FOCUS OF ACSA – ENTERTAINMENT OR MANAGEMENT?

QUESTION? MUST AN ACSA DIRECTOR BE AN AQUARINA PROPERTY OWNER?

The coming Board of Directors’ election is the time where the current Board sets itself in a position to continue its power and control of the Aquarina Community. Let’s look at the means by which this process is crafted to keep the current cabal in place. The mechanics are as follows.

• The first hurdle is to corral the needed majority of voters to attain a quorum.  The last election was short a majority up to the day before the election. Pleading for voter participation by First Service Residential squeaked the required number to create a voting event. This certainly shows the Residents’ apathy and probable disenchantment with the ACSA.
• To possibly ease the voting process for the Residents, electronic voting has been introduced with ACSA purchased computers and software. Unfortunately, as is well known now, this type of voting is susceptible to manipulation. Are roughly 400 plus Aquarina ballots too much of a burden to count, where the check and balance of securing the ballots and hand counting them involves oversight and authenticity to the count? Computers and its software can be subject to an ease and quickness of change. As a past ballot watcher for national elections, I know and oversaw the electronic process, where a key is available for software access and a button is activated for a total count.  At the last Directors’ election, we were told hand written ballots could be submitted; however, when I passed over my ballot, I was scolded by First Service Residential onsite staff, that I must enter my vote at the computer, or my ballot would be refused.
• Let me say that I salute the Residents that volunteer to be Directors and provide their energy and time to support the community. Among those I just described, were individuals who had a whole community vision, and who attempted to offer community minded actions rather than political cabal decided actions where the cabal agenda for power and control were practiced.
• These community minded individuals were basically forced out or proselytized by the cabal directors, whose established and continued majority position on the Board reign with their control.
• One of the means, among many, which I’ll explain, is the appointment of Directors rather than voting them in, which are Bylaws allow, when a current Director unexpectedly resigns. Wouldn’t a cabal Board of Directors appoint one of their acolytes?
• To show the cabal’s assertive assurance with its actions in the community, a Board President resigned in mid-term, in the midst of self-inflicted controversy, and was replaced with an appointment of a Resident. Now this past President is boldly back as a Board Director candidate.  Do you think this is an act of self-assurance for the ACSA to do as it wants, and re-instate its acolyte? Absolutely! And here’s one vote this Director Candidate won’t receive, and I  wager that I’m not alone.
• We have ACSA Board Directors, who are also Board Directors in their neighborhoods. This blatantly can be a conflict of interest. Ironically, this exists with ACSA Directors as Directors in a Pool Neighborhoods. As we know, the Pool Neighborhoods were steamrolled by the ACSA, i.e. the ACSA commanded and ordered how the Lakeside Pool would have an unneeded partial demolition, and an unneeded total renovation. The whole situation was contrived with misinformation, and where requested ACSA explanations of its pool decisions were refused and ignored.  Bottom Line – If ACSA Directors are also neighborhood Directors, then they should recuse themselves with matters when neighborhoods have issues with the ACSA. For example, a situation occurred where one of the Pool Neighborhoods’ Directors asked if the other two Pool Neighborhoods’ Directors would join in enlisting an attorney to draft a request for Lakeside Pool documents to determine what was holding up the pool’s renovation, since ACSA transparency and disclosure were non-existent.  This request for Pool Neighborhood assistance was refused by the other two Pool Neighborhood Directors, where one Pool Neighborhood had two ACSA Directors on its Board, and the request was never communicated to these Directors’ Residents.  Again, there is an assurance of control and acting as it pleases among the ACSA Directors.  Certainly this matter should have been brought to the Residents attention for a discussion.
• The Aquarina community needs a Resident participatory process with its ACSA Board of Directors. I know a situation where a Resident was perpwalked out of a meeting for asking a pointed question that did not want to be answered.  The folks at the meeting complained, but to no avail. I have been removed from a committee, and I have been turned down twice after volunteering for community committees. The ACSA does not want a dialogue, it wants only listening.  As has been experienced, the ACSA will unfairly and brashly strong-arm its position with its Residents.
•  A lack of information is also a technique by the ACSA Board. With this Directors’ election we were told there were three openings, but were never told which of the Directors’ had their positions expire, and the positions being up for a vote. Further, I have multiple times requested the location of the Lakeside Pool’s $300,000 plus assessment, and its spending, and was told it was in the budget, which I challenge anyone to locate. It apparently is buried among community funds. Accounting principles require a separate accounting.

It is so obvious that this cabal group’s mantra is to do what it wants with impunity, and only offer information, if asked, at its own time, and only if it feels necessary. Obviously, politics, and its fuel to entice for power and control, is succeeding. The revolving door of administration at the discretionary and unneeded renovated restaurant, and the debacle of the discretionary and unneeded Lakeside Pool renovation are the ACSA’s trophies for its self-assertiveness to and its control of its Residents.

