Summer 2011 | Wingfield Springs Community Association Newsletter
Neighborhood Bird Issue
B
irds and bird droppings can be a nuisance and create major health hazards. Contact with bird droppings can pose serious health risks and exposure to incurable diseases.
If you have areas where birds congregate on your property, there is reason for concern.
The only sure way to avoid these debilitating diseases is to avoid contact with these droppings or do your best to prevent the droppings from occurring in the first place.
It’s our job as the HOA Board to help provide an environment that is safe for all home
owners. Based on recent studies done by government agencies, the board feels there is a need to limit the influx of birds to reduce possible health risks. The Board will start by prohibiting all seed bird feeders and all hand feeding of birds for all residents and by informing owners who have birds nesting on their roofs or on other outside spaces that they must be removed.
The RTC has allocated $300,000 for bird control on their 4th St. project. Below is
feedback from other agencies that have led our regional government to invest a substantial amount of money to deter bird nesting. This information has helped us on the Board make this decision regarding the use of bird feeders.
According to the NYC Dept. of Health & Mental Hygiene and the Illinois Dept. of Public
Health, birds are known to harbor Histoplasma capsulatum and Cryptococcus neoformans; two fungi which can infect humans. They also may harbor a bacterium (Chlamydophila psittaci) which can cause an infection called ornithosis. Birds are also known to carry the West Nile and St. Louis Encephalitis viruses. Ticks and mites, which carry diseases in their own right are also carried by birds and may transmit diseases to humans. We have all heard of Salmonella, which we typically associate with undercooked poultry or eggs. This bacterial disease can also be spread through bird fluids including droppings. Salmonella can cause nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea or even go undetected. In some cases, humans may unknowingly carry the disease and transmit it to others. The treatment generally consists of antibiotics, but may require the removal of the gallbladder to fully cure.
There are many such government agencies who concur with these findings and warnings.
This will become a new resolution, effective July 16, 2011, for Wingfield Springs.
Lou Dauria
President Wingfield Springs Community Association
The Board will start by prohibiting all seed bird feeders and all hand feeding of birds for all residents.
Photo by Deanna Hearn
Community
Manager’s Report
I
t has now been a year since we have been working with our publisher, Kathy Hess at Just Imagine Marketing and Design. We have had really positive feedback on the “new look” of the
HawkTalk. Kathy is also responsible for publishing the excellent owner and tenant brochures that were mailed out earlier this year. Thanks Kathy!
The advertising revenue received helps offset the production costs
and allows us to only be responsible for the postage costs in mailing the quarterly HawkTalk. If you are interested in advertising in the HawkTalk, please contact Kathy at 775-746-4138.
Wingfield Springs
The inspections of yards and lots have been inspected for non
Community Association Newsletter
compliance with the governing documents. As a result, those owners of
WSCA Board of Directors
to comply. Follow up inspections are in the process of taking place. The
PRESIDENT Lou Dauria, eplus@aol.com VICE PRESIDENT Denny Jensen, craynut@charter.net SECRETARY Donna Chaffer, donna.chaffer@yahoo.com TREASURER Bob Denis, calraisin@yahoo.com DIRECTOR Wayne Banaszak, wayne@webanaszak.com
yards and lots that are not being properly maintained were sent a notice owners of the lots and yards that have still not been properly maintained upon the final inspection will be invited to the Community Standards Hearings on July 21st. We understand that this is a long and drawn out process and are currently working on streamlining the process to accelerate results but stay within Nevada law.
Handy Phone Numbers & Information ASSOCIATED MANAGEMENT, INC. Telephone: Facsimile: Answering Service:
islands. This is to allow for access for emergency vehicles in the event of (775) 626-7333 (775) 626-7374 (775) 832-0888
(After hours, weekends & holidays)
Website: www.amiusa.net Email: wfsservice@amiusa.net Office Hours: 8 am–5 pm Monday through Friday; the phone lines shut down at 4 pm on Friday. Wingfield Springs Community Patrol (775) 722-6270 Please call immediately for water related issues. Call 911 for emergency services; ambulance, fire, police. Red Hawk Swim & Fitness Center Wingfield Springs Realty David’s Grill at Red Hawk Red Hawk Golf Club Sparks/Washoe County Animal Control
This is a friendly reminder that parking is permitted in designated
areas only. Parking is not permitted in cul-de-sac areas with center an emergency. If you are expecting company and need to have vehicles parked outside of the cul-de-sac for a certain period of time, please contact our office to inform us of this information Lastly, we have noticed a handful of houses that have recently been painted, which is great! However, some owners have failed to replace or reattach their address numbers to the house. It is important to finish this step in case of an emergency. Sincerely, Associated Management, Inc., An Associa® Member Company
Melissa Robertson, CMCA®, AMS®
Nevada Certified Supervising Community Manager
(775) 626-8699 (775) 626-4700 (775) 626-1000 (775) 626-4599 (775) 322-3647
Please note: Views expressed in HawkTalk are not necessarily the opinions of WSCA, its board members or Associated Management, Inc. The editor reserves the right to edit submitted articles for content and space constraints. Advertising in HawkTalk is paid for by the individual advertisers. WSCA does not necessarily endorse or support any of the advertisers. Advertising monies collected are used to offset the printing costs of each HawkTalk.
