I have recently been made aware of a letter Ms. Julia Vaughn read to the board at the June 20, 2023 meeting; the letter is flawed in many respects.

First, it is based on the false premise that "a small number" of residents have concerns about the current Tolomato Board. In fact, there are a great many people in the community who are concerned about the trajectory of this Board. It also asserts that there is an "orchestrated" effort to discredit this board. The reality is that no such effort could touch the degree to which this Board has discredited itself. Consider the following:

• In early January, a meeting between the Board and the ARB was held to bring the Board up to speed on activities associated with a problematic contractor. Among the items discussed was the conflict of interest posed by a board member's contractual relationship with the same contractor and issues that could result, particularly regarding pending litigation. It was a productive meeting and everyone left feeling we were on the same page. By the next morning, Ms. Fardy had consulted a third party who opined there was no conflict of interest and she declared that this ruling would be the standard by which we would proceed. Of course, the opinion had no bearing on the previously stated concerns. What Ms. Fardy did accomplish however was to seriously damage any sense of trust between the two Boards.

• Three Board members were present at the first community meeting. Ms. Fardy mentioned the fact that Ms. Brenton was away on business. Just before the meeting Ms. Fardy had been informed of the resignation of Ms. Flatt; but that was kept secret, no mention was made to the community at the meeting. Thus, within the first two minutes of this Board's official administration any sense of transparency and credibility died. There followed for the next week a concentrated, secret effort to reinstate Ms. Flatt. At no time was notice provided the community.

• A short time later another board member resigned. After a few days the resignation was reconsidered and Ms. Fardy was so notified. In this case however an entirely different standard for filling board vacancies was applied wherein, with no notice to the community, a replacement had been immediately inserted into the vacant seat. Different standards for different people, none consistent with the covenants, does not inspire confidence from the community.

• An inquiry was made to the Board about the feasibility of building across lot lines by an owner who intended to build a home that would require it. Ms. Fardy responded in writing that she would personally favor such a plan but the ARB may not but, in any event, she asserted that it was under the ARB's purview to make that decision. Upon inquiry to the ARB the issue was further researched with the ARB concluding that there was no prohibition to building across lot lines and that lots had already been legally combined. The owner was appraised and the ARB developed and promulgated a protocol by which such cases would be handled by the ARB.  It is also important to note the ARB took a position, completely within its own authority, only providing guidance to combined lot owners. At this point, however, Ms. Fardy completely reversed her earlier position asserting that it was not legal to build across lot lines and that it was not within the ARB's purview to make such a decision. Ms. Fardy claimed the Archtectural Guidelines could not be changed.  The TIPOA Board has no authority to state what can and can't be included in the Guidelines. It is the sole province of the ARB.  The issue of combining lots is still being resolved. The board's adversarial posture, however, created a riff in the community that was unnecessary and counterproductive.

• The ARB is charged in the TIPOA covenant's to be an independent board and the previous ARB conducted the community's business accordingly. Proceedings were transparent, responsive and generally well received in the community. This did not sit well with the board. Ultimately the board fired the entire ARB for reasons known only to the Board. This was not well received in the community and certainly was not done in the best interest of the community. The effect was the widening the previously cited "riff" and again "discrediting "what was left of the board's credibility.

In short, the "discrediting" of this board has not been done by any element of the community but rather by the consistent pattern of the board's own actions…it continues to this day.

Ms. Vaughn's second paragraph is dedicated to the topic of a master plan for the community. Once again, she creates a conspiratorial precept ("these residents") and proceeds with the false premise that the topics that would typically be considered in a master plan have already been concluded "suggesting the need for expanding etc". She goes on to assert that there "is and has been a master plan for the community since 2001". There was a marketing piece titled "Master Plan" that was nothing more than a plat of the community. Could this be the Master Plan to which Ms. Vaughn is referring?  In short, her assertions are misleading, inflammatory and generally a rationale to do nothing.

The third paragraph of Ms. Vaughn's letter addresses the maintenance of the community but is something of a "red herring" in as much as no one has questioned that. It is worth noting, however, that the work necessary to maintain the community's appearance is performed by contracted vendors and committees.

As for the community's fiscal posture, I trust it is sound and can think of no reason why it should not be. That being the case it is curious that some are so ardently opposed to the prudent business practice of a periodic audit. Tolomato has never had one.

The community casts it's votes every December in a good faith effort to elect a Board that will address both individual and collective concerns and desires in an evenhanded and respectful manner. It is not too much to ask. Unfortunately, our governing documents were drawn up to protect the interests of the developer. Boards can use these documents as a guide for the conduct of the community's business or as a shield to insulate the Board from the community. Recent Boards have done the latter. I fear the ultimate effect, if not purpose, of Ms. Vaughn's letter is to stymie community dialog, not encourage it. 

There will be a vote on a new water impact at Savannah Square.  I am against adding more impact units.  

