On September 29, 2010, Bill Boothe sent a 10-page letter to all Baywinds residents. Although it was framed as a factual response to my communications to the community, the letter is in fact a transparent, self-serving propaganda ploy designed to satisfy Bill Boothe's ego, restore his lost credibility and establish his legacy before leaving the Board in a month or so. Bill is counting on the good will of the homeowners to ignore the facts and give him the benefit of the doubt.

Dave Segal, former President of Harbour Cove, has in the past expressed his opinion of the Master Board members. According to Dave regarding the 2008 Master Board, "This place sucks. To many egos and inexperienced wannabe's on the master. this could be paradise. but it's becoming 'paradise lost' and 'paradise ruined.'"; "the master board should have a smaller number of experienced people with no ego's and no regard to what cove they live in. These idiots have proved that point even though they don't agree with it."; Board members should "leave their ego's home" and except for one or two on the Board at the time "the majority are clueless." Click here to view the full text of Dave Segal's emails and remember Barry Topf, Marvin Levine, Dave Kaiser, George Singer, Nick Cifuni, Bernie Barnett, Bill Boothe and Bernice Liberta are still members of the current Board.

I will offer another Baywinds' resident point of view on Bill Boothe's governance style. On October 2, 2009, Howard Horowitz, a member of the Finance and Legal Committee, stated in an email to the Board at the time "how dare Bill Boothe continuously stifle free and open debate by ordering people to cease emails. These are the actions of a petty dictator and I for one will no longer put up with it. You all can do as you please and you can keep paying money to B&P for absurd legal opinions that back up our little dictator. I as I have said will not go along with this any more and so you can find a replacement for me." Click here to view both Howard's email response and the Bill Boothe email that prompted Howard's response.

What follows is the September 29, 2010 Bill Boothe letter to Baywinds residents with comments by me in red.

Bernie Amero, a Baywinder for Improved Governance through Full Disclosure

September 29, 2010

Dear Baywinds Resident:

Many of you are receiving communications from Bernard Amero, as well as from his supporters, containing Amero's opinions and accusations regarding the Board's conduct and actions. Normally the Board would not respond to such misrepresentations of the truth. However, Mr. Amero's recent behavior has been so extreme as to require a response, and a representation of the full truth.

In order to understand the basis for Amero's attacks, as well as his many lawsuits against the Association, one must appreciate that Amero is in opposition to the very existence of the Board. He has published many items over the years asserting that the structure of the Board is "illegal", [The legal basis for this Board is the Eighth Amendment to our Baywinds documents which was illegally adopted by Lennar on August 3, 2006 more than a month AFTER the June 29, 2005 turnover and AFTER Lennar had lost its authority to adopt any amendments WITHOUT member approval. Additionally, the Eighth Amendment changed the proportional voting interest of the members requiring the formal approval of the members which was NEVER obtained.] and that members of the Board should be elected "at large" instead of having one member from each neighborhood elected to serve on the Board. Amero brought an unsuccessful lawsuit against the Association on this matter some years ago. [For those who were around during the time in question, the lawsuit that Bill Boothe refers to contained a number of claims including breach of fiduciary duty against the Board members for failing to collect $100,000 in assessments from Lennar Homes for the Windjammer Cove units. Eventually, the Board members decided to pay the Plaintiff homeowners $27,500 rather than risk losing in court. Due to the lack of interest of the Bridgeport and Lighthouse Pointe homeowners, those most negatively affected by the Eight Amendment, the one claim regarding the legitimacy of Eighth Amendment was withdrawn "without prejudice" meaning that it can be refiled at any time. Any time someone wants to pay me $27,500 and call me unsuccessful, I would willingly take them up on the offer again and again.] Ever since he has been attacking the Board in an effort to undermine the Board's credibility in the eyes of the residents. [I am not undermining the Board's credibility in the eyes of the residents. It is the Board that refuses to allow unfettered access to Association records and fails to communicate effectively to the community both its successes and failures. That is what undermines the Board's credibility in the eyes of the residents.]

To best present the issues before us, I will address the five most frequent questions I have been receiving from residents who are concerned about the welfare of our community, and who are seeking the truth.

