Meeting Minutes for October 15, 2024
Habitat
Community Development District
The regular meeting of the Board of Supervisors of the Habitat Community Development District was held in the Bella Terra Clubhouse at 20070 Bella Terra Boulevard in Estero, Florida and also via web conference on Tuesday, October 15, 2024 at 4 p.m.
Present and constituting a quorum were:
Larry Roth – Chair
Norman Reno – Vice Chair
Jenny Licht – Assistant Secretary
Linda Lea Gibson – Assistant Secretary
James Meek – Assistant Secretary
Also present:
Cal Teague – District Manager, Premier District Management (PDM)
Chris Pepin – Field Manager, Community Field Services
David Schmitt – Engineer, Hole Montes
Mandie Rainwater – Assistant District Manager, PDM
Melissa Gindling – Assistant District Manager, PDM
Bob Vaa – Resident
Residents
Attending remotely:
Greg Urbancic – Attorney, Coleman, Yovanovich & Koester, P.A.
The following is a summary of the actions taken at the Habitat Community Development District Board of Supervisors Meeting.
FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS Call to Order and Roll Call
The meeting was called to order at 4:00 p.m., and all Board members were present. Also in attendance were Cal Teague, the District Manager, Assistant District Managers Mandie Rainwater and Melissa Gindling, Chris Pepin, the Field Manager, and Three Residents, including Bob Vaa. Attending remotely was Greg Urbancic, the Attorney.
SECOND ORDER OF BUSINESS Pledge of Allegiance
THIRD ORDER OF BUSINESS Approval of the Agenda
Add 6Ciib: Resident Request to Thin Lake Bank To See Alligators
On MOTION by Supervisor Meek, seconded by Supervisor Licht, with all in favor, the Agenda was approved, as amended.
FOURTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Audience Comments on Agenda Items
There were no Audience comments on Agenda items.
FIFTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Consent Agenda
A. Items to Be Pulled for Discussion
There were no items pulled.
B. Motion to Approve Consent Items
On MOTION by Supervisor Licht, seconded by Supervisor Meek, with all in favor, the Board approved all Consent Items, as presented.
C. Consideration of Items Pulled for Discussion
D. Consent Items
i. Draft Meeting Minutes for September 17, 2024
ii. Financial Report for September 2024
District Manager Teague reported that the District finished with a very good Fiscal Year 2024. Interest income generated should allow the District to be approximately $500,000 under budget overall.
iii. Project Tracking Logs
SIXTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Staff Reports
A. Irrigation Contractor
There have been minimal irrigation reports. Field Manager Pepin stated that there is a possibility of a mainline break, which was found on October 15th, and they are investigating. In addition, he reported that Ed Napier is drafting a list of recommendations for repairing the pump station.
B. District Manager
i. FEMA Reimbursement Update
District Manager Teague stated that other communities are being rejected, and he believes that Habitat will be also, but he will inform the Board if and when this occurs, so that further steps can be discussed. Public access is one of the main factors for FEMA’s denial of claims.
ii. Audit Engagement Letter
District Manager Teague stated that the audit engagement letter presented to the Board from Berger, Toombs, Elam, Gains, & Frank is a formality, which is a portion of their existing contract for completing the District’s financial audit.
On MOTION by Supervisor Licht, seconded by Chair Roth, with all in favor, the Board approved the audit engagement letter from Berger, Toombs, Elam, Gains, & Frank, authorizing the Chair to sign.
C. Field Manager
i. Current Field Report
Field Manager Pepin reviewed the field report and the following was discussed:
He stated that there are buttonwood trees that have fallen, but they cannot be replanted until the water recedes.
He discussed the condition of Habitat after Hurricanes Helene and Milton, and he stated that the community did very well. Supervisor Roth also completed a ride around the day after the storm to inspect the community and identify a few areas of concern. He observed a few downed trees and fallen branches in the preserve for which Field Manager Pepin was already aware. He will also be reinstalling a few street signs.
He stated that letters have been sent to residents at 21400 and 21420 Velino Lane for illicit discharges into the lake, and to 20582 Torre Del Lago for discharges into the stormwater system.
Field Manager Pepin stated that Vice Chair Reno provided some calculations, and after reading some water bills for the clocktower, Field Manager Pepin believes there could be a leak. He will obtain a quote for inspection and repair.
He stated that street sweeping has been scheduled and asked the Board if they believed that one or two visits will be necessary. Supervisor Licht noted that hurricane damaged vegetation and leaves are still falling, and one sweep may not remove it all. It was decided to authorize Field Manager Pepin to ask that they sweep once a week for two weeks, then every other week for two more sweeps, totaling 4 sweeps over a 6 week period.
