Chairman s Report. [Type text]

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1 Chairman s Report Thanks to the efforts of Ian and the marketing Trustees our Reserve is continuing to grow in popularity with the inevitable issues arising such as lack of desired tee-off times, and twice this month we ran out of golf carts. Fortunately, our clubhouse is coping admirably with the increased traffic and it gladdens the heart to see it so full and boisterous again. We are keeping a close eye on the demands of this increased traffic and balancing the budget to anticipated growth is a never-ending exercise. Although the first signs of strain became evident on the fairways towards the end of winter, they are in better condition for this time of year than they have been for the past 7 years. We are, however, expecting a wet summer and, as I write this, we have had our first rains on the course. This brought a stunning 50mm in one afternoon, so the newly renovated 7th dam now has some water in it already and we are expecting even more rain this week. In our settlement agreement with Klaprops we obtained access to all the water on their large farm to our West and we really want to get it to our Estate, which will then close the last gap in making our golf course a South African attraction year-round. We obviously do not want to burden Owners with any more requests for financial assistance and our newest financial trustee, Jan, has come up with a creative method of getting this water to our course. Please keep an eye open for an in this regard. I am happy to see more and more Owners participating in the social media marketing efforts but, again, please don t hope that someone else will do your bit. Every like and share helps. If you are a little social media shy, please ask Narien for assistance and she will be happy to show you. Fortunately, all the negatives of the past are well and truly behind us and we are all fully focused on the future and growing our Reserve. If you have any suggestions, please don t hesitate to share them with Ian who will make sure the correct Trustee responds.

2 From the General Manager Business volumes increased over August, as expected. The 732 rounds played were the third highest this year, which is encouraging. Golf rounds generally increase from September through to December and we look forward to a busy period leading up to the holiday season. The weather has warmed up considerably and is currently hot and dry. September and October are normally the most difficult months to manage as far as water and course condition are concerned. Rain is desperately needed and hopefully this will come early and in abundance. The last week of the month was marred by a severe and threatening fire which started approximately 20km North of Elements. The winds were strong and the fire spread South rapidly. It all but destroyed the Hoogland farm and then entered onto the Newburg farm immediately on our North Western boundary. Several fire fighting teams were deployed, including our own, to assist. Not only did our staff excel in the effort but individual homeowners and even a visiting group of eight golfers volunteered their services late into the night. The fire was fought continuously on our boundary for over 48 hours before it was finally declared under control. It came within 500 meters of our boundary and all residents on the West side of the property were alerted to the risk. We extend our sincere thanks and appreciation to our home owners, our staff and the guests who fought bravely along with all the other fire fighting teams involved to prevent the fire from reaching Elements and also Waterberg and Shakama. Golf Course Report The course and especially the fairways have taken strain this past month, with high temperatures and no rain. The fairway grass, however, is holding up well and showing no signs of losing root like it did this time last year. When the rains come the fairways will recover rapidly. We are able to irrigate the opening and closing holes, which have already shown signs of growth. Top dressing of fairways is progressing well and will be completed within the next two weeks. Greens and tees remain in excellent condition.

3 Preparation for the extension of the 9th elevated tee box and the new Ladies tee on 14 is complete and will be grassed shortly. Please make a special note of the hollow tining which will commence on Sunday afternoon, 8th October. The course will reopen for play on Friday, 12th October. The lateral hazard down the left side of the 6th fairway has been neatly cleared and red stakes will be placed on the left side of the hazard to define the boundary. In future if a player hits the ball down the left and cannot find the ball, it will be deemed to be a lost ball and the player will be required to take the lost ball penalty of stroke and distance. The new GPS system is installed and operational. We hope you enjoy this added feature and that it enhances your golf experience. Golf Operations Regrettably our additional employee in the Golf Department did not work out and we are again interviewing. Hopefully the second time around we will be more successful. In the meantime, Narien is assisting with golf operations in the shop over weekends, with Tshepiso spending most of his time controlling the starting and marshalling of players. Andy Gossman receiving a hole in one certificate from Tshepiso on 10 September

4 Marketing An action plan has been put in place to market Elements to the local business community to host their year-end functions here. We hope that this will prove to be a successful venture into this market segment. We are hosting a SAGES Cancer Charity golf day on Friday, 27th October. This event is open to SAGES Members and also to all home owners and guests. Booking will be on a first come, first served basis and the first 100 entries will be accepted. Information has already been posted on Facebook and the formal invitation will be mailed during the first week of October. We are planning to host the annual ELEBULA 36 hole Better Ball Tournament on Monday, 11th and Tuesday, 12th December. The date is subject to confirmation, but please make a note of it if you are planning to be here at the time. Breaking News: A group of twelve prominent golf clubs have formed an interclub agreement, offering reciprocity to each other s members and we have joined the group. This entitles all Elements Members to play at these courses at Member rates subject to certain terms and conditions established by individual clubs. All Members at these clubs can also play at Elements at our Member rate, which will increase our rounds played without any doubt. We will provide you with contact detail for all the clubs and we hope you will make use of this great opportunity. The clubs are: Eagle Canyon Ebotse Links Rand Park Eye of Africa Krugersdorp GG Ruimsig CC Kyalami CC Riviera on Vaal Reading CC Copper Leaf Pecanwood Port Elizabeth GC Clubhouse Staff celebrating Heritage Day Security Report

