Published in the Park Record on November 21-23, 2007, Page A-19
Dear Editor:
I have just returned from caring for my suddenly seriously ill mom...I have been gone for almost three weeks...I returned this week to get some desperately needed sleep, get love from my family and friends, and to decompress and regroup before going back to continue the care that my family needs...
Prior to my family commitment, my husband and I, as well as our neighbors, suffered the insult of having been accused of trepassing onto Ranch Place property. The bridge that existed behind our home for over 20 years was removed by overzealous homeowner association "leaders" who felt that the access to the public trail system by "non-residents" was dangerous. When the current trails freeze the Silver Springs and Ranch Place residents are continuing to use them without the safe bridges, there will be increased potential for serious injuries not only to people, but to the dogs that we all have as companions. Waterways, that previously had safe bridge overpasses, now no longer are safely crossable. If Ranch Place was previously concerned about liability, I think the time to rethink this ridiculous decision is NOW.
When I came home the first thing I did after hugging my husband and children was to walk out my back door and wonder at the amazing place that I live in. I walked thru the back gate as I have done for years and had to jump the creek to walk my dog on the public trail behind my home, all because of some stupid paranoia. There are so many more important things in life. We must embrace the day, live it to the fullest, wave to a neighbor, and pet the dog.
I'm rebuilding my bridge. Every nail that I hammer will give me hope knowing that I can walk out my back door as I have always done, walk on the trail, and celebrate the joy of having my Furburbia puppy in my life, and celebrate the wonderful "neighborhood" that I call home.
Megan Williams
Silver Springs
Friday, November 23, 2007
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Time to revise our CCRs
SILVER SPRINGS HOA
THOUGHTS ON OUR CC&R’s AND NEIGHBORHOOD
November 13, 2007
When the original CC&R’s and Architectural Guidelines were written and recorded in the early 1970’s the purpose was to help maintain a consistent home appearance and a cohesive neighborhood. Some folks bought homes here because they liked the look of uniformity. What has instead happened in the last decade or so is that these guidelines have become rigid, punitive, divisive, hurtful and costly. We feel that our neighborhood has been damaged more than enhanced not only by the CC&R’s and AG but also by the way they have been administered. We have lived in SS for over 25 years and served on the original SS Board for over six years. We think it is time to reassess our priorities. Neighbor relations are much more important than neighbor house color!
Our neighborhood condition came vividly to our attention five or so years ago when I attended a SSHOA Board meeting to present a SSHOA website that my husband and I had originated and hosted, free of charge, for Silver Springs residents at the request of Brodie Pollard when he was SSHOA president. Brodie had added the web address www.silverspringshoa.org to a couple of pieces of correspondence before he left office. The subsequent officers had not made use of the site nor advertised it to the residents so we requested some time to discuss this at a board meeting.
At the SSHOA board meeting the time was entirely taken up by the HOA president’s list of around 120 infractions of the Architectural Committee’s rules, more than half of the homes in Silver Springs were targets for action. I was aghast that our neighborhood was being so closely monitored and assessed in such negative terms. Home after home was discussed, and conversations with the offending neighbor were noted for follow-up and/or legal action. I sat and witnessed this process in wonderment of the toll this activity must take on “neighbor love one another” and SS resident contentment. After over two hours of this exercise I was given a couple minutes to explain the existence and benefits of our Silver Springs HOA website. I was told the Board would look it over and get back to me. The Board never did give us the courtesy of a response. During this last year the SS Board hired someone else to develop a SSHOA website and contacted us to use the same domain name that we had established and personally paid for since before approximately 2003.
This brings me to the next point. Not only do we need to re-write and update our SS rules but we also need to help our current and future board members understand that we as neighbors want the contention, the warning letters, and the lawsuits against our neighbors to stop. We want our neighborhood to regain the friendly, caring, fun atmosphere it once had. Personally, we think the deepening drought, energy crisis, and financial marketplace may very soon create serious challenges for implementing Architectural Guidelines. We may all be stressing yard maintenance and tree survival, and even drinking water, as well as other global issues, these possibilities could require us to reassess our priorities and pull together as neighbors for support.
We think that paying for tasks that have always been voluntary is a misstep. Increasing our annual debt to the HOA will not solve the underlying problem. If filing all the contentious paperwork has become such a huge task then we certainly need to look at decreasing the amount of paperwork by revisiting our CC&R’s & AG. Also, we are suggesting that a gentler, kinder way to manage our neighborhood concerns can be implemented by the use of a neighborhood blog. Folks who never attend HOA meetings will have a platform for contributing their input and participating in our neighborhood agenda. By opening a blog in addition to our www.silverspringhoa.org website neighbors can communicate, write concerns, answer questions, share information, offer assistance, vote, get acquainted, etc. Instead of writing a warning letter to weed and trim yards we should be offering assistance to help our neighbor do the work, neighbors helping neighbors. Add your comments to our Silver Springs Neighbor Blog at http://silverspringshoa.blogspot.com We look forward to hearing from you.
