These are my personal images and photos that show the beauty of the view from Deer Ridge Mountain Resort and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Cobbly Nob and the Gatlinburg, Tennessee area.
Just click the Play button to watch - or click Big Picture to see a much larger slide show on a dedicated page here at DeerRidgeOwners.com.
Deer Ridge Litigation Fund
Do you, as an owner at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort, believe we are ALL entitled to have access and be able to copy the books and records of our Homeowner's Association?
So, do I.
But, apparently, Employee Joe Thomas and President Luther Parker and the Board disagree - and are doing all they can to block access, publication and candid discussion of the Asinine Assessment, special deals and favored treatment - at the expense of all Owners.
What ARE they so afraid of us finding out?
Maybe it has to do with the HUGE $10,000 overcharge for my HOA Fees, special assessments, water and cable TV bill - which, in my personal opinion, is due to fraudulent intent or at least gross negligence by the Deer Ridge Board of Directors and / or General Manager Joe Thomas. Please see the posts for details.
We have no choice but to file a lawsuit against GGRC and RML in order to finally, once and for all, make it clear that OWNERS do have a right to all the information about our property and our investment at Deer Ridge.
If you have thoughts and ideas and suggestions, please post them here on this blog.
If you have any clout with the Board, convince them to stop the charade - and let the owners have the information that all owners own!
If you want to help cover the legal costs to get us the right to see the bids for $50,000 for nuts and bolts - and the other background documents for the $353,500 Asinine Assessment, please click on the Donate Button below.
With enough in donations, we can hire BOTH an attorney AND a forensic accountant for the whole process through the Court in Sevier County to make absolutely certain we win EVERY point - and never have to fight Employee Joe and the Board on this stuff again.
Even a $100 contribution will help show that you are in favor of an open and FULLY transparent homeowners' association at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort!
Thanks so much to those of you who have already contributed!
GENERAL DISCLAIMER FOR ALL PAGES AND POSTS AND EVERYTHING ELSE I DO OR SAY REGARDING DEER RIDGE AND ANY AND ALL RELATED PARTIES:
Note: The following, and the information on any and all other posts and pages by me about General Manager Joe Thomas, GGRC, RML and /or the Board of Directors and its members, or any related topics, are my personal opinions based on my ongoing investigation into the actions and inactions of the GGRC and RML Board of Directors and / or Joe Thomas, General Manager.
While I believe these allegations to be true based on my objective analysis, these opinions remain as only allegations until I, or others, prove things in court.
My goal is to offer all owners all the information and evidence that I have available so that everyone can reach their own conclusions.
Please note the obvious:
Everything I ever say or write in person, via emails, or on my blog, about Deer Ridge or any and all related entities and organizations or any and all affiliated personnel or owners, is strictly my own personal opinion of course - based, in part, from my owning a unit at Deer Ridge for over five years - and on my own personal history.
That history includes earning a Presidential MBA degree, being awarded a Bachelor of Science, With Honors, in Engineering Physics from UT, working for NASA as a rocket scientist at Marshall Space Flight Center, 30 years of CEO experience directly employing and managing many hundreds of people at multiple companies I personally started and operated (including one that I took public), 15 years experience buying and selling over $100 million of property and managing more than 45,000 rental units - AND being able to read and do four-function arithmetic.
Legalese - And Powered Wig - Off
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Welcome to All Deer Ridge Owners
Welcome to all owners of Deer Ridge Mountain Resort condos in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
My goal is to help all Deer Ridge owners to have a voice in the management and operation of your property.
Click on the TITLES of any of the following subjects to read the whole posting - and see the comments made by your co-owners. You can also type any term into the below search box, or any word or term in the search cloud.
Click the big image at the top of the page to return to the front page at any time.
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Investment Analysis For A Rental Condo At Deer Ridge
Will you really lose $40,000 cash if you buy a rental condo at Deer Ridge and use Ridge Management Ltd?
As an owner-occupied home, Deer Ridge is an incredible value with THE best view in the Smokies and great amenities.
However, several owners and would-be owners of Deer Ridge condos have asked me if these units are a good rental property investment or not. To help answer that question
objectively, I had to analyze the real moving parts of buying and owning here.
Get my complete, detailed investment analysis based on buying a rental condo unit at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
It shows what you MUST do to make money when you buy a rental unit at Deer Ridge.
Every Dollar You Pay For Deer Ridge Is The WRONG Amount!
Please read the various posts here on this Deer Ridge Owners Blog - and see my evidence and analysis which I believe shows conclusively that EVERY dollar of HOA Fees, EVERY dollar EVERY special assessment, EVERY water bill and cable TV sent out for YEARS to ALL Deer Ridge Owners has been wrong!
In many cases at least ONE THIRD of ALL owners have been GROSSLY overcharged. My calculations show that I have been overcharged more than TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS in the past 50 months I've owned at Deer Ridge.
The Board has been WRONGLY and arbitrarily ignoring the requirements of the Master Deed and the Bylaws for YEARS.
If my analysis is correct, the Board has zero choice. They MUST abide by the Master Deed Percentages.
But they haven’t.
However, if the Board knowingly ignored the clear directives of the Master Deed and the Bylaws when allocating costs to various unit types, and overcharging certain unit types on a regular basis, my opinion is that the Board and Joe Thomas may have acted fraudulently.
If they have not been fraudulent, then they have been, at the very least, grossly negligent.
Read the various blog postings - and judge for yourself.
Comments Welcome From All Visitors
You are welcome to leave your comments on the various posts on the blog. You no longer have to be registered to comment. (Even regular contributors had trouble remembering their log on passwords!)
Note that SPAM blockers are in place - and all comments require approval to be visible.
So, let's hear from you on these topics!
To view the comments, you need to click on the post topic to see the entire post and the comments.
"We do not believe any group of men adequate enough or wise enough to operate without scrutiny or without criticism. We know that the only way to avoid error is to detect it, that the only way to detect it is to be free to inquire. We know that in secrecy error undetected will flourish and subvert." — J. Robert Oppenheimer. This includes the Board of Directors of Deer Ridge Mountain Resort.
During the court hearing that was held on December 9, 2011, Judge Rex Ogle ruled that the parties would be required to participate in court ordered mediation.
Unfortunately, this mediation, while court ordered, is not binding. If history is any indicator, the “board” will not participate in good faith which will mean that the mediation will be a complete waste of time and money.
My strong preference would be to turn this over to binding arbitration so these matters could be cost-effectively finalized. But the “board” has no interest in this – and the judge cannot order this. So, we are stuck with probable meaningless mediation.
While we had tried to short circuit this whole process with our motions for summary judgement, the judge made it clear during the hearing that he was not going to rule on any of the issues – and he seemed relieved to find out that we had requested a jury trial. So be it.
Jury Trial
We will do what we can to expedite the mediation so that we can quickly get it out of the way – and move to set a trial date as quickly as we can - once our interrogatories and depositions of Joe Thomas, board members and current and past employees are completed.
We are actually looking forward to showing 12 jurors our proof of the multiple violations by this “board.”
We can’t wait to show how the “board” has squandered 40% of every year’s HOA fees for 16.5 years on RML’s negative cash flow.
We can’t wait to show the jury how the “board” has wasted an average of $116,000 a year, EVERY YEAR, on feeding the negative cash flow of an illegitimately formed RML for a total of nearly $2 million.
We believe that a jury of our peers will see the ongoing bias and discrimination against any owner who does not use RML.
We believe that the jury will see from the evidence that Joe Thomas and the “board” have slandered and libeled me for years, including portraying me in a “false light.”
We believe that the jury will see the self serving benefits that Joe Thomas, board members and other “insiders” have enjoyed at the expense of other owners, including the “trade out” use of units that were not owned by these insiders.
We believe that the jury will see that the strained interpretations of the Master Deed by Joey and the Gang are transparent abuses of power that ignored the requirements of our governing documents.
We believe that the jury will see the ridiculous requirements for reviewing the books and records for what they are: Intentional, multiple road blocks that are fully intended to actually keep the GGRC books and records out of the hands of owners – all an intentional and flagrant violation of the Tennessee Horizontal Property Act.
We believe that the jury will empathize and share our anger at how this “board” has arbitrarily and capriciously run Deer Ridge as their own private fiefdom for years.
We genuinely believe that 12 jurors who are all our peers will rule in our favor on all counts – and will require ALL the changes we have sought at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort – along with awarding us damages, interest and a return of all of our overcharged HOA fees and assessments.
For these, and other reasons, we very much look forward to this jury trial.
New Derivative Action Lawsuit
In addition to all of the above, we are currently preparing a new derivative action lawsuit against Joe Thomas and all individual board members.
This lawsuit will be brought by at least seven current Deer Ridge owners.
These owners will sue the Gang of Six on behalf of GGRC as a way of forcing this renegade “board” to shut down the money losing RML and force them to abide by the multitude of Master Deed and Bylaws that the “board” continues to violate. More about this derivative action lawsuit in the near future.
