2011 Winter Issue - The Summit Owners Association

Summit
The
www.summit-resorts.com
Editor
Doug Counts
General Manager
Sonny Stutts
2011-2012
Board of Directors
Gary Armstrong
President
Patricia Latham
Vice President
Jerry Jiles
Treasurer
Stacy Peery
Secretary
******************
Steve Horton
David McNeilly
Dennis Lockridge
Richard Jacobs
Shabbir Motiwala
Winter 2011-2012
Summary
The Official Newsletter of the Summit Owner’s Association
2011 Produces Upbeat Outlook
The December meeting focused much on
finances and was a good gauge of the approval rating regarding owner perception. Gary Armstrong explains, “the
general feeling during the December
meeting was people were happy. I think
the owners are happy. We cut the fees
(association dues), we were way under
budget, and there were several who
Constructive, organized meetings
clapped because of their dues getting
have been the difference. The Sepcut, happy about us staying under budgtember meeting especially. “I think
et and right now the Summit is on solid
the meeting went mighty good”
ground. Our line of credit is paid, we’ve
states SOA second year president
built our reserve fund back up and I’ll
Gary Armstrong. “ We don’t have
tell you what; everything’s looking realwhat we used to have, people fussing
ly good. We’re back on solid ground,
and everybody talking at one time.
even with losing the revenue from Brite
I’ve tried to control the meetings
(Promotions). We still cut our fees.
where if you have a question or a
They haven’t been this low since 2010.
comment you’re able to make it.
And the only reason we didn’t cut them
I’ve asked people not to say anymore was the loss of the Brite revenue.
thing until I recognize them. I
(more on Brite and Spring Break back
thought each one of our meetings
page)
since I’ve been president has gone
Cont. next page
well. We haven’t had any problems
and things run smoothly. I think
the board has done a good job this
year, and our workers too; security,
maintenance, building and grounds
etc. Everybody’s come under budget. And that has made the board
look good, when workers work to
come under the budget. And I’ve
heard more this past year, more
people talk about the budget than
I’ve ever heard before. Used to, nobody mentioned the budget.
A September Board of Director’s
meeting and a December reconvening yielded good news that we’re on
the right track. And that the efforts
of veteran board members, as well
as hard work from the employees
here at the Summit, is paying dividends as we head into 2012.
The Summit Owner’s Association, Inc. P.O. Box 9037 Panama City Beach, FL 32417 850.235.8792 fax
The Summit Summary
Page 2
To bring in new business starting with Spring Break some new tactics are being employed. “Anne Rosamond is doing some new things” Mr. Armstrong continues. “We’ve put her on the road traveling to
different places, doing some marketing. You know, Georgia is our biggest income. We get more people
from Georgia than we do anywhere else. They bring more money to the Summit than anyplace else.
We’re not traveling to Colorado or somewhere like that. We’re going to nearby colleges and things like
that. I talked to Anne last week about car shows, and I think we’re trying to get some of those”.
Heading into 2012 things look positive for business we know we always get (Spring Break) and new
business we can generate. It will take the efforts of all here at the Summit; the Board as well as all the
employees. And so far so far so good. “If I was the president of an
association at a resort somewhere else here on the beach, the first
Next Board Meeting
thing I would do is I would come and raid the Summit. I would
May 12, 2012
come and get the majority of the people who work here”.
SOA SEATS BOARD COMMITTEES
The 2011-2012 SOA
Board of Directors
FINANCE
Jerry Jiles (Chairman)
have selected the followBob Cabe
ing members for the
their committees. If you
Judy McComb
have any questions and/
Sonny Stutts
or suggestions related to
a department please be
********************
sure to direct your inCONTRACTS
quiries to the appropriate person/s. We wish
Patricia Latham
the best of luck to all
(Chairman)
Committee members as
they plot the course and
Sue Jiles
meet the challenges that
Gene Abbett
lie ahead for 2012.
For feedback/input see
the SOA website for
email addresses for Committee Chairpersons.
Our Board Committees
work hard for YOU and
we appreciate their efforts. Thank you.