1. What is Amero's goal in attacking the Board of Directors?

Very simply, we believe that Amero wants to control the Baywinds Board by changing the governance model currently in use at Baywinds. Amero has long been a proponent of a smaller Board (usually stated as 5 members) that is elected "at-large". [While it is true that I am a proponent of a smaller Board that is elected "at-large," I gave that struggle up years ago when a number of residents withdrew their challenge to the legitimacy of the Eighth Amendment as stated above. Don't know where Bill gets I want "to control the Baywinds Board." Neither do I seek this nor do I think it is achievable. Had I such Machiavellian intentions, I would have acted quite differently over the past 5 years.] An at-large election would eliminate the current structure that guarantees representation from each neighborhood. [I've yet to hear a credible explanation as to what neighborhood-specific interest exists at the Master level. How is Heron Cove's interest in the clubhouse or the pools or the roads, etc. different from Pelican Cove's interest in these items?] Instead, the entire Baywinds community would vote on each candidate. This would allow Amero to form a "slate" of candidates to run together, as a group, for election. [God forbid that the community be allowed to pick candidates with best qualifications despite where their homes are located. I guess Bill doesn't believe that a neighborhood can or should have two or more qualified candidates to serve on the Board at the same time. If I really wanted to "form a 'slate' of candidates to run together, as a group, for election" as Bill falsely claims, I could already have done that. What stops me from finding candidates in each neighborhood and offering the group up to the community as a "slate" of candidates? In fact, I believe that I could easily unseat George Singer as Harbour Cove's representative to the Master Board. The one and only time I ran against George Singer in an election, I obtained almost twice as many votes as George did who was unseated from the Harbour Cove Board. Click here to view the Election Tally Sheet.] Slating is a common ploy in communities with at-large voting, and is often used to disenfranchise voters and control elections. With an at-large structure, Amero would be able to form his own slate of candidates, coming from just a few neighborhoods, and use that slate to disenfranchise the balance of the Baywinds residents. [Bill must enjoy making me the boggy man and scaring the heck out of the homeowners.]

Keep in mind that, with a five member Board, just three members are needed for a majority vote. By influencing just three Board members, Amero would be able to directly affect all decisions made by the Board. [Bill has quite an imagination. In all the years I've been living here, I haven't once attempted to "influence" a majority of Board members nor promoted a candidate for the Board. I guess Bill believes I have some magic power over Board members. A couple of months ago Marvin Levine did call me to request that I use my influence with Pelican Cove residents to get Barry Topf off the Master Board. I can assure you that the residents of Pelican Cove can attest to the fact that I did no such thing.]

The current governance model assures that each neighborhood will be represented, by having each neighborhood conduct its own election to send one representative to serve on the Board. This model produces a 12-member Board that Amero claims is too large to be efficient. However, efficiency is not the goal of democracy. The purpose of democracy is to be representative and inclusive. [While I fully agree and support the principle that a democracy should be "representative and inclusive" that is far from the case here in Baywinds. What's "representative" of having the voting power of 180 homeowners in Lighthouse Pointe be equivalent to the voting power of the 36 homeowners in Sailfish Cove? What's "representative" of having the voting power of the 159 homeowners of Egret Cove and Sandpiper Walk be twice that of the 160 homes of Bridgeport? What's "inclusive" about having 31% of the homeowners in Baywinds (i.e., Bridgeport and Lighthouse Pointe) paying 31% of the assessments have only 16% of the voting power on the Master Board (i.e., 2 out of 12 seats). Click here to learn more about this. I'd like to ask everyone a rhetorical question. How great do you think this country would be if we abolished the executive branch of the government as well as the House of Representatives and let the Senate alone run the country. How does making Rhode Island's vote equal to California's vote "representative and inclusive?"]

Note that recent Boards (2009-2010) have been extremely efficient in addressing a whole host of community issues. For example, those Boards enacted 15 significant governance initiatives and completed 33 capital improvements projects within a 21 month time period. In addition, 7 more capital improvements projects are currently under way. The details of those accomplishments are included at the conclusion of this letter. [When will Bill and the other Board members get it that it's not quantity but quality that counts. I'd rather that the Board do fewer governance initiatives and capital improvement projects but do them well. I'm sure that one of the 33 "capital improvement projects" included the mold remediation project in the clubhouse that took more than twice the time as originally planned and involved the hiring of a second mold remediation contractor because the "Mold Doctor" failed to remove all the mold. Marvin Levine told me that Barry Topf's initials are all over the the "Mold Doctor" contract. If I remember correctly, when the clubhouse finally opened after a year being closed, the new air conditioner did not operate as expected.]

Clearly the recent Boards have been effective in addressing community issues and improving our lifestyle at Baywinds. While a truly representative and inclusive Board may be a bit cumbersome in its operations, the evidence of their work shows that such a Board can be very efficient in serving the needs of the residents - all of the residents. [Boy! I'd really like to hear Bill's definition of the word "efficient." The Board meetings usually run around 4 hours or more with most residents leaving well before the meeting is adjourned. Also, isn't the pool heater replacement project a year behind schedule? And let's not even talk about how long it took to vet the snack bar issue before the vendor withdrew his proposal and made the issue moot. Now that's efficiency in action.]

A quote from Sir Winston Churchill seems appropriate here... "Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time." I for one find our current form of democracy much more to my liking than the disguised form of tyranny proposed by Amero. [It's nice that Bill gets to tell you what my motives and plans are and then uses that as fact to falsely claim that I am proposing a "form of tyranny" here in Baywinds. This statement is so absurd no response is necessary except to refer you back to Howard Horowitz's opinion above that Bill Boothe is a "petty dictator."]

