Category: Presidents Corner

Dear Scofield Farms Homeowner,

The time of year is here to enjoy some outdoor fun with your family. Your Scofield Farms board members and volunteers have a few springtime activities to get you started. Spring is also the time of year to begin making improvements to your yard and property to maintain our neighborhood. The Residential Homeowners Association (ROA) board has been doing our part to maintain the neighborhood integrity. Below are specific items we are working on to sustain your property values through our joint community property within the neighborhood. Please do your part by maintaining your own property so we can all live in a safe and appealing environment.

Below are items your neighborhood ROA has been working on to improve the property as well as updates from your neighborhood ROA board:

 

1. New storage unit: The ROA has received bids to install an ACC approved storage shed in the grassy area within the pool fence. Currently we pay monthly storage fees at a facility off site. The long-term savings of installing this unit will assist with future projects for neighborhood improvements. The ROA will have the shed installed within the next month. The storage shed will also serve as an example of what an approved structure should look like if you should choose a shed installation within your own property.

 

2. New playground equipment: The ROA is working with playground consultants as well as a volunteer neighborhood committee to select and install new playground equipment next to the pool. The current equipment is in much need of replacement, given the age and condition. We hope to have final decisions made by the end of March with an install of the new equipment 6-7 weeks after selection. The playground is a valuable asset to the community and keeping the equipment up-to-date will improve our community value. We also intend to collaborate with the City on a larger playground in the nearby City Park. This is a long-term project and will involve many stakeholders and will take time to bring to fruition.

 

3. New Community website, Forum and SF Instant Communicator – Please bookmark the following link and visit often for news, forms, contacts, event information, forum discussions and more. See https://scofieldfarms.org.  The ROA will be posting official communications on the website and will also be sending official communications via email for all community members that provide email addresses to the ROA. If you are a forum member you are automatically placed on the email list. If you would like to be on the email list but not on the forum, you can visit the website and join the email list.

You are also encouraged to sign up for forums that suit your interests. Calendar events noted soon include the community garage sale on 03/24, the Pool opening party on 04/01 with live music and the Easter Egg Hunt on 04/07. Please see the “Events calendar” for details

Scofield Farms Instant Communicator was created as a means of quickly disseminating security and other important alerts to members of the community that wish to participate. It is not intended to be used for discussions. In order to participate you need either a smart phone or a phone that can send and receive text messages. See the website for more details.

Please feel free to email webmaster@scofieldfarms.org for any questions.

 

4. Architectural Control Committee: Many of our yards are moving into spring time with dead grass, trees, shrubs, etc, sometimes due to neglect but most commonly due to the severe drought conditions last summer. You are encouraged to survey your property and take appropriate action to replace dead grass, trees, shrubs, etc. If you are doing more than simple replacement of damaged landscaping such as redesigning your landscape, please submit an ACC approval request form. If your lawn is in sad shape please take care of the required maintenance without the added expense of an ROA enforcement case against you. Do your part to keep our neighborhood looking nice. CMA, our property management company will be in touch if you are out of compliance and to help you establish a plan and timeline for re-establishing your yard, if necessary. Please note that the ROA board is very supportive of xeriscaped yards IF they are installed following an ACC approved plan.

 

5. Fence repair/replacement – Many of our ROA’s homes have very deteriorated cedar privacy fences (rotted posts, pickets and gates). You are encouraged to survey your fence and take appropriate action. In many cases full replacement is warranted. Please collaborate with your neighbors on shared fence replacement/repair. Please note that our ROA guidelines require 1×4 Western Red Cedar pickets. Please specify only these type pickets when you purchase materials or talk to a contractor. Any deviations from the guidelines will require ACC approval. Review the new ROA website for the guidelines and to establish a list of contractors some of your neighbors have used to replace their fence.

 

6. Community Pool – The pool committee continues to offer excellence in attention to detail by maintaining our neighborhood pool. The committee is made up exclusively of neighborhood volunteers who help assure our pool is clean and in good working order. The community pool will open April 1 with a neighborhood celebration from 3:30-6:00 pm. We are planning this as an ice cream social, complete with a Jazz band to welcome everyone to the 2012 pool season. Also, please review the new website to view the lifeguard schedule for the 2012 pool season.

 

7. Architectural Control Committee (ACC) approvals – Your property covenants require you to have written approval from the ROA’s ACC prior to modifications to your property. Examples of items you need ACC approval for include but are not limited to: building a shed, deck, redesigning landscape or installing nonstandard fencing, and changing the color of your home’s exterior paint. We have a very fast and easy submittal and review process. There is no valid reason not to comply. In several recent cases, our ACC volunteers have used their expertise to alert applicants to problems in their contractor’s proposal. When in doubt – please ask for guidance from our property manager, Jennifer English at CMA, 512-339-6962, or jenglish@cma.com to avoid enforcement and fines.

 

8. Private security patrol pilot test – Scofield ROA, in collaboration with The Ridge HOA, hired a security firm for a 6-month trial period to patrol the two neighborhoods at random times. After careful evaluation, we have decided we will get a much better return on our investment by implementing a quality Neighborhood Watch system. Board member, Paul Maine has made available a cell phone alert system (SF Instant Communicator). Please review the ROA’s website for additional information on joining this growing web of neighbors with instant alert ability to report suspicious activity in the neighborhood.