They Started It – We Will Finish It
As one owner stated in a posting here on this blog, “The board started this. They sued Robert first. And they are wasting all of our money for their own agenda and vendetta.”
I obviously agree – but we will do what we need to do to finish this – and finish it right.
What part of Article XII of the Master Deed of GGRC, Deer Ridge Mountain Resort, is so hard to understand?
Once again Joe Thomas and the “board” have chosen to either play dumb – or more probably just say, “Screw you!” to the other owners at Deer Ridge.
Case in point:
I do not recall a vote for 75% of owners for the improvement / alteration for the replacement of the existing sliding glass door with this french doorway with digital locking mechanism that now goes into the pool area of the recreation area.
No matter what the cost or the reasonableness of the change, ANY alteration or improvement, requires both a 75% vote of ALL owners AND a 90% affirmative vote of all mortgage holders at Deer Ridge. That is the law of our regime. See for yourself:
This is on Page 16 and 17 of the GGRC Master Deed. This IS the law of OUR land.
Seriously, assuming the reader does not have a room temperature IQ, how hard is this to understand???
Once again, Joe Thomas and the “board” have refused to comply with the governing documents of Deer Ridge and have once again committed ultra vires acts in violation of their scope of duties as board members.
This adds to the already large $200,000 in other ultra vires acts Joe Thomas and the “board” have committed. When are these jokers in this Gang of Six going to stop illegitimately spending OUR money?
These guys were finally forced to have to go for the Article XII vote for the walkway railings alteration – so you know they know about this requirement and have acknowledged this knowledge by that required 75% vote.* So, Joey and the Gang can’t claim total stupidity here on the french door. I believe it is clear to God and everyone that the french door is also an “alteration.”
So, I guess we add this under the “Screw You, Owners – We Are The Board And Are In The Driver’s Seat And Will Damn Well Do What We Want No Matter Whether It Is Legal” file for upcoming litigation.
It is past time that we hold these “board” members personally financially responsible to repay to GGRC the more than $200,000 that has been illegitimately spent by this Gang of Six.
In the meantime, I invite all Deer Ridge Owners to join together to give Joe Thomas and the “board” remedial reading lessons so they finally understand what our Master Deed and Bylaws say.
* Note: The “board” did even screw up the walkway railing vote by not getting the REQUIRED 90% vote from all mortgage holders…claiming they were too stupid to understand the above yellow-highlighted section.
Six additional Deer Ridge owners have joined as co-plaintiffs in the $3 million lawsuit that was previously filed against general manager Joe Thomas and all five current “board” members Luther Parker, Larry Ohm, David Barone, Margie Duncan and Tom Reise.
Other Deer Ridge owners are expected to also become co-plaintiffs in the coming weeks as opposition continues to grow against:
The illegitimate stonewalling by the board at blocking all access to the Administrator’s Book that is required by the Tennessee Horizontal Property Act.
The gross mismanagement of the property and GGRC that makes our $400- $500 monthly HOA fees the highest per sq ft in the entire area and making our condos unsaleable – this is even before the probable $70 a month increase that may be implemented this November.
The gross negligence at forcing our HOA to remain in the motel business in spite of massive, real losses that have cost GGRC and ALL owners millions of dollars over the past decades.
The contemptuous violations of both Tennessee state law and the governing documents of our HOA including the board members’ illegitimate ultra vires expenditures exceeding $200,000.
The ongoing 82%, monthly HOA fee overcharge of all 1-1 owners.
If you, as an owner at Deer Ridge, object to these five points, you should also join other owners as a co-plaintiff to stop this HOA Board Abuse. See details below.
The David Barone Lie
In the minutes of the recent board meeting and annual meeting, David Barone lied to all owners when he claimed that the Judge dismissed our lawsuit against GGRC, Joe Thomas and all the individual board members.
The judge did NOT dismiss the lawsuit…but he did rule that we were required to either make all owners a party to the lawsuit, i.e., sue all owners, or to get 5% of the voting shares to join with us as a co-plaintiff so that we would qualify as a derivative action suit…once this was done, the Judge indicated that he would rule on the declaratory motions for summary judgment that we have filed. These include our request for a ruling that RML is illegitimate and squandering half of each month’s HOA fees every month for every owner and, as such, should be immediately shut down or sold.
Because of the actions and objections filed by the “board”, we didn’t have any choice but to immediately have more owners join my lawsuit as co-plaintiffs to get us to a total of at least 8 votes out of the 154 available votes in GGRC in order to meet the requirements of a derivative action suit against the individual board members for their violations of the Master Deed and Bylaws and Tennessee state law.
The Derivative Action Against All Board Members
During the court hearing on April 26, 2011, the Judge postponed hearing on our motions for summary judgment until such time that we were able to show that at least 5% of the owners at Deer Ridge were parties to the lawsuit.
With our current and growing list of other owners willing to stand up and be counted against the HOA Board Abuse that has been going on for years at Deer Ridge, we now meet and exceed this judicial requirement.
We already have 11 votes – and the list is growing. With this 11 votes, we already have more votes than we need.
The Magnificent Seven
There are now SEVEN Deer Ridge owners that will be suing Joe Thomas and the rest of the Gang of Six.
This Gang can no longer continue their propaganda of misinformation that there is just one “crackpot” out of all the owners who objects to the way things are done. There are now seven “crackpots” who recognize that the ONLY way things will ever improve at Deer Ridge is to get rid of RML, get out of the motel business that is bankrupting GGRC, get rid of the current “board” and find board members who are willing to abide by Tennessee state law and the GGRC Master Deed and Bylaws.
The “Magnificent Seven” – the seven current co-plaintiffs represent nearly 11 votes or more than 7% of the voting constituency of GGRC and, as such, exceed the required 5% needed to pursue the derivative action against all board members, individually.
As such, we plan on amending our motions to immediately and aggressively continue our pursuit of our current motions for summary judgment as part of our derivative action.
Did You Want To FINALLY See The REAL GGRC Books and Records?
Did you want a copy of all the GGRC and RML books and records it’s taken me six years to get?
Well, good luck with that if you try to do it yourself.
Joey and the Board, in their ongoing attempts to block owner access to the REAL books and records, got the Judge to temporarily agree to a protective order. (The harder the Gang of Six resists releasing the state required Administrator’s Book, the more suspicious it is about what they are trying so desperately to hide.)
With the protective order, you as an owner at Deer Ridge still won’t be able to see ANY of the books and records, email correspondence, payroll information and other information about your property, your investment or your HOA that I am able to uncover with my lawsuit. As of now, I won’t be able to even talk about it here on this blog.
We expect to file a new motion to allow us to release this information to all owners – but for right now, Joey and the Gang are doing all they can to make sure other owners can’t see what we are forcing them to show us.
(This should be a HUGE red flag to ALL owners that something is NOT right at Deer Ridge with its books and records.)
However, there is ONE way for YOU to get around the Gang’s protective order: Join with us as a co-plaintiff in the lawsuit.
As a co-plaintiff with us in our lawsuit against Joe Thomas, Luther Parker, Larry Ohm, David Barone, Margie Duncan and Tom Reise, you will get to see EVERYTHING that I get to see with our court ordered production of documents.
Remember, it is these six individuals posing as board members who are explicitly and deliberately blocking YOU from your rights to see these documents and the books and records on YOUR investment at Deer Ridge.
Don’t tolerate the injustices of the Gang of Six. Become a Magnificent Co-Plaintiff with the seven of us – and gain FULL access to ALL the documents and books and records of Deer Ridge.
If you are a Magnificent Co-Plaintiff, there is nothing that the Gang of Six can do to stop you.
Become Magnificent Too – Join The Seven As A Co-Plaintiff To Fight The Gang of Six
Would you like to help stop RML from squandering half of our monthly HOA fee?
Would you like to be able to finally see the REAL books and records of Deer Ridge?
Just click Co-Plaintiff – or the image to the right – to download the one page document drafted by our attorney to join the litigation as a co-plaintiff so we can finally get these critical Deer Ridge issues resolved. As you will see, there is no cost obligation to you – unless you want to consult directly with the attorney for some reason.
If this sounds good to you, please complete the form and fax, email or mail me the completed document. Also, if you know of any other owners who would be willing to sign the attached, please forward it to them.
Together, we can finally hold this Gang of Six individually accountable for their multitude of illegitimate violations of our Master Deed and Bylaws – stop the massive negative cash flow from being in the motel business – and keep this Gang of Six from forcing GGRC into bankruptcy.
According to the current Ridge Resort Realty web page, Larry Ohm, CPA, Treasurer and “board” member is selling his Deer Ridge condo:
Makes You Wonder
Kind of makes you wonder why Larry is selling now?
Maybe it is for personal reasons such as a divorce or personal financial problems or something else. But could it be that, as Treasurer, he sees the abyss that Deer Ridge is headed for because of the stupid decisions the “board” has made to keep us in the motel business as RML huge real negative cash flows rape and bankrupt our HOA?
