From the President

Final Thoughts on the 2017-2018 Board

As the term of the 2017-2018 Irisdale Home Association Board comes to a close, we can reflect back and feel a sense of accomplishment.

We have tried to restore a sense of community with positive newsletters, recognition of role-model neighbors, a reinstatement of some past and well-received traditions, such as the Christmas decorating contest, the Easter Egg Hunt, the annual subdivision garage sale, fun events at our park, and a sense of commitment to maintaining our common areas, such as our pond and our park.

Our financials are now computerized with line-item accountability and transparency. The board has purchased some items, such a tree-trimmer, hand trimmers, a pond rake, all of which are inventoried, and will be accountable through each future board.

We have worked with realtors for any potential homes for sale, ensuring that any outstanding liens are paid, prior to a house being sold, and that realtors are aware of the no-rental clause in our Covenants for new buyers/homeowners.

We have utilized our Facebook page as much as possible to keep residents informed about events impacting them, such as the recent road construction.

We have had a wonderful board this year, comprised of motivated, involved people, who have all offered great input and ideas. It has been a pleasure to work with each and every one, as each of these individuals have been focused on improving our subdivision.

But there is more to do . . . . In the coming months, we plan to remove trees and stumps that are obstructing our drain areas. The beautiful weeping willows that have adorned our pond area for years are starting to reach their end of life; and so we are going to incrementally remove some of these, and plant new ones in their place. Several trees on the outside of the common area, between the two entrances are also dying, and will be removed, and new trees put in their place.

My focus has been on a plan for putting in new playground equipment. We have a wonderful park, but it is time to update that park with newer and better playground equipment, so that children can enjoy the park even more. Again, this will have to be done incrementally, but we need to get to this starting point, as it is long overdue.

Annual maintenance is also due, as we have a picnic bench seat broken, and some broken boards on the fence on the outside common area. We also want to plan more events that will bring our community together.

But mostly, we want to get our Irisdale community more involved with this subdivision we all inhabit; make this a place where people want to get out and mingle with their neighbors, continue to feel comfortable with their children playing outside. We have some wonderful people here; you just have to get to know them.

It is been a pleasurable year serving on the board, but there is still so much more I personally want to do to improve our subdivision. I hope some of you will consider serving on our board in one capacity or another; maybe participating or volunteering some of your time to assist on projects; and attend our meetings to give us your ideas or feedback. I really appreciate the opportunity to have served as your President this past year. Thank you.

President’s Goals for

Irisdale Homeowner’s Association

Board of 2017-2018

I. The theme for these goals is “Community”

A. Do the actions of the board benefit the community?

B. Do our events bring the community together?

C. Are we using the tools available to effectively communicate to our residents, and are we providing substantive and useful information?

Do the actions of the board benefit the community?

The attendance at our board meetings and events, the unwillingness to serve on the board, the lack of members eager to volunteer; even the reluctance or outright refusal to pay membership dues can all be directly related to the way the boards operate. It is the actions of the boards that generate these consistent questions:

· Why does the board exist in the first place?

· What are the reason for these dues?

· What am I getting out of these dues (my return on investment)?

· How is the board spending my money?

· Is the board using these funds responsibly, ethically, and providing accountability to the members?

· Why is the board unresponsive?

These are all good and legitimate questions for any homeowner to ask? It is the board’s responsibility to address and answer these questions, and to demonstrate through its actions that the IHOA Board is a respectable and purposeful institution.

Do our events bring the community together?

The board’s main responsibility is to provide maintenance and upkeep of the communal areas so that the members of our subdivision can use these safely and enjoy them; and to ensure that the subdivision’s members maintain their residences to a consistent minimal acceptable standard, so that the property values do not deteriorate, and that the security of our neighborhood and safety of our children is not compromised. In that respect, the board provides courteous but necessary reminders when unsightly or glaring property discrepancies exist; the board ensures that adequate lighting is maintained, provides a vigilant deterrent to vandalism through our Neighborhood Watch Program, utilizing a beat cop when issues do arise. Finally, the board has responsibility to build and foster a stronger relationship within the community by providing two-way communication and outreach to our members through community events, sponsored by, and put on by, the board.

The previous boards have all held various events, with some events turning out more successful than others, although in some years, events were even postponed or cancelled due to not enough funds as a result of members not paying their dues on time or at all; and sometimes combined with other high-cost issues the board may have faced that year. In most cases, the events attempted themselves have been admirable. I would like to see the board aim for a higher success rate of participation through better focus on the organization, promotion/marketing, and execution of these events. The subdivision also does not have implanted a “traditional yearly event” that the community can really come together around and count on every year. I would like to see focus placed on this as one of our major goals in establishing one or more of these events.

