Silver Sands Racquet Club

Quorum Article - April 2005

Silver Sands is a 256 unit, gated condominium community centrally located in Palm Desert on 72 acres of fee land at Country Club Drive and Portola Avenue. Construction started in 1982 and was completed in 1988. The developer was the McLain Development Company out of Orange County. 

This was the only community built by McLain in the Desert. McLain’s target market was the getaway condo owner in Orange County and Los Angeles. He was very hands on in his marketing efforts and hosted catered parties at the Silver Sands clubhouse during build out.

Silver Sands is laid out mainly on the oval shaped Plaza del Sol. This street takes one through the entire community and offers vistas of lush landscape, rolling hills, gorgeous views, and a waterfall at the main entrance. The guard shack at the main entrance is manned 12 hours a day. There is an alternative back exit and entrance for the use of the owners. Each street has a monument sign bearing its name.    

The community’s facilities include a 3,800 square feet clubhouse. The Tennis Director’s office overlooks the 8 tennis courts and a handball court. Additionally, there are15 pools, one on each block  

The HOA employs a tennis pro. The present pro, Erick Tollas, has been there for 20 years. Erick coordinates the tennis schedule and also gives private tennis lessons for an additional tuition fee. 

The homes at Silver Sands come in 6 models ranging in size from 1,080 to 2,110 square feet with either 2 or 3 bedrooms. The current price range is $275,000 - $425,000, which may be compared to the original pricing of $125,000 to $225,000. The present market is excellent with only 2 listings for sale out of the 256 homes. The proportion of full time to part time residents is approximately 40% full time, 60% part time.

What homeowners like best about Silver Sands are its location and their neighbors. With the age of most owners in the 60-85 year range this is a very close and sociable community. Says one Board member: “The people here is what really makes the difference, we hate to see anyone go and they rarely do.”

As to location, it is between 2 markets, Ralph’s and Albertsons, and close to many small shops, with a fire station right across the street. Bounded by other communities and a commercial center to the north, it is within 3 miles of the attractions of El Paseo. 

Silver Sands is a mature community and is dealing with the landscaping issues that face many such in the Desert. They have removed several of the pine trees and have replaced a lot of the original landscaping with xeriscape, which is nicely complimented by the lush open grassy areas of greenbelt. This gradual change in the landscaping to reflect more of the Desert look and minimize water usage is an ongoing project.

The HOA continues to stay abreast of developments in energy and environmental issues.  They installed piping for reclaimed water in the early 1990’s. They maintain a minimal but safe amount of lighting, and rotate pool heating

Other projects under way or under study include clubhouse remodeling and the restatement of the governing documents. They are conducting a feasibility study to enlarge the clubhouse. This involves doing away with the 2^nd racquetball court, removing a wall and installing a beam to make an 800 square feet addition to the meeting and dining room area. 

The governing documents (Bylaws and CC&Rs) were drawn up more than 20 years ago. A 7-member committee has been tasked with bringing them up to date. This should be done by the end of this season. It has been very helpful that 4 of the 7 committee members are retired attorneys.

A 5-member Board of Directors governs the HOA. The Board meets twice a month, once in a study session with committee members and homeowners present and then the business meeting two weeks later. There are 12 very active committees assisting the Board. These meet at least once a month.

Association dues are $496, which includes trash and cable. Vendors include Steven Burt, Securitas, Guralnick & Gilliland, Union Bank, Asphalt MD’s, Powerful Pest, Waste Management, Time Warner, D&D Painting, and Joel Glassman,

The management company is Jim Lewis’ Desert Management. Association Manager is the highly regarded Bonnie Haggerman. Says Bonnie, “Everyone gets along great and they are really easy to work with. We have active committees that are really involved in the complex. And also a caring and dedicated Board of Directors that works very closely with all of our committees.”

Bonnie adds, “They have a monthly newsletter called ‘ The Update’ that is written by a homeowner and the Communication Committee. They really believe in keeping solid communication with all owners. Also much of their financial support has come from voluntary donations, contributions, auctions, or fundraisers. They have had only two special assessments, one to do the conversion to utilize the reclaimed water. The second was to build up reserves in the early 1990’s.”