Could it be that he sees the progress we are making with the lawsuits in our claims against the individual “board” members for all of their hundreds of thousands of dollars of ultra vires expenditures for which the board members may be held personally libel for repayment? Of could it be that he is very concerned about the smoking guns that may come to light once we have the REAL books and records?
Kind of makes you wonder, huh?
Whatever the reasons, this action makes him a lame duck board member since he will have to immediately resign his board membership upon the sale of his unit. Since he is now, by definition, a “short termer,” I am personally worried that he will push for short term, and short sighted, solutions and answers to the many Deer Ridge issues and problems – jeopardizing our property’s future for expediency until he can get the hell out of Dodge.
You Can Run – But You Can’t Hide
Larry, just so you know, we WILL continue to pursue our claims in our lawsuit against you, individually – whether you sell your unit or not.
Just to be clear, so far the only thing we have seen is what I believe to be clear cut ultra vires acts as a result of you and the rest of the board approving alterations and improvements totaling more than $200,000 in violation of our Master Deed and Bylaws. We will have to see if the Court agrees with us about that – and anything else we may find from our ongoing due diligence that we may bring before the Court.
If the Court’s rulings on our lawsuit concerning you come down in our favor, we expect to hold you personally accountable for your past actions – and inactions – including any ultra vires acts or any and all malfeasance the Court finds.
David Barone, Secretary of the GGRC Board of Directors, lied to you and all other owners at Deer Ridge about the status of our counterclaim $3 million lawsuit.
In the recent mailing to all owners at Deer Ridge, David Barone made the following statement in the Annual Meeting minutes on his OWN report, ”On April 26, 2011, Judge Rex Henry Ogle dismissed Robert Goodman’s counterclaim.”
This is actually a double lie: David Barone, as Secretary, was reporting on what David Barone said in the meeting. Here is the excerpt from the mailing:
This statement, marked in yellow, is a lie. Want proof?
How Many Lies Have There Been? How Many More Will They Make?
As you can see below, the Judge did NOT dismiss our counterclaim and Barone’s lie is at best a categorical and self-serving misrepresentation of the facts. At worse, it is just that much more malicious disinformation and false propaganda that is spread by the “board” in their ongoing efforts to maintain their fiefdom and to keep us in the motel business – no matter how much it is bankrupting our HOA.
To me, the David Barone lie about the dismissal of our counterclaim is on a par with the Larry Ohm, CPA and Treasurer, lie that RML is a money maker for GGRC. Please click Liar Larry for all the details about THAT lie – and how he is finally being forced to admit in front of God and everyone that RML is losing LOTS of money for ALL owners at Deer Ridge.
It kind of makes you wonder how many other statements by Larry Ohm, Luther Parker, Joe Thomas and the rest of the Gang of Six might, just maybe, be even more lies. This includes all that they say, all that they write and all that they claim are supposed to be accurate minutes of the meetings and accurate accounting. And, with David Barone being the Secretary who is supposed to accurately report all meeting minutes, it kind of makes you wonder about EVERYTHING that he writes.
You can decide for yourself…but my personal opinion about all six of them: “If their lips are moving…” and also, in this case, “If their fingers are typing…”
The REAL Status Of The Lawsuit – Part 1 – New Motion To Void The Asinine Assessment
Part 1 of the REAL status on the lawsuit is that we have JUST filed a follow up motion for a partial summary judgement against GGRC and these same individual “board” members under the SAME counterclaim.
In this instance, the new motion deals specifically with my defense for the “board’s” lawsuit against me for my complete and total non-payment of the “special assessment.”
If you click on the below image, you can download the full 17 page motion to see just how much Barone’s statement was false. Note that this is still the SAME case number!
Note the parts highlighted in yellow – showing that the file date was May 25, 2011 – nearly a month after David Barone falsely claimed that the Judge dismissed our counterclaim. Does that look like it was dismissed to you…or do you agree with me that David Barone, and probably the whole “board”, was lying to you with his rendition of the minutes?
The above is the first page of the motion for partial summary judgement in which we are defending ourselves on the “special assessment” lawsuit on two fundamental issues:
That the percentage used to calculate every one’s proper pro rata share is wrong.
That the “board” ignored the required 90% mortgagee vote requirement for all improvements and alterations.
The motion requests that the Judge review the Master Deed and Bylaws of GGRC and, based on his interpretation of these documents, void the “special assessment” and rule against GGRC on their lawsuit against me regarding my non-payment.
Get Ready For A “Run On The Bank” If We Win This Partial Summary Judgment On Voiding The Special Assessment
If we win just one of the two major defenses in this partial summary judgment AND win this one part of our ongoing lawsuit, it may probably have the effect of negating the “special assessment” for everyone – especially those who push the issue in Court like we have.
The problem for the “board” is that they and Joey have already spent your money!
In our case, we already have our money – because we were smart enough to not pay it to them in the first place. For all owners who have paid, if we win even one of the two points, I would recommend that you hurry up and get in line to get your money back as soon as you can.
Note: I am NOT an attorney and do not give legal advice ever. Period.
However, from a business perspective, I would strongly advise you try and get your special assessment back ASAP. You might consider taking the above 17 page document to your own attorney and have them use this as the basis of your own lawsuit against GGRC and the board for recovering your own two payments made on the “special assessment.” By using our document as a starting point, you might be able to save yourself some legal fees.
Better yet, and even cheaper, see the other solution below.
Repayment of $200,000 By Board Members As Individuals
If we win on the 90% mortgagee issue on this motion for partial summary judgement, it is my hope that this will make the individual board members personally responsible to repay the more than $92,000 (26% of the total “special assessment”) that was illegitimately spent on the walkways and lighting improvements and alterations since their actions were ultra vires.
Of course, this partial summary judgement ruling will just deal with the $92,000 of illegitimate Article XII funds that have been spent without proper authority. Based on my initial analysis of several expenditures made by the board, I calculate that all illegitimate Article XII funds spent already exceeds $200,000. These are monies that required a 75% vote of ALL owners AND the vote of 90% of ALL the mortgage holders for all mortgages at Deer Ridge.
My personal goal if we win on this 75% / 90% issue is to force the individual board members to repay ALL $200,000 back to GGRC along with interest, etc. with our derivative action part of our countersuit.
The REAL Status Of The Lawsuit – Part 2 – Derivative Action
The judge did not dismiss the lawsuit…but he did rule that, for the declaratory judgement part of our counterclaim, we are required to either make all owners a party to the lawsuit, ie, sue all owners, or to get 5% of the voting shares to join with us as a co-plaintiff so that we qualify as a derivative action suit…so the Judge will rule on the declaratory motions we have filed such as RML is illegitimate and squandering half of each month’s HOA fees every month for every owner.
Because of the actions and objections filed by the “board”, we don’t have any choice but to immediately have 4-7 owners join my lawsuit as co-plaintiffs to get us to a total of at least 8 votes out of the 154 available votes in GGRC in order to meet the requirements of a derivative action suit against the individual board members for their violations of the Master Deed and Bylaws and Tennessee state law.
For our derivative action part of the lawsuit, the Judge is requiring us to go ahead and document that at least 5% of the ownership is in favor of the issues we want heard in our lawsuit, e.g., to stop RML from taking half of each month’s HOA fees from EVERY owner to feed it negative cash flow and to stop them from raising every one’s HOA fees by $70 a month as proposed by Larry Ohm in the last board meeting a couple of weeks ago.
This required 5% is something, with your help, that I hope we can do ASAP.
The good news is that we already have 7 votes in hand! With ONE other owner, we get to the required 8 votes.
But this derivative action suit will ONLY work if one other owner will agree to immediately join in as a co-plaintiff.
Below is the one page document drafted by our attorney for other owners to join the litigation as a co-plaintiff so we can finally get these issues resolved. This is the same signed document we have in hand representing 7 votes by Deer Ridge owners. As you will see, there is no cost obligation to you – unless you want to consult directly with the attorney for some reason.
Do You Want To See The REAL Books And Records Of GGRC and RML?
Do you want a copy of all the GGRC and RML books and records it’s taken me nearly six years to get? Would you like to help stop RML from squandering half of our monthly HOA fees that are bankrupting GGRC?
Unfortunately, the Judge ruled in favor of Joey and the board regarding their request for a “protective order.” With the protective order in place, I won’t be able to share with other owners ANY of the books and records, email correspondence, payroll information, RML rental info or other information, unless you are a co-plaintiff by signing the above form.
On top of that, I can’t even discuss my findings with you. Even if I were, hypothetically speaking, to uncover major fraud or other malfeasance, I couldn’t tell all the Deer Ridge owners what I found. That’s what Joey and the board want with their protective order.
We hope to get the Judge to change this at a future hearing but that is the current status. I STRONGLY believe that ALL owners should have a right to see the books and records for Deer Ridge but I have to abide by the Judge’s ruling.
The important thing you should be asking yourself is WHY?
Why is it that Joey and the board have fought tooth and nail for nearly six years against providing copies of the REAL books and records to ANY owner in the format that is REQUIRED by Tennessee state law?
