Randy Young, TLIA President
It’s been a busy summer in Tower Lakes and we’ve accomplished a lot. Top of mind are those wonderful tennis courts, a great 4th of July, the beautiful new Lathan’s Landing, and the final segment of our current silt removal project. But we are just beginning to scratch the surface of goals for Tower Lakes’ homeowners.
As we move through the dog days of August and into the fall season, our thinking turns to long term plans. The annual meeting is just around the corner and our biggest challenge will be creating a 2017 budget. The looming question is, how do we do all we need to do — perhaps include a few great ideas we would like to do — while keeping our life good in Tower Lakes?
The first job is to keep diligent on past due collections. It is our largest source of frustration and the number one financial issue. While most of our members are diligent in keeping current with their dues obligation and several have stepped up to take advantage of the payment plans we offer, many remain lackadaisical in their approach to this vitally important responsibility.
Over the past two years, our financial team has made great strides in catching up on and collecting past due accounts. Yet in 2016, we find ourselves several thousand dollars short because of delinquent dues. The outstanding balance currently stands at $28,526 — an astoundingly, unacceptable amount. As I said at the 2015 annual meeting, we carry an “unacceptable, yet manageable allowance of 10% uncollectible dues.” We are currently $11,316 over that 10% goal ($17,210) with only three months left in the fiscal year. We expect the payment plan people to finish their obligations but there will continue to be a percentage of our members with outstanding obligations. It seems a 100% compliance is an elusive goal. That is a top challenge facing our association as we move into FY2017.
The Fourth of July theme was “Life is Good in Tower Lakes.” Life will only continue to be good if we all keep current with our membership obligations. It is our dues that pay for everything we enjoy about life Tower Lakes.
Our Budget Committee begins its work this month and the demands on our dollars are a never ending battle, for you and for us! If you have ideas or valuable knowledge to contribute, please do not hesitate to email me. CLICK HERE to contact me with your ideas.
Together we can overcome this challenge and truly continue to personify the saying, “Life is Good in Tower Lakes.”