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2003
Homeowners Assessment Due - No Special Assessment Planned
(December
21, 2002) Homeowners assessments will remain at $100 per
property for 2003. The biggest association costs are for
property management and maintenance of the front entry area.
Major categories of projected expenses are as follows:
| Category |
Amount |
| |
|
Administrative
---- Legal, meetings and events, copies and printing,
postage, newsletter and web site
Property
Management ----
Entry
Area ---- Landscaping, electricity, water, repairs
Insurance ----
Street
Light Fund ---- |
1,690
6,552
4,554
870
4,534 |
| |
|
| Total |
18,2000 |
Total
projected income is $18,200 ($100 X 182 properties).
Streets
lights will cost just over $20,000. The original plan was to
obtain funds through a special assessment. However, the
association currently has sufficient funds to pay approximately
half the cost, and the Board of Directors has decided to pursue
financing for the remainder. Income from annual assessments
should be sufficient to pay off a loan in 3 to 4 years.
Therefore, the Board of Directors is not proposing a special
assessment for street lights and plans to use existing assets
and projected income to pay for them.
Assessments
are due on January 1 and past due on February 1. The property
manager aggressively pursues collections, and legal fees and
other collection costs are passed on to the property owner. All
property owners are members of the association and are legally
obligated to contribute towards its expenses.
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Latest
Street Light News: No News
(December
21, 2002) The status of the effort to have street lights
installed in Griers Fork has not changed. Duke Power still has
not provided the street light plan that the association
requested in May. Once the plan is ready, the
effort will begin. If you are enthusiastic about street lights
and want to participate, please maintain that enthusiasm.
Volunteers
will be needed to collect petition signatures. The city requires
signatures from residents of at least 75% of the properties, or
137 households (75% of 182) before they will authorize Duke
Power to install the lights. Other than the initial installation
cost, the city will pay for electricity and repairs for the
lights. If you would like
to help in the petition effort or have any questions, contact Kerry or Richard Merrell
by phone at 704-583-5486 or by e-mail at rkmerrell@msn.com.
Read more about
the street light effort HERE. Further
information will be provided as it's known.
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City
Plants Trees at Front Entrance
(December
21, 2002) The City Arborist staff with the Charlotte Landscape
Management Division planted six willow oaks along the front
entrance lawn area in November as part of the city's Tree Co-op
Program. The trees got a little bent in the ice storm but are
hanging in there. When spring arrives they should burst forth
with greenery and flourish, providing enhanced beauty to the
neighborhood entrance.
The
city also has agreed to plant four crape myrtle trees on the
other side of Griers Fork Drive along Brown-Grier Road, and they
have planted trees in the yards of six of the nine families that
signed up for individual trees. The arborist staff are
responsible for maintaining all trees in the street
rights-of-way within Charlotte and have been occupied with ice
damage in recent weeks. They should return to complete the tree
planting in the upcoming months.
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2003
Association Meeting Set for January 16
(November
23, 2002) The annual meeting of the Griers Fork Homeowners Association
will be held on January 16, 2003 at the Steele Creek
Presbyterian Church (7407 Steele Creek Road) beginning at 7:30
p.m.
A
major purpose of the meeting is to conduct an election for the
Board of Directors. Three of the five staggered two-year terms
expire this year. If you are interested in running for the board
or would like to nominate someone, please return the nomination
form included with the meeting notice you received in the mail
to Prism Realty or be prepared to present your name or nominee
at the meeting.
Some
residents have expressed concern about rowdy neighbors. An Adam
1 patrol officer will be at the meeting to discuss when you
should call police and what they will do in different
situations.
Another
major topic will be plans for having street lights installed in the
neighborhood. Come learn what you can do to help in this effort.
Finally,
other topics of interest to the neighborhood will be discussed.
In
2002, the association did not achieve a quorum at its first
meeting and had to have a second meeting to have elections. We
encourage all homeowners to attend the 2003 meeting. if you
cannot, please sign and send your proxy to Prism Realty or give
it to any board member or neighbor who you expect to attend.
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Hearing
Finds Residents in Violation of Association Covenants
(November
6, 2002) The Griers Fork Homeowners Association held a hearing
on October 22 to determine if a resident was in violation of
association covenants following procedures specified in the
North Carolina Planned Community Act. Visitors at the residence had been
parking wrecked, disabled vehicles in the driveway and making
repairs on them. The vehicles had been removed by the time of
the hearing.
