Your Real Lake Naomi Neighbor

With permission, we are sharing this personal story with owners in Lake Naomi. The author’s last name has been redacted to protect our neighbors. If you have a story you'd like us to share too, please simply reply to this email or click for consideration.

Allow me to introduce myself. I am Joe and I’m a middle class blue collar environmental engineer who loves and cherishes everything the Lake Naomi community has to offer and someone who wants to sustain what we have. I am also a long standing community member who is vehemently opposed to the current proposed deed restrictions because the narrative being pushed by the PPCA board that rentals are damaging the “character” of the community is FALSE.

My (our) true story starts close to 50 years ago when my aunt and uncle would vacation in the Poconos (not Lake Naomi) and decided they were interested in getting a “country” vacation home of their own. Working with a local real-estate agent (Bob B which some may know) they found their small home in Lake Naomi. While they both worked full time jobs and were raising young children they found it necessary to rent to help off-set the additional cost for owning a vacation home. After some time, they decided to sell the house to upgrade to a bigger house for their growing family and the friends and family that would visit for some fun weekends and holiday get togethers. There were many over the years! As a young kid myself I loved coming to Lake Naomi with my cousins and remember how it felt like truly being in the “country” because back then then there were very few houses or businesses on Rt 940 compared to today. Much has changed.

About 30 years ago my parents bought a house 2 blocks away from my aunt and uncle so their kids and grandchildren had a place to spend weekends and the summer. After many years of very good memories spent at my parents’ house my father passed away and it became a financial burden on my elderly mother. My wife and I enjoyed our get-a-ways to Lake Naomi and really wanted to keep the house in the family so we decided to buy it from my mother. This was a win-win since it relieved my mother of the financial responsibilities while allowing her to continue to spend time in Lake Naomi with her sister (my aunt) and my wife and I had our place in the “country”.

For the last 10 years we have invested money and much sweat equity into making the much needed improvements to our home. During this time our weekends and vacation time was mostly spent on working on the house with little time to enjoy what makes Lake Naomi the special place it is. Three years ago, with the major work behind us, we joined the Lake Naomi Club and have begun to enjoy the amenities that come with it. Today, as it was 50 years ago with my aunt and uncle, we find it necessary to rent our home to help off-set the cost of owning and maintaining a second home including the cost for club membership.

We are middle aged blue collar couple trying to maintain and hold onto our piece of heaven in a place that my aunt and uncle found almost 50 years ago. We are not a “corporation” set out to destroy the quality of life we all enjoy and cherish here in Lake Naomi. Why would we want to destroy what we have? This idea would be self-defeating and is just utterly ridiculous! The false narrative being pushed by the PPCA board that anyone who rents their home under an “LLC” is a business looking to profit from what Lake Naomi has to offer is simply not true. What is true, if you rent your home, the “LLC” protects your other personal assets (primary residence, etc…) in the event of frivolous law suits. We are not a “corporation”! In fact, if we owned our home as a “profit making” business it would be a money losing investment. If profit was our motive, we would be renting on a yearly basis but we don’t because we actually enjoy, as much as we can, our time spent at Lake Naomi.

We are your neighbor and have generational family roots going back almost 50 years in Lake Naomi so I think we have a good understanding of what the current proposed Deed Restriction will do to us and the future generations of my family and the future of others who have, or have yet, to discover what Lake Naomi has to offer. The reality is the restriction is permanent and will make it financially difficult for those currently trying to juggle their finances to make it possible to stay in Lake Naomi. Further it will make your home less desirable and limit the potential buyers when, and if, the time comes to sell. It’s as simple as that! Many families, like mine, may need to rely on the additional income to make their dream come true and continue to contribute to maintaining the sustainability of the Lake Naomi community. A thriving community is good for us and the local economy which is essential to the sustainability of what we have.

Your home, as is ours, is a significant investment so as with any significant investment please block-out the “noise” and ask for the facts and figures be provided to back-up any claims made by the un-elected PPCA board before casting your vote. We are confident you will find there are NO “REAL” facts or data to justify the need for the proposed deed restriction other than the wishful agenda being pushed by a small “well to do” minority of the community to restrict your property rights.

Thank you for your time and if our story resonates with your story, even if yet to be created, and you want to keep Lake Naomi an inclusive and sustainable community we strongly urge you to vote “NO” for the proposed Deed Restriction.

IT’S YOUR HOME AND YOUR PROPERTY! FIGHT FOR IT BY MAKING YOUR VOTE COUNT!

Sincerely,

Joe

Your Real Lake Naomi Neighbor