# Summer Bay HO meeting?



## anne1125 (Jun 22, 2008)

Do we have anyone with an update from the HO meeting yesterday?  

Hope you guy had a fun lunch - sorry we couldn't get there.

Anne


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## roadtriper (Jun 22, 2008)

Hi Anne,  the Lunch with Fern, Karen, Jana, Art and his wife and James was very nice. the HOA Meeting was excellent!  there is much to tell, I'm still in LV and have limited internet access.  
first piece of sad news...  Our good freind James Reach wasn't succesful in retaining his seat on the board, the 4 winning board members are Jo-Anne Whitaker, Richard Charlesworth,David Freemantle,  and Vernon Tabb  in that order.   Hopefully James will spend more time with us here on tug now!  We all owe james a Big Thanks for all the hard work he did on our board, he was truly an owner advocate on the board.
I do not have time to give the complete report of the meeting until I get home Wed.
the Grand OPening of the Desert Club will be NOV 1     the current Summer Bay resort is about 1/2 vacated and as of july 15th the only operating building will be the Towers. (93 units.)  plus they will have 138 units in the new property upgraded to Rental Standards by July 15 (more on that later)  Oct 31 they hand over the keys to the old resort and we will be across the street as The Desert Club.   by OCT 31 the 520 other units will be all finished and up to the Gold Crown Timeshare Level. there will still be construction going on into Jan -feb on some of the outbuildings. 

That's all I have time for now! maybe Jana ,Art or James will share some of what they got from the meeting and between us we can give an overview of the content, we got answers to most things. there are a couple of items that we could not really get clarified!   More later!  RT


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## anne1125 (Jun 23, 2008)

Thanks, RT.  I'm so glad it went well and you are having fun.

James, I can't believe it.  So sorry you won't be on the board this year.  What a loss.  Thanks very much for all you've done.  We, here on tug, appreciate you.

Anne


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## janapur (Jun 23, 2008)

I am going to rely on Bob to fill in the gaps where I dozed off at the meeting. Both kids and I all caught the flu on Friday and weere up all night. I did laundry early Saturday am so our poor housekeeper didn't pass out from the grossness. Babies don't aim when they throw up, and they must spin their heads around for even better disbursement.

Unfortunately, I could not get a straight answer regarding internet access or the additional benefits for the levels of ownership. Bob and I met with a salesperson, but I'm not comfortable with much that he said other than "we are fortunate to be owners of the best timeshare in the US" or did he say world?   The salesperson said to stay away from any resales right now (ebay etc.) as those have probably not been converted to the new resort. He would discourage resales anyway, so I would just be sure to research well prior to purchasing. I thought he also said that you have to be in points to achieve platinum status. However, I also heard from other owners that SB will just figure out how many points your weeks are worth to determine your status.

Points owners will also be able to do internal exchanges to all SB properties . . . nice to avoid the RCI exchange fee. Maybe we have that opportunity already, I've never checked.

What a great time for non-owners to book exchanges in the new resort since I'm sure most RCI members are not aware of the upgrade. I have been waiting to deposit any of my 2009 weeks so that I can test our new trade power. I will do that this week and post my results. Overall, lots of excitement about the new resort.

More details soon.

Jana


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## anne1125 (Jun 23, 2008)

Jana, sorry you're sick.

I deposited my SB week a few months ago because we can't to next year.  The trade value with RCI has not increased that I can notice.  I assume after Nov. 1st that will change.

We also won the 2 bedroom lottery but my deposit for April 2009 is just shown as a 1 bedroom.  I guess the changes with RCI haven't happened yet.

Anne


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## Mimi (Jun 24, 2008)

We're so bummed out to hear that James Reach lost his seat on our Board.  James, we really appreciated your integrity, insight and dedicated effort to facilitate Summer Bay's transition to Desert Club.