Why is it that Joey and the board have pushed so hard for the protective order to keep us from sharing these documents with all other Deer Ridge owners?
What are they SO afraid that owners will discover and uncover once they have complete access to copies of the REAL books and records?
Why shouldn’t YOU have a right to see the REAL books and records on your investment at Deer Ridge?
The good news is that we have figured out a legitimate, no cost, way around the games that Joey and the board have been playing to prevent you and other Deer Ridge owners from seeing the books and records.
All you have to do is complete the above form and mail or fax it to me so that you join our counterclaim as a co-plaintiff at zero cost to you.
As a co-plaintiff, you will get to see EVERYTHING that I get to see with our court ordered production of documents. We also, along with your fellow co-plaintiffs, will be able to fully discuss what we discover and uncover – and together develop the best strategies and tactics for our next steps to protect all of our investments in Deer Ridge.
If this sounds good to you, please complete the above form and fax, email or mail me the completed document TODAY. Click Contact to email me any questions your have or to get my fax number for your completed form.
Together, we can finally hold this Gang of Six accountable…stop the lies, see the REAL books and records and increase the market value of our property.
Unfortunately, we were thwarted by procedural issues yesterday during our court hearing on our lawsuit against GGRC and the Board of Directors and Joe Thomas. These procedural issues had to do with our pursuit of a class action and a derivative action claim regarding our case – and had absolutely nothing to do with the merits and claims in our case.
Those merits and claims were not even heard yesterday.
We expect to modify and/or amend our lawsuit to solve these procedural issues so that the judge can finally hear arguments on the merits of our multiple claims about the way that GGRC is illegitimately and illegally managed.
Judge Rules We DO Have A Right To COPIES Of ALL Books And Records
One point that was made crystal clear by the judge at the hearing yesterday was that I, as an owner, clearly and absolutely deserve COPIES of all books and records related to GGRC, RML and Ridge Resort Realty.
Our immediate focus will be on finally getting a copy of the “Admin Book” which is the chronological books and records in the format that is required by Tennessee state law. As far as I know, this will be the first time any owner has seen these books and records in the right format – ever!
We believe this is a massive win for the benefit of all owners at Deer Ridge. We intend to perform a forensic audit of every line item in the administrator’s book. Once that’s completed, we expect to issue detailed sworn interrogatories from Joe Thomas and the entire board with specific and explicit questions we will have as a result of our forensic audit. We expect those sworn answers to the interrogatories, and the follow up depositions, to be very revealing with all kinds of potential consequences.
We are going to start with the Admin Book before we get bogged down on reviewing a lot of other documents – with a couple of exceptions.
Besides immediately pursuing our copies of the Admin Book, we intend to review all e-mails between all members of the board and also those of Joe Thomas.
We will also request, for immediate review, a few more documents that are required to be maintained by the GGRC Master Deed:
The Mortgage Book
Firstly, according to Article XIII of the Bylaws, entitled “Mortgages”, the Board of Directors shall maintain a book entitled, “Mortgagees of Condominium Units” which is required to list all mortgage activity and amounts for every unit at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort since the property regime was formed.
Since this mandatory book is necessary for all votes required in Article XII of the Bylaws, we will demand that Joe Thomas and the board provide a copy of this document to me immediately. We request that this document includes all mortgagee changes from January 2005 through the present day.
Insurance Escrow Account
Secondly, I am highly concerned about the economic viability of GGRC in light of RML’s huge $152,000 negative annual cash flow. With that concern in mind, I am highly concerned that Joe Thomas and the Board of Directors have been negligent with regard to Article X of the Master Deed.
Article X, entitled “Insurance”, provides in Section 3 that all owners are to pay a separate check for their pro rata share of the Common Expense for insurance so that it can be deposited into a separate trust account.
I am highly concerned that there has never been any requirement of any kind by Joe Thomas and the board for any owner to abide by this requirement since my purchase in 2005. I am further concerned that all owners at Deer Ridge are not being afforded the economic protection provided by Article X Section 3 of the Master Deed. I believe there may not be any separate escrow account established and properly funded in accordance with Section 3 of Article X.
Since the annual insurance premium is substantive at approximately $55,000, my calculations show that approximately $4,583 should be escrowed each month and the amount of the account balance should be sufficient to pay the annual $55,000 sixty days prior to the due date as required by the Master Deed.
Proof Of Protection For ALL Owners Against A Lapse In Insurance Coverage
It is critical for ALL owners that we have sufficient funds to pay our property insurance annual payment when it is due – and not risk ANY potential lapse in coverage that could very detrimentally affect us all.
By way of verifying that Joe Thomas and the board have properly abided by the Master Deed on these issues, I, will be IMMEDIATELY requesting the following be provided to me, in accordance with the Tennessee Horizontal Property Act:
A copy of the current, and most recent three years, annual insurance policy cover page, showing due date of insurance premium, coverage and coverage dates.
A copy of the current and past 24 months of bank statements for the separate escrow account that is required to be maintained for the insurance payment.
Since I am also concerned that Joe Thomas and the board have fulfilled their commitment and promise to maintain a separate escrow account for the “special assessment”, I also request a copy of the current and past 15 months of bank statements for the separate escrow account that is required for the “special assessment.”
By my count, this should only require copying fewer than a hundred pages.
Assuming that Joe Thomas and the board have, in fact, properly abided by The Master Deed and Bylaws, I would assume there would be no problem in immediately providing these relevant and reasonable requests for information on my investment at Deer Ridge.
Even More Violations By Joe Thomas And The Board?
It will be interesting to see if these documents and accounts exist – or, more expectantly, are yet again even more violations of our Master Deed and Bylaws by Joe Thomas and the board. If these documents and accounts don’t exist in their proper format, it is my opinion that this, by itself, is sufficient reason to fire Joe Thomas and the entire board for “cause” for gross negligence and gross incompetence.
What’s Your Experience With These Documents?
As to whether these documents and accounts exist, let me ask all owners:
Have YOU ever written a separate check to the Insurance escrow account as required by our Master Deed?
Have YOU ever given GGRC a copy of YOUR mortgage?
If your answer is NO, then I think we probably already know the answers as to whether Joe Thomas and the board have been violating yet MORE parts of the governing documents for Deer Ridge Mountain Resort.
We’ve just added a new video to our Deer Ridge Owners Channel at YouTube.com. As always, you can watch in hi def and also full screen here or you can view it directly at YouTube.com by clicking the YouTube symbol on the bottom corner of the video.
The Pathetic Pavilion
This video shows the current state of the Joe’s Folly Picnic Pavilion at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort. These problems have been there for MONTHS…and it’s inexcusable state of disrepair is an embarrassment and a very bad reflection on Deer Ridge to owners, guests and tourists.
Inexcusable.
These photos were taken around Deer Ridge Mountain Resort, Gatlinburg, Tennessee, mostly on March 19, 2011.
In my opinion, what you are about to see is a dismal indication of gross mismanagement by Joe Thomas, General Manager, at Deer Ridge.
Good First Impression, Huh?
Tourists see this mismanagement every time they walk the Nature Trail or walk the property.
Tourists see this mismanagement every time they take their kids to the playground.
Is this the image of Deer Ridge that you want your guests to have when they visit or rent from you?
It’s been INEXCUSABLY like this for MONTHS.
Joe Thomas never walks the property any more?
We have 3 or 4 on site maintenance people on the payroll.
None had time during past MONTHS to have one of them fix this stuff that take less than one day?
The maintenance staff of 3 or 4 does what they are told to do by General Manager Joe Thomas.
In my opinion, I think it is clearly obvious that Joe Thomas, as General Manager, is doing a pathetic job of managing – and should be fired ASAP for gross incompetence and gross mismanagement.
Instead, the “board” just gave Joey a 10% raise.
Find Out More – Watch The Video
When you look at this video, try to imagine how this same level of management incompetent translates across the entire property – and even into your own unit.
Stay Tuned For More Upcoming Deer Ridge Mountain Resort Videos
PS: I am not an attorney and these opinions are my own. Please be sure and refer to the full disclaimer language in the side bars and the Terms of this website.
As you know from one of my recent postings, we finally have a hearing date set for my litigation against Joe Thomas, Luther Parker, Larry Ohm, Margie Duncan, David Barone and Tom Reise. Copies of all four motions that will be heard on April 26, 2011 are shown below. Click on each photo to download the entire Acrobat file for each document that has been filed with the Court.
We are covering several issues during this hearing that will be pivotal for this case that could cause a major, consequential and immediate impact to the way that Deer Ridge Mountain Resort is operated. We are asking that the judge issue an immediate ruling on his interpretation of the Deer Ridge Master Deed and Bylaws which we believe have been grossly and purposely misinterpreted by Joe Thomas and the rest of the Gang of Six.
The changes resulting from a favorable ruling could include:
The Judge’s ruling could determine, once and for all, how everyone’s monthly assessment is calculated, including HOA fees, water and cable TV bills. If we win this one point, all 30 of the 1-1 units should no longer be overcharged 82% every month on their HOA fee!
