edition of 2006. Modern-day issues of the magazine continue to include legislative updates in every issue in a column called the Legislative Lens.
Way back in December of 2008, a cover was dedicated to an important article about legislative changes to condominium inspection requirements – long before Surfside took that topic to a whole new level. Other topics that continue to appear over and over include hurricane preparedness, governance issues, reserve funding, maintenance issues, insurance concerns and board operations.
In recent years, condominium safety, milestone inspections, reserve studies and board / CAM responsibilities for structural maintenance have become central industry discussions in Florida. Yet even older editions of the magazine reveal longstanding conversations about deferred maintenance, fiduciary responsibility and the importance of proactive planning.
Other common threads connecting those old magazine issues to the ones we publish today include chapter happenings involving our members. In the early days, the magazine advertised the chapter’ s own TV show on BLAB Television, Channel 21. The ad claimed that the show reached 165,000 viewing households, and our chapter members were responsible for the show’ s content.
In 2007, the chapter awarded“ Community Association of the Year” accolades to member associations in three categories: small association, large association and self-managed association. I can’ t imagine being on that selection committee!
Throughout the years, photo spreads of our members at various chapter social events popped up more and more frequently, first in black and white and eventually in full color. Our members were
featured at golf tournaments, beach bashes, and, of course, Community Associations Day. Lots of events, lots of smiles.
So at least since 2003, CAI West Florida chapter has used the name The West Florida Wire, which, in 2015, became Community Magazine, as a megaphone to its’ members. The magazine grew from a simple chapter newsletter
Looking at legislation that affects communities started decades ago!
into the polished publication you are reading today. The photography improved, the design became more sophisticated, and the content expanded to reflect an increasingly complex and professional industry.
Email overload! A topic that we are all still dealing with but not one that would be cover-worthy today.
WWW. CAIW�STFLO�IDA. O�G community • September 2026
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