A Message from
Larry Movshin, CSA Board Chairman
March 25, 2020
12:00 PM
As I indicated in my last message, in these extraordinary times, you will be hearing from us more often than when things are “normal”. So please excuse still another intrusion into your email “In” Box.
Things are certainly not normal in Sea Pines these days. We are living in unusually interesting, but challenging, times and the CSA Board and Staff are happy to have the opportunity to be a part of the solution. Of course, the COVID-19 Virus pandemic is a challenge that no one expected to be working on when the year began. And we still have lots of work to do guiding the community through this very difficult period.
It is probably not surprising that I received a huge number of responses to my last "Message" on our COVID-19 operational modifications and policies. We were pleased with how many residents took the time to express their appreciation and approval of the steps we were taking then as reasonably necessary to protect our entire community from the effects of the COVID-19 virus. But there were also more than a few property owners who expressed (sadly some in relatively unflattering terms) their strong displeasure with the fact that the gates have not been closed to daily visitors, short-term renters, and in some case, even to non-resident property owners returning to their homes.
I want to make it absolutely clear that we do not dismiss any property owner's concerns with the fact that the gate is not closed to “outsiders”. Indeed, we have sought the advice of our outside legal counsel in order to confirm our position that access to Sea Pines should not be restricted. His advice was clear:
The Board cannot take any action to limit access through the gates and roads to Sea Pines in contravention of CSA’s Bylaws and the various real property restrictive covenants and agreements to which CSA is bound. To do so without legal authority or the imposition of some legal requirement(s) to do so by local, state or federal authority would subject CSA to legal liability of potentially significant magnitude.
In other words, because CSA is a management corporation and
not
a governmental body, no matter how concerned some of our property owners may be with day trippers, short-term renters, and even returning non-residents, coming through our gates, we lack the legal authority to restrict access into Sea Pines. We cannot and, absent a government mandate, will not close the gates to any so-called "outsiders". I sincerely hope that this legal conclusion will help quiet the debate over CSA’s various responses to COVID-19 - a debate that has the ability to create real divisiveness within the Sea Pines community (as shown in some of the postings on Facebook that I have read).
We also want to emphasize again our deepest hope that
all
of our community – property owners, renters, and visitors - will follow all CDC and DHEC guidelines, including social distancing and regular hand washing. CSA will continue to follow best practices as suggested by all federal, state, and local authorities in order to maximize the protection of our community's health and well-being.
And I want to send
a special message
to those non-residents who are coming home from cities currently under more severe restrictions
and
to property owners who are renting to that same group of people to
please
pass on to their renters:
- Please self-quarantine in your home or rental unit for at least 14 days to be sure that you do not have any symptoms of the COVID-19 virus that could be transmitted to others in our Sea Pines Community. We urge anyone coming from other states to stay inside your homes or villas for 14 days and use all available delivery services to obtain food and necessities.
Finally, I want to remind all of us to remember that Sea Pines is a strong, welcoming community, and we will get through these unique circumstances if we work together cooperatively to avoid situations that could spread the virus. Let's continue to stay "neighborly" to keep Sea Pines the great community we all chose to live in.
