Town Crier Articles

 

 

Hi! My name is Mark Burgess and I’m what one of our New Town residents called the “new guy” on the New Town Residential Association (NTRA) Board of Directors, having only joined the Board this past July. I’m also a relatively recent resident of New Town. My wife and I purchased a Village Walk townhouse in November 2018. 

 

Being so new to New Town and the Board has meant, of course, that I’ve had a lot of catching up to do. So while other Board members have been reviewing and revising our Association’s governing documents with the able assistance of several homeowner association (HOA) professionals, I’ve been concentrating on simply reading and trying to better understand both our current and our proposed documents while at the same time paying close attention to what the others are saying about how these documents came to be in the first place and where they need to be in order to better serve our community in the years to come. Here is some of what I’ve learned. 

 

First, our current documents really are old and showing their age. They describe a community that essentially no longer exists. I recently saw a photograph of New Town, for instance, that showed Charlotte Park before it was built out; all you could see were empty lots being readied for development and, off in the distance, a few commercial buildings scattered along Discovery Park Boulevard. Obviously, a lot has happened since. New Town has grown up and with that growth has come the need for our governing documents to take into account the changes that have occurred. So there is no doubt in my mind that our association needs a new set of documents carefully crafted under the aegis of HOA professionals like those we have had the privilege to work with. 

 

But rewriting governing documents is one thing; forming a new community is something else. Documents, responsibly drafted, can describe a community, they can help define a community, they can even assist in laying the groundwork for how a community may function within the bounds of federal, state, and local statutes, but they cannot in and of themselves establish community. People make communities, and the best communities, in my experience, are those where neighbors care for and about one another, where they respect each another, and where they share a vision of what they would like their communities to be. 

 

Creating new communities therefore takes patience, a LOT of patience. I can’t emphasize that enough. Living so near to Jamestown and Williamsburg has given me an entirely new insight into just how MUCH patience might be required. Think of the long years of hardship those early colonists endured before their lives became settled! So, yes, it may be just a wee bit longer before New Town is complete and all the pieces of a new community are finally put in place. 

 

In the meantime, as a Board member, I shall continue my study of our governing documents and work with you as well as other members of the Board to make sure we make as smooth a transition as possible to a new management company and continue to progress as a homeowner-controlled association.

 

 

 

WEEE'RE BAAACK! It's that time of year to start thinking about what you're going to wear for HALLOWEEN! Join us this year on Halloween Day, Sunday, October 31st from 2:00PM to 4:00PM at Sullivan Square for the Hocus Pocus Festival and Halloween Parades. That's right! Plural - Parades! We have planned three parades for different costume categories: Pets Costume Parade, starting at 2:30PM, Individual Costume Parade, starting at 3:00PM, and Family/Group Costume Parade, starting at 3:30PM. There will be prizes for best costumes, CANDY, and a scavenger hunt! Can't wait to see you there! 

 

Registration information to come… be on the lookout! 

 

 

The proposed Supplemental Declaration that has been named the “Neighborhood Declaration” seeks to replace 20 current Supplementals that had evolved over time with a number of idiosyncrasies and important omissions. For example, the Supplemental Declarations for 68 properties in Charlotte Park are missing several key paragraphs. (See June 2021 Crier Article, “Supplemental Swampland.”) 

 

A Supplemental Declaration is added to a Master Declaration as communities expand. These “supplements” show the location of new property – including roadways, common area and utility and drainage easements, and define what owners are charged for. In New Town’s case, each parcel developer’s attorney prepared these documents starting with a boiler plate. Over time, as more detail was added to these documents to cover items the Developer anticipated but never came to fruition, they became nonstandardized and more complicated than they needed to be. The Developer’s goals were not consistent with the goals of New Town today, both as to their content and the level of specificity required. 

 

The NTRA Board of Directors is trying to change that. In combining most of New Town’s Neighborhoods into one Supplemental, the Board of Directors was seeking both to streamline our basic set of documents and ensure consistency. We wanted to clearly outline what will be included in assessments to Owners-not bury it in legalese. Now that it is clearer, not everyone is happy. We recognize that.