Note: SOA President
Gary Armstrong presiding all committees
Dennis Lockridge
********************
HUMAN
RESOURCES
Steve Horton
(Chairman)
Sue Jiles
Jerry Jiles
BUILDING &
GROUNDS
Juaneita Armstrong
(Chairman)
Gary Hitt
Gary Armstrong
********************
RENTAL (SEI)
Dennis Lockridge
(Chairman)
Jerry Miller
Jerry Jiles
EXECUTIVE
Gary Armstrong
Pat Latham
Stacy Peery
Jerry Jiles
********************
TELEPHONE & TV
Bob Cabe
(Chairman)
David McNeilly
Sonny Stutts
Janie Pearson
********************
TIMESHARE
David McNeilly
(Chairman)
Richard Jacobs
Judy McCombs
“Individual commitment to a group
effort - that is what
makes a team
work, a company
work, a society
work, a civilization
work.”
Vincent Lombardi
Page 3
Volume 3, Issue 1
New Director, New Direction for SEI Rental Department
Dawn Beckowitz has joined the Summit
staff as SEI Rental Supervisor. She is
responsible for the rental program as well
as housekeeping. We welcome her and
here are some things she’s working on.
just because it’s better for our home
owners if they can get 7 night rentals.
If they can’t, we’ve tried to put the
rack rate high enough where in the
middle of the year you don’t have one
person who has already made a pheFirst on the agenda was pre-booking
nomenal amount and another person
rooms for Spring Break, safeguarding
who has not made that much. I try to
against rooms being turned back over to
set it and balance it out because our
us from entities that did not book rooms
computer program, the RDP (Resort
they committed to, and reconstructing the
Data Processing), doesn’t recognize
housekeeping department so guests have
whether somebody rents a room for 3
the best possible experience while here
nights, 4 nights, or someone who rents
and return again.
it for 7 nights. It doesn’t differentiate
A new policy was put in place to lock in
between room nights. Essentially
SEI Rental Office Manager
someone’s room can be rented for just
bookings for Spring Break so cancellaDawn Beckowitz
tions don’t cause lost revenue. Dawn ex- 2 nights and then they go back to the
bottom
of
the
rotation-how
we
rent
out
plains “the Board and I have decided to
the rooms. It’s being studied how to
A new strategy to become more
have an all-inclusive lock-down rate for 7 further level out the revenues each
efficient and to enhance accountanights. In which, that 7 night rate for the
owner is able to generate. We do our
bility is better organizing how
first week of Spring Break, along with
best to push the 7 night rentals.
housekeeping staff is deployed.
the2nd, the 3rd, and 4th week, there is an all
Along with shoring up Spring Break
“For instance, one of my goals for
-inclusive prepaid rate. Meaning, the
bookings, immediate changes were
this year, especially for Spring
entire 7 night all-inclusive rate will be
made with the housekeeping departpaid in full prior to guests arriving.
ment. Dawn explains “the way things Break, is to have the same housekeeper on the same floor, every
are going right now as far as our cusWe’ve asked for everyone to pay everyweek. Every time that they clean
thing before they get here. The only mon- tomer service for our owners, our
housekeeping, we’ve done more deep they’ll only be on that floor. We’re
ies that will be due at the time that they
cleans this year than has ever been
doing all these turns on Saturday,
arrive, depending on when they rented, is done. The floors are immaculate and
there’s no reason why they should
their deposit ($500)”.
all the rooms that were done we’ve
be jumping floors, clogging up
done ourselves. So yeah, there is a big
elevators. I’ll have inspectors go
Also safeguarding against potential lost
turnaround this year. And as far as
in, they’ll be pulling out the trash,
bookings, “any entity that books blocks
our housekeeping feedback cards, it
cleaning and stripping the beds,
of rooms through us (for re-rental) has to used to be we’d get 2’s and 3’s and
have everything paid by January 31st and now we’re getting 4’s and 5’s. It was cleaning all the trash out of the
we will not take those rooms back. They bad before (the feedback) and now it’s rooms. They’ll be inspecting floor
damages where I will be called
have to pay for them, they are responsible great.
immediately and it will be pulled
for them and we will pull that full amount A complete inventory of the rooms
from their credit card or their defrom their cards” Dawn tells us. Whether with pictures has been compiled and
cataloged.
