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The Masters Board recently conducted a complete review of the Bylaws and concluded that wording of Section 3.12 and 3.13 needed to be amended and streamlined.  In short, the suggested changes increase the threshold of participation in a poll from 30% to 51% and provide provisions on how to vote if majority participation is achieved and how to address the vote if that threshold is not met. To simplify and clarify the language, the Board recommends a change regarding the participation threshold on polling from 30% to 51%. If there is less than 51% participation in the poll, the Association’s votes will be cast as determined by the Board of Directors.  

In accordance with By-Laws of the Masters at Pelican Sound Neighborhood Association, Inc., below is a red/blue-lined version of the amendment showing the words being added in underline and words being removed in struck through text.

And for your reference is seeing a ‘clean’ version on the wording, please note the following:

The Current Bylaws read as follows:

3.12. Voting Representative to Club. In accordance with the requirements of the Club documents, the Association President shall be the Association’s Voting Representative to the Club. The Voting Representative shall attend the meetings of the members of the Club, in person or by proxy, and shall cast in a block, all votes of the members of this Association on any and all questions which may arise. The votes shall be cast in the manner directed by the Board of Directors, or absent such direction, in the manner determined by the Voting Representative or other designated Director in the absence of the President.

3.13. Polling of Members. To the extent feasible and practical, the Association shall poll its members on questions to be decided by a vote of the members of the Club, so that this Association’s votes are more likely to be cast in the manner preferred by the majority of the members. If such a poll is conducted, the Board shall instruct its Voting Representative to cast all votes of the Association in a block, supporting the point of view preferred by the majority of the members who responded to the poll. The Voting Representative may vote by proxy at Club meetings. In the absence of the President, the Vice President or other designated Director may perform such duties as described by the Association President.

The Board Approved Revision of the Bylaws reads as follows:

3.12 Voting Representative to Club. In accordance with the requirements of the Club documents, the Association President will be the Association’s Neighborhood Voting Representative (NVR) to the Club. The NVR shall attend the meetings of the members of the Club and the Club’s Board of Directors, in person or by proxy, and shall cast all 100 votes of this Association on any and all matters in the format required by the Club’s Board of Directors.

3.13 Polling of Voting Interests. To the extent feasible and practical, the Association shall poll its Voting Interests on questions to be decided by votes of the members of the Club and the Club’s Board of Directors in order that this Association’s votes will be cast in the manner preferred by a majority of its Voting Interests. If such a poll is conducted and at least 51 of the Voting Interests participate in the poll, the Board of Directors shall instruct this Association’s NVR to cast the votes of this Association in a manner consistent with the results of the poll. If less than 51 of the Voting Interests participate in the poll, or if the poll does not indicate a majority preference, this Association’s votes shall be cast as determined by the Board of Directors. The NVR may vote by proxy. In the absence of the NVR, the Vice President or other designated Director may perform such duties.

The Board strongly recommends that you vote, and vote in favor of these changes. 

All owners will be sent a mail ballot/proxy the first week of April.

Several Masters residents have reported that they are not getting the emails we send from info@masters33928.us

Seems to happen most often with people with comcast.net accounts and aol.com accounts, but some gmail.com accounts are affected.

The problem is usually fixed by putting our email address in your account’s address book or contact list. Xfinity (Comcast) calls it an address book.

Here is one way to add a contact to your Comcast Address Book.

If you need help understanding the instructions or have other questions contact benbachrach@gmail.com

Board of Directors Organizational Meeting – March 15, 2023

• The Board of Directors accepted Kath Sherlock’s resignation as Treasurer and appointed Scott Gallagher as her replacement.

• Election of officers was approved as follows:

• Kathy Sherlock was appointed Chair of the Welcoming Committee.  George Monahan will be the Board liaison to the Welcoming Committee

• Scott Rechel was appointed Chair to the Communications Committee.  Lynelle Moscaritolo will be the Board liaison the Communications Committee.

