The Highlands Homeowners’ Association has issued a formal cease and desist to the former property management company.
This action follows numerous homeowner complaints that employees of the former company have contacted them without consent, using contact information not authorized for continued use. These actions represent an unauthorized use of homeowner information and are being addressed as part of an ongoing legal matter.
🔐 For your privacy and protection, please note:
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The only authorized emails will come from:
- @thehighlandsws.com (your HOA Board)
- @hoaemt.com (Extreme Management Team)
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The only authorized phone calls or text messages will come from:
- The HOA Board or
- The current management company, Extreme Management Team
✉️ If you receive emails, calls, or texts from any other domain or individual claiming to represent the HOA or its vendors, they are not authorized by The Highlands Master Association.
📩 We encourage all homeowners who have received in the past or may receive in the future any potentially unauthorized contact from former vendors of the HOA—including the former property management company—to forward the following to the Board at directors@thehighlandsws.com:
- Emails
- Screenshots of text messages
- Voicemails
- Summaries of any phone calls
This documentation will be provided to legal counsel as part of the Association’s ongoing efforts to protect homeowner privacy and enforce compliance.
📜 Amendment Reminder – Final Community Review Window
Thank you again to every homeowner who contributed feedback on the proposed amendments. The revised drafts are now available in the owner portal and reflect over seven months of community input and careful legal refinement.
We encourage all homeowners to review the updated amendments carefully and notify the Board if you spot any mistakes, inconsistencies, or unintended consequences before we move forward. Your attention to detail at this stage is still incredibly valuable.
📍 Deadline for Final Input:
Please email any critical issues or unintended impacts to directors@thehighlandsws.com by end of day Thursday, May 22, 2025.
📺 Presentations Available for Reference:
If you’d like a refresher, both the May 2 presentation (covering community feedback and amendment goals) and the State of the HOA presentation (offering financial context) are available on the portal dashboard.
📂 Access the Amendments:
The revised amendments, along with a side-by-side comparison with the original mailing, are available for review in the owner portal:
🔗 https://portal.hoaemt.com/ → Documents → Governing Documents → Proposed Document Changes
🌳 Landscaping & Irrigation Update
Management recently met with the City of Winter Springs to discuss landscaping and irrigation concerns affecting the medians and surrounding common areas. The city is actively making changes as part of their transition toward resuming responsibility for several of these spaces. Here are the key takeaways:
Landscaping:
- The city will remove dead blueberry trees along Sheoah Boulevard.
- Missed medians near Sheoah Blvd, Sheoah Circle, and Shepard Road are being addressed.
- Regular right-of-way maintenance will continue along Sheoah Blvd and Aberdeen.
Irrigation:
- The city will install a dedicated meter and shutoff for Audubon Park’s valves once the reclaimed water service point is located.
- Sheoah Blvd valves will be converted to battery-powered nodes (pending location).
- The well-fed irrigation system on the northern segment of Sheoah Blvd will be decommissioned, with drought-tolerant landscaping installed in its place.
- Next steps for irrigation near Third Street are pending a meeting between the city and Highlands Village One.
➡️ Important Notes:
- At no point has the HOA turned off irrigation as part of this transition.
- The city has advised that a temporary decline in landscape quality is expected as they work through infrastructure changes and resource constraints.
- The city also shared that many other communities like ours have requested that it resume responsibility for median maintenance, and The Highlands is now part of this broader transition effort.
🪵 Fence Repairs Moving Forward
Fence improvements are in progress:
- The HOA signed a contract with Mid-State Fence. Work should begin within the next month.
- Two damaged columns (one hurricane-related, one from aging/settling) were repaired last week.
- A fallen fence on Clearn Ct was too waterlogged for maintenance to move—Mid-State Fence is evaluating next steps.
🎾 Tennis & Pickleball Court Update
The surface of the courts is delaminating, which is not expected for courts that are only around two years old. The vendor agreed that this level of deterioration is premature and is sending someone out to inspect the surface within the next few days.
Once the inspection is complete, repairs are expected to begin in a few weeks, depending on their schedule.
➡️ The courts remain open to residents at this time. We will provide advance notice of any temporary closures once the repair timeline is confirmed.
🏊 Pool Reminders
The pool is open! Pool hours are posted in the owner portal.
Please follow these important rules:
- When the nearby lightning alarm sounds, everyone must exit the entire pool deck and be completely outside the pool gate. This is for your safety and is non-negotiable.
- The pool is a family-friendly space—please dress modestly and act respectfully at all times.
