Barony Place I/Barony Place II

Some of you already lived in The Summit on 9/11/2001. What were you doing that morning? That was one of the days etched in our memories forever. Me? I remember exactly where I was. I was flying from Austin, Texas to Chicago O'Hare. My flight was close enough to ORD that it was not diverted. As we landed, the woman sitting next to me (a work colleague at Sears, Roebuck and Co.) turned on her cell phone before the nosewheel ever touched down. I heard the tones on her phone and was just about to tell her to turn it off when she said loudly, "WHAT? New York? How many planes?"  Her boyfriend had called her to tell her what was happening in New York. Other passengers heard her and turned on their phones, placing calls. The plane was directed to a holding area and, after about 20 minutes, the pilot announced that, since many passengers already knew what was happening, he would tell us what he knew. Eventually, the plane continued to a gate. By that time, the terminal was empty! ...

Does the Board President have an obligation to get a Board Member under control? When a board member reacts in an over-the-top manner to harmless events, the question naturally arises whether that person really belongs on the board of the HOA. I was reminded of a night (January 25, 2002 ) at a Richland 2 school board meeting. Before the meeting started, I stepped forward to introduce myself to a woman who had taken a seat in front of me. I didn't know who she was, and I had never seen her before. Unknowingly, I used words that must have struck fear into her heart.  What did I say? In a calm, friendly, polite manner, all I said was, "Hello, I'm Gus Philpott."  What did she say? "I KNOW WHO YOU ARE! DON'T TALK TO ME! GET AWAY FROM ME!" Talk about being blind-sided... I asked the two men and the student with whom I had been speaking if they knew who she was. They didn't know, either. She turned out to be Supt. Baron Davis' wife, and she was a teache...

In just over two weeks the management of your HOA will change. CAMS will depart. The new HOA management company, Town & Country, will begin services. Managing a HOA of 2,480 properties and a large number of amenities and amount of Common Property is a daunting task for any property management firm. Who knows where all the keys are? Who knows where shut-offs are? Who knows the actual status of all projects that are in process? Who will know exactly how many homes there are in each neighborhood? (The list from the office in June 2024 showed 2,595 homes, when there were actually 2,480!) Did the Board have the foresight to require CAMS employees to create procedures manuals for each position in the office (property manager, assistant property manager, maintenance technician)? I recommended those several years ago to a past Board. The Board has been recent changes in numerous roles involving Board leadership and committee assignments. There are three unannounced vacancies on the Board,...

On December 28, 2024 a judicial proceeding against Gus Philpott (me) was started in the name of The Summit Community, Inc. This is your HOA. That legal action was specifically prohibited in the CC&Rs (Art. XIII, §10 Litigation ), because the Board had never sought or obtained the approval of 75% of the Voting Members. Further, the Board never voted to approve it. And the Board never authorized the Board President, Danny Trapp, to have it filed by the HOA's attorney at Turner Padget. There is no record in the Minutes of Board Meetings of any approval by the Board. The full board has been aware of the case for some time, and it has never discussed the existence of the case during a monthly Board meeting or voted to stop it. Because the Board has failed to stop an unauthorized, prohibited legal action, could the HOA and the Board members be liable for their failure? The law firm of Turner Padget was retained on May 7, 2024 as the attorney for the Association ; its legal fees are ...

Vernell Butler showed up at a meeting of the Voting Members this week. He claimed he is a Voting Member. Is he? Vernell was on the HOA's Board of Directors until shortly after November 7, 2023. He had been elected to the Board on December 1, 2020 and was re-elected to the Board in November 2022 for a two-year term (2022-2024). But, when he was not re-elected as Treasurer at the board-officer election in 2023, he quit abruptly - both as Treasurer and as a Board Member. He must have heard about the Voting Member meeting this week and showed up, uninvited. He claimed to be a Voting Member. But is he? On what date was the Neighborhood Meeting in the neighborhood of his property? Was a quorum of homeowners present, in-person or by proxy? Who was elected to the (local) Neighborhood Committee? Who was elected as chairman of that Neighborhood Committee? That person becomes the Voting Member. When was documentation filed at the office? Vernell is the guy who tried to block me from entering ...

The next election of directors will be Tuesday, November 4, 2025. Four directors are to be elected. Applications close on Friday, October 3rd. The seats of Danny Trapp, Brenda Bryant, Linda Potter, and Patricia Pollin will be open. Why is this election so important? The chaos of the past two years must be stopped. Poor decision-making, pettiness, divisiveness, and arguments must cease.  The Board of Directors should work together for the betterment of the Association and the community. Personal agendas should be left at home. Unilateral decisions must stop. Danny Trapp was elected to the Board in November 2023, and then the Board elected him as President.  He declared himself as the sole contact with the new lawyer. The Board never voted on that and should not have allowed it. Having one person on the Board who is sole contact with the lawyer is not necessarily a bad idea, but that one person must keep the full board involved on all legal matters. That has not happened. Trapp ...