Amero's goal seems very clear: change our current governance system, and replace it with one that he can personally control. [Taking all of my actions and words since moving to Baywinds, no rational person could conclude that my "goal" is to "personally control" the Baywinds governance system. Maybe that is Bill's goal but it has never been nor will it ever be mine. I had that opportunity in Harbour Cove years ago and didn't do what Bill believes is my goal.]

2. Is Amero telling the truth?

Amero is very adept at misrepresenting the truth, or telling partial truths, without actually lying. If the question is "Does Amero tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?" the answer is a resounding NO. Amero twists facts and information to suit his purposes. During recent months he has published a series of articles on his web site that have been very critical of the Board in an effort to cast doubt upon board member honesty and competence. Amero's goal is to cause the residents of Baywinds to doubt the credibility and honesty of the board members. Through that doubt he hopes to build a consensus that the entire board should be replaced and that the board structure should be changed. Amero espouses a commitment to transparency and honesty, yet he purposely misrepresents the truth in his publications. Here are just a few recent examples of Amero's misrepresentations:

September 17. 2010 Court Judgment - Amero claims that "the judge in this case declared the settlement agreement null and void and entered a final judgment AGAINST the Association for costs and damages." Yes, the judge did declare that the Association must pay $200 to Amero to cover a portion of his court costs (which was part of the original settlement agreement). And yes, the judge did declare that the Association must pay an additional sum of $155 to Amero because the original $200 payment was not made by the stipulated date (an administrative error). [Notice Bill doesn't elaborate on this "administrative error" and he fails to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth by conveniently omitting the fact that he has decided to spend more Association money by having B&P file a motion with the court on September 30, 2010 to deny me the $155 in court costs. Hmm! Is Bill spending upwards of a thousand dollars to save the Association $155? Doesn't sound like good business sense to me and it surely demonstrates that Bill is the one failing to tell you the whole truth.] However, nowhere does the judgment state that the other terms of the settlement agreement are "null and void" as Amero claims. Those terms are in force today and are unaffected by Amero's success in receiving an additional $155 of his court costs. Therefore, that portion of Amero's statement is completely false. [The terms of the Settlement Agreement are quite clear. I agreed to keep the terms of the Settlement agreement confidential (Note: I wonder why Bill didn't want you to know the terms that he now claims are so great for Baywinds.) and not to take any further action regarding the turnover and bankruptcy issues and Bill agreed to pay me $200 by September 1, 2010. The fact that Bill failed to pay me the $200 by September 1, 2010 means that a default judgment was entered against the Association replacing the Settlement Agreement.]

Records Review Photocopying Costs - Amero published the following: "... Bill Boothe made the claim that "the cost to the Baywinds Community for this action brought by Mr. Amero is substantial - $5,495 to photocopy the 2,225 pages of attorney documents demanded for review (residents are not allowed to directly access attorney files) and $18, 070 (through August 31) for legal fees and expenses." Bill should step down as president and resign from the Board for paying $2.47 per page to copy Association documents (i.e., $5,495 divided by 2,225 pages)..."

The Association did not pay $2.47 per page for photocopying. The charge was fourteen cents per page. However, Amero's extensive records request, which was for all documents related to the developer turnover and the developer bankruptcy, required many hours for the Association's attorneys to locate, identify and produce the 2,225 pages of documents (from three different offices and five different attorneys) to be photocopied. [While it is good public relations to attempt to blame me for this unjustified cost, the vast majority of this cost could have been avoided if B&P was willing to let me inspect these documents in their West Palm Beach office. Bill's claim that "residents are  not allowed to directly access attorney files" is absurd. Our money paid for the production of these files and Florida Statute classifies them as official records of the Association NOT of B&P. While it may indeed be a B&P policy to not allow residents direct access to their files, I would suggest that this policy is intended to generate income (i.e., $5,495 of billable costs in this case) and to discourage residents from accessing these files by claiming that the cost is prohibitive. Baywinds appears to be a cash cow for B&P. ] Amero clearly should know this to be the case, since he has reviewed prior invoices from the attorneys and is familiar with the standard cost to make photocopies. However, Amero published a purposely misleading article making it appear that the Board had paid an outrageous amount for photocopies. [I don't know how anyone could be expected to know that the cost of "$5,495 to photocopy the 2,225 pages" included $5,183.50 of legal fees. At $300/hour that translates to over 17 billable hours. Maybe we should find a law firm that is more cost effective.]