Safety First
Let’s remember to utilize the trails and sidewalks while being active outside. Bike lanes are for bikers only.
HawkTalk is supported in whole by advertising. Newsletter published by: Kathy Hess, Just Imagine Marketing and Design (775) 746-4138 | kathy@justimaginemktg.com
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HawkTalk | Summer 2011
Wingfield Springs Semi-Annual Community Spring Garage Sale!
Family is why we do it all.
Mark your calendars for the weekend of October 1st and 2nd. Residents may set-up in their yard and/or driveway from 7 am to 7 pm. Signs of any kind are not permitted to be posted in the common areas, streets, sidewalks, medians, etc. Community events can be advertised at no charge in the “Neighborhoods” section of the Reno Gazette Journal.
Where Can You Get an Extra Copy of the HawkTalk? We encourage owners who rent their homes to provide their tenants with a copy of the HawkTalk. AMI keeps a few extra hardcopies on hand; postage fees will apply. We would be happy to email the HawkTalk in Adobe format free of charge; or you can find the HawkTalk on the community website shortly after publication.
Wingfield Springs Home Market Trends
Laurie Brazier Ins Agcy Inc Laurie Brazier, Agent Bus: 775-626-1897 Fax: 775-626-1898 laurie.brazier.g9g3@statefarm.com www.lauriebrazier.com
by Brenda Mee
Pending home sales rose strongly in May with all regions experiencing gains from a year ago, pointing to higher housing activity in the second half of the year, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Looking at the Wingfield Springs market, the end of June shows that there were 124 pending home sales. Short sales make up 63% of that market and 18% of the homes are bank owned. The data reflects contracts but not closings, which normally occur with a lag time of two or three months. Absorption of inventory is the key to price improvement, and the increase in contract signings implies that home values in many areas are or will be stabilizing as inventories get absorbed. Let’s face it. Nevada has been hit hard. It seems that hope is on the way, it just might take our neighborhood a little longer to recover.
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The following information is a summary of the activities of the Community Patrol for the period of June 2011.
June 2011 69 House Watches 192 Vehicle violations reported 84 Garage doors left open 31 Reports involving dogs 19 Loose dogs 1 Missing dog 7 Barking dogs 4 Reports of tagging 20 Complaints 1 Solicitor Multiple juveniles and adults Fishing in the lake 2 Loud parties 128 Maintenance issues Multiple broken sprinklers 1 Cable box broken 3 Broken windows Multiple broken fences 1 Uprooted tree Broken or missing signs Suspicious Activity 2 Juveniles riding a golf cart on the street HawkTalk | Summer 2011
20 2 1 1 1
Multiple individuals fishing on the lake Reports of suspicious vehicles on property Vandalism Reports of suspicious persons on property Report of someone shooting an air soft pistol Report of someone stealing recycling Home was egged Multiple reports of juveniles door bell ditching
Miscellaneous Several reports of officers moving garbage cans off the streets, cleaning up debris, returning dogs to their owners, ensuring that realtor signs are not placed on common areas by removing them, and contacting the realtors to inform them of the HOA policy. Six resident compliments regarding the presence of ESI and the good job being done by the officers. Page 3
WSCA 2011 hearings, workshops & meetings MEETING
DATE
TIME
LOCATION
Community Standards
July 21st
5:30 pm
Red Hawk Board Room
Agenda Workshop
July 28th
3:00 pm
Red Hawk Board Room
Executive Session
July 28th
5:00 pm
Red Hawk Board Room
Board Meeting
August 4th
6:00 pm
Red Hawk Private Lounge
Budget/Agenda Workshop
September 29th
3:00 pm
Red Hawk Board Room
Executive Session
September 29th
5:00 pm
Red Hawk Board Room
Board Meeting
October 13th
6:00 pm
Red Hawk Private Lounge
Community Standards
October 20th
5:30 pm
Red Hawk Board Room
Annual Meeting
November 3rd
6:00 pm
Red Hawk Private Lounge
Workshops will be held to review the agenda items of the next scheduled board meeting. Homeowners are welcome to attend workshops. No action (vote) will be taken by the board on any matter discussed or reviewed at a workshop. All dates, times and venues are subject to change. If the Red Hawk Board Room is not available, the hearing, workshop, or executive board meeting will be held at Associated Management, Inc. (AMI) at 5955 Tyrone Road, Suite #1, Reno, NV 89502. Workshop and meeting notices will be published in each HawkTalk newsletter. HawkTalk will be mailed at least ten (10) days before each board meeting.
