THE SANDS SCOOP September, 2007
FROM THE BOARD
COMMITTEES AND CHAIRPERSONS
SYMPATHY
We extend our deepest sympathy and prayers to her son Russ and the other members of her family.
GROUNDS IMPROVEMENTS
The second change is the revision to the landscaping of the outfall area. Seventeen palms have been planted in the area in a vastly improved configuration over the straight line planting installed by the city’s outfall contractor. Some work still remains in this area, namely the disposition of the dead magnolias.
BOARD MEETING MINUTES
We hope you find value receiving these minutes. They will be an attachment to the email. If you have an email address and haven’t provided it to us, do so today and begin receiving the Board minutes electronically!
RUNNING FOR THE BOARD?
If you’re considering running for the board, take a few moments to ask yourself the following three questions:
Do I have the time? As a board member, you will need to devote at least several hours of your time each month to association business. In addition to regular board meetings, you will need to be active in email discussions and occasional special meetings. During special projects, you may need to spend a little extra time. Some board members may also spend a little more time than others if they work with a committee.
Can I make tough decisions when it’s required? The primary role of the board is to conduct the business of the association. This doesn’t just mean approving the budget, but also developing and enforcing policies. Board members are required to step outside their immediate circle of family and neighbors and make decisions based on the greater good of the community.
Can I do all this and have fun, too? It isn’t all about policies and tough decisions. Our community is only as good as we make it, and establishing and maintaining a sense of community is a part of a board member’s responsibility. Planning and attending functions such as picnics and being a presence in the community are as important as any policy decisions you may make.
Being a board member can be frustrating at times, but it may also be one of the most rewarding ways you’ll find to volunteer your time. If you’re interested in running for the board or would like more details about board’s responsibilities, please contact Tim or a current board member.
CONGRATULATIONS
REGULAR OFFICE HOURS
THANKS
PRINTER CARTRIDGES
WELCOME NEW OWNERS
D201
D407
ADDRESS/PHONE CHANGES
SUGGESTIONS, COMMENTS TO THE EDITOR.
Wayne Anderson - Editor
The Sands officers are:
President Joe Nedza 1st Vice-President Wayne Anderson 2nd Vice-President Lamar Persing Treasurer Bernie Sikorski Secretary Gail Hoopes “The purpose of the Board of Directors is to maintain and enhance the value of The Sands and the quality
of life for the owners.”
The above committees welcome your participation and cooperation. Please contact the chairperson and volunteer your time and talent.
Buildings Lamar Persing Grounds Glenn Smits Communication Gail Hoopes Executive Joe Nedza (Officers) Finance Bernie Sikorski Insurance Duane Coplin Sales/Lease Joe Leone Parking George Bell
Long time Sands resident Shirley Evans (E-205) passed over peacefully on Friday, July 27, 2007. Shirley will be remembered for leading the water exercises in the pool at 9am every morning in season. She also served on the board of directors for several years. Shirley was diagnosed with a brain tumor last year and never made it to Marco in 2007. She was missed this past year and will be missed in the future.
Owners will notice a couple significant changes to the Sands when they return to the Island this fall. The first change you will see is the addition
of a practice putting green. The installation was completed in mid-July and is the first addition to our recreation facilities since the tennis courts
were opened. The green is open to all residents and their guests; you will need to provide your own golf clubs and balls! The putting green features
a sand trap and chipping area in addition to the holes for putting. It is located at the C/D corner of the property. The Board feels that increased
leisure outlets will have a positive effect on our unit property values.
At the May 11, 2007 Board of Director's meeting the Board decided that in order to improve communication with the owners, the minutes from Board meetings would be sent to those owners who have provided us their email address. The Board also decided that mailing the minutes would be too costly, both in money and time that would be required to prepare the mailing. The minutes will continue to be posted on the Association bulleting board. The minutes are reviewed by all directors for accuracy and then sent to The Sand’s attorney. Upon his approval we will release them to owners.
The following article is taken from the Community Associations Institute.
