News

Continental Ranch

Though we need the rain, and the snow on the Catalina’s is pretty, I hope that spring is just around the corner. The BOD is getting ready to interview the companies selected as finalists to the Landscape RFP. They are being asked to present a short presentation at our next study session- Wednesday, March 10^th at 6:30PM. Please attend to see what is being offered to CRCA as far as maintaining the landscaping in our common areas.

My last letter, I am sorry to say, dealt with vandalism in CRCA. I hope this will be the last mention I have to make about vandalism in our common areas. The pool at Windmill Park was vandalized on a Friday night late last month- resulting in having to close it until the following Monday morning. The pool committee recommended that the pool hours be shortened to closing at 8PM instead 10PM; as a result  of the vandalism. I see no reason that the BOD will not follow this recommendation. This BOD has made it clear that we will prosecute to the full extent of the law, any and all individuals who damage Association property. Please report any and all acts of vandalism or inappropriate behavior in our common areas to the management staff as well as the Marana police department. This needless waste of our dues monies is unacceptable.

The Community Center had a broken pipe in the walls between the women’s bath room which resulted in drywall damage.  Polybutylene pipe was the cause and it appears we cannot file a claim as the time deadline has passed. We are currently getting bids to replace the old polybutylene pipe with new pipe, as well as repair all the damages. Please be aware that there is no designated women’s room and that things will be a bit of a mess until all the repairs are made. Though this was not budgeted the BOD has been very frugal in spending monies and there should be no issue covering this unplanned expense.

Have a wonderful Easter and I hope to see you at one of our meetings. This Association does not run itself.

Continental Ranch

We are far enough into 2010 now that I think I’ve adjusted to writing it on my checks, instead 2009. The New Year brought us much needed rain (I could have done without the wind) but the sun has come back and the snow showing on the Catalina’s reminds me why I left Anchorage, Alaska to live here.

The landscape committee had eleven responders to the Request for Proposals (RFP) they sent out in December for the landscape contract to maintain our common areas. They sent their recommendation of the top three proposals they had chosen while meeting their budgetary constraints to the BOD at the last meeting. The three chosen were: Groundskeeper, Northwest Landscaping and Complete Landscaping. The BOD and landscape committee will conduct a tour of properties maintained by the three chosen; on Saturday, February 6^th at 10:00 AM. Interested residents are encouraged to participate.  Tour reservations are needed in the office by Thursday, February 4^th so that adequate transportation may be arranged.

The Town of Marana staff (and hopefully the Mayor) will be at the February 10^th study session soliciting input from CRCA.  Below is an excerpt from an e mail received from the town council liaison:

“Just like you have to decide what to spend your household budget on when money gets tight, the town must also make decisions about what level of services can be funded when less money is coming in. With this in mind, Town Council and management would like to visit your neighborhood or social organization to discuss priorities for funding for the upcoming budget year. Money that funds town services continues to be affected by the economic recession, compounded by a state fiscal crisis that is expected to last for several years. It’s important that Council and staff receive comments from citizens as we begin to create a budget for next year that includes the services that reflect our community values.”

Please plan on attending this important meeting to supply input to the town as it prepares its’ budget for the coming year. Without our input they will not know what services reflect our “community values”. Remember – we are all in this together!

I have no new news on the Waste Management issue or the current status of the negotiations with our past collections attorney. As information becomes available we will provide it to the community.

The board meeting on December 16^th had a very special group attend the meeting.   The Daisy Scouts of CRCA performed three songs for those in attendance and helped set the holiday mood for all. I am sure I speak for the whole BOD when I say thank to those young ladies for their well done performance.

The BOD was presented with a number of issues relating to vandalism of CRCA property. A play structure at one of the tot lots was broken by vandals and would require over $1600.00 to replace. The BOD voted to remove the remaining piece of the broken item due to liability issues and also voted to follow through with prosecution of the vandals. We are awaiting a copy of the police report before proceeding. In another instance, twenty plants were replaced in a section of CRCA on a Friday.  By the following Friday seven of the twenty had been broken off to the ground by another group of vandals. This type of destruction of community property will not be tolerated by this BOD and we will pursue all legal means to seek restitution and prosecution of those involved. Please, report any instances you witness to the management office so we can stop this needless destruction of homeowners property within the association. Vandalism of CRCA property wastes the funds of every homeowner within the community.  We need to stop this before it becomes a bigger problem.

The BOD sent out a request for proposals (RFP) for maintaining the landscaped common areas of CRCA and requested that they be submitted by December 21^st. The landscape committee will be reviewing those proposals at two meetings in January with the goal of narrowing it down to the three best proposals. The BOD will then interview the top choices and select the best proposal to maintain the common area landscaping in CRCA.

VMS- the new software program for the association- is up and running and is within half of one percent from being current with all homeowner information. The few remaining updates left to complete are homes that have recently changed hands.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and we wish you all a prosperous and happy new year in 2010.

