SERRANO

by BILL ROMANELLI photography by CHARLENE TAYLOR / CHARM PHOTOGRAPHY

EET DAVE SANDERS , Maintenance Manager

For the past 25 years, anyone driving in or out of the Serrano community has seen the fruits of David Sanders’ labors.

As the maintenance manager for the Serrano El Dorado Owners’ Association (HOA), he has the responsibility” to keep millions of square feet of yards, landscaping and open space looking pristine, while overseeing all the behind-the-scenes work that keeps water flowing, equipment working and residents happy.

“A lot of my job is really preventing little problems from becoming big ones, and implementing little changes that make a big difference,” Sanders says. “It’s a job I really enjoy, but I couldn’t do it without the support I get from my managers and long-tenured team, the community, the HOA board and the folks at Parker Development.”

Ask Bill Parker about Sanders, and you’ll see the feelings are quite mutual.

“What David does is absolutely amazing; I never seen anything like it,” he says. “He’s responsible for taking care of 4,000 front yards, plus all the public landscaping, and maintaining 6 million square feet of open space areas. e fact that he’s still here after 25 years speaks gospel to the great job he does, and how much he loves it.”

Sanders’ experience with landscaping and maintenance began when he was very young. He grew up in a family of seven boys and two girls, and his grandfather owned an apartment complex in the Bay Area. Every weekend, Grandpa would come by the house, pick up two of the kids, and they’d spend the day helping at the apartments. at piqued Sanders’ interest, but it was his studies in a plant identification course at American River College that turned landscaping into a career.

“I could do my homework walking to school and naming the plants and flowers along the way,” he says. “ at’s when I knew this was what I wanted to do.”

After graduating from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, he began the career path that ultimately led him to a private landscape contracting fi rm that had just won the account for Serrano, and he knew it was something special. He worked hard and helped win Serrano an award for the best-maintained HOA property in Northern California. en one day on a drive around the property with the HOA’s general manager, he learned the HOA was looking for a staff person to manage landscaping and maintenance. A few months later, Sanders had the job.

“It was obviously a good move for me,” he says. “It was the right thing for my family, and it provided the structure, demand for high quality and the freedom to be creative that I was looking for.”

Fast forward 25 years, and Sanders’ responsibilities may have expanded, but his purpose has not.

“I’m really empowered to deliver exceptional service and solutions that enrich the quality of life for every member of this community, by preserving and enhancing the natural and planned outdoor beauty of the area.” he says. “When folks drive into this development, I want them to love what they see, so much so that they want to live here and be a part of it.”