From the Desk of the President
by Glenn L. Davis
As the Christmas Holidays approach, it is the hope of the Board of Directors that you and your family have the happiest of all holidays and that 2011 will bring a more prosperous New Year.
November Board of Directors’ Budget Meeting
The Board of Directors’ Budget meeting was held on November 15th in the Cabana. The Board presented the 2011 Budget for passage. Information about the Budget was presented to about 25 in attendance. After a brief discussion, a motion was made and passed by a vote of 5 - 0 to accept the 2011 Budget. Each property will pay $925.00 for the annual assessment for the year 2011. This is a reduction of $25.00 from the 2010 assessment of $950.00.
Other items brought to the floor and passed by a 5 - 0 vote were the approval to expend no more than $10,000.00 for replacement of the two air conditioners in the Cabana, an expenditure of $2,422.10 for the replacement of one of the light poles for the tennis courts and an expenditure of $642.50 for the installation of an automatic chlorine feeder for the spa adjacent to the community pool.
This is probably the lowest annual assessment of any deed-restricted community in this entire area. Your Board of Directors spends many hours a week working for the maintenance and improvement of Cedar Creek. They deserve a collective “Thank You” from everyone for their dedication to Cedar Creek.
Your 2011 Annual Assessment
You will be receiving a coupon in the mail this week containing your 2011 Annual Assessment information. This payment is due on January 1, 2011. Please make sure your check is received by that date. Any payments received after January 15th, will be assessed a late fee of $46.25 and a daily interest of $0.46 per day, starting on January 1st. We do not accept postmarks as proof of mailing. The onus will be on you to get your payment to Compass before the deadline. We fully realize that in this current economy, things are rough for some of us, but the Association is a business and has to be run as such. In that vein, the funds derived from the assessments are needed to manage our beautiful community. Please make every effort to get your payment in on time.
Contact Information
If you have not already done so, please submit your approval to have your telephone number and your e-mail address inserted in the Cedar Creek Directory. A new directory will be made available to all Cedar Creek owners in early January. Your name and address will appear as before, but if you wish to have your phone number and/or your e-mail address included, we do need your permission.
Bar-code Decal Distribution
The distribution of the Bar-code decals for the new Bar-code system is nearing the end. Approximately 90 percent of the Cedar Creek property owners have received the new decals.
There will be NO bar-code makeup day in December. If you haven’t received your Bar-code decal, please take the time to take care of it now by contacting Greg Coury at (239) 949-3357 Ext 3500 and make an arrangement to have your decal(s) installed. Cedar Creek residents will not need to use their remote “clickers” or openers from their vehicles after they have had a decal installed on their vehicle's right side window. The “old” system will be disabled on January 1, 2011. Your “clickers” will not operate the gates after that date. The remote “clickers” will continue to operate your home garage door(s). We thank Wain Garrison, Larry Tomaielly, and Greg Coury for assisting with the Bar-code decal distribution on November 18th.
2010 Cedar Creek Garage Sale
November 13 was a beautiful day and Cedar Creek hosted the annual neighborhood garage sale, with 41 homes taking part. A special thanks to about three-fourths of you who made it a point to bring your $2 advertising fee by our house, making it easier for us to collect from the remaining 10 or so homes on sale day, then have time to enjoy the day ourselves. We had a great time looking over many nice items, as well as visiting with neighbors that we seldom get to see.
Kudos to Streamlet Court and Tranquil Court for making the extra effort to put signs at the end of your streets as a welcome to those eager to spend their money. Many other homes put balloons on their mailboxes, which was a nice touch.
A fun final note: one little girl in the neighborhood saw how much money she was making selling some of her toys and other personal items, and eagerly ran back into the house to see what else she could find to sell. Could this be a future entrepreneur in the making?
Until next year……Mark and Bev Hempen
Annual Meeting
Please mark your calendars for Tuesday, March 15, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. This is the date and time for the Cedar Creek Property Owners’ Association, Inc., for the Annual Meeting. On the agenda, among other items, will be the election of two residents to sit on the Board of Directors. If you are planning to run for a position on the Board of Directors, please make your intentions known to either Nomination Committee Chairman Denny Berens, or Property Manager Vic Burnett, so that your name will be placed on the Ballot.
The Annual Meeting is required by the Florida Statutes. The meeting is open to all owners, but only those owners who are in good standing with the Association will be allowed to cast their ballot. To have a quorum of members, we need to have 82 owners either attend or submit their proxy ballots.
Community Management
The Cedar Creek management company is the Compass Group. Their address is: 3701 North Tamiami Trail, Naples, FL 34103. You can contact them via phone at (239) 593-1233; fax at: (239) 593-1116. Their web site is: www.mycompassgroup.com Vic Burnett is our Property Manager. He oversees the day-to-day operations of Cedar Creek and will be in the community on a weekly basis to identify problems, then notify any owner(s) of observed violations. If the violations are not resolved in a timely fashion, he will articulate such to the Board for possible action. Vince can be reached at the above phone number or via e-mail at: vburnett@mycompassgroup.com
Address Changes
To all out-of-area owners who have had an address change, telephone number change or a problem with receiving mail from the management company, please check with Compass Group to ensure that they do have your correct out-of-town address and telephone contact numbers, both locally and out-of-town.
Cedar Creek Ladies Book Club
The Cedar Creek Ladies Book Club meets once a month on the fourth Monday at 7:15 p.m.. We read mostly fiction with a few non-fiction, and bios included occasionally. If you're interested, call or email Carolyn Gallagher, 949-0949, gallahawk@aol.com.
Cedar Creek Ladies’ Coffee
Meet Your Neighbors
The December Coffee will be held at the home of Beverly Hempen, 25691 Springtide Court, on Wednesday, December 15, at 2:00 p.m. Please call Beverly at 992-8820 by Sunday, December 12th, if you will attend.
