About EDGAR Online | Login
 
The following is an excerpt from a 10-K SEC Filing, filed by GTA-IB, LLC on 4/2/2007.
Next Section Next Section Previous Section Previous Section
GTA-IB, LLC - 10-K - 20070402 - DIRECTORS_AND_OFFICERS

ITEM 10. DIRECTORS AND EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE REGISTRANT

Set forth below is information about the members of our Audit Committee and our executive officers. Due to the fact that we are a limited liability company, we are sole member managed by Golf Trust of America, Limited Partnership through its general partner GTA GP, Inc.

Messrs. Jones, Reams, Wax, Loeb and Toor are members of our Audit Committee and directors of GTA. Each is deemed to be an independent director of GTA pursuant to the rules of the American Stock Exchange. Their terms as members of our Audit Committee track their respective terms as directors of GTA, unless they are removed by our sole member prior to the expiration of their respective terms. Messrs. Jones, Reams and Wax were appointed to our Audit Committee in 2004 and Messrs. Loeb and Toor were appointed to our Audit Committee in 2006.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current

 

 

 

 

 

 

Term on GTA’s

 

 

 

 

 

 

Board of Directors

Name

 

Age

 

Position

 

Expires

W. Bradley Blair, II

 

63

 

Chief Executive Officer and President; Director (GTA and GTA GP Inc.)

 

2008

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

R. Keith Wilt

 

54

 

Vice President

 

N/A

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scott D. Peters(1)

 

49

 

Chief Financial Officer, Senior Vice President and Secretary; Director (GTA and GTA GP Inc.)

 

(1)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tracy S. Clifford(2)

 

38

 

Principal Accounting Officer, Controller and Secretary (GTA and GTA GP Inc.)

 

N/A

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Raymond V. Jones

 

59

 

Audit Committee Member and Director (GTA)

 

2008

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fred W. Reams

 

64

 

Audit Committee Member and Director (GTA)

 

2009

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edward L. Wax

 

70

 

Audit Committee Member and Director (GTA)

 

2009

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jan H. Loeb

 

48

 

Audit Committee Member and Director (GTA)

 

2009

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nauman S. Toor

 

38

 

Audit Committee Member and Director (GTA)

 

2007


(1)             Resigned all positions effective February 5, 2007.

(2)             Formerly the Controller for GTA, appointed Principal Accounting Officer of GTA on February 6, 2007 and Secretary of GTA on February 20, 2007.

Biographical Information

W. Bradley Blair, II is our Chief Executive Officer and President. He has been one of our officers since 2002. He is also the Chief Executive Officer, President and Chairman of GTA’s Board of Directors. He has been an officer of GTA since its initial public offering in 1997 and has served as our Chief Executive Officer and President since 2002.   Mr. Blair has served as a member of the Board of Directors of NNN Healthcare/Office REIT, Inc. since September 2006.  From 1993 until GTA’s initial public offering in February 1997, Mr. Blair served as Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel for The Legends Group. As an officer of The Legends Group, Mr. Blair was responsible for all aspects of operations, including acquisitions, development and marketing. From 1978 to 1993, Mr. Blair was the managing partner at Blair Conaway Bograd & Martin, P.A., a law firm specializing in real estate, finance, taxation and acquisitions. Mr. Blair earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business from Indiana University and a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Law School.

R. Keith Wilt is our Vice President, and has served as our officer since July 16, 2004. He has held that position since we assumed control of the Resort, pursuant to the Settlement Agreement entered into on July 16, 2004 with GHR. From August 1999 through July 15, 2004, Mr. Wilt served as the Vice President and Treasurer of GHR. From March 1997 through

29




July 1999, Mr. Wilt served as the Chief Financial Officer of The Suncoast Companies, a design/build real estate developer in St. Petersburg, Florida. From 1991 though 1997, Mr. Wilt acted as an independent financial and systems consultant to a number of real estate development companies in the Tampa Bay area. From 1986 to 1991, Mr. Wilt was a Director of Information Services for TECO Energy, Inc. in Tampa, Florida. From 1975 to 1986, Mr. Wilt was the Assistant Treasurer and Corporate Tax Manager of Golf Host, Inc., the parent company of GHR. Mr. Wilt earned a Bachelors of Science degree in Accounting and Finance from Florida State University in 1975.

Scott D. Peters was our Chief Financial Officer and Secretary until his resignation on February 5, 2007. He was been one of our officers since 2002. He is also the Chief Financial Officer, Secretary and a member of GTA’s Board of Directors. He has been an officer of GTA since its initial public offering in 1997 and has served as our Chief Financial Officer and Secretary since 2002. Mr. Peters has been a board member of GTA since late 1999. In September 2004, Mr. Peters accepted a position as the Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and a member of the board of managers at Triple Net Properties in Santa Ana, California. Mr. Peters had also served as President and Chief Executive Officer of G REIT, Inc. since December 2005, having served as that company’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer since September 2004, and he has served as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of NNN Healthcare/Office REIT, Inc. since September 2006. From 1992 through 1996, Mr. Peters was the Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Pacific Holding Company/LSR in Los Angeles, developer of a master-planned residential community and country club, from September 1992 to June 1996, and Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Castle & Cooke Properties, Inc., a real estate development subsidiary of Dole Food Company, from February 1988 to August 1992. Mr. Peters received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting and Finance from Kent State University.

