Draft Meeting Minutes for September 22, 2025
Colonial Country Club
Community Development District
A regular meeting of the Board of Supervisors of the Colonial Country Club Community Development District was held on September 22, 2025 at 2:00 p.m. in the Ballroom of the Colonial Country Club at 9181 Independence Way in Fort Myers, Florida, and also via web conference.
Supervisors present and constituting a quorum:
Sally Hefti – Chair
Giovanna Scuderi – Vice Chair
Joe Zajac – Assistant Secretary
Howard Klein – Assistant Secretary
Supervisor attending remotely:
Tim Worthington – Assistant Secretary
Also present were:
Mandie Rainwater – Assistant District Manager, PDM
Attending remotely were:
Christopher Dudak – Client Services Manager, PDM
Jamie Rivera – Engineer, AIM Engineering and Surveying
The following is a summary of the actions taken at the Colonial Country Club Community Development District (CDD) Board of Supervisors meeting.
FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS Call to Order and Roll Call
The Colonial Country Club Community Development District Meeting was called to order at 2:00 p.m., and Assistant District Manager Rainwater called the roll. Four Board members were present and constituted a quorum, with Supervisor Worthington attending remotely. Also attending remotely were Client Services Manager Christopher Dudak, and District Engineer Jamie Rivera.
On MOTION by Vice Chair Scuderi, with a second by Supervisor Klein, with all in favor, Supervisor Worthington was allowed to participate remotely in the meeting.
SECOND ORDER OF BUSINESS Approval of the Agenda
An amended agenda was presented adding Agenda Item 6A – SFWMD Notice of ERP Non-compliance.
On MOTION by Supervisor Klein, seconded by Chair Hefti, with all in favor, the Board approved the Agenda as amended.
THIRD ORDER OF BUSINESS Audience Comments on Agenda Items
There were no audience comments on agenda items.
FOURTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Approval of Meeting Minutes
A. Draft Regular Meeting Minutes for August 25, 2025
The Meeting Minutes were approved as presented.
On MOTION by Vice Chair Scuderi, seconded by Supervisor Worthington, with all in favor, the Board approved the Draft Regular Meeting Minutes for for August 25, 2025, as presented.
FIFTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Old Business
A. Master Board Rules on Managing Pool Discharges Update
The Colonial Country Club Master Association September 15, 2025 meeting notes indicated that the new rule, which informs residents that they need a permit from the City of Fort Myers for pool renovations and that pool discharges must be monitored as part of that permit, was adopted. The Board of Supervisors questioned how this information gets to homeowners, and to this end they requested that Rob Podley, Colonial Country Club General Manager, be asked to send a community notice indicating that this rule now exists and that homeowners are responsible for applying for a City of Fort Myers permit for pool renovations.
B. Cart Path Concrete Repair Invoice
At the last meeting, the Board discussed the invoice received for the Club’s repair of a damaged cart path that had been caused by Pristine Lakes and Wetlands. After the last meeting, owner Gonzalo Ayres had offered to give the CDD $5,000 in credit against future work, if the CDD paid the invoice to the Club for the repair. The Board agreed and ratified the payment of $5,145.04, with the stipulation that all the work to be provided by Pristine Lakes and Wetlands against this $5,000 credit must be submitted as individual invoices so they be coded properly for the budget. The Board thanked Field Manager Pepin for managing this process and the relationships between the Board, the Club, and the vendor.
On MOTION by Chair Hefti, with a second by Supervisor Klein, and with all in favor, the Board ratified the payment to the Colonial Country Club of Lee County Master Association, Inc. in the amount of $5,145.04, as reimbursement for repairs the Club undertook on behalf of the District, with the understanding that this payment will be offset partially by the credit in services up to $5,000 that Pristine Lakes and Wetlands will provide to the District, and with the stipulation that all credit work must be submitted as proposals or invoices to the district.
SIXTH ORDER OF BUSINESS New Business
A. SFWMD Notice of ERP Non-compliance
As a last-minute addition to the agenda, Field Manager Pepin had received a notice from SFWMD that the large preserve is above the 5% allowable percentage of invasive plant species per the Environmental Resources Permit. He notified Pristine Lakes and Wetlands to treat the areas. The letter indicated 30 days to cure from September 17, 2025, after which time SFWMD will reinspect the areas. The Board asked about the specific locations, which were not provided in the notice received. The Board questioned if there would be an extra cost for this work, but it was presumed that there should not be, since there is a contract in place to treat any overgrowth of invasive species.
SEVENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS District Manager
A. Financial Report for August 2025
Supervisor Klein noted that the district is approximately $72,000 ahead because of interest earned in the fiscal year, and the Board thanked District Manager Teague for getting the higher interest-bearing accounts. Supervisor Klein reiterated his desire to be provided with the general ledger in Excel format after the end of the fiscal year, and to be given access to the auditor’s portal, as he was last year.
On MOTION by Supervisor Klein, seconded by Supervisor Zajac, and with all in favor, the Board accepted the August 2025 Financial Report, as presented.
B. Resolution 2025-06: Fiscal Year 2026 Goals and Objectives
The Board adopted the annual Goals and Objectives for the next fiscal year, and should do so each September so that the goals document can be posted in October. At the next meeting, the Board will have the “report card” from the Goals adopted for FY 2025, and those results will be posted on the district website by December 1, as required by Florida Statutes. Chair Hefti reported a needed correction in the document’s summary paragraph, noting that the number of the lake count is 36 not 37, since Lake 3 and Lake 5 were combined to form the new Lake 3* several years ago.
