Meeting Minutes for March 19, 2025
Laguna Lakes
Community Development District
The regular meeting of The Board of Supervisors of the Laguna Lakes Community Development District was held at the Laguna Lakes Clubhouse, 15250 Lakes of Laguna Boulevard, Fort Myers, Florida and also via web conference on Wednesday, March 19, 2025.
Present and constituting a quorum were:
Mike Cutler – Chair
Michelle Martel – Vice Chair
Bruce Given – Assistant Secretary
David Williams – Assistant Secretary
Jonathan Busa – Assistant Secretary
Also present were:
Cal Teague – District Manager, Premier District Management (PDM)
Melissa Gindling – Assistant District Manager, PDM
Mandie Rainwater – Assistant District Manager, PDM
Rudy Bailey – Resident
Attending remotely:
David Schmitt – Engineer, Bowman Engineering and Consulting
The following is a summary of the discussion and actions taken at the Laguna Lakes Community Development District (CDD) Board of Supervisors regular meeting.
FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS Call to Order and Roll Call
The meeting was called to order, and District Manager Teague called the roll. All Board members were present. Also attending were Assistant District Managers Melissa Gindling and Mandie Rainwater, and Rudy Bailey, Resident. Attending remotely was David Schmitt, the Engineer.
SECOND ORDER OF BUSINESS Approval of the Agenda
Delete Item 5B: Everglades West Coast BMAP: Required Nitrogen Reductions for Laguna Lakes CDD
On MOTION by Supervisor Williams, seconded by Vice Chair Martel, with all in favor, the Agenda was approved, as amended.
THIRD ORDER OF BUSINESS Audience Comments on Agenda Items
There were no Audience comments on Agenda items.
FOURTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Consent Agenda
A. Items to be Pulled for Discussion
Chair Cutler pulled the Financials for discussion and presented his spreadsheet and report. He reviewed the expected shortfall at the end of the year and some of the Budget goals for this fiscal year and next fiscal year. A line of credit and potential assessment increase were discussed by the Board, as well as, potential savings suggestions that could be implemented. Staff will present a few different assessment increase options for the Draft Budget.
B. Motion to Approve Consent Items
On MOTION by Vice Chair Martel, seconded by Supervisor Busa, with all in favor, the Board approved all of the Consent Items.
C. Consideration of Items Pulled for Discussion
D. Consent Items
i. Draft Regular Meeting Minutes for February 19, 2025
ii. Financial Statements for February 2025
iii. March Field Report
iv. Irrigation Work Orders Log
FIFTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Engineer
A. Water Use Permit Adjustments
Engineer Schmitt reported that his office has not been working on this topic recently, since it is a paperwork change that is needed.
There was discussion about the permit, and it was stated that, since the District has a permit, it is good to keep it, even though the well water is not being utilized currently.
B. Everglades West Coast BMAP: Required Nitrogen Reductions for Laguna Lakes CDD
This was removed from the Agenda.
C. Overview of Berm Requirements for Residents Follow-up
A copy of the finalized berm and swale guidelines is in the packet. Staff asked the HOA to send this out as an e-blast, and the document has been saved in the records and added to the District’s website. The Board confirmed they had seen that the e-blast was sent.
D. Pool Construction at 8779 Spring Mountain Way
Included in the Additional Materials was a letter that was sent to the resident on February 18th requesting additional grading of approximately 3”, and also the replacement of any damaged landscaping. David inspected the area again this week and noted that sod had been installed. However, the 3” of material had not been removed, so a hump was created in the swale. Staff sent a certified letter to the resident requesting that they grade the area properly as soon as possible.
The Board discussed potential methods of charging residents for engineering time which are related to similar concerns.
SIXTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Old Business
A. Irrigation
i. Irrigation Monitoring and Schedule Update
Several updates and reports were in the packet.
ii. Wet Check Response Update
Beverly Hills provided a wet check response, which was included in the packet, as well as, a template for wet check reports. Last week Ramirez reported a list of clock failure codes to the hotline for Clocks 3 and 4.
iii. Update on Clocks 5 and 7
No Limit recommended combining Clock 7 with Clock 1. They need to complete the zone identification first to determine the connections, and then a proposal will be submitted. There was discussion on Clock 5, and if that clock may also need replacement in the near future.
iv. Reduced Watering Needs for Winter
Last month the Board had questions they would like Insight to answer about watering. Insight’s response to these questions was for staff to request information from the neighborhood landscapers first. The Board suggested that staff request some of this landscaping information from the neighborhood CAMS, and continue to research this topic in preparation for next year’s dry season.
v. Hoover Maintenance Contract Proposal
Hoover submitted a proposal for the renewal of the contract for pump maintenance with an annual price of $2,590. This includes 2 site visits. The Board approved this contract, including the pre-authorization of repair amounts up to $750. Attorney Cohen will review the contract before it is signed, and this amount will be added to next year’s Budget.