We feel it is time to re-assess and simplify the intent and content of our SSHOA CC&R’s and Architectural Guidelines. We should regulate only that to which we are collectively willing to comply and pay for, do we want to pay with damaged relationships and ever increasing paperwork. It appears that collectively SS residents have already dug in their heels against the strictures of our current AG by not attending meetings and not complying with the board’s letters. It is time to make a change. We suggest that we use digital technology for free, assessable, communication, billing, and to rebuild our neighborhood.
If you have any comments, input, suggestions, technology skills, etc. please contact us at ssneighbor@gmail.com or add a New Post on our SSHOA Blog space http://silverspringshoa.blogspot.com .
Sincerely,
Clay and Lucy Archer
P.S. We are still trying to figure out a lot of details about this blog. Please understand that this blog post is by Clay and Lucy Archer and not by the Silver Springs HOA. If you can't get your input to post then use the ssneighbor@gmail.com account to send your message and we will move it to this blog. Thank you.
THOUGHTS ON OUR CC&R’s AND NEIGHBORHOOD
November 13, 2007
When the original CC&R’s and Architectural Guidelines were written and recorded in the early 1970’s the purpose was to help maintain a consistent home appearance and a cohesive neighborhood. Some folks bought homes here because they liked the look of uniformity. What has instead happened in the last decade or so is that these guidelines have become rigid, punitive, divisive, hurtful and costly. We feel that our neighborhood has been damaged more than enhanced not only by the CC&R’s and AG but also by the way they have been administered. We have lived in SS for over 25 years and served on the original SS Board for over six years. We think it is time to reassess our priorities. Neighbor relations are much more important than neighbor house color!
Our neighborhood condition came vividly to our attention five or so years ago when I attended a SSHOA Board meeting to present a SSHOA website that my husband and I had originated and hosted, free of charge, for Silver Springs residents at the request of Brodie Pollard when he was SSHOA president. Brodie had added the web address www.silverspringshoa.org to a couple of pieces of correspondence before he left office. The subsequent officers had not made use of the site nor advertised it to the residents so we requested some time to discuss this at a board meeting.
At the SSHOA board meeting the time was entirely taken up by the HOA president’s list of around 120 infractions of the Architectural Committee’s rules, more than half of the homes in Silver Springs were targets for action. I was aghast that our neighborhood was being so closely monitored and assessed in such negative terms. Home after home was discussed, and conversations with the offending neighbor were noted for follow-up and/or legal action. I sat and witnessed this process in wonderment of the toll this activity must take on “neighbor love one another” and SS resident contentment. After over two hours of this exercise I was given a couple minutes to explain the existence and benefits of our Silver Springs HOA website. I was told the Board would look it over and get back to me. The Board never did give us the courtesy of a response. During this last year the SS Board hired someone else to develop a SSHOA website and contacted us to use the same domain name that we had established and personally paid for since before approximately 2003.
This brings me to the next point. Not only do we need to re-write and update our SS rules but we also need to help our current and future board members understand that we as neighbors want the contention, the warning letters, and the lawsuits against our neighbors to stop. We want our neighborhood to regain the friendly, caring, fun atmosphere it once had. Personally, we think the deepening drought, energy crisis, and financial marketplace may very soon create serious challenges for implementing Architectural Guidelines. We may all be stressing yard maintenance and tree survival, and even drinking water, as well as other global issues, these possibilities could require us to reassess our priorities and pull together as neighbors for support.
We think that paying for tasks that have always been voluntary is a misstep. Increasing our annual debt to the HOA will not solve the underlying problem. If filing all the contentious paperwork has become such a huge task then we certainly need to look at decreasing the amount of paperwork by revisiting our CC&R’s & AG. Also, we are suggesting that a gentler, kinder way to manage our neighborhood concerns can be implemented by the use of a neighborhood blog. Folks who never attend HOA meetings will have a platform for contributing their input and participating in our neighborhood agenda. By opening a blog in addition to our www.silverspringhoa.org website neighbors can communicate, write concerns, answer questions, share information, offer assistance, vote, get acquainted, etc. Instead of writing a warning letter to weed and trim yards we should be offering assistance to help our neighbor do the work, neighbors helping neighbors. Add your comments to our Silver Springs Neighbor Blog at http://silverspringshoa.blogspot.com We look forward to hearing from you.
