Annual Meeting Minutes

ANNUAL MEETING MINUTES

TORTUGAS DE MAR CONDO ASSOCIATION

January 28, 2014

BelleairBeachCity Hall

444 Causeway Blvd

Belleair Beach, FL 33786

Meeting called to order at 6:35 pm by Fred Weber. A quorum was established.

Proceedings:

• Mary Shanahan made a motion to waive the reading of the minutes of the last meeting. It was seconded by Fred Weber.

• Patty Stewart of AssociaGulfCoast gave a brief history of the community management company that has offices in Tampa, Sarasota, Long Boat Key, St. Petersburg, and Ft.Meyers. Since the CEO of Associa, Patty Dubuque, recently left the company, Chris Harrison is currently the Interim CEO. Patty informed TDM members that we could go to the Associa website to view their account and pay their HOA fees. She also mentioned a virtual bulletin board system called VOLO that we could participate in for $2/unit as a one time fee for notification to condo owners of news such as elevator breakdowns, water contamination, maintenance issues,etc.

Patty also reported that the Associa is exploring insurance vendors as our wind and flood policies will need to be renewed. As reported by Martha Vasquez, at this time, the Senate passed a bill to delay the withdrawal of federal subsidies for flood insurance but due to political maneuvering, it is not expected to pass the House of Representatives, leaving homeowners and potential buyers potentially responsible for as much as a 10 times increase in their flood insurance premiums. Patty introduced our new Associa representative: Carissa Cuccarese.

• The Board will have no changes in membership for 2014. A motion to accept the Board was made by John Hornbuckle and seconded by Nancy Berry.

• Report of Officers: The following officers had reports:

Ted Berry, Treasurer

An $80,000 surplus will be rolled over to the 2014 budget (as per community vote). The surplus was created by total fiscal responsibility of watching and monitoring all of our expenses. Therefore, there will be no increase in the 2014 monthly HOA fees however, costs in 2014 primarily for elevator modernization and required Life Safety sytems will likely absorb surplus funds and a monthly increase of HOA fees in 2015 is possible. Ted also noted that a Reserve Study will be required by law in 2015. This audit involves on-site inspections to determine that adequate reserves are in place to protect our future.

Bob Ferguson, Director

The elevators in both buildings have continued to have frequent breakdowns. Since parts are becoming increasingly difficult to obtain, delays in repairs are increasing. When we replace the elevators, there are newer Life Safety Codes that are triggered (such as pull stations, sirens, heat sensors, etc). To help us discern what the necessary upgrade in the elevators should be as well as what Life Safety upgrades are now required, Bill Snyder of VTE Solutions, an independent elevator consultant, was retained by the association to inspect our current elevators, provide a report on current conditions and modernization recommendations and act as the general contractor for the project. He developed plans and specifications for the project which is now scheduled to begin in May 2014 and last approximately 8 weeks (4 weeks per building). Preliminary bids have been obtained for a Life Safety upgrade from Piper Fire Protection with $10,500 essential upgrades. Full Life Safety compliance would cost an additional $35,000 but the plan is to implement only those essential upgrades at this time. A prelimininary bid from Retro Elevator calls for a $20,000 cost to upgrade the cab interiors including ceiling, lights and floors. If the cab interior is not upgraded, patching will be required as the electrical panel and handrail must be moved. Cheech Electric has provided a $17,00 electrical bid which includes both elevator and life safety wiring.

We are now required to control the temperature and humidity in the elevator machine rooms. It is believed that a vertical air conditioner will serve this purpose for a cost of $1500. Signage around and in the elevators should cost less than $2000.

The association will continue to reserve $1000/month for the elevator costs and it is hoped that a special assessment will not be needed to complete the project but it is not desirable to only complete portions of the upgrade. The elevators currently do not provide consistent service for residents and upgraded elevators will increase the value of the overall property.

President’s Report

Fred Weber reviewed other projects that may be undertaken in 2014 or 2015:

• Gemstone sidewalks & hallways – likely will be delayed until 2015 for financial reasons. When undertaken, a darker shade will be chosen to hide dirt. Residents and guests are asked to be careful during moving or construction not to chip the gemstone or allow oil to drip onto the gemstone.
• Plumbing upgrades – Not all the shutoff valves inside the units work properly. There are no known diagrams of main lines coming into the building making construction projects worrisome.
• Some balconies have eroded brackets. Please notify Ted if your railings are loose to avoid any accidents.
• Walkway lighting – due to the corrosive effects of the sea, our outside walkway fixtures are corroded and will need to be replaced.
• Storage rooms (4) – have mildew problems due to poor ventilation. A vent will be created for each room. Please do not leave damp or wet items in the storeroom as the humidity causes the mildew.
• Parking lot is beginning to have good sized cracks. It will cost more than $30,000 to resurface; therefore this is likely to be postponed in 2014.
• Completed: 33 crotons have been planted along the front walkway to replace the dead plants.
• Ongoing problems:

All residents MUST complete a Guest Registry (available on our website) when they have renters/guests staying in their unit so poachers can be identified and evacuation can be complete in an emergency. No fee is required.

Residents are responsible to ensure their guests understand our garbage and recycling processes to avoid garbage in the recycling bins and uncovered, overflowing garbage cans. A list of recyclable items will be distributed to residents.

Confusion due to conflicting Fire Marshall rulings on outdoor grills has been distilled and obtained in writing. Gas and charcoal grills may be stored on the 1st floor patios but must be moved 10 feet away from the building when in use. Only electric grills are allowed on 2nd and 3rd floor balconies.

• There is a sale pending in unit 303B and unit 302B will go on the market

in summer.

A motion to adjourn was made at 7:45 pm by Cindi Peters, seconded by Patti

Smolansky.

Respectfully submitted,

Patti Smolansky, Secretary

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