Tracy S. Clifford was appointed GTA’s Principal Accounting Officer and Secretary upon the resignation of Scott D. Peters, GTA’s Senior Vice President, Secretary and Chief Financial Officer, on February 5, 2007.  Ms. Clifford has been GTA’s Controller since September 1999.  Prior to her employment with GTA in September 1999, Ms. Clifford was the Accounting Manager for United Healthcare of Georgia, Inc. from May 1995 through February 1999 and Finance Director from March 1999 until  September 1999.  From June 1993 through April 1995, Mrs. Clifford was employed by North Broward Hospital District in Fort Lauderdale, Florida initially as Senior Accountant (June 1993 through January 1994) and subsequently as Accounting Manager (February 1994 through April 1995).  Mrs. Clifford is a Certified Public Accountant and worked as an auditor with Deloitte & Touche in Miami, Florida from 1991 to 1993.  She received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting from the College of Charleston and a Masters Degree in Business Administration from Georgia State University.

Raymond V. Jones has been a member of our Audit Committee since 2004. Mr. Jones also serves as a member of GTA’s Board of Directors. From 1984 to 1994 he was Managing Partner of Summit Properties Limited Partnership before it went public in 1994. From 1994 until retiring in March 1998, Mr. Jones was the Executive Vice President of Summit Properties Inc. Summit was a publicly traded REIT listed on the New York Stock Exchange and was one of the largest developers and operators of luxury garden multifamily apartment communities in the Southeastern United States. While at Summit, Mr. Jones oversaw the development of 26 communities comprising nearly 6,500 apartment homes in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Ohio. Prior to 1984, Mr. Jones served as General Operations Manager for both the Charlotte and Houston divisions of Ryan Homes, Inc. Mr. Jones earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from George Washington University.

Fred W. Reams has been a member of our Audit Committee since 2004. Mr. Reams also serves as a member of GTA’s Board of Directors. From 1981 until his retirement on March 31, 2004, Mr. Reams served as the Chairman or President and Chief Investment Officer of Reams Asset Management Company, LLC, an independent private investment firm which he co-founded. From 1967 to 1981, Mr. Reams was employed in various investment management positions with the First National Bank of Michigan, Irwin Management Company, and Cummins, Inc. In addition, Mr. Reams served as President of the board of directors of the Otter Creek Golf Course from 1981 through 2003. Mr. Reams holds a Bachelor of Arts degree and a Master of Arts degree in Economics from Western Michigan University.

Edward L. Wax has been a member of our Audit Committee since 2004. Mr. Wax also serves as a member of GTA’s Board of Directors. Mr. Wax is currently Chairman Emeritus of Saatchi & Saatchi, a worldwide advertising and ideas company. From 1992 until his appointment to his current position in 1997, Mr. Wax served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Saatchi & Saatchi. Mr. Wax had been responsible at Saatchi for the operations of 143 offices in 87 countries. Mr. Wax’s employment by Saatchi & Saatchi began in 1982. Mr. Wax was formerly Chairman of The American Association of Advertising Agencies as well as a director of both the Ad Council and the Advertising Educational Foundation. Mr. Wax also serves on the board of directors of Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group. Mr. Wax holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Northeastern University and a Masters in Business Administration degree from the Wharton Graduate School of Business.

30




Jan H. Loeb has been a member of our Audit Committee since November 2006. Mr. Loeb is currently a portfolio manager for Amtrust Capital Management, Inc., a position he has held since February 2005. From February 2004 through January 2005, Mr. Loeb was a portfolio manager for Chesapeake Partners. From January 2002 through December 2004, Mr. Loeb was a Managing Director of Jefferies & Company, Inc., an investment banking firm which is based in New York City. From 1994 through 2001, Mr. Loeb was a Managing Director of Dresdner Kleinwort and Wasserstein, Inc., an investment banking firm based in New York City which was formerly known as Wasserstein Perella & Co., Inc. Mr. Loeb also serves on the board of directors of American Pacific Corporation, a chemical and aerospace corporation and serves on the boards of numerous charitable organizations. Mr. Loeb holds a B.B.A. degree from Bernard M. Baruch College.

Nauman S. Toor has been a member of our Audit Committee since November 2006 Mr. Toor has served as a Managing Director of Jefferies & Company, Inc., an investment banking firm which is based in New York City, since April 2001.  As of December 31, 2006, Mr. Toor left Jefferies to form his own registered investment advisory firm.  Mr. Toor started his career in investment banking with Kidder Peabody & Company in New York in 1990 and joined Jefferies & Company, Inc.’s investment banking group in 1994. Mr. Toor holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Ohio Wesleyan University and a Masters in Business Administration from Harvard Business School.

