Courtyard - August 2022 by Peel, Inc.

Courtyard Caller

August 2022

Volume 18, Number 08

Fourth of July in Courtyard

Thank you to all the friends and neighbors who have shared photos from the annual Courtyard Fourth of July parade and picnic. Thank you again to Joany Price, Austin Fire Department, and the many volunteers who shared their time to organize a wonderful celebration in the park!

Courtyard Caller - August 2022

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any media, website, print, film, e-mail, electrostatic copy, fax, or etc. for the purpose of solicitation, commercial use, or any use for profit, political campaigns, or other self amplification, under penalty of law without written or expressed permission from Peel, Inc. The information in The Courtyard Caller Newsletter is exclusively for the private use of Peel, Inc. DISCLAIMER: Articles and ads in this newsletter express the opinions of their authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Peel, Inc. or its employees. Peel, Inc. is not responsible for the accuracy of any facts stated in articles submitted by others. The publisher also assumes no responsibility for the advertising content with this publication. All warranties and representations made in the advertising content are solely that of the advertiser and any such claims regarding its content should be taken up with the advertiser. * The publisher assumes no liability with regard to its advertisers for misprints or failure to place advertising in this publication except for the actual cost of such advertising. * Although every effort is taken to avoid mistakes and/or misprints, the publisher assumes no responsibility for any errors of information or typographical mistakes, except as limited to the cost of advertising as stated above or in the case of misinformation, a printed retraction/correction. * Under no circumstances shall the publisher be held liable for incidental or consequential damages, inconvenience, loss of business or services, or any other liabilities from failure to publish, or from failure to publish in a timely manner, except as limited to liabilities stated above.

CHA BOARD OF DIRECTORS President Denise Hogan.......denise.1.hogan@gmail.com, 214.403.4454 Vice President Konavis Smith........................................... konavis@gmail.com Treasurer Jim Lloyd.........................jlloyd@austin.rr.com, 512.231.0855 Secretary Waneen Spirduso......................................spirduso@utexas.edu BOARD MEMBERS-AT-LARGE Janet Wright ........................ ..............mightywrights@me.com ..........................................................................469-387-5632 Meredith Massey-Kloetzer......................meremass@gmail.com Henry Mistrot....................................................512.459.7313 COMMITTEES Environmental Control (ECC) Diana Apgar ................................ ..............fd1966fd@aol.com Community Park Terry Edwards......t.edwards54321@gmail.com, 214.392.4627 Welcome Erik Maye ......................erikmaye@gmail.com, 512.626.2404 Social & Decorating Joany Price....................joanyprice@gmail.com, 512.775.8942 Landscape & Decorating Ed Ueckert.........................................................512.345.6137 Security Jim Lloyd.........................jlloyd@austin.rr.com, 512.231.0855 Communications, Editor – Courtyard Caller Jen Harold.......... harold.jennifer@gmail.com, 281.773.2880 Compliance Denise Hogan................................denise.1.hogan@gmail.com Kayak Jim Vence .......................jimvence@gmail.com, 512.436.5678 Fire Safety Richard Stelzner................................... arebeess42@gmail.com Area Development and Zoning Liaison Denise Hogan....... denise.1.hogan@gmail.com, 214.403.4454

SUB-HOA CONTACTS Center Court: Amanda Gilliland... mandagilliland@gmail.com, 512-927-7118 Travis County Courtyard (aka "Backcourt") Terry Edwards .............................. t.edwards54321@gmail.com Villas at Courtyard: Thomas Hoy..........Thomas.Hoy@freescale.com, 512.231.1270 Wolf Court: Susanne Doell.................... Drdoell@gmail.com, 512.454.3400 2

Courtyard Caller - August 2022

Courtyard Caller

Courtyard Caller - August 2022

Courtyard Caller

COURTYARD BOOK CLUB

New York Times best-selling Caste by Isabel Wilkerson is the Courtyard Book Club’s selection for its 1 p.m. Sept. 6 meeting.

Tuesday, September 6, 2022

Wilkerson examines racial tensions in the United States and around the globe through the societal system of caste, based upon skin color, that assumes supremacy of one group and assumes inferiority of others. She introduces the basics of caste theory, how it affects lives of people in upper and lower castes, and how to shift from a caste system to a more equitable society. Wilkerson writes that she believes caste better explains the legacy of discrimination in the U.S. than the concepts of race and class alone. Wilkerson is a Pulitzer Prize winning writer and winner of the National Humanities Medal The Courtyard Book Club meets at the home of its chair, Lou Blemaster, 5612 N. Scout Island Circle, at 1 p.m. the first Tuesday of each month. To receive monthly book club emails, contact Lou at LouBlemaster@gmail.com. Even those who haven’t read the monthly book are welcomed to join your neighbors for some interesting discussion. And if you have friends in other areas of Austin who would like to join a book club, feel free to include them.

