Nottingham Country Newsletter

November 2007 …

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NCCIA BOARD NEWS

 NOTTINGHAM HAPPENINGS

We now have new entrance markers at Westgreen and Cranfield. Personally I think they look nice and we have already received a few compliments. Just so everyone is aware of the financial aspect, those two monuments cost us approximately $18,000. Not a small expenditure to say the least!

The NCCIA Board and the MCUD have decided to remove the water fountains in Rennie Park. We apologize for the inconvenience but they were continually being vandalized by individuals using the park. At times, we found that rocks, sand and other debris were being forced into the spigots causing water leaks and malfunction. Its too bad a few “bad apples” have to ruin it for all but we could not continue to spend money for repairs. We are of the opinion that most park users have their own water and the fountains are not needed.

We have also experienced other vandalism in the park and put out a request to parents to monitor their children while using the park. Please do not leave cans, bottles and other litter in the park. We are not able to monitor the park on a daily basis. If this type of activity continues, we will have to make further restrictions on the usage. The park is there for the usage and pleasure of all NC residents, please take care of it! I might also add that the Constable’s Deputy recently arrested an under aged minor in the park who was in possession of alcohol. We have asked our security officers to be mindful of such activity. Once again, parents please monitor your juveniles or we may see additional Minor In Possession arrests.

When our Deed Restrictions were written back in the 60’s and 70’s there was no such thing as satellite dishes. Our DR’s prohibit TV antennas from being on rooftops. Now there is no such thing as a TV antenna. The Board has taken the approach that a satellite dish is the same as an antenna and therefore should not be visible from the street. The management company will be sending letters to homeowners whose satellite dish is visible from the street. It needs to be moved! I can speak from personal experience that the satellite companies are well aware of our policy but they find it much easier to just put up the dish wherever it is easiest for them. Do not allow them to do that! We all know they need to face the southwest area and there should be areas on the roof whereby the dish is not visible from the street and still accessible to the satellite. If you receive a letter from the management company about the placement of your dish, call the dish company and they should relocate it without charge to you. If you have a very unique situation regarding your dish, please contact the management company for approval.

Please remember that the NCCIA Annual meeting is scheduled for 7:00 PM on Tuesday, November 20th at Taylor High School. We realize it’s the week of Thanksgiving but please take a couple of hours out of your busy schedule to stop by and hear about the “State of Nottingham Country” and ask questions or express your point of view. If you and your neighbors do not care about what is taking place in your neighborhood, then who will?

Finally, at the time of this article, we still have no resolution from the ownership of the Apartments at Green Trails apartment complex on Houghton regarding the deplorable condition of their fence. The Association attorney has sent letters to Alliance Management and they continue to make promises regarding replacing the fence and have stated that the work would begin the end of September. Hopefully by the time this article is published, a new fence will be in place. We shall see! In addition to the fence, the general overall condition of this apartment complex is in deterioration. For many years this complex presented a positive image in the community but unfortunately this is no longer the case. The complex is located on property outside of Nottingham Country so the Association has no control over them. In the meantime, if any Nottingham resident knows tenants in this project, you might tell them to put pressure on the ownership to bring the property up to community standards.

Don Mach

Vice President and Legal Liaison

NEW NCCIA DIRECTOR APPOINTED

Mr. Allen Hess was appointed to the NCCIA Board of Directors at the September 2007 monthly Board meeting. Mr. Hess was appointed to fill the remaining term of former Director, Ron Hudson. Mr. Hess’ term will expire November 2007 and he will stand for re-election at that time.

Mr. Hess and his wife Sharon have resided in Nottingham Country for over 20 years. He is a retired chemical engineer and we certainly are thankful to have someone with an engineering background on the Board. Sharon Hess previously served as a Director for NCCIA some years ago.

We welcome Allen to the Board and thank the Hess family for their continued community involvement. If you wish to contact Mr. Hess, please go the NCCIA website at www.nottinghamcountry.org and his email address is listed.

Two months ago, Board Member Bruce Hamelin listed some beautiful homes on the south side of Mason Creek

MORE DEED RESTRICTION INFORMATION

Have you ever wondered what the procedure is for citing Deed Restriction violators?

About two years ago, your board voted to spend a lot of money updating Nottingham Country and starting some serious maintenance projects.

Our first year was spent identifying the largest problem areas, getting bids and cost estimates for repairs and updating, and then prioritizing the projects. We now have new monuments at the Cranfield/Westgreen entrance, and we’ll soon be updating the monument at the entrance on Dominion. We have improved drainage in Rennie Park, and we’ve added playground equipment and safety enhancements. We’re still working through the alleyway issues.

As we were working through this process, we realized that along with the money we were spending, and the projects we had proposed, we needed homeowners to do their parts in the beautifying process also.

We drove through Nottingham Country and saw houses with siding literally coming off; roofs with huge holes, commercial vehicles and junk cars parked in plain view, yards that needed maintenance and so forth. This is not the image we want Nottingham Country to project.

In July, 2006 we renewed our contract with SCS Management Services but we asked for a new Manager and we insisted on zero tolerance for serious Deed Restriction violations.