Board meeting agendas will be posted on the Association’s website the Friday before each board meeting. You may also obtain an agenda copy by calling AMI at (775) 626-7333. The Board will conduct a workshop on July 28th at 3 pm in the Red Hawk Board Room to review the items listed on the Board Meeting Agenda. An executive meeting of the Board of Directors will be held to address specific CC&R violations, delinquencies and legal matters on July 28, 2011 at 5 pm in the Red Hawk Board Room. Executive Board Meetings are not open to Homeowners.”
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Page 4
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Shane T. Duffy Owner/Operator
Find everything you need to buy or sell a home as well as learn about the market value of homes in the area. You can search for homes, community information, school information and much more. The information you need is just a click away!
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775-622-6842 Your Wingfield Springs “Only” Realtor
6295 WINGFIELD SPRINGS RD. SPARKS, NV 89436
HawkTalk | Summer 2011
S
ummer is in full display (whatever happened to Spring?). June, July and August are historically our highest water consumption months of the year so we need to be vigilant about the stability and efficiency of our system. We purposely kept the water off until May to save water. Aside from rather minor repairs, the system remained in good shape from where we left off last year, a year where we experienced numerous main line repairs. We continue our pursuit of the 113 AFA mark; however, the reality is bleak for achieving this goal given the complex nature of our contract with Red Hawk as our supplier, and the poor implementation of our system. Nonetheless, we must continue to invest in means of reducing our overall consumption. To that affect, we installed more ET controllers at the beginning of the season, are undertaking a significant upgrade along Wingfield Springs Road, and will mark a list of areas target for upgrades in 2011 with main purpose of reducing water needs. We believe this will result in a lower consumption than 2010 which came in at a rounded 172 AFA.
You can continue to help! We experience breakage of various devices in the system such as stuck valves, run down batteries, broken sprinkler heads, etc ‌ It is important these issues get reported promptly so we can first turn off the defective circuit and soon thereafter fix the problem. If you see or suspect an issue with the irrigation system in your area, please contact our community patrol at 722-6270 or our AMI manager during working hours at 626-7333. We also experienced vandalism of sprinkler heads and controllers. Anybody giving us specific information leading us to individuals responsible for these cowardly acts can be eligible for monetary rewards. Here again, contact our community patrol at 722-6270. Thank you in advance for your assistance.
Bob Denis,
treasurer
HawkTalk | Summer 2011
Page 5
Please complete the Candidacy Biography Statement below and return it no later than noon on Friday, September 30, 2011 if you wish to be considered for election to the Board of Directors at the Annual Members Meeting on Thursday, November 3, 2011. There are two (2) Board seats to be filled; each for a two-year term. Please print legibly or type the statement and sign your name at the bottom. You may list your experience or professional accomplishments on a separate one-page, one-sided sheet. The sheet, if any, will be copied to the back of the statement and the statement will be mailed to the members with the 2011 secret ballot. In performing the duties set forth in NAC 116.400 - 4. “a member of an executive board shall” (among other duties): “Keep informed of new developments in the management of a common-interest community through educational courses;” This completed statement must be received no later than noon on Friday, September 30, 2011. Please mail, fax or e-mail to: WSCA C/O Associated Management, Inc. (AMI), 5955 Tyrone Road Suite #1, Reno, NV 89502, Fax: 775-626-7374; E-mail: wfsservice@amiusa.net Please call AMI no later than noon on Friday, September 30, 2011 to confirm that we received your Candidacy Biography Statement in time to include your name on the 2011 secret ballot.
