Chairman’s Report: May 2025

Greetings. I hope you have enjoyed a great spring, survived the pollen and perhaps took in the Heritage golf tournament. You probably agree that HHI and Palmetto Dunes never grow old.

The PD board and administrative staff have been busy on many fronts. With one exception, we are once again functioning with a full staff after filling several key vacancies. Please join me in welcoming our new Compliance Manager, Lisa Martin, Controller Paige Dickerson and Assets (Facilities) Manager Scott Kleist.
For those of you who attend the board meetings either in person or via Zoom, please forgive any repetition. For the rest of you, here is a sampling of ongoing projects. Our new General Manager, Bill Dix, has been seeking competitive bids in several areas during his first few weeks. Worker’s Compensation insurance was one example. The final quotes came in $30,000 below budget. We also brought personnel recruiting in-house for a savings in excess of $40,000 at last count. Finally, we are looking at some new quotes for enhanced HR benefits at a reduced cost to the POA.

You may also recall that the POA conducted a Reserve study last year. The results of the study in layman’s terms allowed us to spend $900,000 this year on preventative bridge maintenance for the remaining six of 12 bridges which have yet to be replaced. This maintenance allows us to push back the next bridge replacement for at least ten years. Without that work, we were scheduled for a new bridge replacement in 2025 at a cost of $2.0-2.5 million.

In the area of RFPs, PD put the expiring Greenery landscaping contract out for bid. Six companies responded. It was quite competitive. Ideally, we would have preferred to retain The Greenery which has done a very good job for PD through the years. As you know though, rates for everything have exploded with post-Covid inflation. Therefore you can imagine how pleased we were when The Greenery won the business again with a ZERO increase bid for two years AND some free bonus work. Turnover exacts a cost and The Greenery already knew PD so this is a great outcome.

In 2023 the POA experimented with blocking left turns into and exiting the General Store intersection. The recent third-party traffic study confirmed this was still the number one issue along the Queens Folly corridor. (In my mind the backward traffic circle pattern unlike anywhere else in the country is a strong number two but more on that later.)

Working with Greenwood, the left turn closures will return for 2025 only this time the actual blockades will be more sightly (aesthetically pleasing) than the crime scene tape two years ago.

On a lighter note, after many years of requests from former PD board member Erin Gaian, and on short notice, Communications Manager (and jack-of-all-trades) Elizabeth Simpson put together a PD hospitality tent at the recent HHI Wine Festival. This was very well received and we hope it becomes an annual feature.

7 Lee Shore may already be listed for sale when you read this. The quotes for a passive park came in 350% above the original figures which was simply not fiscally sound stewardship among other issues. Thank you once again, however, to the passionate committee members who worked tirelessly for more than a year.

Finally, in terms of ongoing work, best practices suggest Strategic Plans be revisited annually. PD is no exception and the board is in the midst of reviewing the 2023 plan to incorporate updated knowledge and current conditions.

As mentioned at a recent meeting, there is much more work going on behind the scenes but it is too early to announce. The goal is to under promise and over-deliver.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. PD couldn’t operate without the input of its dedicated residents. We appreciate all of you.

— Kurt Faires, Chairman