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## roadtriper (Jun 25, 2008)

*HOA Report Part II*

OK, here is more of what I got from the meeting...
Originaly we were told that the Renovations to the Desert Club Complex were going to take about 15 months and we were going to continue at the old resort untill such time that we could just move in.  that was the deal with Harrah's Entertainment Corp.    last year Harrah's was sold to a private Venture Capitol group.  they agreed to honor and go forward with the Summer Bay deal BUT... they did not accept the 15 month time frame. they wanted us out much sooner.  thus the soft opening in July and the Grand Opening in NOV.   and the HOA Board Negotiated another 16.5 million dollars from Harrah's to expidite the renovations etc. that's 45.5 million instead of the original 29 mil.  I think they said that 2 million of that was in a trust and contingent on handing over the keys on Oct 31 !   
I can tell you from the activity in the neighborhood I think everyone is serious about this happening. there are buildings being gutted and readied for demolision. the empty lots are all cleaned and fenced off.  Just this morning as I was leaving I noticed 4-5 big construction office trailers showed up on the lot where the Burbon Street Casino Parking structure was.  they weren't there yesterday!   the Desert Club Property has been stripped to it's bare walls and is on the way back up. the grounds are all torn up so they can run all new infratructure to convert it from XXX seperate appartments[*EDIT*  that should be 658 units *EDIT*] into one resort. this means all new electrical entrances, all the sprinler systems are new, fibre cable for internet, security cameras etc.  all the sod and landscaping will be new.  looks to me like they are leaving no stone unturned (literaly!)

as for the deeds...  don't hold me to these numbers, but they are what I scribbed down.   91.4% of owners have done the deed exchange. that's 23,241,  that leaves 2200 +/- not exchanged.   582 of these are in process, 722 owners are unheard from. moved, died, whatever?    leaving 1000 or so holdouts?  they said that there were 111 that said Flat NO! (a couple of them were at the meeting!) as I understand it... as of deal closing april 29th of this year those deeds are in Harrah's control???  I did not get a feel for what the status of deeds currently in the resale stream was.  I'm going to see if I can get some clarity on this

Transportation...   part of the deal was Harrah's has agreed for 5 years to include the Desert Club on it's shuttle routes and will service the resort on the hour. and the resort shuttles will supliment that on the half hour.  looks like the monorail access was an easment that went with the old property and sounds like it will go away???

there will now be a Sat-Sat Check in/out  along with the Fri/Fri and Sun/Sun  didn't specify who will have them?  maybe just for new sales?  don't know!

website... they did mention that there will be a website!  it's not active yet I believe they said it was going to be  www.desertclublasvegas.com but I have not tried it. 

It would appear that between now and Nov 1st, Summer Bay won't be the place to book.  and even into next spring there will be construction at the new resort.  BUT, we are going to have one hell of a nice resort!

TIKI HUT     Yes, I have confirmation that at one of the pools there is going to be a TIKI HUT serving beverages!    I could not get clarification if they would be serving adult beverages or not?  they also mentioned a deli selling sandwiches etc.   not sure if that's just an expansion of the current convenience store with with cold pre-made stuff of if they will be fresh.

as Jana said no real answers on the Security Card status level, I can tell you that my 4 weeks that I own (Not in points) (No RCI affiliation)  got me a card with Platinum written on it.  No Idea of what that means at this point???

NO idea what Harrah's has planned for the neighborhood, BUT... talk on the street (Cabbies, shuttle bus drivers etc.) it's suppose to be BIG!  2 folks mentioned it would be 3 times the size project as City Center!    That's Huge!

That's it for now   RT


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## anne1125 (Jun 25, 2008)

Thanks again Bob!


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## janapur (Jun 25, 2008)

Excellent report, Bob. I would also consider the added neighborhood value when the new sports complex is completed. Can't remember which teams/sports are planned to occupy it. The salesperson projected 7 years before Desert Club will be bought for even bigger bucks, as it will be the only undeveloped spot in the area still zoned for casino/high rise. Ah yes, the salespeople always pushing timeshare as an investment.

It is my conclusion that they do not yet know what priveledges the resort will give the owners with regard to status. Just want to set the tiers in place for when they figure it out and use it as a sales tool.