• The Board approved revisions to Sections 3.12 (Voting Representative to Club) and 3.13 (Polling of Members) of the Bylaws.  These revisions streamlined language with respect to the NVR and added language defining a polling majority of 51 members. These revisions will be submitted to the members for vote in the next 30 – 45 days. 

• Three of the Board members will be attending a HOA certification course on March 17, 2023 to ensure compliance with Florida Statute 720 (Homeowner’s Association Act).

The next meeting will be held in April.  Date to be determined and communicated to the members of The Masters.

THESE ARE THE SECRETARY’S NOTES AND NOT THE OFFICIAL MINUTES

Dr. Ron Hedlund, 81, passed away peacefully on February 25^th, 2023, after a long struggle with the complications of Parkinsons. He and wife Ellen are original owners in the Masters. They were snowbirds for many years and became full-time residents in 2015.

Ron loved living here and especially enjoyed sitting on his lanai overlooking the lake, thinking “deep” thoughts, and watching the birds, ducks and an occasional alligator. His physical limitations precluded his active participation in many activities, but he did enjoy several seasons of bocci, conversations with neighbors and attending Masters get-togethers.

At the Masters Annual Meeting March 15, we are pleased to announce the following:

As of the deadline to fill the expired terms for two positions on The Masters Association Board, two individuals, Lynelle Moscaritolo and George Monahan have submitted their “notice of intent to be a candidate” forms. After reviewing our documents and Section 720 of the Florida State Statutes, the following is the course of action that will be followed:

1  – As there were two candidates for two openings, no election is required and the two candidates will be elected to the Masters Association Board on March 15, 2023.

2 – Immediately after the Annual Meeting, the seated Board will hold their organizational meeting to elect new officers

Lynelle and George will be joining current Board members Celeste Eaton, and Jerry Vasile

Additionally, Kathy Sherlock, Masters Board Treasurer has advised us that she will step down from the Board effective the adjournment of the 2023 Annual Meeting.

Kathy joined the Board at the 2022 Annual Meeting and served our community extremely well. Her contributions as the Treasurer and member of the Board are very much appreciated.

The Board at its Organization meeting on March 15, will appoint a new Board member to serve the remaining year of Kathy’s term. 

While she will not serve on the Board, Kathy will continue to serve our community as a member of our Welcome Committee, the formation of which was approved at our last Board meeting. She will also take on the role of our Social Coordinator working with our event organizers.

I am very pleased to announce that joining Kathy on the Welcoming Committee will be Pat Becker and Mary Grace Gallagher. They will continue to build on the excellent work by Don Jancin in welcoming new residents to the Masters and organizing our social events.

Several Masters residents will have tables at the 2023 Pelican Sound Arts and Crafts Show. If you would like to be listed here please notify info@masters33928.org

Saturday, February 25, 2023
10am-3pm | Pelican Park

Those who want to display and sell your hand-crafted treasures. Register by February 15th!
For more information, or to register, call Anne DeLaCroix at 239.247.2729 or email her at a.delacroix@comcast.net

Masters participants include:

Anina Bachrach
Barbara Reece

Masters Residents

The Masters President, Dikran Ohannessian, attended a River Ridge meeting after our Masters Board meeting on Tuesday, January 24, 2023, specifically to represent the Masters Community on Drainage issues impacting the Masters residents from golf course Lakes five through eight holes on outer edge.

The following is a summary report submitted by Dikran to the Masters Board members, a Map from RRCDD and part of the engineer’s report issued at the RRCDD Board meeting from their website.

The initial comments are Dikran’s followed by supporting documentation from River Ridge; Our Board objective is to keep residents informed on current issues.

Don Jancin
Masters Board Secretary

Drainage in the Masters

January 2023

The River Ridge CDD Board will consider the engineer’s plans to address the water problem in the Masters. This is expected to be approved; however, implementation will only occur when funds are available which could take some time. In the meantime, they will see if some remaining funds from completed projects could be directed to start addressing the problem.

