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muchodeanaero@aol.com
Steve Heitzner; Scott Huebner; Greg Selep; Steve Swanson
Vivian Carvalho; Kwame Jackson; Rob Schlingmann; Michelle Cocita; Marisa Powers Greenberg Traurig proposed invoice
Thursday, July 16, 2026 3:35:49 PM

I read the crocodile tears plea from Robert Gang in wanting to increase their legal fee. As stewards of UPRD resident's treasure, I hope you don't fall for this.
I have no doubt the Dickson Administration would rubber stamp this request, but here's why I hope that our current smart, business-savvy team of Supervisors should not fall for this:
1) Gang was [solely] responsible for the language prohibiting additional bonds in Section
5.04 in the first place.
He was well aware of this many months (maybe a year?) before the planned January 16, 2024 bond referendum. At that time, he took no action to fix his mistake. Ask why?
If he thought it wasn't going to be an issue, he was mistaken. His advice to let this sleeping do lie was a huge professional error. [Even if the Dickson Administration told him to let this lie, he should have overruled the. If we had a governance committee, the governance committee would have made sure that this issue got fixed...on his nickel.
His reliance on the Supreme Court's recent Opinion is not a reason to excuse points 1-3 above. Nor is the Opinion final at the time of his letter.
Instead of fixing the issue, what did he [and Barnebey] do instead? They [as verified by Vivian] drafted the oft-cited BOGUS Opinion letter and tried to pass it off to residents that this sufficed as the required legal opinion letter and there is "no issue, nothing to see here." I'm sure you've seen this:

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I am still aghast that FL Bar Attorneys participate in this.
Then, only 4 days before the January 16, 2024 referendum, he waltzes into the Dickson Administration's January 12 Board meeting and reversed course saying that he would not be able to issue the required opinion letter until UPRD first amends the language prohibiting additional bonds from being issued.
He had MONTHS to make a simple correction. He failed to do so. Now he tells UPRD 4 days before the referendum to "jump through this hoop"
And let's not forget the whole issue of the many versions of Resolutions 2024-08 and its replacement, 2024-13 and the seven months of back and forth with Gang and Barnebey in trying to get an answer to a simple Public Records Request on this matter.
When a legal opinion was needed for the irrigation bank loan, the Dickson Administration rubber stamped the invoice. I hope that this current Board would have told them: We're not paying or acknowledging any legal accruals from you for your past professional incompetence.

His request is absurd and out of bounds: He is on shaky relationship ground with UPRD and he wants a raise!
The fact that they accrued $250,000 in legal fees is on them. Did they keep UPRD apprised of this unrecognized liability? Check with Paul Fay and our auditors who gave UPRD a clean opinion: was this unrecognized liability accrued on our books?
Even if this invoice was negotiated to $0, it wouldn't undue the injurious costs incurred by UPRD from Blalock Walters and Greenberg Traurig from their poor professional advice/representation.

In any event: If I was in your shoes as Supervisors, I ask that you act as fiduciaries for residents. I wouldn't pay the increase. I wouldn't pay ANY of their invoice. Their actions were not we should expect from professional attorneys that we rely on. To the extent they screwed up, it is on them, not us.
Hopefully UPRD is on its way to finding new general counsel and bond counsel.

Dean Matt
aka MuchoDeanAero aka The Pickleball Pilot 630.248.0646

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