President’s Letter

Letter from the President

As we approach the MWHOA annual meeting, I want to appeal to homeowners to consider volunteering for the Board. First, there will be three positions opening on the Board and we want to maintain at least five Board members. We are also looking for a member to serve on the AERC committee. If you are interested, let us know by sending us an email.

I encourage everyone to attend the annual meeting on November 9 at Strawberry Knoll Elementary School; the Board will present the 2011 budget, the slate of candidates for the Board, and a summary of this past year’s activities. This is an opportunity for homeowners to ask questions and provide comments to the Board.

I also want to thank those of you who completed the survey sent out in preparation for the special meeting. A summary of results are provided in this newsletter. We also appreciate the feedback the Board received at the special meeting. It offered a chance for homeowners to provide input on the Covenants, the AERC enforcement process and AERC guidelines. Always feel free to contact a member of the Board, your input and feedback is very helpful to us as we try to maintain our community.

Sincerely,

Michele Heffner

MWHOA Annual Meeting

Mark your calendars for the Homeowners Annual Meeting at 7:30 pm on November 9 at Strawberry Knoll Multi-purpose room.

Your 2010 Board:

President Michele Heffner

Vice President John Patton

Treasurer Donna Terry

Secretary Ron Stehlin

At-Large Dudley Skinker

AERC Chair John Patton

2010 Board Meeting Schedule

Oct 12,

Nov 9 7:30 - Annual Meeting

Reminder: New Billing Schedule

As mentioned in the spring newsletter, we are realigning the quarterly billing to better correspond with the assessment periods. Beginning with the first quarter 2011 billing, you will see the following changes:

1^st quarter invoices will be mailed in early December with payments due Jan. 10

2^nd quarter invoices will be mailed in early March with payments due April 10

3^rd quarter invoices will be mailed in early June with payments due July 10

4^th quarter invoices will be mailed in early September with payments due Oct. 10

We appreciate your patience as we make this adjustment.

Summary of MWHOA Survey

In August, the Board conducted a survey of Homeowners to gather feedback on areas that were of particular interest such as communication, covenants, the covenant enforcement process, and general feedback. There were 24 responses to the survey. Below is a summary of some of the responses:

Do you favor posting proxies to the website?

31% Yes; 45% No; 14% No Opinion

Should a directory of homeowners be available on the website?

17% Yes; 83% No

78% of respondents visited the Website.

91% favor keeping the covenant the same regarding the payment of legal fees to the prevailing party in covenant enforcement case.

Other comments in the survey included:

AERC inspections are helpful, especially if trying to sell house;
Include a response sheet on “friendly notices” of covenant violations so homeowners can respond easily of their circumstance
Common areas are (unlawfully) being used for dumping yard waste;
Children are riding bicycles on homeowners properties;
Do away with limit on split rail fence
Willing to pay extra for snow removal services
Allow metal roofs in the neighborhood

MWHOA Special Meeting

Thank you for those of you who attended the special meeting. There was good discussion on the 3 issues that were on the agenda: Covenants, Covenant Enforcement and AERC guidelines. As a result of the meeting, the Board is reviewing the friendly notice sent to homeowners with covenant violations to ensure that it is clear on the rights of the homeowners and spells out the AERC enforcement process and timeline. As always, homeowners will be encouraged to contact the board with any questions or concerns if they receive a letter.

News from our schools

(Source: Montgomery County Capital Improvement Plan)

CLUSTER PLANNING ISSUES

Planning Issue: The Shady Grove Sector Plan will increase housing around the Shady Grove METRO station. Most of the new development is located within the Gaithersburg Cluster.

Schools in the Montgomery West district

Gaithersburg High School

Capital Project: A modernization project is scheduled for this school. An FY 2010 appropriation was approved for planning funds to begin the architectural design of the modernization. The scheduled completion date for the modernization of the facility is August 2013 with site work scheduled for completion in August 2014. In order for this modernization to be completed on schedule, county and state funding must be provided at the levels approved in this CIP. Capital Project: The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Capital Budget includes planning funds for the architectural design of a School-based Wellness Center at this school. The design and construction of the Wellness Center will be included as part of the modernization of the school.

Gaithersburg Middle School

Capital Project: Restroom renovations are approved for this school for completion in the 2010–2011 school year.

Strawberry Knoll Elementary School

Utilization: Projections indicate enrollment at Strawberry

Knoll Elementary School will exceed capacity by four classrooms or more by the end of the six-year planning period. Enrollment will be monitored to determine the need for a future project. Relocatable classrooms will be utilized until additional capacity can be added.

September 2010

MWHOA Annual Meeting