“I
have
gone
through
every
posit immediately before anything
the entities are able to book their rooms
room that we’ve deep cleaned, and
is released. Last year that didn’t
or not, the Summit will collect the
I’ve taken pictures of all the rooms,
happen. “
amount agreed upon regardless.
the inventory, what’s on the walls.
All-inclusive rates will help those on the What’s supposed to be there, what’s
rental program. “We’ve tried to do allnot supposed to be there.
Cont. next page
inclusive rates throughout the whole year
Page 4
The Summit Summary
(Cont. from previous page)
The positive changes in housekeeping have become evident with owners who are contemplating joining the rental program. “Well now it’s become word of mouth” Dawn states. “Because things have turned around so much. I’m brutally
honest. If I come to see your unit and I see something I don’t like or something that won’t fly I’m going to tell you. As
far as the personal one on one, my door is open and I’ll spend as much time with them as I need to. My call turnaround
time is 24 hours, unless it’s something I have to research before calling back. And I’m not going to turn them away because I work for the owners. If they’re not here I don’t have a job. That’s how I look at it. I’m responsible for their
units, I’m responsible for their cleanliness of their units, and I’m responsible if their units get rented or if they don’t get
rented. And if their units are not getting rented I need to explain why.”
“When I first started here and I took over housekeeping I had already walked units and inspected units because I was the
one catching the flack for the dirty units even though I had just started. I brought someone in that trained each and every
single housekeeper on what you’re supposed to do, what you’re not supposed to do. What you’re supposed to look for,
what’s a deep clean and what’s not a deep clean. We told them what our program was. I know how I expect units to
look when I go in. I don’t expect dust to be on baseboards, I don’t expect there to be dust on ceiling fans, that’s not
clean to me. So we went through this whole process of me re-brain training them I guess. How this is supposed to be,
what we’re supposed be doing, what’s going to fly with me and what’s not going to. The housekeeping staff has changed
a bit. “There have been quite a few let go including our contractors, so what I’m going to try to do as of Spring Break is
not bring contractors in, give my girls the opportunity who have worked hard and stayed and done the turnaround with
me, as much as I can give them. Yes, I know I’m going to have to bring in some (contractors) but I’m hoping it will only be on Saturdays and I’m going to try to make it as easy for them as I possibly can. Because I don’t want them to have
to clean up trash and I don’t want them to have to strip beds and that kind of stuff. I want all that done for them, all they
have to do is go in and clean a room. There will be inspectors on each floor that will be doing that. “Everything’s coming around. Everybody’s coming along.”
The improvements that have been made so far are on-going Dawn says. “I need your help and input to make this work.
Please contact me or stop by my office and see me.”
Dawn’s direct line is 850-235-9252
or email her at [email protected]
In Memoriam
June Louise Putman
January 23, 1951-January 28, 2012
From all of us here at the Summit, our hearts go out to our accountant Judy McCombs and her family
over the recent passing of her sister . June Louise Putman, 61, of Panama City Beach passed away Saturday January 28, 2012 at her home with her family at her side.
June was born in Akron, OH and lived in Bay County since 1995. She had worked as an accountant, and
enjoyed quilting. June loved to make quilts for her family and friends and their pets.
Survivors include her children, Bruce L. Putman and wife Margie of Missouri City, TX and Meridith
Godfrey of Panama City Beach; her twin sister Judy McCombs of Panama City Beach; sister Peggy Ritter
and husband John of Due West, SC; her brothers Edward T. Guinn and wife Mary of Cleveland, GA and
Frankie Guinn and wife Vicki of Trinity, NC; her grandchildren, Audria and Anthony Godfrey and Blake
Putman; and numerous nieces and nephews.
A Memorial Celebration Service was held at 6:00pm Tuesday, January 31, 2012 at the Kent-Forest Lawn
Funeral Home Chapel.
Page 5
The Summit Summary
Comcast Cable Contract Renewed. New Equipment Installed
A new 5-year contract was recently signed with
our cable TV provider Comcast. In addition, upgrades to our existing cable service were made by
adding new equipment in each room. If you remember the old days of TV where you had to
have rabbit ear antennas to pick up network TV
transmission there was then a federal mandate to
change that to an analog system and you then
had to have a converter box if you wanted to pick
up free network TV, or buy cable TV services.