- Alcohol is not allowed at the pool.
🚨 Important Reminder:
Violations of certain pool rules could result in fines to the HOA or even the loss of our ability to operate a community pool. As such, breaking pool rules may result in temporary or permanent suspension of your pool access.
📣 See an issue?
If you witness a problem or observe someone breaking the rules, please report it through the portal or by emailing management at office@thehighlandsws.com.
🔑 Need a pool key fob?
You can request one through the owner portal. Please allow up to 5 business days for processing.
Instructions are posted on the dashboard of the portal—just scroll down to the “Amenity Key Fobs” section for details.
https://portal.hoaemt.com/
💡 Duke Energy LED Conversion Project
Duke Energy has initiated the Highlands’ LED streetlight conversion project. This will take approximately six months to complete.
- Fixtures will be replaced with energy-efficient LEDs.
- Shorter poles will be pressure-washed, all at no cost to us.
- Once finished, our monthly bills will decrease due to energy savings.
🌪️ Insurance Claim Progress
Our public adjuster is nearly finished preparing the estimate for our hurricane damage claim. They are also working with the state to complete the required paperwork for our flood claims.
🏢 Clubhouse Update
The HOA’s attorney has issued a formal notice pursuant to Chapter 558 of the Florida Statutes, addressing construction defects related to the ductwork installation at the clubhouse.
At this time, the existing ductwork must be replaced and the A/C system remediated before any further work on the clubhouse can resume. We will continue to update the community as we receive responses and next steps are confirmed.
📅 Upcoming Board Meeting – Thursday, June 12, 2025 at 7:00 PM
📍 Location: SCSO, 1225 E Broadway St, Oviedo, FL 32765
🕡 Check-in begins at 6:30 PM
Help us plan for seating and materials by pre-registering here:
Pre-registration is not required to attend, but it's the only way to ensure we have adequate seating and handouts ready.
🗓️ Meeting Highlights
- Full agenda will be posted at least 48 hours in advance
- View it in the portal: https://portal.hoaemt.com → Documents → Notices → 2025
- Owner input is prioritized at the beginning, with a second opportunity at the end
🗣️ Owner Input Policy
- Limited to agenda items only
- Input form must be submitted before the input period
- 3 minutes per person at the beginning
- 1 additional minute at the end for those who already spoke
- 3 minutes at the end for those who did not speak earlier
- All input rules will be strictly enforced
✅ Attendance & Verification Requirements
Attendance is limited to verified members of the Association:
Permitted Attendees:
- Owners listed on the deed
- Individuals with a valid Power of Attorney
- Authorized representatives of a trust or business entity
Bring:
- Valid government-issued photo ID
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If applicable:
- Trust: documentation showing you are a trustee or beneficiary
- Company: documentation showing you are an officer or authorized agent
- POA: copy of the signed Power of Attorney
❗ Individuals who cannot be verified or lack proper documentation will not be permitted to attend.
Questions? Contact: directors@thehighlandsws.com
We appreciate your cooperation in making this a productive and respectful meeting. See you there!
🗳️ 2025 HOA Election
An election for three (3) seats on the Association’s Board of Directors will be held on Thursday, August 14, 2025.
📅 Nomination Deadline: The nominations of candidates must be submitted to and received by the Association no later than June 15, 2025 at 7:00 P.M. (EDT).
There are only two ways to submit a nomination to be a candidate for the Board of Directors:
🔹 Group Nomination (per Bylaws Section 12.1)
A nomination may be submitted by a group of homeowners representing at least 10% of the total voting interests in the community.
With 1,386 total voting interests, a minimum of 139 owners must support the nomination.
The submission must include:
- Full legal name of the proposed nominee (as it appears on the property deed)
- Nominee’s property address within the community
- Nominee’s phone number
- Nominee’s email address
- A written statement of intent to run, signed by the nominee
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A list of at least 139 supporting owners, each with:
- Full legal name (as it appears on the property deed)
- Property address within the community
- Signature
🔹 Individual Self-Nomination (per Florida Statute 720.306(9)(a))
Any eligible homeowner may nominate themselves by submitting:
- Full legal name (as it appears on the property deed)
- Property address within the community
- Phone number (optional but strongly encouraged)
- Email address (optional but strongly encouraged)
- A written statement of intent to run
- Signature
📌 Please include your phone number and email so the Association can confirm eligibility and follow up if needed. While that information is not required by Florida law, they are the only reasonable ways the Association and/or its management can timely contact nominees.
