Reggie Gillis, who serves as a supervisor on the CDD board, came to the January WCA Board meeting to voice his opinion as a Westchase resident. The CDD is moving forward with plans to pursue purchasing the Westchase Golf Club, said Gillis, and the negative interactions between local golfers and residents near the golf club need to be resolved before that can happen.
Unhappy residents have been posting unauthorized signs and verbally attacking golfers who attempt to go onto their properties, continued Gillis. Conversely, not all golfers take responsibility for damage they cause to local residences and property, he added. Gillis said he anticipated that a number of golfers would attend the January Voting Members meeting to express their concerns.
WCA President Michiel Oostenbrink stated that enforcing rules regarding signage is challenging because property managers are not permitted to go into homeowners’ backyards. Gillis explained that purchasing the golf club is important because it would protect the community’s property values and provide Westchase with revenue-generating facilities. The board briefly discussed some possible solutions and thanked Gillis for his time.
Treasurer Terry Boyd reported that the association is in a very strong financial position, in part due to recent investments of both reserve and operating funds. He reminded his fellow board members that they’d moved to purchase a new slide for the West Park Village pool at a recent meeting. He then recommended that they hold off on doing so. The Swim & Tennis and Renovations Committees are working together to create an overall vision for the pool, and Boyd suggested waiting until that vision comes together to determine which slide would best fit within it.
It may take some time for the board to implement the vision, and residents will want a slide in the meantime, responded Oostenbrink. He said he felt it was important to do what the board had already decided to do. Board Member Jack Maurer, who attended the meeting remotely, asked to table the discussion until later in the meeting when the two committees delivered their reports.
Government Affairs Committee Chair Rick Goldstein shared that the Board of County Commissioners was establishing a task force to look at ways to better prepare Hillsborough County for potential flooding and storm damage. He said he planned to speak to the commissioners the following week so the WCA could be included in those discussions.
The Department of Neighborhood Relations will host an expo on March 1 from 9 am to 12 pm at Feeding Tampa Bay, he reported. Goldstein then moved to accept John Frazier’s resignation from the GAC, and his motion passed unanimously.
S&T Committee Chair Dan Haigy noted that they have received three quotes for the LED lighting project so far; two are well within the budget, and one is far over budget. They expect to receive three additional proposals in the very near future, he added, and assured the board that they would have sufficient information to move forward by the February meeting.
At the November 2024 meeting, a resident presented a petition requesting that Countryway tennis courts #1 and #2 be converted into dual-use tennis/pickleball courts. Haigy said he expected to receive a petition from local tennis players about the potential conversion. He added that the committee planned to collect decibel readings to determine how noise from playing pickleball might affect nearby homeowners.
Boyd, Goldstein, and Board Member Nancy Sells all stated that they had received emails and/or phone calls from tennis players who were concerned about the possibility of converting the courts. Maurer, who is also a member of the S&T Committee, asked that all correspondence related to the matter be forwarded to Haigy. The next committee meeting was scheduled for January 27 at 5 pm, Haigy said.
The committee member who was assigned to lead the effort to create an overall concept for the WPV pool unexpectedly resigned, reported Haigy. The committee needs to identify a replacement, and Property Manager Debbie Sainz agreed to put out a notice to the community.
Haigy told the board that the committee agreed to host structured open pickleball play on two Saturdays from 12 to 2 pm, with the exact dates yet to be determined. The goal is to encourage more residents to take advantage of the pickleball facilities, Haigy added.
Board Member Jessica Siddle questioned whether it made sense to try to entice more residents to take up the sport when existing players are expressing concern that current facilities are insufficient for the demand. A resident interjected that there are currently 2.5 times more pickleball than tennis reservations. Board Member Teresa Lanzar suggested bringing the issue to a VMs meeting.
There is no process in place to arrange for and schedule pickleball tournaments and the committee would like to create one, asserted Haigy. Goldstein moved to allow it to do so, and all board members voted in favor of his motion.
Maurer, chair of the Renovations Committee, asked that the board return to the matter of the WPV pool slide replacement. He said he wanted to ensure that residents weren’t left without a slide, but also cited the importance of fully understanding any costs associated with the purchase, installation, and ongoing maintenance of any new equipment.
Sainz then shared that there had been an unauthorized pickleball tournament held at Westchase that was sponsored by the PBAA (Pickleball Baller Addicts Anonymous). The two PBAA coordinators were present at the meeting, and assured the board that all of the money collected was used to cover trophies, cash prizes, and food. They said that any funds left over were donated to a local charity, and acknowledged that their organization is not official. They encouraged the board to organize more formal pickleball events, to include clinics and tournaments. A second planned tournament had been moved to another community, they added.
Siddle and Boyd then presented samples of the tiles and inlays that they, along with Maurer, had selected for the women’s and men’s bathrooms at the WPV pool. Boyd moved to approve the selections, and his motion passed unanimously. The board then discussed whether there was a need for a project manager to oversee the tile installation. They decided it would be helpful, and Oostenbrink agreed to reach out to engineering firm BDI for a proposal that could be discussed at the February meeting.
A Westchase resident who serves as a community coordinator for nonprofit OneBlood asked whether she could bring the Big Red Bus to the Swim & Tennis Center to host a blood drive. She told the board she simply needed five parking spaces and bathrooms for the employees to use. Goldstein moved to approve her proposal, and all board members voted in favor of the motion.
Goldstein also moved to approve an amended document review committee resolution presented by Oostenbrink, and the motion passed unanimously. Thirteen Westchase residents volunteered for the five committee positions, and the board voted via paper ballot. Siddle made a motion to approve Mary Griffin, Cal Hargreaves, Eric Holt, Jack Maurer, and Bob Rohrlack to fill the vacancies, and the board voted 7-0 in favor of her motion.
Oostenbrink provided an update on the repair work done on the WPV pool. The board received a proposal from contractor G.A. Nichols to repair damage that had been done throughout the process, and the board wanted to be sure that they were not paying for the company to fix problems that it had created. Lanzar said it was important to hold G.A. Nichols and Ronny Snow’s Pool Patrol accountable for any damage that each had caused, and she wanted her fellow board members to review the proposal prior to approving it. Oostenbrink agreed and told the board they could vote via email after everyone had a chance to thoroughly examine it.
Four underwater lights at the WPV pool need to be replaced, and the board received two proposals to do so, reported Oostenbrink. Goldstein moved to accept the quote from Cooper Pools, and to provide Oostenbrink with final authority to ensure that they are capable of providing four functional lights. The motion passed unanimously.
Sainz said she didn’t yet have quotes for property insurance renewals. The association’s current policy doesn’t expire until February 23, she added.