Later, federal legislation was enacted that at
some point all cable TV transmission was to be
done in a digital format and analog would be a
thing of the past. That time has come and gone
this past January 30 and we were ready. New
Comcast digital adapters have been installed and
new Comcast remotes to control them are in the
rooms. So, just exactly why, technically speaking, did this new equipment have to be installed
in the rooms? I spoke with the Comcast supervisor in charge of the upgrades.
“Their called Digital Transport Adapters and
they actually de-encrypt the digital signal that
was federally mandated by George (W.) Bush before he came into office, which led us into a digital system from analog with the TV’s. So, we
now encode those signals on digital because analog can’t be coded but digital can. We take those
encoded signals and run it through these little
black boxes and that changes that to a decoded
digital cable signal so that you can actually have
the same type of reception as going from the wall
to the TV. Now there’s just one more little thing
in the middle that gives you not only the
You now have a new remote to channel surf
with. And more channels for guest to enjoy
channels you used to have, clearer, as well as probably another 70 channels on top of that.”
“As of January the 30th, because of the federal mandate that we have to deal with, as of January 30th
they would go down to approximately 3-5 channels
because everything else, it would be just like the old
days when cable first came out, that distorted lowquality picture, and only a few could be picked up,
barely.”
Most all rooms at the Summit have new DTA boxes,
with the exception of a few. “Every single room, as
long as there was nothing attached to the TV that
was Comcast equipment. If it already had a digital
box we did not put one in. Say one of your owners
already has digital TV. They ordered HBO so they
got the digital cable box. Those rooms were not
touched. Those will still stay the way they always
have. But the TV’s that are just from the wall to
the TV now actually have one of these DTA’s attached to it so when January 30th came you didn’t
get any interruption in service. In fact, once we put
them in you’ve seen not only you used to have, but
as well as another 70 channels on top.”
Got a Scoop? Email the Editor with Suggestions: [email protected]
Page 6
The Summit Summary
Channel
Channel Name
Channel
Channel Name
2
3
4
6
7
8
9
10
11
13
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
44
45
46
47
48
WMBB-ABC
WJHG-NBC
WTVY-CBS
GCCC
WPCT-46
WPGX
ESPN
QVC
WFSU-PBS
WGN
TV Land
Versus
OWN
Disney Channel
Hallmark Channel
Speed Channel
Turner Classic Movies
CSS
FSN Florida
Spike
TNT
AMC
TBS
HGTV
HSN
A&E Network
History Channel
Discovery Channel
The Learning Channel
Food Network
CNN
HLN
The Weather Channel
Fox News
CNBC
FX
Animal Planet
ESPN 2
Golf Channel
53
54
55
56
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
68
70
96
98
99
104
111
118
119
124
149
162
177
179
185
186
201
202
203
209
227
243
244
256
BET
BRAVO
TRU TV
Lifetime Movie Net
Nickelodeon
ABC Family
Weatherscan
Trinity Broadcast Net
USA
E!
Comedy Central
Travel Channel
C-Span
SyFy Channel
Univision
CMT
CW
C-Span 2
Investigation Discovery
Style
Lifetime Movie Net
Cartoon Network
Movie Plex
G4
TV Guide Network
GSN
MSNBC
Comcast TV (LO)
WFSG-Florida Channel
WFSG-Create
WFSG-FL Knowledge
WMBB-THIS
WJHG-MY
EWTN
InspirationNetwork
Hallmark Movie
coming soon
49
50
51
52
Sun Sports
MTV
VH1
GAC
Helpful Tips
Make sure you or your guests
tune your TV to channel 3. Then
put your TV remote aside.
Use your new Xfinity black remote to control your TV (change
channels etc.)
Remember that your new Comcast cable box has to be plugged
in. Make sure green power-on
indicator light is on.
If you have other devices such as
DVD players etc. that you use
with your TV the cable box may
have been plugged into the outlet
one of the other devices was using. Check to make sure all components are plugged into an
available outlet, or an extra power strip may be needed.