Courtyard Caller - August 2022

Courtyard Caller

FIREWISE AUGUST 2022 has been an out of the ordinary year. Winter mimicked 2011 and 2021, summer started in the spring and although the Hill Country is usually hot in summer, this year Austin seems to be challenging Phoenix and Las Vegas for heat advisories. Would golf be considered a dangerous sport in this weather? West Texas and the Panhandle are on fire and in early July there were multiple acre fires near Dripping Springs (Hays County) and Florence (Williamson County). We share local climate, weather and wildland vegetation with these communities. Even in Austin the AFD responds to multiple grass and brush fires. Since February there has been an almost continual Burn Ban in effect in Travis County. Travis County and Courtyard are not immune to wildfires. The fire risk assessment from the Texas A&M Forrest Service did not focus on specific homes, but examined the community as a whole. Individual home risks are a function of our Wildland-Urban Interface and each home’s interrelationship with its immediate surroundings including the homes next to it. For up-to-date risk assessments and information on how community homeowners can respond to the risk, go to the Wildfire Hub at https://wildfire-austin.hub.arcgis.com. While our community is residential with housing, streets and landscaped yards, we are also located adjacent to undeveloped land and preserves that are heavily vegetated and in a wildland state. To avoid a home ignition, a homeowner must eliminate the wildfire’s potential to bring fire to the house. This can be accomplished by interrupting the natural path a fire takes. As a homeowner, you can interrupt or change a fire’s path to your home by clearing a home ignition zone (HIZ). This is nothing more than pruning, maintaining and consistently doing vegetation management in your yard. It is an easy-to-accomplish task that can make a home more defensible against fire loss. To accomplish this, flammable items such as dead vegetation must be removed from the area immediately around and on top of the structure to prevent flames from contacting it. Also, reducing the volume of live vegetation will affect the intensity of the wildfire as it enters the home ignition zone. Keeping grass mowed, bushes trimmed and tree limbs off roofs help establish defensible space. Observing Austin’s watering restrictions is important to maintain supplies and pressure, so to keep vegetation alive set watering systems to early morning, evening or overnight to avoid evaporation and runoff. Residents can substantially reduce exposure to loss during a wildfire by taking preventive actions within our home ignition zones to address wildfire vulnerabilities. Relatively small investments of time and effort reap great wildfire safety rewards. Take steps now to reduce the ember threat to your home. To sign up for an HIZ evaluation email: fire-safety@courtyardhoa.org . Copyright © 2022 Peel, Inc.

Courtyard Caller - August 2022

Courtyard Caller CITY OF AUSTIN COMMUNITY TREE PRESERVATION The City Arborist Program administers the City of Austin's Tree Ordinance and issues permits to remove or impact regulated trees. Trees less than 19 inches in diameter are not regulated on residential property. Tree preservation requirements are detailed in Section 3 of the Environmental Criteria Manual.

What if my Protected or Heritage tree is dead or diseased? Apply for a permit to remove a tree that is dead, diseased, or an imminent danger to people or property. This can be done by completing a Tree Ordinance Review Application through the Austin Build + Connect (AB+C) Portal on the City’s website.

What is a Protected Tree? A Protected tree is any tree with a diameter of 19 inches or greater, when measured 4.5 feet above the ground. TIP: If you wrap your arms around a tree, and your hands don't overlap, it is likely a Protected tree.

How to Measure a Tree? Use a flexible tape measure to measure the circumference (around the tree) from 4.5 feet above the ground. Divide the circumference by 3.14 to get the diameter. • If the tree is on a slope, measure 4.5 feet above grade from the high side of the slope. • If the tree has irregular swelling in the trunk, measure 4.5 feet above grade above or below the swell(s). • If the tree is a multi-stemmed tree: 1. Measure all the stems at 4.5 feet above grade. 2. Take the largest stem diameter, and add it to half of the subsequent stem diameters. For Example: A Cedar Elm has two stems measuring 18 inches and 16 inches at 4.5 feet above grade. The larger stem is 18 inches, so take half of the subsequent stem diameter (16 inches / 2 = 8) and add it to the largest stem measurement. Calculate multi-stem diameter: 18 inches + 8 inches = 26 inch diameter. • If the tree is a leaning tree, measure at 4.5 feet above grade within the center area of the leaning tree.

Which species are considered Heritage Trees? Any of the following tree species when it measures 24 inches in diameter or greater: Texas Ash, Bald Cypress, American Elm, Cedar Elm, Texas Madrone, Bigtooth Maple, Pecan, Arizona Walnut, Eastern Black Walnut, and all Oak Trees. What does CRZ mean? Critical root zone is the distance from the trunk of the tree that is regulated.

CALLING FOR A VOLUNTEER!

Our CHA United States Flag has been flying at the top of our Courtyard Park flag pole on Patriotic Days (Memorial Day, Flag Day, July 4th, and Veteran’s Day, for more than ten years. We are extremely grateful to our neighbor, Dan Sharphorn, who has diligently carried out this patriotic duty for the last ten years. This type of service, done without much recognition, is what makes our community so special. Dan will be retiring from serving in this capacity, so we need another volunteer to step up and serve in his place. If you are interested, please contact Terry Edwards, CHA Park Chairman.

Courtyard Caller - August 2022

Courtyard Caller

Courtyard Caller - August 2022

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Courtyard Caller - August 2022