To Lois and Lamar Persing who were married in August, 2007.
A reminder to everyone that the summer office hours will end September 30th. Regular hours (8AM to 10AM) will begin on October 1.
A special thanks to the volunteers who closed the pool each night during the summer. Their efforts were greatly appreciated.
Ed & Dottie Bartsch
Rich & Joyce Kaelin
Chet & Margaret Stewart
Please give your used printer cartridges to Tim for recycling. We ship them postage free and receive cash – about $100 per year to help pay for office expenses. So save your cartridges, wrap them in a paper towel and give them to Tim.
C605
Frank DiChiara & Patricia Gibbons
Toms River, NJ
Lawrence & Sharon Cimino
West Bay Shore, NY
John & Martine McGuiness
Malvern, PA
Please help us keep the owners’ list current and save postage by notifying us of any address, telephone or e-mail changes. Notify the Sands office
at tim@thesandsofmarco.com or Gail Hoopes at gailhoopes@comcast.net
or call Tim at the office at 239-642-5575.
If you have any suggestions for articles or comments for THE SANDS SCOOP, please contact the editor. Also, if you received this via
the USPS and have internet access, please share your email address with us. It saves us all money to communicate via e-mail whenever possible.
The Sands Scoop is also available on The Sands web site, thanks to owner Joe Ferris (E-101), at thesandsofmarco.com – check it out.
THE SANDS SCOOP April, 2007
FROM THE BOARD
COMMITTEES AND CHAIRPERSONS
ANNUAL MEETING
We had excellent participation this year in the election for Directors with six owners vying for four Director positions. Thanks to all who were willing to contribute! Elected for a two year term were Wayne Anderson, Gail Hoopes, Bernie Sikorski and Joe Nedza. There will be three Director positions up for election next year.
DIRECTORS ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING
IMPORTANT TAX INFO
Each unit at the Sands had an assessment of $1750 for expenses directly related to Hurricane Wilma. Some owners were
reimbursed by their insurance company for amounts ranging from $100 to about $900. Every dollar over the insurance
reimbursement is fully tax deductible. If you had additional damage not covered by insurance, it too is fully
deductible. If you have already filed your return and did not claim this deduction, you can file an amended
return. Use IRS Form 4684 to calculate the loss and enter the amount on Schedule A.
You cannot deduct this loss next year. This is your last chance. You may want to contact your accountant!
SYMPATHY
Our deepest sympathy to Marie L. (Lydia) Gonzalez, D106, on the passing of her sister the first part of February.
Marilyn Richart’s father passed away after a short illness. Our sympathies to both Marilyn and Tim and their family.
Jen-Hung Chao, M.D., B-505, of Elmhurst, Illinois, has passed away. Dr. Chao was the beloved husband of the late Julia, nee Yu, the father of three and grandfather of five. Our sympathies are with his family.
Our sympathy to Margaret Stewart, A-104, whose brother passed away March 27 in Scotland.
CONGRATULATIONS
SUMMER OFFICE HOURS
LEASING
Section 13 of the Documents deals with leasing of units. We urge you to become familiar with it. Section 13.1(A) states: “An owner intending to lease his unit shall give the Board of Directors or its designee, written notice of such intention at least fifteen (15) business days prior to the first day of occupancy under the lease…” The purpose of this time requirement is two fold: to protect our owners and guests from an undesirable tenant and to provide time for other administrative duties. An important point to note is that the advance notice is 15 business days. Since our business days are Monday through Friday, the form must be received 19 calendar days in advance of a lease start date.
At the April 12 Directors meeting, the Board agreed to implement the following procedures. HOT WATER HEATERS
And, on the subject of hot water heaters, you only have to recall the severe damage to some units caused by
Hurricane Wilma last year to know the damage that can be caused by water intrusion. Several units at the Sands have
the original hot water heaters in their units. These devices are approximately 18 years old this year and we
strongly urge owners to replace them now!