If you or your guest experience
further troubles, contact the
Front Office and we will be happy to investigate and call Comcast
in the event we cannot troubleshoot your problem
We Thank You
for your patience during the installation
The Summit Summary
Improvements: Building & Grounds
(from the General Manager’s Report for February 2012)
-New commercial rubberized non-slip
flooring installed in all four elevators,
along with 4” rubber cove molding.
-The back fence separating the property from the sand dunes has been repaired and repainted.
-Four new Pub Tables have been built
out of wood and painted to be placed
beside the Tiki Bar for extra drinking
area.
-Comcast has completed installing
new TV boxes throughout the building, had our people go in each and
every room to insure all units were
working properly
-The thirty-yard compactor had to
have two panels replaced due to rust.
Waste Pro had to pick it up and haul it
to their facility for repairs.
-I have had all window screens from
the front of building removed and
stored, we will be putting them back
right after Spring Break.
Page 7
Page 8
The Summit Summary
Improvements
-The Summit has purchased 10 additional Luggage Carts.
-Comcast has placed Digital Amplifiers throughout the building to insure
a strong signal to all units.
-The Spa (indoor) heaters had to be
replaced; the bottom baffles had rusted through on the old heaters and
could not be repaired.
-The outside North Spa has all new
plumbing for jets, there was a broken
PVC line that was allowing loss of air
pressure, and it is now up to full capacity.
-The new Luggage carts are now being
stored under the center canopy, we
have installed 5 inch wide track 8”
from the wall to hold them in place
and still allowing plenty of space for
guests to pass
-The east laundry now has four new
commercial washing machines to replace the ones that were beyond repair.
Sonny Stutts
The Summit Summary
Page
9
Thank You Snowbirds. Thank You Hanover Holidays !
“They come over all over the Province of Ontario and also some other Provinces in Canada. They all get on a bus from home and they
travel down and they stay overnight one night (enroute) and they
arrive in the evening (here) and then they start their vacations here
at the Summit” she explains.
Activities for her group while here are numerous. “Every day, everyday there’s something we do. Soon we’re going to Wakulla
Springs and we’re taking the bus group there. We’ve gone on a
houseboat out of St. Andrews into Panama City. And we do our
side trips and take them out to shows and do our shopping. This is
our second year we’ve taken them to out to Jacksonville. We do casino runs (to Biloxi,MS).
We here at the Summit want to
thank Hanover Holidays for their
business and their enthusiastic
group. It is always good to see
them come into town. Regulars
to the Summit during the winter
months, our visitors from the
north we hope will continue to
visit us. Jan Lanstell of Hanover
heads up the group again this
year.
“We came here years ago. Joyce
Parks who had worked with a
different company, and had
come here to the Summit and she
has been just a trooper. Then she
was unable to come and so this is
my third year here at the Summit
Jan tells us. “By the time the
program is over it will be about a
hundred people this year”. Our
Canadian visitors depart at different times from all over when
they head down south here. And
they all depart and go back home
together on Hanover’s buses.
“We have two properties we stay at, the Summit is one of them. I
like it this year. The units we have are Tilley units and we’re happy
with things. It’s an older building but all of the rooms overlook the
Gulf.”
With the coming of Spring Break in March, we’ll miss her group
and hope they have a safe journey home. Thanks for coming!
A few of Hanover Holiday’s group meet in the Owner’s
Lounge for dinner and games. Wherever you look, our visitors from the North are coming and going and always doing something. That’s Jan seated on the left front row. We
look forward to many happy returns to the Summit.
Page 10
February
Volume 3, Issue 1
Calendar at a Glance
* "Mardi Gras on the Bayou"
February 10, through February 11, 2012
The annual St. Andrews Mardi Gras Festival and Parades. Historic St.Andrews located in Panama City,
will come alive with Mardi Gras activity, sponsored by
The Krewe of St.Andrews. The Krewe of St. Andrews
focuses on community and family. This is reflected in
many family-oriented activities throughout the festival
days such as a special Pet Parade and Kids Parade. The overall atmosphere of the St. Andrews
Mardi Gras is meant to attract fun-loving people of all
ages.
February 10th ~ Kids Parade & Mardi Gras Pet Parade;
4:00 PM
KidsParade will be down Beck Avenue from 15th
Street to 11th Street, kids throwing to other kids along
the route (beads, stuffed animals, toys and more).