With millions of dollars being annually spent, it’s appropriate and expected that an HOA have a check and balance system in place where a democratic Resident participation is required.

I am always open for a dialogue with these community matters; however, is compliance and complacency in control?

COMING SOON – COMMENTS TO CONSIDER WITH THE SOON BOARD OF DIRECTORS’ ELECTION

THE LAKESIDE POOL DISASTER, THAT KEPT ON PROVIDING NO HOPE FOR CLOSURE, HAS FIVE MONTHS LEFT FOR CLOSURE TO OCCUR, i.e. A COMPLETED POOL. HOPEFULLY, THE ACSA WILL REDEEM ITS SERIES OF MISS-STEPS WITH A FINAL STEP OF SUCCESS.

AAH, THOSE QUARTERLY MAINTENANCE FEES.

Aquarina has a long history of drama, politics, and a combination of both.  The German Warsteiner beer brand corporation, family owned for centuries, was the original developer of Aquarina. The family eventually sold the unfinished Aquarina development to a South Florida investor/developer, who eventually faded away, and the Aquarina community absorbed what was left, including the golf course, and established an HOA (ACSA, i.e. Aquarina Community Services Association) to take control.

Keep in mind that Aquarina is a unique community in Brevard County, and its closest competitors are in Vero Beach, where prices dramatically rise to levels that accompany world wealth. Aquarina offered somewhat similar amenities and facilities to its Vero Beach neighbors; however, Brevard County’s South Beaches offered better Beaches and less density and crowds.  Aquarina’s potential for success was ripe, yet it was also seen, by some, as a prize to nurture and hold, for themselves.

When Aquarina was taken over by its Residents following the demise of the last developer, the huge debt and management of a golf course, in addition to the management of an ocean to river “resort” type community, were laid at the Residents’ feet. The HOA was assembled of willing Residents, and Aquarina moved forward, with the employment of a management company for assistance. Let the politics and drama begin.

Decisions of how to manage the Aquarina community were handled by the HOA of elected Directors, who chose its President, Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary. As human nature would have it, there are always those who gravitate to a position of service for the community, and, yes, a position of control and power, which accommodates these positions.

With maintenance fees justifiably higher than most communities, considering its amenities, the annual total fees collected have now reached a few million dollars per year.  These fees were managed by a few volunteers, i.e. the Directors of the ACSA.

To set the table, consider we have a resort community with its expected amenities to maintain, and annual maintenance fees of nearly $3,000,000; all managed by a group of volunteers. Also consider, that HOA’s, which had been granted huge and broad powers, caused the Florida legislation to rein in some of the HOA’s power. Why? Because of the public outcry to HOA’s that sometime abuse its Residents.

Back to Aquarina, several years ago, a group emerged (the cabal) that saw an HOA opportunity, using the current Aquarina Bylaws, to control the community for its purposes, sometimes its selfish purposes. To ensure this opportunity, the cabal and its leader, stacked the ACSA Board of Directors with its cabal acolyte members. Further, it was determined, generally speaking, that the Residents, as a whole, were compliant and complacent to events and decisions that the ACSA (Aquarina Community Services Association) put in place. The compliance and complacency could be understood, since Aquarina has folks where finances are not an issue, and folks, who want to be left to themselves and their social group without concern of the administration of the community. However, there is also those, who see the HOA’s somewhat, at times selfish behavior, not being in the best interest of the Aquarina Community, where some Residents are not serviced, and required community maintenance is overlooked and put off, e.g. the almost lost permit for the beach handicap access, and the Beach Clubhouse’s ever failing elevator/lift that provides handicap people, who may have problems with stairs, access to the Beach Clubhouse. It’s a debacle that has been lingering for over a decade. I had to have a wheelchair bound woman carried up the Beach Clubhouse stairs to attend a celebration of life for deceased co-worker. However, Aquarina consistently supplies a full calendar of social events and parties. Hmm.

Three huge deficiencies in our Bylaws feed and nurture the opportunity the now named ACSA “cabal” implemented for its selfish wants. One deficiency is that no spending limit was in place on the HOA, the second deficiency is no Resident voting was required for any spending, and the third deficiency is the HOA has discretionary control on how spending on expenses, reserves, and betterments (community improvements) will be distributed.

When you mix these three deficiencies, with human nature, nearly three million dollars of revenue fees, and “volunteer Directors” with a position of control and power, who are expected to service the best intentions for the Residents of the community, there may be temptations that derail the expected best intentions.  Let’s see what has transpired with this governing situation.