Jana


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## Sandy VDH (Jun 25, 2008)

What are resales running now that the new resort is a reality, albeit, a near future reality.

Looking for ideas on 1 BR and 2 BR resale pricing, any ideas?


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## roadtriper (Jun 25, 2008)

Sandy Lovell said:


> What are resales running now that the new resort is a reality, albeit, a near future reality.
> 
> Looking for ideas on 1 BR and 2 BR resale pricing, any ideas?



??? that's still a big unknown, the only resales out there right now are the deeds that are in limbo.  there was a gentleman at the meeting who was somewhat po'd, but very polite!  he was there just to find out how to unload his 2 units as he isn't using them. and had been to the Presentations from the post card companies who wanted him to pay thousands for them to rid him of his burden!   he was smart enough NOT to pay someone to take his timeshares, but I suspect he did take advantage of the resorts Owner distress program where they will buy back your interval if it's paid in full and current on the MF's. for $1500   

there can't be any Summer Bay Desert Club units on the resale market yet because the new deeds haven't be sent to any owners that I know of.  RT


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## Mimi (Jun 25, 2008)

RT, Glad to hear that you got Platinum Status for your 4 weeks. That means Platinum will be given to owners of weeks, and not just awarded to points owners. We got Gold status for our 3 weeks. Originally they made us Silver, but when we questioned them, we were told they made a mistake and we were upgraded to Gold. We have reservations for Easter time, 2009. Looking  forward to staying in the new resort!


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## UWSurfer (Jun 26, 2008)

roadtriper said:


> ??? that's still a big unknown, the only resales out there right now are the deeds that are in limbo.  there was a gentleman at the meeting who was somewhat po'd, but very polite!  he was there just to find out how to unload his 2 units as he isn't using them. and had been to the Presentations from the post card companies who wanted him to pay thousands for them to rid him of his burden!   he was smart enough NOT to pay someone to take his timeshares, but I suspect he did take advantage of the resorts Owner distress program where they will buy back your interval if it's paid in full and current on the MF's. for $1500
> 
> there can't be any Summer Bay Desert Club units on the resale market yet because the new deeds haven't be sent to any owners that I know of.  RT



I'm in the midst of closing on a Summer Bay unit purchased via Ebay, largely based on the strength of the discusions going on TUG.    The distress program is slightly above what I've seen a 2 bdrm unit go for.  The 1 bdrm I purchased was significantly less in an auction that hadn't been noticed by many.   Now I'm just hoping it all goes through appropriately.


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## anne1125 (Jun 26, 2008)

We only own 1 week with no plans for more.  I really don't like the "levels" of ownership.


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## Art4th (Jun 26, 2008)

anne1125 said:


> We only own 1 week with no plans for more.  I really don't like the "levels" of ownership.



     We got our owner ID's after the meeting. We own a 1BR (with a 2BR in the closing process) and were given "silver" status. There are four levels: bronze, silver, gold and platinum. Getting silver status with only one unit owned makes me wonder who gets bronze? Maybe it's for exchangers and renters. I also wonder if my status will change once we own the second unit, and what the levels really mean? I guess that remains to be seen.

     I spoke to the board president after the meeting and asked about the wireless internet. He indicated that there would still be a charge for it at the new resort. It produces a certain amount of revenue for the resort and they don't want to lose that.

     It was really nice to meet Bob, Jana, Karen, James and Fern. It was the first time I ever drank a 7&7 out of a mason jar, and it was also nice to be able to prove to my wife that there are people who own more timeshares than we do (thanks Jana  ).


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## roadtriper (Jun 26, 2008)

anne1125 said:


> We only own 1 week with no plans for more.  I really don't like the "levels" of ownership.



FWIW, I'm not a big fan of it either!  we'll have to wait and see what the different levels represent.  RT


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## UWSurfer (Jun 26, 2008)

Art4th said:


> I spoke to the board president after the meeting and asked about the wireless internet. He indicated that there would still be a charge for it at the new resort. It produces a certain amount of revenue for the resort and they don't want to lose that.