On MOTION by Chair Hefti, seconded by Vice Chair Scuderi, and with all in favor, the Board adopted Resolution 2025-06 as amended.
C. Benchmark Water Quality Analysis and Simplified Results
In the Agenda Packet were the quarterly water quality reports provided by BenchmarkAE, and the first page of it was a simplified summary results page made by PDM staff. Two of the lakes had a Trophic Index summary ranked in Good condition, and two are ranked in Fair condition. This Agenda Items was further addressed during Agenda Item 10A below.
D. Mulch/Pinestraw Billing Update for Butterfly Garden
A few meetings prior, the Board had approved a proposal to rejuvenate the Butterfly Gardens in which they asked for mulch to be laid, but they received Pine Straw instead. Field Manager Pepin reported that Pristine Lakes and Wetlands had returned and put down mulch with no extra cost to the district.
EIGHTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Field Manager
A. Current Field Inspection Report
The Field Report was presented, and the following were discussed:
- p 55 – On multiple lakes it was observed that herbicide treatments to Torpedo Grass had wounded or killed off some Spike Rush. Treatment applications should be more selective rather than liberally broadcast.
- p 55 – Littoral Planting Update for Lakes 21, 28 & 50 – some of the newly planted Arrowhead plants were found unrooted and floating; Pristine Lakes and Wetlands will replant them.
- P 57 – A section of pipe that was found along Lake 4 last month has been removed.
- P 57 – Lakes 25, 26, 27 – two compressors were replaced and the aerators are back online. Lakes 3*, 15, 16, and 18 still need repairs. The Lake 8 valve box is still buried, which was due to golf course construction. The Board requested that the golf course unbury it at their cost.
- P 58 – Lake Bank Erosion – the golf course renovations caused several small washouts and two large ones on Lake 2 and Lake 27. Patrick Tohill has been made aware.
- P 59 – in November or December will be the next large preserve maintenance.
- P 60 – Field Manager Pepin suggested having the entire community’s stormwater pipes inspected with an ROV submersible because of all the silt and debris washed into the stormwater system from the golf course construction. The Board questioned why the entire community should need this, and not just the golf course area structures and pipes. The Board discussed his suggestion of ROV in phases. The Board requested proposal(s) for the ROV for the entire system, for doing in phases, with golf course construction areas first.
- Pp 61-62 – Dry Retention Catch Basins – at 9019 Shadow Glen the grate is off the catch basin and the silt barriers failed. The dry retention area behind the homes on 9025 Shadow Glen Way was regraded level with basin and should be planted to keep sand washing in basin. Field Manager Pepin suggested examining the area on the Ride Around. meeting on September 24, 2025. 9325 Independence Way has a debris covered basin. Patrick Tohill has been made aware of all these items.
- Pp 62-63 – the golf course has been removing many silt barriers and turbidity curtains now that construction is wrapping up.
- Perimeter/Preserve Fence – a hole was found in the fence behind 9094 Shadow Glen Way. Field Manager Pepin added it to a list of repair needs. The Board questioned if a feral hog could enter the community through it, and asked if a sooner repair is warranted.
- The Board requested to receive a copy of the email response that CSM Dudak had written, which Supervisor Zajac had solicited on behalf of resident Tod Horigan, who had questioned the level of the lakes after rain events.
B. Follow-up Items
i. Stormwater System Cleaning Pipes between 3-4, 5-6, 151-150, and 185-184
Field Manager Pepin noted that cleaning was scheduled to begin on Saturday September 20, and should be completed by the following Monday.
ii. Aerator Repairs on Lakes 25, 26, 27
Field Manager Pepin noted that the task was completed, and the system was back online.
iii. Lake 21 Fountain Light Replacements
Field Manager Pepin advised that all repairs have been completed, and the fountain was back online.
Commenting on an item that was not on the agenda, he updated that the catch basin grate at the intersection of Colonial Country Club Boulevard and Hemingway Lane was replaced on September 17, 2025
C. Project Tracking Logs
Supervisor Klein asked if there were any new expenses that needed to be ratified, and Client Services Manager Dudak said that he had confirmed with the Field Manager that all cost overruns in the log were completed earlier in the year, and no new expenses needed to be ratified.
NINTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Attorney
There was no update from the district attorney.
TENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Engineer
Engineer Jamie Rivera noted that there were two missing items from BenchmarkAE’s testing results in her report. 1) There was a quarter when Pond 11 was not tested because it was inaccessible due to golf course work. 2) The Trophic Index was not provided for a report from October 2024. Staff secured the missing Trophic Index from BenchmarkAE, and sent it to the engineer. This Agenda Items was also discussed above under Agenda Item 7C.
Engineer Rivera noted that the district is an MS4 co-permittee with the City of Fort Myers. She kept the format of her submission the same as Sam Marshall’s last submission when he was the district’s engineer of record, but she noted that the invoice he prepared did not appear to have correctly detailed the annual costs. However, she believed that none of these issues are of concern, and the annual costs are now correctly detailed.
The Board questioned why roadways are part of the report form regarding stormwater system function, and it was explained that the MS4 report covers more than district-only operations, as the district is underneath the City of Fort Myers as co-permittee. SFWMD is concerned with the stormwater system as a whole, which is comprised of and affected by more elements than the district alone is responsible for, such as roadway conditions. The report correctly noted that the CDD is not responsible for roadway maintenance.
ELEVENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Supervisor Requests/Comments
There were no Supervisor requests or comments.
TWELFTH ORDER OF BUSINESS Audience Comments
There were no audience comments.