The Judge’s ruling could determine, once and for all, how much, if any, will be owed by each owner on the current “special assessment” and the right amounts that should have been charged on all prior “special assessments.”
The Judge’s ruling could determine, once and for all, whether the current charge to all owners for this year’s portion of the “special assessment” will be blocked by our motion for temporary and permenant injunction.
The Judge’s ruling could determine, once and for all, whether RML and RRR (Ridge Resort Realty) are legitmate or not…and whether they were created as ultra viresacts by “board” members, making them possibly personal liable to repay all costs associated with RML and RRR for the past several years. (My calculations show that RML alone has cost owners at least $118,000 a year…so multiply this by The Six years we’ve owned and that equates to over $700,000 that might be owed back to GGRC by the individual “board” members.)
The Judge’s ruling could determine, once and for all, that all improvements and alterations require both a positive vote by 75% of all owners AND 90% of all mortgagees. If the judge rules in our favor on this, that means that about $82,000, or 23% of the entire $353,500 Asinine Assessment were illegally spent by the “board” since they adamently refused to follow the Master Deed and Bylaws on this point, even knowing it was required. If this ruling goes in our favor, the “board” can be judged, again, to have been acting ultra vires…which means that each of the “board” members could be held jointly and severally liable for the full amount of the illegitimate expenditures.
This same ruling should make the “board” members also personally liable for all those past improvements and alterations that were done where they ignored my demands for the past 6 years to solicit the required 75% vote of all owners. These include:
Joe’s Folly – The $80,000 picnic pavillion that should have never been built.
New pool decking – $30,000
Reception area and office improvements – $25,000
Maintenance building improvements and addtions – $15,000
Chairs for weddings, etc. - $3,200
Playground equipment – $3,000
New computers and office equipment – $5,000
Vehicles, golf carts, etc. ???
Game room equipment ???
Commercial laundry room equipment for RML ???
All of these monies were spent by the board without proper authority and approval by the owners at Deer Ridge.
Some of these amounts are guesses and I am sure this list of improvements and additions is not comprehensive. But once we are finally allowed to see the real books and records as provided by Tennessee state law, we expect that we will be able to add lots more to this list and correct the numbers here.
Even without the addtions, the above list adds up to more than $161,200 that would be ultra viresviolations by the “board.”
All totalled, this could make the “board” members individually responsible to personally pay back over $940,000.
If we divide this amount by the 5 board members, that would equal $188,000 that each would be responsible to pay. However, it is my understanding that all board members are “jointly and severally” liable for this amount…which means that each board member is fully responsible for the whole amount if and when one board member or another doesn’t pay. If this happens, I can easily envision lawsuits being filed by one “board” member against another demanding that they pay their fair share of any court ordered reimbursements back to GGRC. If lawsuits between “board” members were to happen, all kinds of “smoking guns” disclosures might be uncovered.
The Other Key Motion
We also filed a Motion to Compel so that this Despicable Gang of Six is forced by the Court to finally turn over the Deer Ridge books and records.
It’s been nine months since we filed our motion for production of documents with the Court — but so far Joe Thomas and the “board” have not complied.
We have been waiting fornine months for Joe Thomas to turn over the books and records on GGRC that all owners have a right to see.
Joe Thomas keeps adamantly stating that he has properly maintained the Administrator’s Book as required by Tennessee state law. Joey keeps saying they have this information, in the right format — but they don’t seem to be able to produce it.
I wonder why?
Now, Joey and the Gang are trying to mark all of Deer Ridge’s books and records as “confidential‘ to keep us from sharing them with YOU – all past and present owners At Deer Ridge who also have a right to see and thoroughly study the books and records concerning OUR investment in our property at Deer Ridge.
They claim these books and records and the emails between the six Gang members “… may cause injury, prejudice or [particularly] embarrassment” to Joe Thomas, Luther Parker, Larry Ohm, Margie Duncan, David Baron and Tom Reise.
As our Motion states, these “embarrassing” consequences fall in the category of “sometimes the truth hurts.”
Additionally, our motion to block their “protective” order stipulates we completely agree that obvious information such as Social Security numbers, credit card numbers and the like will be treated as confidential….but NOT all the rest of the information that we will find in these documents.
We fully expect to find all kinds of “embarrassing” actions and statements, done and made, by this Gang of Six.
We fully expect to also find all kinds of other questionable activities that have been committed by these individuals.
And, we, and several other Deer Ridge owners, plan on looking VERY carefully and diligently for any and all signs of any potential civil and/or criminal malfeasance that might have, just maybe, been committed by any, or all, members of the Gang. As of now, we’ve not seen any documentation that proves malfeasance — but then again, we have yet to get the full books and records we’ve been requesting for over five years. Right now, we only have our overwhelming intuition that screams about ongoing malfeasance.
Maybe we won’t find any such malfeasance — but if we do, any and all guilty parties will suffer a whole lot more than simple “embarrassment.”
Maybe that’s why the Gang members are continuing their desperate FIVE YEAR long attempts to keep this information secret. They seem terrified their secrets are going to finally see the light of day.
We believe that’s one of the reasons that Joe Thomas and the Gang have fought so hard, for so many years, to keep this information out of the hands of the owners who deserve full visibility, full disclosure and full accountability from those who have been handling over $1 million a year on this property for a decade.
What IS it that terrifies them so much about what we will find in those books and records?
We ARE going to get to the bottom of this.
We ARE going to get access to all the books and records that Joey and the board have tried for years to keep secret.
And, we intend to do everything we can to block their motion for “protective” order — so that we can share ALL of this information with EVERY owner At Deer Ridge Mountain Resort.
Note – Temporary Injunction To Block Special Assessment Payment – Should You Pay?
Notice that Section 4 of the Motion For Summary Judgment includes wording that we “seek a temporary and permanent injunction prohibiting and restraining the Board from attempting to make any alterations or additions to the Common Elements except in compliance with the seventy-five (75%) percent and ninety (90%) percent requirements of Article XII subsection 2 set out above, including the $340,000 “Special Assessment .. currently being billed to Association members.” (The $340,000 is a typo that is being corrected to reflect the full $353,500.)
Bottom line: We believe this wording blocks any and all collection by GGRC for the “special assessment” if the judge agrees with our motion. You should be your own judge of this document and its intent and decide for yourself if you are required, in light of this pending court action, to make the currently due special assessment payment. We believe it is germaine that 23% of this special assessment is for walkway railings and lighting improvements that did not have the required 75% / 90% vote. Also, germaine is that the calculated amount for every unit does not abide by the Master Deed Percentages – which means that the amounts of all payments due from all owners would be significantly different.
This seems like two very good reasons to me that the Judge should award both a temporary and permanent injunction against this Asinine Assessment.
Lots More Info
Please check out the following links for more information on these issues – and what we hope to gain from our $3 million lawsuit against Joe Thomas, Luther Parker, Larry Ohm, Margie Duncan, David Barone and Tom Reise.
Motion For Summary Judgement & Temporary Injunction - Click For Document
Motion To Compel - Click For Document
Motion To Dismiss and Judgment on Pleadings - Click For Document
Motion For Protective Order - Click For Document
Stay Tuned!
We live in interesting times!
Tick…tick…tick.
PS: I am not an attorney and these opinions are my own. Please be sure and refer to the full disclaimer language in the side bars and the Terms of this website.
PPS: Be sure and watch this blog for upcoming news about our new domain name: HOABoardAbuse.com and our two new video channels on YouTube.com: DeerRidgeOwners.com and HOABoardAbuse.com. In-depth videos are being produced to fully explain, to all Owners and the World, exactly what is happening both at Deer Ridge and at other abusive HOA Board run properties across the Nation. These videos will be posted on both DeerRidgeOwners.com and YouTube.com.
Stay tuned – you never know what videos might go viral!
Videos on Deer Ridge Owners Litigation Coming To This Blog AND To YouTube!
I understand how complex all this litigation stuff can be to many folks. There are so many issues involved – and then you add the noise from all the spurious claims and misinformation generated by Joe Thomas and the rest of the Gang of Six – it’s no wonder that some owners here at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort get confused.
As time permits during the next few weeks, I plan on starting a series of narrated videos that will discuss:
Details of both the $1 million lawsuit against me – and my $3 million lawsuit against Joe Thomas and the “board” of Gatlinburg Golf and Racquet Club, GGRC, the HOA here at Deer Ridge. This “board” is comprised of Luther Parker, Larry Ohm, Margie Duncan, Tom Reise and David Barone.
The upcoming hearing in April on the Summary Judgment on several of our claims – and exactly what we expect to gain in the short term. This Summary Judgment, alone, could have massive, pivotal, impacts on Deer Ridge.
The ongoing litigation regarding a variety of issues where we will be seeking damages, interest and penalties. In these cases, depositions, interrogatories and testimony from the stand will be required from past and current employees of GGRC and RML to prove our case along with the same from Joe Thomas and the “board.”
