Committee Members Welcome Governor

Florida State Governor Charlie Crist scheduled a Town Hall Meeting at the Beach Community Center near the Galt Mile on February 18, 2009. The more than 300 residents packed the Beach Community Center almost all wearing Stop Calypso buttons and white and red T-Shirts with the Stop Calypso Logo. Governor Crist randomly called on residents in the Center for their questions.

Nesbitt Voices Concerns

After several questions concerning Beach Renourishment, President Obama’s Economic Stimulus Plan, and Home Foreclosures, PDM board member Fred Nesbitt asked a question concerning the proposed Calypso project.

Crist responded by saying he would not sign off on the project! All 300 residents were on their feet cheering. It was a great relief to a long hard fight to defeat the LNG deepwater port.

Audience Regales Governor With Standing Ovation

I would like to thank all the residents who signed petitions, sent letters to Governor Crist and other elected officials, attended public hearings, testified at public meetings, and donated time and money to getting the word out about this ill conceived project.

It has been an incredible experience to be part of a grassroots coalition that defeated a Multibillion Corporation with lobbyists and very deep pockets.

Linda Eidinger

AUTOMATIC GARAGE DOORS

Manager Sam Aponte

We have recently installed the automatic doors in the lower garage by the elevator landings. This project has been long awaited. We expect a respectable return on our investment with the doors opening and closing automatically, con$erving energy by reducing the load on our A\C system.

PDM residents are cooperating and recycling daily.

The twelve recycle bins in the lower garage yield 63,024 gallons of recyclables per year! That is an outstanding job! The cost of the recycle pick up is $95.00 a month per manager, Sam Aponte. A small amount for the good of keeping our planet "Green" and it helps to offset the cost of our waste removal expenses.

The Green Committee will be discussing more ways to also save energy in the building. Interested residents please volunteer for the PDM Green Committee. If you see unnecessary lights on in the lobby, library or Ocean Lounge during the day for no reason, please turn them off or call the office or front desk and report it so they can be turned off.

City of Babcock Ranch

The Miami Herald newspaper reported the first ever city to run on Solar Power being developed on 17,000 acres northeast of Fort Myers. “It will include the world’s largest Photovoltaic power plant, which will be operated by Florida Power and Light.” The new city will be called Babcock Ranch and will include 19,500 homes and buildings that will be powered by zero-emission solar energy. The State of Florida and FP&L also give rebates to buildings for solar panel installation another issue for discussion at the Green Committee.

Please remember to give your current email address to the office so the PDM newsletter can be e-mailed, saving on the cost of printing and postage. Thank you again PDM residents for doing your part in helping to save our planet.

GO GREEN!

Joan and Rick Westen

Tripping the light fantastic at PDM’s Saint Pat’s party are Joan & Rick Westen. The Westen’s have been PDM owners here since 1997. Prompted by Rick’s retirement as a financial advisor in 2004, they are now Florida residents and enjoy eight month stays here since 2006.

When not here in PDM, you can find them in the air, on land or by sea, visiting such places as (but not limited to) Alaska, Canada, Mexico and Belize, focusing on Rick’s fishing expertise!! An avid fisherman, he boasts of a pretty good size sailfish caught in Mexico, one of his many prize catches. Most recently, they celebrated their 50^th wedding anniversary with 14 members of their family on a cruise. Joan says that it was over the Christmas Holidays and was a warm and beautiful experience.

The Westen’s are very supportive of building activities and attend all the Social Activities when they are here. They have one daughter, married and living in Canada with her husband. They have been blessed with two grandchildren, a grandson attending Northwestern College just outside of Chicago and their granddaughter attending high school in Canada.

Before becoming a devoted housewife, Joan had a career in nursing, specializing in the maternity ward. Not people to just sit around; both are active in the gym. Joan loves the pool and can be seen doing laps in the pool late in the day and Rick can be seen wearing out the pavers on the promenade with his daily walks.

Don't Feed the Pigeons

An important message to the owners, guests and lessees. Please DO NOT feed the pigeons, whether on your balcony, at the pool, promenade or on the BEACH! The pigeons are starting to nest in areas around the building and have been seen “perching” and “wooing” on our balconies. They are indiscriminate with their droppings that will seriously damage our railings and balconies plus it could become a potential health hazard.

SPS is in the final stages of repairing our railings. Work on the promenade is underway and all balconies are finished. Before we settle up with them the Management has an important request. If you have ANY kind of complaint on their work such as damage to your balcony, the deco floors, the railings, cracks, paint overspray on your doors, windows or siding, you are asked to report that in writing to the office even if you have already done so. Photos or videos would be great. PDM is holding back $200,000.00 and this is your opportunity to put in your claim for any repair before we relinquish any of the money held back. You, the owners, see these issues, no one else, so examine your balconies and write up what you feel should be rectified.

ALSO! Your Board is trying to recover monies from QBE who denied us claims for Katrina and Wilma damages. Management has asked that if you, anyone you know, or if you can remember any kind of damage to the building from either hurricane, to document it in writing to the office. Photos, videos and written documentation will be submitted to QBE in the hopes of recovering what was denied.

When a stack is closed for drain pipe repairs, you are requested not to use the water. Yes, it is turned off, but if you use that ONE flush or fill buckets in advance and flush during the shutdown it defeats the work that has been done and the work has to be rescheduled and done over. This is an added inconvenience to all and incurs unnecessary labor and expense to redo it. It isn’t the drawing of the water that is the problem; it is the elimination of it through the pipes. Recently a stack under repair was inundated with waste, covering a worker, when an owner “flushed”, sending it down to the repair site. Please avail yourselves of the four bathrooms on the lobby floor if you have an emergency during a shut down.

by PDM Newsletter Staff

SHOPPING CARTS

Finally we have some controls regarding the shopping carts. Using the plastic card to release and insure their return has been very successful. EXCEPT… we have had instances where owners are returning them to a different location and releasing someone else’s card. Owners have paid $10.00 for their card! Please check to make sure you are in possession of your own and not someone else’s card. Notify the front desk if the unit number on your card is incorrect so that they can be swapped out for those that have been reported taken in error or turned in.

Reminder: Please DO NOT BRING WINN DIXIE carts into our building.

Maintenance personnel have been instructed not to accept verbal requests for service other than through the Manager’s office. Forms (shown below) are available in the office and all requests must be submitted in writing. This is to your advantage.

Requests are numbered, documented and assigned according to their urgency. If you go into the office with a request, please fill out a Maintenance request form and document the issue.

EMERGENCY/AMBULANCES

Occasionally, ambulances return residents on stretchers from a rehab or hospital because the resident will be rehabilitating at home. In these cases, it is important that when you are expecting a loved one to come home by ambulance and to avoid any kind of wait for the freight elevator, please call the front desk to make them aware of the ambulance/resident’s arrival.

No one wants to be “on display” lying on a stretcher waiting for the elevator. The freight elevator is the only one that can accommodate a stretcher and if there is an issue with a reserved or an out of service elevator, the front desk has a heads up to clear the way and expedite its use. An outgoing resident leaving by ambulance always has the elevator locked down but it is not the case for an incoming patient. If possible, try to inform the front desk of a patient’s arrival.