Your WPA board appears to be operating under "silence is golden", and it isn't benefiting Wedgefield, and it often flies in the face of our governing documents, and harms our Wedgefield community. I've transcribed another portion of the resident comment section of the WPA December 2015 board meeting. Since your board has gone silent in another area - they no longer post the official recordings of WPA board meetings on the WPA website, you'll have to go to The Wedgefield Times to listen to the tape, and verify my transcription for yourself. The portion of the tape that I have transcribed starts at about 43 minutes into the tape.
To set the stage for the transcription I'm bringing you to the point where the canal resident has asked the board about a maintenance dredge, and Garrison has given her some of his rhetoric. As we begin to transcribe Garrison speaks for the whole board, including those who serve on the water amenities committee.
TRANSCRIPTION WILL BE PROVIDED IN BLACK TYPE, COMMENTS, WHEN INSERTED, WILL BE NOTED AS SUCH, AND PROVIDED IN RED TYPE:
Garrison has been speaking, and we pick up the transcription here, regarding the canals. Garrison, "As far as this board, and the responsibility to do it - I would respectfully disagree. You have an agreement that was reached in court, after 5 years, or so of wrangling. Everyone in the lawsuit agreed that we don't own the canals. So I find it a stretch to say this board has responsibility - pretty much unilaterally agreed by all the people that were involved in the lawsuit that we don't own....I don't believe PERSONALLY that this board has any LEGAL responsibility WHAT SO EVER. I would agree, and that the board had a MORAL responsibility, and I do also agree that it has an effect on the canal owners values. VERY FRANKLY, I don't think it makes my property worth a dollar more, or less whether the canal behind your house is dredged, or not. Again - SUBJECTIVE difference of opinion. There is and was in fact a proposed by-law - that was proposed for this years ballot to prohibit WPA from spending ANY money what so ever on canals. I can PROMISE YOU it will be on the ballot. The reason it didn't make it this year was it was so poorly worked that it was rejected by the board attorney. It's going to be rewritten and it will be there. I can almost guarantee you. I don't mean that to SCARE ANYBODY, or anything else, because I don't.....You NEED to UNDERSTAND there is UNDER FOOT - folks adamantly opposed to any WPA funds being spent on those canals. So, as strongly as you believe that - this board has a responsibility to do something about it, at least an equal # of people out there believe exactly the opposite."
COMMENTS: We pause in the transcription. Garrison says, "You NEED to UNDERSTAND there is UNDER FOOT - folks adamantly opposed to any WPA funds being spent on those canals. " Legal/compliance chair/vice president Garrison, has been the leader of the band of the under foot group adamantly opposed to WPA funds spent on those canals. He has been active since the last dredge, voted on in 2009, as a private citizen blatantly telling us residents in writing to put their canal assessments in escrow in Anderson Bank, and has been continuing this agenda at the expense of every WPA member, expending WPA legal funds through a series of suspicious lawyers, unwritten legal opinions, hidden and forged documents, while every board member sits by. Really? Here is the SILENT part. Why in December of 2015 is the entire board - except the illegal mouth piece - Garrison, sitting by, and letting Garrison speak about the canals, and answer a canal resident's question? Where is water amenities chair, John Walton when Garrison is saying these things? Where are board members Anderson, Johnson, and McMillin, who also sit on the water amenities/canal committee? As always, they are sitting on their hands, because they aren't raising them to speak. John Walton, Larry McMillin, and Adam Anderson were first line observers, and hands on workers in the last dredging, and they have stayed silent about any legal plans to help us on this issue, and too many others! This silence isn't golden. It is corrupt. They sit there while Garrison makes these claims about canal ownership, and judgements. There were no judgements. There were settlements, and they came long after the 2009 vote to dredge the canals. Yes, the state owns the bottoms of the canals. The 2009 vote to dredge was not made on who owns them, it was made on RESPONSIBILITY. Johnson wasn't a homeowner in 2009, but McMillin was a board member, and John Walton was an active volunteer on the committee at the time. Just incase you'd like to think I'm making facts up, I was a board member in 2009, and just before the vote to finance, and dredge, the question and argument about who owns the canals came up in discussion. The following is a direct quote from the WPA 2009 August meeting minutes, from then President Gettmann regarding ownership: "The canals have been part of this Plantation since the beginning, and there are some of you that would like to see them become mud holes. I think ownership of the canals is not as important as our duty as members of this community to maintain this entire Plantation and the pristine and beautiful condition in which it was envisioned and built up to be. That includes the canals. "
McMillin VOTED to finance, and dredge the canals. Individual Assessment was used to assess canal lot owners at a much higher rate, than non canal lot owners. Anderson, and John Walton were right in the middle of the project. So, for a moment, let's ask were they committed to the legalities, ethics, governing documents then, or did they just want the canals dredged by any means? Are they letting Garrison run this unethical show now because they believe he is right, or do they just want the canals dredged, and they are afraid of him? Don't know! Don't care! You should care, because what they are playing with for their own misguided agenda, is the long term future of Wedgefield! Remember the phrase "every man"? This is an "EVERY MAN" moment in the history of Wedgefield! It is a "every member" - regardless of where you live in the association moment, and your very sick board - every member of the board, who hides, remains silent, while the likes of Garrison destroys our future, is culpable. The basics of Individual Assessment coupled with "responsibility and
"as our duty as members of this community to maintain this entire Plantation and the pristine and beautiful condition in which it was envisioned and built up to be." It should be noted that our board attorney of record from the Bell Legal Firm, was present for the August 2009 board meeting, and had met with the board several times before this vote, and had provided written opinions. "Every member" comes in at this moment because every homeowner, and the assets of their individual property - canals, golf course, condo, etc., are served if we couple responsibility, and Individual Assessment, to serve everyone fairly, and your board has been remaining silent for too long in their representation of us under our governing documents. REMEMBER "EVERY MEMBER" AS WE MOVE BACK TO TRANSCRIPTION, AND A MEMBER'S RESPONSE TO GARRISON, WHILE YOUR CANAL COMMITTEE SITS SILENTLY BY.