RML’s “Continued Viability” as “board” member Larry Ohm described it in his letter to all owners. We plan on doing a video on this subject – including all the negative comments we are hearing from tourists who visit Deer Ridge - and all the negative reviews posted on Trip Advisor, etc. – that all point to how Deer Ridge is not a competitive motel property in the Gatlinburg / Pigeon Forge area.
Other detailed videos to better explain some of the operational and managerial issues that occur at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort.
Multiple videos on a variety of general HOA issues, abuses and injustices that are negatively impacting millions of homeowners nationwide that now live in HOA communities.
The format of the videos will probably be a combination of PowerPoint slides, photos, other video — usually accompanied with narration.
YouTube.Com
In addition to posting these videos on this blog, we have already set up a new Deer Ridge Owners account, and channel, on YouTube.com so that I can post these same videos for the entire world to see.
While the entire world may not care that much about what is happening specifically at Deer Ridge, I believe there is a huge audience for the kinds of video described above in Point 6.
HOABoardAbuse.Com
One of the many things I’ve learned from having operated this blog for DeerRidgeOwners.com for the past 17 months is that we are not alone in suffering under a board of directors that does not operate in accordance with either state law or the governing documents of our property.
I’ve received a massive amount of emails, and other communications, from owners who live in HOA communities that are run like fiefdoms – just like Deer Ridge Mountain Resort – where owner’s rights are being either ignored or trampled – or both – and worse.
I can tell you that there is a growing outcry and demand for justice from many of these HOA board-abused owners.
Many, like me, believe that it is way past time that the federal government, and individual state governments, finally get involved in overseeing and controlling these quasi-government agencies called HOAs.
As such, we now own the domain name HOABoardAbuse.com and have also set up it’s own channel on YouTube.com. Right now, the domain links back to DeerRidgeOwners.com – but we plan on developing separate content for that domain that will, hopefully, provide an effective forum for change of HOAs across the country.
I greatly dislike the idea of big government and wasted tax dollars.
However, there is SO much HOA abuse out there, nationwide, that there desperately needs to be much more government control, monitoring, oversight and punishment of out-of-control boards like we have at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort. With over 20% of the USA population now living under HOA controls of some kind, we need new laws and government agencies that can ensure that state laws like the Tennessee Horizontal Property Act are followed to the letter so that individual homeowners, like me, are not required to spend tens of thousands of dollars to get abusive HOA boards. like Deer Ridge, to do what they’re supposed to do in the first place.
Increased Visibility For A Nationwide Problem
It’s my hope that by posting all these videos, including the ones specifically about Deer Ridge Mountain Resort here in Gatlinburg, on YouTube will help ignite a nationwide movement for HOA reform and justice. Because of the growing uproar about HOA injustices across the country, it’s my hope that one or more of these videos might even go viral. The good news is: if one goes viral, it will draw a larger audience to the other videos. And even a minor viral video could generate a lot of local and national press coverage with newspapers, magazines, radio and TV picking up the story and the issues.
Additionally, each of these videos will contain links back to DeerRidgeOwners.com and HOABoardAbuse.com. This could have the effect of greatly amplifying the audience of this blog which, hopefully, will include local, state and federal officials who will finally be motivated to help solve this growing problem.
Hearing Date Finally Set For Summary Judgement And Motion To Compel Filed Against GGRC, Joe Thomas And The “Board”
We finally get this case before the Judge on April 26, 2011. This is a copy of a letter sent by our attorney to the Court:
This first court date is not for everything – but it is for some very pivotal motions and especially for a Summary Judgment on THREE issues – instead of just the two issues that we originally included in our first motion for Summary Judgment that was filed back in November:
The Master Deed Percentages must be followed – that these clearly stated ratios contained in the Master Deed must be followed for all assessments and common expenses for all owners at Deer Ridge.
Establish the Illegitimacy of RML and Ridge Resort Realty – there is no provision whatsoever in our Master Deed for owners at Deer Ridge to support and fund, and be exposed to the business risks of operating two small businesses. This is not the purpose of a real estate investment in a residential home.
Article XII of the Master Deed must be followed - it requires that the board must have both a 75% vote by homeowners AND a 90% vote by all mortgagees involved with the ownership of Deer Ridge units before any alterations, additions or improvements are made to the common elements of the property.
We have also filed Motions to Compel Joe Thomas and the “board” to finally provide us the books and records of Deer Ridge Mountain Resort in the exact format that is required by Tennessee state law.
We have also filed a Motion for Temporary Injunction to block the currently due second phase of the Asinine Assessment payment.
We believe that the Three Summary Judgment issues are clear cut interpretations of the Master Deed and Bylaws – and do not require findings of fact. As a consequence, a Summary Judgment can be pursued on these three issues.
As such, we are asking the Court to read the controlling documents of Deer Ridge Mountain Resort and rule on the spot on the proper interpretation of the GGRC controlling documents and Tennessee State Law. Since many of our claims rests solely on the proper interpretation of the master documents, there is no need for discovery, depositions or testimony for this part of our litigation. Instead, the controlling documents speak for themselves — and only require the Court to read the 90 pages of our Master Deed and Bylaws and make a ruling based on the Judge’s sole interpretation of these documents.
We are highly confident that our interpretations will prevail — and the strained, manipulated and flatly wrong interpretations that Joey and the Gang have depended on for years will be denied by the Court.
The first issue for Summary Judgment will be that the Master Deed Percentages MUST be followed for all cost allocations and assessments — instead of being based on the “arbitrary and capricious” methods that Joey and the “board” use to illegitimately overcharge all 30 1-1 units by awhopping 82% every single month!
If we win on this one point, this means EVERY assessment – including the monthly assessments and the expenses for water, cable TV, etc. - for EVERY unit has been wrongly charged for YEARS – including, of course, the amounts for the Asinine Assessment and all other past assessments.
If we win on this one point, we believe that this will have FAR reaching consequences to EVERY current owner at Deer Ridge – especially all 30 of the 1-1 unit owners who have been victimized for years.
If we win on this one point, ALL the current, and many past, 1-1 unit owners should be owed a SUBSTANTIAL amount of money refunding the gross monthly overcharges that Luther Parker amazingly stated, “were fair and equitable.”
We would expect that these 1-1 unit owners would also be awarded interest and penalties. All of these refunds, interest, penalties may also be owed to dozens, if not hundreds, of past owners, thereby making the claims against the counter defendants even more substantial.
If we win this one point during our Motion for Summary Judgment, it should stop all future violations by The Gang of Six as well as any new board from trying to circumvent the GGRC documents.
Likewise, we are asking the Court to rule that RML and RRR are illegitimate – and all the monies that have been squandered over the years supporting these companies are not admissible Common Expenses. We believe that a review of the controlling documents by the Court will quickly establish that there is NO provision in our Master Deed and Bylaws for all homeowners at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort to be subjected to the costs and risks that are inherent with starting and running small businesses.
If we win this one point, we will take expedited legal steps so that RML and RRR will be immediately shut down and disposed of by selling those companies to the highest bidder out of any and all potential buyers with the proceeds paid to those owners who were not a part of RML.
By winning this one point of Summary Judgment, we get rid of RML and RRR, and the hemorrhageof HALF our current monthly assessments will be finally stopped — and we’ll finally be out of the motel business. This one point alone will dramatically change the way GGRC and Deer Ridge Mountain Resort have been managed, or rather mismanaged, for over a decade – and allow for a MAJOR reduction in the HOA fees for most all homeowners.
Article XII of the Master Deed clearly provides that there shall be no alterations or additions to the common elements or any part thereof except as authorized by the Board of Directors and approved by not less than 75% of the total vote of co-owners AND not less than 90% of the mortgagees. First, I had to fight the Gang of Six with regard to the requirement that a 75% vote of the total co-owners was required for any alterations or addition or improvements at Deer Ridge. I finally won this point during a board meeting in which the board’s attorney, Chuck Sexton, was present. However, the Gang of Six continues to refuse to pursue the 90% vote of the mortgagees as required by our Master Deed.
If we win this one point during our Motion for Summary Judgment on April 26, we intend to aggressively and immediately pursue forcing reimbursement directly from the members of the “Board of Directors” for their ultra vires acts of illegitimately squandering over $120,000 of owners’ money…including all monies recently spent on the walkway railings. Even as recently as the vote on the walkway railings, Luther Parker and the rest of the “board” categorically refused to even pursue the required 90% vote of all mortgagees and gaveled me out of order at a board meeting to stop my insistence that the governing documents required it. If we win this one point during our Motion for Summary Judgment, it should stop all future violations by The Gang of Six as well as any new board from trying to circumvent the GGRC documents.
It will also be interesting to see what happens to the defense of Joe Thomas and the “board” by the insurance company if we are successful in proving that this Gang of Six was acting ultra vires since all indemnifications of them defined in the Master Deed and Bylaws are null and void. This would make all members of the Gang of Six jointly and severally libel and fully responsible for their own legal costs in defending themselves against our $3 million lawsuit…along with them being jointly and severally libel and fully responsible for any repayments, penalties, interest, punitive damages, etc.
