As spring approaches, I am reminded what a beautiful place Maryland is, particularly as everything begins to bloom and color begins to brighten the neighborhoods. This spring also finds me in a new position on the Montgomery West Homeowners Association. I have served several positions on the Board including Secretary, Vice President and now President. For those of who that don’t know me, let me tell you a little bit about myself. I have called Montgomery West home for 20 years. It’s hard to believe it’s been that long! My husband Michael and I have raised 2 boys during that time, Jason who is a junior at Salisbury University and Bryan who will be graduating from Gaithersburg High this spring and weighing his college options. This is a great place to raise kids.
I want to thank those of you,
past and present, who gave of their time to work on the Homeowners Association.
It sometimes can be a bit challenging – there is nothing more personal than
someone’s home – so in this position I would like to continue the good work
that was done by my predecessors, Heather and John Patton, who between their
successive terms as President had several major accomplishments. They led the successful update and homeowner
approval of the Covenants, which had not been updated for many years. They also created a vigorous process of
ensuring that the homeowner covenants are fairly and consistently overseen and
enforced, a major responsibility of a homeowners association.
My goal in this upcoming year
is to get more people involved with Montgomery West activities. As always, homeowners are welcomed at Board
meetings - dates are listed in this newsletter. We also have some community
events coming up, including a
community clean-up day and a community picnic.
Later on this year we will be recruiting Board members through a
nominating committee, so if there is interest, let me know. Being involved with your community can be
thought of as a civic responsibility and makes it a more enriching place, so I
encourage everyone to get involved and enjoy the rewards of a vibrant
community.
Sincerely,
Michele Heffner
2008 Board Meetings (homeowners are always welcome):
May 6,
Sept. 16,
Oct. 14, Annual Meeting Nov. 18 at
Strawberry Knoll.
All meetings at 18932 Marsh Hawk Ln.
unless otherwise noted.
Meet Your Board:
President Michele Heffner
Vice President Chris Rhawn
Treasurer Thelena Williams
Secretary David Klepeis
AERC Chair John Patton
County Liaison Chris Rhawn
MWHOA Procedure for Covenant Enforcement
Several homeowners have asked
about the procedure the Board of Directors uses to enforce our covenants. The Board has adopted the following
procedure based on guidance from our lawyer to be in compliance with our
covenants and Maryland law.
1) Homeowners are notified of
possible violations in a friendly letter.
Most homeowners respond to the friendly notices and address their
covenant issues in a timely manner.
2) If no response is received
from the friendly notices, a hearing is scheduled with the homeowner and Board
of Directors.
3) Following the hearing, the
Board determines if additional enforcement is necessary in terms of issuing a
fine for violations. (Fines are currently assessed at the rate of $50 per
violation per calendar quarter as long as the violations exist).
4) Failure to pay the fines,
the Board has the option to place a lien on the property or file a lawsuit to
collect the fines and/or have the violations corrected.
5) Failure to respond to the
lien, the HOA has the option to foreclose on the property.
The Board of Directors
continue their efforts to enforce our Covenants ensuring the property values
remain at maximum value and to provide a beautiful neighborhood we can be proud
to call our home. The legal basis for
this Covenant enforcement is contained in the Association’s Declaration of
Covenants and Restrictions, and in Maryland law.
During the past year there
has been evidence of homeowners renting out their basement or a room in their
home. This is not allowed by our
covenants. The only rental that is allowed
is the rental of the entire home (Article XII, f). We are asking each homeowner to abide by this rental aspect of
our covenants to protect our home values.
Please take a few minutes to
review our guidelines and covenants found on the MWHOA website (www.montgomerywesthoa.org) to make
sure you have no issues related to any of our covenants. Our intention is to keep MWHOA a beautiful
neighborhood and a welcome place to be our home.
During the AERC surveys of
our neighborhood, we have noted that many of the white Washington Post Boxes
have become discolored, dirty, and… well, just ugly. Many homeowners have removed their box. Take a look at your Washington Post box if
you still have one and consider removing it.
We note that these boxes are rarely used for newspaper delivery and
believe our neighborhood would look better without them.