We feel it is time to re-assess and simplify the intent and content of our SSHOA CC&R’s and Architectural Guidelines. We should regulate only that to which we are collectively willing to comply and pay for, do we want to pay with damaged relationships and ever increasing paperwork. It appears that collectively SS residents have already dug in their heels against the strictures of our current AG by not attending meetings and not complying with the board’s letters. It is time to make a change. We suggest that we use digital technology for free, assessable, communication, billing, and to rebuild our neighborhood.
If you have any comments, input, suggestions, technology skills, etc. please contact us at ssneighbor@gmail.com or add a New Post on our SSHOA Blog space http://silverspringshoa.blogspot.com .
Sincerely,
Clay and Lucy Archer
P.S. We are still trying to figure out a lot of details about this blog. Please understand that this blog post is by Clay and Lucy Archer and not by the Silver Springs HOA. If you can't get your input to post then use the ssneighbor@gmail.com account to send your message and we will move it to this blog. Thank you.
Monday, November 12, 2007
November 13, 2007 HOA Meeting
11/10/2007 Letter from the SSHOA Board:
Dear Homeowners,
The demands of administering to the Silver Springs HOA are substantial and continue to grow. In particular is the administrative requirements for billing, collections, bookkeeping and minutes of the meetings; administration and compliance with CC&R's and Architectural Rules; and interaction with the Masters for common areas; all of tis can be quite intensive.
It is the general consensus of the current board and of those who attended the annual meeting in October that unless there are more individuals who are willing to share in this effort then we recommend that many of these functions be turned over to a paid community member or to a professional services group.
Our recommendation is to maintain the board as called for in the CC&Rs and have one or mor entities to cover the duties of secretary, treasure, and enforcement of CC&Rs and the ARC rules.
We are asking if any members of the community would be willing to consider a position to cover the enforcement of the CC&R's and ARC rules in a compensated position. We have a long time board member who would like to be considered to assume the clerical and bookkeeping duties with compensation.
We have received one bid for the combined responsibility of all functions and it was for $100/ year per house hold by a professional management group.
To move these functions to a paid position it would take an increase in dues. Ths may be anywhere from $50-$100 per house hold.
Please use the ballot below to express your self or come to the next meeting at Parleys Elementary School at 7:00 PM on November 13th.
___________________________________________________________________________
Please check all boxes that apply and return to Silver Springs Single Family HOA, 4574 N. Silver Springs Rd. #13 Park City, Utah 84098 or bring it to the meeting.
___ I am not in favor of paid positions for this purpose and I want to offer my name as a volunteer.
Name___________________ Phone Number_______________
___ I would support paid positions for a fee increase between $50-$100 /year/house.
___ I would like to be considered for a paid position and my contact information is:
Name____________________ Phone Number_______________
Dear Homeowners,
The demands of administering to the Silver Springs HOA are substantial and continue to grow. In particular is the administrative requirements for billing, collections, bookkeeping and minutes of the meetings; administration and compliance with CC&R's and Architectural Rules; and interaction with the Masters for common areas; all of tis can be quite intensive.
It is the general consensus of the current board and of those who attended the annual meeting in October that unless there are more individuals who are willing to share in this effort then we recommend that many of these functions be turned over to a paid community member or to a professional services group.
Our recommendation is to maintain the board as called for in the CC&Rs and have one or mor entities to cover the duties of secretary, treasure, and enforcement of CC&Rs and the ARC rules.
We are asking if any members of the community would be willing to consider a position to cover the enforcement of the CC&R's and ARC rules in a compensated position. We have a long time board member who would like to be considered to assume the clerical and bookkeeping duties with compensation.
We have received one bid for the combined responsibility of all functions and it was for $100/ year per house hold by a professional management group.
To move these functions to a paid position it would take an increase in dues. Ths may be anywhere from $50-$100 per house hold.
Please use the ballot below to express your self or come to the next meeting at Parleys Elementary School at 7:00 PM on November 13th.
___________________________________________________________________________
Please check all boxes that apply and return to Silver Springs Single Family HOA, 4574 N. Silver Springs Rd. #13 Park City, Utah 84098 or bring it to the meeting.
___ I am not in favor of paid positions for this purpose and I want to offer my name as a volunteer.
Name___________________ Phone Number_______________
___ I would support paid positions for a fee increase between $50-$100 /year/house.
___ I would like to be considered for a paid position and my contact information is:
Name____________________ Phone Number_______________
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