President’s Update 12-18-19

This past year, I served as a Director on both The Landings Association’s and The Landings Company’s Boards. The experiences I had with these two companies will be invaluable to me as the incoming TLA president for 2020.

As we enter a new decade, our community faces familiar challenges which are becoming more urgent. How do we maintain and increase our property values in a community that is approaching its 50^th anniversary? How do we attract new residents to our community?

The answers to these challenges are neither new nor easy. If they were, we would not be talking about our property values today. I submit that the areas TLA, on behalf of the community, needs to focus on are marketing, renovation, and appearance/infrastructure. A letter, indeed a book, could be devoted to each topic.

The source of information to a prospective buyer is no longer limited to a visit and conversations with a realtor. There are abundant sources on the internet providing information. A prospective purchaser arrives already having done a great deal of research and armed with many questions Fortunately, we are proactive in our internet marketing and are seeing substantive results.

Renovation is hardly a new concept in this community. Helping current residents and prospective buyers see the possibilities that renovation can bring to our houses is an ongoing effort.

Appearance and infrastructure are also critical. When I first visited The Landings in 2012, I had no thought about the community’s age. I saw a beautiful community that was well maintained. As to our infrastructure, past boards had the foresight to anticipate the time when our roads and infrastructure would age out. A Capital Asset Management Plan was established and rigorously maintained.

The property owner dues (Assessment) funding level for our 2020 budget will be the same as in 2018. We have cut our operating expenses, and we are beginning to experience a decline in our Capital Reserve levels, which, if left at current funding levels, will be under our established minimum by the end of 2022. We currently are having a Reserve Study conducted to see what monetary adjustments need to be made to our Capital Asset Management Plan. It is critical that we have adequately funded Capital Reserves for the repair and replacement of our critical assets.

This past year, TLA took steps to improve communications with the community. These efforts are continuing. Communication is a two-way street. If a member of our community has a question, concern, or complaint, etc. that TLA can address, please contact us directly. Posting on social media is not the same thing.

Finally, I thank all the members of the community who have volunteered this past year. Our community would not be the special place it is without you all. I recognize the board members whose terms have expired. Jim Rich and Hank Policinski brought their prior board experience to help navigate a number of issues this year. Blake Caldwell brought empathy to our discussions and might be the nicest person on the island. LeeAnn Williams exhibited grace and calmness under very trying circumstances. She has assisted me immeasurably in preparing to step into this position.

I am looking forward to 2020. Challenges can be opportunities.