Committees

Audit Committee.    The board of directors has established an audit committee to oversee our financial reporting process on behalf of the board of directors. Mr. Jones is the chairman of our audit committee. Our audit committee consists of Messrs. Wax, Reams, Jones, Toor and Loeb each of whom is independent under the rules of the Amex. Each member of our audit committee also meets the criteria for independence set forth in Rule 10A-3(b)(1) under the Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. None of the members of our audit committee has participated in the preparation of our financial statements or those of our subsidiaries during the past three years, and all are able to read and understand fundamental financial statements. Our audit committee’s role is to select the independent public accountants, to review with the independent public accountants the plans and results of the audit engagement, to approve professional services provided by the independent public accountants, to review the independence of the independent public accountants, to consider the range of audit and non-audit fees and to review the adequacy of our company’s internal accounting controls. Our management has the primary responsibility for the financial statements and the reporting process including the systems of internal controls. In fulfilling its oversight responsibilities, our audit committee reviewed the audited financial statements with management including a discussion of the quality, not just the acceptability, of the accounting principles, the reasonableness of significant judgments, and the clarity of disclosures in the financial statements. Our audit committee reviewed with the independent auditors, who are responsible for expressing an opinion on the conformity of those audited financial statements with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America, their judgments as to the quality, not just the acceptability, of our accounting principles and such other matters as are required to be discussed with our audit committee under generally accepted auditing standards. While financially literate under the applicable rules of the Amex, the members of our audit committee are not currently professionally engaged in the practices of accounting or auditing and are not all experts in the fields of accounting or auditing, including in respect of auditor independence. Members of our audit committee rely without independent verification on the information provided to them and on the representations made by management and our auditors, BDO Seidman, LLP. Accordingly, our audit committee’s oversight does not provide an independent basis to determine that management has maintained appropriate accounting and financial reporting principles or appropriate internal controls and procedures designed to assure compliance with accounting standards and applicable laws and regulations. Our audit committee’s reviews, considerations and discussions do not provide assurance that BDO Seidman’s audit of our financial statements was carried out in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards, that the financial statements are presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America or that our public accountants are in fact “independent.” Our audit committee operates pursuant to a written amended and restated charter approved by our board of directors.

Audit Committee Financial Expert.    Our “audit committee financial expert,” as defined by the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission, is Mr. Fred W. Reams. Mr. Reams qualifies as an independent director pursuant to the standards of the American Stock Exchange. In addition:

(i)                                      Mr. Reams, who is an audit committee financial expert, will not be deemed expert for any purpose, including without limitation for purposes of section 11 of the Securities Act of 1933 (15 U.S.C. 77k), as a result of being designated or identified as an audit committee financial expert.

(ii)                                   The designation or identification of Mr. Reams as an audit committee financial expert does not impose on him any duties, obligations or liability that are greater than the duties, obligations and liability imposed on such person as a member of our audit committee and board of directors in the absence of such designation or identification.

31




(iii)                                The designation or identification of Mr. Reams as an audit committee financial expert does not affect the duties, obligations or liability of any other member of our audit committee or board of directors.

Other Committees. We may, from time to time, form other committees as circumstances warrant. No additional committees existed or were formed in the year ended December 31, 2006.

Directors and Officers Insurance

GTA maintains directors and officers liability insurance that insures our officers, managers and committee members from claims arising out of an alleged wrongful act by such persons while acting as executive officers, managers or committee members of our company, and it insures our company to the extent that we have indemnified our officers, managers and committee members for such loss.

Indemnification

Our organizational documents provide that we shall indemnify our officers, committee members and managers against certain liabilities to the fullest extent permitted under applicable law. Our organizational documents also provide that our officers, committee members and managers shall be exculpated from monetary damages to us to the fullest extent permitted under applicable law.

Code of Ethics

We have adopted the Code of Ethics of GTA. This Code of Ethics applies to our principal executive officer, our principal financial officer, our principal accounting officer, and our controller, as well as all of our officers and other employees. GTA’s Code of Ethics is filed as Exhibit 14.1 to its Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed on March 30, 2004. You may also obtain a free copy of our Code of Ethics by writing to our attention at 10 N. Adger’s Wharf, Charleston, South Carolina, 29401.

Until its termination on October 31, 2006, our management agreement with Westin provided that substantially all of the employees of the Resort are our employees, but were managed by Westin. As a result of this arrangement, we did not have direct control over these employees. Each employee at the Resort was subject to the Worldwide Code of Business Conduct and Ethics of Westin’s parent, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc, or Starwood. The text of Starwood’s code of conduct may be found on Starwood’s website. You may also obtain, without charge, a printed copy of the Starwood Code of Ethics by writing to our attention at 10 N. Adger’s Wharf, Charleston, South Carolina, 29401

32