Westchase Community Association President Michiel Oostenbrink asked his fellow board members to consider suspending voting and use rights for approximately 145 homeowners with delinquent accounts in excess of $50. Director Rick Goldstein moved to do so, and his motion passed unanimously. Director Jack Maurer was absent.
Director Terry Boyd then delivered the treasurer’s report. He mentioned that the recent increase in the capital contribution to $2,500 had seemingly not deterred people from purchasing homes in the community. At this time last year, there had been 22 closings; this year, there have been 24 so far.
Summer camp income is also up from the same time last year, Boyd added. As of the March financials, the WCA is in the black by just under $62,000, he said. Pool closures and staffing issues contributed to the association spending substantially less on salaries than anticipated, he explained.
Oostenbrink shared that at the April Voting Members meeting, which was held earlier in the week, the VMs had asked the board to research whether the two pools needed to have lifeguards on duty. Community Association Manager Debbie Sainz contacted the association’s insurance broker, who told her that not having lifeguards would not impact insurance costs as long as appropriate signage was in place.
“Before we have any type of deliberation, I want to get the opinions of my constituents,” said Goldstein, who also serves as the VM for Woodbridge. “We pride ourselves on being an inclusive and welcoming community, and a lot of parents take advantage of going to the pool to have fun and so forth. It’s important to have sufficient adult supervision.”
“I don’t not go to a pool because there’s not a lifeguard there,” countered director Jessica Siddle. “It would put an end to all the closures due to a lack of lifeguards.”
Oostenbrink said the issue would be on the agenda of the May VMs meeting, and Goldstein said it was vital to invite residents to discuss the matter. Director Theresa Lanzar agreed.
“There’s also a part B to it, which was more discouraging to me,” Barry Anderson, VM for The Shires, interjected. “There are people that don’t feel it’s very friendly to come to the West Park Village pool. What I heard was that [residents] choose to go to the Highland Park pool because it’s more friendly.”
Sainz pointed out that there is a Florida Department of Health law that says that food is not permitted on a wet deck at a public pool, and confirmed that the Westchase pools are technically public. She was responding to a comment made at the VMs meeting regarding young residents being scolded for eating near the edge of the West Park Village pool. Siddle stated that she agreed with Anderson and the criticisms that had been leveled at the Westchase pools at the recent VMs meeting.
The board then revisited whether certain groups of Westchase residents should continue to be authorized to use the activity room at the Countryway pool for free, based upon a 10- to 15-year-old agreement. Sainz said the three authorized groups were the Scouts, the seniors’ group, and the Westchase Art Society. She clarified that the association typically charges a $250 deposit, which is kept on file if a group uses the space consistently. The WCA has a deposit from the Scouts, but not from the seniors; the art society is apparently defunct, added Sainz.
Lanzar said that the board needed some sort of objective criteria to determine which groups would be non-paying. Radcliffe VM Eric Holt said he thinks that criteria already exist within the Swim & Tennis Center guidelines. Boyd asked how the board would resolve usage conflicts between paying and non-paying groups, and Oostenbrink pointed out that a recurring non-paying reservation could impede a paying customer. Those with standing reservations should have priority, opined Board Member Nancy Sells. Boyd, who also serves on the Swim & Tennis Committee, said that they would review the guidelines and establish criteria if needed.
Siddle reported that the terms of Jon Stein and Greg James on the WOW, Inc. Board of Directors were up, and neither wanted to continue on in their positions. She appointed Brie Gorecki and Joanne Maurer to replace them, and mentioned that the next WOW board meeting would be held on April 28.
Oostenbrink then broached the question of proposed repairs to the storage room at the Countryway pool. Due to the sloping of the surrounding landscaping and issues with pavers near the room, water intrusion has eroded support beams and impacted the room’s structural integrity, he explained.
Several board members and representatives from Biller Reinhart Engineering Group Inc. and A.D. Engineering inspected the room and determined that they need to install French drains to adjust water flow and regrade the surrounding landscaping. Biller Reinhart drafted a proposal, and the board will review it before taking the next steps, said Oostenbrink.
As part of the recent contract renewal with Greenacre Properties, the management company agreed to oversee certain projects for the WCA, he reported. They are unable, however, to handle large-scale projects, given the high level of expertise required. The board has reached an agreement with Brletic, Dvorak, Inc. (BDI), a multidisciplinary engineering firm that primarily works with CDDs, to do what Greenacre cannot. Oostenbrink moved to approve the contract with BDI with edits from the association’s legal counsel, and all board members present voted in favor.
The VMs had requested that the board move forward with adding conferencing capabilities to the Countryway activity room, and Oostenbrink asked his fellow board members to consider approving a bid from Mavik Technologies for $3,498.90 to do so. He said Mavik is a small company and, therefore, is exempt from worker’s compensation; the WCA typically requires vendors to have worker’s compensation coverage, he continued. According to legal counsel, there is no provision in the WCA’s documents that requires worker’s compensation, so the board could safely approve the proposal, Oostenbrink shared.
Sells and Goldstein both expressed concerns about moving forward with a company lacking worker’s compensation coverage. Sainz pointed out that Mavik does have general liability insurance, but Goldstein said that would not protect the association from a worker’s compensation claim. John Mogge stated that the WCA could request a waiver of liability from Mavik. Sells then moved to conditionally approve the company’s proposal as long as legal counsel prepared a properly worded waiver of liability. Her motion passed unanimously.
Goldstein moved to nominate Sherida Cook to the Government Affairs Committee to serve as school liaison, and his motion passed, 6-0. He then addressed the proposed crosswalk on Linebaugh Avenue, and told the board that while GAC had hoped for a public hearing on the matter, the county planned instead to host a meeting in May at Westchase Elementary School.
Oostenbrink clarified that the county had allocated, but not yet approved, funding for the project. He said that after conducting his own research, he determined that only 44 students fall within the range of the proposed crosswalk. Goldstein urged residents to sign a petition opposing the project and asked those collecting signatures to submit them to him.
Mogge, who serves on the S&T Committee, presented some options for a potential renovation of the West Park Village pool area. The stated vision is to “preserve and enhance the Parley Pool assets for greater member satisfaction and use.” He identified necessary maintenance priorities and a master plan that included the possibility of a splash pad, cabana event space, and young adult area. Mogge stressed that the assessment was in its earliest stages and that moving forward the committee wanted input from both VMs and community members.
Sainz told the board that the pool slide has been paid for and should be delivered within three to four weeks. The upcoming summer camp is completely staffed, and two lifeguards have been hired, she added. Sainz said that she hoped to completely staff the pools by summer.
