VOL. 22 NO. 3
Community web site: http://hggcc.com
Community Channels: 901 and 902 on TV
MARCH 2024
10th Anniversary Of Firewise Community Day Event By Karen Wills, Herons Glen Photos by Karen Wills, Herons Glen Another very successful Firewise Community Day Event, sponsored by the Herons Glen Safety (SSEP) Committee, was held on Feb. 12. The ballroom and surrounding parking lot was filled with equipment from the Florida Forestry Service, Lee County EMS, Lee County Mosquito and Hyacinth Control, Lee County Sheriff’s Department, Lee Memorial Blood Mobile, Herons Glen CERT team, United Way, Leroy Nottingham’s Local 1826, Investigative and Forensic Services, Fort Myers Amateur Emergency Radio Club, Morgan Stanley Peace River Team, Waste Connections, and Leroy’s Southern Kitchen and Bar. This year’s event featured a meal hosted by Eric Loche and the Morgan Stanley Peace River team and prepared by Leroy’s Southern Kitchen and Bar. Hamburgers, hot dogs, and bratwurst were also grilled by our volunteers. The Lee County Sheriff’s Department brought their What’s The Scoop ice cream truck and treated everyone to free ice cream. The proceeds from the Firewise Community Day benefitted the two deserving charities described below. • Home Front Heroes provides charitable assistance and community outreach to the needy, disabled, veterans, and youth including crime prevention and animal welfare. • Local 1826 Leroy Nottingham Firefighter Paramedic Firefighter Benevolent Fund performs charitable, educational, fraternal, civic, and other activities to achieve
its purpose. It authorizes payments to firefighters and paramedics in line with the organization’s exempt purpose. The day began with SSEP Chair Craig Woolley welcoming everyone to the event and thanking our sponsors and vendors. After a few words from the Forestry Service, NFMFD, LCSD, and Local 1826, the fun began. We s a w r o b o t i c demonstrations, fire extinguisher training, bomb squad equipment, j a w s - o f - l i f e a n d SSEP Committee: Jo Moyer, Russell Long, Karen Wills, Marilyn Magiera, Sergeant Martin o t h e r f i r e e q u i p m e n t Hernandez, Craig Woolley, Ken Marohn, Barry Glaudel, Barbara Peet, Chester Bartkowski, demonstrations, and the Dave Kemp and Bob Castellanos virtual reality simulator. Lee Memorial Blood Mobile was on site and collected sponsors allowed us to present Home Front Heroes with 22 usable pints of blood. Since two lives are saved per a $1,777.80 check and a $6,751.20 check to Local 1826. unit, over 44 people have been touched by the generosity The committee would also like to acknowledge the of these donors. numerous volunteers that made our event so successful. A special thanks goes to Waste Connections for their This could not be done without their commitment to this very generous $5,000 donation. The generosity of all our great cause.
The HGHOA And The HGRD – Not Just Alphabet Soup By Linda Lynch, Herons Glen With input from Joyce Gillespie and J.B. Belknap Whether you’re new to Herons Glen or have lived here for a while, there may still be times when you’re confused about the Herons Glen Recreation District (HGRD) and the Herons Glen Homeowner’s Association (HOA). These are two separate and distinct organizations, and this article will provide a general overview of each. The HGRD is a special district created under Florida law, and as such is a governmental entity. The HGRD was formed in 1999 when the residents voted overwhelmingly to purchase the recreational facilities from the developer. These included the golf course, clubhouse, restaurant, and the other recreational amenities in the Glen, along with the community irrigation system (CLIS). A provision of Florida law allowed the residents to finance this purchase through a tax-exempt bond issue creating an instrument of Florida State government known as the Recreation District. As a special district, the HGRD serves a specific geographical area and is governed by a Board of Supervisors, all of whom must be residents of the State of Florida and who are elected by the property owners. Because it is a governmental agency, the HGRD is capable of issuing government-backed, tax-free bonds to raise funds for capital improvements. In fact, in 2020 the district issued bonds to provide $12.9 million in construction funds to renovate HGRD facilities and amenities with projects that have been ongoing. However, as a government entity, the facilities owned by the district are public property and as such must be made available to the general public, albeit with some allowable restrictions. Key areas of responsibility for the HGRD include the community irrigation system, cart paths and bridges on the golf course, lakes that touch the golf course or other
amenities, landscaping on HGRD property, the fitness center, tennis courts, bocce courts, pickleball courts, shuffleboard courts, the pool and spa, ballroom, card/activity rooms, restaurant and lounge (including the liquor license), pro shop, pump houses, rental golf carts, and restrooms on the golf course and tennis courts. (Note: This list is not comprehensive.) The Homeowner’s Association in Herons Glen was first instituted as part of the legal structure of the original developer in 1990. It is a Florida not-for-profit corporation and operates under specific Florida statutes. In 1997 the developer expanded the board from three to five members to add two resident board members. The developer held the majority on the board until Jan. 1, 2005, when the board was transitioned from developer control to resident control with a full resident board in place. The HGHOA is run by a Board of Directors elected by the members of the Association. The HOA owns and is responsible for the maintenance of the streets and common areas within Herons Glen. HOA administered common areas include the guardhouse, gates, street lighting, street signs, entrance walls, neighborhood entry signs, common area landscaping, streets, curbs and sidewalks, street drainage, five wetlands and preserves, and eight lakes that do not border the HGRD Golf Course or other amenities property. The HOA is also responsible for community standards for homeowners, such as landscaping and the appearance of residences. (Note: This list is not comprehensive.) While they have distinctly separate organizational structures and functions, both the HGRD and the HOA cooperate for the benefit of our community. Several lists accompanying this article attempt to delineate the key responsibilities of the HOA and those of the HGRD. These lists can be found on page 5.
In addition, the HOA Communications Committee has developed an organizational and governance structures document that shows an overview of each organization side-byside. This Herons Glen Community Governing and Oversight Structure document can be accessed at http://hggcc.com/hghoa/ pdfs/communications_committee/governance.pdf and can also be found on the HOA website (www.heronsglenhoa.org) by clicking on the Community Information tab on the left.
Transportation By Jack Cotter, Herons Glen The Veterans of the Glen Outreach Committee and Friends Helping Friends Transportation Committee have joined in a partnership to help Herons Glen residents who are in need of transportation for medical appointments, prescription pickup, grocery shopping or some other essential transportation need. Please do not call for rides to/from airport. During the period of Jan. 1 through May 30, residents may call a volunteer from the following list (Note: A 24-hour advanced notice would be very helpful): Jack Cotter (860) 490-2183 (Committee Chair) Kathleen Colletti (239) 822-1573 Trish Chesnov (631) 334-1315 Nick Dinoto (301) 807-4580 Bruce Johnson (716) 472-3860 Ed Schmidt (616) 745-9057 Dave Wingert (573) 552-2030 Mike Zarella (541) 292-2714 We are always seeking volunteers, please contact Jack Cotter if you have an interest in volunteering.