Spring 2017 Newsletter

Newsletter Spring 2017

Check out our website at

www.hollyhillfarms.info

Holly Hill Farms Association Semi-Annual Meeting When: 7:30PM Thursday May 18,2017 Where: Farmington Hills Fire Station #2— 28255 Middlebelt Agenda Includes: Election of non-officer Board of Directors, presentation by the Farmington Hills Police Department on city crime statistics and crime prevention actions. Coming Soon: Annual Home and Garden Walk Plans are still underway for our annual home and garden walk coming this June. Please look for further announcements of the date, time and locations.

Middlebelt Gas Line Replacement and Sewer Tunnel Project Update Replacement of the high pressure gas line between 13 Mile Road and Minglewood Street was completed in December, 2016. The sewer tunnel project is winding down and all lanes of traffic on Middlebelt are scheduled to be restored by the end of May. Final completion of the project, in-cluding restoration of grass, tree plantings, and permanent pavement installation is expected this summer. Your Association and neighbors have been instrumental in limiting and mitigating the effects of the project on our neighborhood. Accom-plishments include:

Developing contacts with county officials and project contractors in order to obtain project plans and status which was then shared with affected neighbors and the community at large.

Working with the city and county to revise the traffic control signage and bar-ricades which greatly reduced traffic cutting through Holly Hill Farms.

Maintaining close communication with the Farmington Hills Police Depart-ment which resulted in increased police presence in the area. Police offi-cers proved to be professional, courteous and highly effective in reducing traffic in our neighborhood.

Direct contact with businesses whose employees disregarded the closure of neighborhood streets to through traffic. Most all businesses contacted agreed to stop using our streets to bypass the Middlebelt closure.

Insuring that sidewalks, grading and landscaping along Middlebelt and at our entrance markers would be fully restored as part of the project.

Association representatives will be meeting with county and city officials to in-form them of the effects the project had on our neighborhood and provide recom-mendations on how issues can be better handled during similar projects in the future.

What's Inside: Page 2: Architectural Control Com-mittee Entrance Cleanup NEXTDOOR website Highmeadow School Clos-ing Mayor’s Open Meeting Page 3: City & School Newsletters Police Chief’s Annual Re-port Kudos to our Role Models Page 4 Association Financial Sum-mary Sub Snowplowing Beautification Awards Neighborhood Watch Semiannual Meeting Sum-mary Page 6: 2016 Financial Report

Page 2 Holly Hill Farms Newsletter Spring 2017

Make the Architectural Control Committee your First Stop for Home Improve-ments Springtime is here and many long awaited projects are about to begin, please be reminded that, per the Holly Hill Farms Covenants and Restrictions, your plans regarding work on the exterior of your home and major landscaping, such as fences, patios, sheds, etc, need to be submitted to and approved by the Holly Hill Farms Architectural Committee. The Holly Hill Farms Architectural Committee’s primary goal is continuing to preserve the integrity of our beautiful neighborhood. So before swinging those hammers or breaking ground, be sure to give us a shout. For your convenience, we have created an email box where you should send your plans and questions: hhfarchitec-turalcommittee@gmail.com. Also, keep in mind that your project may also require a permit from Farmington Hills. Please check permit re-quirements on the City’s website at www.ci.farmington-hills.mi.us or by calling the Building Division at (248) 871- 2450.

Neighbors Cleanup at Neighborhood Entrances 19 volunteers x 3 hours = 60 yard waste bags + 20 bundles of branches + 4 trees removed Neighbors came out in force on Saturday April 22 for the annual spring cleaning of the subdivision entrances, the front doors to our neighborhood. Familiar faces were joined by several new residents who proved once again that many hands make for light work. Workers included Aman Awan, Jim and Mona Sokoloff, Juli Skene, John Kwiecien, Michael Mandell, Vivian Summers, Sam Hashemi, Russ Russinoff, Doug Haynes, Josiah LaColla, Milena Goldi, Shelly Kritzman, Carole and Bob Burns, Ken Snodgrass, Harold Larsen, Paul Riesbeck, and Lewis Oeange.

NEXTDOOR Website Our Board of Directors is encouraging residents to join our 150 neighbors who have registered on NEXTDOOR, a free and private neighborhood social network. NEXTDOOR is a great way to learn what is going on in our neighborhood and obtain recommendations for all types of services and contractors. You can learn more at nextdoor.com or join the Holly Hill Farms group at hollyhillfarms.nextdoor.com Highmeadow School Closing The Farmington Public Schools Superintendent has told us Highmeadow School will close this June and will be used for storage next year while the district is going through a major remodeling project. He also said the school may then be sold for development. We expressed our concern about the traffic issue and he indicated he was well aware of our concerns and would consider them. He said he would keep us posted. City Mayor, Ken Massey, Hosts Open Meeting Our Mayor recently held his second annual open meeting which was well attended including residents from our sub. The Mayor was well informed and shared information about many activities including the city’s develop-ment plans, drug prevention programs, etc. Residents are encouraged to attend these annual meetings.