Notice Date: July 1, 2011
CANDIDACY BIOGRAPHY STATEMENT (Please Print or Type)
Your Name ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Address __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (Street) (City) (State) (Zip) Are you a unit owner? (
) Yes (
) No
(NOTE: NRS 116.31034 - 1. states: “Except as otherwise provided in subsection 5 of NRS 116.212, not later than the termination of any period of declarant’s control, the units’ owners shall elect an executive board of at least three members, all of whom must be units’ owners. Per NRS 116.31034 - 8. (a) and (b), please complete the following information regarding your candidacy. 8. “Each person whose is nominated as a candidate for a member of the executive board pursuant to subsection 4 or 5 must: (a) Make a good faith effort to disclose any financial, business, professional or personal relationship or interest that would result or would appear to a reasonable person to result in a potential conflict of interest for the candidate if the candidate were to be elected to serve as a member of the executive board; and” Please use the following line to respond to the statutory requirement cited above. Continue on a separate sheet if necessary. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (b) “Disclose whether the candidate is a member in good standing. For the purpose of this paragraph, a candidate shall not be deemed to be in “good standing” if the candidate has any unpaid and past due assessments or construction penalties that are required to be paid to the association. …” I am a candidate in good standing as defined above: (
) Yes (
) No
If no, please explain:
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The candidate must make all disclosures required pursuant to this subsection in writing to the Association with his candidacy information. The association shall distribute the disclosures to each member of the association with the ballot in the manner established in the Bylaws of the Association. Any additional information provided by the candidate for the executive board is voluntary and is not a requirement under NRS 116.31034. NOTE: Nothing cited in the disclosure is intended to be used to prevent a potential candidate from running for the Board of Directors. Signature of applicant _____________________________________________________________________ Date: _____________________________
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HawkTalk | Summer 2011
2 column x 6 inches
Can You Save for Retirement and Education? The school year is coming to a close, which means that if you have young children, you are now one year closer to college days — and college bills. At the same time, you are moving nearer to your own retirement. Can you save for college while you put money away for retirement? Yes — but it will take planning, patience and discipline. Your first step is to be aware of the challenges you will face. As you know, the financial crisis of 2008 and early 2009 took a bite out of just about everyone’s retirement portfolio. And even though the markets have bounced back strongly, you might still have some ground to make up in your 401(k), Individual Retirement Account (IRA) or other accounts. At the same time, budgetary pressures may lead to reductions in Pell Grants and other federally backed financial aid to students, so you may need to provide more assistance to your children than you once might have thought. To deal with these challenges and help yourself make progress toward your college/retirement objectives, consider the following moves: • Establish some priorities. How much should you save and invest for retirement versus college? Also, how much of the college costs would you like to cover: 100%, 50% or perhaps a set dollar amount? There’s no one “right” answer for everyone — you’ll have to establish priorities based on,your preferences and family situation. But once you’ve set these priorities, you’ll have some guiding principles to govern your savings and investment, decisions.
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2484 Wingfield Hills Rd Ste 100 Sparks, NV 89436 775-331-3335
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• Put time on your side. The earlier you start saving for both 2 column x 2 inches your retirement and your children’s college education, the better your chances of reaching your goals. • Choose the right investment vehicles. You may want to work with a financial advisor to choose the appropriate mix of investments for your needs. LEARN RETIREMENT STRATEGIES IN JUST AN HOURYour . But in general, it’s a good idea to contribute as much as you can affordHELPFUL to your 401(k) or other employer-sponsored retirement account. contributions are generally made with pretax dollars, and your earnings can grow tax deferred. And whether or not you have access to a 401(k) or other employer-sponsored plan, you can probably also contribute to a traditional IRA, which offers tax-deferred earnings, or a Roth IRA, which provides tax-free earnings, provided you’ve held your account at least five years and you don’t, start taking withdrawals until you’ve reached age 59½. To save for college, you may want to explore a 529 plan, which also provides tax-free earnings, provided they are used for qualified higher www.edwardjones.com Member SIPC education expenses.*
• Keep investing. The financial markets will always move up and down — so in some months, you might not like what you see on your investment statements. But the most successful investors keep investing in good times and bad. If you decide to take a “timeout” from investing and head to the sidelines during a market slump, you could miss out on the next rally. By following these suggestions, you can keep moving forward toward two special times in your life: when your children attain the higher education that can help them succeed in life and when you can enjoy the Typefaces are as follows: Call to Action line: Bodon retirement for which you’ve worked so hard. Headline: ITC Franklin Gothic Demi Medium 11/14 pt. This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor. Web Address: ITC Frank Condensed 11/14 pt. Subhead: ITC Franklin Gothic Demi Demi Condensed 10/10 SIPC line:tax News Gothic pt.penalty. There may be * Withdrawals used for expenses other than qualified education expenses may be subject to federal and stateCondensed taxes, plus11/14 a 10% state Body and copy:income BodoniBerthBQ-Regular incentives available to in-state residents who invest in their home state’s 529 plan. Student and parental assets are considered when applying Large Adfor 11/14inpt.the student’s name. Make sure you financial aid. Generally, a 529 plan is considered an asset of the parent, which may be an advantage over saving discuss ITC Franklin City/Town: Disclaimer : Newsyour Gother Cn 8/9 Condensed the potential financial aid impacts with a financial aid professional. Tax issues for 529 plans can be complex. Please consult taxMT advisor about your situation. 10/10 pt. pt. Edward Jones, its financial advisors and employees cannot provide tax or legal advice.