First let’s review the history of this community cabal. A new Resident moved here several years back, who saw the opportunity, with our current Bylaws, to take control of the community. Fellow Residents of this new Resident, the acolytes, became followers, and they managed to have themselves elected to be on the ACSA as Directors. In addition, AGI (Aquarina Golf Inc.) was embellished as a subgroup of the ACSA to direct the golf course and sports bar. The cabal machine was now in place. The new Resident and the acolytes boasted that Aquarina was the least expensive place to play on a golf course in Florida. Keep in mind that the all the Residents are responsible parties in the payment for and the upkeep of the golf course, not just those that play. AGI, the cabal subgroup, runs the course, makes the decisions on the costs to play, the marketing to the public, and the hiring and payment of the golf employees.  Also remember, the ACSA and AGI are both run by volunteer Residents with nearly $3,00,000 of maintenance fees, of the Residents annual revenue.

During this past time of the cabal’s rein, (which continues, to be explained later) many Betterments were acquired. The Betterments included a new golf maintenance building and golf equipment, a new golf course irrigation well, a total renovation of the sports bar and a patio area, and an attempted demolition of the Lakeside Pool for a new Pool Area, where now an assessment paid renovation is struggling to be started, all overseen by the ACSA cabal of volunteers. It’s a catastrophe.

As I mentioned earlier, there is no spending cap for the ACSA Directors, no Resident voting process in place for spending, and no restraint on what area to spend, i.e. Reserves, Expenses, or Betterments. The Board Directors have carte blanche authority with spending, which can have the possibility to be a bad recipe for financial decisions.

Back to the politics of the cabal Board of Directors. The new Resident that came into the community and forged the cabal Board had passed; however, chosen and mentored acolytes would continue the Board’s direction of spending or not spending. The plus $1,00,000 sports bar renovation, and the maybe coming Lakeside Pool renovation with an over $300,000 paid assessment, are two huge recent expenses that show the cabal’s network of control.

Two of the chosen cabal acolytes were Directors and advocates during the time of the decisions for the sports bar renovation and the Lakeside Pool proposed renovation, i.e. Betterments.   Both these renovations were absolutely discretionary and not necessary, and, per our Bylaws, not requiring a Resident vote. Interestingly, of these two advocates, one of the cabal Directors was not voted back to the Board, and another decided not to run. However, another acolyte was found, and the cabal anointed this acolyte as President, who obviously was employed to sign both these contracts for the two Betterments.  The cabal continues, interestingly, even with is cabal leaders absent from the Board. Of further interest, is that the chosen signer of the contracts resigned. Deeds were done and overseen, and then the cabal advocates left.

The question becomes, who is directing the Board Directors?  The train of acolytes  has come and gone, all while the ACSA’s policy of discretionary and extravagant policy of spending remains. What further supports an outside control factor is that we never know how Board decisions are made. Is outside direction existing among past acolytes? Is there a vote among the directors on spending decisions? The Residents are merely told what the Board will do. For example, there was a Board Meeting where one Director questioned a decision that was stated by the President, which the Director knew nothing about.  At another Pool Resident Meeting, a past cabal ACSA President, stood up and defended the speechless chosen and employed now President, who was unable to defend a Board’s chosen shills’ decision to demolish the Pool Area. The past President saved the day, but remember that the past President and the past Director, who failed to secure re-election, both of whom were instrumental in the unneeded renovated sports bar expense and the unneeded Pool renovation assessment, had their acolyte chosen President to sign the contracts for both these liabilities placed on the Residents’ backs. Oh yes, the chosen acolyte President shortly resigned following the signings. There’s an expression called “Hit and Run”.  Does it fit here?

Again folks, it’s all politics, power, and control. When you have a complacent and compliant population of residents, human nature, politics, power, and control will prevail.  This is especially so, when you have an annual nearly $3,000,000 in the Residents’ maintenance fees to fuel the cabal machine.

There is an argument that the past Resident that entered Aquarina, several years ago, to establish a cabal of acolytes to oversee and direct Aquarina, created a political power within the community that still exists, both outside the ACSA, and within the current ACSA, where the cabal chosen Directors sit. Currently, there will be three Director positions available up for a vote, which will be decided at the April Community Meeting. We were not told whose Director positions are to be filled; however, trust me, the chosen candidates have been groomed by the cabal, and the cabal’s voters have been cabal mustered.

Here is a more detailed recap that had occurred that further explains the hold that the cabal has on the Aquarina HOA, i.e. the ACSA and its collaborator, i.e. AGI.

Remember, during the restaurant renovation and the current Lakeside Pool debacle, there were two Directors who took the lead on these two huge un-needed expenditures. One was not re-elected and the other decided not to run for Directorship.  The selected cabal acolyte (who was placed as President), who was chosen to carry out these two, now gone, Directors’ cost prohibitive projects, signed the contracts for these projects, and later inexplicably re-signed. Ironically, the resigned President, was brought back to oversee the Pool renovation and its ongoing debacle, and a companion was appointed secretary of AGI. Oh yes, the other Director, who was not re-elected had a family member take the failed re-elected Director’s place on the Board.

