Crescent at Cherry Lane Homeowners Association

The Board of Directors invites all residents to join us for a community meet and greet and regular board of directors meeting on Thursday, July 25.  The meet and greet will begin at 7:00 pm with the board meeting to follow at 8:00 pm.  This is a great opportunity to meet your new neighbors, catch-up with your old neighbors, and become involved in your community.  Hors d'oeuvres and non-alcoholic beverages will be provided.  

Community Meet and Greet

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Red Sky Steak & Fish House
14707 Baltimore Blvd.
Laurel, Maryland

PLEASE RSVP NO LATER THAN FRIDAY, JULY 12, 2013 TO:

[email protected]

or

Layla Brown, CMCA®, Community Association Manager

[email protected]

Via Fax: 443-548-0196

The Association has just been informed that Ryan Homes will be closing Owsley Place next week.  The closure will last approximately 2-3 months during the construction of the townhomes along Rockcastle Street.  

Unfortunately, the closing is unavoidable.  We apologize for the short notice and want to emphasize that the Association is not responsible for this closure.  We know that many of you use Owsley Place to access your garages and that this closure is an inconvenience.  In the meantime, all homes on Breckenridge Street and Archsine Lane can continue to access their garages via Hardin Place and Robertson Place.

If you have any questions, please contact Tidewater Property Management.

The City of Laurel recently announced a change to the trash collection schedule for the Christmas holiday. Trash and recycling will NOT be collected on Christmas Eve, December 24, as previously announced. Recycling will be collected on Wednesday, December 26. Trash collection will resume on Thursday, December 27. At this time, no change has been announced to trash and recycling collection for next week.  

As winter approaches, we want to remind residents that they are responsible for removing snow and ice from the sidewalks immediately in front of their homes. The Board has once again negotiated an optional scheduled fee agreement with McDonogh Farms for snow removal on resident’s sidewalks and driveways.

Each homeowner has the option to participate in the program. It is not required. If you want to participate, please complete the form at the end of this agreement and return it to McDonogh Farms (their contact information is at the bottom of the agreement). Participating homeowners will receive a bill for each snow event and will be responsible for paying the applicable fee. The Association does not pay for this service. If you do not participate in the program, you will be responsible for your own snow removal.

At its November 13 meeting, the Board of Directors approved the Association's budget for 2013. Under the approved budget, homeowner dues will be changing effecting January 1, 2013. The following chart shows 2013 dues compared to 2012:

During 2013, on-lot maintenance will include weeding of homeowner flower beds during every other mowing service, or roughly every 2-3 weeks between April and October. To cover the additional cost of this enhanced service, it was necessary to raise the on-lot maintenance assessments by $10 per year per lot. In the past, the Association has provided on-lot weeding services only 2 or 3 times per year. The additional services will mean that homeowners will no longer be required to weed their flower beds between services.

While the Board approved a small increase in the on-lot maintenance assessmnets, it approved larger reductions in the general quarterly and alleyway quarterly assessments. These changes will reduce dues for homeowners without alleys by $10 per quarter ($40 per year) and for homeowners with alleys by $28 per quarter ($112 per year). The Board took this action in response to the Board-commission reserve study performed by Brecht Engineering. The study found that the Association's reserve position is very strong and that dues collections would continue to outpace required reserves. The Board anticipates that the reduction should be sustainable in the long-term barring unexpected increases in Association expenses. The larger reduction for alleyway residents is based on the relative position of the general reserve fund versus the alleyway reserve fund. Homeowners with any questions, can contact Tidewater Property Management or em ail the Board at [email protected]

The annual meeting of the members (homeowners) of the Association will be held at 7:30 p.m. on October 16, 2012, at the First Baptist Church of Laurel. The purpose of the meeting will be to hold an election for one open position on the Board of Directors and to solicit member feedback on the Association’s proposed budget for 2013. The Association’s bylaws require 30% of the members to attend this meeting (or submit a proxy) for the required vote to be held. Please make plans to attend this important meeting. If you cannot attend, please complete the proxy.

Election of Board Member

Carl Isler's term on the Board of Directors is expiring. Accordingly, an election will be held at the annual meeting to fill his position on the Board. Members in good standing (no more than 60 days behind in any dues payments) are eligible to vote in the election.

If you would like to nominate yourself or someone else for a Board position, please complete the enclosed Candidate Nomination and mail to Tidewater at the address above, or by fax to the number below by October 13, 2012. All other nominations will be taken from the floor. Interested candidates are asked to be present at the meeting and be prepared to speak for a couple of minutes about why you would like to serve on the Board. Please note that your resume will be posted on the Association’s website and distributed at the meeting for review by each resident.

Discussion of Proposed 2013 Budget

The proposed budget will be posted on the Association’s website (http://crescentatcherrylane.webs.com) before the meeting. If you would like a paper copy, please contact Tidewater Property Management at the number below. All members who attend and who desire to speak on the proposed budget may do so. The Board of Directors will meet at 7:30 p.m. on November 13, 2012, at the First Baptist Church of Laurel to approve a 2013 budget and elect the Association’s officers.

We have received an update from Elm Street regarding the remaining lots in the community.  Elm Street is currently negotiating a contract with Ryan Homes to build the remaining 19 single-family houses and 7 townhouses.  They hope to have construction started on the first house in September.  When we learn more information, we'll share it.

In January, the Laurel City Council approved an ordinance amending the City Code to add parking restrictions in the community. The ordinance prohibits parking on the north side of Breckenridge Street between First Baptist Lane and Rockcastle Street, on the west side of Breckenridge Street between Rockcastle Street and Cherry Lane, on the west side of Rockcastle Street between Archsine Lane and Breckenridge Street, and on the west side of Hardcastle Street. The restrictions became effective immediately upon passage and vehicles parked in these areas are subject to ticketing. First Baptist Lane should also be striped this Spring as discussed in our December update.

Residents are encouraged to park their vehicles in their garages or on their driveways to leave sufficient street parking available for guests. In addition, residents are reminded that the Covenants prohibit parking in the alleyways and all vehicles parked in the alleyways are subject to immediate towing.

The Board of Directors is continuing to seek a volunteer to serve as Secretary of the Association. The primary job of this officer is to attend and prepare a record of each meeting of the Association and the Board. This is a great opportunity to become involved in the community and meet more of your neighbors. Please email us at [email protected], if you are interested in volunteering.

After discussions with the Board, the City has agreed to stripe First Baptist Lane.  In the next month or so, a yellow stripe will be painted off-center on First Baptist Lane.  This will clearly mark the two traffic lanes and one parking lane in the outbound direction.  Vehicles parking on First Baptist Lane on the inbound side will be parked in a travel lane and will subject to ticketing and towing.

The Board continues to work with the City on parking issues on Hardcastle Street, Breckenridge Street, and Rockcastle Street.  We hope to provide an update in the near future.