I'm of the mindset that parking & wifi should be free at resorts.  There are of course costs associated with providing both, but major costs of parking were included in the construction of the place and developer sales, and maintenance can be part of operating costs just like you budget for cleaning staff and roof replacement.  Wifi obviously costs to add, but once done is again part of the operating costs.   I'd much rather have it included in the MF's than be nickeled and dimed every time I stay at my own home resort.

(stepping down off my soap box now)


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## janapur (Jun 26, 2008)

Parking will be free and plentifull! I suspect wifi will be free as well.


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## Art4th (Jun 26, 2008)

janapur said:


> I suspect wifi will be free as well.



I hope so too, but Charles indicated that they didn't want to give up an existing revenue stream. I guess time will tell.

PS. I hope everyone is feeling better.


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## roadtriper (Jun 26, 2008)

*Just a thought*



Art4th said:


> I hope so too, but Charles indicated that they didn't want to give up an existing revenue stream. I guess time will tell.
> 
> PS. I hope everyone is feeling better.



The Desert Club property shares a comon property line with the Meridien Condominiums ,along the south side of the property.   I suspect that many of those condos have wireless internet!   back when there were appartments across the street from the Terraces buildings, I could get free (Pirated) Internet outside on the balcony while having my morning coffee, or a nice frosty Adult beverage!     RT


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## janapur (Jun 26, 2008)

Art4th said:


> I hope so too, but Charles indicated that they didn't want to give up an existing revenue stream. I guess time will tell.
> 
> PS. I hope everyone is feeling better.



Art, how did you avoid the flu??


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## roadtriper (Jun 26, 2008)

janapur said:


> Art, how did you avoid the flu??



Hmmmmm?  think it could be the Quart Jar of  7 & 7 ???        wish I'd had one now!   RT


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## Art4th (Jun 27, 2008)

janapur said:


> Art, how did you avoid the flu??



Just lucky I guess...Josie was sick all day Sunday. Maybe some bad tomatos in the wrap she had for lunch in a cafe at Paris.


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## roadtriper (Jun 30, 2008)

*Owner Status levels*

I recieved a reply to my inquiry about the owner ID status levels.  
the levels are based on RCI Global points levels of owned SB intervals. folks with weeks intervals recieve the status level based on what point levels their weeks would be worth if converted. here is the breakdown...

Bronze is for owners with Biennial intervals
Silver is for point levels under 60,000
Gold is for point levels 60,000 to 125,000
Platinum is for point levels above 125,000

the benefits and rewards that each level receives is still under development and nothing has been finalized.   So...   I guess we wait and see!   

the above info was relayed to me in an email from the Vice President and C,O,O of IMI Partners LLC.             RT


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## eschjw (Jul 1, 2008)

*HOA Board*

Sorry to hear that James Reach did not win this time. His information posted on this forum has been greatly appreciated.

Two of the winners ( Anne Whitaker and Vernon Tabb) were the only ones to post their email addresses in the published bios. Maybe this had something to do with the outcome of the election. Why don't we invite them to drop by this forum from time to time? 

Joe

PS: Free internet for all!


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## Karen G (Jul 1, 2008)

Art4th said:


> Just lucky I guess...Josie was sick all day Sunday.


Art, that is so interesting. I got sick like Jana did on Friday night, but I didn't get sick until Saturday night.  It's interesting that you didn't eat anything at Toby Keith's--you just had that drink.  I don't believe any of us ate the same foods, though.

I ate out somewhere else Saturday and was thinking initially that maybe that's where I picked up the bug.  My husband got sick Monday and then our son, who was out of town when we had gotten sick, got sick on Friday.  I understand that Jana's husband got sick when she and her kids got back to Minnesota.

Whatever this bug is, it's a nasty one.  Glad to hear that everyone is recovering okay.


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## Art4th (Jul 2, 2008)

Karen G said:


> Whatever this bug is, it's a nasty one.  Glad to hear that everyone is recovering okay.