This cabal has a grip on Aquarina’s HOA, and each Directors’ election is groomed for the cabal to continue its hold. If the Aquarina community is compliant, content, and complacent with the current HOA, then it’s an agreeable group of Residents. If not, then an effort cries out to congregate a collection of like minded Residents, who want to see their funds spent in a more democratic participatory manner, where indulgent and discretionary Betterments (restaurant and pool) would be a community decision and not an edict by a cabal ACSA Board. A sincere effort needs to be crafted and displayed to have the golf course pay for itself, and the restaurant handled by a professional restaurateur, who pays a fair lease. Volunteers running these two entities is not fertile ground for an arm’s length relationship between volunteers and employees of these two Board businesses.

The coming Board Meeting where three Directors are to be voted in for Director seats, may be an opportunity for a fresh approach to how Aquarina in managed.

Your thoughts?

BTW – Keep in mind the following for some of the ACSA’s questionable previous and current actions.

• Unlimited discretionary spending by the ACSA without a Resident vote, e.g. renovated Brassie Grille, golf buildings and equipment, renovated Lakeside Pool.
• Nearly forgotten permitted handicap ramp access to beach.
• Over a decade of occasionally addressing The Beach Clubhouse lift/elevator, which continues to be a problem.
• No specific accounting (which accounting principles require) for the Lakeside Pool assessment of over $300,000, e.g. not knowing where the funds are banked, no P&L Statement of expenses and revenue. Almost two years have passed with no documents of accountability.
• Apparent casual behavior with contracts, e.g. signed Lakeside Pool renovation contract with no Aquarina attorney approval. The consensus is that it’s a flawed contract.
• No disclosure to Residents of the renovated restaurant lease.
• No disclosure to Residents of names of the Director seats to be filled by vote. 
• The constant change of management and employees with the Brassie Grille and the list of other people that have come and gone with the renovated Restaurant.  All this unsettled parade at the cost to the Residents’ funds.
• Also, AGI oversees the golf operation, i.e. marketing, maintenance, hiring, etc., it’s quite an operation; all done by volunteers. Do you think any of them play golf? Golf courses have professional management companies, where an arm length operation exists among owners, employees, and players. Hmm.

If any of these conditions are misunderstood, then I invite for these conditions to be clarified.

*** NEW UPDATE. COMING SOON. Who is Really in Control of the ACSA? ***

MORE TO COME – THE POOL CONTRACTOR CONTINUES WITH ITS EMPTY PROMISES , AND THE ACSA CONTINUES ITS APATHETIC RESPONSE, AS PERMITS STILL DO NOT EXIST AT BREVARD COUNTY FOR THE POOL RENOVATION.

POOL RESIDENTS NEED THEIR OWN OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE TO DEMAND ANSWERS FROM THE ACSA. HAS ANYONE AMONG YOU HAD ENOUGH?

************************************************

The Lakeside Pool Under the Pool Residents’ Control for the past 30 Years Before ACSA ‘s Taking, Control, and Unnecessary Destruction of Its Pool.

The Photos Tell the Story and Say It All.

However, a pause for faith, peace, and family. Have an enjoyable Holiday Season.

OR

AND LET’S TAKE A VOTE TO SPEND OVER A LIMIT OR NOT

As we know, an HOA is a political stage where those that have assembled a like kind group of followers, will seize this stage for their theatrics, and control an HOA community, as we have seen here in Aquarina. What follows is that many times the typical selfish results of the theatrics will disclose an underlying existence of a compliance and complacency, which further feeds the selfish theatrics.

Two recent incidents of these theatrics were the total renovation of The Brassie Grille, and the total renovation of the Lakeside Pool, which were both thrust upon the Aquarina Residents without a community discussion of both need or cost. If our Bylaws or our Amendments had a threshold amount of spending, where a proposed spending amount could be limited at a threshold line, then a vote could be triggered to allow a higher amount of spending or deny the higher amount of spending.