The water on Marco Island has a lot of chemicals added to it in order to make it potable. But, it also makes it extremely corrosive to pipes and other materials in a hot water tank and other vulnerable plumbing such as the plumbing inside of toilets and washing machine hoses. It may not sound right, but current Florida condominium law does not place responsibility on the party whose water causes the damage to other units below them. For example, if the hot water tank in D306 bursts and causes damage in unit D206, the owner of D206 is responsible for the damage! So please, for your neighbors’ protection as well as your own, replace your old hot water tanks, if necessary, as soon as possible. Also, check the internal plumbing of your toilets and replace your washing machine hoses.
Our condo documents currently do not require hot water tanks to be replaced, but the board is investigating
requiring they be replaced every “X”’ years (many use 10 years). Several condominium associations on the Island
already have this requirement.
Finally, if you add those blue “cakes” to your toilet water tank, it may make your water look nice in the bowl but it is very bad on your plumbing, speeding up the plumbing deterioration even further.
CHECK YOUR SMOKE ALARMS
BULLETIN BOARD POSTINGS
PROBLEMS WITH RULES
Telling someone that “you cannot do that” is uncomfortable and all of us appreciate the effort from those who help out with this communication.
Many of our rules are mandated by the state and county and they change constantly. The board will try very hard to communicate these changes to you as they occur, so that you can continue to advise your tenants/agents/visitors.
Thanks for a great “trouble free” season.
CONDO CLOSE HINT
Also, don’t forget to put your door mat inside your unit when you leave. When the wind blows, and it will, they are often found all over the property, including the walkways. Matching them up to their homes is almost impossible!
ADDRESS/PHONE CHANGES
SUGGESTIONS, COMMENTS TO THE EDITOR.
Wayne Anderson - Editor
The Sands officers are:
President Joe Nedza 1st Vice-President Wayne Anderson 2nd Vice-President Lamar Persing Treasurer Bernie Sikorski Secretary Gail Hoopes “The purpose of the Board of Directors is to maintain and enhance the value of The Sands and the quality
of life for the owners.”
The above committees welcome your participation and cooperation. Please contact the chairperson and volunteer your time and talent.
Buildings Lamar Persing Grounds Glenn Smits Communication Gail Hoopes Executive Joe Nedza (Officers) Finance Bernie Sikorski Insurance Duane Coplin Sales/Lease Joe Leone Parking George Bell
The Sands annual members’ meeting was held March 8 at Mackle Park. There were 72 valid proxies received and 39 owner units were there in person. The sole issue that was voted upon by the members was a proposed change to our Condominium Document. The amendment was intended to better control the abuse of owners who are renting their units by the week and circumventing the rules by telling the renters to pretend they are relatives or friends of the owner. There were 40 yes votes and 32 no votes. The issue required 48 yes votes for passage (2/3 of those voting), the issue was defeated.
The new directors met immediately following the annual meeting and elected the officers for the coming year as listed in the adjacent column.
Several owners have already completed their 2006 tax returns and just discovered that the casualty losses from Hurricane Wilma are fully tax deductible. The IRS extended the deadline for filing to include the 2006 tax return. Also, the limits are not applicable, i.e., the 10% of the AGI limitation does not apply.
George Chirillo, D-406, passed away on January 31, 2007, after a long fight with cancer. George is survived by his wife Jean, 4 children and 6 grand children.
Congratulations to Joyce Kaelin, D102, who was elected to serve on the Beautification Advisory Committee April 9th by the Marco Island City Council.
A reminder that the summer office hours will begin May 15th and end September 30th. The office will be open from 1PM to 3PM to enable our staff to avoid some of the summer heat.
At the annual meeting, Joe Leone, the Chairman of the Sales and Lease Committee, reported that an estimated 25% of the lease applications we receive are late! Admittedly, this is a guess by Joe but the estimate was agreed to by our property manager, Tim Richart. During the discussion and audience questioning, we realized that the Lease Application Form, available on our web site, was in conflict with our condo docs in that it stated that the application is required 15 business days in advance or a $100 fine may be levied. The documents make no provision for a fine or for any lee way in the time requirements. Nor is a $100 fine a deterrent when weighed against a possible months rent. Also, Florida state law limits a fine to $100.
