====News: Festiva “Threatens” Atrium Timeshare Owners====
News and Comment from Jeff:

Atrium owner Festiva Resorts --- in an astonishingly inept response to anger and
litigation from its timeshare owners resulting from a huge and apparently
illegal supplemental maintenance fee it levied on owners to fund what it says is
long-overdue refurbishing --- is attempting to get its own leases modified in
court so it can go ahead with its monumental special assessment.

The SXM Daily Herald overstated a bit what was happening, saying Festiva was
suing its timeshare owners. But by any measure of standard “crisis PR practice,”
Festiva is creating a beautiful case study in how to ruin established customer
relationships.

Festiva ran full-page ads in both SXM newspapers last week in which it crystallized its
arrogance toward its timeshare owners. One paragraph read in part, “According to
Ms. Spronk, ‘A special assessment is needed in order to upgrade the Atrium. In
the 14 years the resort has been operated, the rooms have never been upgraded.
We will be completely updating the furniture, soft goods, lamps….’ “ The
paragraph went on to describe other “upgrades.”

What exactly were maintenance fees collected by the previous owner spent for?
Everything Festiva says it is going to do falls under the commonly accepted
definition of “maintenance.” If the prior owner had not performed these
functions, then Festiva should sue them to recover the money, not attempt to
penalize timeshare owners who paid fees in good faith for years on-end. If
Festiva “didn’t know” the place was such a mess when they bought it, shame on
them. If they bought it with full knowledge of its condition and intended to
“upgrade” it, then they should pay for that investment, not timeshare owners who have paid

for maintenance in the past and failed to receive it.

No right to levy a special assessment was in Atrium’s timeshare leases, yet
Festiva attempted to enforce this humongous charge anyway and threatened owners
with foreclosure if they didn’t pay. Nice guys, don’t you think?

All of this once again brings us back to the fact that there is NO timeshare
owner consumer protection legislation in St. Maarten, which lets operators like
Festiva act in such an anti-consumer (buyer-be-damned) manner.

Bottom line, Festiva is litigating to get the pound of timeshare owner flesh it
apparently lusts after. Let the games begin.

If you are an Atrium timeshare owner, get involved with the litigants. Under
Antillean law you are not protected at all unless you proactively get involved
in this litigation. Email Rowie and Pat Percoco now at rowiep@aol.com.  Include
your full name, weeks owned (unit #s), street address, and phone in your email.
Rowie and Pat will provide further details; they are spearheading this.