The January Coffee will be held at the home of Linda Hetzell, 25541 Inlet Way Court on Tuesday, January 11th at 2:00 p.m. Please call Linda by Sunday, January 9th, if you will attend.
We are in need of someone for September and October 2011. Anyone wishing to volunteer or has questions may call LaVerne Stein at 498-9647.
Waste Collection
Trash receptacles should be kept in your garage until trash collection day. Remember, yard waste and recycled goods will be collected on Mondays. Household waste will be collected on Tuesdays. And also, if you have boxes containing “popcorn styrofoam” packing material, please secure the shipping container with either twine or tape. Please put trash and recycled items by the curb on the scheduled pick-up day only. Please make a note of these changes.
Lakefront Properties
For all residents whose property backs up to one of our six lakes, LakeMasters, the company that maintains them, has made the following request. “Please have your lawn mowing contractor, or if you cut your own lawn, refrain from directing the lawn clippings into the lakes.” Apparently, this practice increases the amount of algae growth in the waters. This is detrimental to the quality of the lake waters, which in turn, increases the amount of algaecide needed to control the algae growth.
Volunteerism
Again, we want to thank the regular group of neighborhood volunteers who help with weekly cleanups and light maintenance in the common areas of Cedar Creek. The common areas seem to be a dumping ground for residents and outsiders alike, disposing of fast food wrappers, beverage cans and bottles and other items of waste. You will usually see these volunteers picking up debris along US 41 in front of Cedar Creek, along the main thoroughfare and in the Community pool and tennis court areas on Tuesday mornings. If you would like to donate some time on any Tuesday morning to help with this ongoing project, please call either Lloyd Zimmerman at 992-8123 or Glenn at 992-2120. Your help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks to Rick Hall, Robert Bruce and Larry Tomaielly for their regular help in this ongoing project.
Delinquencies
Due to space limitations, we will no longer list delinquent properties in the Newsletter. If you wish to know the status of delinquent properties in Cedar Creek, please send me an e-mail requesting that list.
Ten (10) properties are listed as delinquent for not paying their required assessments, late fees and/or interest, as of November 30, 2010 for the year 2010. Six of these properties are vacant, as the owner’s have “walked away” from the homes. These accounts are in the hands of the Association attorney for lien/foreclosure action. On the advice of the Association attorney, we will wait until each of these properties sell and collect any outstanding debts via estoppel letters when they go to closing with new owners, or when the banks release them from their indebtedness.
The total of accounts receivable is $23,482.80, including assessments, late fees and interests through November 30, 2010 on these accounts.
In addition to the above, the Association is currently maintaining three (3) properties that have been vacated by the respective owners. These incurred costs total $13,611.24, over and above the total accounts receivable.
To date, 17 Cedar Creek properties have been sold in 2010, with at least two (2) others scheduled to close by year’s end.
Directories
On July 1, 2010, the Florida State Legislature passed SB 1196. It basically requires any resident who wishes to have either their telephone numbers and/or their e-mail address published in the Cedar Creek directories to give the Association explicit permission to publish this information. We can still use your name and address, but you must provide permission by signing up on the Cedar Creek website. Even if you have provided your e-mail address or phone number to us previously, according to the new Statute you must remit your consent via the website form. Please take the time to do so if you want this information included. Upon request, a directory can be transmitted to you electronically after the first of the year. These Directories are for non-commercial use only.
Neighborhood Watch
Neighborhood Watch volunteers are still needed to complete the monthly schedules. If you are interested, please contact Angela Elmore at: Angelaelmore@verizon.net or by phone at
(239) 206-6650. There are five more dates that need coverage, so, if you can assist one night a month for approximately 30 minutes, your involvement will be greatly appreciated.
Pool, Spa, Bocce and Tennis Court
Please remember, hours for pool, spa, bocce and tennis court usage are from 8:00am to 9:00pm. For the concern and respect of your neighbors, please abide by these posted times. If you open an umbrella at the pool, please make sure you wind it down before you leave to avoid damage should a windstorm arise. To show consideration of others, and for the cleanliness of the pool area, please refrain from smoking in the pool and spa areas. Don't turn on the air conditioning unless you have a scheduled meeting or party and then please turn it off when you leave. This will save the Association money, which will in turn, save you money.
The Cedar Creek Bocce court is popular with the residents. The game is great fun and easy to play. This is not a game for men only. The ladies who have been playing, love it. For more information feel free to call one of the following: Dan Durante 498-9982; or Bill Schwessinger 992-4539. These numbers also will be posted in the cabana.
Front Gate FAQ
Q: What if my new bar-code does not work?
A: Make sure you keep to the right as you enter. The reader only has a range of about 4-5 feet. If that does not
make a difference, please contact Greg Coury at
239-949-3357 Ext 3500
Q: Will my old gate clicker still work in the future?
A: After the transition period, only the bar-codes, prox-cards and the Linear GT-30 units will work.
Q: Will the Prox-cards still work at the tele-entry system after the bar-code distribution is finished?
A: Yes. If yours stops working, contact Greg Coury for assistance. Call 239-949-3357 ext 3500
Q: Can I use my cell phone for the telephone entry instead of a home phone?
A: Yes, provided it is a local 239 number. The system cannot dial long distance.
Q: What happens if I sell my car?
A: Contact Global Security 239-949-3357 ext 3500 to purchase a new bar-code for $15. At the same time, notify them of which vehicle is being sold so it can be removed from the system.
Q: I need a way to get in the gate when not using my car. How can I get in when driving with a friend?
A: Purchase a prox-card or have your cell phone programmed to the gate so you can let yourself in via cell phone. Only local 239 cell phone numbers will work.