The project involves locating drainage structures originally planned but have long been covered, making sure once located,the drainage holes are functional and then connecting pipes to the drainage hole for stagnant to flow into.

The current drainage network:

• ·Black Circles with a black dot centre are CDD drainage structures.
• Black lines are CDD drainage pipes.
• Orange Circles with an orange centre dot are CDD drainage structures (locations for most are currently unknown and whether these are functional)

Engineer’s report (extracts) provided by Engineer to River Ridge Board

it stated that there are several areas that are experiencing standing water after heavy rains. These include areas around the Master neighborhood, the area behind Seaside and the dry detention area north of Pelican Sound Blvd. To help address the standing water we are providing some conceptual improvements and estimated costs for budget purposes only.

Masters‐Southeast Corner

There are several locations within and around the Masters neighborhood where standing water has becoming more prevalent. The first area is located in the southeast corner of the neighborhood, adjacent to an indigenous vegetation area. Since the area is an indigenous vegetation area, the grading has remained as close to the natural ground as possible. In the southeast corner there is an existing inlet and rip rap swale that collects the some of the water and directs it to the golf course drainage or to the near by lake. As the inlet does not show up on any plans the exact path is unknown and will need to be investigated.

In addition, modifications would include;

• Installation of 3 PVC yard drains
• Installation of ±400 LF 15” ADS drain line
• Connections to existing inlet (2)
• Installation of ±4,000 s.f. Bermuda sod
• Estimated cost=$30,000.00

Masters‐Northwest Corner

The residents of the first 6 lots of the Masters have expressed concerns of standing water between their lots and the adjacent golf course. The original drainage plans showed yard drains to be installed behind these lots. After reviewing the behind the lots no inlets could be seen. Inspection reports from MRI do not show inlets or drainpipes behind the homes. To address the standing water it is proposed to install the yard drains based on the original drainage plans.

The proposed drainage modifications include;

• Installation of 2 PVC yard drains
• Installation of ±200 LF 15” ADS drain line
• Connections to existing inlet (2)
• Installation of ±2,000 s.f. Bermuda sod
•  Estimated cost=$24,000.00

Masters‐West Side

The residents on the west side of the Maters have expressed concerns of standing water between their lots and the adjacent golf course. The original drainage plans showed yard drains to be installed behind these lots. After reviewing the behind the lots no inlets could be seen. Inspection reports from MRI do not show inlets or drainpipes behind the homes. To address the standing water, it is proposed to install the yard drains based on the original drainage plans.

The proposed drainage modifications include;

• Installation of 2 PVC yard drains
• Installation of ±380 15” ADS drain line
• Connections to existing inlet (2)
• Installation of ±3,800 s.f. Bermuda sod
• Estimated cost=$31,000.00

Masters‐North Side

The residents on the north side of the Maters have expressed concerns of standing water between their lots and the adjacent golf course. To address the standing water, it is proposed to follow the example of other areas around the Masters and installed PVC yard drains and 15 inch ADS pipes to move the standing water to the existing drainage system.

The proposed drainage modifications include;

• Installation of 6 PVC yard drains
• Installation of ±690 LF 15” ADS drain line
• Connections to existing inlet (2)
• Installation of ±6,900 s.f. Bermuda sod
• Estimated cost=$42,000.00

Masters‐East Side

The residents on the east side of the Maters have expressed concerns of standing water between their lots and the adjacent golf course. To address the standing water, it is proposed to follow the example of other areas around the Masters and installed PVC yard drains and 15 inch ADS pipes to move the standing water to the existing drainage system.

The proposed drainage modifications include;

• Installation of 4 PVC yard drains
• Installation of ±530 LF 15” ADS drain line
• Connections to existing inlet (4)
• Installation of ±5,400 s.f. Bermuda sod
• Estimated cost=$43,000.00

The estimated cost to perform the drainage improvements to the Masters neighborhood is $170,000.00.

