Epilogue
Financial Mandate
Article 5.3 of the By-laws is a “Balanced Budget” provision that mandates that the POA shall operate on a “pay as you go” basis. This means that the POA is not permitted to generate a budget deficit, and if one should occur, it must be rectified the following year. Loans can be secured to fund capital needs, but not to cover operating expenses. The framers of the 1987 Settlement Agreement made this one of the basic tenets for the newly independent POA to follow.
Governance Roles
- Property Owners
Property owners constitute the membership of the Association and are divided into five types for voting purposes. Type “A” are the owners of single family residential lots and family dwelling units. Type “B” are the owners of multi-family tracts. Type “C” are the owners of public and commercial units. Type “D” is the Company also known as the Developer. Type “E” are the owners (except for the Company) of bulk acreage. The voting rights for membership Types “A” through “D” are currently stated in Article III of the General Declaration. The voting rights for membership Type “E” are contained in the June 2001 Amendment to the General Declaration. - Developer versus Company
Initially, according to the 1972 Buyers Guide, the Company and the Developer were separate entities, and it is presumed that the Company owned the water/sewer system. When Tom Cousins left and the Southeast Holding Company took over in the late 1970’s, it became the Company, the Developer and the water/sewer system owner. As a result of the 1987 Settlement Agreement, the definition of “Company” in Article I, Section 1(k) of the General Declaration was changed. This section says in part “…at any one time there can be only one Company and one Developer which must be the same entity…”. This condition was in place at the time that Bill Byrne came on the scene, and his Big Canoe Company was also Company, Developer, and water/sewer system owner. Then in 1997 when the Byrne Corporation took on Greenwood Development as a partner in the Big Canoe Company (as the “Company” and the “Developer”), Bill Byrne withheld the water/sewer company from the partnership, and he continued to own it as an individual. This situation continues today.
At some time in the future (see Section 5 g of the 2004 amendment to the General Declaration) the Type “D” membership will terminate. At that time Big Canoe will no longer have a “Developer”. However the Company can continue to exist with various rights as outlined in the General Declaration. Examples would be the right to continue owning and operating commercial properties (inn, restaurant, real estate firm, etc). - POA versus HOA
More than a few property owners are confused as to the differing missions of the Property Owner’s Association (POA) and the Homeowner’s Association (HOA). Both are incorporated as non profit entities in Georgia. However, the POA’s purpose is greatly expanded to describe its legal responsibilities for governance, administration, fiduciary matters and general oversight of the common property. In addition, every Big Canoe property owner MUST be a member of the POA.
The HOA has none of the above legal responsibilities as it pertains to Big Canoe, and while its membership is currently limited to Big Canoe homeowners, such membership is optional.
The POA can be compared to a municipal government, and the HOA can be compared to a civic club. - POA versus County Governments
Even though Big Canoe is a gated community with self governance and mostly independent financial support, it supports the two counties through its property taxes, it looks to the counties for certain support (e.g. law enforcement), and it must comply with county and state rules of law. If property owners ever considered eliminating the gates in order to get more benefit from the county taxes collected, the road system would be a major impediment since most of it does not meet county specifications. - POA Board of Directors
Using the analogy of the POA as a municipality, the Board of Directors can be compared to a city council where there is a city manager and no mayor. The board has complete governing authority subject to the restrictions imposed by the prevailing governing documents.
As directors of a non-profit corporation, the board also must act within the provisions of the Georgia Nonprofit Corporation Code. Failure to do so may make a director or directors personally liable. The POA has Directors and Officers (D&O) insurance to protect directors in the performance of their responsibilities, but the coverage is voided if the director acts in bad faith or otherwise violates the Georgia Code provisions. - General Manager
The General Manager is an employee of the POA and is analogous to a city manager in the preceding examples. The GM reports to the full board, but as a practical matter, is generally viewed as reporting directly to the board president. At the present time, all POA employees including the GM are employees-at-will without contracts.
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About This Site
This site is presented as a resource for use by Big Canoe property owners. Information found on this site will often differ from that which is presented by the POA Board, the current administration, and some of the committees. Much of what you will see here is opinion, but the opinions will be formed from the best available information.
As property owners and users of this site, you are urged to bring attention to the good things you see as well as the bad. You are particularity urged to bring attention to acts by our employees when those actions exceed your expectations.
Property owners have strongly held views and they are encouraged to express their views on this forum. Please refrain from name-calling or attacking individuals. Keep in mind that the goal is to effect change, not create enemies. -
Recent Posts
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Recent Comments
- Chris Beechler: This proposed R&R Reserve Fund plsn needs some clsrificsation for it to be meaningful to me. Here...
- F Shead: Congratulations, very well done.
- F Shead: Must address no-bid contracts. There must be wording added to stop multi-million dollar “no-bid”...
- Larry Grizzle: I would like to think that everyone involved in this process feels they’re doing the right thing...
- DAVID KELLY: My fear is that the POA Board will turn around and increase the monthly assessment to generate the funds...
- Don Wyeth: My numbers as to homes and lots may be slightly inaccurate but are close enough to establish a point....
- mark sementilli: So this is the new and improved CIF? What a dissapointing outcome. I don’t want to appear as...
- Don Wyeth: By now most of you are aware that the POA Board has , after great consideration , come up with a new plan...
- mark sementilli: Doug, The one area or your letter that strikes me as truly amazing is the purported spiking of the...
- Doug Piggott: “Corporate” Board – Fact or Fiction? You decide. Some would have us believe that this term...