August 11, 2010 Publication - Amero published the following headlines on his web site:

"Board Members Cost Homeowners Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars", and

"Baywinds homeowners may have been paying around $1,200 per home to make up $1.3 million in unrecovered claims*"

Both of these intentionally misleading headlines are qualified and discounted later by Amero in his publication, as he admits that there is no assurance in a developer turnover that any monies will be recovered by the community. He also admits that homeowners will not be billed for the supposed $1,200 "unrecovered claim". [Just to be clear, the point I was making in my August 11, 2010 publication was that the $1.3 million claim against Lennar included specific monies owed to us by Lennar (i.e., past uncollected monies) as well as cost estimates to remedy Lennar "construction defects." Due to the Board's failure to provide complete access the appropriate records, it is unclear how much of the $1.3 million is attributable to these "construction defects" that may not have yet been resolved (i.e., future expenses). It is for these reasons that Baywinds homeowners have in the past and will in the future through their monthly assessments pay this $1.3 million shortfall.] In the body of his publication Amero uses the term "may have been able to collect" and confirms that there is no evidence that the Board failed to collect any funds that were actually due to the Association. Amero was fully aware of these facts, but still chose to publish a purposely misleading piece on his web site. [Bill's statement that "there is no evidence that the Board failed to collect any funds that were actually due to the Association" is patently false and Bill knows it. Bill even acknowledged this in one of his previous communications where he claims that I am a member of a group seeking to collect around $250,000 from Lennar Homes for Windjammer Cove assessments which I believe was part of the $1.3 million claim against Lennar.]

Those are just three examples of a long list of misrepresentations and half-truths from Amero. In recent days his goal to dismantle the current Board structure has become very transparent, as with this statement:

"We need a TEA Party movement here in Baywinds. We need to remove all incumbents from the Board. If you are not offered a choice in the upcoming election of your representative to the Master Board and you really don't want the current representative returned to the Board, then all you need to do is stay home and do NOT give your proxy to anyone. If enough people do this then we will have a clean slate of Board members serving our community."

So Amero is advocating that Baywinds residents give up their voting privilege, stay home, and let him stack the Board with a "clean slate" of candidates loyal to him. [Now this is a whopper of a bald faced lie. Bill knows full well that should residents stay home and NOT give their proxy to anyone and enough people do this then we will have a clean slate of Board members serving our community. NONE of these new Board members would have any loyalty to me because they would in fact be the Presidents of the neighborhoods (i.e., Howard Engel from Bridgeport, Nick Cifuni from Egret Cove, Jonas Steinberg from The Estates, Mike Handerhan from Harbour Cove, Edward Harvey from Heron Cove, Franklin Logalbo from Lighthouse Pointe, Cliff Gelfand from Pelican Cove, Carol Kuhney from Regatta Cove, Chris Panagacos from Sailfish Cove, Eric Katcher from Sandpiper Walk, Dee Cardarelli from Sapphire Cove, and Vicki Thomas from Windjammer Cove.) I do realize that Nick Cifuni and Howard Engel are current members of the Master Board and as Presidents of their neighborhoods would be returned to the Board but 10 out of 12 would be new Board members. I challenge Bill Boothe to name those from this list that would be "loyal to me."]

3. Why is the Board 'withholding' information from Amero?

Amero understands that if he can convince the residents of Baywinds that the Board is operating illegally, he will strengthen his hand in calling for the Board's removal and the restructuring of the governance model. [Not sure how Bill thinks I will go about "restructuring the governance model" but I would like Bill to expose the details of this alleged plan of mine.] He has chosen a rather obscure and often-misunderstood legal concept to challenge the Board's honesty and transparency. Attorney-client privilege is a legal concept that was formed centuries ago (as far back as ancient Roman times) to allow parties involved in lawsuits to discuss legal strategy with their attorneys without fear that those discussions could be made public during or upon the conclusion of a legal proceeding. Amero is using another even more obscure concept, called "legislative intent" to support his claim that Florida HOA laws do not extend attorney-client privilege to Board member discussions once the case in question is concluded. [Blah, Blah, Blah!]

Let's first review the concept of "legislative intent". Amero purposely misuses the term "legislative intent" to support his claim. Here is the actual definition of legislative intent:

In law, the legislative intent of the legislature in enacting legislation may sometimes be considered by the judiciary when interpreting the law. The judiciary may attempt to assess legislative intent where legislation is ambiguous, or does not appear to directly or adequately address a particular issue, or when there appears to have been a legislative drafting error. When a statute is clear and unambiguous, the courts have said, repeatedly, that the inquiry into legislative intent ends at that point. It is only when a statute could be interpreted in more than one fashion that legislative intent must be inferred from sources other than the actual text of the statute.

