SOI - Stuff of Importance

Let's go omnibus here:

1. With the impending snow, a reminder -- we (HOA) will plow at 2 inches of accumulated snowfall and again as necessary. Please have your cars out of the street. The city also plows, but we're never quite sure when, so don't rely on it. As always, please help neighbors with shoveling if you can.

2. Our annual meeting is scheduled for March 20th. You'll be receiving a letter of notice and a proxy in the mail shortly. The notice is legal, but the proxy is something many misunderstand. To do business at the meeting, we require a quorum of homeowners, a minimum number. If you are in attendance, great. If you can't be, your proxy allows us to count your votes. You may designate another homeowner as your representative. Failing that, the Board will carry your proxy. We hope as many will be in attendance as possible, but be sure your proxy is in if you can not.

3. You'll be receiving a letter about community standards. The Property Manager has noted the violations throughout the community that will be addressed. If you're in violation, you'll also receive a notice describing the violation. (For instance, if you have no grass in your backyard, the notice will say "You have X days to prove seeding and will be subject to penalties if further inspection does not show you meet standards.") The biggest violations were yards, landscaping, and unapproved property changes.

3a. You'll also note street parking will be discussed. This is an ongoing debate to which there is no simple answer. While the covenants address this, this is superseded by local ordinances. The city of Greenwood has been issuing citations for street parking and for blocking sidewalks. The HOA will *not* be issuing violations on this under normal circumstances, but the city has the right to enforce their ordinances.

3b. So what's NOT a normal circumstance? In my opinion, if you are parking on the street for a short term period (ie, overnight), aren't blocking the road, are parking with traffic, and have your driveway filled, that's reasonable. (Reasonable, yes, but not legal according to the city.) If you have a car that's been there a week, is on blocks, or is otherwise a nuisance, that's where the HOA might get involved.

4. What's the biggest problem right now? Minimum standards for landscaping. MANY homeowners have not met the minimum standards that they agreed to when they purchased their homes. CP Morgan did not enforce these standards, which was their choice, but the HOA shall. We're not asking for anything elaborate; just the minimum standards as noted in the covenants. We'd much rather that people spent their money on making their homes look great rather than fines and court costs, so just take a look around. We'll have upcoming seminars on landscaping, yard maintenance, and other topics to help you. As well, we're working on getting some discounts from local businesses (landscapers, mowing, etc) to help manage the costs.

5. Here's the good news -- while the downturn in the economy hurts all of us, our area is seeing some of the smallest drops in home value. Indianapolis wasn't overvalued in the way that San Francisco or Florida were, so we'll come back quicker. Also, Homecoming is BELOW the expected rate of foreclosure given our community's size and demographics. With new businesses coming in, such as Cabela's, we're liable to see some increased demand later this year.

As always, if you have any questions, you know how to reach me by email or by phone.

A quick poll question for you on garages ...

ACC

No, this isn't a basketball post ... though Big 10 fans, you're down this year.

Instead, this is about one of the most exciting changes for Homecoming. With the changing of the calendar also came a changing of the guard. The board has taken over the administration of architectural and community standards. The Architectural Control Committee, led by resident Don Harrington, will be monitoring several important things to keep our community up to the levels we all expect. Their duties will include:

1. Approving any architectural changes

This sounds small, but if you're looking to add anything with any permanence -- a fence, a basketball goal, or make noticeable changes to the exterior of your home, you are required to get approval first. Failure to do so is ... well, it's bad, so don't do it! You should have the forms handy and turn them in to Main Street Management.

2. Monitoring standards

This goes hand in hand with the first one, but makes sure everyone is up to the community minimums on landscaping. This is a problem area and one that will be addressed. If you haven't got your trees, shrubs, and grass up to standards, it's not too early to plan out what you're going to do when springtime comes.

3. Monitoring violations

This is pretty self-explanatory and hopefully, we won't have to get into this one too much.

Thanks to Don and the rest of the committee. We'll have more information after their first meeting next week.

Holiday decoration theft(s)

Neighbors:

We had reports this weekend about holiday decoration thefts. At least two. A family's holiday decoration being taken from their front yard. A large, 8-foot tall inflatable Tigger was taken from the home on Legacy Blvd sometime during Friday/Saturday night, and the family with three young children awoke to find it stolen. Another report is that a large Bear figure was stolen during the night between 8 p.m. and 12 a.m.

