About Us

HISTORY OF WEST LAKES

In 1970 Robert J Drummond, President of Drummond Construction Company, developed “West Lakes at Boca Raton”, a Mobile Home Community with a Par 3 golf course designed by Golf Champion Julius Boros and Frank Battos, who had designed and constructed some of Florida’s really great courses, including the PGA National Course at Palm Beach Gardens, Pine Tree in Boynton Beach and Palm Aire, Pompano Beach. The West Lakes course covered 1,100 challenging yards, punctuated with interesting sand and water hazards. West Lakes families were allowed to play the course free of charge until January 1972.

Bob Drummond’s dream was to build the mobile community in two sections, the east, or adult section is what is now West Lakes. The West Section was intended to be a family section. The Drummond Company ran into difficulty when children would not be allowed to attend the Boca schools but would have to be bused to Delray. The West section is now Boca Lakes.

Mr. Drummond intended that West Lakes eventually have 500 units, with 300 in the family area and 200 in the adult portion. Also planned were an 18-acre shopping center and a Sheraton Motor Inn on a 12-acre site adjoining West Lakes.
West Lakes was known as a “Five Star Pane” and still is. Mobile homes were a fairly new concept in 1970. What is a mobile home?

Let’s define “Mobile Home”
It is not a recreational vehicle, trailer, or camper. It is a factory-built year-round home transported to a home site by specially trained haulers, then settled on a prepared foundation, strapped into the ground, and connected with the necessary utilities.
Mr. Drummond’s strict quality planning allowed only 4.1 home sites per acre. This means privacy and more space to enjoy life in a natural uncrowded way. Homesites at West Lakes bordered on golf course fairways, lakes, the canal, and landscaped areas. All utility systems, including electric and telephone, are underground preserving the natural beauty of the area. When West Lakes was built, Glades Road was a two-lane dirt road. The Orange Grove development which now has million dollar plus homes was an orange grove where one could purchase oranges and orange juice and also small orange trees to plant, and many farmlands surrounded us. Boca Rio Road was known as “Shell Pit Road” and really was not passable. Powerline Road was also a dark dreary dirt road.
Under Mr. Drummond’s ownership, the residents paid as low as $65.00 and up to $89.00 depending on the location. The fee covered the cost of ground and maintenance lawn care, lake care, upkeep of the Club House, recreational facilities, real estate taxes, payment of principal and interest against the mortgage, insurance, and payroll for two employees. Security patrolled nightly.
Several activities were organized under Bob Drummond’s ownership. The Drummond Corp organized the Social Club on October 22, 1971 under the direction of Ray Hoelthe, resident manager. The first Social Club Officers nominated were:
President Ray Banks
Vice President Ken Foley
Treasurer Sid Cook
Secretary Margaret Bauer

First affair was a Halloween party, followed by an Open House Christmas get together at the Club House, St Patrick’s Day celebration, Koffee Klatch, Easter Hat contest, Memorial Day ceremonies, Fourth of July parade, Ladies Bridge Club and included outside activities, such as Harness Racing at Pompano, Polo Sunday afternoons & Tours of Boca Hotel and Resort Club to name a few. Also, shuffleboard, golf, horseshoes, and bocci were played and a small putting green was available.

Mr. Drummond also had his helicopter available for client inspection trips to North Florida mobile home manufacturing plants were they could see select custom interiors for their new homes. He also had his helicopter available for other trips.
In 1971, the West Lakes newspaper was started by Harry Bauer. His work continued until 1982. He also organized our library.
On May 15, 1972 ownership of West Lakes was transferred to Yusem Properties of Boca Raton, Ltd. Yusem Corp was a subsidiary of Yusem Construction Corp of Cherry Hill, New Jersey.
Mr. Drummond continued to sell and serve the mobile homes and retained ownership of the golf course as well as Sheraton Hotel and the tennis courts.
One of the stipulations for the sale was that the park be full of coaches before Yusem would sign. Bob Drummond had coaches brought in to fill any empty spaces more or less randomly. That is why some spaces are smaller than others.
On February 14, 1973, Yusem sold the park to Mrs. Rose Edwards of Ft Lauderdale. Under her ownership outside lights were installed and residents were responsible for the installation of the lights in front and back of their homes as well as the electric bills. Not all owners chose to have a rear light installed in the back of their coach. The patio area at the Club House was screened in – work began in March 1973.
The park was sold twice within a year’s time. This made most of the residents insecure and knowing Mrs Edwards was considering selling, a group from the park got together and prepared a purchase offer. Mrs. Edwards counter offered and after several meetings, the West Lakes group consisting of Irving Anderson, Earl Platell, Jim McGahey, Dr. Harry Pettapiece and:,I Jim Cleary to name a few, presented Mrs. Edwards an offer she couldn’t refuse – that being that each unit would pay $4,500 ($4,500 X 178 units) in addition to assuming her mortgage. Meetings, incidentally, were held on Jim Cleary’s porch and Althea, his wife, became known as the “Folger Lady”.
Mrs. Edwards accepted the group’s offer, thinking that the West Lakes people would be unable to raise the money. Raise – they did and finally, in April 1974 the mortgage was approved by the bank and the park became known as “West Lakes of Boca Raton Inc.” a corporation with all the coach owners becoming shareholders of the Park, as we know it today. The closing was on May 31, 1974. The Articles of Incorporation were prepared and all other necessary paperwork and a Board of Directors was elected. Purchase Price $1,620,000.00 mortgage $840,000.00 cash needed $780,000.00
The founding Board of Directors of West Lakes Corp of Boca Raton Inc included:
President James J Cleary
Vice President James McGahey
Secretary Mildred Curtis
Treasurer Earl E Platell Irving B Anderson Ernest Berg David Blair
Charles J Loughrey Dr. Harry J Pettapiece

History information was provided by Ann Hoomany, Jim Cleary, Ruth Caruso, Nick D’Ambrosia, West Lakes Scrap Books kept updated by Mary Boman, and from the archives of Herbert and Rena Holgate.