These are just the first three issues for Summary Judgment. If we are successful with these, we expect to move for Summary Judgment on other fundamental interpretations of our Master Deed and Bylaws that will stop the Gang’s abuse of it power.
We believe that pursuing the Summary Judgment is in the best interest of all parties, including all homeowners, to expeditiously resolve some of the more outstanding issues regarding our litigation.
Other Ongoing Litigation
We intend to continue to pursue our litigation on all other areas of our lawsuit too…some of the other areas will entail findings of fact that will require depositions and testimony and, as a consequence, are not subject to Summary Judgment. These will require in-depth litigation and may include damages, interest and penalties, along with payment of all of our legal fees, as we continue to pursue this matter.
We expect, in the near term, to be taking the depositions and interrogatories of Joe Thomas, Luther Parker, Tom Reise, Margie Duncan and other members of the “board.” Depositions and interrogatories will probably be taken from past and current employees and past “board” members.
(I personally can’t wait to get Joe Thomas and Luther Parker and some of the other “board” members to testify under oath – and ask some very specific questions concerning their decision-making process and ask them for very detailed explanations about several entries in the books and records!)
So, all you Gang Members — get ready to give your depositions and interrogatories — and get ready to testify in Court.
Joey And the Gang Are Worried About Being ”Embarrassed”
We also filed a Motion to Compel so that this Despicable Gang of Six is forced by the Court to finally turn over the Deer Ridge books and records.
It’s been seven months since we filed our motion for production of documents with the Court — but so far Joe Thomas and the “board” have not complied.
We have been waiting forseven months for Joe Thomas to turn over the books and records on GGRC that all owners have a right to see.
Joe Thomas keeps adamantly stating that he has properly maintained the Administrator’s Book as required by Tennessee state law. Joey keeps saying they have this information, in the right format — but they don’t seem to be able to produce it.
I wonder why?
Now, Joey and the Gang are trying to mark all of Deer Ridge’s books and records as “confidential‘ to keep us from sharing them with YOU – all past and present owners At Deer Ridge who also have a right to see and thoroughly study the books and records concerning OUR investment in our property at Deer Ridge.
They claim these books and records and the emails between the six Gang members “… may cause injury, prejudice or [particularly] embarrassment” to Joe Thomas, Luther Parker, Larry Ohm, Margie Duncan, David Baron and Tom Reise.
As our Motion states, these “embarrassing” consequences fall in the category of “sometimes the truth hurts.”
Additionally, our motion to block their “protective” order stipulates we completely agree that obvious information such as Social Security numbers, credit card numbers and the like will be treated as confidential….but NOT all the rest of the information that we will find in these documents.
We fully expect to find all kinds of “embarrassing” actions and statements, done and made, by this Gang of Six.
We fully expect to also find all kinds of other questionable activities that have been committed by these individuals.
And, we, and several other Deer Ridge owners, plan on looking VERY carefully and diligently for any and all signs of any potential civil and/or criminal malfeasance that might have, just maybe, been committed by any, or all, members of the Gang. As of now, we’ve not seen any documentation that proves malfeasance — but then again, we have yet to get the full books and records we’ve been requesting for over five years. Right now, we only have our overwhelming intuition that screams about ongoing malfeasance.
Maybe we won’t find any such malfeasance — but if we do, any and all guilty parties will suffer a whole lot more than simple “embarrassment.”
Maybe that’s why the Gang members are continuing their desperate FIVE YEAR long attempts to keep this information secret. They seem terrified their secrets are going to finally see the light of day.
We believe that’s one of the reasons that Joe Thomas and the Gang have fought so hard, for so many years, to keep this information out of the hands of the owners who deserve full visibility, full disclosure and full accountability from those who have been handling over $1 million a year on this property for a decade.
What IS it that terrifies them so much about what we will find in those books and records?
We ARE going to get to the bottom of this.
We ARE going to get access to all the books and records that Joey and the board have tried for years to keep secret.
And, we intend to do everything we can to block their motion for “protective” order — so that we can share ALL of this information with EVERY owner At Deer Ridge Mountain Resort.
April 26, 2011
The Court date is set. April 26, 2011. After nearly 9 months of litigation, this will be our first hearing before the Court. We now have a fixed hearing date – less than two months from now.
If the Court agrees with us on these motions, we may be able to short circuit a lot of the Gang of Six BS and delays — and finally get rulings on these issues and effectuate major changes at Deer Ridge.
If Joey and the Gang really want quick resolution of this, they should be all in favor of getting an expedited ruling on the three issues in the Motion for Summary Judgment.
What do you want to bet that they will do EVERYTHING in their power to drag this out — and try their best to delay any ruling of any kind?
If so, that is just more proof to me that they KNOW they are NOT doing things the right way.
I will try to make the time this week to post copies of the new motions we have just filed so all of you can review them in detail.
What will be interesting will be the report that the Gang has to made at the “annual meeting” on April 30th, which is the weekend immediately following the Court date. Will they prepare two different meeting agenda and presentations – depending on what they may win or lose a few days earlier?
Resignations and “Retirement”
Also, we have overheard gossip that Joey and other members of the Gang of Six believe that they can simply walk away from being held responsible for their past acts and actions by either resigning or retiring…or even selling their unit at Deer Ridge.
Just to be clear, resignations and retirement will not absolve ANY wrongdoings by Joey and the Gang…and if we discover ANY malfeasance of ANY kind by ANY “board” member or employee, we will do everything we can to enforce ALL appropriate justice.
Stay tuned — We Live In Interesting Times!
The rulings on the upcoming Motion for Summary Judgment on April 26, 2011, along with our other motions, could end up drastically changing the current way virtually everything is done at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort. Plus, once we finally get the books and records on this property….well, we fully expect to find all sorts of “interesting” facts about actions and monies paid that might not have been in the best interests of ALL owners.
Hey Joey and the Gang…less than two months until our Court date….when, as Galatians 5:1 sort of states, ”Deer Ridge Owners shall know the truth, and the truth shall set us free.” Of course, the freedom of The Gang of Six might depend on what we find once we finally get to see the books and records!
Tick…tick…tick.
PS: I am not an attorney and these opinions are my own. Please be sure and refer to the full disclaimer language in the side bars and the Terms of this website.
PPS: Be sure and watch this blog for upcoming news about our new domain name: HOABoardAbuse.com and our two new video channels on YouTube.com: DeerRidgeOwners.com and HOABoardAbuse.com. In-depth videos are being produced to fully explain, to all Owners and the World, exactly what is happening both at Deer Ridge and at other abusive HOA Board run properties across the Nation. These videos will be posted on both DeerRidgeOwners.com and YouTube.com.
Stay tuned – you never know what videos might go viral!
In response to their meritless, retaliatory $1 Million defamation lawsuit against me, I have now filed a $3 Million lawsuit against Deer Ridge Mountain Resort, AKA Gatlinburg Golf and Racquet Club HOA and Joe Thomas, Luther Parker, Larry Ohm, Margie Duncan, David Barone and Tom Reise, all as individuals.
The lawsuit against GGRC et al is best summed up by the following on the front page of the suit:
The Defendant would show to the Court that the Complaint filed in this cause is a retaliatory effort by an illegitimately constituted board of directors to stifle legitimate criticism of the Plaintiffs in violation of the United States and Tennessee Constitutions as well as the Defendant’s rights under the Tennessee Nonprofit Corporation Act, T.C.A. §48-51-101 et seq., the Tennessee Horizontal Property Act, T.C.A. §66-27 -101 et seq. as well as the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act, T.C.A. §47-18-101 et seq.
The Lawsuit – The Executive Summary
The Executive Summary of our Counter Suit includes that:
This will be a jury trial.
All of the claims in the specious defamation lawsuit brought by the “board” be dismissed since the illegitimately constituted “board” had, and has, no authority whatsoever to bind GGRC in any action – or to waste owners’ money on a self serving lawsuit.
I get all of my legal fees and court costs paid by GGRC and / or the individual board members and Joe Thomas.
The Court certify our claim as a class action lawsuit – so that ALL current AND past 1-1 owners at Deer Ridge can be compensated for the discriminatory gross overcharges that the current and past “boards” have forced on all one bedroom owners.
The Court declare this to be a derivative action – which means that we will represent GGRC in a lawsuit against all the individuals “board” members and Joe Thomas so that THEY pay for much of these transgressions instead of GGRC – and that they get NO indemnification protection for their illegitimate actions.
We get an injunction stopping the illegitimate Asinine Assessment and forcing Joe Thomas and the “board” to turn over ALL monies to the Court that have been already collected for payments of the Asinine Assessment. That way, those funds paid by owners are protected from being squandered by Joe Thomas and the “board.”
We get a declaratory judgment that all members of the illegally constituted board be removed permanently from office.
We will unwind ALL of the decisions made by all of the current and past illegitimate boards for GGRC for the past 22 years since ALL boards have been illegitimately constituted.