If you have a satellite dish
or are considering installing one, please note that we require the dish to be
located on the back side of your roof or in a location that it is not visible
from the front of your home. This
should not interfere with receiving a signal or performance of your satellite
dish. Several homeowners have already
relocated their dishes so they are not visible from the front of their homes.
To improve the look of our
neighborhood, we suggest homeowners wash the algae growth off the north side of
their homes yearly. Home Depot or Lowe's sold a product last year that you
connect your hose and wash the algae away.
Quick and easy…give it a try.
When the MWHOA covenants were
amended to allow sheds in 2003, the AERC recommended guidelines for sheds,
which were approved by the Board of Directors.
These guidelines are as follows:
Sheds – No metal sheds. Sheds
should be the same color as the house. Only one shed per lot. Shed location and
size should be in accordance with Montgomery County standards. Sheds should not
exceed 144 sq. ft. and height of 9 ft.
Many of the sheds in our
neighborhood are aging and may need some maintenance. Take advantage of a beautiful spring day, to give your shed a
power wash or a new coat of paint to match your house color.
Join
your neighbors on April 5 as we get ready for spring by cleaning up the common
areas of the neighborhood. We will meet at 9:00 am at 18932 Marsh Hawk Lane for
coffee and donuts before setting to work.
Bring gloves and we will provide trashbags. For students this activity can be used for service learning
hours. This is a great opportunity to
meet some of the neighbors and beautify the neighborhood. If you have any questions, feel free to
email us at info@montgomerywesthoa.org.
Spring
is here and MWHOA will have its spring bulk pick-up on May 3. This will be a good opportunity to clean
your garage, basement or shed. Pick up
time is 7am, so place items out at the curb the evening before.
As per
the contractor, the following items are excluded from this pick-up: appliances (such as refrigerators, stoves,
washers, and dryers), hazardous materials, tires, and car batteries. Also no mattresses or box springs.
While you are out….
As the winter months dwindle
down and warmer weather is just around the corner, it is important to remember
to take security precautions while you are out or traveling abroad. These security tips can be applied while you
are home as well. Here are a few tips
to keep yourself and your home safe:
Exterior doors: Make sure your door is either metal or of
solid wood. The use of strong door
hinges as well as non-removable hidden pins will help fortify the door. All doors should be well lighted and have a
wide-angle peephole to see who is at the door.
Locks: Having strong locks on the doors are very
effective. It does not matter how long
you are out for, it could be a five-minute trip to the store, and this will
still give a burglar enough time to get in and out. So please remember to lock all doors. When purchasing or replacing a lock be sure to look for quality
keyed knobs as well as deadbolts. When
looking at deadbolt locks, make sure it extends at least one inch in
length when in the locked
position. Hardened steel inserts to
prevent the bolt from being sawed
off as well as a reinforced
strike plate with extra long mounting screws to anchor the lock effectively
will help reinforce the locked door.
Sliding glass doors: This is an easy way into one’s home if not
properly secured. The installation of
keyed locking devices that secure the door to the frame and adjusting the track
clearances will help prevent the door from being shifted or removed.
Windows: The thumb
turn locks should not be the only way you are able to lock the window. Install keyed locking devices to prevent the
window from opening from the outside.
Just be sure everyone knows where the key is in case of an
emergency. Another way you can increase
the security of windows are the “pin-trick” Drill an angled hole in frame of
the upper window and put in a nail or eyebolt in the hole. You can also make a secondary set of holes
to have the window open for ventilation.
Lighting: This is the
most cost effective way to prevent you and your home from becoming a victim of
burglars. If you are going to go away
for vacation, use preset timers to turn on and off your interior lights. As for the exterior of your home, place
lights out of reach from the ground to prevent the bulbs from being broken or
removed. Place the lights by the points
of entry into your home as well as your walkways. Motion sensor lights are very effective as they turn on when
someone approaches.
Shrubs and
landscaping: Walkways and landscaping should allow anyone
to make a direct approach to the main entrance and away from hidden areas. You should trim shrubs to prevent hiding
places and cut back trees that may give access to windows.
Home Security Survey: Montgomery County Police District Six offers
a free service in which an Officer will walk the exterior and interior of your
residence and assess the security risks.
The Officer would then make recommendations on how to increase your
home’s security. To schedule a Home
Security Survey, please contact the Community Services Officer at the Sixth
District Station at: 240-773-5757.