A few people had noticed at least two strucks suspiciously driving the streets last night, though that may or may not be connected. They apparently would slowly drive along, stop in front of a house, and park there briefly with lights out before creeping along to another house. One was a black truck that could resemble one seen during an October theft of two air conditioning units along Legacy. The second, a red truck, turned out to be some individuals looking for the house of resident they knew. However, two young girls who were home alone observed this black truck, and were worried enough to contact the police about it. Please be aware of this and keep your eyes open.

If a theft happens, PLEASE CONTACT THE GREENWOOD POLICE DEPARTMENT FIRST. The dispatch number is (317) 881-2518. Then, alert your neighbors and anyone on the Neighborhood Watch List so that we can help keep crime to a minimum.

Please also let your neighbors know your schedule during the holidays so if you are out of town, we can remain vigilant of your property and our neighborhood! Anyonelse who had anything taken last night, please let the police and your Neighborhood Watch Block Captain or Coordinator know.

We also hope that whomeover took the Tigger will return this decoration - please don't ruin a family's holiday celebration. Just return it - please.

Another note: with the winter weather and snow, please be mindful of your street parking. Snow plows can only do a good job in the areas they can get to. In this weather, please limit your street parking so they can do their jobs effectly. Thanks.

Snow!

Let's hope Chris, Angela, and Brian are wrong, but it looks like we're in for some snow this weekend. Be prepared and help your neighbors be prepared. Snow will be plowed on the roads by HUP once it's 2 inches deep and at regular intervals. The city will plow ... well, whenever they get to it, though it appears that Legacy and Heartland are going to be first plowed. 

Driveways and sidewalks do need to be maintained, but we will not be monitoring. It's your responsibility as a homeowner to make both passable. If anyone has kids who are out looking for pocket money or knows of someone who's shoveling or plowing, let me know and I'll get contact numbers up on the blog in updates.

Please be aware of neighbors who, for whatever reason, cannot shovel/plow themselves. If you have an empty house next to you, this applies as well. Good luck and good sledding!

Neighborhood Watch

Welcome to your friendly neighborhood blog! This is your Neighborhood Watch Coordinator speaking, and I'll be taking you on a tour of what we've got to offer as part of our community initiative. To date, we have dozens of residents participating in the NW effort, if nothing more than just taking part in a community email loop to keep updated on news and happenings. Let us know if you you are a Homecoming resident, aren't on that email list, and want to be!

Participation varies, from those who serve as Block Captains and act as the point-person for their respective area/street in the community, to those who simply keep an eye on the neighborhood and stay atuned of what's happening here. Everyone plays an important and and needed part.

We work closely with the Greenwood Police Department in keeping our community safe, getting such things such as regular patrols and most recently an electronic speed-monitor trailer that helped slow some drivers down. We are trying to get the message out to potential criminals that this isn't a neighborhood to come to - we're constantly watching and will report anything suspicious to the police. Currently, we are in the process of getting NW street signs for our community, more speed limit signs on various streets, and are in the throws of getting NW decals out to residents to post on their windows.

We also have a Pet Awareness Program to keep track of neighborhood pets and, in the event one escapes and is seen in the community, we can try to track down that owner and reunite the owner and pet. We have a few success stories to share on that front in the past year!

Lastly, we need your help! A Neighborhood Watch is only as effective as the people who participate make it. We have many watchful neighbors, but need to make sure everyone who wants to be involved has that opportunity. Get us your contact information, if nothing more than just an email address so that we can make sure you stay updated on community news, crime alerts, upcoming events, and pertinent issues that affect you as a property owner.

Best,
Michael Hoskins, Neighborhood Watch Coordinator
Hearthside Drive

Open House (12/8/07)

What's the best way to warm up on a cold weekend morning?

Ok, the second best way? Third?

All good answers, but I'd suggest also checking out the Open House at the Homecoming Clubhouse. It will go from 10am to 2pm. Bring an unwrapped toy or canned good and you'll get some yummy treats for your self and won't you feel warm inside for having done some good?

Kudos to the Women's Club for organizing this. See you all there!