These procedures will apply when a unit is rented through an agent or directly through the owner – the responsibility for this notice is still with the owner.
We have been advised by the electrical inspector of Marco Island "that installation of electric tank-less water heaters is not approved" for the Sands.
These units need more than twice the amount of amperage that a tank type heater requires. The electrical systems in most multi-family buildings on the Island, including the Sands, were not engineered for this type of load.
There are two smoke alarms in every unit. It is very important that you check them to verify that they are
operating properly. They may save your life someday. They are easily checked by depressing the clear plastic button
in the bull’s-eye center of the detector. If they are working properly, the device will emit a loud sound. One owner
discovered that his device had been disconnected from the electric supply for some reason. Oh yes, note that they are
not battery operated so don’t bother trying to change them! Also, please do not call Tim to ask him to check
your detector.
The Community bulletin board rules, which were set by the Board in April 2001, states that all notices, including available rentals, will be time stamped when Tim receives them and removed after 30 days. A request can be made to post the notice again, but another 30 day limit will be in effect.
We have had a pretty good year, meaning we have not had problems with rule breakers, especially around the pool. That is probably due to the owners making tenants/agents aware of the sands rules and regulations. Thanks to all the owners who lease, and thanks to all who gently remind our guests when an infraction is observed.
Many owners leave their refrigerators on when they close their units before “going home”. If an extended power outage should happen to occur, items in your appliance could thaw and then freeze again without your knowledge. You can detect this if you put an ice cube in a bowl or sealed plastic baggie and place it in your freezer. That way if the power is off, the ice will no longer be a cube!
Please help us keep the owners’ list current and save postage by notifying us of any address, telephone or e-mail
changes. Notify the Sands office at tim@thesandsofmarco.com
or Gail Hoopes at gailhoopes@comcast.net or call Tim at the
office at 239-642-5575.
If you have any suggestions for articles or comments for THE SANDS SCOOP, please contact the editor. Also, if
you received this via the USPS and have internet access, please share your email address with us. It saves us all
money to communicate via e-mail whenever possible. The Sands Scoop is also available on
The Sands web site, thanks
to owner Joe Ferris, at www.thesandsofmarco.com – check it out.
THE SANDS SCOOP January 2007
FROM THE BOARD
COMMITTEES AND CHAIRPERSONS
ANNUAL MEETING
SYMPATHY
And to Dory Catalano (A-105) whose brother in law passed away in May in Humboldt, Iowa
WELCOME NEW OWNERS
BIRTH CONGRATULATIONS
To Joe and Carole Dachowicz (D-405) Grandparents of twins Emma Elizabeth and Ethan Joseph born September 1, 2006
To Dory and Lee Catalano (A-105) on the birth of their first great-granddaughter, Kate Elizabeth, 11 months old, and for their second great-grandson, Gabriel Lee, who was born January 4, 2007.
ANNIVERSARY CONGRATULATIONS
PRAYERS
Chet Stewart (A-104) underwent surgery on December 2, 2006, to open his right carotid artery. The blockage was detected during his annual physical and Chet recommends everyone have an ultrasound at their annual physical. It truly saved his life.
ROYAL CONGRATULATIONS
As queen, Joyce received a crown, flowers from China Rose, a dinner for two to the Hideaway Beach Club, a certificate for Salon 1011 and a certificate for Angelica's Boutique.
Traeger started the ball to have fun during hurricane season and to lighten everyone's mood. "Mother Nature is something we can't reckon with, but we can prepare for it," he said. 114 people attended the ball at the Hideaway Beach Club.
Joyce performed her duties admirably this hurricane season as we had no hurricanes! Thanks Joyce!
VEHICLE COURTESY
ATTENTION TENNIS PLAYERS
POOL TRESPASSING
NEED AN ATTORNEY?
ADDRESS/PHONE CHANGES
SUGGESTIONS, COMMENTS TO THE EDITOR.
