Association pushes back unit-owner vote

The Longboat Key Town Commission had a stern warning for the interests in the Colony Beach & Tennis Resort last week: Work out a resolution or risk losing more than half of the resort’s 237 units.

That warning may have had an impact already: Unit owners will receive detailed information about a plan to redevelopment plan proposed by the board and its development partner, Club Holdings Ventures, at the Colony Beach & Tennis Resort Association’s annual meeting, scheduled for April 2 and April 3, but they won’t be taking a vote.

A March 12 email sent to unit owners stated:

“Following the March 5 meeting at which the Town Commission made a very strong point about putting settlement discussions first (with which we agree), we decided to pursue a less aggressive schedule for the owner vote, because when owners are finally asked to vote, part of what they are voting on should either include a resolution of all the unresolved issues at The Colony, or a viable workaround for proceeding in the event no resolution or only limited resolution can be achieved.”

“We want to be sure that when the owners take a vote that whatever they vote upon can stick,” said Association Board President Jay Yablon. Also in Monday’s email, unit owners received access to a confidential owner package that hasn’t been finalized, with information made available to owners after they acquiesced to a non-disclosure agreement. Unit owners will have three options, as laid out in a February email: whole ownership, one-eighth fractional ownership or sale.

Commissioners expressed frustration with the Colony parties at the March 5 regular meeting, during which they gave a status update related to an extension of a continuance of the town’s tourism abandonment requirement for the Colony. They weren’t interested in seeing the draft site plan or in discussing the merits of a redeveloped Colony but, instead, wanted evidence that the parties were working toward resolving longtime legal disputes.

Charles Bartlett, attorney for longtime Colony owner Dr. Murray “Murf” Klauber, couldn’t be reached for comment Tuesday, March 13. However, after last week’s commission meeting, he told the Longboat Observer what would need to happen to resolve the disputes.

“I think the Association has made it clear that they do not want to proceed with Dr. Klauber involved in the Colony,” he said. “It’s going to cost money to do that. He holds valuable property rights.”