Island Towers Trespassing and Fireworks Incidents

The following is a copy of an email received from one of our residents:

This afternoon I noticed a man going floor to floor and door to door. First, I asked him what he was doing. He responded that he had a carpet cleaning special he wanted to let people know about. Then I asked him if he was currently doing work for a resident. He responded that he was not. So, I asked him how he got in the building to which he responded that the lobby door was open. At this point I explained to him that our complex was private property, had a no solicitation policy and we could not have people just walking up off the street doing this. When I told him to leave the property he acted as though he was doing so but I noticed that he never came out of the lobby. Therefore, I went downstairs, closed the back door and there he was standing in the lobby. I asked him why he had not left and he said he was waiting on a ride. I told him to wait for his ride in the street that it was not up to him when he would leave. Also, I asked for a business card and what company he worked for. He said that he worked for Kirby Vacuum but would not give me a business card. Once again he acted like he was not going to leave. Sensing his belligerence, I opened the front door and told him to leave at once or I was going to call the sheriff. Finally, he left and shortly thereafter a maroon Ford Econoline van pulled up and took him away. Interestingly enough this van did not have any Kirby Vacuum insignia or identification. The tag number was V34-7TG or V34-7TJ.

I have no idea if this man is a legitimate representative of Kirby Vacuum or not. Given the demographic makeup of our community, I do not think it is a good idea to allow this type of door to door solicitation. In my opinion it would be appropriate for Steve to contact Kirby Vacuum and inform them that someone is acting as an imposter or they need to restrict their representatives from uninvited solicitation at Island Towers. Even when contractors are here doing work they should not be allowed to wander around soliciting business.

Another incident took place last night that you should be aware of. The same group of kids that congregate near our main entrance on a daily basis decided to spend about an hour throwing firecrackers and such down the storm drain etc. Finally, I hollered down to them to end the fireworks display for the evening and they dispersed. During the past week I have found several of these kids under the carports and made them leave. Also, one of the girls involved and her mother were out at the seawall the other evening standing directly in front of the no trespassing sign. They live across the street and know this is private property and have been told not to come here. Nonetheless, the girl has been back over here.

Right after I first moved here Island Towers was experiencing a similar problem. At that time the Sheriff Deputy had the Board write a letter stating their intent to prosecute further acts of trespassing. He then delivered this letter to each resident of the two complexes across the street and told them this served as their warning and if he picked them up on Island Towers property they would be arrested. The problem ended cold turkey. Perhaps the Board should consider discussing this matter with the Sheriff’s Department and determining what pro-active options are available at this time to curtail the incidents taking place. A patrol car stationed on Woodette between calls during the afternoon and early evening hours would likely have a positive impact.

These are just several examples of the recent escalation of trespassing and unacceptable behavior taking place. Unfortunately, it has been my experience since living here more than ten years now that this tends to run in cycles until there is action taken to stop it. It is time for such action.

Sincerely,