FEDERATION OF LBK CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION

FEDERATION OF LONGBOAT KEY CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION
MINUTES OF FEBRUARY 15, 2014 MEETING
BEACH HARBOUR CLUB, 3800 GULF OF MEXICO DRIVE
Call to Order
President George Spoll called the meeting to order at 9:35 AM. 32 representatives of 22 member
associations were in attendance, along with 13 guests.
Introduction of Guests
President Spoll introduced Vice Mayor David Brenner, and Armando Linde, Commissioner-at-Large
Candidate.
Remarks by Host Condominium
Jerry Knab, president, provided an overview of the Beach Harbour Club noting: there were 133 units with
five residential buildings; laundry and storage area, and clubhouse. The average condominium fee was
$425 per month. Personnel included two full-time maintenance people, and office staff. They had
recently remodeled their clubhouse building, which includes a gym, media center, conference room, and
bar. The community property ran from the gulf to the bay, and they had their own private beach area and
a marina on the bay.
Someone questioned the duration of the renovations. Mr. Knab replied approximately six months.
Someone asked if the $425 per month fee included the reserves. Mr. Knab explained they were not fully
funded, but had a reserve of approximately $90,000 per year. There was a question of what the
assessment was for the repairs. Mr. Knab noted it was approximately $700 per unit with the remainder
coming from reserves.
Approval of Minutes
The January minutes were approved as written.
Treasurer’s Report
Steve Jackson, Treasurer, informed the membership there was an account balance of $6,225.03. He noted
that only five people have not paid their 2014 dues. The total number of members was 75, but there were
a few new members also.
Secretary’s Report
Roger Goldstein, Secretary, reiterated about members completing the 2014 Survey and also the
Verification of President and Representatives Form and returning them.
President Spoll noted that he received a communication from the person who was head of the Chamber of
Commerce, Tom Aposporous, concerning an article in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. The article was
about a gentleman, who is Canadian, and who visits Longboat Key half the year. He lives at Viente
Condominium and collects aluminum cans for the Shriners and Save our Seabirds organizations. This
gentleman had asked if other condominiums were willing to put out bins and collect them, he would pick
them up. The tabs from the cans were given to the Shriners organization and the cans were given to the
Save our Seabirds organization to help both groups raise money. The gentleman’s name is Sean Reah, and
the article was in the Monday (February 10th) edition of the paper.
Program
Tamela Eady, Esquire, Columnist’s Views on Condominium Governance and Management
President Spoll introduced Tamela Eady, attorney who recently joined the firm of Tannebaum &
Hanewich. She has been practicing in the field of condominium association representation for 26 years
and would be discussing condominium law with the members.
Ms. Eady provided a background of the establishment of condominium law and discussed the following
points with the members:
Federation of LBK Condominium Assn.
Minutes of February 15, 2014
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One of the biggest mistakes a board member makes was not going to meetings; if someone was
elected as a board member, they had an obligation to read the documents and to be cognizant of
what they said. The law now requires one to attend an educational conference or sign a statement
that they have read the documents and understand them. There was a proposal before the Florida
legislature that if one missed three meetings in a row, then they would be automatically dismissed
from the board
Another mistake was not working with the manager and attorney together; there had been
discussion on what was a manager’s role and what was an attorney’s role; if there was an issue
that was very involved, the attorney should be asked to review to ensure consistency with the law
Noted that enforcement of condominium documents and developing policies and procedures were
good, but enforcing them was another issue
There were three ‘p’s of community association law practice – people, pets and parking, with the
main focus on the people
Condominium telephone directories – the Florida legislature tried to fix the issue, but failed. The
directory could have one contact telephone number for an owner, but email addresses were not
accessible to other owners. If someone went into the office seeking an email address, it should
not be provided without permission
Question whether the board was allowed to provide email communications to the owners from the
board; the board should be transparent as possible, while recognizing there were certain issues
that could not be, such as personnel issues, pending litigation, etc. It was also important that the
web person did not place financial information on the site
When the board gets together and discusses association business, it was considered a board
meeting
If the president sends out an email to all directors and everyone responds back and discusses the
issue, and when they convene for the actual noticed meeting and there was no discussion, because
of the email communication, what would happen; if there was ongoing dialogue, they need to be
cautious of doing something indirectly that could be done directly
Someone asked about Senate Bill 711, Chapter 2, which discussed putting information in a directory, but
only if the owner permitted it. Ms. Eady explained the law previously stated ‘if the owner agreed that
they could put the additional information in the directory,’ but now the language was removed, so the
ability for an owner to agree was removed from the law. Ms. Eady noted that an email would become an
official record for communication purposes, but they could not include an email address in the directory.