Depending on the terms of your home owners insurance policy you may be able to make a claim for the Masters Home Owners Association Assessment due to Hurricane Ian. Some policies wave the deductible requirement for this type of claim. Some policies allow you to submit only one claim, so you may have wait until you get the Pelican Sound Assessment to make a claim. Please consult your policy or agent for the factors that pertain to your situation. To make the claim for the Masters Assessment you may need one or both of the following two documents.

content of email sent 09/04/2023

MASTERS NVR VOTING (BY LAWS 3.12 & 3.13)

The current language was wordy- The Board streamlined language consistent with the Masters objectives and consistent with Pelican Sound Documents.

In additions the Board added language defining a majority polling vote consisting of 51members voting on issues to be a community opinion for the NVR to vote. It was noted residents have an obligation to vote on important issues a lacking a 51 % response the Board would advise the NVR on preferred vote for the community.

The proposed changes will be submitted to residents for comment before final Board approval

MASTERS BOARD ELECTION – Request for candidates

It was noted that we will have two open positions on our Board as of the March 15, 2023 annual meeting. Dikran Ohannessian and Don Jancin are term limited and leaving the Board.

All residents are reminded and encouraged to considering volunteering for our community Board. A letter of intent must be filed with Collier Financial by 5:00 P.M. on February 3, 2023

HURRICANE IAN – LOSS ASSESSMENT

The Secretary will issue and post on the Web site a required letter covering assessment to be used with resident’s insurance company. If your insurance company requires more detail – Collier Financial and / or Cambridge can assist.

It was noted that Pelican Sound Board and the Masters Board advised all homeowners to check their policies or with their agent on loss assessment coverage provided in their policy. Policies differ on coverage provided, deductibles, if any.

MAINTENANCE ISSUE- RESIDENT RESPONSIBILITY

Homeowner asked what is my responsibility when having my pool refinished on disposal of current pool water. We asked PS Administration to check with LEE County to ensure our response was correct. The response received per PSGRC Administrative Office:

“Lee County Utilities called me back this morning and said you are free to drain the pool into your yard, but NOT into the street or sewer.  This may cause damage to your grass so I would check with your pool vendor regarding that issue. We should not be discharging directly into any lakes”

REPLACEMENT OF HURRICANE DOWNED CANOPY TREES

 A conference Call was held by the Masters ARC Chair with Eric Long, PS, General Manager, Skeeter Siefert , PS ARC Chair, Denise William, PS Administrative Assistant.

Discussion included review of Lee County Rules, Village of Estero Rules and PS Documents on street trees. It was concluded that Street trees must be replaced and Pelican Sound Management will enforce existing rules and regulations.

Pelican Sound – Declaration

• Paragraph 5.2 states that “Trees within a neighborhood Association that are on an easement will be maintained by the Neighborhood Association including trimming, fertilization, and replacement … If said trees are damaged as a direct result of a storm, the Neighborhood Association shall be responsible for replanting or replacing.

To ensure compliance The Masters replaced down or damaged trees

MASTERS ROOFS

The Masters Community now stands at 87 replaced or in process of being replaced with 13 original roofs remaining.

NEW WELCOME COMMITTEE – PERMANENT BOARD COMMITTEE

The Board established a new committee to welcome new neighbours in the Masters;

Committee to be comprised of chairperson and two others who would meet / greet new neighbours.

The President requested we need volunteers for this committee and anyone interested should contact him.

COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES

The Board approved the funding of community activities by the Association;

They included Holiday Decorations, Flags, New Member badges.  Social Functions were excluded to be run independent from Board responsibility and should be self funding. Donations were excluded by State Statute and must be done independently by residents.

CAMBRIDGE PROPERTY MANAGEMENT – Use of existing vendor technology

The Board and vendor in reviewing improved resident service / communication discussed that emails to Cambridge was a preferred resident communication. Cambridge software tracks written communication from point of receipt to completion. The Board and Cambridge will prepare updated instructions for our Web Site and to our Residents.

Donald J Jancin

Masters Secretary

THIS IS NOT OFFICIAL MINUTES OF THE BOARD MEETING