Thank you to the residents who voted in the 2022 HGRD Board Election. The Board of Supervisors would like to congratulate Bill Kulkoski (691 votes) and Howard Young (694 votes) as they fill the two open Board seats. Their contribution at the Board level is vital to growth at Herons Glen. We welcome their expertise, commitment, and enthusiasm as it helps to shape the future of the entire Herons Glen community.

Stay up-to-date on the latest news at the HGRD by using the General Manager's Blog. Login to heronsglencc.com ~ Hover Over "Communications" ~ Click the "General Manager's Blog". At the bottom of the page you can subscribe to the news feed.

If you have questions about the website please call (239) 731-4566 or email [email protected].

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the Wednesday, November 17, 2021 Facilities & Amenities Advisory Committee will be CANCELED. Our Chair will not be able to attend the Facilities meeting due to a meeting that will occur at the same time concerning the HOA Proposed Documents for the community.

The Facilities & Amenities Advisory Committee has a meeting scheduled for Wednesday, December 15th at 2:00 p.m.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
 

On this Veterans Day, we would like to salute all our veterans for their part in the preservation of freedom and honor them for their courage and devotion to our country. Thank you for your service!
Due to the large Veterans of the Glen function this evening in the Ballroom, the Restaurant & Lounge will be closed for dinner tonight. Lunch will be available from 11:30am-4pm.

I would like to reiterate what was sent out several weeks ago regarding the golf course renovation. Tim and the entire golf course maintenance staff are working diligently to prepare the golf course for next month’s reopening. (An official opening date has not been announced yet.) As you know, we are not finished with the renovation. Along with laying additional sod throughout the golf course, we’ve scheduled the installation of annual flowers, course landscaping, and pine straw during the next several weeks.

There are hundreds of houses abutting the golf course and many of you are concerned about the appearance of the golf course from your backyard. We ask that you please be patient as we finish the renovation. Golf courses are always a “work in progress” and we asked Chris Clarke of Clarke Construction to explain some of the expectations and misconceptions of opening a new golf course. Please click here to view the 8-minute video.

Food & Beverage: The H2B program, which allows us to employ our Jamaican food and beverage staff, has gone through a number of changes this year. The majority of team members who worked up North this summer are mandated by a “Three Month” rule stating that if they do not return to Jamaica for at least 90 days within a three-year period, they will lose their work visas. Several of our staff, including Delroy and TJ, are having to abide by this rule and must stay in Jamaica for the required period of time. (Unfortunately, one of our favorite servers, Mark had back surgery in Jamaica this past year and is unable to work this year.)

This is the reason we are having a slight delay in assembling our team this year. As a note, all team members are required to be vaccinated before their departure. Danielle, who works in the kitchen, is the only H2B staff member who is already working but we should have a new H2B server beginning before the Thanksgiving holiday. Two more cooks are scheduled to arrive the 3rd of December with the rest of the team coming the following week. Next year at this time, all of our H2B team members will arrive in October since all will have fulfilled the manda-tory “return to country” rule.
Please look for further updates regarding the restaurant and lounge schedule.

Clubhouse Maintenance Update Reminder: Swimming Pool Hours
Now that the winter season is upon us, please note that the pool will be cleaned twice a week on Mondays and Thursdays. The pool will open at 9AM on Mondays and 11AM on Thursdays. Below are the signs posted at the pool noting the hours of operation.




 

Board meeting details are posted under the "Governance" section of the website on the tab called "Board Meetings". From there you can find Zoom information. The Zoom details stay the same from meeting-to-meeting.

We would like to welcome all the new residents who have chosen to call Herons Glen home, as well as those of you who are just returning to Florida. All of us are looking forward to the upcoming season and getting back to some sense of normalcy. Although many of us are tired of hearing about rules, mandates, restrictions, etc., particularly over the past 20 months, we do want to point out several important rules concerning the District. The first one involves the service of alcoholic beverages in the Clubhouse. Current District policy states, “The HGRD abides by all laws of the State of Florida regarding the purchase, sale, and consumption of alcoholic beverages on the HGRD’s property. Due to state and local liquor laws, all alcoholic beverages to be served and consumed on the HGRD’s premises must be purchased from HGRD and residents or guests may not bring alcoholic beverages on the premises (including the parking lot).” I don’t think this rule comes as a shock to anyone considering the liquor liability and loss of income implications. Most of us are accustomed to not bringing alcohol into establishments that sell alcohol, however, we have had reports recently that this is happening in our restaurant/ballroom and plan to deal with it accordingly.