 

The Neighborhood Supplemental Declaration applies to the five neighborhoods of Abbey Commons, Chelsea Green, Savannah Square, Charlotte Park and Shirley Park. These neighborhoods share similar Association services and layout/design, and they were formed by the same primary parcel developer/builder. (The Village Walk Supplemental follows the same structure, but includes additional paragraphs for the special services that Village Walk homes receive.)

 

What has changed in this document? 

• There is no longer a “Neighborhood Assessment” described in the text. This type of assessment was never applied nor is it administratively practical without overhauling the Association’s contracting, billing and accounting practices. 
• The ability to “opt out” of landscape services has been added. Owners have requested this in the past, and it has been allowed, but it is not addressed in our current documents. Opt out will apply to all landscape services to ease the administrative burden. Even with the current limited opt-out, such as for pruning only, eventually some shrubs get pruned and these owners are unhappy. It has never been a guarantee. So the easiest approach for both our management company and the landscaper is to permit opt out for all services or none.

What has not changed? The prohibition on landscape services to fenced yards has been retained. It is the same limitation as our current documents. This was a difficult decision. The Association did not honor this prohibition in the past and has been providing mowing and pruning. In 2022, the Board will likely discontinue this landscaping and follow our documents. The Board has both a fiduciary and fiscal responsibility to the community. The Board and new Managing Agent will formally notify Owners affected by this change-recognizing that not all fenced yards have lawns, some are purely patios.

 

What the revised Supplemental provides is a way for Owners to continue these services for an additional fee or to provide their own. This was a compromise to be fair to Owners without fences and still make the services readily available. 

 

The draft Neighborhood Supplemental has raised a number of questions from the community mostly related to these landscaping provisions. But there have also been claims that detached homes are being discriminated against because they are outnumbered by townhouse owners. Actually, there are even fewer cottages than detached homes! When will the parsing end? We live in a mixed use community – this is the vision and design of New Town, no neighborhood is an island nor is any group of homeowners. We share common areas and amenities and by combining neighborhoods into one Supplemental Declaration those community values and expectations are reinforced.  

 

Comprehensive and clear governing documents are critical to the successful operation of a community association. We welcome your constructive ideas for future document changes. We welcome proposals for specific adjustments. Please don’t just complain or throw stones based on the NIMBY principal. We strive to be a community. There are two sides to every story; as such, you owe it to your neighbor to consider both.

 

 

 

Feivel Wininger, his family and a few friends stayed alive because Wininger played the violin – and only because he possessed that skill.

 

As part of the Holocaust, Wininger, a violinist from Romania, was sent on a death march by the Nazis during the winter to the territory of Transnistria. His uncle and his mother died. His infant daughter, Helen, who was nine months old, was growing weaker and weaker.

 

But because he played the violin, he was able to leave the ghetto and perform at parties for the Nazis. He would bring home any leftovers of food back to the ghetto. It was the only way he could sustain himself and the others through the Holocaust.

 

Feivel named his violin “Friend.”

 

Wininger’s Friend, and more than 60 other violins played by Holocaust victims, are on display through October 24 at the Virginia Holocaust Museum, the Virginia Museum of History and Culture and the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia. (Nineteen are on display; the rest have been played in concerts and are being used in educational programs).

 

The violins were recovered and restored by Amnon Weinstein, an Israeli violin shop owner and master craftsman who lost 400 family members in the Holocaust.

 

He was born in 1939, the year after his family immigrated to Palestine. His father, Moshe, was also a violinist and luthierand taught the craft to his son. In the 1980s, after Weinstein repaired a violin for a Holocaust survivor who walked into his Tel Aviv shop, he started tracking down violins played by Jews in ghettos or in concentration camp orchestras, or who buried them to hide and save them. The exhibit has never been to the Mid-Atlantic before.

 

According to a news release, the mission of Violins of Hope is to create more meaningful conversations about social justice and tolerance.

 

For more information, visit this website violinsofhoperva.com.

