Presidents Letter

We were really glad to have the Lego camp this year, at the newly remodeled community center. Quite a few Continental Ranch kids got to enjoy a fun and unique learning experience this summer. I hope we will see the camp back again next year with even more families participating.

It’s coming time again for the Annual Election and I hope we will see folks attending.  Since there are four open seats and four candidates running for those positions, the results are pretty much already decided but it is still very important for everyone to cast their votes. We need to have a certain number of votes received for the election to be valid so please take just a few moments to drop your ballots off at the office or mail them in. 

At the last meeting, the Board approved the annual budget which you will receive a copy of in your annual election packets this month. I was happy that we were still able to keep from raising dues.  This Board has been able to keep dues the same for eleven straight years. This is not an easy accomplishment, since the required contribution to our reserves (saving account) increases by quite a bit each and every year. Back in 2010 the annual amount required to be put into reserves was only $90k per year and has climbed each year to now being $187k in 2016.  Not only have we been able to keep from raising dues for over a decade, we are proud that Continental Ranch has some of if not the lowest dues in the entire Tucson area, while still offering nice amenities to its residents and making numerous improvements to the community during this time. 

It was really nice seeing over 20 CRCA residents taking advantage of the dog training classes that were offered at Windmill Park. Seeing that many home owners taking an interest in their pets was very satisfying. What was not at all acceptable was the 40+ pounds of dog poop that covered the baseball field before the classes started. Seeing how much dog poop there was I can only imagine what the little league baseball players had to put up with while practicing on the field. There seems to be a small group of people who must feel the rules do not apply to them- Windmill Park and the baseball field are not a dog park! Not only are there Pima County ordinances about unleashed dogs and not picking up the dogs poop- with substantial fines and possible jail time CRCA has in place a fine of $100 and a 30 day pool suspension for not having your dog on a leash and also a $100 fine and 30 day pool suspension for not picking up their poop. We will be strictly enforcing this as well as turning offenders over to Pima County. Be a good neighbor and obey the rules- they are there so everyone can enjoy our facilities. Windmill Park is NOT A DOG PARK!

Speaking of Windmill Park we will be fencing it off starting August 12th for two months to enable us to replace our irrigation system. We have experienced numerous leaks and issues with the current system which is over 25 years old and it is in serious need of replacement. We were going to replace it last spring but the contractor backed out at the last minute because we were going to have someone inspect the work daily to assure it was being done according to plan.

You will be noticing a new landscape maintenance contractor doing our community- it will be Complete Landscape- a local contractor in business since 1986. The performance of our last contractor in my opinion was not up to the standards we set as we experienced way too many dead and dying plants. Hopefully Complete will perform better for us.

Just a reminder that the lego camp starts July 11th for the kids. If you didn’t sign up contact the office before July 6th if you are interested.

Hopefully the monsoon will bring us some badly needed rain and cool us down a little.

The Easter Egg hunt was a great success again with over 600 CRCA children attending with parents and grandparents alike. We don’t realize how many families with young children live in Continental Ranch until we have an event like this. It would not have happened without the organization of Paula and the rest of the management staff we have along with the Boy Scouts and all the other volunteers who donate their time to this great activity. Thanks to all who helped and those that attended.

The Community Center remodel is going well and it will be available for use after May 14th. You should notice a marked improvement in the flooring, lighting, countertop and cabinets. The update was sorely needed and we had electrical updates that needed to be done along with the remodel. We will be replacing the tables and chairs as well as they are due for replacement under the Reserve Study.

To all you dog owners tired of being pulled around the community when walking your dog there will be dog classes offered at the Windmill Park baseball diamond starting Saturday May 14 with registration on Saturday7th from 9AM to 11AM. The classes run 7 weeks and cost $75.00 but will be offered to RCA homeowners for 25.00. See the ad in this newsletter and have some fun with the furry member of your family.

Summer is not far off and I’d like to mention the Lego camp coming to the community center this summer and run by Play-well.org if you want to check out their website. We have already received a number of sign ups so don’t let your child miss out by not looking at the flyer in this newsletter. It is a really neat experience from what I can see. It will run 3 hours a day for 5 days so get your kids out of the house and let them create. There are a limited number of scholarships available to those needing financial assistance.

With Windmill pool and splash pad opening the 1st of March everyone should be able to see and enjoy the remodeled bathrooms. They turned out really well and the floor actually drains now so we shouldn’t need the rubber mats from before. It was an extensive job but the contractor did a really nice job and hopefully everyone will appreciate the remodel.