Apparently, it appears that our Bylaws and existing Amendments do not currently provide such a control mechanism on spending. The ACSA Board obviously knows this flaw, and rather than providing a prudent mechanism for stifling this abuse, it ignores this process of spending control, since it would not enhance its selfish and condescending actions with the Residents. The tragedy in all this becomes more apparent when the ACSA Board uses this flaw in our documents for indulgence to serve a few or the cabal. The renovated restaurant, at a cost of $1M plus, was fine as a comfort food sports bar, as it was intended to be.  And the Lakeside Pool’s noted deficiencies, which were mostly untruths, could have been fixed per code within a month at a third of the now cost agreed to by the ACSA. In addition, the ACSA agreed to a three year period for the renovation to its paid up front contractor, to complete this unneeded renovation. These exorbitant costs, in a bullying manner, were foisted on the Residents. The Lakeside Pool’s three neighborhoods were especially bullied and abused, since they voted with a majority vote for a contractor plan of a cost effective one month repair. Further, even though these three neighborhoods have exclusive use of the pool, have total liability for the pool, and have all the maintenance and its costs for the pool, their input was stifled and ignored, and those few Residents, who protested, were banished from any pool discussions, in favor of ACSA selected Residents, who were both compliant and complacent following the ACSA Board’s and its spokesperson, from the management company, demands to this crafted Resident Pool Committee.

The restaurant renovation, in addition to the enormous cost, was certainly a stage for the cabal group’s theatrics, where a prudent restaurant business model could not be established, as turnover after turnover of employees and managers have occurred. The Residents have been paying for the restaurant and its amateur management, i.e. as overseen by the cabal perpetrators. The solution here is to search for a professional restaurant or food service business to occupy, through a commercial lease, to generate some income to pay for this now unnecessary asset for which we now have to continually pay.

This Blog’s appeal for a Bylaws’ change for spending through amendments is provided in the Bylaws for an amendment process to occur, and having a limit or threshold amount to spend followed by a Resident vote for or against an amount over the threshold can be considered a sensible change to the Bylaws. It would provide a structure that would prevent a Board, for which we have been currently subject, to perform reckless discretionary spending without Resident input.  This discretionary spending, for what the Bylaws describe as Betterments, again exemplified by the restaurant and pool renovations, could be put to a Resident vote to determine if a requested exceeded cost amount is acceptable or not. Further, this amendment(s) would enforce the fiduciary responsibility that the Board members pledged with their oath to the community per Florida Statutes.

When elections come up again for Board Directors, hopefully, candidates for directors will emerge that support this change to the Bylaws, which will certainly provide a check and balance system to curb this exorbitant discretionary spending.  Other communities have this system, and Aquarina should have it too, especially with the reckless and bullying behavior that the Aquarina Residents have experienced with the current Board majority’s free-wheeling spending.

Discretionary decisions in favor of spending on Betterments needs to be overseen when a Board of Directors’ focus appears to be feeding its cabal of followers with selfish perks. Having a Spending Limit process in our Bylaws would function as a legal overseer of possible irresponsible Board decisions with spending, and other non-fiduciary actions. 

An example of the Board’s lack of focus with community priorities, and its blindness to its, by Florida Statute, fiduciary responsibilities, has been clearly demonstrated with the Beach Club lift, i.e. elevator, and the beach access ramping. Both these projects, which should have been driven and recognized by handicap demand, were put off and ignored for years, with the ramp access nearly losing its permit for construction because of Board apathy. The renovated restaurant and Lakeside Pool were the Betterment priorities while handicap matters became an afterthought. BTW – is the lift operational? We are constantly emailed about more entertaining events and restaurant menus, which appear to be the Board’s focus, through its in-house and social organizer arm, AGI (Aquarina Golf, Inc.).

The Residents have the means to control the direction of its community, and its Board’s spending. A limit for spending with discretionary costs would make sense by providing the Residents a voice and control of unnecessary and unneeded spending, yet it’s never been broached to the Aquarina community.  Why?

COMING SOON

A discussion where the Residents would decide by vote, to spend over or not, on an agreed upon spending limit.

*** 10/07/2025 UPDATE BELOW, WHICH FOLLOWS THIS CURRENT POST ***

Aquarina Golf, Inc. aka AGI, has been managing Aquarina’s amenities now for several years. It’s basically a group of Resident volunteers and an elected, and in some cases appointed, ACSA Board of Directors, all who have their hands in the pot of the Residents’ funds to feed these amenities to keep them going. The amenities include, but are not limited to, the golf course, the tennis facility, the restaurant, the clubhouses, the Lakeside Pool (a whole story in itself) and the administration building.

Each one of these amenities certainly requires a skillset to run and to maintain in a successful manner. However, politics and egos are certainly possible to occur where human nature may tempt to overcome these Resident Volunteers, where there are control factors and free spending available to use, as temptations.

I am sure there is a dollop of giving to the community with the actions of these Resident volunteers; however, the control of the above amenities and the free spending available to these volunteers, which can be a narcotic, and, again, because of the frailty of human nature, it appears that AGI will not give up its hold on these amenities, in spite of continued loses.

