Board of Directors Report

Marie Barnes, President

Share - Have a portion of (something) with another or others. Your Board of Directors often must think of this word when making decisions for the community. Lately, this has been a word associated with the use of our common areas. The Association has very little undeveloped property. Some residents see the vast areas of open space and believe the Association can develop those areas; we can not. The Association is tasked with maintaining that acreage, but it is extremely restricted by the Army Corp of Engineers and the Wildlife Heritage Foundation. This open space must be kept as such; no development is allowed.

The maintenance of that acreage is also restricted. We bring in sheep and goats to control weeds, but the timing of that is restricted. If wildlife is nesting on the ground, sheep are not allowed to graze until that cycle is completed. It may look like tall, unkempt weeds, but it’s an ecosystem for our birds and wildlife. We must all walk that fine line of respecting wildlife while minimizing fire loads. You may not be aware, but the Association works with the fire marshal and Wildlife Heritage to maintain that balance.

It may look like the Association is being neglectful, but that is actually far from true. Many eyes are constantly judging when and where to address the maintenance in our open spaces. The Association’s landscape maintenance crew is allowed to do fire breaks between housing and open space, so you will notice this being done. Other areas that are often of concern belong to the golf course. Although we can share those concerns, we cannot force the golf course to maintain its property.

So, whether it’s sharing rooms with other clubs, sharing space at the Sports Plaza or sharing our open spaces, it’s critical that we SHARE.