The Easter Egg hunt will be held on March 26th and looks to be even more fun filled than last year. Anyone wishing to help out should contact the office as we could use more volunteers. It is very rewarding to see all the happy kids. The Monday following the Easter Egg hunt will be the start of replacing the irrigation at Windmill Park. The park will be fenced off and closed for use until all the digging and construction is complete. The irrigation system currently in the ground is over 25 years old and we have been very lucky with a system that old not having more major leaks. All the pipe and sprinkler heads will be replaced to give better coverage of the turf with the sprinklers. With the replacement system projected to save us from 1200 to 1400 gallons per cycle.
On March 16th the community center will also be closed for a remodel and should be available for use the end of April. The 12” vinyl tile squares will be replaced with porcelain tile flooring, the kitchen will get new cabinets, the small acoustic tiles on the ceiling (that are continually falling off) will be taken down with new sheet rock installed, the window blinds will be replaced as they were not worth repairing and everything will be repainted. It should make for a nicer community center.

You will see in this newsletter a new policy concerning weeds and lot clean ups. A large number of properties do not take care of weeds or dead plants and the BOD did not feel it was right for neighbors who take care of their properties should suffer for those that do not. What use to take up to two and a half months will now be the second letter giving 10 days to take care of the issues or the Association will do a lot clean and bill the homeowner.

The Association will be hosting a summer camp of sorts. It will be put on by Play Well (www.play-well.org) and “teaches engineering to kids” using Legos and motorized Legos. See the ad in this newsletter for more info. Hopefully we can see this succeed.

Hopefully everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday. The photos with Santa were a hit again with Santa enjoying the time as much as the children did. The holiday lighting contest had very nice entries and the judges enjoyed seeing all the work people had done in putting up their display. The community came forward again by giving to CRCA’s adopt a family program and I’m sure the family had a great Christmas thanks to the generosity of all those who shared their good fortune with them. We can only hope 2016 is a good year for all of us.

We are looking forward to the annual Easter egg hunt which will be Saturday March 26th this year. Planning is already going on to make this a better event than each previous year. If you’d like to help out and volunteer you will be rewarded by all the happy children that attend. Following the Easter egg hunt the Windmill park field and baseball diamond will be fenced of as we will be replacing the irrigation system for the grass. The current system is over 25 years old with some of the valves buried six feet deep. We have been lucky that we haven’t had any major issues with the age of the system.

The BOD is looking at possibly upgrading the community center with new lighting, flooring, paint and fixtures. The current linoleum was installed without leveling the slab underneath and is not in good shape. Repairing the wooden blinds would cost as much as replacing them with new ones and the ceiling tiles are continually falling down.

The Windmill pool bathroom remodel is on schedule and will make a big difference when reopened March 1st.

November brings us cooler temperatures along with a number of changes here in CRCA. The election was held with Bill Dawes, Marilyn Stimpson and Nick Westphal returning for another two years and Bill Cicala serving his first term. It also means that Peggy Bracken chose not to run after serving for six years. We will all miss Peggy’s presence and want to thank her for putting in as much time and effort as she did for those six years. CRCA is a better place because of your involvement Peggy- thank you.

November also means homeowner assessments are due, which supports the operation of the HOA. As I have noted numerous times it is really disturbing to see people ignore paying their HOA dues. While we understand that some people have financial difficulties we try to make every one aware we will accept a payment plan to help those people stay current. If a homeowner’s assessments go unpaid for a full year, it is turned over for collections and is out of our hands. Once it is turned over to collections, it costs $350.00 just for the attorney to start the collections process which the delinquent owner is responsible for. Please, if you are having financial difficulties, contact the office to make arrangements so we do not have to send it to collections.

Santa will be back once again this year, this time at the Windmill Park office on Dec 5^th. We hope you will bring a canned food donation or cash which will go to the food bank in Marana and have pictures taken with Santa. It is usually well attended and the kids seem to really enjoy it- Santa does too!

The splash pad was a great success this past year and was a good investment for the community. Windmill pool has seen a lot more families using the entire facility with the addition of the splash pad. With the pool closing on November 1^st the contractor will start on the remodeling of the Windmill pool restrooms. You should see a lot of improvements when it reopens March 1^st. The condition of those restrooms was deplorable and the Reserve Study only gave us enough money to cover about 1/3rd of the total costs. The BOD was able to plan financially to cover the extra costs with no increase in dues.

Have a great Thanksgiving and a merry Christmas.

With summer winding down we should start seeing cooler temperatures which will be a relief to our power bills as well as being outside. With summer coming to an end it also means that there will be an election for four BOD members. Ballots will be going out near the middle to end of September; so look for yours and make sure to return it. There are only four people running for four positions but we need to have a quorum vote to make it official. If not the BOD would appoint people to fill the vacancies. They are all qualified candidates with the intention of making CRCA better. Please return your ballots.