 

9. Board Update – As a reminder to the neighborhood residents, the officers for 2011-12 are as follows: President – Shelley Karn, Vice President – David Negrete, Secretary – Emmett Bills, Treasurer – Paul Maine, Director-at-Large – Stephen Walden. We welcome interested individuals to become involved in the Scofield Farms ROA.

 

10. Annual meeting: Save the date-The ROA annual meeting will be held May 22 from 7-9 at Westview Middle School.  Please join us in a review of activities and a discussion about our community’s future.

 

In closing, I wish to commend our many volunteers for helping make our community a special place to live. We look forward to working with you to improve our community.   Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

 

Sincerely,

Shelley Karn, President

Shelley.Karn@gmail.com

 

Dear Scofield Farms Homeowner,

I hope you and your family enjoyed some memorable times this summer. I know I am ready for the cooler days of Autumn. Noted below are a few informational updates for your use:

 

Update topics: 1) Tree trimming, 2) Community Pool, 3) Neighborhood Night Out, 4) Fence replacement, 5) Yard maintenance, 6) ACC required approval, 7) Community Website, 8)Pro security pilot test 9) Board update

1. Tree Trimming – many of our public sidewalks are partially blocked by encroaching tree and shrub limbs. You are required to maintain a 7 foot high clearance over sidewalks and streets at all times. Please have your cut limbs at the curb by 09/20/10 a.m. to take advantage of the City of Austin’s large brush and tree pick up on that date. See the attached letter from our property manager with more details on tree trimming.
2. Community Pool – Thanks to the outstanding oversight by our volunteer pool committee and our maintenance contractor, we have experienced one of our most successful pool seasons on record (as measured by our consistently sparkling pool and very little vandalism or trespassing). If you have any suggestions related to the pool for next season, please let me or other Board members know.
3. Neighborhood Night Out This year our HOA will celebrate “Neighborhood Night Out” (NNO) on Saturday, October 22 from 6:00-8:00 p.m. This year we are advocating crime prevention through awareness of your closest neighbors by promoting “block parties” for streets or sections of streets. The HOA will reimburse the costs of the block parties up to $50/event. Please step forward and be the one that makes this event happen on your block! If you are interested, please contact our 2011 NNO event coordinator, DJ Loberg , dj.loberg@ni.com
4. Fence repair/replacement Many of our HOA’s homes have very deteriorated cedar privacy fences (rotted posts, pickets and gates). You are encouraged to survey your fence and take appropriate action. In many cases full replacement is warranted. Please collaborate with your neighbors on shared fence replacement/repair. Please note that our HOA guidelines require 1×4 Western Red Cedar pickets. Please specify only these type pickets when you purchase materials or talk to a contractor. Any deviations from the guidelines will require ACC approval.
5. Yard maintenance Many of our HOA’s homes have sparse and damaged lawns and landscaping as a result of drought and neglect. You are encouraged to survey your property and take appropriate action to replace dead grass, trees and shrubs. If you are doing more than simple replacement of damaged landscaping such as redesigning your landscape, please submit an ACC approval request form. If your lawn is in sad shape please take care of the required maintenance without the added expense and of an HOA enforcement case against you.
6. Architectural Control Committee (ACC) approvals – Your property covenants require you to have written approval from the HOA’s ACC prior to modifications to your property. Examples of items you need ACC approval for include but are not limited to: building a shed, deck, redesigning landscape or installing nonstandard fencing, and changing the color of your home’s exterior paint. We have a very fast and easy submittal and review process. There is no valid reason not to comply. In several recent cases, our ACC volunteers have used their expertise to alert applicants to problems in their contractor’s proposal. When in doubt – please ask for guidance from our property manager, Jennifer English at CMA, 512-339-6962,jenglish@cma.com to avoid enforcement and fines.
7. Community website – Please bookmark this link and refer to it any time you need updated “forms” or “contact” info. See https://scofieldfarms.org/scofield/. The User name is “Scofield” and the password is “78727.” You are also encouraged to sign up for listserve emails by clicking the” listserve” link. We have recently loaded the 2011 Annual meeting slides and minutes to this site.
8. Pro Security pilot test – Scofield HOA, in collaboration with The Ridge HOA, has hired a security firm for a 60 day trial period to patrol the two neighborhoods at random times. We will be evaluating the data from the trial patrols in the near future to determine if there is sufficient benefit to justify a continuation of the patrol. The board will be sharing what is learned from the patrols with the HOA members. In the meantime, you may see a “pro security” car driving the neighborhood at random times.
9. Board Update – The officers for 2011-11 are as follows: President – Shelley Karn, Vice President – David Negrete, Secretary – Emmett Bills, Treasurer – Paul Maine, Director-at-Large – Stephen Walden. We welcome our newest members, Emmett Bills and Paul Maine and give thanks for many years of service to our outgoing members, Stephen Walden and David Negrete. The Board invites you to our next Board meeting to be held at the pool on 09/20/10 from 7:00-9:00 p.m.   Please let me know soon if you have any specific topics you wish to discuss at the meeting.

In closing, I wish to commend our many volunteers that help make our community a special place to live. We look forward to working with you to improve our community.   Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Shelley Karn, President

Shelley.Karn@gmail.com