 

 

 

With Fall just around the corner, and the temperatures starting to get cooler, it is the perfect time to start thinking about Fall Family Fun. Here are a few ideas to get you started…

 

Apple picking

Virginia apple picking season is underway, starting in August and lasting until early November. Mid-September to mid-October is prime time for the best apples. Most orchards grow several apple varieties, including Gala, Red and Yellow Delicious, and Fuji. If you're up for a drive, our favorite is Carter Mountain Orchard, only minutes from Charlottesville. In addition to apple picking, visitors can overlook the lush groves and valley below, enjoy an apple cider donut from the bakery, and try the locally brewed cider. 

 

Pumpkin picking

Ready to dress your house for Halloween? Now is the perfect time to visit one of our local pumpkin patches. If you’re not sure where to go, try Holly Fork Farm where you can visit farm animals while finding your perfect pumpkin. Pumpkinville, a seasonal treasure in Toano, is a great place to get your Halloween goodies. At Pumpkinville, you can pick your own pumpkin while enjoying the hayride, corn maze, arts and crafts, bean bag toss and other games. 

 

Oktoberfest

Dust off your lederhosen and look out for ways to indulge in some Oktoberfest fun. Oktoberfest celebrations, complete with authentic German food, beer and fun can be found all over the region. Locally, Billsburg Brewery will be holding their celebration on Saturday, October 2 from 12 to 4pm.  

 

Fall colors 

Leaf peeping season is nearly here and fall in Virginia is one of the most beautiful times of the year.  If you are looking forward to seeing the riot of colors revealed across Virginia’s expansive woodland, keep an eye on the fall foliage report, which is updated weekly. While it is difficult to predict exactly when peak color will occur, the map provides a good estimation of timing. 

 

 

Know Your Code - The Virginia Property Owners Association Act and the Virginia Nonstock Corporation Act, By Jim Carey 

 

Virginia, like many states has established a statutory framework for Homeowners Associations like the New Town Residential Association (NTRA) to operate.  Two primary laws govern the operation of our organization.

 

The Virginia Property Owners’ Association Act (VA Code Ann. § 55.1-1800 to 1836) provides the legal framework for operation of homeowner associations in the Commonwealth. The Act provides and clarifies the authority granted to an HOA and its Board of Directors. It establishes many of the association’s rights and responsibilities including its obligation to conduct open meetings; keep detailed books and records, and make them available to members. The Act provides the authority to enforce the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions and levy financial penalties; the power to levy special assessments; and secure liens and other enforcement remedies to secure compliance with our Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions.

 

One of the reasons for updating the NTRA Governing Documents is to bring them into compliance with changes in the Virginia Property Owners’ Association Act since 2005 when our current documents were approved. Some of the many changes that had to be factored into our revisions include:

• Allowing electronic means for meetings and voting for association meetings
• Permitting solar power installations. HOAs can impose “reasonable restrictions” regarding the size, place, and manner of placement of such collection devices.
• Changes to HOA obligations in preparing the Disclosure Packet 
• Requirement for the completion of a reserve study at least once every five years and a review of the reserve study annually with adjustments made as needed to maintain reserves.

So whenever you see references in the drafts to Va. Code Ann. § 55.1 18XX, think VPOAA. If you are interested in reading the Act, visit this site: 

 https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacodepopularnames/property-owners-association-act/.

 

Similarly, the NTRA Bylaws are sprinkled with references to the Virginia Nonstock Corporation Act (VA Code Ann. § 13.1-801 to 945) which governs how the NTRA must operate as a nonprofit organization. This law contains the requirements for us to have Articles of Incorporation (proposed Articles of Restatement) and Bylaws. It also explains what would happen if the NTRA was ever dissolved. This Act applies to all nonprofits in Virginia, so some provisions may not apply to our association (e.g. mergers, foreign operations, etc.). This Act also gives the Association “powers as an individual to do all things necessary or convenient to carry out its business and affairs”including borrow, mortgage, pledge or deed property (§ 13.1-1826, para.6). So the Amended Bylaws reflect that authority. 

 

By updating our Governing Documents to reflect these important State requirements, we ensure that the NTRA remains in good standing in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

 

 

  The NTRA Activities Committee hosted our community’s first-ever Pup Plunge at the pool on Monday, September 6th! It was a great turnout, and we were excited to see some of our neighborhood dogs and their families! Thank you to everyone who participated, especially those who came just to watch! Looking forward to making this an annual event.