I would like to congratulate the new members elected to the BOD- Peggy Bracken, Gus Lipins and Terry Paschen; as well as the returning member Marilyn Stimpson. I would also like to thank the other candidates for participating and wish them well. I was re elected as president  with Chuck Stead- 1^st Vice, Marilyn Stimpson- 2^nd Vice, Peggy Bracken- Secretary and Connie DeLarge- Treasurer. With another election behind us and the holidays around the corner it is a busy time for all of us, but the BOD is still faced with a number of challenges.

We are still working on resolving the Waste Management issue- with no response from them since May 2009 to our proposal. Our attorney is negotiating with our past collections companies attorney and we will hopefully see this come to a conclusion shortly. The newly hired management company has VMS up and running with data entry being done to update all of our records. When complete you will be given an ID number and will be able access your records online.

What makes a community great? I’ve asked myself that and have come to the realization that it is neighbors that make a community a place others want to live. All too often, in today’s world, we do not find the time or desire to get to know our neighbors. What is a neighbor?  They respect each others’ boundaries but are quick to assist in a crisis. Great neighbors make for great neighborhoods, and it is well worth the effort. There are a million ways you can be a good neighbor, starting with something as simple as sitting on the front porch and saying hello. We are not all into block parties and socializing with our neighbors but maybe take the time to wish them happy holidays this season and get to know them. We are all in this together so why not make the best of it.

If you and yours are blessed this season please remember the Adopt a Family program the Association donates to. There are others less fortunate that can use a little help, especially in this economy. Any donation would be greatly appreciated. Don’t forget to visit the Walgreen’s at Twin Peaks and Coachline on Dec. 12^th and 13^th and get a free photo with Santa with your donation to the Marana community food bank. Have a safe and wonderful holiday season.

Writing the Presidents message for the newsletter can be a very daunting task. Not wanting to write a message full of fru fru nor remind homeowners what they cannot do is not something I will do. With the deadline for the message well before the study session or Board meeting it is next to impossible to report to you homeowners anything that is short of conjecture on my part. With that said, let me say your BOD has been very busy trying to make CRCA the place we all promised when running for election to the BOD. It is nice to hear from homeowners that they feel we are making a difference in CRCA becoming more “homeowner friendly”.
I hope that the new Design Guidelines have been passed at the April 29th BOD meeting- there was a lot of time, energy and thought put into these by the ARC; and they are to be thanked for presenting such a document. I would like to pass on one of the comments from a homeowner after he read them at the office:
“I can’t tell you how pleased I was after reading the new design guidelines.  Even the way it was written is friendly.  It contains common sense, puts many decisions back into the hands of the homeowners, and shows a real desire to work with the homeowner on items not spelled out in the document.”
I know that a number of you were confused when you received yet another letter about opting out of the Waste Management contract. I apologize if it seemed redundant but our attorney advised us to proceed in this manner so that we can put this divisive issue behind us. While we did not achieve what we set out to do I feel the resultant negotiated compromise is in the best interests of all homeowners in CRCA. We are hoping to finalize this with Waste Management by the end of May.
Let me just close by saying that there are still a large number of issues confronting this Board and we will address each one of them in a fair and legal manner. We are homeowners also and have a vested interest in seeing that Association business is done to benefit all homeowners in CRCA and not just a vocal few.

 The current economic situation facing the residents of CRCA is of definite concern to your Board. However, residents are still required to pay their homeowners dues, which is what the HOA uses to pay for things like landscape maintenance and community improvements. For residents who are having trouble paying the dues, please talk to the management company about relief measures. You still have to pay the bills, but this Board might be  willing to work with residents on payment plans and other reasonable strategies to help residents pay the bills without incurring delinquent charges and, potentially, legal fees. We are Board members with a “fiduciary duty” to the association but we are also your neighbors and fellow homeowners. Please, do not just ignore your dues payments. We have seen delinquencies in dues payments increase 25% from Nov. 2007 to Nov. 2008.
While CRCA is in good financial shape I have requested all committees to put on hold any expenditures that are not absolutely necessary; until we see how the May dues received compare to those anticipated when the budget was approved in October. I am not saying we will not continue with budgeted expenditures but instead believe it to be financially prudent for this Board to act very cautiously in the area of spending association monies- your monies- given the current economic situation facing the homeowners of CRCA.
I’d like to take this time to personally thank Jim Susa- the Finance Committee Chair- for helping to put CRCA on a strong financial footing. Jim has resigned from the committee after seeing through on his goal of putting CRCA in good financial shape. The time and effort Jim put into this are very much appreciated and have not gone unnoticed. While I hate to see Jim leave I hope he takes advantage of his extra time to enjoy it with his family. Good luck in all you do Jim, and again Thanks!
CRCA is a great community because it’s full of great people. Your HOA Board looks forward to improving our community, but we need your help. We work for YOU!

Make a commitment this year to invest in your most valuable asset – your home – by getting involved in your CRCA HOA. We’re looking for volunteers to organize community events, help us communicate,  serve on  committees. Everyone’s busy. You don’t need to do it all. You’ll be surprised how a small contribution of time makes a big difference when we work together!