Amero cites an email exchange between himself and former State Senator Walter Campbell as evidence that the "legislative intent" surrounding SB 1184 was to eliminate attorney-client privilege for all HOA documents following the conclusion of the proceedings. While former Senator Campbell's personal intent in sponsoring the legislation may have been to foster that protection, it is clear that the intent of the entire Florida legislature did not support the former Senator's personal intent. [Sorry Bill but a Senator can't get a bill passed without the entire Florida legislature voting on it and a majority supporting it. I challenge Bill again to produce evidence that supports his allegation that "it is clear that the intent of the entire Florida legislature did not support the former Senator's personal intent."] Indeed, the Association's legal counsel, along with more than a dozen other Florida lawyers, are steadfast in their opinion that SB 1184 does not eliminate attorney-client privilege as Amero has asserted. [This is the one absolutely true statement made by Bill up until this point. I agree that it is the "opinion" of more than a dozen Florida lawyers that SB 1184 does not eliminate attorney-client privilege as it is the "opinion" of Marion Madson, the city attorney of Gainesville and board certified in city, county and local government law. Attorney Madson was the author of an article in the January 1, 2008 Florida Bar Journal entitled "Restoring the attorney-client and work product privileges for government entities." While Attorney Madson argues for the restoration of these "well recognized privileges" he acknowledges that the Florida Supreme Court in a 1985 ruling held that the attorney-client privileged was "waived by the Florida Legislature" and in the case of a government entity any session protected by the attorney-client privilege "must be transcribed by a certified court reporter, and the record is then made public after the conclusion of the litigation." In a 1979 ruling, the Florida Supreme Court noted that attorney-client protections "must come from the legislation and not from the courts." Even Gainesville attorney Madson acknowledges that the Sunshine laws do allow public access to attorney-client protected records. Unlike B&P however, attorney Madson is trying to convince the Florida legislature to restore the attorney-client privilege. Click here to view attorney Madson's article. B&P however having failed to convince the Florida legislature or having decided that it is easier to build case law in the hopes of changing the "legislative intent" in a de facto manner. B&P probably feels that it can convince other attorneys in arbitration cases to go against "legislative intent" and doing so multiple times create a de facto attorney-client protection in direct defiance of the "legislative intent." ] In addition, a number of related legal cases have been decided in Florida courts since the passage of SB 1184. All of those cases have acknowledged the retention of attorney-client privilege for HOA documents during and following the conclusion of the legal proceedings. Not a single case has supported Amero's position on this subject. [B&P has only supplied a single arbitration case supporting their "opinion." This case was presented not in a Florida court but before a Florida attorney who probably held a similar "opinion" to B&P and attorney Madson regarding attorney-client records. This again appears to be the B&P strategy and that is to argue their "opinion" before other attorneys who hold similar "opinions" and by doing so establish arbitration case law supporting their "opinion." Given the cost of arbitration, B&P is making a safe bet that few if any will take the matter to court. If in fact "a number of related legal cases have been decided in Florida courts" as Bill Boothe claims, maybe he can cite the case law he claims to exist.]

Amero intentionally misuses the concept of "legislative intent" to support his spurious assertions-just one more example of his habit of not telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. [BS]

4. Why is attorney-client privilege important? Why doesn't the Board just give Amero the documents he wants?

Here is what the American Bar Association says about attorney-client privilege:

"The protection of communications between client and lawyer, as embodied in the attorney-client privilege, has been a bedrock principle of our justice system for hundreds of years. The privilege is designed to permit the full and frank exchange of information as a necessary measure to ensure effective legal representation and protection of civil liberties. It enables the attorney to provide informed and more effective advice to the client in fulfilling the client's legal obligations."

Confidentiality is an important factor in allowing parties to conduct candid and far-reaching discussions with their attorneys on legal issues. When an Association is being sued by a resident or any other party, the information and legal strategies that are discussed and evaluated are central to the successful prosecution of the case. Making such discussions and documents public can provide the losing party with the opportunity to come back to court with another lawsuit, now armed with the information needed to defeat the strategies used by the prevailing party. [Even giving Bill Boothe this point, the Florida legislature and the Florida Supreme Court disagree with this position vis-a-vis Florida's Sunshine Laws.]

It should be noted that once attorney-client privilege is waived, a precedent is set to allow access to all privileged information from the past, and in the future. Once the privilege has been waived, it is treated as a waiver for all purposes. [This is more double-talk by Bill Boothe. If this were true as Bill would have you believe, then the Tsacnaris/Migliorini board has already waived the privilege and as per Bill as such "it is treated as a waiver for all purposes." Now watch Bill try to get out of this.] That is exactly why the Board is unable to "selectively" waive confidentiality for information sought by an individual resident. Setting such a precedent would preclude the Board from protecting any information sought by any source, including non-residents, vendors and anyone else with an interest in the operations of our community. [This is pure BS. Clearly Florida Statute limits access to Association records to homeowners. Allowing homeowners access to Association records in no way grants access to these records to non-residents, vendors and anyone else with an interest in the operations of our community. If Bill really believes the BS he's spewing out then I guess given the fact that homeowners have access to all Baywinds accounting information then non-residents, vendors and anyone else with an interest in the operations of our community should have access to these records as well. Does Bill really believe homeowners can't see through his absurd rantings.] The Board has been advised by its expert legal counsel, Becker & Poliakoff, that such a waiver would be a grave mistake for the Association. Thus the Board has taken that expert advice to heart by not providing privileged information to Amero. [Click here to view some of the track record of the alleged "expert legal counsel" and "expert advice" of B&P.]