The three amenities that are the consistent drain of the Resident funds are the golf course, the restaurant, and to a lesser degree the tennis complex.  The Resident volunteers who oversee these three amenities are avid supporters and participants of these amenities, and they surely want to keep them going in a manner that maintains their participation. All of Aquarina’s amenities are generally considered common property for all the Residents, and the ACSA, through its AGI machine, oversees and controls the amenities existence, which, again, are common properties to the community. The result of this AGI controlling approach has been yearly losses for these three alleged revenue producing amenities. There never seems to be consternation or regret for the losses, since the Residents’ funds subsidize any losses that occur, which appear continually.

Here is a snapshot review of the history that these amenities have seen.

• The original Aquarina Restaurant, Brassie Grille, which was turned into a now Tavern by the Greens, at a cost rising above $1,000,000, and climbing, has been a mystery. An established restaurant in the area was going to occupy the now renovated restaurant, but this never occurred. Another local restaurant has been running the now Tavern by the Greens. It would be expected that a lease would be in place for the occupying restaurant, where the Residents could collect lease payments and not be in the fragile restaurant business. However, this is not the case, AGI appears to have partnered with this local restaurant. The Residents don’t know if there is a lease in place, and there is no P&L statement available on the restaurant’s performance. The Resident volunteers and AGI are in control.
• The golf course could be the main revenue generator for the Residents, after all, there are apparent ongoing payments on the loan for the purchase of the golf course from almost two decades ago, in addition to the everyday expenses.  AGI has been the group that oversees the golf course, just as it does the restaurant and tennis facility, with the golf course obviously being the big expense and hopeful revenue driver.  Like the other two amenities, the golf course has been hard pressed to run in the black, unless, of course, you factor in the Resident subsidies.  Just recently, the ACSA Board and AGI have proposed another approach to pay for the course, i.e. stating that the Residents’ quarterly fees will be subject to increases to pay for the course, and everyone can play for an undetermined trail and green fee. Apparently, there will be no more Resident golf memberships.  Although, golf memberships will be offered to the public. It would have been helpful during this proposal if a Profit and Loss Statement (year to date and without Resident subsidies) was presented to the Residents to determine golf course costs and revenues.  The Residents would then see what could occur with quarterly maintenance fees. Do you think the fees would be subject to subsidizing the golf course losses?
• The irony here is that the Residents have already been paying for all three amenities, now it’s just spelled out identifying a line-item expense for the Quarterly Fees to cover and pay.  This will then be a clear disclosed expense that certainly will not be a fixed amount expense like a mortgage payment. Trust me, this expense will be fluid and rising.  From being in the restaurant business, the Residents now continue to be in the golf business, but with a different and defined cost  and payment schedule, but still a subsidy.
• The tennis facility is no where near the restaurant and golf expenses, and historically, not been a huge financial concern, i.e. less moving parts, less employees, and maybe less drama.

There is another path to explore other than volunteerism, where volunteerism and its susceptibility with human nature result in having amateurs and egos being responsible for the AGI businesses with apparently no professional experience.  The simple answer to this “another path” is to hire a professional management company to run the golf course, and have an established restaurant or restaurateur lease the renovated building.  The leasing of the restaurant almost worked, but somehow did not materialize.  It should have been further pursued, but was not.  The current Tavern by the Greens still has AGI involved, as an apparent partner.

Unfortunately, having an independent third party, that, of course, would be chosen by the ACSA Board may be a plan of action that the current ACSA Board and AGI do not see in their best interest, since their power and control would be diminished. Contractual arrangements certainly could be agreed upon where the third-party independent business and the ACSA Board could work out a mutual agreement where both entities are satisfied.  However, isn’t the purpose here to serve all the Residents in the best manner, and do it in a cost-effective approach, with professionals in their field taking on the financial risk, and not the Residents?

Consider this – The Residents, among others, are AGI’s customers. AGI is run by a cabal of Residents and, yes, who are also customers. Is this a business arrangement with an arm’s length relationship between the cabal Resident/customers and AGI businesses?  Hmm.  The same can be said about the restaurant. Would an independent, third-party arrangement, from which Aquarina can be paid, i.e. lease payments and percentage of a golf management’s profits be a better way for these two amenities to be funded than what we have now with the AGI in control?

What is apparent is that not having an arm’s length business relationship, which will always be a questionable condition, exists with the current AGI arrangement. The history for AGI has been consistent losses, with Resident subsidies to offset or minimize these losses, and minimal AGI financial disclosure and transparency.