As we approach the holiday season, the swimming pool will be in high demand. We ask that you please review several of the rules so that everyone can have an enjoyable experience at the pool. For a full list of our Rules & Regulations, please click here. 1. Swimming is permitted between the hours of dawn and dusk daily, except when closed for maintenance purposes. (Night swimming is prohibited.) Use of the pool is at swimmer’s own risk. The pool is not tended by a lifeguard. 2. Anyone under the age of eighteen (18) must be accompanied and supervised by an adult. Babies and small children using the pool must wear approved swimming diaper-suits. Running, ball playing, and any noisy or hazardous activity including diving and jumping into the pool shall not be permitted. Rafts and similar large flotation devices are also prohibited. 3. According to Health Department Regulations, showers are required before entering the pool to remove all suntan oils and lotions. When using suntan oils and lotions, place a towel on the pool chairs/lounges so as not to stain the furniture. 4. If open, food and/or beverage is to be purchased from the Food & Beverage operation. 5. Swimmers must wear proper swim attire. Cut-offs, dungarees and Bermudas are not considered appropriate swim wear. 6. Radios may be used only at very low volume or with personal earphones.

CLIS Project Update: Mainscape continues to troubleshoot and replace existing field wire paths, which in some cases are over 30 years old. Changing the central control wiring is what we are attacking first as part of improving the CLIS infrastructure. All 14 controllers are now operable and can be run from the CLIS computer and Wi-Fi phone apps. However, more wire path repairs and replacement are needed. Tucor, the company we partner with for our CLIS components, will be onsite again later this month to perform another audit of the system and help us prepare a Master Plan Document moving forward. A lot of work has been done so far this summer, but we need to continue improving the system.

Operationally, Ryker and his CLIS team are busy addressing resident requests. As you can imagine, with 1,300 houses (DR Horton included) and over 460,000 sprinkler heads throughout the community, the team is staying busy. We continue to ask that you please not stop the CLIS staff as they travel from one request to the another. Ryker is attempting to address each request within 24-48 hours and is asking residents to fill out a Resident Request Form at the District office or contact him at [email protected] so they can stay on schedule. Please note that homeowners are responsible for edging grass around the sprinkler heads along with trimming all landscape plantings so as not to interfere with the operation of the sprinkler heads.
Thank you for your patience and more updates will be forthcoming throughout the season.
 

Login to the heronsglencc.com website ~ Hover over "My Account" ~ Go to "View Profile" ~ Click on the blue “Edit” button to the right. This enables you to update your personal information such as your date of birth or marital status. You can also edit your contact information there such as your phone number or email. Information changed there will be automatically reflected in our member database and the online roster.

Scroll to the bottom and click “Update” otherwise, the changes will not be saved.

Tim Kortanek and the entire golf course maintenance staff are working diligently to prepare the golf course as the reopening approaches. This month, additional golf course sod is being installed and in mid-November, St. Augustine sod will be placed in areas throughout the community in need of repair due to the renovation.

The November schedule also includes:

• Week 1: Stump grinding and clean up
• Week 2: Annual flowers planted
• Week 3: Course landscaping installed
• Week 4: Pine straw installed

As you can imagine, Tim and his team are facing a tight deadline to complete their punch list on the course. We know many of you have questions and concerns, but we ask that you please refrain from stopping the golf course maintenance crew while they are traveling throughout the community. These interruptions frequently prevent them from doing their job efficiently. Green Committee member, Bruce Johnson is continuing to provide tours of the course and we encourage everyone who hasn't seen the course, or may have questions, to sign up by contacting Karon Bennett at: [email protected].

Not to be overlooked, Ryker, his CLIS team, and Mainscape are busy troubleshooting wire path issues and addressing resident requests. Please make sure you go online or come to the office to fill out a resident request form if you would like to submit a work order.