5. Why doesn't the Board take Amero's advice on matters which he is an expert?

Simple answer - Amero isn't an expert in any matters that the Board has addressed in the past two years. [That's funny because Bill Boothe recently stated that I was a member of a group attempting to collect Windjammer Cove assessments from Lennar Homes and, as can be heard during a Board workshop on the matter, David Kaiser insisted that I was an essential person in this matter. You can't have it both ways Bill. Click here to listen to the Board workshop.] The closest he has come to being considered an expert on a particular matter is related to the pool heat pumps. Amero is a former chemical engineer [I challenge Bill to provide any evidence that I was a "chemical engineer" or that I ever claimed to be one. It is Bill and Bill alone who makes this false claim.] and offers a lengthy list of "credentials" on his resume. [Bill doesn't know what is on my resume. I again challenge Bill to produce a copy of my resume.] However, when asked specifically about his formal expertise with pool heat pumps, here was his response in an email dated September 8, 2010:

"The only direct experience I have in pool heat pumps is in the 8+ year operation of my own pool heat pump."

So in Amero's opinion, owning a small residential heat pump that was manufactured eight years ago makes him an expert on today's large commercial heat pump technology. [Bill conveniently leaves out my statement that my opinion is supported by Air Pro Systems and I asked Bill to contact these certified experts but I have been told by Air Pro that Bill has never contacted them. I guess Bill is not above taking my statements totally out of context. This does not surprise me. It is his MO.] So it goes with Amero, previously claiming expertise in such diverse areas as Cable TV contract negotiations, landscape irrigation, developer turnover issues, corporate bankruptcies, and HOA law. [Funny but I've been involved in four lawsuits and was paid by the Association or its insurance company in each and every case. If the attorneys representing the Association in these four lawsuits were as expert as Bill would have you believe, why haven't they prevailed in even one of these cases and forced me to reimburse the Association its cost to defend itself? No need to answer this question Bill. Everyone can see through your deception.]

The Board recognizes its limitations in handling certain highly technical projects and decisions. Here is how the Board addresses those challenges:

1. It is the firm policy of the Board to engage professional, certified/accredited experts to advise the Board on all projects that will require the expenditure of significant Association funds. [I don't know about the experience the rest of you have had with Florida's professional, certified/accredited experts but I've followed a policy of "trust but verify." I organized a group of over 100 Baywinds residents to form a purchasing group for new home air conditioners. Despite the fact that we've chosen professional, certified/accredited experts to do this work, I've observed and monitored nearly every installation insuring that every Baywinds resident receives a high quality installation. During my screen enclosure construction project, I was personally responsible for driving two companies out of business because of poor and substandard construction practices that the city's building inspector failed to catch. In one instance, the contractor failed 11 times on the same issue.]

2. All purchase/service contracts entered into by the Association requiring an expenditure of $5,000 or more, must first be reviewed and approved by legal counsel. The Association's counsel is Becker & Poliakoff, a leading Florida law firm specializing in HOA and Condominium law. [Again, I draw your attention to a list of B&P shortcomings. Click here to view them.]

3. The Board routinely involves residents with special expertise to assist with such projects, and has established resident committees to manage such projects for the Board, with assistance from outside professional experts. [Again, I draw your attention to what happens when a committee member dares to challenge Bill Boothe. Click here to view one example.]

It should be noted that certified experts were hired to advise the Board on the following recent projects;

Cable TV Contract - The Board interviewed several qualified consultants in this field, and hired a consultant/attorney who specializes in negotiating contracts with all providers, and who is routinely hired by other consultants to negotiate contracts. Note that all of the consultants interviewed agreed that renewing with Comcast was the best alternative for Baywinds. Amero submitted a rambling, last minute proposal to use unproven systems and amateurish negotiation techniques that was rejected by the Board in favor of the advice of the experts. [I'll let the homeowners decide for themselves. Click here to see what I had to offer for the Board's consideration.]

Pool Heat Pumps - The Board hired a leading engineering firm to assist with this project. The engineering firm provided information on all commercial technologies available, produced detailed specifications and drawings for the selected technology, and is currently working with FPL and the selected contractor to implement the systems. [Again, I'll let the homeowners decide for themselves. Click here to see what I did say which was that the pool heater system "may" be inadequate and I was informing the community that the Board refused to provide any supporting documentation that the loss of efficiency in the cold winter months had been factored into the design of the proposed pool heater system. Without this information nothing can be stated as certain.]

