Town Crier Articles

The winter months brought with their chilling winds the loss of several neighbors, including Larry Salzman, a long-time New Town leader. Now as we enter Spring and begin to look forward, it is worthwhile to share some reflections. Most of us who have lived in New Town for more than a few years knew Larry as the “Developer” in his roles as President of the New Town Residential Developer Board, President of the New Town Commercial Association, and point person for New Town Associates.  I had the unique experience of interacting with Larry often in my years on the Residential Advisory Board (RAB) and as a member of the NTRA Developer Board before it was turned over to the homeowners, and more recently as a neighbor just a few houses up from Larry and Bonnie’s home.

 

Larry was a key player right from the start of New Town, when it was just a vision of a walkable community held by the consortium of the Casey family, William & Mary, James City County, New Town Associates, and others a quarter of a century ago. Anyone who has served in a leadership position knows that things never go perfectly smoothly or even as planned. Larry was in position to have responsibility for a complex interaction between Atlantic Homes (the main builder), New Town Management, the commercial side, VDOT, and James City County. No doubt there were some mistakes made and some strong disagreements at times between the developers and the homeowners. However, under his watch he established the RAB to give homeowners a voice during Developer control, which was not a requirement.

 

At times, when something went wrong, critics typically blamed the Developer. Sometimes it was the Developer’s misjudgment. But I know of more than one occasion when the real problem had to be placed at the door of the management company, the builder, and oh my, even the RAB. Despite some contentious episodes, Larry always held the vision of a friendly walking community. Behind the scenes he worked to better fulfill that vision for our evolving community.

 

Larry was a businessman and most of the time we only knew him in his more formal roles. However, he had a kind softness too. For example, I was often with him in those mysterious Board meetings called Closed Executive Sessions. Frequently, these meetings were about homeowners who were not following the declarations and time had come to impose sanctions and fines. Larry was always very sensitive to the reasons the person had gotten into the predicament. On one occasion, we had to insist Larry get with the rest of the Board to practice “tough love” because the violator had received multiple warnings and registered letters. Even when the history of violations was frustrating, it did not keep Larry from being sensitive toward homeowners.

 

Larry was consistently passionate about building a strong community and often mentioned moving here someday. In late 2020 he in fact became a neighbor. I remember his dog Kelly who often appearing in Zoom Board meetings during the Covid years. Those of us who have dogs got to know Larry in a different light when we would meet Larry walking sweet Kelly. We found Larry and Bonnie to be good neighbors and he will be missed. To honor Larry, we all should stay committed to the vision he championed, revitalize the flow of volunteers to the Association, and most of all be neighborly.

 

(along with representatives of Town Management LLC and the New Town Commercial Association)

Tornadoes are nature’s most violent storms.  By definition a tornado is a violently rotating column of air touching the ground, usually attached to the base of a thunderstorm. Spawned from powerful thunderstorms, tornadoes can cause fatalities and devastate a neighborhood in seconds. 

 

Here in Williamsburg, we occasionally hear about “tornado watches,” but less often about “tornado warnings.” You may ask, “What’s the difference?” The National Weather Service (NWS) issues a Tornado Watch when weather conditions in an area indicate an increased risk for severe weather that may be capable of producing a tornado. However, when the NWS issues a Tornado Warning, it does so when a tornado has been sighted or indicated by weather radar. In this case, one should take shelter IMMEDIATELY.  Warning times vary in the range of 10 to 15 minutes.

 

The 6 warning signs that a tornado is approaching may include:                            

• The color of the sky may change to a dark greenish color.
• A strange quiet occurring within or shortly after a thunderstorm.
• A loud roar that sounds similar to a freight train.                                                                    
• An approaching cloud of debris, especially at ground level.
• Debris falling from the sky.
• A rotating funnel-shaped cloud that extends from a thunderstorm.

In order to improve communications with Association Members, Ahmed Desouky, the NTRA Community Manager from Chesapeake Bay Management, holds office hours in the NTRA’s meeting room every Tuesday morning between 10 and 12 noon. The NTRA meeting room is located at 5118 Center Street, next door to the Armed Forces Career Center.  Although Ahmed will be working on his computer, feel free to interrupt him with your questions and comments.  This is a perfect time for you to get to know our manager, discuss problems in our community, and to make suggestions about ways our community could be improved.

 

Please stop by and take advantage of this weekly opportunity.

