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 Wildewood Owners Association 2019 Update

Dear Property Owners,

Greetings from the 2019-2020 Board of Directors! We wish everyone a Happy and Healthy New Year!

2020 Maintenance fees are due January 1, 2020. The fees are assessed in accordance with the Restrictions and Covenants attached to each lot in Wildewood at a rate of $7.00/month ($84.00 per year). The fees have not been raised since 2006, are very reasonable compared to those of other subdivisions and are essential to the operation and upkeep associated with the Wildewood Owners Association (WOA). The fees are used to maintain the common areas, pay school and county taxes, provide security lighting, maintain required insurance and more.

If your fees are current, Thank You! You have received an invoice for each lot that you own in Wildewood.

If your fees are not current, you have received a statement for each lot detailing the amounts due and any payments that have been made. If you are not currently on a payment plan, please contact the WOA Treasurer, Teri Dickinson at wildewoodboard@gmail.com or (903) 202-0964 immediately to make payment arrangements. Payment plans are available where hardship exists, please contact us to discuss.

Thank you all for a productive 2019 and we look forward to working with the membership in 2020. Your feedback and ideas for improvement, as well as your offers to volunteer are always welcome. The Board members’ contact information is at the end of following newsletter.

Sincerely, 

Your 2019-2020 Board of Directors

Update Newsletter

Communications – How will we keep you updated?

· Postal mail – newsletters sent with invoices in January and the election ballots in May

· Email – we send regular updates. If we don’t have an email address for you, please provide an email address to wildewoodboard@gmail.com or (903) 202-0964 so we can add you to the list. Meeting notices are sent via email and posted on the website.

· Website – regular updates are posted to the website www.wildewoodliving.com. If you do not have an email address, cannot access the website and would like hard copies of the newsletter, please contact us and we can arrange to have them dropped off for you. 

Community Involvement – Please volunteer!

The 2020 election will be here before you know it and there will be three board positions up for election in June. We’d like to encourage everyone to consider running for a board position or volunteering to serve on the nominating committee, which will be formed in the spring. We have great diversity on the current board and would love to see interest in the board positions from all areas of the community.

Volunteer positions are available. Your help is greatly appreciated. Committees include 

· Pool maintenance

· Community center maintenance

· Event planning

· Architectural control and more!

Neighborhood Clean Up

Please let a Board member know if you would be interested in serving on a committee or volunteering for a work day to help clean up and maintain the neighborhood. Many properties have been cleaned up, but more work remains to be done. Please be sure your property is clear of

· Abandoned cars

· Trash and appliances

· Tall weeds and grass on your property or in the right of way in front of it

If you need assistance cleaning up your property, please contact a Board member.

Projects – What is WOA working on for 2020?

Community Center Drainage

A project has just been completed to improve the drainage around the community center and move rainwater from the parking lot and the gutters away from the building. For many years the community center has flooded during periods of heavy rain and while numerous DIY fixes were attempted, none were successful over the long-term. Once the water stops coming in the building, WOA can consider additional much needed improvements and maintenance for the Community Center.

Tenant Access to Wildewood Amenities

The Board has received requests from property owners to allows tenants to use the Wildewood facilities such as the pool and boat ramp. The Board cannot change the regulations that limit the use of facilities to owners and their guests because the regulation is part of the Bylaws, which can only be amended by a vote of the membership.

After researching this question, the Board has determined that allowing tenants to use the amenities would not affect the status of the pool as a private pool, nor would it prevent WOA from obtaining liability insurance. It would increase the cost of the liability insurance. When the insurance is renewed in the spring, the exact amount can be determined. If the property owners support voting on this matter and the insurance cost is not prohibitive, a change to the Bylaws could be proposed and then voted on at the Annual Membership meeting on the first Saturday in June. Please complete the survey at the end of this newsletter to share your opinion. 

Mowing

Common areas were mowed regularly by a contractor during the 2019 mowing season and this will continue for 2020. 

Pool Access

The electronic key fob entry system tested for 2019 was successful and key fobs will again be used for pool entry in 2020. We expect the pool to open for Memorial Day weekend on May 23, 2020. Information about picking up key fobs will be distributed in the spring.

Pool Upkeep

The benches, tables and gazebos at the pool need some maintenance and repairs prior to the pool opening. We will be forming groups to work on those items very soon. If you use the pool, please plan to donate a few hours towards making it a better place for everyone!

Boat Ramp

Boat ramp access is not being changed at this time, but new keys might be issued in the spring, that is still being evaluated. If you use the boat ramp, please watch for any announcements on changes. When using the boat ramp, please be sure the gate is locked at all times and remember that for safety reasons, swimming is not permitted at the boat ramp which was designed and built for boat launch and fishing purposes only.

Looking to the Future

WOA is currently operating on approximately a break-even basis and as costs rise over time, changes will be required over the next few years. WOA must find ways to lower costs or increase income in order continue to pay the bills and to have funds to cover major maintenance items such as roofs or heating and air conditioning systems repair or replacement.

Expenses are currently being kept to a minimum, so reducing available amenities is likely to be the remaining way to reduce costs. Past suggestions have included closing the pool or selling the community center. Do you have any other ideas?

To increase income, the Board is currently working with delinquent property owners to ensure all property owners are paying their fair share. Thank you! to those who have gotten their balances paid up or are currently working on payment plans, it is greatly appreciated.

Possible ways to generate more income include:

· Raising the amount of the annual maintenance fees

· Creating a special one-time assessment to be used for major maintenance/improvements

· Asking property owners for a voluntary special assessment (donation) 

Note that any non-voluntary increases must be voted on and approved by the WOA property owners.

The Board is interested in your input and would appreciate hearing what the property owners would like to do to maintain the WOA’s future financial health and its ability to provide services to the property owners. Please complete the survey at the end of this newsletter and return it with your Maintenance Fee payment.

Events – What’s been going on in Wildewood?

National Night Out

WOA hosted National Night Out on October 8, which was a great success. We had a big crowd including many children who greatly enjoyed playing on the playground and climbing around on the fire trucks and the Sheriff’s deputy’s car. We had a Sheriff’s deputy, an ambulance crew and the entire Westside VFD turn out to enjoy spending some time with the community. Everyone enjoyed the delicious contributions to the pot luck supper. Thanks to all who contributed and attended. Weather permitting, we’ll plan to hold the event at the pool pavilion again next year!

Holiday Lighting Contest

Make Wildewood Beautiful 2.0 was a great success. Many, many homes were decorated. Thanks to all who participated. We are looking forward to seeing what you come up with for next year!