Amero submitted a misleading, last minute challenge of the engineering specifications claiming that the heaters would not be adequate, and that a system three times the size of the one specified may be needed to heat the pools in cold weather. [Again, I deny Bill's representation that the heaters "would not be adequate." I simply stated that IF the design of the system failed to take into account the loss of efficiency during the cold winter months then the proposed system "may be inadequate."] Amero's assertions were rejected by the Board in favor of the advice of the independent engineering firm and the experience of the professional heat pump systems vendors who bid on the project. [Define "independent" Bill. Does that mean that they could offer alternative pool heater systems or simply that we hired them to size and configure the system we already decided to go with? Do you really believe that the "professional heat pump system vendors" that want to sell you a system would tell you that the type of pool heater system that they sold might not meet our expectations. Caveat emptor!]

HOA Law - The Board engages the services of Becker & Poliakoff, a leading law firm specializing in HOA and Condominium law. These attorneys are recognized throughout Florida as leading experts in their field. Amero asserts that their work is sub-standard, that their advice is incorrect, and that they are helping the Board to "hide" information from the residents that would reveal the incompetence of the Board and the attorneys. Amero is not an attorney. He has no formal legal training that we are aware of. His opinions on law and the legal proceedings of the Board are no more valid than those of any other non-attorney resident. The Board has rejected most of Amero's opinions as self-serving and not in the best interests of the Baywinds community. Instead, the Board relies on the truly expert opinion of its legal counsel (and other specialized attorneys when needed). [Again, I draw your attention to a list of B&P shortcomings. Click here to view them. I also draw your attention to the fact that the Association or its insurance carrier has paid me for each and every one of the four lawsuits I have filed against the Association. That fact alone should demonstrate that law firms specializing in HOA and Condominium law are not infallible.]

6. Where do we go from here?

First you must understand that Amero is not going to stop attacking the Board. [Wrong again Bill. I'm through. I'm not going to waste one more minute of my time or one more penny of my money on Baywinds. I'm going to join the ranks of Baywinders who chose to remain blissfully ignorant of the mismanagement and waste going on. Let the Board spin whatever story they wish to spin. Let the community salute their volunteer Board members and offer them accolades. Since you believe I have little to offer this community then I will offer nothing.] He will continue to present misinformation and half-truths as long as he can find someone who will listen. That is the key. Amero needs an audience to further his goal of dismantling the Baywinds governance structure [Repeated BS] - thereby disenfranchising the residents of Baywinds. He will continue to send you emails and publish on his web site. He will continue to try to recruit residents to assist him. To the degree that you, as a Baywinds resident, listen and respond to him, Amero will continue to disrupt the operations of the community.

The Board has important work to conduct on behalf of all Baywinds residents. The effort necessary to deal with Amero and his ongoing attacks diverts Board and management energy from achieving that work. His attacks are also very costly to the community's treasury, and achieve nothing of value for the residents. Such a diversion of effort and funds is unfair to the residents of Baywinds. It should not continue!

So in the days to come as Amero responds to this letter with more misrepresentations and half-truths, remember what you have read today. Remember Amero's true motivation - to dismantle the current representative governance model of Baywinds, and replace it with a model that he can personally control[Repeated BS]. Remember Amero's plea that you sit home and not vote - and allow him to manipulate the upcoming elections with a slate of his hand-chosen allies.[Repeated BS] Remember the inclusive purpose of democracy, and how Amero would take that from Baywinds with his brand of exclusion and limited rule. [Repeated BS] Remember well. Your future here at Baywinds depends upon it. [I can only hope that the homeowners of Baywinds won't wake up one day and discover that they have a Bernie Madoff-type as a member of the Board holding either the President or Treasurer positions. This person will hide behind attorney-client privilege and make sure that he has a loyal attorney to back him up. We the homeowners will be helpless to stop such a person before he loots our treasury like that Catholic priest did to one parish near here a couple of years back.]

Bill Boothe, President
Baywinds Master Association Board of Directors

[Rather than comment on each one of the alleged "Governance Accomplishments" and "Capital Improvement Projects" below, I will simply state that these are the unverified claims of Bill Boothe seeking to establish his legacy before leaving office.]

Governance Accomplishments - 2009/2010 Boards

1. Established governance guidelines for Board and Workshop meetings that invite resident participation and input, structure the meeting rules, capture meetings on audio tape, produce detailed meeting minutes that are published in a timely manner, and follow Florida statutes.

2. Established a formal Chain of Command policy to govern the interactions between the Board, management, committees and residents.

3. Established/Restructured the employee staffing plan and key position descriptions (Property Manager, Clubhouse Manager/Social Director). Hired highly-qualified personnel to fill all positions.

4. Established new Standing Committees, and re-invigorated existing Standing Committees, to encourage resident involvement and direct input to the Board. New committees include Sports and Fitness and Communications. Successful committee operations now involve more than 100 Baywinds residents on various committees.