He stated that the crack at 21409 Velino Lane will be patched while a crew is in the community.
ii. Project Updates
a. Replace Dahoo Holly Trees at Barletta Gate
Field Manager Pepin stated that these holly trees have both died and need to be replaced. He stated that one had previously died and the hurricane damaged the other. Engineer Schmitt noted that the state of the trees may slow down the finalization of the emergency gate certification, if the area is inspected while they dead. He believes that a signed proposal may allow them to pass the inspection, even if they have not been replaced. Field Manager Pepin stated that the company will be using better staking equipment, as well.
On MOTION by Supervisor Meek, seconded by Supervisor Gibson, with all in favor, the Board approved replacing Dahoo holly trees, not to exceed $1,169.
b. Resident Request to Thin Lake Bank To See Alligators
A resident sent a request with photos to Field Manager Pepin, asking the CDD to thin the spike rush in the lake behind their home, because they cannot see alligators, which causes a safety issue. The Board decided to deny the request, and Field Manager Pepin will notify the resident.
On MOTION by Supervisor Meek, seconded by Supervisor Licht, with all in favor, the Board denied the request to thin the spike rush in a lake to allow observation of alligators.
D. Attorney
i. Levine Litigation Update
Attorney Urbancic stated that he has not received the paperwork for the settlement.
ii. Mary Ann Lauria Update
He stated that a photo was received from opposing council illustrating the alleged manhole cover, but this has been the only communication recently.
iii. Kenneth Jay Riha Update
There is no update.
iv. Drainage Concern at 21019 Torre Del Lago
Attorney Urbancic reviewed all the correspondence between management and the resident, and sent them a certified letter on September 20th. There has been no response or a return of the green certified mail postcard. The Board discussed further action, but it was noted that all letters have granted the home owner until the rainy season is over, and the water has receded. Attorney Urbancic stated that, if the CDD decided to rectify the issue themselves, they would need to sue the homeowner or take them to small claims court to recoup the costs. The Board decided that Attorney Urbancic will send a certified letter on November 1st after the water has receded.
On MOTION by Supervisor Gibson, seconded by Supervisor Meek, with all in favor, the Board approved the Attorney to send a certified letter to the resident at 21019 Torre Del Lago on November 1, 2024.
E. Engineer
i. Emergency Exit Update
Engineer Schmitt stated that they have submitted the certificates of completion to Lee County and the Village of Estero, but Estero’s permitting technician is on vacation. The holly trees at the gate that need to be replaced may cause issues with the final approval, but if they can show the permitting technician that there is a proposal to replace them, the project may finally be complete.
SEVENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Discussion/Action Items
A.HOA/CDD Maintenance Contract Negotiations Update
i. Executed Extension With HOA
An extension was approved for September, but will probably need to be extended again, depending on the state of negotiations.
On MOTION by Supervisor Meek, seconded by Supervisor Gibson, with all in favor, the Board approved the extension of the maintenance agreement between the CDD and the HOA until the end of October, if needed, with no money exchanged.
ii. Current Draft of Contract
Attorney Urbancic reported that he had a phone call with the HOA Board and the HOA President, and they discussed a few issues the HOA had with the document. Attorney Urbancic updated the draft with items they had agreed on, and they agreed to exchange further information. From the first meeting, it seems that the HOA has issues with E-Verify, record retention policies, the CDD approved post orders and the public nature of the roads. Another call has been scheduled for Friday to discuss his revisions and their remaining points of concern.
Chair Roth asked Attorney Urbancic if he could attend a meeting hosted by Mr. Vaa and attended by KJ Moses and himself. Attorney Urbancic advised caution, but stated that the meeting is not illegal.
Supervisor Meek asked Attorney Urbancic about the tickets that the HOA issues, and if they are retaining copies. He also asked how the HOA handles requests for pictures of vehicles. Attorney Urbancic stated he will continue to emphasize the regulatory obligations in Florida State Law as they pertain to these issues.
B. Lakes to be Transferred from HOA to CDD Follow-up
This item has been tabled while the negotiations for the facilities and maintenance agreement continue.
C. Asphalt Rejuvenator Follow-up – Tony Grout and Brian Fennel to Answer Questions
Chair Roth stated that Mr. Grout and Mr. Fennel were unable to attend due to issues resulting from the hurricane.
Vice Chair Reno presented a plan to begin full mill and paving of Bella Terra, rather that rejuvenation. He provided a proposal, using estimated values he obtained, which Engineer Schmitt believed were reasonable. Vice Chair Reno proposed that the CDD take out a loan, and District Manager Teague stated that he could contact bankers about interest rates. There was discussion on the financial impact of milling and paving, as opposed to rejuvenation.
