Per Florida Statutes, when an HOA adds or changes amenities, there should be Community input. These Statutes have been and are typically ignored with our past and current Board. The Statutes provide the HOA Resident members to certainly have a say when the amenities in their community, for which they pay and use on a regular basis, will be added to, or changed. Folks are drawn to a community because of its amenities. It does make sense for a cabal of Residents, who do not necessarily act for the WHOLE community, to have control of the amenities for its personal pleasure.
The currently Board discussed Community Pool, which was intended to come after the Kahama VII settlement, where up to $350,000 was paid to the ACSA, has become a boondoggle of wants by the current cabal Board. A pool design now being considered is directed more to a wading and party pool with pool water depth from 3.5 feet to 5 feet. Those who may consider swimming as more important than wading and partying will not see this pool as very accommodating. But are we surprised? The proposed price floor for this considered pool is at about $.75 M with it rising to $1M very rapidly with the cabal wants, e.g. covered porch areas for snack bars, cooking areas, and preparation areas for future barbecues, maybe a hot tub, and a fire pit.
The $350,000 allotment for a practical and usable pool for the whole Community could grow to a price of nearly $1M when a pool and the pool entertainment areas are added. Added BTW, for the partying cabal, and not for all of us. Trust me, folks, watch for an assessment coming to pay for this extravagance, if it’s decided this is the direction the cabal will choose. Remember, our dying Community Entrance, our languishing roads, the never completed and negligently maintained Beach Club, and our underfunded Reserves? The cabal mantra is to ignore and neglect the amenities in which they, the cabal, do not have an interest, and spend anew the Residents’ funds on what they, the cabal selfishly want.
There should be a democratic process in an HOA, which provides for a fair approach to present possible pool plans to the Community, and have the Community vote on a pool plan that the Residents prefer. The pieces of this democratic process could be as follows.
- The Presidents of each of the neighborhoods would be notified by the Board to have each neighborhood take a poll, maybe through a meeting or correspondence, to comment on Board proposed pools and each neighborhood would come up with a majority voted selection and comments.
- The represented Presidents of each neighborhood and the Board would then have a round table discussion to derive a common consensus from the WHOLE community on what type of pool and what kind amenities would accompany the pool area.
- Maybe three renditions of a pool could be done, including description, cost, and any assessment, to be seen in the Community Club House. A mail in vote, similar to the Proxy Mailing, could be sent to the pool committee for a tally on a pool selection.
All this may seem arduous, but we are speaking of maybe a nearly $1,000,000 expense with added costs for daily maintenance. The WHOLE Community needs to participate! Do we want this possible huge financial commitment made by a cabal of Residents, who have their own agenda to serve, which has been continually thrust on the Community these past several years? A thinkable $1,000,000 plus expenditure deserves an unfettered democratic process. We All deserve to have a vote and an opportunity to have a voice on this event.
BTW – if you want to see a practical and very usable pool design, look at the current pool for the Blue Heron, Egret Trace, and Spoonbill neighborhoods. It’s very accommodating for wading AND swimming with basic and cost effective amenities. A larger version of this design would be worth considering. It has been a viable and well accepted pool and pool area for decades, and cost effective.
Shouldn’t the WHOLE Community and all its Residents have a say on what kind of pool Aquarina will have? Shouldn’t there be a process put in place where all the residents have an opportunity to be heard?
