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APRIL 2021 941.312.0665 | 27TH STATE MEDIA, LLC RACQUET CLUB NEWS LRC PRESIDENT’S REPORT
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LANDINGS RESIDENT HONORED
Dana Darwin Mallett Hummel
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BIRDS IN BACKYARD
Murmuration – sticking together for safety
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TEEN SCENE
Nevin Cowper, 14
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NEW... BUT FAMILIAR RESTAURANT OPENS IN THE LANDINGS SHOPPING CENTER
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Your new board experienced a very informative orientation that included information on State HOA regulations, board governance, responsibilities, operations and LMA Organizational Structure. In addition, there were reports about each committee, their scope of as well as current/future challenges and opportunities. We also provided an extensive tutorial on our financials, budget, and website. Board members signed and acknowledged that they have read and understand our conflict of interest, code of ethics and whistle blower policies. Several volunteers have taken on new committee chairmanships. We look forward to their input and recommendations. All of our standing committees and chairs were listed in last month’s Eagle. BTW: You can access past issues of the Eagle on the LMA website. I want to thank our new board members and committee chairs who have already developed proposals for ways to improve our community and support the needs of our residents. Speeding continues to be a problem. At our last board meeting, we banned a guest of a resident, who had multiple speeding violations, from driving into The Landings for a month. The resident with whom they visited was notified. They can still walk into The Landings at the front gate,
or be picked up and brought in by a resident. However, they will not be allowed to drive into The Landings. We partnered with Sarasota Bay Watch on a project on March 21 to help with the cleanup of Phillippi Creek. I’m pleased to report that we have filled the vacant maintenance position. Teddy Fox, who has been doing work for individual homeowners, has taken on this position following the tragic death of David Jacaruso, our previous vendor. If you notice problems with signage, trash on roads, dead animals, or other maintenance needs on LMA property, please let Ron Pierce know. He is the chair of the maintenance committee and will be assigning tasks to Teddy Fox. A contract for the engineering study of our roads has been signed and work will begin soon.
The study will provide us with information regarding repaving of all of our roads, overall cost, and design. With this information the board can determine how soon we will be able to complete work on roads in The Landings. I want to give a special shout out to Gary Gurnov. He took on the treasurer’s position from Dick Bayles, who has held that position for years and did an outstanding job. Gary has truly gotten a handle on the treasurer’s position and has already provided significant and helpful insights. He formed his committee which has met and has made several suggestions that will improve our financial operations. A new committee headed by Mike Knupp will be exploring the feasibility of engaging an overall facilities/maintenance manager. As our community ages, we are experiencing increasing issues with lakes, drainage, landscaping, etc. that require hands on oversight, which is now provided by volunteers. No decisions have been made. The committee will study the need and bring back recommendations to the board for consideration. Gary Kurnov has been authorized to reconvene a kayak committee to explore operational issues and costs for LMA to provide kayak and board racks for residents. His committee will conduct due diligence and report
back to the board with their recommendations. I was surprised and concerned when it was reported that there were several acts of vandalism in The Landings last month. Signs were defaced or knocked over. As the saying goes, “if you see something, say something”. Please report incidents to security at the front gate. We apologize that it is taking so long to find a vendor to repair the bridge behind the Cloisters, leading into the Treehouses on the nature trail. It is a safety hazard and should be avoided. Please do not use the bridge or cross over private property. If you reach the bridge, please turn around and return via the nature trail. Starting with our April board meeting, we would like for all board members and others who attend in person, to bring tablets or laptops and participate by Zoom. This will hopefully eliminate the feedback problems we have experienced with the use of microphones and central sound systems. All others will continue to join by Zoom. Our meetings are on the first Thursday of each month at 7pm. We encourage you to join our board meetings by zoom and be involved in our wonderful community. Please continue to follow Covid safety recommendations. Hopefully, we can return to normal activity in the near future.
Getting to Know the Artists at The Landings
How the pandemic changed Ellen Westermann’s life. by Marie-Louise McHugh
RECIPE CORNER
The Best Bread of the World
President’s Report By Norm Olshansky
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E l l e n We s t e r m a n n w a s e njoy i ng he r work a s a n e x c e p t io n a l c e l l i s t f o r t h e Metropolitan Opera orchestra in New York City during the 2019/2020 season when, out of the blue, early in the year, some colleagues started coming down with pneumonia. There were no Covid tests at the time so noone suspected anything ominous. Then, one colleague d ied of compl icat ion s a f ter being diagnosed with Covid-19. You can imagine how this sent shockwaves through the arts and entertainment community i n Ne w York C it y. S h or t ly thereafter, everything closed dow n. Al l t he musicia n s of the orchestra were furloughed without pay and without hope to get their jobs back in the foreseeable future. In fact, New York City and the whole country shut down. Ellen, a 26-year veteran at t he orchest ra a nd l iv i ng i n Ma n h at t a n, fou nd hersel f i s ol at e d i n h e r ap a r t m e nt, wondering what she should or could do. She had considered retiring within two or three years, so she decided that this was the right moment to do so. She had previously visited Sarasota, often vacationing on Longboat Key. She had even gone house hunting for a friend
at The Landings the year before. She remembered looking at one of the Tree Houses and, to her delight, it was still available. This was not something she needed to think about for too long as living in the confinement of her Manhattan apartment was quickly losing its appeal. So, she moved in last October and is enjoying how The Landings community has welcomed her. Ellen comes from a family of musicians and performers. Her mother was a singer and her father a professor of music, a pianist, and conductor. As a child, she started playing the violi n, but because she was tall and had long fingers, her mother told her to play the cello instead. Her father often accompanied her on the piano a nd let her play i n some of his concerts. She entered the Julliard School of Music at the age of twelve and stayed there through college resulting in a master’s degree. After several auditions, she joined the New Jers ey Sy mphony orc he st ra for a couple of yea rs. T hen she played for the American Ballet Orchest ra, wh ich she still does to this day. She then joined the Metropolitan Opera O r c he st ra. She a l so pl ayed chamber music and did studio Continued on page 20
Ellen Westermann
Ellen and Fellow musicians at the Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center in New York, the home of the Metropolitan Opera