On MOTION by Vice Chair Reno, with no second and no vote, he motioned to further investigate milling and paving. Motion failed.
It was noted that iEmulsions and The Pavement Group were escorted on a longer, more thorough ride around and identified many areas needing correction. They are drafting a quote that includes these locations, which will be different than the first quote. It could also be that the project needs a request for proposals. District Manager Teague and Engineer Schmitt agreed to start drafting the RFP, so that the Board understood the scope of the project.
On MOTION by Supervisor Meek, seconded by Supervisor Licht, with all in favor, the Board approved tabling the rejuvenation discussion until the next meeting.
D. Property Use Guidelines/Application for Approval
The Board was presented with Resolution 2025-01, which are the CDD Property Use Guidelines that should allow the CDD to evaluate any requests from an applicant for use of CDD owned property. This plan was a result of collaboration with staff and Attorney Urbancic and will help protect the CDD. This will be included in any resident requests to use CDD owned property for community events, and staff will send this resolution to the HOA for their records.
On MOTION by Supervisor Meek, seconded by Supervisor Licht, with all in favor, the Board approved Resolution 2025-01 Property Use Guidelines for requests to use CDD owned property for community events.
E. Dead Animal Removal Policy
Field Manager Pepin asked the Board to adopt a policy that will give him guidelines for responding to requests for animal removal from CDD Property. He stated that he has received calls after hours from residents asking for dead animal removal from the road, only to discover that it was a small rodent that was disposed of naturally. The Supervisors were in agreement that natural causes should be prioritized.
On MOTION by Supervisor Licht, seconded by Supervisor Meek, with all in favor, the Board approved that any animals 40 pounds or more, such as deer, alligators, and bears, on CDD property will warrant removal, but anything smaller will be left to nature.
F. Fountain Pump Replacement Ratification
Field Manager Pepin was notified that the pump on the clocktower was not functioning and needed replacement. Due to the urgency, Chair Roth and District Manager Teague had authorized this expense.
On MOTION by Supervisor Licht, seconded by Supervisor Meek, with all in favor, the Board ratified the replacement of the pump on the clocktower.
G. Lake 6 and 27 Proposal for Tubing and Air Station Repair
Last month a quote was presented that was not approved by the Board due to cost. Field Manager Pepin asked the vendor to rewrite the quote for replacement of 400’ of tubing and two aerator heads in Lake 6 and replacement of 6 aerators in Lake 27 for $5,662.
On MOTION by Supervisor Meek, seconded by Supervisor Gibson, with all in favor, the Board approved replacement of 400’ of tubing and two aerator heads in Lake 6 and replacement of 6 aerators in Lake 27, not to exceed $5,662.
H. Water Softener Proposals for Clock Tower Pools
Vice Chair Reno provided information to the Board advocating for a water softener unit to be installed on the clocktower to reduce the amount of calcium building up on the tiles, in the bowls, and on the walls of the tower. He stated that it is labor intensive to clean the tiles, and since the fountain is currently off because the motor is on order, it is a good time to install the unit and clean all of the tower. He stated that the water hardness is currently at 14, when it should be approximately 7. He spoke to two reputable companies that may have different approaches to softening the water, and he stated that the Board could choose one or a combination of both. Vice Chair Reno and Engineer Schmitt will collaborate and present more information at the next meeting. This item was tabled.
I. Clock Tower Tile Replacement Proposal
A vendor was scheduled to provide an estimate, but it was cancelled. This discussion connected directly to Item H above, and it was decided to continue asking for a quote, but it was noted that the tiles should be cleaned as well.
EIGHTH ORDER OF BUSINESS H.O.A. Report
There was no report from the HOA.
NINTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Supervisor Requests
Supervisor Meek asked if staff could investigate municipal bond rates if the Board decides to use a loan for the road project. District Manager Teague indicated that it wouldn’t necessarily be an accurate bond rate for the future, but he would investigate.
Supervisor Licht stated that the B&T, the Building and Tangibles Committee, is responsible for the contents of the clocktower fountain, such as the bowls. She stated that she is still interested in changing the look of the tower. Supervisor Licht also mentioned that the repairs to the guardhouse she reported in August have not been completed yet by the HOA. She asked staff to follow up.
Vice Chair Reno voiced his opposition to the idea of changing the appearance of the clocktower, because it may not match the aesthetic of the community.
Supervisor Gibson asked staff about a letter from the State BOE about her upcoming Oath of Office.
TENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Audience Comments
There were no Audience comments.