When you look at the Committee listings on the HOA's website today, you will see some changes that have not been announced. The most-important committee of the HOA, the Neighborhood Committee (of the HOA), no longer has a chairman. Reginald Mack's name has been removed from the list on the website. Did he quit or was he removed? This committee should have had 5-6 members, but none has ever been identified. Is that committee dead in the water now? The Neighborhood Committee is responsible for  assisting the 28 Neighborhoods to hold Neighborhood Meetings, elect Neighborhood Committees, and elect the Voting Member. That Committee has never operated in a manner to accomplish its Mission. Another change is that Mike Bryant's name no longer appears as a member of the Finance Committee, the Nominating Committee, or the Covenants Committee. Mike is a long-time homeowner in The Summit, having purchased his home in about 1992.  You'll see Mike's name on these committees in th...

Every day that the lawsuit against Gus Philpott (me) continues, it costs the HOA and the Members more money. Shouldn't the Voting Members and the Covenants Committee contact the law firm of Turner Padget directly and address the major issues with them? Turner Padget was retained on May 7, 2024 to represent The Summit Community Association, Inc. The law firm does not represent Board President Danny Trapp or the Board of Directors. The HOA is paying the bills for the lawsuit. There is very likely an Engagement Letter between the law firm and the HOA. The lawsuit against me is prohibited by the CC&Rs (Art. XIII, §10  Litigation ). The Board of Directors never approved the lawsuit by vote in an open Board Meeting. The Board of Directors never authorized Danny, by vote or Resolution, to file the lawsuit. The lawsuit was filed by the attorneys  in the name of the HOA  without the approval of the Board of Directors. The Voting Members represent the homeowners in their neighb...

An emailed announcement from the HOA's office today informed Members that a new management company will assume its management role on September 30, 2025. Contact information for the new company (but not its name) was given as " Julie Brickley, 803-205-0705, email: jbrickley@tcgrd.com " The name of the HOA's new management company may be Town & Country Property Management, Inc., located at  132 West Cambridge Ave.,   Greenwood, SC 29646. Its website is https://www.tcpropertysc.com I write "may be" because this is the business name associated with the domain name in Julie's email address. Its homepage describes it, generally, as specializing " in rental property management, community association management, and property maintenance services." The transition from CAMS is set to happen in 25 days, even though the CAMS contract runs until December 31, 2025. There will likely be an cost for the HOA to exit the CAMS contract early. Was that disclo...

One day a homeowner was chatting with a HOA board member. They were talking about chaotic board meetings, failure to comply with Covenants & By-Laws, lack of transparency, and other topics. They were having a hard time agreeing on anything. The homeowner kept quoting the CC&Rs, and the HOA board member kept "interpreting" them. Finally, the homeowner asked the board member if he knew the difference between ignorance and apathy. The board member said, "I don't know and I don't care!"

You'll want to read the first paragraph of the President's Report in the September 2025 Summit Scoop. Just in case you don't read the Scoop, here is what Board President Danny Trapp wrote. "A point of information to homeowners:  Our covenants governing parking on the streets in our community are valid, legal, and enforceable. Please don't allow someone to convince you differently. When the streets were deeded over to Richland County, our standing covenants were also inclusive and enforceable." The first thing I noticed is that Danny Trapp failed to state which section of the "covenants" addresses parking on the streets. Ask him. Specifically. What Article? What Section?  The last sentence? It doesn't make any sense. There is no connection between transfer to the County and the covenants being "inclusive and enforceable."  The "someone" in Danny's message may be Gus Philpott (me), although I am not the only person who belie...

Could Receivership be ahead for The Summit's HOA? What is it?  "A receivership is a legal process where a neutral third party, called a receiver, is appointed by a court to manage a financially distressed company, property, or assets . This appointment is an equitable remedy, designed to preserve the value of the assets for the benefit of creditors, shareholders, or other stakeholders." (Source: Google AI) Why might it happen? The Board has a long history of failing to comply with the By-Laws. The result is that the HOA has no legitimate directors and no legitimate officers. There are people "acting as if" they are directors and officers, but they didn't get into those position by compliance with the By-Laws. What the Board could (should!) do now . Admit that it has been doing things incorrectly and that it will correct its course; Affirm to the Members and Voting Members that it will immediately improve compliance with the CC&Rs, By-Laws, and published...

Do you have integrity? Are you honest? Will you comply with the CC&Rs, By-Laws, and published Guides of the HOA? Will you speak out when you see other board members violating the CC&Rs and By-Laws? October 3rd is the deadline to submit your application at the office. The application is Exhibit A on Page 33 of the PRM. Click here .   The Nominating Committee is supposed to look for quality applicants (presumably high quality), who will be of the highest caliber, have good interpersonal skills, dedicated to the betterment of the Association and community, and free of any personal agenda. (See the PRM, Art. II, §B, ¶2) Four seats will be open this year (Trapp, Pollin*, Bryant, Potter) If you want to know the process that the Nominating Committee is supposed to follow, go the PRM, Art. III, §H (Page 22). * Patricia Pollin shouldn't even be on the Board. She was not eligible to be appointed in November 2023. She has remained on the Board, because no board member has made a ...

