St. Maarten Private Eye

Rainbow Letter - 14th July 2008

July 14, 2008

Dear Rainbow Beach Owners and Soon to be Owners,
Greetings from Rainbow Beach.
Over the course of the last several months some very concerned owners (and others) have sent us copies of letters that are being circulated among Rainbow Beach owners where as a court action is about to be instigated, by a contingent of Rainbow Beach owners, against the Management at Rainbow Beach. We, the managers of the Rainbow Beach Club, believe this to be a very destructive course of action that will eventually cause far more harm than any perceived good.
We are very well aware that Mr. Bill Johnson and Claudio Iodice are on a crusade and will bad mouth our endeavors and our family to anyone who will listen and to those who actually don’t’ care to listen. Feedback is that many do not understand what Bills’ game plan is. We are told by others that he and his wife would like to create their own Rental business at Rainbow. He doubled his money, in record breaking time, on the resale of one of his Rainbow Beach apartments and has not stopped complaining since. As for Claudio, his Super Rainbow condo has nearly tripled in value since he purchased it. (Not Bad) But of course his “personal” vendetta against the Erato’s surfaces due to the fact that he attempted to squeeze a purchase of a sweet Aquarius orange (condo) until our family was left with the bitter rind. Our family refused to be squeezed to a pulp, but this however didn’t sit well with our good friend Claudio. The end result is that Claudio, like Bill, is on a wrecking campaign with the Erato’s in the crosshairs, never giving a thought to the collateral damage being done to the good people at Rainbow and to Rainbow itself. The vendetta is the primary mission. (Keep up the crusade Bill and Claudio, it’s still a free country, but you’re doing far more harm to your neighbors and Rainbow than good.)
Yes there are others who will side with Bill & Claudio in spite of the fact that their property has doubled in value since they purchased. But still the destructive crusade persists. We have seen the remarks in recent mailers where as it is said that Ms. Pollack “was forced to close”. This is completely false. Ms Pollack was unhappy with certain deed clauses and was, in turn, offered 100% of her money back. (This is in writing). However Ms. Pollack chose to take possession of her beautiful condo and we believe this was a very wise choice.
From copies received of present and past correspondence, from the referred to group, it is clear that the group has retained Mr. Jelmer Snow, a very capable attorney. He was recently retained by my father, Johnny, to secure the right, on behalf of all Point Pirouette Homeowners, to access the new road recently built by Aqua Marina. (This road also goes to Point Pirouette). My Fathers’ plight, with the help of Mr. Snow, was successful. The success came by way of negotiations, not the courtroom. In fact it was Mr. Snows’ suggestion to negotiate rather than leave matters up to the Judge. As matters turned out positive for all concerned, we believe in retrospect, that there was wisdom in Mr. Snows’ recommendation. My Father has also, in the past, been to other mediations with Mr. Snow where opposing sides were brought together with hope to quell anxieties between them. The mediation was successful and no court action was ever necessary (The mediation took place at a Notary’s office in Philipsburg). We believe that should certain homeowners want their grievances heard, mediation, rather than destructive court action, would be preferable.
(Here on St. Maarten, many attorneys secretly share some humor, as they believe that Americans, in general, love the courtroom wherever that courtroom may be.)
Our family has sold beautiful turnkey condos at Rainbow Beach for a record low price of approximately $250.00 per square foot. However, this alone does not make Rainbow Beach the special place that it is. What puts Rainbow over the top is the $11,000,000 spent by our family on elaborate infrastructure which does not include many millions spent on many floors of enclosed parking facilities with elevators. One only has to look around in wonder, as many do, as they often state “We didn’t know that management was implementing such beautiful amenities.” This is the main reason why resales have, 12 months after purchase, nearly doubled in value.
Have we made mistakes, you bet we have, but we are willing to talk with our owners and try to make it right where we can.
As we all know, the primary housing market in America is at an all time low. What we have learned from the U.S. experts is that over the course of the next 2-3 years it will even get worse. The U.S. is averaging 250,000 foreclosures, of primary U.S. residences, monthly. A 4% yearly foreclosure rate of the 75,000,000 homeowners in the U.S. This is one serious horror story. This further means that the purchase of vacation homes, in most cases, is not even up for discussion since families are trying to first secure their primary residences back home.
It is during these lean times that Rainbow Beach Owners and Management should pool their resources and make every attempt to iron out the problems that some owners feel exist at Rainbow Beach. The conference table, not the court room, we believe is the best venue for this to take place.
A further indication of the current gray picture, presently on St. Maarten, is the collapse of the enormous Indigo Bay project in Cay Hill and the closure of the grandiose Barbaron Development at Belair. Further The Cove at Cupecoy was also forced to return the few deposits they received. The lack of purchase interest, at their development, forced them to close down shop.
Like the Rainbow Beach group’s recent letter states “There is power in numbers” but this works both ways – “Constructive and or Destructive”. With the closure of important projects, mass layoffs follow and what follows mass layoffs, in our tiny community, is an increase of crime. (Just read the local newspaper)
Here is where we should be pooling our resources and do whatever is necessary to keep our beautiful community at Rainbow as safe as humanly possible during this difficult period as Rainbow Beach has also been ill affected by the current economic U.S. crisis.
The U.S. economic crisis will turn around, it always does. What will follow, once again, will prove fruitful for all. However, our energy now should be focused on the current down turn in the vacation home industry (purchase and rentals) and do whatever necessary to keep our little jewel, during this lean time, shining and safe. This will not happen with wasted energy and funds and the destructiveness associated with the courtroom. Here history makes the strongest testimony to my point.
We, the management at Rainbow Beach and our family, would prefer that the group headed for the local courtroom, take a different approach, an approach that unifies rather than divide what we believe should be the single most important goal at Rainbow Beach. That goal is in fact, the wholeness of the Rainbow Beach Club.
Please let me hear from you.
Thank you,

Marc Erato
Rainbow Beach Club Co. Ltd.

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