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MOHA Board Meeting Minutes from Tuesday, 22 October
MOHA's Board met on Tuesday, 22 October 2024, at 6:30 p.m. at Steve Carmichall's house. The meeting's minutes follow:
1. Financial Report. HOA funds are $19,191.47 as of September 30th. Operating expenses for the remainder of the year are estimated at $5,000 based on last year's spending.
2. Fire Mitigation. The annual Chipping Program was accomplished on June 18th and October 14th. HOA members that participated registered for the event in advance and bundled branches were placed on the curb for collection and chipping.
3. Mailboxes. One damaged mailbox on Broadmoor Bluffs Drive was replaced in October. MOHA and the homeowner each paid half of the cost for the repairs. We currently have two mailboxes, two spreaders and one post on hand for future damage.
4. HOA Violations. Three homeowners were contacted for yard maintenance violations. All three homeowners corrected violations without fine being imposed.
5. 2025 Dues Assessment. The HOA Board voted to keep dues at $550 annually for the next year. Dues are expected to go up in 2026 for HOA owned driveway repairs and reserve funding.
6. Annual Homeowners Meeting. Proposed date is January 21st or 22nd. Notification letters, along with the 2025 annual dues assessment notification, wil be sent to MOHA members.
7. The meeting adjourned at 7:25 p.m.
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Good morning Champions from Bailey Horton
February 2024
The Wildfire Mitigation Section would like to inform you that grant funding for stipends and project work is available. The Stipend Program provides grant funding to homeowners who hire licensed contractors that are approved to work with the Wildfire Mitigation Section to complete wildfire mitigation work on their property. Through this program a dollar-for-dollar match up to $500 is offered for wildfire risk reduction activities such as hazardous tree and brush removal, and removal of dead and dying limbs on trees within the first thirty feet (30’) of the home. Participants must contact our office prior to initiating any physical work. The Wildfire Mitigation Section cannot reimburse residents for previous work completed or reimburse residents for doing work on their own property. If interested, please have residents in your communities contact Bailey Horton at 719-385-7348 or Bailey.Horton@coloradosprings.gov. Please know that the grant funding is first come-first serve, and locations of funds may be subject to change as additional grant funding is received throughout the year. Additionally, attached is a copy of the licensed contractors approved to work with the Wildfire Mitigation Section.
If your community has an area of concern, the Wildfire Mitigation Section helps facilitate project work across the wildland urban interface. Project work focuses on hazardous tree and brush removal and removing dead and dying limbs on trees on a larger scale. Projects can vary from several acres to hundreds of acres in size. This work may be contracted by a licensed tree contractor or can be mitigated by employees with the Wildfire Mitigation Section. If you have any areas that may qualify as project work, and you would like to see some mitigation work completed, please contact Cory Ashby at 719-385-7281 or Cory.Ashby@coloradosprings.gov.
The Wildfire Mitigation Section would like to thank you for your continued support and participation in sharing the responsibility to reduce wildfire risk to your homes and communities.
Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions!
Thank you,
Bailey Horton|
Wildfire Mitigation
Sr. Administrative Assistant
Colorado Springs Fire Department
375 Printers Parkway=
Colorado Springs, CO 80910
Office: 719.385.7348
Fax: 719.385.7334
“Sharing the Responsibility”
“The mission of the Colorado Springs Fire Department is to provide fire, emergency, and prevention services with professionalism, compassion, and excellence.”
List of 2024 approved Tree Contractors
Funding Guidelines
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2023 Mountain Oaks Homeowners Association Reserve Study
The MOHA Board of Directors concluded a Reserve Study in December 2023 in accordance with Colorado law. The purpose of the Reserve Study is to help assess the monetary Reserves necessary to maintain, repair, replace and improve the assets for which we, as homeowners, are jointly responsible. The study also considers requirements for routine, annual Operating Expenses. Current and future dues assessments are tied to the analysis, and it will be updated as necessary. The study is located at the following link:
2023 Mountain Oaks HOA Reserve Study
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A little thoughtfulness goes a long way
Walking your dog is a good thing. Some dog owners think it is okay if their dog potties on their neighbor's lawn. No, that is not a good thing. Letting your dog poop on someone else's lawn and leaving it for them to clean up or accidentally run through their lawnmower or step in barefoot is not a good thing. A few folks think it is okay if they scoop up their beloved dog's poop in a bag and leave the "gift" on the potty lawn. No, that is not okay. Your neighbors do not love your dog, even though they love their own dog. Owning a dog is owning up to responsibility. Most of our dog owning neighbors are responsible. If you are one of the offenders, it's time to up your game.