5 One security breach was experienced, where intruders broke into an unoccupied house. The fire that threatened Elements has taught us that some of our fire breaks need to be widened and cleared of all debris. A comprehensive fire protection procedure will be developed and implemented with input from experienced individuals and lodges in the area. Mountain Biking Good progress has been made by Juandré Marais and his team on mapping out the mountain bike tracks in between all their other responsibilities. When completed there will be four layouts: Kids and Family track of 5.2 km Beginner track of 7.3 km Advanced track of 12.4 km Technical track of 22 km These will all be clearly signposted and easy to follow. The layouts will be posted on the website as soon as completed. More and more members are using the tracks already and everybody seems to enjoy the experience. We hope you enjoy your ride. Fauna and Flora The number of Impala on the property exceeds the recommended head count and the Fauna and Flora Committee have decided to reduce the number by 20 young rams. With this the balance of game will be left unchanged except for Zebra, where the Committee has recommended to the Trustees to add another three mares. The current game count is: Zebra 1 Nyala 27 Kudu 13 Bushbuck 4 Waterbuck 13 Impala 80 Blue Wildebeest 14 Mountain Reedbuck 7 Blesbuck 6 Red Hartbeest 4 The game is being fed and all animals are in excellent condition.

6 The Miracle of Spring

7 Water Consumption Control of available water at Elements is without a doubt one of our most important responsibilities. We currently measure all water movement from the boreholes into the irrigation and concrete dams and also the daily volumes of water transferred onto the golf course and into the two reservoirs on the property. The consumption of water by each house is measured and reported weekly. There are 36 completed houses on the Estate without water meters and this is going to be rectified. The owners of the 36 houses will be notified and will be informed that they are liable to install a water meter at their property. We have called for three quotes to supply and install these meters and will appoint a contractor to complete the exercise on behalf of all the owners affected. The total cost of the installation will be divided equally among the 36 affected owners and will be individually billed on the monthly levy account. If any owner objects and wishes to install the meter themselves, they will be given 30 days to comply. During the month of September we pumped 8.7 million liters into the irrigation dam and applied 9,4 million liters to the golf course. This might sound like a lot but it remains 75% below the actual requirement to grow the grasses at this time of the year. 4.5 million liters were pumped into the concrete dam and the same amount was transferred into the two water storage tanks for domestic consumption. At present no charges are raised for domestic water consumption. When all the meters have been installed we will monitor water consumption for every house and will notify owners monthly of their individual use. There are a number of houses where the current use is excessive. These owners have been addressed individually and instructed to immediately reduce their water use. The response has been encouraging and positive. The most frightening statistic of all is that in September the total water consumption by the houses on the property was 59% more than the average of the previous three months. If the situation does not improve in October we will have no other option but to recommend to the Trustees that we begin to charge for excessive use. Water is critical and we appeal to everyone to minimize use wherever possible. Maintenance The Clubhouse hot water boiler has been giving trouble for over a year now and has finally packed up totally. It will be replaced with 4 X 200 liter hot water geysers connected in series. This will be a much more cost-effective solution and will provide an adequate supply of hot shower water for any occasion.

8 Property Marketing As mentioned in the August news letter, a successful Property Workshop was held, with a wide range of interested parties in attendance. The outcome of this so far is that we have identified 14 stands owned by Bushill, ranging from great to average locations and have priced them realistically to launch onto the market in early December. We are in the initial stages of planning a launch golf day with the objective of selling as many of these properties on the day as possible. In addition to this we have commenced negotiations with a development company, who have constructed homes in the area for many years already, to purchase and develop one of the Corporate stands owned by 4Elements. If this materializes, it will provide onsite accommodation for 32 guests and will be ideal for golf groups to stay and play at Elements. Festive Season We are planning for the upcoming festive season and look forward to meeting as many home owners as possible over this period. We have taken a decision to keep the Clubhouse and golf course open every day from the 1st December until the 15th January After that we will relook at the position and decide whether or not to remain open every day of the week in future. We are going to remain open for dinner every Friday and Saturday night during the same period. We will also take advance bookings any other night of the week for pre-booked events. The Clubhouse will not be open on Christmas Day. Home owners and guests may play complimentary golf on the 25 th, but no staff will be available to assist with carts or drinks or meals. We will host a special New Year s Day buffet lunch. Bookings for the lunch will be essential and only prebooked guests will be accommodated. Notices will be posted to this effect. We do hope that many owners and guests will take advantage of this and support the club as much as possible.