Someone noted about someone getting an email that has everyone’s email listed and whether it should be
placed under ‘bcc.’ Ms. Eady responded that was not covered under the law; it only referenced that it
could not be included in a printed directory. There was a question of whether the board could form an
opinion through email exchange so they could develop discussion at a formal meeting. Ms. Eady agreed
that information should be provided prior to the meeting. President Spoll pointed out an example would
be that the Town Commission received agenda materials early, but it was also provided to the public
before a meeting where the issue was discussed. Ms. Eady noted that there should not be one-on-one
communications leaving the remaining members out of the conversation; information should be sent to all
board members. It was asked what would happen if email addresses were included in the directory. Ms.
Eady explained that if they printed email addresses and someone challenged it, they could file a complaint
with the state, and the state would give instruction to not do it again. She mentioned that if the directory
was previously printed with email addresses, then it should not be printed again with those addresses
included.
Ms. Eady discussed committee meetings noting that 48 hour notice was required for board meetings; there
was a narrow exception, which was in the case of an emergency, but the problem was that ‘emergencies’
was narrowly defined. Someone asked if a board could get around that requirement by using an
‘executive committee.’ Ms. Eady replied no; it would be considered a board meeting. She commented
that in the summer months, when no one was on the island, they should provide authority to someone,
Federation of LBK Condominium Assn.
Minutes of February 15, 2014
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usually the president to make decisions, but the authority needed to be provided by a written resolution.
There was discussion of utilizing Skype or video-conferencing. President Spoll pointed out that the board
needed to ensure that everyone could hear the other parties. There was a question of whether members of
a condominium had a right to speak on issues. Ms. Eady explained that the members have a right to
speak on each agenda item. She suggested it was important that a board had policies in place, in writing,
for handling owner’s comments. Someone asked if an owner brought up an issue that was not on the
agenda, and the board discussed it, should it be reflected in the minutes. Ms. Eady noted that minutes
were a “snapshot” of those in attendance, whether a quorum was achieved, and the decisions made by the
board. President Spoll mentioned that one of the problems in the past was if the minutes did not allow a
person to determine the intent of why the decision was made. Ms. Eady suggested keeping the
description as brief as possible.
Sale of Unit – Association First Right of Refusal
Ms. Eady continued noting that there was a case from the Second District that stated if there were a set of
condominium documents that gave uniform restrictions on who can buy and it states could not be a
convicted felon, subject of credit approval, or not allowing pets, would not trigger a requirement that the
association purchase the unit, but if have Right of First Refusal, and the association did not have criteria
in recorded documents, and did not find a substitute purchaser, then the association would have to allow
them to purchase . Declaration needs to spell out specifically what was not allowed in terms of occupancy
for them to see prior to purchase. President Spoll asked if the rules and regulations that were established
should be a part of the main condominium document. Ms. Eady commented if it was in the Declaration
of Condominium document, as a recorded document, consider it the “mini constitution” for your
community. The law stated that if something was in the Declaration of Condominium, the rules did not
have to be reasonable to be enforceable, as long it did not violate any local, state or federal law.
Parking
The issue was raised about parking of trucks and enforceability. Ms. Eady commented the problem was
that older documents have a blanket prohibition on trucks, and there were various provisions in the State
law that addressed trucks/SUVs. The Declarations have to be clear, and the association needed to decide
what was acceptable and have it properly drafted so can enforce. She noted that they want to make sure
they did not have commercial vehicles with signage on the side.
Someone asked if an owner had the right to the contract that was entered into by the association. Ms.