The BOD approved the budget for next year and has not had to raise dues again. We have some of the lowest dues of any HOA here in Tucson with more amenities than other HOA’s. The BOD has been very diligent in how and where monies are spent and has been successful in not having to raise dues and still maintain our amenities to a high standard. While some homeowners have not agreed with some of the cost saving items the BOD has undertaken, it has allowed us to not have to raise dues. With Reserve contributions increasing $10,000 to $15,000 a year, utility costs increasing 6% to 10% a year and vendors requesting increases, there will come a point when dues will have to be raised to cover these increases. The BOD is investigating a few options to possibly increase our revenue stream without increasing dues. We will keep you posted.

Have a safe fall season and we hope to see you at the annual meeting.

It was only a matter of time, but the triple digit temperatures are back. The 100’s in Arizona are like death and taxes- pretty much a sure thing. Try to keep hydrated and cool. It seems like a larger number of homeowners and their families are doing just that at the Windmill pool and splash pad. I don’t think I have ever seen it as busy as it has been lately. Please remember there are pool rules that are enforced so that everyone can enjoy the pool and splash pad. I just returned from a trip to Anchorage Alaska for my grandson’s wedding- what a difference! Highs were in the low 70’s and the sun didn’t set until midnight and was right back up at 4:00AM and the mosquitoes were out all hours.

The finance committee will be finalizing next year’s budget at their next meeting with the goal of not raising dues but still keeping things up to a high standard. The landscape committee is looking at replacing the irrigation at Windmill Park and the baseball diamond. It was installed over 20 years ago with some of the valves five to six feet deep along with serious flaws in the water distribution from the sprinklers. Some areas are receiving too much water and others not enough. The new plan should drop water usage 40 to 50% and give us even distribution.

The Fourth of July is coming, let’s celebrate this great nation’s independence and values that so many have sacrificed for over the many years this great county has been in existence. Have a safe and happy fourth.

The Easter egg hunt was a big success again! We had over 600 kids participate, and a crowd of over 1500 enjoying all the attractions we were able to put together at Windmill Park. We are seeing the demographics here in CRCA changing- with more families moving in and participating in the community. I have really enjoyed seeing the number of families enjoying the pool at Windmill Park the past couple of weekends. I’m sure the recent addition of the splash pad has something to do with the added people. I’m sorry to say our contractor neglected to apply for a permit with the Pima County Health Department and the splash pad has been shut down by Pima County until a permit is issued. The BOD is probably even more unhappy with this situation than the children who have been enjoying the splash pad, and we are working every avenue to get it reopened ASAP.

With the first of May comes one of the duties the BOD does not enjoy at all. That duty is sending homeowners in arrears of their assessments to collections. Anyone who has not paid for one year is sent to collections as it is our fiduciary duty to see that all homeowners are current on their dues. We send delinquency notices out, but a number of homeowners fail to respond at all. This really leaves us with no option but to send it to collections. If you are having financial issues please contact the office so some sort of arrangement can be made.  That way, we are not forced into having to send you to collections. Ignoring it will not make it go away and sending it to collections just adds attorney’s fees to the bill. The initial contact by the attorney cost an extra $150.00 and is added to the assessment due. Please contact the office so we do not have to send a past due account to collections.

Have a safe and happy May.

The annual CRCA Easter egg hunt will be held on April 4^th at Windmill Park for CRCA residents. If the past attendance is any indication we can look forward to a large number of children enjoying all the activities the Association puts on for this event. Make sure to get your wristbands before the day of the egg hunt so your children don’t miss their time for their age group at the egg hunt. We invariably have a large number of residents who show up the day the event and it takes time to make sure they are CRCA homeowners. This event is sponsored by the Association and is only for residents. If you don’t have children maybe you could consider volunteering to help for a few hours. It is very rewarding to see all the happy and excited children enjoying themselves.

The splash pad contractor failed to have it up and running by the March 1^st target – and failed again in not having it ready in time for spring break. We have been assured it will be ready for use by April 1^st. The office has received numerous calls from young children wanting to know if it was open yet. Trust me when I say that the BOD is just as anxious as they are to get it open and running for the kids.

In the first two weeks of Windmill pool reopening there were 7 pool key suspensions for rule violations. This is not something any of us like to do but there are rules that need to be followed. These rules have been the culmination of years of collaboration of the various pool committees. There is a reason behind every rule and they are not just arbitrary decisions. Pima County has a law prohibiting children under 14 in a hot tub- children’s bodies cannot dissipate the heat in a hot tub like an adult. Showering is required before entering the pool to get rid of soaps on swim suits and bodies- soaps destroy the chemicals in the pool required for sanitation. The list goes on and on. Please follow the rules while at the pool- we do not like turning off pool keys but have no choice so everyone can enjoy the pools.

Have a happy Easter and enjoy the facilities CRCA has to offer.