November 3, 2005

Dear Neighbor,

This month I am dedicating the entire newsletter to two important items that will affect homeowners at Sea Pines well into the future.

In the next several weeks you will be receiving the final version of the new By-Laws for your phase. These are up to date documents that will replace the By-Laws written thirty years ago. Many of your suggestions were incorporated and both the by-law committee and the FMB thank you for your input.

Your approval will allow the phase boards as well as the FMB to operate legally and efficiently. A special meeting of each of the four Sea Pines Condominiums will be held on Saturday February 4, 2006 at 11:00 in the clubhouse to vote on the implementation of the new by-laws. While we welcome everyone's attendance, you do not need to be present to vote. Included in your by-law package will be a proxy that must be completely filled out and returned to Mercantile by a specified date. If 2/3 of the homeowners in each phase approve the new documents, they will become effective at the Annual meeting in May. You will be hearing from representatives of your phase board after you receive your by-laws to encourage you to return your proxy promptly.

At the October 29 meeting, the FMB approved a 2006 budget that will reflect approximately a 12.9% increase in your monthly maintenance fees. As Sea Pines continues to age we are finding that simple routine maintenance of items such as the pool, lighting, and roadways means that the physical appearance and infrastructure of our condominium actually deteriorates. We need to make additional reserve contributions to handle these major maintenance projects. Property values have more than tripled over the past several years and the board is acting aggressively to maintain these values.

During the next 3-5 years, major improvements will be made to the pool area. Next year, the pool interior will be resurfaced instead of being repainted. Repainting cost us $6000 every 3 years. By doing the resurfacing this amount will be saved in the future. Over the next few years the decking will be replaced, landscaping will be done and new pool furniture will be purchased.

Anyone who drives around Sea Pines has noticed the deplorable condition of the lighting both on Sea Pines Drive and on all of the streets in our condominium. They are falling down, look terrible, are inefficient, and don't do a good job lighting our roadways. They need to be replaced prior to doing major asphalt work on the roads.

Other drivers of the increase include: continuing high legal costs for at least the next year, increases in the landscaping and snow removal accounts, and bluff pruning that will this year allow us to remove invasive species from the non-view corridor areas of the bluff. We feel that while a double digit increase in fees is unfortunate, it is necessary to maintain and preserve our thirty year old home.

The next meeting of the FMB will be Saturday December 3, 2005 at 8:30am in the clubhouse. Come show off your new post Thanksgiving stomachs.

Sincerely,

Richard Rose, For the FMB