November is going to be a very important and busy month for us. We are fortunate to have a dedicated staff who takes pride in their work, and we appreciate everyone’s patience as we head down the home stretch.

Website Tips and Tricks: Thank you to the residents who have shared positive comments about the new Recreation District website at heronsglencc.com. Over the next few months, we will share tips for navigating the website in hopes of providing a good user experience and encouraging your participation at the Recreation District!

Watch for exciting new additions to the website that will be announced by email. Also, please follow us on popular social media platforms as we improve our communication with the community.
If you haven’t already, please log into the website and look around! Reach out to the Administration Office with any questions or suggestions anytime.

Be on the lookout for emails coming from [email protected].

In accordance with CDC guidance, the District Board is recommending vaccinated people wear face coverings indoors on District property. Unvaccinated should continue to follow CDC guidelines for masking.

Food & Beverage: By now, most of us have heard about the national supply chain issues, shipping delays, driver shortages and ongoing staffing problems. We are now facing liquor distribution issues along with glass shortages making it harder and more expensive to manufacture liquor bottles!

The F&B team will remain flexible and may have to adjust what we can offer with respect to our weekly a la carte offerings along with the hours of operation. Depending on staffing requirements, we may have to close the restaurant or the main dining room during large ballroom events. (Please check your emails for reminders and updates.) Labor shortages are affecting the entire country as well as how we run our day-to-day business. Recruiting new staff is, and will be, an on-going process.

It only takes one trip to the grocery store to realize the cost of food and supplies continue to rise. Depending on the menu items, we will attempt to maintain our current pricing structure, although the prices are subject to change if we see dramatic costing changes.

Due to the pandemic, many of our H2B team members had to fly back to Jamaica for a certain amount of time before returning to the US. This means the H2B staff will be arriving in two separate waves: two (2) cooks & two (2) servers in early November and two (2) cooks & two (2) servers in early December. We would have like to have had them in early October, but due to a number of complex nuances of the H2B program, we had to bring them back in this manner.
All of us on the F&B team appreciate your patience!

Note from the GM: Clubhouse Roof & Parking Lot Cleaning: Please be advised that Dan is scheduled to have the clubhouse roof, and others around the community, cleaned October 19th-21st. Also, on October the 18th, the front parking lot, where the golf course renovation equipment and materials were staged, will be pressure-washed. Please look for safety cones restricting access those days.

Physical Therapy Group: EDGE Physical Therapy Group is giving residents free evaluations today, Thursday and Saturday in the fitness center. EDGE will then be here three days a week beginning on October 12th to provide on-site physical therapy in the fitness center. We are optimistic that having physical therapy within the community will be popular while enhancing our amenity offerings. (see page 5 for more information.)
Notary Services: Due to the high demand and time required for notary services in the HGRD office, beginning October 6th, there will be a $10 fee for all notaries. The charge can be billed to your house account. Please call the office to make a notary reservation.
COVID Note: While most of our residents can drive up the street to Publix & Walgreens if they want the vaccine, Florida has created a program that allows homebound seniors to sign up to have the vaccine brought directly to them. If anyone would like more information, please contact Karon Bennett at 731-4566 [email protected] , or email to [email protected] .
Golf Membership: For those residents who were not members of the golf course last year but intend to join the course this season, annual golf fees are not due until the golf course opens. However, please bear in mind that residents cannot play reciprocal clubs and pay the reciprocal fee until the membership fees are paid. If you have any questions, please contact Carol Bratten at: [email protected].
New Lanai Screening: You may have noticed screening has been removed from the back lanai behind the Ballroom. Dan is in the process of having the lanai porch rescreened later this week if the screen material is available.
Supply Chain Problems: I’m sure many of you are aware of the congestion and bottlenecks in key ports in Southern California wreaking havoc on global supply chains in addition to the lack of truck drivers to deliver the goods even if the container ships can unload. According to reports, the queue is a result of pandemic-related disruptions, and holiday-buying surges, paired with a national labor shortage. As it relates to Herons Glen, we are experiencing shortages and price increases from items like food, fertilizer, pro shop merchandise, PVC piping, just to name a few.