An
Adjudicatory Board of five Griers Fork residents found that a
violation had occurred and imposed a $25 per day fine. The fine
was suspended until such time as the violation reoccurred. Thus if
any wrecked vehicle is parked on the property in the future (except in the
garage where it is not visible), the association will impose a
$25 per day fine until the vehicle is removed. If the fine is
not paid, the property can be liened.
Association
covenants protect the community by restricting activities that
are offensive or detract from the quality of life and appearance
of the neighborhood. Article VI, Section 10 prohibits wrecked,
unlicensed, or inoperable vehicles on any property.
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Homeowners'
Dues Remain at $100 for 2003
(November
3, 2002) The Griers Fork Board of Directors voted at its October
30 meeting to retain the $100 per property association dues for
2003. The association's property manager (Prism Real Estate)
will send notices to each property owner in November. Dues are
due on January 1 and past due on February 1. Homeowners are
encouraged to make payment as soon as possible. A late fee of
$25 will be charged on accounts unpaid by February 1. Prism
aggressively pursues collections, and legal fees and other
collection costs are passed on to the property owner. See a
discussion of the collection process on the Griers
Fork Q & A Page.
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Police on
Lookout for Unattended Garages
(September
21, 2002) The
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Baker 2 District, located in South
Charlotte, recently began a pilot program to target potential
victims of house break ins through their garages.
Baker
2 officers on routine patrol are currently on the lookout for
open garages in their patrol beats. If no one is seen unloading
a car or working in the garage, officers will leave a warning
notice in the paper box or, if time permits, talk with the
resident.
Currently,
CMPD is receiving reports of 15 to 30 break-ins per day through
open garages. The residents that leave them open while they are
away come home to find that their home has been burglarized. If
the resident is at home, they are usually the victim of a theft
from the garage (considered a house break-in under NC law).
Recently
a suspect was identified on the news for committing these
crimes. When interviewed by Detectives, it was discovered that
he rode around all day long looking for open garages in cars
that he was detailing for his clients. When confronted by
residents that happened upon him, he would calmly present his
business card and offer his detailing services.
Other
suspects have admitted to using door to door solicitation
routines when confronted and often carry credentials, business
cards, and products. When there is no vehicle present, they
usually knock on the front door to confirm that the home is
empty. They then enter the garage and close the door before
entering the living area of the home.
Be
wary of all uninvited guests and if you don't feel comfortable
talking to the person, DON'T open the door. But acknowledge your
presence by telling them that you are not interested through the
closed door. If you choose to not answer, watch the person from
a widow to insure that they leave. And if anything seems
unusual, don't hesitate to call 911. Legitimate solicitors are
stopped frequently by Police and understand that it is a minor
inconvenience.
On
Aug 27, 2002 Officers rode through Griers Fork to see if
residents were following the advice from previous articles in
this newsletter to keep those garage doors closed.
Unfortunately, there were 13 garages left open with no one in
the yard and the inner door closed.
Patrol
officers from Adam 1 District, which serves this area, hope to
start the notification program in Griers Fork in October.
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Welcome to the
NEW Griers Fork Web Site
(August 9, 2002)
The new Griers Fork web site became available to the world on
July 25, 2002. The site has a new web host, a new URL, and a new
look. But it continues to provide the same extensive information
about the community.
The
web site began its life in November 2000 on one of those free
paint-by-the-numbers web host sites. The site was functional,
but the preset templates allowed limited creativity. The site
also had a long, difficult-to-remember URL. It also no longer is
free.
The
Griers Fork site now is hosted by Webideabank
Technologies of Rock Hill and has been totally redesigned
with new colors and new graphics. The association owns the
domain griersfork.org, which is used for both the web site and
new e-mail addresses.
The
web site has a wealth of information about Griers Fork, and it
is updated regularly.
Contributions
to the web site and this newsletter are welcome and encouraged.
This is YOUR community. Please take this opportunity to
participate in the exchange of information and ideas.
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Free
Griersfork.org E-Mail
(August
9, 2002) As part of the services provided by the new web host,
Griers Fork now has its own e-mail domain. Would you like an
e-mail address that tells people where you're from? How about
something like rflair@griersfork.org or babyface@griersfork.org?
The e-mail is web based and accessed at http://mail.griersfork.org.
To get your free
e-mail, just send your first and last names, your preferred
e-mail name, and a way to get in touch with you to contact@griersfork.org
or call Dave Wiggins at 704-504-5403.
