Minutes for Part 2 of the meeting held on Thursday 8 December 2022 at 1030
Present
Committee Members St Mellion Representatives
Andy Martin (AM) Chairman
Matt Pressman (MP) Resort Director
John Dalglish (JD) Secretary
Richard Hazel (RH) Finance Manager
Joyce Bloom (JB)
Stephanie Latham (SL) Timeshare Administrator
Colin Rayson (CR)
Sarah Yardley (SY)
- Correspondence from Owners
By way of setting the scene AM shared the contents of a letter
from the owners of L7 Week 34, a 3-bed lodge, who have
reluctantly decided to exit the scheme under Option 1 next year.
The letter, addressed to Crown Golf/St Mellion management,
copied to the Chairman of the Time Share Owners committee,
cited funding issues causing a likely risk to maintenance, as well as
the uncertain outcome of any further consolidation. The owners
had also asked for compensation regarding the 40 years’ unused
lease they would be surrendering; this request has received no
response. - Information Provided by St Mellion for today’s meeting
SL acknowledged the various comments from the committee
concerning the errors in the occupancy grid, adding that the
production of the grid had been a last-minute effort to get
something out in time for today’s meeting. All agreed with AM that
the group needed an updated grid, ideally in digital format, to
review. In response to a query about L37, RH confirmed that it
had in effect been handed back to St Mellion, as it was now empty
of Time Share weeks.
Regarding debtors, RH outlined the process undertaken with bad
debts, which involves a court order being obtained via a judge in
order to terminate formally the lease. He confirmed also that St
Mellion PML pay for this process, stressing that it is not onerous,
nor is it long and drawn-out. Formal correspondence from St
Mellion to lease holders is often ignored, which leads to this
process being invoked. - The Future for Time Share at St Mellion
AM asked: what is the future of Time Share?
MP: it’s very difficult and there have been many different
conversations on this subject. There has been no simple answer as
to what to do but 2023/24 will continue as before and there is no
strong desire from management one way or the other. However,
there is concern over dwindling numbers of owners.
RH explained that MP, in his role as a board member, had a
responsibility to avoid any risk of insolvency on the part of the
business. RH added that, in his view, St Mellion PML want Time
Share to continue, so all owners can enjoy it, but not necessarily
to all provisions of the lease. RH reminded the group that a new
base fee was to be set from 2024 (the 10-year Review), queried
how successful a new consolidation exercise would be and could
we (St Mellion) provide a service without compromising on quality?
On the subject of the 10-year Review AM commented that a
strategy is needed to address consolidation and flexibility in terms
of weeks and lodges to be made available. The strategy should
include an end goal for the Time Share element of the business.
RH stated that we need to know how many owners want to
remain to see if a viable solution can be found, to which AM added
that owners need to know what the options are before deciding
what to do. MP noted that it would likely come down to core
numbers and flexibility over specific weeks, recognising that some
people will wish to retain the weeks purchased. CR added that
people’s intentions will depend on the strategy.
RH confirmed that the committee would be involved in the
impending 10-year review process (the independent arbitrator is
an option, not an obligation). In response to AM’s question as to
when the review process should start, RH suggested that should
happen as early as possible in the new year. All agreed with MP’s
direction that we should aim to do that. - Accounts
After some discussion about the data provided under the heading
of Balance Sheet and the unfamiliarity of the presentation, RH
realised that the wrong attachment had been sent. He shared on
screen the latest P&L accounts to 31 October 2022, showing a loss of £7,381.66.
RH promised to send the correct attachment to all committee members after the meeting.(Secretary’s note: done)
- Occupancy Grid
It was acknowledged that the occupancy grid information
prepared for this meeting was inaccurate. It had been put
together at the last minute in an effort to ensure that the
committee had some relevant information to discuss. All agreed
that the committee need an up to date version, ideally in digital
format. As CR put it: the accuracy of the grid is the crux for
everything. St Mellion management apologised for the data as
presented and assured the committee that this did not in any
sense reflect an attitude of indifference to the committee and its
role.
Some related points were made. JD said that any owners who are
unsure about whether to stay in the scheme beyond 2023 will
want to know what the longer term strategy is and, in particular,
have a degree of certainty about future consolidation plans and
what implications they would bring to owners. AM concurred,
noting that a lot of people are delaying a decision until they know
what is happening. JB suggested that empty weeks could be
offered for a fee during the quiet months. This would be just for
Time Share owners and would not impinge on hotel lodge
numbers. MP agreed that this was worth considering, adding that
increases in utilities costs are at the forefront of minds these days. - AOB and Date of Next Meeting
AM proposed that the next Annual Meeting be used to explain the
10-rear review process to all owners. This was unanimously
agreed and AM will decide on a date in the new year. MP added
that communication will be key and that the owners’ web site
would need to be kept up to date. On this last point, AM will
change the Time Share contact details from Mark Webster to SL.
Next Meeting will be early in 2023.
John Dalglish (Secretary)