1/17/24
Board of Directors Meeting
1/31/24
4:00pm EST
Zoom and at the RAL Offices
Please call or email for Zoom instructions to join the meeting.
7/28/31
Tropical Sands Resort Emergency Board Meeting
–7/31/23
–4:00pm EST
–Contact RAL Resorts if you would like to join us for the meeting via zoom.
6/9/23
Good Evening TSR Owners.
RAL and your Board of Directors have been working hard over
the last few weeks, lots has been happening and we have some solid news to
report. This week permits were issued, and we have them in hand! The City of
FMB has been VERY busy, and permitting is taking a lot of time. We didn’t want
to announce anything until we had the papers in our possession! We are still
waiting on a few minor permits to be distributed but the bulk has been
obtained!
We have contracted the following items:
A/C
Electric
Metal exterior door entries for maintenance, and mechanical
rooms per code. (Special Order).
We are in final negotiations with:
Plumbing
Window/Doors
Elevator
Fire Systems
Power has been turned on to the buildings and we have found
a 3rd party engineer for inspection approvals and draw requests.
We are still doing research on the best location for the new
office, and the location of the pool bath, hot tub and pool equipment.
To date we have received approximately $1.1 million in funds
from insurance carriers. While this is a good amount these are not final
settlements, and more is expected.
5/26/23
5/8/23
Tropical Sands Resort
Owners Update,
May 8, 2023
As you may already know, Hurricane Ian has destroyed 95% of the Island. Half of the Island is still
without either electricity or water. Since day ONE we have had boots on the ground working tirelessly to get our beautiful resort back to working order. Below is an accurate summary of what we have done, where we are and, what direction we are heading to.
Resort damage:
* The entire first floor of every building was destroyed. 13 units, housekeeping dept, maintenance, electrical rooms and elevators.
* These areas have been stripped down to the studs and sanitized.
* The Tiki Bar, pool equipment area and office building are gone.
* Floors 2 & 3 have had minimal damage.
What’s going to happen:
* Rebuilding of the first floor and repairs of floors 2 & 3
* We are in the process of getting the necessary building permits approved from the town so we can begin the rebuild.
What’s been done:
* Insurance claims have been opened for both flood and wind damage.
* A Public Adjuster is being retained to take over negotiations for a settlement
* Advance payments on the policies have been received but there is no final settlement yet.
* Cleaning up of large debris from the grounds and the units,
* A chain link fence has been installed around the entire property for safety and security.
* Pavers have been salvaged and saved for rebuilding walkways and the pool deck.
* John Shaw Building Services Inc. has been hired as the General Contractor on the rebuild for an amount not to exceed funds received from insurance.
Some good news:
* R.A.L. will begin taking FLEX week reservations starting week 16, 2024 subject to completion of construction and an occupancy permit for the resort.
* Fixed week owners of weeks 1 through 15 will be able to use their weeks if the resort is ready for occupancy.
Staying informed:
* We will be providing monthly updates of the recovery progress through group email blasts to owners. The same information will also be posted on the R.A.L. website under the Tropical Sands Resort tab.
* Please make sure your current email is on file with R.A.L. if you wish to receive the information by email.
* Photos of the resort will be posted on R.A.L’s Tropical Sands Facebook page. Search for Tropical Sands Resort which is different from the Tropical Sands Owners page.
The board members and RAL appreciate your
patience and support as we navigate this catastrophic event.
4/28/23
Meeting recordings are available under the “Resort Docs” tab on this page next to the “Local Fun” tab. Please log in using the normal password provided from the newsletters. If you do not have this password, please email the resort manager at tropicalsandsresortmanager@gmail.com.
4/25/23
AGENDA: TROPICAL SANDS RESORT
MEETING: BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING
DATE: APRIL 27, 2023
PLACE: ZOOM/RAL OFFICES
TIME: 4:00PM EST
BOARD OF DIRECTORS: PRESIDENT: GALE HATFIELD VICE PRESIDENT: STEVE KOWALSKI
SECRETARY: KEENA STRANEY TREASURER: NANCY HUSTON DIRECTOR: DON WALKER
1. CALL TO ORDER
2. ROLL CALL/ESTABLISH QUORUM
3. ANNOUNCEMENT OF THOSE IN ATTENDANCE WHO WILL BE RECORDING THE MEETING
4. APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM 11/9/22
5. MANAGEMENT REPORTS
a. PENDING DEED BACKS REPORT
6. FINANCIAL REPORTS
a. AR REPORT
b. CURRENT MONTH FINANCIALS
c. NOTICE ON MONEY MOVED FROM SURPLUS OPERATIONS TO RESERVES
d. NOTICE ON RESERVE INTEREST ACCRUED AND REALLOCATED TO RESERVE ACCOUNTS
7. NEW BUSINESS
a. BOARD, OWNER AND MANAGEMENT COMMUNICATIONS AND GUIDELINES
b. PAYMENT APPROVALS FOR WORK PERFORMED
c. BUDGET ANALYSIS
8. OLD BUSINESS
a. PUBLIC ADJUSTER DISCUSSION
b. SB 4-D UPDATE—STATE REQUIRED REPORTS FOR 3+ STORY BUILDINGS
9. HURRICANE RELATED ITEMS
a. HURRICANE INSURANCE PAYOUTS RECEIVED
b. FLOOD AND WIND INSURANCE STATUSES FOR PAYOUTS
c. WORK DONE AT THE RESORT
d. UPDATE ON PERMITS FROM THE TOWN OF FMB
e. BUILDER’S RISK POLICY UPDATE
10. SET OTHER 2023 BOARD MEETING DATES AND ANNUAL MEETING DATE
11. OWNER COMMENTS ON AGENDA ITEMS ONLY
1/31/23
Reminder:
today is the last day to call in and make payments, pay online, or mail
out your payment with a postmarked date of 1/31/23. Payments made with
a credit card or debit card over the phone or online will have a 4%
service fee added. Please call 239-481-9580 or visit www.ralresorts.com .