5. Established new ad hoc committees to address the following issues: Acreage Access Road beautification, Baywinds billboard, CATV/lnternet, 558 Turnover, Swimming Pool Improvements, Cafe Feasibility and Clubhouse Renovation.

6. Established comprehensive Community Rules and Regulations, which include a Rules Enforcement Policy and a formal Grievance Policy.

7. Established a resident Rules Grievance Committee to address rules violations.

8. Established a financial budgeting and spending philosophy that sets budgeting priorities, sets target capital/reserves thresholds and requires a rolling 5-year capital spending/budget forecast to be maintained.

9. Established the jurisdiction and procedures for the Master Architectural Control Committee.

10. Established a Capital Loan to accelerate the completion of 30+ long-awaited capital projects with no impact on resident association fees.

11. Completed key association contract negotiations:

a. Comcast - 5-year agreement that minimized the rate increase, expanded service and provided additional equipment to all residents.

b. Leaderscape Landscaping - 2-year contract with minimal increase in fee.

c. Devcon Security Monitoring - 10-year contract with minimal increase in fee.

d. Castle Management - 2-year contract with minimal increase in fee.

12. Established a comprehensive and informative community web site.

13. Re-vamped the community Channel 63 to provide timely and important information to the residents.

14. Designed and implemented a new access control system which includes entry gate bar codes and clubhouse swipe cards. Deleted old data base, re-issued new cards; and created an updated data base for all residents & tenants

15. Updated insurance policies to increase coverage and reduce premiums, and added bonding to our coverage.

Capital Improvements Projects - Completed by 2009/2010 Boards

1. Identified and removed mold from the clubhouse.

2. Clubhouse Renovations: new carpet, tile flooring, furniture, interior paint, window treatments, management office re-designed, removal of interior lobby windows, lighting and decorations, and new fitness equipment.

3. Air conditioning - replaced A/C#5 which serves the ballroom, added new metal ductwork throughout the clubhouse, which replaced inefficient flex fiber tubing.

4. Roof soffit openings were closed to prevent outside humid air from entering attic space.

5. Library - 2 new computers for residents' use were added.

6. Added 2 new sound speakers in rear ballroom.

7. Added an electric fence along the Preserve (installed by the City of WPB).

8. Added a swipe card reader at the Veranda gate with a push-to-release button.

9. Added a North pool gate push-to-release button.

10. Added a North Clubhouse door swipe card reader.

11. Lake sign at main entrance was removed & replaced with a sign at gatehouse.

12. Roadway security reflectors added at entrance to warn of lake ahead.

13 New security camera system for entry/exit gates added to greatly expand coverage areas.

14. Added a traffic lane divider at the main entrance to increase safety.

15. Added working locks at the pedestrian entrance gates to increase security.

16. Made numerous sidewalk trip hazard-repairs (still in process).

17. Added a new, more advanced barcode scanner at the front entrance to improve reliability and increase distance that bar code is readable.

18. Instituted a policy of issuing guest passes at the main entrance to all visitors & vendors.

19. Added new poolside sound speakers to greatly improve music quality and coverage area.

20. Stocked the lakes with bass to improve fishing enjoyment.

21. Sponsored a number of new resident clubs and activities: Book, Camera, Clay Artisans, and Magic Clubs - yoga, line dancing, Ai-Chi, Water Aerobics, Morning Stretch, etc.

22. Improved community landscaping by adding beautification to areas throughout the common grounds.

23. Tennis court irrigation- changed from City water to lake water to significantly reduce water costs.

24. Added a wide-screen projection system & screen in the ballroom for movies and events.

25. Added display cases inside & outside the clubhouse for organization & club show
information.

26. A/C#3- added sensor & modulating damper motor to improve performance of the air
conditioning unit that serves the card rooms.

27. Added new pool rule signage.

28. Billiards room: added tables and chairs, wall pictures and coat hangers.

29. Added two more bookcases in the library.

30. Added built-in cabinets to the card rooms and the craft room.

31. Added sliding hurricane shutters to the clubhouse ground floor windows and doors.

32. Installed a new drainage system around the tennis courts.

33. Added a concrete apron to bocce courts to improve safety.

Capital Improvements Projects - In Progress with 2010 Board

1. Replacing propane pool heaters with advanced heat pumps - will substantially reduce heating costs - estimated completion by October 31.

2. Resurfacing all swimming pools - estimated completion by October 31.

3. Adding more lighting to the bocce courts - estimated completion by October 15.

4. Adding a new, larger tennis shed to securely store materials and golf cart - estimated completion by October 31.

5. Adding ceiling fans on the clubhouse veranda - estimated completion November 15.

6. Adding rain gutters along clubhouse roof line - estimated completion November 15.

7. Adding benches along Baywinds Drive - estimated completion November 15.