Yes, she's all better and we're now enjoying a week in the Poconos at Shawnee Ridge Top.


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## Mimi (Jul 2, 2008)

roadtriper said:


> I recieved a reply to my inquiry about the owner ID status levels.  the levels are based on RCI Global points levels of owned SB intervals. folks with weeks intervals recieve the status level based on what point levels their weeks would be worth if converted. here is the breakdown...
> 
> Bronze is for owners with Biennial intervals
> Silver is for point levels under 60,000
> ...



This makes no sense to me...We own (3) 2-bedroom units. Based on the initial deed exchange information, we were told each of our *weeks* were worth 62,200 RCI points, if converted. See below (http://deedexchange.summerbayresort.com/IMI_1342_PV.html) When we were at SBR in April, we first received Silver cards. When I asked for clarification on the levels, we were told a mistake was made and new cards were made that show we qualify for the Gold level. If your information is correct, our 186,600 points should equal the Platinum level, unless only RCI point owners get this perk. I don't understand why IMI Partners, LLC is communicating to you regarding the levels instead of our board? Who is running our resort?


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## roadtriper (Jul 2, 2008)

Mimi said:


> This makes no sense to me...We own (3) 2-bedroom units. Based on the initial information about the transition, we were told each of our *weeks* were worth 62,200 RCI points, if converted. When we were at SBR in April, we first received Silver cards. When I asked for clarification on the levels, we were told a mistake was made and new cards were made that show we qualify for the Gold level. If your information is correct, our 186,600 points should equal the Platinum level, unless only RCI point owners get this perk. I don't understand why IMI Partners, LLC is communicating to you regarding the levels instead of our board? Who is running our resort?



Hi Mimi,   from the info I got it sounds to me like you should be at the PLat. level!?  I think this thing is "evolving" as time goes on!  The only reason IMI sent this info to me is...   I emailed them and asked them if they could explain the different  levels.  I'm definatly not "In the Loop" with IMI or Summer bay!   I'm sure the Board would have answered also
if I had asked them.     I specificaly asked IMI because they are the ones pushing and promoting this at the sales level, and I wanted *their explination *of the program. I did not expect the VP to return the email!  as I said before, I think we are in a wait and see situation here. we dont know what if any benefits one level has over the other?  it may not be significant enough to worry about!?   and when the dust settles and you aren't at the correct level, I bet a phone call is all that will be needed to correct it!     RT


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## rdober (Jul 2, 2008)

I agree. I just bought and in the processing of transferring the deed. What do you believe the resort could do to the people staying there based on a level?  If you have ideas please let me know. I really don't see anything major they could do to anyone. I might be wrong, I'm new to this.


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## Mimi (Jul 2, 2008)

roadtriper said:


> I can tell you that my 4 weeks that I own (Not in points) (No RCI affiliation)  got me a card with Platinum written on it.  No Idea of what that means at this point???    RT



Bob, if you were not given the Platinum Card, I would have bet the ranch that this level would only be awarded to RCI Points owners at Summer Bay Las Vegas Desert Club. We will wait and see if our level is changed to Platinum. I was told that Platinum owners would receive free internet. But, as you said, all of these details are still in negotiation.


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## janapur (Jul 2, 2008)

Oh come on now, you know you're all just looking for a reason to buy more weeks . . . what better reason than a little piece of plastic that says platinum?

Mimi, I was able to pay it forward with your monorail pass and even forwarded your cute note to nightnurse, who was very appreciative.


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## roadtriper (Jul 2, 2008)

rdober said:


> I agree. I just bought and in the processing of transferring the deed. What do you believe the resort could do to the people staying there based on a level?  If you have ideas please let me know. I really don't see anything major they could do to anyone. I might be wrong, I'm new to this.



Gosh, I don't think the resort is going to DO anything to anyone?   it's going to be a rewards and benefits program. we just don't know what the rewards and benefits will be yet!   worst case scenario... you get a relaxing fun filled week at a beautiful newly refurbished Gold Crown Resort in Las Vegas!      I'm good with that!   RT


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