We could suggest that neighbors who are violated put signs up "No pooping on the lawn," but alas, dogs can't read.
These are never easy questions (killing neighbor’s dog is never your first choice!). And, unfortunately, mailing the dog poo back to the offenders could get you in legal trouble.
An Internet site suggests talking with your offending neighbor:
- Find the right time to talk. Most people will be exhausted after a long day at work. So, it is best to talk to your neighbor on weekends, when they are in a peaceful state of mind and both of you can give and take easier.
- Get to know more about your neighbor’s true interests. Generally speaking, your neighbor left dog poop in your yard because it is easy and convenient without scooping the poop or walking the dog to an appropriate dog defecation position at a distance.
- Share how you feel and your suggestion. You can tell them how you dislike the smell and messy lawn with neighbor’s dog in your yard. But that’s not the end – also offer some solutions like using doggy bags and inform them about the nearest pet waste stations.
- Be gentle during the talk. It is best to avoid blaming or threatening your neighbors during a talk.
A survey shows that dog poop ranks the 6th place on a list of Americans’ biggest everyday annoyances, which indicates that the dog feces issue is a common concern. One solution on the Internet was interesting. It read: Establish Neighborhood Watch to Stop Neighbors Pooping in My Yard.
(I hope that is not happening here!)
Your last ditch effort may have to be recording the incidents and contacting local animal control authorities or legal cousel.
If you are one of the offenders and can't figure out how to control your dog, these tips may help:
Tip 1. Train Your Dog to Poop in Appropriate Sites
In fact, dogs will use their urine and droppings in specific sites as markers to confine their territories. And this explains why your dog poops in neighbor’s yard: they treat the lawn as their domains.
However, you can train your dog to defecate and urinate at appropriate sites like specific areas in your yards or dog litter box. By doing so, your pet won’t urinate and defecate on neighbors' lawns anymore.
Tip 2. Bring 3 or More Doggy Bags with You When You Walk the Dog
Even after training your dogs to pee and poop in your own property, you may have to deal with dog feces during a walk sometimes. A handful of doggy bags will be very helpful and reduce your concerns when your dog poops in neighbor’s lawn suddenly. But remember to take your little treasure with you to dispose of properly.
Here are some other consequences of dogs not properly trained:
- Introduces Diseases to Your Yard: Did you know that the poop of a dog, if not lifted and disposed of properly, can cause as well as spread an illness? Many believe that it is a good fertilizer; but no, it is not! While the herbivorous cows’ manure is a good fertilizer, the poop of a dog contains harmful bacteria and worms such as ringworms, E. coli, and parvovirus. This means that your dog becomes vulnerable by roaming in your yard where someone else’s dog has left poop packed with worm eggs. Even humans can become sick due to the present nasty parasites. On top of that, the dog waste draws pests and insects such as breeding flies, only to transmit diseases to you or your dog. Further, even worst can be the fact that the neighbor's dog who pooped is suffering from a disease, as the feces would then contain its germs. Removing this poop from your yard needs much attention and care. All these facts make even the health of your kids also vulnerable. Thus, it is the responsibility of the pet owners to keep their dogs and other dog owners healthy.
- Contaminates Water: Many people will tell you not to worry if poop is there on your lawn, as the upcoming rain will clear it for you. However, did you know that not cleaning the poop area when it is just about the rain is quite harmful? Unpleasingly, this poop reaches the local water channels through the drainage system by the medium of rainwater.This contaminates the water of a nearby lake or a pond wherein you like to swim or play. The fecal matter of dogs contains coliform bacteria that are as risky as EPA pollutants and is likely to cause a hike in bacteria levels. Further, the increased level of bacteria in the water bodies also end up harming the marine creatures and their environment.
- Spoils Plants and Lawn Grass: Dog feces is rich in several nutritive materials that can result in noticeable tall grass along with dark green spots on your lawn. If left for a long time, the dog poop in your yard can also give rise to brown patches.
There can be legal and monetary consequences for not training your dog.
Sincerely,
Admin Bev
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