Woody’s Weekend VPG: March 6, 2010
March 6, 2010: WHO LOVES YA, BABY? Holiday Inn Club Vacations does, apparently (and they’re hiring!)
DAVID WALLEY’S TS OWNERS KICK BUTT: And they kicked Celebrity Resorts’ butts off the POA board! No lie!
THINK YOU’VE BEEN DEFRAUDED?: RDO, the European trade body for timeshare, wants to hear from you!
TJ OESTERLING HAS A NEW GIG: Round round get around, he gets around…
This weekend’s rundown of stories that didn’t make the front page!
WHO LOVES YA, BABY? If the care and feeding of its timeshare reps is any indication, Holiday Inn Club Vacations loves ya lots. The company is celebrating another record-breaking year by recognizing their top sales consultants at their annual, invitation-only Sales Awards Gala. The event takes place on Thursday, March 11th at House of Blues in Orlando’s Downtown Disney.
The theme for the awards celebration is named “A Night with the Masters,” a dual tribute, first to the elite class of sales consultants who will be recognized for their success, and also to the collaboration of multi-platinum artists who will take the stage as the night’s entertainment. Performers from 70’s and 80’s rock and pop sensation bands including Deep Purple, Orleans, Loverboy, John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band will play the hits of the decades on the House of Blues stage.
It’s always nice to be recognized for a job well done. John Sutherland is Senior Vice President of Sales for HICV, in case you wanted to know. And did I mention that they’re hiring? Well, they are. In Orlando and Myrtle Beach, SC. Contact Carolyn Argo at 407.905.1456, and tell her InsidetheGate.com sent you. 
DAVID WALLY’S TS OWNERS TOOK ACTION: In a post about the Consequences of Unpaid Maintenance Fees, TS Newshound discussed the problem being faced by David Walley’s Hot Springs Resort & Spa in northern Nevada. The good news is that Walley’s will remain open. The bad news is that they will have to cut some services in order to do so.
The good or bad news, depending on how you look at it, is that timeshare owners took advantage of the most recent meeting about the issues facing the resort to kick 2 Celebrity Resorts directors off the Association Board. You want a $900 Special Assessment? Take that! Boom! Bam! And there went Jared Meyers and Craig Lewis, with the vote being well over 90 percent in favor of their removal.
There’s more controversy afoot, too. According to an article in The Record Courier, the association has filed action in Douglas County District Court to appoint Quintus as receiver of the association’s assets and accounting records.
Gary Grottke, treasurer of the association and president of Quintus Resorts (which retains some 500 weeks, while Celebrity has taken over everything else), is quoted as saying there have been “rather significant financial issues that the board has not been happy with.”
Apparently Celebrity emptied the association’s bank account (to the tune of $800,000) as part of their facilities use agreement, for spa, pool and other amenity upkeep. The question appears not to be whether Celebrity had a right to the money, but whether or not they met their obligation as managers of the property to manage funds in a prudent way.
You better go get a cup of coffee and read the whole article…
THINK YOU’VE BEEN DEFRAUDED?: The European trade body for timeshare, RDO (Resort Development Organisation), is currently looking into the activities of a number of holiday clubs that they think are deliberately misleading timeshare owners and signing them up to holiday clubs, often with the promise that any money paid will be recouped through a cashback scheme. QUOTE: “If you have been invited to a presentation to discuss ways in which to dispose of your timeshare/ points or to join a class action scheme against your resort developer but then signed up for membership of a holiday club, we would like to hear from you.”
They can’t intervene directly on your behalf, but they’re “building up a picture of the activities that harm timeshare owners” to help in their work in safeguarding consumers’ interests. Click Here for more information.
And finally:
TJ OESTERLING HAS A NEW GIG: Remember TJ? For four years he was vice-president of Outrigger’s Condominium and Timeshare Division, but he didn’t stay. He spent some time as regional VP of Shell Hospitality Management, Inc., overseeing the management of four properties in Hawaii. Then he held various positions with Hilton Grand Vacation Club, and most recently he was the regional vice-president operations Pacific Region for Wyndham Vacation Ownership.. Now he has returned to his roots, so to speak, as the newly appointed general manager of The Kapalua Villas. Congratulation to TJ, and good luck with your new gig!
And that’s it for this weekend. See ya next weekend, and watch that VPG… Oh, and if you enjoyed this, tell a friend!
Published every Saturday, or whenever there’s something that hits Woody’s VPG-ometer.
Got any hot stuff you’d like to see exposed here? How valuable is YOUR gossip? Your confidentiality is guaranteed; just make sure it’s a real deal and verifiable… Email: woodysvpg@gmail.com
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