A court appointed receiver take over all operations and management of GGRC and RML and until the Court is able to determine if GGRC should be dissolved – or that an untainted Board can be elected, with said new board receiving guidance from the Court enforcing the governing documents of GGRC.
RML and Ridge Resort Realty, as illegitimate entities, be dissolved and eliminated – with all assets transferred to GGRC.
The Court declares that there is no authority for GGRC to operate a rental or brokerage business and issue a permanent injunction prohibiting inclusion of any real estate rental or brokerage expenses as part of the Common Expenses.
The Court rule that GGRC and the “board” participated in the “unfair and deceptive trade practice within the meaning of the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act, T.C.A. 47-18-101, et seq. entitling the Defendant to treble damages and attorney’s fees pursuant to T. C.A 47-18-109 for willful and knowing violations of the act. In addition, the Defendant maintains these actions by the Plaintiffs are intentional, malicious and fraudulent entitling the Defendant to punitive damages.”
The Court award me compensatory damages for the illegal assessments in the amount of $1 million and punitive damages of $2 million for violations of the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act, for a total owed to me of $3 million, plus attorney fees, etc.
The Court declare that the Master Deed Percentages MUST be followed with strict compliance with respect to ALL Common Expenses and assessments, including the water and cable bill.
The Court force GGRC and Joe Thomas and all “board” members to finally abide by Tennessee state law in providing the chronological Administrators’ Book and supporting chronological vouchers, including the right to make copies of all such records.
The Court issue an injunction and declaration prohibiting and restraining the board from making any alterations or additions to the Common Elements without both the 75% vote of all owners AND the 90% vote of all mortgage holders for all units at Deer Ridge.
All six counter defendants, including Joe Thomas, be required to pay back the approximate $120,000 illegally spent by them on unapproved alterations and additions such as the picnic pavilion, pool building, maintenance building and office space. This amount will probably be increased by about $50,000 as a result of Joe Thomas and the current “board” ignoring the 90% vote requirement for all mortgage holders and proceeding, without proper authority, to replace the walkway railings that are currently under construction at Deer Ridge.
The above are my non-attorney opinions and interpretations of the $3 million lawsuit. There are other, significant nuances and major impacts to GGRC that are contained in our counter suit. I invite all owners to click Counterclaim to read the entire lawsuit and interpret the paragraphs for yourself.
Some Of The Goals Of Our Counter Suit
So, basically, if we win, our just filed lawsuit will hopefully accomplish ALL of the following:
We will do away with RML and Ridge Resort Realty as illegitimate entities and stop the $152,000 a year loss to GGRC each year.
We will force GGRC to abide by the Master Deed Percentages and stop overcharging the 30 1-1 owners by 82% each month.
We will stop the Asinine Assessment – including an injunction stopping the illegitimate filing of liens and potential foreclosure of owners’ units and any illegal interference with the use of the Common Elements.
We will unwind many, if not all, of the decisions made by ALL the illegitimate boards for the past 22 years.
We will force Joe Thomas and the “board” members to pay back all of the money squandered on unapproved projects including the current walkway railing project.
We will create a class action lawsuit for all past and present 1-1 owners who have been financially discriminated against with gross overcharges.
We will force Joe Thomas and the “board” out of power and control on this property.
We will force Joe Thomas and the “board” to finally abide by state law and provide copies of the Administrator’s Book to any and all owners.
We will keep Joe Thomas and the “board” from continuing to illegally expend major funds on unapproved projects, forcing them to personally pay back those funds to GGRC.
We will prove their defamation suit to be worthless and a waste of GGRC money.
$3 million plus legal fees will be paid back to us for the “board’s” deceptive trade practices and for some of the abuses, including the abuse of power and capricious and arbitrary decisions that Joe Thomas and all those illegitimate boards have tried to enforce for the past six years we’ve owned here.
By making this a derivative action, we hope to make GGRC the plaintiff and Joe Thomas and Luther Parker, Larry Ohm, Margie Duncan, David Barone and Tom Reise, all as individual defendants, pay most if not all of the above.
Stay tuned for a LOT more about this over the coming weeks. But I wanted to let you all know about this – and give you all a copy of the Counter Suit as quickly as possible.
Interesting Times
Be sure and watch for the upcoming post where I will show you how Joe Thomas and the “board” have been lying to you about RML being a positive cash flow company. Stay tuned for the right numbers that will show how RML is losing $152,000 a year in NEGATIVE CASH FLOW right out of ALL of our pockets!
And, speaking of numbers…all of the above does NOT include potential, additional, significant legal actions that may be required against certain individuals once we start looking over EVERY entry in the REAL Administrator’s books and records…and the front and back of every check…for the last 10 years…
“There is a Chinese curse which says ‘May he live in interesting times.’ Like it or not, we live in interesting times.” Robert Kennedy.
I recommend that you don’t send your ballot or your proxy for the upcoming “Annual Meeting” or board elections – nor even attend the “Annual Meeting!”
On the advice of my attorney, I will be doing neither.
I will NOT be voting nor will I attend the meeting this week.
I want to reserve ALL of my rights against Joe Thomas and the “board” – and I recommend that you reserve your rights too.
Reserve YOUR Rights
I recommend that all of us boycott participation in both the vote
and any attendance of the “annual meeting” this week.
Don’t limit your options or your potential claims against Joe Thomas, Luther Parker and the rest of the “board.” Notify Joe Thomas and Luther by email and / or fax that you are revoking and withdrawing any ballot or proxy you have already sent. All you have to do is send something like the following to “Joe Thomas” <manager@deerridge.com>, “Luther Parker” <parker.luther@gmail.com>, “David A. Barone” <davidbarone@optonline.net> – or to fax for Deer Ridge at: 865-430-3248
To: Joe Thomas and Luther Parker and David Barone and GGRC “Board”
Re: Immediate and Permanent Revocation and Rescission of My Ballot and/or Proxy
Effective this date, I hereby revoke and rescind any and all previously sent proxy or ballot with regard to the upcoming Deer Ridge meeting that is scheduled to be held on April 24, 2010. By this memo, I also confirm that I will not attend, nor participate in any way, at said meeting.
Please confirm receipt of this revocation in writing via email to xxxx@yyy.com
Check out our new Deer Ridge Owners webcam for the current view from our balcony!
Just click the photo for the most recent update. Updated every 5 minutes.
Top 10 Cam Award!
Our new Cobbly Nob TN site was just chosen as an Earthcam Top 10 Webcam!
All of this in just our first two weeks of operation - and before we install our new wide angle, high definition lens! Stay tuned for even better images!
EarthCam, Inc. is the global leader in providing webcam content, technology and services and ranks among the top 1% of all websites. EarthCam.com is the world’s favorite webcam network and the EarthCam Network cameras have been seen on top news shows, including CNN’s Headline News.
New YouTube Channel For Deer Ridge Owners!
Check out ALL of our videos on our new YouTube Channel for Deer Ridge Owners:
We already have videos that will walk you around the whole property and give you reviews from past guests and tourists. Find out what they REALLY have to say about Deer Ridge!
We are adding even more videos in the next few weeks - so check out our Deer Ridge Owners Channel often!
Update: Just added two new videos for a total of 20 videos so far! Check them out!
Owner Files $3 Million Lawsuit Against HOA, General Manager And Board Members
A homeowner in Gatlinburg, Tennessee has filed a $3 Million Lawsuit against his HOA, General Manager And All Individual Board Members at Deer Ridge Mountain Resort.
In response to their meritless, retaliatory $1 Million defamation lawsuit against me, I have now filed a $3 Million lawsuit against Deer Ridge Mountain Resort, AKA Gatlinburg Golf and Racquet Club HOA and Joe Thomas, Luther Parker, Larry Ohm, Margie Duncan, David Barone and Tom Reise, all as individuals.
If you believe in free speech as much as we do, we need your help - no matter where in America you may live.
The Deer Ridge HOA board and individual board members have filed a $1 Million Lawsuit against me in their ongoing attempts to stop this blog and have its contents removed. Click Press Release for details.
This power clique wants to continue to block free speech on this property and to keep their illegitimate secrets hidden from other owners.
They are willing to spend tens of thousands of dollars of other owners' money on legal fees to keep themselves in power while they continue to break both Tennessee state law and Deer Ridge property law.
We need your help with the legal fees that will be required to force them to abide by the law - and insure that Deer Ridge Mountain Resort is entitled to free speech like the rest of America.
If you would like to join with others who believe in free speech and believe that all of the 305,000 Home Owner Associations across the nation should be protected from tyrannical boards that ignore the laws, please click the
Donate Button below.
Even a donation of just a few dollars would be very greatly appreciated as a way of showing that we have financial support from thousands of Americans for these important issues!
Thanks so much to all of those of you who have already contributed!
Please help us broadcast this Press Release to others you know who can spread the word. You are welcome to link to this site from Twitter, Facebook or other sites.
With your help we can fight and win this $1 Million lawsuit - and keep this blog active - and an inspiration and model for other HOA Abuse Blogs across the nation.
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