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We Need
Volunteers
(August 9, 2002)
If you would like to volunteer to collect street light petition signatures or
have any questions, contact Street Light Coordinator Richard
Merrell at 704-583-5486 or by e-mail at rkmerrell@msn.com.
¿Habla
usted el español?
Many
Griers Fork residents speak Spanish and have difficulty
understanding English. They are reluctant to sign a petition
that they do not understand. If you support street lights and
can help collect petition signatures from Spanish-speaking
households, please contact Richard Merrell.
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Street Light
Petition Effort Coming
(August 9, 2002)
The association is waiting for the Charlotte Department of
Transportation and Duke Power to provide a street light plan for
the community. The plan is expected to contain about 41
decorative street lights, which will cost about $20,000.
Once
the plan is received, the association will need to collect
petition signatures. The city requires a signature from an adult
resident of at least 75% (or 137) of the 182 households in
Griers Fork. The petition will be printed on a map so that
residents will be able to see the placement of the lights near
their homes.
The
lights will be traditional economical style. These are about 12
feet tall and have 100 watt bulbs, enough to light the community
but not be too intrusive.
The
association will need to collect a special assessment of $100
from each household to pay for the lights. This requires
approval at a meeting with at least 30% (or 55) of the
households represented either in person or by proxy. Since this
large an attendance is unlikely, proxies will be collected to
achieve the needed quorum.
If
approved, the special assessment will be in effect once at least
110 petition signatures (80% of the needed 137) have been
collected. Payment will be due 30 days from the date that Prism
sends out notices. Late fees for the special assessment will NOT
be collected until February 1 when late fees for regular
assessments are charged. If a one-time $100 payment is a burden,
residents are encouraged to contact Prism to arrange a schedule
of partial payments.
In
the last few years, many residents have expressed support for
street lights at Griers Fork. Now is the time to come forward
and make this happen!
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Griers Fork
Sprinklers Reset to Conserve Water
(July 29, 2002)
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Utilities has urged residents to conserve
water by limiting lawn watering to the period between 9:00 p.m.
to 4:00 a.m. In response to this request, the sprinkler timer at the Griers Fork
front entrance has been reset to turn on at 1:00 a.m. and will
run every third day instead of every day.
Griers Fork
residents are encouraged to cooperate with water conservation
efforts. See Hot
H2O News from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Utilities web site
for details.
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Griers Fork to
Participate in Charlotte's Tree Co-op Program
(July
20, 2002) The City of Charlotte offers neighborhood groups an
opportunity to increase the tree cover with their communities
through the Tree Co-op Program. The neighborhood pays $80 per
tree, and the city purchases, delivers, plants, and waters the
trees. This is a bargain since the city pays much more than $80
each for the trees.
The
city plants trees only in the public right-of-way. This would be
between the curb and sidewalk on streets with sidewalks or
between the curb and property line where there is no sidewalk.
The
homeowners association will pay to have 10 trees installed at
the front entrance--6 willow oaks on the right side from the
monument to the drainage area and 4 white crape myrtles on the
left along Brown-Grier Road.
Individual
homeowners also may sign up for trees along the street adjacent
to their yards. For most homes, this would be along the front
right-of-way. For corner lots, trees could help shield back and
side yards and increase privacy. For certain cul-de-sacs, trees
could help close off the open end.
There
should be room for no more than one tree at the fronts of lots,
but owners of corner lots may choose to purchase several (and
are encouraged to do so).
The
planting strips are too narrow to accommodate large shade trees.
Craig Monroe, Assistant City Arborist, recommends yoshino or
kwanzan cherries (these are the types you'd find around
Washington's Tidal Basin), serviceberry, crape myrtle, or a
small maple variety.
The
city plants trees in the Co-op Program during the November to
April planting season but must settle on the number of trees by
early September in order to determine the total cost. Therefore,
the deadline to sign up is August 1 so that the association can
pass on a count to Mr. Monroe.
Once
the association provides a list of properties to receive trees,
workers will come out and mark recommended sites. They will
select sites that do not interfere with other objects, such as
future street lights or other trees. Later, Mr. Monroe will meet
with homeowners to discuss alternative sites and tree types.
The
city prefers consistency along individual streets, so they might
require participants on the same street to choose the same type
of tree.
If
you would like to participate, please notify Dave Wiggins no
later than August 31. Send payment of $80 to "Griers Fork
Tree Co-op Fund" c/o Prism Real Estate
no later than September 30. (See Contacts
page.) If you do not meet these deadlines,
you will not get a tree.
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Group Chooses Plan
for Street Lights