Check out this article about an Atlanta-area HOA that is attempting to foreclose on a home owned for more than 20 years. The story is in this article  on AtlantaNewsFirst.com about George Watson, age 77. How can actions like this get stopped? How can it be prevented, if something like this started in The Summit's HOA. How many times has foreclosure been stopped in The Summit's HOA by a negotiated settlement of past-due Assessments or fines? Who decides on the amount of settlement? The Board? (Ever hear of a board action in the past 6-7 years?) While a property owner's name might not be revealed, the decision and amount certainly should be voted on! If problems with dues or rules violations arise, why wouldn't the office of the HOA's property manager make a direct contact with the property owner? Instead, they just put the computer to work and grind out notices. Do they ever stop to wonder whether their notices are being delivered or read? The 2025 Budget for The Sum...

At last night's Board of Directors meeting, were any of these items discussed? Was there any discussion by the Board about removing Danny Trapp as Board President? Update on lawsuit against Gus Philpott and (failed) Motion for Contempt that had been filed on May 28, heard on July 24, and decided against the HOA on August 29? How did that Motion even get filed in May without the approval of the Board? Report on the total costs on the lawsuit already paid by the HOA and the pending bills for legal work already performed? Discussion about how the lawsuit against resident (not homeowner) Gus Philpott even got started, since it is prohibited by the CC&Rs and was never approved by the Voting Members or  by the Board of Directors? Who is responsible for that? Who, if anyone, authorized Board President Danny Trapp to direct that the lawsuit be filed in December by the HOA's then-new law firm in the name of the HOA? Delivery of the 2024 Annual Audit? Did the auditor, Becca Brendle,...

Today I picked up the decision by the judge in the case of The Summit's HOA against me. The judge ruled in my favor and AGAINST the Summit's HOA. On May 28th, as part of the lawsuit by the HOA against me, the lawyers for the HOA filed a Motion for Contempt against me. They, along with a sworn Affidavit from Board President Danny Trapp, alleged that I had violated a Temporary Restraining Order issued on March 11, 2025. On July 24th Judge Kimpson heard arguments. Two lawyers were there on behalf of the HOA. I was there pro se ; I'm representing myself for financial reasons. A lawyer had quoted me $30,-$50,000 to represent me all the way through. On August 29th Judge Kimpson released his decision. He found "that Mr. Philpott's actions do not violate said Order. Therefore, the Motion for Contempt is DENIED." [ emphasis in the original ] This was especially sweet for me, because the HOA's Motion had included a request that the Court make me pay the costs and l...

How many times in a month is The Summit's HOA Board of Directors meeting? What are they doing in all those meetings? Are there Minutes for each and every meeting? Is every vote being recorded? (Why are they voting in meetings others than the Regular Board Meeting? If the Board does vote at a meeting other than the open, public, Regular Monthly Board Meeting, how will Members know on what they voted? ) How much trouble will a Member encounter, if he wants to inspect the Minutes of those meetings? The By-Laws give a Member the right to inspect Minutes of meetings. See Art. VI, §4(a) "Section 4. Books and Records . (a) Inspection by Members and Mortgagees . The Declaration, By-Laws and Articles of Incorporation, any amendments to the foregoing, the rules and regulations of the Association, the membership register, books of account, and the minutes of meetings of the Members, the Board, and committees shall be made available for inspection and copying by any holder, insurer or g...

 ... and the HOA was engaged in a lawsuit that was prohibited by the CC&Rs and was paying out money almost every month for legal fees for a lawsuit that was never approved by the Board, there are several actions I would take - at every Board meeting I would make a statement that the Board was engaged in a prohibited lawsuit and that it needed to get out of it; I would request that my statement be included in the Minutes of the Board Meeting; I would make a statement that the Board of Directors is bound to comply with the CC&Rs and the By-Laws; I would object to the payment of any HOA funds to lawyers who were doing any legal work in connection with the prohibited lawsuit; I would make a Motion at every board meeting for the board to dismiss the lawsuit; I would request a recorded vote by-name on my Motion to dismiss that lawsuit, so that it would be crystal-clear who voted to stop the lawsuit and who did not vote to stop the lawsuit. Is there anything else you would want me...

It was just 12 months ago that the HOA's new lawyer sent me a Cease and Desist Letter. In that letter the HOA accused me of "false accusations and continual harassment." The letter threatened me with legal action. I quickly contacted the HOA's lawyer at Turner Padget and asked for an explanation. How did the lawyer respond? He informed me that he wasn't going to communicate with me, because I'm not a Member of the Association. Twice he told me that. In writing. Since I knew I had made no false accusations and had not harassed anyone, I did not know what not to do. So I changed nothing. I continued to write and speak the truth about the operations of the HOA and its board of directors. Everything that I have written and said is the truth. It's not "my" truth. It is the Truth. My writings have been based on the CC&Rs, the By-Laws, and the published Guides of the HOA, including the PRM. Former board president Justin Martin used to accuse me of ...