 

There are many reasons New Town is a special place to live.  What makes it special may vary from neighbor to neighbor, but most would agree, we are all fortunate to live here.  Feeling grateful is one reason the Women’s Monthly Lunch Group supports a Giving Back Initiative for the purpose of sharing some of our resources to benefit the greater Williamsburg community.  Last year the lunch group and others donated classroom supplies to the JCC/Williamsburg Teacher Supply Closet and winter coats to FISH and House of Mercy to distribute to those in need.

 

Now in 2024, the Giving Back Initiative is conducting a food drive during the months of February and March.  FISH and House of Mercy are both in urgent need of food items during this time of year when donations typically drop off. In the United States, over 44 million people, including 13 million children, at some point in the year don’t have enough to eat and don’t know where their next meal will come from.  Williamsburg is not immune from this problem. In 2023, FISH and House of Mercy provided, through their respective food pantries, the equivalent of over 400,000 meals.  Food insecurity is a growing problem in our community. FISH, for example, reported an 80% increase in food requests over the past year.

 

Please help us help others by bringing healthy, non-perishable food items to:

• the NTRA meeting space located at 5118 Center Street between 11AM-1PM on either March 1st or 2nd,

• bring your donation to the Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday, March 30 at 2PM at Lydias Park in Abbey Commons

 

The Giving Back Initiative plans to donate school supplies to local teachers again this summer and collect 100 new winter coats for kids in 100 days later this fall. Thank you, New Town, for generously supporting these efforts.

The NTRA uses a commercial landscaping contractor, James River Grounds Management (JRGM), to provide the Association with landscaping services throughout the year. This is a standard service for each lot and is not customized landscaping for our residents. A more customized landscaping package would cost considerably more than we are currently paying.  This article is the first of a series of Town Crier reminders that will address the landscaping services that homeowners receive from JRGM so that owners can better understand which services will be provided throughout the year.

 

Spring brings the pruning of trees and shrubs and the mulching of tree and flowerbeds to all of our neighborhoods.  So, as a homeowner what services can you expect to receive?

 

JRGM will be pruning ornamental shrubs that are less than 12 feet tall; they are scheduled to start in March, weather permitting. Services begin in the Shirley Park/Village Walk neighborhoods and move through our neighborhoods, ending in Charlotte Park. Ornamental shrubs will be pruned, thinned and/or shaped to enhance the quality of their appearance. Boxwoods and other specialty ornamental plants are generally not pruned although special exceptions can be made if requested in writing. Trees, up to 15 feet high will also be pruned as needed. If your trees are larger than 15 feet, you are responsible for their care. In addition to this spring pruning, additional pruning services will be provided two more times during the year, roughly in the summer and fall.  

 

JRGM also provides one annual mulching service for our common area landscape beds, including ornamental tree and shrub beds, and home foundation planting beds, using shredded dark brown hardwood mulch. All beds will be edged in such a way that the bed areas are not enlarged.  Prior to applying mulch, weeds will be removed from beds and pre-emergent herbicide will be applied to help control future weed growth. When this preparation is complete, mulch will be applied to achieve a total depth of 2-3 inches. (Note that old mulch is not removed during this service.) This process is nearing completion. 

 

Residents have the option to opt out of James River Grounds landscaping services if they so desire by contacting Chesapeake Bay Management, our management company.  

 

Next month we will outline what you can expect to see regarding mowing, edging, and turf maintenance.

 

Come join the Easter Bunny for an Easter egg hunt and games!

 

The New Town Residential Association Activities Committee will be hosting an Easter Egg Hunt in Lydias Park (Abbey Commons - at corner of Lydias and Town Creek) on Saturday, March 30th, with a March 31st rain date.  The festivities begin at 2.00 PM.

 

The Easter Bunny will be there to join in the fun and provide a photo opportunity. There will be an egg hunt where the younger children (up to age 4) will go first and then will be joined by the older children (5 and up). Games and prizes will follow the egg hunts.  All New Town residents, families and friends are invited. Even if you do not have kids or grandkids, that’s ok, come join in the fun!

 

If you are interested, collection boxes will be available for your donations of non-perishable food items to help stock the food pantries at FISH and House of Mercy.

 

RSVP:  Please let us know if you plan to attend and the ages of your children. Email:  Susan Schlimme at  skschlimme@hotmail.com.