Eady replied yes; contracts were official records that need to be on file and available for seven years after
the contract was in place. One could make a written request for a copy of the document, certified mail
return receipt requested, and if the information was not provided within ten working days of receipt, then
it would be in violation of law, subject to actionable damage, or minimum damage of $50 per day. A
complaint should also be filed with the Division of State, Board of Condominiums.
Someone asked if there was a strict parking policy, and the owners have multiple vehicles and violate
other people’s spaces, what could be done. Ms. Eady noted the law did give associations the right to tow
a vehicle. Another issue was if it had been allowed for years, but now the association wishes to restrict, it
would be necessary for the association to adopt a resolution that acknowledged the restriction had not
been enforced, but intend to begin enforcement and a copy provided to all owners. She noted that if it
concerned pets, and it was allowed for years, then in this instance, those might have to be grandfathered
in.
There was discussion on the use of condominium funds for supporting political candidates or causes. Ms.
Eady pointed out this was not allowed; if the issue did not concern the maintenance of the property, then
it was not allowed, unless the condominium documents specifically were amended to allow it.
Federation of LBK Condominium Assn.
Minutes of February 15, 2014
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Noticing of Committee Meetings
Someone asked if a committee was formed for examining options to bring to the main board, when that
committee met, were they required to hold formally noticed meetings. Ms. Eady responded they would
be required to post the meeting at least 48 hours prior, unless it was really controversial which required
additional time. Restrictions on committees not only apply to standing committees, but also ad hoc
committees. It was questioned whether it would be acceptable to post a notice that stated the committee
would be meeting every week at a certain time. Ms. Eady replied no and explained they would need to
notice each meeting. Someone stated it was their understanding that if a committee was issued a budget,
they would be required to post meetings; however, if they were not issued a budget, then they were not
required to post. Ms. Eady pointed out that all committees would have to notice; and, in the case of the
committee with a budget, they would have to adhere to the same requirements as a board who adopts the
budget, which required 14 day notice, not 48 hour notice.
There was a question of whether an association president was allowed to deny the owners the ability to
hire a manager for the property, and if the president were allowed to manage the property from out of
state. Ms. Eady commented that a decision as important as management should be made by the board as
a whole; if the board, by resolution, delegated the authority to one member, if it was properly adopted,
then they would be allowed to make the decisions. It was asked if during the summer could a board
member make a decision without giving them the authority, unless it was an emergency. Ms. Eady
believed the board needed to recognize the amount of authority delegated to one particular member. A
good starting point would be to review condominium law, as there needed to be a chain of command if no
one was here, but it had to be clear. She mentioned there was a very important connection between
professional management and the board.
A question arose concerning the notice for meetings asking if there was a notice on every bulletin board
stating a committee will meet on a certain date and time, then would they have to carry notice further if
everyone was notified in the newsletter and on the bulletin boards. Ms. Eady responded that if the notice
had the actual dates and locations of the meetings, then it would be fine, but they need to keep in mind
that notice came in different ways; there needed to be a designated bulletin board for notices, which had
to be done by resolution adopted by the board noting there was a formal location for notice. The notice
needed to have the exact dates, not just the day of the week.
Someone noted in their documents it stated that a unit could be transferred between spouses, but asked if
that was legal if it was LLC. Ms. Eady commented that documents that were old, or properly crafted,
might not have addressed the transfer of units. She did not believe the association should be caught up in
who owned the unit, but concerned about outside entities. There should be provisions on people that will
occupy the unit when the owner was not present. The association could have a regulation that required
registration so the association knew who was using the unit and also for security reasons.
Other Business and Announcements
The next meeting is scheduled for March 15, 2014, at Longboat Harbor. The program will include an
update on potential legislative changes presented by Kevin Wells Esq. It was noted that at the April 19,
2014, meeting, the Town’s Planning, Zoning & Building Director, Alaina Ray, would provide the
members with an update on the final Urban Land Institute (ULI) report and the actions taken by the
Town. The April meeting will be held at Windward Bay.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 11:15 am
Roger Goldstein,
Secretary
Donna Chipman
Scribe

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