
One Motel in Belleair Beach Operates Under Two Corporate Names; All 3 Are "Non-Profit"by Leo CoughlinBELLEAIR BEACH - A search of records indicates that one of the motels operating in "non-commercial" Belleair Beach is operating simultaneously under two corporate names. And the further research reveals now that in the four corporate names currently active and associated with the three motels, three of the corporations are listed in Florida corporation records as "not for profit." Belleair Beach Club, LLC at 3200 Gulf Boulevard is listed under that name in one listing in Florida records and is also listed as C.H. Beach Resort Condominium Association, Inc., as a non-profit corporation. Records show the same names of resident agents and others associated with both corporations. The other motels - Nautical Watch at 3420 Gulf Boulevard and Belleair Beach Resort Motel at 2040 Gulf Boulevard - are also listed in state records as non-profit corporations. Nautical Watch is officially listed as The Nautical Watch Owners Association, Inc. Belleair Beach Resort Motel is officially listed as Belleair Beach Resort Owners Association, Inc. Queries to all three motels have gone unanswered. Nautical Watch and Belleair Beach Resort Motel have histories going back some 27 years. Florida corporation records show that the site where Nautical Watch now is was once incorporated under the name of Belleair Beach Resorts, Ltd., with a listed connection to Rabkin Development Company in Cincinnati. Its corporate life under that name ended in 1982. Similarly, what is now known as Bellair Beach Resort Motel was incorporated up until 1982 under the name of Belleair Beach Resort Motel, Ltd., with no names listed in the state corporation records. All of these "non-profit" businesses advertise on the Internet where they have web sites. The advertising presents each of the motels as a typical resort, fully open to the public and with no indication of an association with a group that would qualify for non-profit status. What is most puzzling is the status of Belleair Beach Club at 3200 Gulf Boulevard which ostensibly is operating under two corporate names. In each instance, Stan Latek is listed as the resident agent for both Belleair Beach Club, LLC (for profit) and C.H. Beach Resort Condominium Association, Inc. (not for profit). His address is given at the motel location. Others associated with the motel listed in state records are Frank, Angeline and Mary Latek, all of Orland, Ill. Ken Cantrell is listed as the registered agent for Belleair Beach Resort Motel and is shown in state records with an address at the motel and another address in Chattanooga, Tenn. Others listed in the corporation records for Belleair Beach Resort Motel are Donna Thurman of Largo, Malari Bishara of Clearwater, Magda Bishara of Clearwater, and Jill Nessler at the motel. The Nautical Watch Owners Association, Inc., which operates the motel at 3420 Gulf Boulevard lists as its registered agent Dennis Ditinno of St. Petersburg. Others listed in are Nancy Stegura of Largo, Patricia Feehery of Lansing, Mich., Nancy Janock of Plymouth, Mich., Dennis O'Leary of Ravenna, Ohio, Patricia Zmecek of Parma, Ohio, and Robert Dugan of Rocky River, Ohio. Under Florida law, according to Chapter 617.0301, non-profit corporations may be organized for purposes "not for pecuniary profit" and these purposes can include charitable, benevolent, educational, historical, civic, patriotic, political, religious, social, fraternal, literary, cultural, athletic, scientific, agricultural, horticultural, animal husbandry. None of these purposes would seem to apply to three motels strung along Gulf Boulevard openly advertising for patronage and giving no indication whatsoever that they are different from any other of the many motels and hotels in the area. The federal Internal Revenue Service lists in definitive form 26 various non-profit categories. None would seem to apply to the three motels in Belleair Beach, the closest category being 501(c)(7), "Social and Recreational Clubs." That category might bring such a business under the umbrella of a time share condominium arrangement. But all three motels in Belleair Beach solicit business openly with signage, advertising prices, open to the public, etc.
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