Minutes of the April 13, 2027 Meeting

Board of Trustees of the Beacon Meadows Special Dependent Tax District

Northdale Park & Rec, 15510A Hooting Owls Place., Tampa, Florida

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AGENDA

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Trustees Present:        Steven Castry (President), Dena Galyardt (Vice President), Barbara Appel (Treasurer), Penny Phillips (Secretary), Carlos Espinel (Trustee), Michael Spinelli (Trustee)

Trustees Absent:         Rebekah Mabe (Trustee),

 

The meeting was called to order by Steven at 7:00 p.m.

 

Secretary's Report

The minutes of the March 2026 Board meeting were read in advance by Trustees.  Barbara made a motion, seconded by Dena, that the minutes be approved.  The motion was approved by a vote of 6-0. 

 

Treasurer’s Report (March  2026) (rounded to nearest dollar)

Revenue from previous month:  $1,163

Expenses: 

     Utilities - $105 (43.00)

     Landscape Maintenance - $815 (46.00)

     Repair/Painting of Gunn Hwy. Entrance East Monument - $300 (46.00)

Cash in bank:  $71,071

Available to spend:  $61,361

 

Old Business

 

Repair of Cracks and Repainting of Gunn Hwy. Entrance East Monument – Update – The project has been completed and inspected and Barbara has paid the invoice.

 

Trustee’s Consecutive Absences from Board Meetings – District Ordinance #87-53 states: “Any Trustee missing three consecutive meetings may be considered for removal by the Board.” It was determined that Rebekah has had four consecutive absences, not counting the November Board meeting that was canceled, and has not attended a meeting since September 2025. Therefore, Trustees, agreed at the March Board meeting that Rebekah should be given an opportunity to resign, since her life and other commitments do not appear to be a good fit for a Trustee who must commit to attending meetings as often as possible to carry out Board business. Steven sent Rebekah an email regarding this, but she did not respond. Penny made a motion, seconded by Michael, that Rebekah Mabe be removed from Trustee Seat #5 due to her four consecutive absences. The motion was approved by a vote of 6-0. Steven will send an email to Rebekah notifying her of this and will provide the link to the Florida Commission on Ethics form she must complete as an outgoing Trustee. Penny will update the County Special District Information Form.  (See New Business regarding a recruiting postcard.)

 

Communicating District’s Responsibilities for Maintaining Beacon Meadows Walls – Penny, Steven, and Barbara collaborated on drafting language for a postcard to homeowners with property bordering the three walls, which provides some information and also directs them to the Beacon Meadows website for the post about the Jackson Rd. wall collapse and responsibilities of the District and homeowners. Barbara translated the draft into Spanish with Google translate for one side of the postcard, and Carlos reviewed it for accuracy at the meeting. Since the Spanish version took up more space on the postcard than the English version, Carlos recommended that a QR code be included on the postcard that would direct the reader to the Beacon Meadows website for a Spanish version of the postcard. Barbara agreed to work on that and to develop a mailing list from the 67 addresses collected by Steven. She estimated that the cost of the postcards could be up to $200. Penny made a motion, seconded by Carlos, that up to $200 (41.00) be allocated for preparation and mailing of postcards to homeowners with property bordering the walls The motion was approved by a vote of 6-0.

 

New Business

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Postcard to Beacon Meadows Homeowners to Recruit New Trustee – Trustees agreed that a recruiting postcard should be mailed to homeowners as soon as possible, using the language from the previous postcard with necessary modifications.  Steven agreed to his landline phone number being used on the postcard.  Barbara estimated that the cost of the postcards could be up to $400. Therefore, Penny made a motion, seconded by Michael, that up to $400 (41.00) be allocated for preparation and mailing of recruiting postcards. The motion was approved by a vote of 6-0.

New Location for Monthly Board Meetings – Dena reported that the gymnasium conference room will continue to be the location for monthly Board meetings.

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Vote to Set Date for Annual Public Budget Hearing – This hearing has traditionally been conducted after the June monthly meeting.  Therefore, Penny made a motion, seconded by Dena, that the public budget hearing be held at 7:30 PM on June 9, 2026 at the Northdale Recreation Center, 15510 Hooting Owls Place, Tampa, Florida in the gymnasium conference room. The motion was approved by a vote of 6-0. Barbara will advertise the hearing on May 13 in the Tampa Times Bulletin Board. Steven will prepare the draft budget documents.

 

Ownership of Property on Which Casey Rd. Monuments Were Built – Steven researched the County property records and found that both Casey Rd. monuments were built on homeowners’ property. Therefore, if they needed significant repair or needed to be rebuilt, it would be considered the responsibility of the homeowners. Penny explained that in order to prevent this, the Board could hire a consultant to establish easements for the two pieces of property. This topic was tabled until a future Board meeting.

 

Trustees’ Monthly Task Update

• Lights/Irrigation Systems at Entrances

            Casey Rd. (Michael) – Lights and irrigation system are functioning properly.

Gunn Hwy.  (Carlos) – Lights and irrigation system are functioning properly.

Planters at Entrances (Steven) – No issues identified.

• Signs at Entrances (Dena) – Signs have been cleaned.

 

Other Business

 

Community Yard Sale – The yard sale had some participation, but being held on Easter weekend may have resulted in reduced participation, The next yard sale will be on the first Saturday in October.

 

There being no further business, Penny made a motion, seconded by Barbara, that the meeting be adjourned at 8:20 p.m.  The motion was approved by a vote of 6-0.

 

 

Steven Castry, President  __________________________

 

Penny Phillips, Secretary  __________________________

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