Fort Myers, FL
Several months ago, I wrote to the Gateway Gazette about a lawsuit imposed upon me by the board of Stoneybrook for not removing a hot tub that the H.O.A. architectural committee approved in writing.
Unknowingly the residents of Stoneybrook have already invested more than $12K in attorney fees and they continue to rack fees up. The Board blames a poor management company - S & S Management, the former property management company - for allowing the approval. The lawsuit was initiated during the reign of Sherri Bucar and continues under the watchful eye of her sidekick Margaret Fineberg.
With the $30K that you have recently written about, the Bucar/Fineberg led boards are reaching nearly $50K in fees. In both cases, the blame is being laid on a management company. In both cases, there are different management companies. The latter property management company - Alliant - is one that was put in place due to the hard work of the Bucar/Fineberg team. The problem lies not in the property management company, but more with the residents of Stoneybrook who elect these individuals to be representative of the community.
As the Stoneybrook board sues me, there are some 150+ homes in foreclosure. I have always paid my regular dues to the community. I also paid the $200 special assessment when it was imposed. I don't park work trucks in my driveway or allow friends to park in the street. I am one of more than a half dozen people with hot tubs in the community. I have no disputes with my neighbors. Any perceived loss of value in one's home due to me having a hot tub has the reality of the economy to truly point at. Lawns growing knee deep might also lend to the loss in value. This lawsuit is again an attempt of an unrepresentative board to yield their un-annointed authority that you elude to in your most recent articles.
The common thread is Bucar/Fineberg. Hopefully, the community awakens and remembers why they bought in Stoneybrook; it was a family friendly community, safe, and with lots of activities. What money the community is able to collect from the homeowners is now being spent to cover attorney fees. Elect Bucar/Fineberg or one of their 'yes-men' to the Board and only the same will occur.
Paul Filla
Stoneybrook
