Listed below are my opening comments from the February 25th CDD meeting. I asked for them to discuss three items. None of these most important items were discussed. There is a lack of leadership on this Board. The Chairman and Vice Chairman believe in controlling everything they can. They both believe they know more than the residents and refuse to listen to us. They control the narrative by hiding information. It is time for a change.

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February 25, 2016

Leadership is the ability to guide or direct a group. It takes courage to be a leader. It requires you to ask questions that you do not know the answers to. It makes you vulnerable and shows your weak points. But a leader will take those risks because it is the right thing to do. This Board will very shortly have to make a choice between two options that could have a difference in cost of $5M to $15M.Tonight I would like to find out who has the ability to lead.

Over the last two months I have asked this board to consider generating criteria to decide between option 1 and option 3, for the over 10,000 linear feet that Langan has said either solution is workable. I've brought it up at two meetings and sent two e-mails to each board member. The Board has an unavoidable delay with regards to selecting the construction company because the bid responses are not due until April. Therefore, the Board has a chance to start this discussion tonight. Let's see who wants to be a leader.

 I have asked about our divided community and how the board plans on communicating to us to bring us back as one. Everyone is clearly aware of the vitriol being spewed on Nextdoor Mirabay. Some of the discussion has been deemed by the moderators to be inappropriate and too personal and has been taken down. A new Facebook forum was created to get around the moderators. An ethics charge was filed against the Chairman. Yet, this Board has refused to take any steps to bring the community together.

I met with Julie Guill for three hours yesterday to discuss our differences, of which there are many, but we had a civil discussion. We both concur that the division in Mirabay has to be curtailed. We also see eye to eye to work together to unify Mirabay. Unfortunately, Julie is on her way to Arizona and can't make it to the meeting tonight. We both agreed to help the Board any way we can to bring the community back together. It will take leadership from this Board to make that happen. Let's see who wants to be a leader.

I have asked about the chargeback for the coming special assessment and what will be considered a charge based on frontage and what will be a charge based on specially accrued benefit received. Florida Statutes 170.01 and 170.02 address this. It is a decision that the Board needs to make. It is a discussion that needs to start now. Having these discussions will show the neighborhood how complex the situation is. It will show the residents that the fix is NOT in. Let's see who wants to be a leader.

Over the past year, I have heard about every board member's frustration with how cumbersome the process is to get things done. There is a working group that we can't talk to directly. We have to go through Matt or Jere or Jamie or Langan. There are Florida Sunshine laws that make the process difficult.

Tonight’s agenda doesn't address these items to be discussed. Well, I have good news. Tonight we are in a public meeting so the Florida Sunshine Laws do not apply. You are all free to discuss these items. In addition it is on tonight's agenda: item 6 is Supervisor's requests.

I would like to see the three items of option 1 vs. option 3 criteria, communication to unify Mirabay, and the criteria for the chargeback be discussed tonight. It is of utmost importance that you all agree on next steps for each of the items so we can make progress and move forward to the March meeting.

Let's see who wants to be a leader.