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 un-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 professionals restauranters, who pay 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 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.