To download graphic files go to www.edwardjones.com/graphics/us/sales/ads HawkTalk | Summer 2011
Page 7
Wingfield Springs Community Association c/o Associated Management, Inc. 5955 Tyrone, Rd., Suite One Reno, NV 89502
Home Security and Patrol Update Home Security
722-6270
O
ver the past several months, we have experienced an increase in home break-ins within the community. We have put the Community Patrol on alert and have asked them to be extremely attentive to any situations that look suspicious. However, we need to realize that Wingfield Springs encompasses a very large area. During the majority of the day, there is only one patrol vehicle on duty, at certain periods there are two patrol vehicles on duty. Given this situation, it’s difficult for the Community Patrol to be everywhere at once. The Patrol will do their best to spot and deter suspicious vehicles and individuals. But, the biggest deterrent to these break-ins is you the homeowner. One of the biggest invitations for a break-in is an open garage door. Keep your garage doors closed. When you go away on vacation; stop the newspaper, place lights on timers and utilize the home watch provided by the Patrol. And, probably most important, be alert to happenings around you. If you see something suspicious around your house or a neighbor’s, report it to the police. Another excellent tool for these situations is a Neighborhood Watch. If you are interested in forming a Neighborhood Watch our Community Patrol is available to work with you in getting this off of the ground.
This line goes to the call center and triggers all Wingfield Spring calls to the top of the queue.
Community Patrol Update Our new Community Patrol has now been up and running for three months. There has been an excellent overall response to the new Patrol. In the first couple of weeks we did have a problem with slow responses to your calls by the call center. ESI, the provider of our patrol service, immediately jumped on this problem and I’m happy to report that the call response time is now outstanding. We now have a dedicated telephone line (the old Red Hawk number 722-6270) going into the call center that triggers all of the Wingfield Spring calls to the top of the queue.
Denny Jensen, VICE President
Pet Management
S
ummer is here. Time to get out and enjoy long walks with the dog(s). Remember to pick up after your dog. This is a mark of respect for your community and the great surroundings we live in. Lately, we added more stations, all in the Big Sky area. When I walked that village with an owner who helped me identify best locations for the dog waste stations, it was filthy littered with dog waste on the mow strip along Ambush Ridge, Wingfield Hills, and Albazano Drive. I understand some owners even let their dogs out the front door so they roam around and do their business…of course not on their territory. That is plain ignorant! So, simply cut it out. The new stations are located on Ambush Ridge near the mailboxes, on Wingfield Hills and Ambush Ridge in the utility boxes area, and also on Wingfield Hills just passed Grosmont going East. We encourage all dog owners in that area to use these facilities. For those of you doing the right thing, thank you…your neighbors and us on the Board appreciate it greatly. The other aspect of pet management is the out-of-control barking dogs. Here again, some owners are disrespectful to their neighbors. Letting your dogs outside all day while you are at work is OK but not
if the dog barks constantly. Many such owners have their homes along the golf course and this affects business. Golfers will not return to a golf destination where dogs bark out of control while golf is in play. So here again, keep the dog inside, get a dog sitter, or spend the necessary time to teach your dog when to and not to bark. If you want to own a dog, manage it so it is not a nuisance to your environment. We will be more stringent on both these aspects this year. We do have regulations in our governing documents that allow us to cite for these infractions. We have been patient to date, and frankly there has been improvement in both areas…yet they both remain a significant issue with some dog owners who do not manage their pets. So let’s get with the program! This is the one part of being a Board member I absolutely despise. This community and our environment are simply too great for this kind of misconduct to ruin it. So let’s work together to eliminate this issue. Thank you,
Bob Denis,
treasurer