Living in the NeighborhoodREMINDER - CLEAN-UP AFTER YOUR DOGPlease pick-up after your dog throughout the neighborhood and in the parks, including the off-leash park at the north end of the development. Failure to comply with this requirement continues to be a problem. The Council of Stewards has been made aware of this growing concern and hopes for continued cooperation rather than a need for further action. The problem has been particularly bad in Faulkner Square between North and South Faulkner Ways. This has created an issue for users of that area, including children at play and other dog owners. With SPINN scheduled in May, we want this area particularly clean. It is beginning to appear likely that the problem may, in fact, be non-resident dog owners who come into the neighborhood to use the parks. If neighbors see visitors to our neighborhood and parks who do not follow this request, please kindly remind them of our desire to keep the neighborhood clean for all. If repeat offenses are seen, please notify a member of the Council of Stewards. The Town of Davidson has adopted the Mecklenburg County Animal Control Ordinance. This regulation has two sections that are especially applicable to our neighborhood.
Citations can be issued for violations of this ordinance. The penalties escalate from a first offense fine of $50 to repeat offense fines as high as $500, including criminal prosecution and loss of the animal. The Council does not wish this issue to become a legal matter for anyone. However, we all want to maintain a clean and enjoyable neighborhood and the cooperation of all will be greatly appreciated. NEW NEIGHBORHOOD WEBSITE UPDATESteve Lee (O. Henry Avenue) continues to make progress on our neighborhood website at http://www.stalbanssq.org. He hopes to have it fully functional by mid-summer. The April newsletter was posted and the May issue should appear on line about the same time as the print edition appears at your door. Archives of back issues are available for download. Articles of continuing interest (for example, biographies of the Southern writers and Davidson residents for whom the streets and byways were named) will also be posted as part of the site. Maps and community links are already in place. Still to be developed are a members’ area, a documents and forms archive, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), and perhaps a photo gallery. The members’ area will include a searchable database of the resident and owner directory. This area will be password protected to prevent harvesting of names and e-mail addresses by spammers and to afford some privacy. You will be asked to update your information once the database is set up. At present, problems have been encountered in getting the directory in a usable electronic form. The only solution may be to use neighborhood volunteers to type the data into the site from printed copy. If you will have some spare time to help with this in the next few weeks, please let Steve Lee know (webmaster@stalbanssq.org). We also need a way to find information on non-owner residents who probably are not in the database at present. The documents area will include many of the printed items issued to owners at closing (i.e.: Covenant, Canons of Conduct, By-Laws, contact information). Forms and applications may be included there, too, or may be in the members’ area. The site needs to be useful to realtors and prospective buyers, as well as residents and their friends and family. The Frequently Asked Questions need to be geared to this broad audience. If you know any Frequently Asked Questions about our community, please pass them along. (It would help if you could pass along the answers, too.) During April, sixty-two unique visitors viewed our fledgling site, seeing an average of over five pages per visit. Several of them passed along kind words of encouragement and suggestions for future direction. Your comments and suggestions will be welcome, too. NOW is the time to provide input. We are in the early development phase of a great neighborhood tool! Visit the website today and e-mail the webmaster! We owe MANY THANKS to Steve for volunteering to take on this job.
ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMMITTEE PROCESSThe Architectural Review Committee (ARC), formerly known as the Architectural Control Committee, meets on the third Tuesday of every month to review resident and owner requests for property upgrades and changes. A copy of the “Request for Architectural Approval” form was included in both the January and March newsletters. However, many of our neighbors do not completely understand the process by which such requests are handled. The Neighborhood Covenant (Article V: Architecture and Landscaping - General) states the following:
Please note that the Landscape & Grounds Committee deals generally with the neighborhood common areas. Any changes and additions to landscaping of personal property for both townhome and single-family home owners must follow the same process as for architectural review. The Architectural Review Committee outlines the following process: 1. For architectural and landscaping changes, complete the “Request for Architectural Approval” form and mail three copies to Abbott Enterprises (5970 Fairview Road, Suite 710, Charlotte, NC 28210) to the attention of Vera Victorino. The three copies are distributed as follows:
2. Abbott Enterprises checks the request for complete-ness and notifies the requester if something is incomplete or if further information is required. 3. If complete, Abbott forwards the request to the Architectural Review Committee (Luann Christine, Chairperson). 4. Review of the ARC occurs at the regular meeting on the third Tuesday of each month. 5. If approved, the ARC will contact the requester by phone on the next day and the changes can proceed with verbal approval. The owner/requestor copy of the form will be returned by mail. 6. If disapproved, the owner/requester copy of the form is mailed back with an explanation as to why the request was denied. The approval process should take a maximum of 30 days to complete depending on when the request is submitted to Abbott Enterprises and where in the calendar month the next meeting of the ARC is scheduled. It is important to note that the completed form MUST be sent to Abbott first. Giving the form to Doug Boone, our Founder, or to an ARC member will likely result in delays. If the form is not completed properly and Abbott sends it back to the requester, further delays should be expected. Residents and owners making requests should not assume that lack of notification in less than 30 days constitutes automatic approval. If special timing requests are involved, the requester is asked to note on the form and/or to contact a member of the ARC by phone. In general, the 30 day maximum is considered reasonable time for response. A “Request for Architectural Approval” is required for any visible change to the structure or landscape of a dwelling in the neighborhood. This also applies to back yards of single-family homes since there are often drainage and other landscape issues to consider. Interior patio spaces of townhomes are generally not applicable, but due to visibility, some changes or additions to enclosed patios on end townhome units will need a request form. All parts of the Neighborhood Covenant and/or applicable Town of Davidson and local building codes must be satisfied regardless of location. If you have questions about the need for approval of specific changes and additions, please contact an ARC member. The requester should not proceed with work until the ARC completes its review. If such changes do proceed prior to official approval, the requester does so at his own risk. If disapproved, any work-in-progress must be stopped and any completed portion of the change must be removed or returned to original condition. Materials ordered ahead of approval are ordered at the risk of the requester. The Association will not assume responsibility for costs incurred should the request be disapproved. “Request for Architectural Approval” forms can be obtained from a table just outside of Doug Boone’s office on St. Alban’s Lane or downloaded from the neighborhood website. At this time, procedures have NOT been discussed regarding electronic transfer of the form to Abbott. The Architectural Review Committee will make every effort to review requests in a fair and timely manner. Please respect their judgment and service to our community. |