1/26/23
Owners,
We hope this letter finds you well during this unprecedented time for Tropical Sands Resort and Fort Myers Beach. It has been a little over a month since Hurricane Ian ravaged our towns down here in SWFL. Thousands of people have been impacted throughout the area, including all resort employees and RAL staff members. Some have lost homes. Some have lost vehicles. And sadly, some have lost loved ones. We are still rebuilding and will be rebuilding for quite some time, so we ask for your patience during this process.
Tropical Sands Resort suffered a good amount of damage at the resort. The entire first floor was subjected to extensive flooding with the 2nd and 3rd floors sustaining wind/water damage. The resort’s office detached from the foundation and collapsed in and around the pool. Tiki hut is gone. All exterior items like the pool pump equipment, all air conditioning units, fountain, gas grills, etc. are all gone. We had several cars “float” into the property and even had one park itself in the lanai of 1D!
We currently have RAL and resort staff working on property to clean up the general grounds as well as begin the complete stripping of the first-floor units. We have also met with the wind and flood adjusters for inspections on the property and currently we are looking to contract with a fencing service to add security for the property from potential looters and others. We are hoping to have more answers from the insurance providers on what is and what isn’t covered on their end and then see about the forward process of rebuilding the resort. Lots of meeting are ahead of us and as time goes on, more answers will come to light.
Your board has met regarding the hurricane as well as what to do regarding the billing of the resort’s members. At this time, all members are required to pay their fair share of the weeks they own to keep the resort moving into the future. A budget meeting was held back in August and the board voted to set the maintenance and operations bill at $699.00 per unit week not including taxes. This vote was done prior to the hurricane. Now that the disaster has come and gone, things have changed significantly. It was recommended by your Board President William Wilkinson (at the advice of an attorney on another timeshare Board that he is on) that the board stick with the approved amount for 2023 and to make adjustments next year as deemed necessary. While this was not voted on (because there was no change to budget meeting outcome), it was discussed. We understand that paying for a unit that you may not be able to use for the foreseeable future may not seem to be the most pleasant of a situation to be in.
It has now also been suggested by our Vice President, Gale Hatfield, and Board Secretary Nancy Huston, to pay these fees in two installments, January 1, 2023, 50% due and July 1, 2023 the balance needed (gives us time to redo budget and see what we require and adjust that payment accordingly) so that the annual fee is not a single financial hit to one’s bank account. Board President has emailed all Board Members about reconvening and making this change under Emergency rules. This was voted on and passed by a majority of the Board. We want to stress to everyone that this is only a temporary billing situation that will return to normal annual billing once our resort is back up and running. Please keep this in mind when deciding what to do – at the end of this nightmare, our Resort will come back looking better and newer than ever. Those members that do decide to stay around in support of the project will be rewarded with many updates and changes that have been wanted by the resort members for quite some time.
For all members that may have their accounts set up with their bank to auto-pay, your account will reflect your actual payment amount. You will not lose any of these funds, and if any adjustments are made you will be notified and billed/credited accordingly.
Please note that this letter was reviewed and approved prior to our sending it out. Please go to https://ralresorts.com/tsr/tsr-home for all future updates (as soon as we get back in working order – please give us a few weeks for our first update).
Thank you for being a great ownership and we look forward to the future of TSR.
Your management company,
RAL Resorts
(The above letter was mailed out November 2022)
12/23/22 Update Videos
https://www.facebook.com/100063539562613/videos/pcb.612261217568525/1214217355861616
https://www.facebook.com/100063539562613/videos/pcb.612261217568525/489443783083417
12/1/22 Update Video
https://www.facebook.com/100063539562613/videos/468159125402849
11/22/22 Update Videos
https://www.facebook.com/100063539562613/videos/1126695731372349
https://www.facebook.com/100063539562613/videos/751082770051549
11/14/22
TSR Progress Video
https://www.facebook.com/100063539562613/videos/645624937019173
10/7/22
Video of Resort
https://www.facebook.com/100063539562613/videos/1728199190893304
10/7/22
This
is Maggie from RAL. We have no internet connection and very spotty cell
service. We hope by Monday to be safe enough to be able to get our
server reconnected at the office to be able to send something but can’t
be sure Comcast will be connected yet…. We are trying to stay in touch. I
understand that everyone wants information but please remember that
communication is limited. The area, while you have seen videos and
photos, you can’t understand the utter devastation of Hurricane
Ian. This looks like a bomb during a war. Recovery teams are still on
the islands trying to bring closure to families, and haven’t even
started their sweeps of the mangrove islands to find others. I wouldn’t
believe this if I wasn’t living it. So please know we want to
communicate with you but we are also trying to secure our homes, the
homes of all the RAL Employees, our Office, our business partners
offices, and make sure everyone has a place to sleep at night, and at
least 1 solid meal. There are loads of volunteers in the area but one
thing that is challenging is transportation as many lost vehicles. So
please continue prayers and we appreciate your patience with us while we
work on getting our lives together.
10/1/22