Are we using the tools available to effectively communicate to our members, and are we providing substantive and useful information?

Creating two-way communication is the catalyst that will positively affect all aspects of our community within this subdivision. This is critical to the board as being perceived as positive and useful. The IHOA website and Facebook page give us this means to reach out in the digital world; and as long as the board is responsive, keeping it updated, and interesting, this will hopefully grow some followers and readers expressing an interest in keeping themselves informed, and hopefully open to participation.

The New Board

Most of you on this newly elected board have served on one or more other boards, and in various positions. It is no secret that the turnout at our last election was dismal, and many of the people may have agreed to serve on the board simply because no one else was there or would take a position.

First, I want to thank each of you personally for stepping up to what normally most people call a “thankless job.” But at the same time, I want to challenge each of you to look at this current board in a new perspective. I believe this is a group of people who love this subdivision, and have common goals. We want to see the subdivision flourish, and increase community involvement. Everyone’s opinions and ideas are valued, so please feel free to share those with everyone, as we collectively make decisions as a board, and accomplish our goals. I give to you a personal commitment in trying to make a difference.

Agenda

I would like to hit the ground running and making the most of each meeting. I believe that we can accomplish more if a pre-agenda is sent out, which will allow you to review the information in advance so you can formulate any questions, raise any concerns, contemplate any recommendations or improvements to the original idea, etc. The following are goals that I personally would like to pursue, as far as quick-wins and short and long-term things for down the road.

1. Fall Event – I want to establish a community event that we hold each year, and build on this (meaning we may start small, but will plant the seeds to turn this into an event the entire subdivision wants to take part in, and count on each year). The board needs to give back to the community, and several years ago, one of the boards rented a bouncy house, etc. and put on a great event that probably brought as much participation as we have seen in this subdivision. It was fun for the families and the children. For starters, this event would eventually consist of:

· A large bouncy slide with bouncy house attached. This is one that adults as well as children can enjoy.

· I would even like to rent one of those dunking machines so we could have a “Dunk Your ‘Favorite’ Board Member” (just an idea).

· Food – This would include hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, soda, lemonade, desserts, etc.

· Games or contests (e.g. fishing, pie eating contest, egg toss, horseshoes, and even maybe even a talent show and/or karaoke).

· Crafts

· Music

· We could potentially break this down into three time periods (e.g. families (3 to 6 p.m.), teenagers (6 p.m. – 8 p.m. for a cookout), and adults only (8 p.m. – 10 p.m. with old-time campfire, etc.).

The board should go all out for this within reason, and we should market this effectively to elicit as much attendance and participation as possible. I would even suggest that maybe we move it to an earlier time in the year (e.g. August) to where the bouncy slide could be the optional water slide during the warmer weather.

2. Christmas Contest – This is another event that the board use to sponsor, with the winner receiving a cash prize. I would like to bring this back, as it may encourage more people to decorate their homes/yards during Christmas. However, I would like the winner to be judged based on a best theme, not who can put the most decorations in their yard.

3. Garage Sale – I truly believe this could be a fantastic event if we advertise and market it in a more effective and aggressive way. That includes more advance notice, and reminders to the residents, better selection of a date (and should this be an annual date), and better signage and advertising of the event itself.

4. Seasonal Craft Events – This might be an opportunity for members of the subdivision to share their talents with the rest of us.

5. Community Service Credit for Students of Irisdale – This was a great idea proposed by Crystal. Most schools in recent years have started requiring so many “community volunteer hours” in order to graduate, plus it looks good on any college application. Why not make this a win-win situation where we can work it out with the schools to be able to give volunteer community credit in exchange for children in our subdivision being able to participate in some minor, safe, and supervised activities (e.g. a trash pick-up day, clean-up days, help with the Fall Event, etc.).

6. Quick Wins – Already we’ve seen a tremendous volunteer effort of numerous people in cleaning up the pond area, and a positive response from residents.

a) Repaint/stain the park benches.

b) Change the light bulb that is continuously on under the park pavilion (possibly a timer issue); replace with a LED bulb to increase savings and lower our monthly electric bill.

c) Put in water height gauge by pond. Gerald Dalsin brought this idea to our attention as a means of monitoring the drain to make sure it is not clogged.