EXCERPTS FROM A TALK GIVEN BY ERNEST A BERG
At the February 15, 1983 Annual Meeting

I should like to take a few minutes to describe and explain “What West Lakes Is” and “What it is not”, in my opinion. First of all it is a corporation, more specifically a cooperative corporation created under the laws of the state of Florida.

Let me take just a moment to describe what a corporation is.
The law says a corporation is a legal entity – a legal “person·, that can own property in its corporate name, can make binding contracts, can sue and be sued, just as an individual person can.
But who owns the corporation? We do, the stockholders. there are178 of us and each stockholder, you and I own a 11178th undivided interest in the corporation’s assets, so indirectly, each of us shares in the ownership of our 30 odd acres of valuable South Florida land, the Clubhouse, the laundry, swimming pool, and everything else the corporation owns, with the added advantage that we cannot be sued, individually, if things should go to pot and the corporation couldn’t pay the debts.
Although we are set up under an act entitled the “Cooperative Housing Law”, that title is somewhat misleading. We have no “Cooperative Housing” in our Corporation. We individually own our houses. Actually, we could be better described as a “Cooperative Land Holding Corporation.” While we own coaches individually, we own the land collectively through our corporation which holds the title. However, we fit under the provisions of the Cooperative Housing Law very nicely and we don’t propose to disturb it.
One further point, we frequently refer to West Lakes as a “Non-profit Corporation”. Technically that is not so. Conceivably, we could produce profits in various ways, sale of some of our land, rental of some of our facilities, etc.
And if we did come up with taxable income, as defined in the tax laws, we would have to pay taxes. In fact, we do file income tax returns each year but the provisions of the law that apply to us are so liberal, we have never paid any income tax nor do we expect to pay in the near future. The point is, however, we are not a charitable corporation like a church or a hospital.
I like the spirit of friendship and cooperation that prevails here and this spirit is contagious. You see it every day as new family units move in and in short order are swept up into the spirit of the park. ·
It is a comfortable feeling to realize that each of us, along with 177 others, collectively own this beautiful park, plus the fact that we own our homes individually.
I like to think of it as one big family with common interests and with an affordable lifestyle that can’t be matched in condominium apartment living.
The mortgage that we assumed when we acquired the park 10 years ago was written for a 25-year term with a level payment of $6702.00 per month for the entire 35-year term. Applied first to interest at 8 ¼% per annum and the remainder to principal to pay off the balance in full at the end of the 25th year. Under this schedule the early years were weighted heavily to the payment of interest but, as the years roll by the reduction of principal accelerates rapidly.
At the present time (the end of ten years) our mortgage stands at $697,000.00, a reduction of only $141,000.00 in the ten years. However, at the end of the 15th year a further reduction of
$177,000.00 is accomplished, to a balance of $520,000.00. At the 20th year there has been a further reduction of $232,000.00 to a balance of $288,000.00 and then “VOILA!”, payment in full of this $288,000.00 takes place at the end of the 25th year.

I realize that some of us, probably including myself, may not be here to celebrate that event but what a BONANZA to own the park free and clear fifteen years hence! Who would hazard a guess

of what it might then be worth? My uneducated guess would be maybe 1o’million, assuming the area continues to grow and prosper at the present rate. A 11178th interest in that figure is approximately $56,000- not a bad increment for 15 years of pleasurable living in West Lakes. That is my opinion, as to what West Lakes is.

Now what it is NOT/
Some of us feel that we are operating a business with all its ramifications and problems.
I disagree. I think of a business as an operation that manufactures something or buys & sells merchandise or operates a bar or restaurant or rents equipment etc. We are none of these.
It follows that our setup is simple and uncomplicated. In essence, all we do is collect the monthly assessments from each stockholder-member and pay his or her share of the common expenses, including the payments on the mortgage.
The officers of our Corporation are only agents for you, gathering funds from you and paying your bills collectively just as each of you would do if you lived outside the park in your private home.
How much simpler could our operation be? Where are the problems and complications?
When we consider what is and what has been going on in this area of South Florida for the past ten years we have to be amazed. Ten years ago Glades Road was a meandering two-lane road. About the only point of interest, this far west of downtown was the turnpike with its convenient exit 28, plus an orange grove with marvelous fruit and juice since sold to developers. In fact, West Lakes was an oasis in the desert. So, it is amazing and rewarding to find ourselves ten years later in full control and ownership of this prize possession.

Ernest A Berg
Monthly maintenance fee In 1983 was $85.00