Living in the Neighborhood

DELINQUENT PAYMENT OF ASSESSMENTS -
A GROWING AND SERIOUS PROBLEM

The number of owners and residents who are delinquent in payment of monthly and semi-annual assessments is growing. This has become a serious problem in regard to Association reserve and operating funds and is a continuing management issue. As records were transferred from CSI Property Management to Abbott Enterprises at the beginning of 2005, much leniency was extended in order to avoid making errors in proceeding with enforcement and penalties. However, at this point, Abbott has been authorized to proceed with enforcement pursuant to stated policy. Abbott will begin to assign liens immediately on townhome owners owing three or more months of Association fee payments and on all single family homeowners owing two or more Association fee payments.

A copy of the proposed Assessment Collection Policy was included in the January 2005 newsletter and was adopted and approved by all COS members effective January 31, 2005. This policy includes a series of late fees and administrative charges (including interest) and can result in the owner’s account being referred to the Association’s attorney to file a lien against the property to collect the unpaid assessments. As stated in the policy, all costs associated with the collection procedure are charged to the homeowner.

If residents and owners are unaware of their payment status or know of past-due charges, please contact Abbott immediately regarding your account and be prepared to show a correct payment history if you feel their records are in error.

Relocation of Townhome A/C Units - (follow-up)

The Architectural Review Committee continues to receive requests to move air conditioning units from patios to the byways. The Neighborhood Covenants do not specifically contain detailed architectural standards for the neighborhood, but refer to the “originally approved plans and specifications” as the standards. Moving air conditioning units is a change from the originally approved plans and specifications and, therefore, requires prior approval.

As promised in the June newsletter, this issue was brought by the Architectural Review Committee to the Council of Stewards in the regular June meeting. The following actions were approved:

The Architectural Review Committee (ARC) has been requested to develop a set of standards that must be met in order to relocate an A/C unit to the byway.
At such time as these standards are completed by the ARC and approved by the Council of Stewards, owners will be able to submit a “Request for Architectural Approval” to get the necessary approval for moving the air conditioner.
Each request for A/C relocation will be reviewed y the Architectural Review Committee on an individual basis. Due to space and property line differences among townhomes, it is likely that some units will not be able to meet these new standards.
If issues regarding noise, heat, and aesthetics do become obvious problems as the result of too many units in the byways, further requests may not be approved at that point.
A/C units that have already been moved by owners without prior approval will be subject to the newly developed standards and are subject to being moved back to the original location at the townhome owner’s expense if these standards cannot be met.

Two of the items considered by the Architectural Review Committee in reviewing change requests are the impact on the neighborhood and the impact on adjacent neighbors. This particular issue has potential problems with encroachment into common areas or onto a neighbor’s property. This could result in resale and closing issues in the future. There are also potential problems with voiding the warranty on units. Building code restrictions are another consideration.

Until such time as these items can be reviewed and new standards developed, approval will not be given to any relocation request. The Architectural Review Committee does recognize that this issue is of immediate importance to some townhome owners and will make every effort to expedite the preparation of standards for COS approval. Meanwhile, thank you for your patience and cooperation.

Architectural Standard for Storm Doors

One of the most frequently requested change or addition to neighborhood homes is the addition of a storm door. To that end, the Architectural Review Committee has created a standard for storm doors. If the pre-approved standard is followed, it will not be necessary to submit a ‘Request for Architectural Approval.” However, if you have a different type of door or you want to use a storm door other than one of the pre-approved storm doors, you need to submit a “Request for Architectural Approval” for consideration.

The following storm doors are pre-approved for single doors:

Standard for All Single Doors (three brands):

Anderson HD 3000 Fullview Door

Pella Select

Larsen Ultimate Signature Series

These doors must conform to the following standards:

It must be “full view,” with a narrow frame on all four sides of the glass.
It must not have mullions, cross bars or other framing in the glass area.
The glass must not have a bevel or other decoration.
The glass must be clear, not tinted. UV protection is permitted as long as it does not tint the glass.
The storm door must be, as close as possible, either the same color as the existing door or as the existing door frame. For example, if the existing door is black in a white frame, the storm door can be either black or white.
The storm door hardware must match in color, as close as possible, the hardware on the existing door (i.e. brass with brass, white metal with white metal).

It may be necessary to select another brand if one brand does not have the right frame and hardware colors.

Standard for Single French Doors (four brands):

The storm doors listed for all doors are also pre-approved for single French doors. In addition, the following storm doors are also pre-approved for installation with single French doors:

Anderson HD 2000/2500 Triple-Track Door *

Larsen Tradewinds Fullview *

Pella One-Touch Fullview

Pella Rolscreen Fullview *

These doors have sliding glass for ventilation. Models followed by an asterisk (*) also have built in screens.

The storm door must conform to the same standard as for all doors as above except the storm door for single French door may have a single horizontal cross bar where the glass is divided.

A copy of this standard with pictures can be obtained from a folder on the table just outside of Doug Boone’s office on St. Alban’s Lane. Eventually, this standard and pictures will be included in the neighborhood website. If you have questions regarding this standard or meaning, please contact a member of the Architectural Review Committee.

Neighbors should expect to see additional standards for items that are frequently requested.

Architectural Standard for Name Plaques

People in Davidson often refer to the home where they live by the name of the first owner. As one of the things to make the New Neighborhood a part of Old Davidson, the neighborhood founder obtained an agreement from the builders to install a plaque on each house showing the original homebuyer’s name to reflect this small town philosophy.

Although the founder would prefer subsequent owners keep the original plaque somewhere on the front of the house, like an historical marker, the new owner has the option of replacing the old plaque with one that shows their name.

If new homeowners want to replace the plaque on their home, they can purchase plaques by Whitehall Products (Montague, MI) at Ace Hardware in Cornelius, Lowes, and Home Depot. Each store has a display and Whitehall has a web site: http://www.whitehallproducts.com. The Neighborhood Association replaces townhome plaques only when damaged by a natural occurrence.

The Architectural Review Committee has developed an Architectural Standard for name plaques. It is not necessary to submit a “Request for Architectural Approval” to install the pre-approved plaque. However, if you want to use another style of name plaque, you do need to submit a “Request for Architectural Approval” for individual consideration. The following name plaques are pre-approved:

Attached townhomes: Whitehall Products, Hartford Rectangle Petite - Black background with bronze or pewter letters and frame.

Detached family homes: Whitehall Products, Madison Oval Standard - Black background with bronze or pewter letters and frame.

The plaque is to contain the house number and the last name of the original or current resident with the house number above the name. If the owners are reluctant to use their last name for security, privacy, or other reasons, then the plaque may contain the name of the street without the suffix (Lane, Street, etc.) and the house number, with the number above the street name.

A copy of this standard can be obtained from a folder on the table just outside of Doug Boone’s office on St. Alban’s Lane. Eventually, this standard and pictures will be included in the neighborhood website. If you have questions regarding this standard or meaning, please contact a member of the Architectural Review Committee.