Wayne Anderson - Editor
The Sands officers are:
President Joe Nedza Vice-President Wayne Anderson Treasurer Ed Bartsch Secretary Gail Hoopes “The purpose of the Board of Directors is to maintain and enhance the value of The Sands and the quality
of life for the owners.”
The above committees welcome your participation and cooperation. Please contact the chairperson and volunteer your time and talent.
Buildings Lamar Persing Grounds Glenn Smits Communication Wayne Anderson Executive Joe Nedza (Officers) Finance Ed Bartsch Insurance Duane Coplin Sales/Lease Joe Leone Parking George Bell
The Annual Meeting of Members will be held March 8, 2007 at Frank Mackle Park, 1361 Andalusia Terrace. This year
there will be openings for four (4) Directors of the Board. Elected Directors serve for two years. All owners are
eligible to run for these positions. Intention to be a candidate must be received in the Sands office in writing 40 days
before the annual meeting (by Jan. 27). A single page (8 1/2 X 11) of biographical information may be included if the
candidate so desires. The Sands needs good people who are willing to serve. This is a great place, and it takes the
effort of committed owners to keep it functioning well.
Our deepest sympathy is extended to Bernie Sikorski (C101) and family on the passing of his mother on Nov.16.
Michael and Lorna Verrastro (C-306).
To Joe and Joan Nedza (D-105) whose Great-grandson, Noah Tanner, was born October 12, 2006
Joyce and Rich Kaelin (D-102) are celebrating 50 years of marriage on January 26, 2007.
Long time Sands resident Shirley Evans (E-205) had surgery for a malignant brain tumor early last fall and required a second surgery in November. She is now at home with her son Russ and is undergoing chemotherapy. Please keep Shirley in your prayers.
At the Marco Men's Club's third-annual Hurricane Ball in early October, long time Sands resident Joyce Kaelin, D102, was named Hurricane Queen! The queen reigns for one year and her primary responsibility is to keep Marco Islanders safe from hurricanes. "The previous queen did her job last year and kept us safe," said Tom Traeger, president.
Several owners/leasers have more than one vehicle while enjoying all that The Sands has to offer. Now that
the “season” is in high gear and parking is at a premium, we are requesting that, as a courtesy to other owners, only
one vehicle be parked in the slot marked “owner” next to the building. Please park the other one (s) in the visitor
parking.
The Sands tennis group will be playing tennis again this year. They are interested in getting any persons that are interested to come out and join in the fun. Any level of play is ok; beginners can be paired with beginners. Anyone interested can contact Joe Ferris (E101) or George Bell (C107). Joe is expected to arrive at The Sands January 11 and George is scheduled to arrive the following week. Their home address and phone numbers as well as their Sands information are available in the list of owners available in the Sands office.
Recently, there were people swimming in the pool late in the evening. This is trespassing as the pool hours are 9 AM to 9 PM. Please call the police, not Tim, if you observe any unauthorized person(s) in the pool area after hours.
The Sands employs the law firm of Samouce, Murrell & Gal, P.A. on an annual basis for any/all issues that should arise throughout each year. They are a full service firm located in Naples. They are also available to all of our owners and can provide affordable personal legal representation in the areas of wills and trusts, real estate closings and corporation and limited liability company formation and representation. They also work with fine firms in both co-representing with, and referring to, other attorneys in the areas of personal injury, medical malpractice, family law and criminal law. If you have a need for legal advice, you may want to give Samouce, Murrell and Gal a call at 239-596-9522.
Please help us keep the owners’ list current by notifying Tim or me of any address, telephone or e-mail changes
at tim@thesandsofmarco.com or Wayne at wayneohio@gmail.com or call Tim at the office at 239-642-5575.
If you have any suggestions for articles or comments for THE SANDS SCOOP, please contact the editor. Also, if you
received this via the USPS and have internet access, please share your email address with us. It saves us all money to
communicate via e-mail whenever possible. The Sands Scoop is also available on The Sands web
site, thesandsofmarco.com – check it out.