Adults are asked to stand back and let the younger
ones have their chance at some Mardi Gras style fun.
February 11th ~ Mardi Gras Annual Grande Parade;
1:00 PM
There will be over 14 Krewes with more than 20 brightly colored floats Starting at Oakland Terrace
Park,down 11th to Beck and Beck to 15th. There will
be beads, doubloons, and other unique treasures to
catch. This is the Grand Finale parade for Bay County's Mardi Gras Season.
This year we will have a two day Festival in the Oak's
by the Bay Park, with food/drink vendors, kid rides,
live music and great bands performing both days and
nights. For information call 850-763-6261...leave your
information or questions and we will contact you.
* Winter Resident Appreciation Day
Date: 02/10/2012
Time: 9:00AM - 11:00AM
Panama City Beach Winter Residents are invited to
the event to enjoy complimentary coffee and donuts.
Guests will also have the opportunity to register for
giveaways and gather information on seasonal events
and local areas of interest.
Contact Number: (850) 233-5070
Location: Panama City Beach Visitor Information Center 17001 Panama City Beach Parkway
* Jerry Seinfeld
Feb 10, 2012 (Fri) 7:00 PM
Marina Civic Center
Finally BACK in Panama City!
Don't miss this show!
Tickets on sale now!
$75, $55, $35
8 Ticket Limit Per Transaction
One Hour 30 Min. Estimated Run Time
NO CAMERAS OR VIDEO ALLOWED BOX OFFICE
HOURS:
Monday to Friday: 9:00am - 5:00pm
Saturday - 10:00am - 2:00pm
Sundays and Holidays: Closed. Order Tickets By
Phone: Please call our Box Office at (850)763-4696,
press 0 to skip the message and reach a Box Office
Employee. All sales are final. Subject to service
charges with the exception of Bay Arts Alliance members.www.marinaciviccenter.com
Florida Mopars 3rd Annual Car
Show
Date: 02/25/2012 Time: 10:00 - 3:00PM
Open to all makes and models (including motorcycles). Rain or Shine. Entry Fee: $20 ($10 for second
car – same owner). Great music, cool cars, lots of
door prizes, 50/50. Proceeds to benefit the Animal
Rescue Center of Bay County. Model car contest for
kids with also. For more information visit
www.facebook.com/floridamopar or call.
Contact Number: (850) 866-8964
Location: TGI Friday’s
1022 W. 23rd Street
* Bay County Alzheimer’s Alliance
6th Annual Fundraiser
Date: 02/25/2012
Time: 6:00PM - Until
Tickets: $25.00. Live Entertainment, Dinner, Dancing,
Door Prizes, Casino Style Games and much more!
For more information or tickets, please call Cheryl
Brown at (850) 276-2646.
Location: Panama City Beach Senior Center
The Summit Summary
Page 11
March
Calendar at a Glance
* Friday Fest
Date: 03/02/2012
Time: 6:00-10:00PM
Please go to www.pcfridayfest.com for more information. Location: Downtown Panama City
* 9th Annual Gulf Coast Home and
Garden Expo
Date: 03/09/2012 - 03/12/2012
The American Red Cross is proud to announce the 9th
Annual Gulf Coast Home and Garden Expo. Threeaction packed days filled with the latest trends in decorating, outdoor living, energy-savings, lawn and garden products and much more. Find fresh and creative
ways to stretch your home improvement dollars, and
visit with experts in the industry. Free, innovative and
creative seminars provide tons of ideas and tools.
Whether you are looking to build or remodel a home,
find ways to save money, or to have a fun day with
your family, this expo has the solutions you are looking for! Location: Bay County Fairgrounds
* Bay Point Outdoor Expo & InWater Boat Show
(Cont.)
At its core, though, the show is all about boats, and
virtually every style of vessel will be on display. Dealers from across the Panhandle will showcase new and used luxury yachts, sport fishers, performance boats, center consoles, pontoon boats and
runabouts, as well as canoes, kayaks, personal watercraft and more. Even better, potential boat owners can schedule an in water demo to test drive the
boat of their dreams before taking advantage of on
the spot financing.
But it doesn’t stop there! A nautical flea market is
scheduled for Saturday morning from 10am – 1pm,
and free fishing seminars are planned throughout
the weekend.