On a constructive and positive note, the maintenance of the golf course appears to be consistent and in acceptable condition, and the ongoing golf newsletter is informative and has an entertaining presentation.  However, the marketing for the golf course and the pro shop, which typically work together, to engage the public, appears to need overall professional help, which is available, since many golf course management companies exist in Florida. A discussion is required to at least determine how a management company would advise the current AGI management in which direction to proceed, either absorption of the current staff or have the management company come in with its own staff. Regardless, a change is needed to generate more revenue to lower the Residents’ subsidies by fostering an arm’s length environment with an outside marketing management team. The current AGI volunteers are too much influenced by a social club atmosphere, where human nature of a good time prevails, and the focus of maintaining a revenue generating golf course can easily be lost. The golf course is a wonderful asset and amenity that Aquarina has, and it should be utilized with professional oversight to maximize its potential as a revenue generator for the whole community.  The Aquarina Bylaws permit public assess and business zoning for the golf course.  Let’s maximize the golf course as a source of community funds rather than having it as a subsidized social club for a few, i.e. “Club AGI”.

Finally, the restaurant matter also needs a new approach. The restaurant was foisted on the backs of the Residents without a vote resulting in a $1M plus expenditure.  It’s initial path after construction was to have, which was thought, an established food service business to take over the restaurant, which eventually fizzled. A second food service business was found, and a bumpy road appears to have occurred on that decision too, and “Club AGI” stepped in to partnership with this second “Tenant”.  I say “Tenant” because do we know if this $1M new Aquarina asset is being leased by the “Tenant”?  Is there a lease? If so, then what is the lease payments to the Residents? This $1M asset should be placed on the commercial market as a new restaurant for lease.  A commercial Realtor should be contacted to secure an established food service business or a restaurant professional.  Again, is having “Club AGI” partner with the current “Tenant” foster an arm’s length business relationship, where generating revenue for the Residents and reducing Resident subsidies are to be the goal? Hmm.

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10/07/2025 Update

Well, it has occurred again, yet another AGI restaurant collapse, as Tavern by the Greens is gone, and a new “partnership” has been established with an apparent ongoing restaurant in the Grant area of Brevard. As expected, AGI continues with its hand in the pot of the Aquarina Residents’ revenues by locating a “partner” to control rather than an independent and arm’s length restaurant owner, who would have the confidence and know-how to run his/her own business, and pay on a lease. As has been previously stated above in this Blog, AGI will not release and give up its control, and ability to spend the Residents funds, which satisfies its selfish nature to keep “Club AGI” running.

AGI’s back pedaling continued, as the proposal to do away with Resident Golf Memberships, and have the Golf Course paid by all the Residents, as a new line item on the Residents’ quarterly maintenance fees, also appeared to collapse. Paid Memberships have returned to those who want to join the Golf Club.

How long will this continued fumbling, and iron fist control by AGI be accepted by the Aquarina Residents? Which has not even been mentioned here is the strong armed tactics performed by the ACSA, AGI’s sponsor, on the three Lakeside Pool Neighborhoods, where the pool was taken away, where an ACSA decision for an unwanted and unneeded renovation was decided, and where the Pool’s extravagant cost was also ACSA decided upon, all without the Pool Residents’ input. These Pool Residents pay for all Pool costs, have total Pool responsibility, and have total Pool liability.

Finally for now, it appears that payment for Aquarina’s amenities’ use costs must be cash or having a credit/debit card on file with AGI. Further, Marching Orders appear to exist on how restaurant reservations are made, and how seating exists. Again, all these control procedures are sourced through “Club AGI” and it’s sponsor, the ACSA.

Aquarina really needs professional management for its golf course, and an established restaurant lease paying tenant for its $1M plus renovated sports bar.

COMING SOON –

IS AGI (AQUARINA GOLF INC) THE ONLY WAY TO MANAGE OUR AMENITIES?

OUR CURRENT SITUATION

As has been explained in this Blog, the State of Florida’s legislature has recognized an HOA’s potential power over its Residents with the extreme latitude the HOA Directors can exercise with its community’s By-Laws.  More transparency and access to the HOA’s records were cited by the legislatures to be more enforced, and failure to adhere to the transparency and accessibility to HOA records can result in misdemeanors and felonies for the non-compliant HOA Directors.

There are two issues to address.  They are 1) The vetting process for Director Candidates needs to be more than a social gathering to “Meet the Candidates”. What would be better for an understanding of a potential Candidate’s character and beliefs than direct questions from an audience on such a question as “Do you believe the Residents should have a discussion and vote for expenditures that cost 100’s of thousands of dollars, e.g. an over $1,000,000 restaurant renovation, and an unnecessary closing of the Lakeside Pool for going on and approaching three years, and an unneeded pool renovation that will probably approach $400,000?

And 2) The current Aquarina By-Laws do not address discretionary unlimited spending, where spending up to a price point needs to be discussed where spending over the price point requires a Resident vote.  What we have now is unlimited spending and discretionary placement of the Resident Funds. These funds can be spent on “Betterments” (community discretionary improvements, e.g. the expanded and renovated once Brassie Grille) or placed in the Reserves Account for expected repairs and replacement of community assets.  Guess what gets funded first.