On MOTION by Vice Chair Martel, seconded by Supervisor Williams, with all in favor, the Board approved the renewal of Hoover’s contract for pump maintenance, not to exceed $2,590 for 2 site visits per year, and the pre-authorization of repair amounts, not to exceed $750.
B. Berm Plant Replacement Follow-up
Assistant District Manager Gindling reported that Terra Nova and Pristine Lakes provided quotes for some plant replacements. Because the original JVM proposals are difficult to follow, it was stated that the berms will need to be walked again to verify the plant counts, so that the selected contractor can provide an accurate proposal which is separated by location. Currently, the contractors are sending over proposals which only show their costs per plant. Once a vendor has been selected, Field Manager Pepin will meet with them and walk the berm again, so that they can provide an accurate proposal. Chair Cutler provided a comparison sheet between the 3 vendors.
The Board decided the eastern berm was the priority, and they would like to complete that area this year and budget out the rest of the areas over the following year(s). They decided to ask Terra Nova to provide a more detailed quote for this project. There was also discussion about switching some of the higher-cost plants, such as ginger, with some lower-cost plants, using Field Manager Pepin’s suggestions.
SEVENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS New Business
There was no New Business.
EIGHTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Field Manager
Assistant District Manager Gindling reported on several issues from the Field Report, and they were discussed:
The Board agreed with Field Manager Pepin’s suggestion to trim the tree branches overhanging the wall at 15640 Laguna Hills Drive.
The homeowner at 8959 Paseo De Valencia has connected drain pipes to their gutters and run them directly into the lake during their pool installation. The pool company has also left silt piles on the shoreline, and has been pumping ground water from the pool directly into the lake. The Board approved running the drain pipes into the lake, although they acknowledged the resident should have asked permission first. Staff will send a letter requesting them to correct the silt piles by spreading them.
The Board agreed with Field Manager Pepin’s suggestion to install a chain with a lock on the pump station gate.
A. Project Updates
i. Width of Littorals in Lakes
Field Manager Pepin is monitoring this, but there are no additional updates this month.
ii. Dead Palm Tree at 8900 Paseo De Valencia
Staff received 2 estimates for this dead tree removal. Pristine Lakes quoted $350, and a verbal quote was received from Terra Nova for $100.
iii. Maple Tree Replacement at 9150 Red Canyon Drive
Staff received several estimates for this new tree planting. JVM quoted $465.90, Pristine Lakes quoted $250, and Terra Nova submitted a verbal quote at $350.
The Board discussed both tree replacement options and decided to approve the removal of the dead palm at 8900 Paseo De Valencia, replacing it with an areca palm, as well as, the installation of the maple tree at 9150 Red Canyon Drive. District Manager Teague will negotiate pricing with the vendor.
On MOTION by Vice Chair Martel, seconded by Supervisor Given, with all in favor, the Board approved the removal of a dead palm tree at 8900 Paseo De Valencia, replacing it with an areca palm, and the installation of a maple tree at 9150 Red Canyon Drive, not to exceed $500.
iv. Pebble Beach Fountain Repairs
The fountain in Lake 8 has been tripping out almost every other day, so Field Manager Pepin requested a service call to the electricians to further investigate. They found that the starter capacitor is failing and needs to be replaced. They did not have one on their service truck, so we will likely see the fountain trip out again before the capacitor is replaced.
NINTH ORDER OF BUSINESS District Manager
A. Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Goals
Some Budget goals that have been mentioned so far include: replacement of irrigation controllers, Hoover pump maintenance, berm landscaping, and ethics training costs. If the Board has any other requests, they were asked to inform staff. The draft Budget will be emailed to the Board once it is available.
TENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Attorney
Attorney Cohen will be asked to review the Hoover contract and plant replacement contracts when they are approved.
ELEVENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Supervisor Requests/Comments
Supervisor Williams asked how CDD work orders are closed.
TWELFTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Audience Comments
Rudy Bailey commented about Ramirez’s wet check reports.