Community Development District 7 supervisors will hold a public hearing on the future of anonymous complaints.
The hearing is set for 8 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 15 at SeaBreeze Recreation Center.
The CDD 7 board is poised to keep the anonymous complaint system with two stipulations – the complainant must have a unit number within CDD 7 and a complainant can only lodge one complaint per month.
CDD 7, like other CDDs in The Villages, is trying to keep the “troll” problem under control. CDD 7 includes the villages of Bonita, Duval, Hemingway and Hadley.
This past week, a resident of the Sweetgum Villas in the Village of Fenney went before the Community Development District 12 Board of Supervisors. Kim Ruppert held up a big cardboard sign that was left in her yard and accused her of being a “troll.” The irony is that Ruppert gave her name as is now required in CDD 12. She implored the CDD 12 board to revert to the anonymous complaint system.
The headline from the CDD 12 meeting raised the eyebrows of other CDD supervisors in The Villages.
“We really need to keep an eye on the situation,” said CDD 1 Board Chairman Rocky Hyder.
CDD 1 currently accepts anonymous complaints.
CDD 5 was the first to stop accepting anonymous complaints. CDD 2 followed suit. They have both upped the requirement of proof, requiring that the complainant provide their name as well as their unit/lot number to prove they live in the district. CDD 6 voted 3-2 to follow the same course, after heavy pressure from residents.
CDD 3 is no longer accepting anonymous complaints.
CDDs 4 and 9 continue to allow anonymous complaints, but the complainant must provide a unit number for verification they reside in the district.
CDD 8, which is facing the most infamous anonymous complaint case in The Villages with its ongoing legal battle over a little white cross, continues to accept anonymous complaints, as does CDDs 1, 10 and 11, as well as the Lady Lake/Lake County portion of The Villages.
CDD 12 stopped accepting anonymous complaints and requires address verification to prove the complainant lives in CDD 12.
Do you support the anonymous complaint process? Share your thoughts at letters@villages-news.com