Further, if the AGI has shareholders, as apparently it does, then please explain this business arrangement that the AGI has with its shareholders and the Residents.  Remember, AGI shortfalls with paying expenses, have fallen on the Residents funds, or if this is not so, than does the payments for the shortfalls come from the shareholders? This arrangement needs to be disclosed. Show us the arrangement documents.  Show us the full tax returns, and where the Residents’ funds appear.

The current Aquarina HOA reality does not provide for Resident discussions and voting on high-cost items, and no Director Candidate Meetings with queries to those running as Candidates to determine their positions on community matters.  Further, we have an HOA Board of Directors that solely decides how much will be spent from the Residents’ Funds, and what items will be these expenditures.

We have had a few elected Board  Directors that were hoped to bring a change to the past and present HOA Board policies; however, those Directors served and left, and probably determined that a cabal majority existed, where their voice was not heard or  they were voted down.  What followed in the recent last Directors’ Election, three Director positions were available where Director Candidates could have run; however, no Candidates emerged. This was a windfall for the then present Board, where one Director ran unopposed, and the other two positions were filled by Board appointment. What a better way to solidify the current Board’s majority, with a complacent and compliant Resident response where no other voices were heard.

On another matter, real estate in Brevard County has taken a pause in activity, where just a year or so ago there existed a near frensy of buying and selling activity with rising prices not seen for some time. Buying and selling activity still exists, but at a more restrained pace. Yet other conditions unexpectedly evolved to add further brakes to the buying and selling, as explained below.

Aquarina has not escaped from this changing real estate activity, where condominiums and townhouses make up most of the buying and selling, and represent the majority of available housing in the community. It is these two sectors that have been impacted the most with our changed market. Unfortunately, these two sectors have been burdened with new Florida State required funding laws, i.e. assessments for accelerating and rising insurance costs, and further assessments for new roofs, and reserves. These recent and unexpected costs are in addition to the Aquarina maintenance fees, and have virtually grinded Aquarina to a near halt with selling and buying. As maybe a consolation, Aquarina is not alone with these crushing circumstances. All of Brevard County is also under siege with its condominium and townhouse inventory.

Because of all this unforeseen increase of ongoing expenses, why would an HOA Board of Directors, foist further financial burdens on its Residents? These were burdens of pure discretionary indulgence that were placed on the Residents without interactive discussion or a majority vote; actually, no voting existed.  Why? The cabal majority on the current Board has had no forceful resistance to its ways, revels in this situation, and is fed and encouraged to flourish with the current Residents’ compliance and complacency.

CAN AN ALTERNATIVE PATH BE CREATED TO STIFLE WHAT’S BEFORE US?

This situation of Resident bullying occurred in the past years when Aquarina was held hostage by a rogue new owner, who bought the development from the Germans.

A patriot Resident established and drove a movement under the auspices named the Aquarina Residents’ Association (ARA).  Some of you reading this Blog may remember that group, which provided an organized voice to interact with the then bullying rogue owner. This owner eventually went bankrupt as a result of his irresponsible actions, and an HOA was established and took over the Aquarina development.

Before the rogue owner’s demise, the ARA offered a unified unit to address the owner’s actions when the Residents felt they were impacted in a possibly negative way. The ARA had Resident meetings to discuss the community and how any owner plans may impact the Residents. The ARA had, in addition to concerned Residents, spokespeople who would request to meet with the rogue owner to discuss concerns. The ARA’s political base and voice demanded to be heard, and it was.

May the current Residents of Aquarina have an interest to be heard in an organized manner to address the current Board of Directors, rather than have individuals, one at a time, stand up for three minutes, and be stifled if their point of view that was contrary to the Board of Directors?  I have seen where Directors perp-walked Residents back to their seats to not be heard.

This is all politics.  The Board of Directors have had a majority hold on Aquarina now for several years. They’re well established and organized, and as a result, they have marched forward without any strong resistance to do exactly as they pleased. There have been a few Residents, including this Blog writer, who have spoken out; however, fractured individual announced concerns rather than a unified group of concerns are not apparently effective to cause change.  In politics, numbers are important to exert any change.

The historic Aquarina Residents’ Association was a catalyst that united like voices to be heard. It was built with like minded Residents, who together made a force with which to be reckoned. The Lakeside Pool fiasco is a current example, and fertile ground, where an effort should be raised among the Pool Neighborhoods, as a unified voice, to rein in the Board of Directors with their ongoing bungling of a Pool Area renovation.

A seed has been planted. Are we in need and ready to resurrect the ARA, where civil and honest discussions can occur, and where Residents’ concerns can be deliberated with the Board of Directors?

Kurt.luft17@gmail.com