BOARD OF DIRECTORS 3
If you play tennis, but not golf, you still pay for the full cost of golf If you play golf, but never use the restaurant, you still pay the full cost of running the restaurant In an economic environment with a high cost of living adjustment (which we did not match in pay raises) and a staff who dedicated extra hours to our community in response to the hurricane, we need to be mindful of the implications of obtaining budget cuts via cutting staff, freezing wages, or implementing a hiring freeze. AMENITIES: Finally, there has been much discussion about our amenities. Seven Lakes is a community with bundled amenities. We all knew this when we purchased our homes, but what does it really mean? Put quite simply, it means that all amenities are included in our monthly dues whether we use those amenities or not. That is, your dues pay for every amenity, whether you use them or not. It should also be noted that not one amenity at Seven Lakes breaks even or makes money. Last June, when Seven Lakes brought The Tee Room back under Association management, an 18% service charge was added. These additional funds went entirely to the restaurant's employees’ salaries. Nowhere else did a resident receive a surcharge for the salary of any employee supporting any other amenity. Thus, it was decided to move the projected income from the 18% surcharge to the payroll. It will no longer appear as a service charge on individual bills starting in April. The main difference between these two amenities, besides cost, is that every resident can use The Tee Room; whereas some residents are unable to play golf because of physical or medical issues. IN CLOSING: It has been quite a year with many unexpected twists and turns. While we have accomplished much, there is still much to do. And, we have a choice in how we move forward. We are all a part of the Seven Lakes community. I have witnessed first-hand what this community can accomplish when we work collectively - the residents, the Board, and the staff. If we all work together, we will succeed. As they say, "United We Stand, Divided We Fall!" Let us all STAND UNITED! If we do, Seven Lakes will continue to flourish and move forward. Any repair costs not covered by the insurance company are the responsibility of the condominium, not the Association. Thus, if repairs to condominium X cost $500,000, and the insurance company only pays $300,000, the remaining $200,000 is then the responsibility of the unit owners in condominium X. To avoid additional costs to unit owners, a company/contractor whose costs are agreed to by the insurance company must be hired. Finding contractors, obtaining estimates, negotiating with the insurance company, and following the Lee County permitting process all take time and have caused delays in progressing the necessary repairs. With the above as a preface, when you read this article, the insurance company will have received the plans and costs of two architectural companies to begin the repairs for Buildings 3 and 25. You will be kept up-to-date on the progress of this submission. The plans and costs for repairing the damaged units in Buildings 22 and 23 have also been submitted for approval so that owners can begin rebuilding their units. BUDGETS: Annual budgeting discussions should be transparent. With this goal in mind, we held open meetings and reviewed each budget line item in detail. We had many rich discussions on various budget items and collectively gained alignment on the annual budget. Since then, there has been discussion amongst homeowners about cutting staff, freezing wages, or having a hiring freeze. Historically, Seven Lakes wage increases have matched the Social Security COLA (Cost of living adjustment). This year it is 8.7%. We capped salary increases for our overall budget at 5%. Also, as stated in the past, each manager must evaluate the need and impact of filling open or vacated positions. The benefits must outweigh the costs.
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