SCS provides an inspector who drives through Nottingham Country and cites every Deed Restriction violation. This person has absolutely no connection or affiliation with Nottingham Country except through the management company and does not have a listing of the homeowner names in the subdivision. In fact, the Violations are written by address; then the address and violations are input into form letters and mailed out.

Nearly every month our newsletter has some sort of plea for homeowners to maintain their homes on an ongoing basis. One poorly maintained yard can ruin the appearance of an entire block. In fact, one shaggy lawn can cause one of your neighbors to lose a sale on a house. One commercial vehicle can do the same.

As one drives through some of the newer subdivisions in the area, it is immediately apparent how sterile some of them look. Their trees are new and their shrubs are small but their yards are nicely maintained. Nottingham Country looks settled and secure. The mature trees and established landscaping look great but they must be maintained!

The Board has asked SCS Management to cite homeowners for any violation that would detract from our neighborhood’s appearance or value. If you have received several letters for violations, perhaps you should take a good objective look at your property. It may not bother you to have a shaggy or unedged lawn, an unpainted garage door, a dead tree in the front yard, an unweeded flower bed or weeds in the expansion joints; but you can almost bet that it bothers your neighbors! It certainly devalues the other properties on the block.

It is of little benefit for us to spend money and effort on the outward appearance of Nottingham Country if the inside is rundown and unkempt. Conversely, it does little good if a homeowner spends time and effort on the inside of his house, but doesn’t keep up the outside.

Our inspector will continue with the zero tolerance inspections that we have called for, so please keep up your appearances

The NCCIA Board of Directors

 HALLOWEEN

With Daylight Savings Time extending into November, we should expect more evening activity on the traditional Halloween. Since the holiday falls on a Wednesday, the “constructive” activities will probably end early. As we wish to prevent any incidents, please consider the following:

·      The Constable’s patrols will be a full strength the entire week so please call the dispatch with any activity that might need attention.

·      Remind those that may be too mature to enjoy the “trick or treating” that they should also be too mature for “unconstructive” activities.

·      Even with the extra daylight, we should all operate our vehicles with additional caution.

The Board wants everyone to be safe, respect all the property in and about Nottingham Country and bring home lots of “loot”.

Happy Halloween

Ken Gentile

Security Director

Going to the Dogs?

We all should strive to follow the “Golden Rule” when it comes to being a good neighbor. If you own a dog, you are responsible to other homeowners for your animal. If you walk your dog, be prepared to clean up after it. Most people I observe walking dogs are carrying plastic bags – Thanks!! If you have a barking dog, please quiet it or bring it inside. If it’s an outside dog, bark collars are available to break that habit. Disturbing the peace of your neighbors can lead to strained relations and even legal actions.

Speaking of legal actions, a new State law went into effect September 1st of this year regarding dangerous dogs. If a Nottingham Country homeowner sees a loose dog, call Harris County Animal Control at 281-999-3191. They will come out within 24-48 hours. Go to their website at www.countypets.com for more good information.

With the constant media attention on pit bulls recently, we focus on this breed when we think “dangerous.” Any dog breed can be considered dangerous if it meets certain criteria. The procedure for declaring a dog dangerous is a legal procedure that occurs between residents. Do NOT call SCS Management or the NCCIA Board, as they can do nothing. The following information is re-printed courtesy of Harris County Veterinary Public Health from the above website.

The Justic of the Peace Court for our area is:

Precinct 5, Place 2

Bill Yeoman

16715 Clay Road #4

Houston, TX 77084

281-463-2341

Web Site Report

Thanks to all of you who visited http://www.nottinghamcounty.org/ and offered suggestions and comments on the web site content.

Coming up this Month (November 2007) is Our Annual Meeting and Election of our Board of Directors

Keep checking our website for the latest information on the big event (members running for election/re-election, time, date and place) - Election Results will be posted in the Website first.

Have you checked the "Lost Pets" link on the website lately?  There has been quite a bit of activity.  Even if you haven't lost a pet, or don't even have one, YOU may be the one person who has seen someone's lost 'fur-family' member.  You can do a great service by letting us know, so we can reunite pet and owner.

If you haven't visited our web site lately, let me remind you that the latest happenings in Nottingham Country are posted on the Website first.  Items like Heavy Trash Pickup dates, Election Results, Lost Pets and Safety/Security Incidents in our neighborhood are posted on the site.  We also have applications and forms posted on the website – we will have our General Meeting and Election of Board Members coming up in November.

Also, as a reminder, we do have a link to Sex Offenders on our site called Predator Check.  Please check it out if you haven’t already.  It’s good information especially for all parents and grandparents.

Please take a moment to visit our web site and Click on the “Suggestions” Link to offer your comments or suggestions or email the webmaster directly by sending an email to: WebMaster@NottinghamCountry.org.

We appreciate any and all ideas from our neighbors as to how we can improve our Internet presence and make our web site a useful tool for our neighborhood.

Remember, the “NEW STUFF” Button always denotes where the latest information is.

As a reminder, the Deed Restrictions for All NC sections, as well as, the By-Laws, are posted on the web site.

Sam Cresap

Webmaster

Nottingham Country C.I.A.