The annual Oak Meadow Neighborhood Association meeting was held at the Fitchburg Library with dinner catered by Liliana’s Restaurant; there were 72 guests who had RSVP’d for the meeting. President, Jesse Olson, brought the meeting to order at 6:30 PM. Year in ReviewJesse reviewed the 2014 Association activities (garage sale, Spring cleanup, egg hunt, progressive cocktail party, movie in the park, turf improvement, and annual meeting/dinner).Financial ReportThe financials were reviewed. We are beginning to incur rain garden maintenance expenses. Our projected budget looks good; we should be good for years.Sachin Tuli, Neighborhood Membership Director (and unofficial Neighborhood Landscape Director) spoke about the rain gardens. Per the master plan, there are two rain gardens in our neighborhood. One is at the end of Pennwall and one is along the path behind Clear Channel. Storm water is the reasoning. It was written that the Association would be responsible for their maintenance once the neighborhood development was substantially completed (we are at that point). In the past we’ve spent approximately $3,000 for landscaping with the assumption that we would incur an additional $3,500 in expenses for rain garden maintenance. Initially, those charges were with two businesses. We have since combined both the landscaping and rain garden maintenance with one company at a total cost of approximately $4,200 per year. The rain gardens will take a substantial number of years to grow. Currently, there are a few shrubs, birch trees, and a lot of weeds. In the near future we hope they will look similar to this:  We will then add additional flowering plants in mass. Long-term we hope they will look similar to this:  If you would like to get involved with the design (plant selection), please follow-up with Sachin (membership@oakmeadowhomeowners.org) so a committee can be organized. In addition, the medians at each entrance to our neighborhood have been updated with more attractive plantings. Covenants and City OrdinancesJesse reviewed the covenants and City ordinances that have been brought up over the past year (cleaning up after pets, refuse and recycling carts to be stored in garages, speed limit within neighborhood, homes should have an Oak Meadow mailbox).TrafficSpeedingJina (a neighbor who lives on Targhee) asked if we could get another speed bump on Targhee. Becky Baumbach (Fitchburg Alder District 4) mentioned she’d be happy to work with Jina. There is a process (form to complete, data collection, decision as to whether it’s an enforcement issue or not). Becky will determine what the process is and let us know. The process will move it forward for analysis. Respecting Right of Way at T-Intersections T-Intersections needs some reinforcement. The car on the “top” of the T has the right of way. It’s something that people forget. The Association was not sure if enforcement could be done about that or not. Other TopicsSolicitor PermissionsSome neighborhoods require a permit to solicit. A neighbor asked if we could establish a formal process for requiring solicitors working in Oak Meadow to apply for a permit. Road Chip-Sealing A neighbor asked what the background is behind the black roads that we now have. Becky Baumbach commented that the City Public Works Department has a chip-sealing schedule that is done every few years to preserve the roads. This was the year our neighborhood was scheduled for maintenance. HOA BoardThe Oak Meadow directors have three objectives:
Other AnnouncementsJake Johnson announced that he could get neighbors registered to vote (he has been deputized by the City Clerk). Our voting location is at the Community Center.If you would like to join our neighborhood’s closed Facebook group, please request to join at ‘Oak Meadow Home Owners Association’. John (a neighbor who lives on Saw Tooth) invited Sergeant Ned Hartwick from the Fitchburg Police Department to join our meeting. Sergeant Ned supervises the 2nd shift officers (3pm-11pm). He spoke about the following:
The meeting adjourned at 7:15 PM. The PowerPoint shown at the meeting can be found in the Association Files within the HOA website (OM HOA Annual meeting 2014.pptx). Minutes taken by Nicole Otterson. |