Why?   First our water bill is $4,200 per month.  For what, to water plants that don't need it (i.e. grasses, palmetos, etc.)

If your landscaping includes the right plants, they should not have to be watered.  I say this based upon experience. Our landscaping does quite well and we NEVER water anything. 

Idalia's impact on Tolomato could have been worse.  What was good and what needs improvement for Tolomato's preparedness for the next "big one"? 

Kudos for having courts clear within 3 days of Hurricane Idalia.

Kudos to the board for posting a notice on a dog that got loose the day before the Hurricane.

Rant.  While the lawn crew is (on labor day) doing a great job of clearing the easement for non-residents, the crew should do all easements or none.  Residents and non-residents all pay the same dues.

I was walking my dog one evening in our neighborhood and a bicyclist came by at high speed. It was pitch dark and, although he had some sort of lighting mechanism, I did not see him until he was almost passed me. The scary part is my dog attempted to chase him. Had the leash been any longer, I am confident there would have been a collision. The guy on the bike had every right to be zooming along, just as I had every right to be walking my dog. The problem is we do not have adequate lighting by the roads.

I have observed the placement of the lantern lights along Mission Drive and Tolomato Drive and it appears to me that the planners had intended to place alternating posts on the east and west sides of the roads but only completed one side. My reasoning is based on the fact that they are simply spread too far apart for adequate lighting. It would make sense to light the paths of both roadsides. Installing street lights between each of the current ones would not over light the area because there is no overlap. When I say it is pitch dark in most areas, I mean just that.

Last year, three neighborhood pet cats disappeared in an approximate 3 week period. My guess is a predatory animal took advantage of our dimly lit neighborhood. Hear me out on this one; Our precious fox family likes to visit the park behind my home at night and, although it sounds as if a heinous crime is taking place, I know they are up to fox games. The problem, as I see it, is they would not be so annoying and disturbing if the area had better lighting, They need to keep their bold selves safe at night. A panther could be waiting for them. I believe better lighting would deter predatory animals from freely roaming our roads AND yards.

I came across the causeway tonight and a raccoon scurried from the fish pond side to the creek side. It is pitch dark, there are no roadside lights. He made it passed me BEFORE I saw him. Glad I did not run over him or worse, swerve to miss him and happen on a bicyclist or pedestrian.

In my opinion, ALL, areas in our neighborhood deserve adequate lighting. It doesn't matter if it is "subdivision" or gravel road (subject for another "blog").

I like to play Pickleball occasionally and the courts are pitch black at night. As you know, dark happens before 6 pm when time changes. There are two corner lights on the club house, facing the court, that have been disabled. People who work simply can't play in the evening. I seriously doubt these lights disrupt anyone, no more than the streetlights do. The lights are far enough from people's home. The designers of our community, who I think we can all agree possessed rare and exceptional talent and vision, placed the lights there for a purpose and planned surrounding lots accordingly. I wondered tonight if there are any other associations as poorly lit as ours. I will take this opportunity to add that recreation is as important as other pursuits (subject for yet another "blog").

I have spoken to a board member about this and the person was very interested in the subject, I just want to get the discussion going and encourage interest in this upgrade.

In closing, I am going to add two pictures. Both pictures are from the same spot. One is with a flash and one is not. The one with the flash shows that I am standing very close to a road sign in our neighborhood. The one without the flash is totally dark, black, one can see nothing, if I am unable to add the pictures here, I will upload them on the "get to know your neighbor " pages.

Thank you,

Elaine Day 

There is a rift developing among the property owners of Tolomato and the governing POA board and newly appointed ARB. Rather than focusing on how Tolomato arrived at this unfortunate juncture, concerned Tolomato owners have organized an effort to genuinely provide reasonable and productive suggestions that can ultimately harmonize the Tolomato community for the common good and restore a bright future of our beautiful community.

This genuine effort should focus on open communications. Sometimes open communications opens vulnerability and work on all sides will be required in order to come together for the common good of the Tolomato community. Below are suggested topics and action items for which we believe need solutions. 

Using informal "Community Meetings" where residents come together to propose ideas, discuss them and plan in order to find solutions may be the best format. The Board should know that there is already a structure in place for informal community meetings where residents have come to together to propose ideas, discuss them and find solutions for pressing issues. The format does not follow ridged rules. Progress that is made in these sessions can be acted upon, or where appropriate could be brought to a Board meeting.

We encourage the current TIPOA Board and future Boards to not only accept these member efforts but encourage community participation in work sessions and board meetings. Ideas should be exchanged, considered and surveys can be done on how best to administer and plan for the future. These meetings should produce long term benefits to everyone in the community as we have a respectful dialog to work through issues which impact us all. 

Committees need the ability to self-establish operational protocols and procedures for their respective committee. Existing charters for each committee should be reviewed and revised as necessary. All charters and operational methods and procedures should be published.