TWPOA Newsletter
Winter 2008
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| Editor: Anne Fernandez
Winter 2008 |
Tara Woods Website - Get all the news about the association
TWPOA Board Members President Mike Mann |
Acting Property Manager Update |
President's Corner
by Mike Mann
I certainly hope everyone will have a blessed holiday and take advantage of the opportunity to be with friends and family. As this is the last article for 2008 it's an appropriate time to look back and re-assess the past year. With that notion in mind, I started to write this article by reviewing the previous December newsletters that I had written and was struck by the changes in our environment. Two years ago I took note that we had experienced significant turnover in our membership. House sales were very active, prices were continuing a long term growth trend, and interest rates were low. In addition to saying good bye to some long term friends, we renewed the community with a number of new owners. Perhaps more importantly, we had 6 houses constructed that summer, a significant increase given our 77 lots and 19 year history. This year we had very little turnover and no new homes. From an investment perspective I'd like to believe we've hit the bottom of the market. Traditionally Tara Woods has been a very good investment and it has the added bonus of being a very nice place to live. Those fundamentals are still in play and in the past several years we have made a number of community decisions and investments that will maintain our desirable real estate status.
During that same time span, I would argue the most significant thing we have done was to establish a reserve and fully fund it. This will allow us to preserve our community physical assets while ensuring stability in the dues. Based on some of the maintenance investments we've made, we also have the potential for future dues reductions when the independent reserve study is conducted two years from now. The next most important thing we've accomplished was to resolve a long standing imbalance in our largest community asset-the boat docks. Going all the way back to the time the Developer transferred the association and common property to the lot owners, we have had a shortfall in useable boat slips. As the community filled up the shortfall became a real problem. We've been working to resolve this for over a year and I believe this is now behind us. At the October Board meeting, we selected a contractor and funded the boat slip reconfiguration that will allow every entitled owner to have a useable boat slip by next spring. We also set up a management structure that will allow us to preserve this asset into the future while insulating future investments from common operating funds. I laid out the management concept in the last newsletter so I won't repeat it here. The step forward is that we now have three volunteers (Larry Katz, Dave Bolden, and Scott Perkins) to run the newly created Boat Slip Management Committee who will manage the assignment of boat slips and the continued preservation of these assets. At the October meeting, we also selected a contractor and funded a re-roofing of the pavilion. This is consistent with the plan in the previous reserve study and will substantially extend the life of the pavilion.
Looking forward, I'm hopeful 2009 will be a good year for all of us. We have a Board election coming up in March and four positions are open. I would encourage each of you to consider more active participation in our community leadership by running for one of these positions.
Treasurer's Report
by Jack Perrigo
As of Sept 30th we have collected $30,142.12 and disbursed $24,419.49. Most of the income is from dues ($28,860.00) and all of the dues have been paid for the year. The largest disbursement isn't really a disbursement but a transfer of $9,087 from the operating fund to the capital/reserve fund. That money is still in Tara Woods. The largest expenses have been $3,497.40 for fence rails and posts, $3,012.84 for board expenses, $2,367.00 for insurance, and $2,007.10 for pavilion/common area maintenance.
Tara Woods total funds are $74,308.48 which include the capital/reserve fund $59,673.29 and the operating fund $14,635.19. The pavilion roof was replaced at a cost of $2,850 that is not included in the numbers above.
The Secretary is nearing completion of an update to the TWPOA Directory. New Directories will be E-mailed to those that have E-mail addresses. There are still several lot owners that have not responded to the requests for confirmation of their E-mail address. Lots 7/30/32/63 are asked to contact the Secretary to provide updated information. You can E-mail Dave Bolden or home phone 703-978-4168. E-mail is proving to be the fastest and surest way to get information out to the community. It is also the cheapest. Whenever you have a change in internet service, mailing address or phone numbers please forward any changes to the Association Secretary.
Tie Up Your Boat
by Jack Perrigo
We are still having problems with people not adequately mooring their boats. For example, I found a large boat that had only two lines. You need to use four lines to secure your boat. Make sure that the boat cannot contact any part of the dock. Any damage your boat does to our docks will be charged property owner that the slip is assigned.
Acting Property Manager Update
by Jack Perrigo
We spent about $1600 last spring clearing out old dead shrubs, trimming, and mulching. We hauled away 3 full loads of debris or about 4,000 pounds. We put down 32 yards of much. We couldn't have done all that work without hiring Louie Sabourin to haul away the debris, make several trips for mulch, and he used his tractor/loader to help spread mulch.
I bought 400 rails and 30 posts. There are still over 150 rails left and if anyone needs rails, please call me at 540-894-0295. I will be glad to help you install them as I finally fixed my chain saw. We need to get these rails installed so we can make our final large rail purchase next spring. The good news is that after next years rail purchase most of the rails will be pressure treated and we can lower the dues in 2010.
Nathan Panther replaced the pavilion roof. The product is a GAF architectural grade 30 year shingle. I picked out 4 colors that I thought would look good and picked “Weathered Wood”. I picked the weathered wood because I thought it would be a better match for the rustic look of the pavilion. I think it was a good choice and it looks great!!
Please visit our website often. The site is www.twpoa-va.org . We will be using the website more in the future to make announcements rather than expensive mailings. If you have any questions please feel free to contact any board members, names are listed above.
There are still a few lots that either aren't mowing or are not mowing the grass along the street. If Tara Woods has to hire a contractor, the association charges $150.00 per mowing. Tara Woods does not want to get involved in maintaining lots and we encourage property owners to do their part.
Virginia Boating Safety Education Requirements
July 1, 2009 begins the first phase-in for PWC operators 20 years of age and younger.
Next is PWC operators 35 years of age or younger by July 1, 2010.
The remainder of the implementation schedule is:
Fence Rails
Anyone who needs to get rid of their old fence rails can contact Anne Fernandez
| January 11, 2009 1:00pm | TWPOA Board Meeting | LARS |
| March 8, 2009 1:00pm | TWPOA Board Meeting | LARS |
| April 5, 2009 1:00pm | TWPOA Board Meeting | LARS |
| May 16, 2009 10:00am | TWPOA Annual Board Meeting | TWPOA Pavilion |
LARS is Lake Anna Rescue. It is located on Rt. 618 (Bumpass Rd.) Take Rt. 652 left out of the subdivision to Rt. 601. Turn right and go over the railroad tracks. Take an immediate right onto Bumpass Rd. (I believe it is Rt. 618) and go 1 or 2 miles to the Rescue building on the left, 300 Bumpass Rd. Bumpass, Va. 23024.