Florida ROC : Florida Mobile Home & RV Lawyer & Attorney : Scott Gordon : Lutz Bobo Telfair Eastman Gabel & Lee Law Firm : FL Condo & Homeowners Associations

We've just been advised that House Bill 419 has been withdrawn from consideration for the upcoming legislative session in Tallahassee.   As you may recall, House Bill 419 contained provisions allowing the Department of Business and Professional Regulation to examine and inspect the property, books and records of almost any condominium, cooperative, timeshare, or mobile home park in Florida at any time and for any reason (or for no reason) whatsoever.   The bill also would have prohibited weekday meetings of the Board of Directors of condominium and cooperative associations from being held before 6:00 p.m.   In addition, no association would be permitted to make any contribution to a charitable organization unless that association received a direct benefit from that charitable organization. 

Apparently, proposed amendments to the statutes governing ROCs will be found in substitute Senate Bills 1196 and 1222 that have now been introduced and are making their way through the committee process.

We'll keep you posted.

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The last of our second series of seminars for the season is set for February 24th at Caribbean Isles in Apollo Beach.  We'll be starting our last set of presentations less than two weeks from now.

Here are the dates and locations of these upcoming seminars:

• Wednesday, March 3, at Japanese Gardens in Venice
• Tuesday, March 9, at Harbor Oaks in Fruitland Park in Lake County
• Tuesday, March 23, at Golf Lakes in Bradenton
• Thursday, April 1, at Enchanting Shores in Naples 

We'll be covering a number of very interesting topics, including a mini-orientation for ROC board members and a discussion of financial opportunities for ROCs in this challenging economy.  Current cases and pending legislation will be covered, including any additional information we've gathered on House Bill 419 and companion Senate Bill 864  that appear to be on the agenda of Florida's legislature during its upcoming session.  As always, we'll try to provide ample time for a general "question and answer" session.   The seminars will be begin at 10 a.m. and we should be finished by 12:30 pm at the latest.

Refreshments will be served, and there's no charge to attend.  If members of your community would like to attend any of these seminars, please rsvp by emailing either Kathy Sawdo at ksawdo@lutzbobo.com or Karen Midlam at kmidlam@lutzbobo.com.  Just let them know which seminar you'd like to attend, the name of your community and the number of residents from your community that will be attending, and whether you'll need directions to the host community.   We like to give each of our host communities a "head count" of attendees a few days prior to the seminar that community is hosting so, if at all possible, please rsvp at least a few days before the event you're planning to attend.

We hope to see you at one of these events.

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It's always exciting to spread the word to my blog readers when a community joins the list of ROCs in Florida.  

Earlier today, the residents of Riverwalk Mobile Home Village closed on the purchase of their community.   Riverwalk is a beautiful manufactured housing community with over 200 sites located in North Port near the Myakka River.   The residents formed their homeowners association a number of years ago and maintained a good relationship with the community owner over those years.   The association made a point to contact the owner at least annually to remind the owner that the residents were interested in purchasing the community if and when the owner was ready to sell.

The community owner contacted the homeowners association in late December of last year and offered to sell Riverwalk to the association.   The terms offered by the owner required that the closing of the sale occur by no later than February 18, 2010.  Fortunately, the homeowners association had prepared for this opportunity and because of that advance planning and a tremendous amount of effort, the association was able to raise the funds and meet the conditions required under the agreement in time.   As a result, the homeowners association now is the proud owner of what will soon be known as Village at Riverwalk, the newest ROC in Florida!

The associatIon's efforts to purchase Riverwalk were ably led by a terrific group of directors and many volunteers.   Bill Gorman and Norman Loiselle from Lifestyle Choice Realty did a fantastic job of coordinating these efforts and helping the residents keep their enthusiasm and optimism at the highest levels while working with lenders, engineers, vendors, insurance agencies, and many other outside parties throughout the process.

Several financial institutions, including Florida Shores Bank, First Community Bank of America, and Calusa National Bank helped residents finance individual membership share purchases and Bank of America's commitment to the association to provide the blanket loan was crucial to the association's ability to purchase the community.

The association had less than two months from the date that the offer to sell was received to raise the funds needed to complete the purchase.  What the residents lacked in time they more than made up in faith and hard work.  As a result,  Village at Riverwalk is now a resident owned community.

Congratulations and welcome to the residents of Village at Riverwalk!

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I just returned from a brief trip to Memphis, Tennessee and visited the National Civil Rights Museum, which is located at the site of the murder of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  The museum has incorporated much of the Lorraine Hotel (including the room in which Dr. King stayed and the balcony outside that room where he was killed) as well as the apartment across the street from the hotel where James Earl Ray aimed and fired from a bathroom window and took Dr. King's life.   I recall the exact moment when I learned of Dr. King's death and to be able to view the site of his assassination in an "up close and personal" manner was an extremely powerful experience for me.   I highly recommend a visit to the museum if you are in the Memphis area and suggest that you view the short movie at the museum called "The Witness" before beginning to tour the exhibits.

As I made my way through the museum, I was reminded that many of the freedoms we take for granted today are the result of great sacrifices and courageous efforts by Americans of all colors and beliefs.   I couldn't help but marvel that less than fifty years ago, Dr. King was gunned down simply because many of his fellow countrymen could not accept the fact that all Americans were entitled to certain basic rights.   The fact that many of the injustices that Dr. King sought to overcome have been remedied speaks volumes to his legacy and to the laws that our federal and local legislators have enacted during the past five decades.

My visit to the museum reminded me about the direct connection between the Civil Rights laws and the Fair Housing and Disability laws that often create divisive problems for board members and other residents in the communities we work with.   Those Fair Housing and Disability laws built upon the earlier Civil Rights laws and extend rights of equality to which all Americans are entitled.  The underlying philosophy of all of these laws is simply that no American should be deprived of certain opportunities, whether in employment, or voting, or obtaining housing, simply because of his or her color or religion or disability.   Unless our legislators carve out an exception (such as the Housing for Older Persons Act), it's that underlying philosophy that should guide ROC board members.

Some forty-two years after Dr. King's death, it's an important lesson for all of us to remember.

Thanks to our friends at Francis I in Sebring for hosting last week's well-attended seminar.  We'll be at Windward Isles in Sarasota and Marco Shores in Naples this week and at Caribbean Isles in Apollo Beach during the last week in February.  If you'd like to attend one of these free seminars and haven't yet rsvp'd, please contact either Karen Midlam at kmidlam@lutzbobo.com or Kathy Sawdo at ksawdo@lutzbobo.com.  I hope to see you at one of these events.

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