Well, so much for a quiet “Windy Season!” Mother Nature decided to give us two storms to make up for missed time. Helene was basically a missed opportunity for us as it was too far offshore to provide strong winds for SW FL. However, it did result in a storm surge for the barrier islands, especially Ft Myers Beach. It also passed close enough to Charlotte County to impact much of its low land near the Peace River. Then Milton arrived two weeks later. It was an unusual storm that originated on the west side of the Gulf of Mexico and made a direct run at the west shore of Florida. Ultimately it reached Cat 5 strength before environmental conditions reduced it to a Cat 3 just before landfall near Sarasota. Much of its damage was caused by several tornados that spun off and the storm surge that exceeded 8 feet on the barrier islands. Is it time for the bars and other businesses on Ft. Myers Beach to develop a fold up design that they can move when bad weather threatens?
After both storms Grandezza was cleaned up quickly so that there was little evidence of a storm. There was no serious damage to homes and the club so life could return to normalcy quickly. Jim Cantore of Weather Channel fame visited the Port Charlotte area to document the damage there. I guess that we should be pleased he has not visited Estero.
On to your Master Board matters. We were sorry to accept the resignation of two Master Board Directors who are moving “up north” to answer the cry of Siren’s from their children and grandchildren. Nancy Reilly, our Landscape Director, is moving to the North Carolina area. Nancy is responsible for a budget of over $425K including the contract for maintenance of the Master lawn and trees. In addition, she has been working on a development plan for the entry area and for the planting of the annuals that add to the beauty of our property.
Jack Jones has been our Communications Director who was tasked initially to find an editor for our Gazzette to replace Susan Baker who succeeded our long time editor Bob Pinnel. He convinced Susan Sherwin to take over the editorship, and she has significantly increased the contributors to the monthly editions. In addition, he and Susan have been working to convert the Gazette to a digital format.
Nancy and Jack as Directors have had a significant impact on our community, and we wish them much happiness in the cold North where nighttime temps are already in the 30s!
At the October Master Board meeting, the 2025 budget was presented by our Treasurer, Mickey Wheeler. The Master Assessment, that is collected with your neighborhood quarterly assessment, will increase by $60 to total $600/quarterly next year. This is the first increase in 4 years for the annual budget that totals $2,300K. During that time, we have been impacted by three major storms and our expenses have increased significantly including the Comcast contract ($1,150K annually) which increases about $40K/year and provides services more than 50% below the retail prices currently offered.
We also renewed the $450K annual contract with Statewide for our access control and the lease of the new patrol vehicle. Our Access Control Director, Mike Patricelli works closely with the firm and is pleased with their services especially their recruitment in this difficult market for lower salary range personnel. We also extended the contract with Juarez Landscaping for the maintenance of the Master land..
The Members Annual Meeting will be at 5:00, November 21 in the club. This will be followed by the first meeting of the Board at which time we will elect our officers for 2025. We hope to see you there.