Member: "The board's responsibility is not based on a MAJORITY. The board's responsibility is WHAT IS IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF THIS COMMUNITY. It is not a matter of majority votes. If everything were votes they would turn out differently. THERE ARE COVENANTS AND BY-LAWS saying common ground must be maintained - that considered common ground....The last lawsuit - no finding was found that there was wrong doing. YOU ARE ONE PERSON BOB (Garrison) AND I RESPECT YOUR OPINION. YOU ARE ONE OPINION, BUT THERE'S A WHOLE BOARD HERE - ALL WITH OPINIONS - JUST SAYING. AS TIME GOES ON - NO DISCUSSION! NO MENTION OF MAINTENANCE DREDGING IS A COSTLY MISTAKE! ....BECAUSE - GOES ON AND ON. THE BOARD NEEDS TO ADDRESS THIS ISSUE, before it gets so huge - the costs go out of....it really could be done probably at a fairly reasonable price if it is addressed at this point, and time - not two years from now."
COMMENTS: Your water amenities/canal committee members don't SAY A WORD! If you have followed their time line, presented in their handouts, and written presentation materials from the canal members meeting in August, the responsible board members, who sit on the committee don't jump in and even tell her they have been working on a dredge. Why? Do they think we are too dumb? Do they know what they are doing hurts every homeowner? You'll be the judge, but remember they aren't working for us - all of us, they appear to be working for team Garrison, and they haven't been given a speaking part. I'm sorry (not so much), GUTLESS, AND LAWLESS! Prepare yourself, another board member is going to jump in against the resident, and your canal committee will show more of their true colors. The board member has recently resigned, but was an officer of the board, in fact it is then treasurer DeMarchi. We resume transcription.
Treasurer DeMarchi: "I would like to address this. ? (can't hear number) years ago when this board came up with option of putting approximately $30,000 aside each year for the canals....The board has gone above and beyond that. At the same time - you can ask Larry (McMillin). You can ask Ed W (long term canal committee member). Ask anybody that sat on your canal committee - Ed, Jamie C (another committee member), I've hounded these guys OVER THE YEARS to get their butt in gear! Three years ago when we instituted this $30,000/yr If we had taken action there - if you could have gotten the canal people OK, we would have donated approximately $180,000 out of the fund of this community to the canal fund because we had 6 years to go before the permit expires OK WE'VE LET THAT SLIDE FOR 3 YEARS. If each canal lot owner had set aside $30/month additional instead of giving it to McDonalds, we'd have enough money come 2019 to dredge those canals, SO DON'T LAY IT ON THIS BOARD, because this proposal has been given to several canal lot people and so on. The canal lot people have been ATROCIOUS, and the BOARD DOES NOT HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO DO ....because the PEOPLE of this community - the many that resent initially when dredging occurred and got THIS SHOVED DOWN THEIR ....have come to reason, and said you know what, I will not.....but it is $50/year that's coming out that is going into a fund - so I'm not fighting it, but it is the canal lot owners responsibility to come up with a viable plan. If you don't accept it, where does our responsibility
end? Garrision: "In terms of board responsibility, I'll tell you this, I believe that it is my responsibility as a board member to be attuned to what the majority of the people that are paying here are willing to do - alright - that's how things work. THIS ISN'T ABOUT MY OPINION, or yours. Regardless, about what my opinion is I try to get that picture in terms of what is best for the community. WE ALL GET ELECTED so that's MY majority... It is only a majority of 214 (COMMENT: that is all that voted in the 2015 ballot), that vote which isn't even a majority of the residents - I can't do anything about that, but believe very strongly as a board member it is my responsibility to look at what....want ....your a minority on this particular issue...as a group I get that, but REGARDLESS I'm not blinded that there will be some....opposed . Don't misunderstad that but as Al (DeMarchi) said, the THE CANAL LOT OWNERS GETTING ON BOARD....NOT TOO MANY to do so and as John (Walton) said there just hasn't been a whole lot of interest. Resident: "Put it in the Wragg. Schedule a meeting and invite everyone that is interested in the topic who would like to provide - don't just leave it to the canal lot people - post a meeting date." Garrison: "I have offered on NUMEROUS ....to meet with canal lot owners...is that not so, and there was no interest."
COMMENTS:
We need to thank the resident who stuck with this issue. She had responsibility right. As to that whole board, they sat through a pack of lies presented by Garrison, and DeMarchi, and never called them on the fact that the canal dredging has not been discussed in over 2 years from the board table. Remember, I have posted all the water amenities reports from the approved WPA board minutes - NEVER MENTIONED - LET ALONE INVITATIONS TO MEET WITH ANYONE Mr. Garrison. If it never happened, and we've proved it, it is just lies. So every member of that nine member board sat through the lies, and NEVER STOOD UP FOR ANYONE, OR ANYTHING.
Regarding Anderson, John Walton, Johnson, and McMillin, how arrogant of you to propose anything to canal lot owners, asking them to pay privately for dredging - no assessment from the board, but to a private account, when everything you have done, stood by and watched, is illegal. Canal lot owners, your contributions - money, are doing nothing but adding to the destruction of Wedgefield, which now doesn't have far to fall. These guys don't even defend you when you are called atrocious, and not interested, when no one has even talked to us - not any of us, or represented us from the board table out in the open. Everyone on that board with their silence have failed to serve us under our governing documents, and are destroying Wedgefield.