Produced in partnership with Knology, Viamedia,
WJHG News Channel 7 and Bay Point Marina, the
event will be open to the public, with no charge for
admission or parking. For more information, call
Bay Point Marina at 850-235-6911, or visit the Bay
Point Expo website
* Spring Fling Car & Truck Show
March 16, through March 18, 2012
March 31, through April 01, 2012
Admission Price: $10.00
The Bay Point Outdoor Expo & In-Water Boat Show
features new and used boats from dealers across the
Panhandle, as well as other outdoor sporting exhibits.
The largest car & truck show in Northwest
Florida!
Long regarded as the area’s premier boat show, the
Bay Point Outdoor Expo & In-Water Boat Show will
return to Bay Point Marina.
The largest car & truck show in Northwest Florida! Gate entry for spectators for the show is $10 per
entry or buy a two day pass for $15 on Saturday otherwise it will be $10 per day per person
Although the marina has hosted a boat show for many
years, the Expo format was introduced last year to
broaden the appeal to more than just boat owners. Visitors to the event are able to browse the latest
offerings from camping, hunting, fishing, and biking
vendors, as well as brand new automobiles, RV’s and
powersports.
(Cont. next page)
Are we missing stuff you like? Email the Editor and I’ll make sure I
look up events you’d like to attend. [email protected]
Volume 3, Issue 1
Back Page
2011 Spring Break Changes Bring Opportunity
It’s not news that this year we will
not have Brite Promotions here for
Spring Break. We have, it’s well
known, said no to their 2012 contract that substantially reduced
monies that were to be paid to us in
the form of cost-sharing requests.
The loss of revenue has forced new
thinking on how to deal without it,
and how to plan to replace it this
year and in subsequent years. The
Board has been hard at work realigning this coming year’s operating budgets. So far it’s gone well.
“This year they (Brite) were set to
pay us around $70,000 after taking
out for the costs they wanted us to
share with them. And one thing
that I didn’t like, and the majority
of the board didn’t like, was they
had control over everything. They
had control over our pool decks, we
couldn’t even put anything on our
pool decks! But from now on we
will have control over our pool
decks and our beachfront. And
I’m hoping, and I believe we will,
well get back some of our money.
We’ve got people now calling us
and we’re talking to people about
coming and doing things here at
the Summit and on our beach. So I
feel like we ought to get part of that
back. We’re in charge.
Spring Break 2011
We’re going to get some money
back. We don’t know how
much. We have some people
who have been setting up exhibits out of Front Beach Road that
are thinking about coming here.
Sonny is working on it and
Anne Rosamond is working on
it. Pepsi’s considering coming
to put water in each one of our
rooms and they’re talking about
our beachfront, to see if they
want a spot out there. And Ron
over at Hammerhead Fred’s,
he’s working with us to help us
out” states Gary Armstrong.
The door is not closed on Brite
possibly coming back here to
the Summit, however, there
would be changes. “The door
would probably, I would say, be
open. But it would be a totally
different contract. Because that
was one of the worst contracts
we ever had. They had control
over everything and it was just
bad. We had no say so over anything.” With Brite not here
this year and an opportunity to
gain back some of the lost revenue on our own (and a whole
year to plan for next Spring
Break) things look positive but
there is a lot to learn as we go.
There’s an old farmer’s saying:
we’re plowing new ground” He
continues. “That’s what we’re
doing right now here at the
Summit, we’re plowing new
ground.”
In fact, contracts are in hand
for a marketing affiliate of the
of Anheiser Busch Co. to work
on their Natural Light brand
again this year as well as another marketing firm. Both contracts are for unspecified
amounts but many other offers
are being made to us and are
being solicited by us to recoup
some monies. Planning is already underway in these conversations to firm up commitments for 2013 so how things
are going so far can certainly be
viewed as positive steps in controlling our own destiny and
maybe make things better here
for us over the long run.
One thing is certain. We WILL
have the guests and the revenue
we all rely upon from that.
They WILL be here. And it’s
nice to know we have proven we
can stay the course and rebound with creativity and a
positive outlook even in the
wake of losing a good bit of
money. Time will tell. But it’s
looking like we’ll do just fine.