Page 3 Holly Hill Farms Newsletter Spring 2017

Keep Up With City and School News via Email Newsletters Both the City and school district publish a variety of newsletters and distribute them via email to subscribers. The City offers newsletters covering general city information, special events and construction projects. Sub-scription info can be found by going to the city website home page fhgov.com and then navigating to Govern-ment>News & Info> eNews> ListServ. The city also offers Nixle which provides public safety announcements via email and text. The signup for Nixle is on the home page. You can also find useful information about trash pickup, zoning issues, recreation sources. etc. Residents are encouraged to use the website as needed. Farmington Schools provides newsletters for each school, various school system programs and general district news. You can sub-scribe to school newsletters by going to the school district website famington.k12.mi.us and then navigating from Home>District>Contact Us>Listserv City Police Chief Charles Nebus Presents Annual Report Our Chief of Police recently held his annual open meeting and reviewed the Department’s 2015 Report. The meeting was well attended and the report included: - The total residential and commercial burglaries and auto thefts decreased by 11% compared to the previ-ous year. Each category totals were the lowest in 42 years. -Armed robberies decreased by 31% which matched the all-time city low. -All crimes decreased, except for auto larceny, which increased slightly but was 1/3 as in 1994. The increase car break-ins was largely due to owners leaving their cars unlocked and leaving valuable items in view. - Our “safe city reputation” is one of the major reasons Farmington Hills was named by 24/7 Wall Street as one of the 14th “Best U.S. Cities” to live in compared to all other U.S. cities with populations exceeding 65,000 people. Farmington Hills was the only Michigan city named on the Best City list. The entire report is located in the City’s Website under Police Department and is worth reading. Kudos to Our Role Models By Kathy Sterbling “Administrative Professional Day”, celebrated on April 26, reminded me of our Board Members of Holly Hill Farms Subdivision, especially Harold Larsen and Ken Snodgrass. Their service as President and Treasurer, many times goes unnoticed and taken for granted. I am guilty of this as well. They have given the last 10 years to the betterment of our subdivision, working endlessly to represent us with the City, the County, and wherever they are called to serve. It is obvious that they love our subdivision and the people who live here to devote so much of their time to represent us in these very honorable volunteer positions. They also take care of complaints of residents, oversee the snowplowing, salting, mowing, taking care of the en-trance markers, and handle legal matters with attorneys, welcome new residents, publish the newsletter, just to name a minute few of their duties. In my opinion Holly Hill Farms is the most finely tuned association in Farm-ington Hills because of them. We tend to forget that while we are tending to our everyday busy lives, these two gentlemen are taking care of us. It is a reassuring to me to have quite a few things more to do off my list. I have grown to depend on Harold and Ken and I think that we all need to appreciate every day that they serve Holly Hill Farms. So if you see one of them around doing their boundless work for us, please stop and say “thank you for your service”. That is the least we can do. Lest we forget. Editor’s Note: Harold and Ken recently received “Inspire by Example” certificates from the Farmington Hills/Farmington Commission on Children Youth and Families in recognition of their volunteer services to our neighborhood. The certificates were presented by our city mayor at the annual volunteer award presentations held at the Farmington Hills City Hall.

Page 4 Holly Hill Farms Newsletter Spring 2017

Association Ends 2016 with Surplus – 2017 Budget Approved

The Association maintenance and social accounts ended the 2016 financial year with a maintenance budget surplus of $1,412. Of the138 lot owners, 124 paid their $110 maintenance fee and 107 owners paid their 2016 social dues. $1,630 in delinquent maintenance fees were collected. Ending balances were $14,543 for the maintenance account and $4,405 for the social account. The Association has liens against 12 lots for failure to pay a total of $4,558 in past due maintenance fees. Foreclosure of two properties resulted in the loss of $2,138 in past due maintenance fees. The 2015/16 financial report is attached. At their December meeting, the Board passed the 2017 Association budget which increases spending on land-scaping by $500. Spending on other items and income remain at their 2016 levels. Please contact Ken Snodgrass (248-851-7618) if you have any questions or comments. Subdivision Snow Plow/Salting Costs The Association negotiated a $1,000 reduction in the 2017 fixed price snow plowing and salting contract which was awarded to Wilde Brothers for a second year. Contract terms and costs will be discussed by the Board again this fall. Beautification Awards By Julie Skene For those who hadn’t heard, I am the new Beautification Committee Chairperson. I have been working with a local sign maker on the graphic re-design of our Beautification Awards signage. After we ran out of our last supply of signs, it was decided that we should come up with something a little more reminiscent of the beautification signs given out by the City. That being said, I would like to share who 3 the belated 2016 winners are…(drum roll please)…congratulations go out to Charlie & Christy Luna, for the beautifully updated façade they did on their home (30126 Woodbrook Ct.), Bob & Sandra Kuhn (29590 Highmeadow Rd.), for the beautiful handmade privacy fence they slaved over last fall and to Vivian Summers for the extensive interior and exterior renovations on the home at 29765 Highmeadow. Vivian is the first neighbor to receive a Beautification Award for 2 different houses. If you get a chance swing by and admire what these residents have done to beautify Holly Hill Farms. Neighborhood Watch Though crime has not been much of an issue for in Holly Hill Farms, it is important to remain vigilant. Do not leave valuables in plain sight within your vehicles. Hide them in the trunk, or even better – take them inside. Make sure you lock your vehicles and if possible park them in your garage. Do not leave the garage door open. Leave exterior lighting on at night. Be careful when going outside late at night or in the early morning hours, as some people have been followed into their own homes. When walking your pet in the dark, please make sure you and your pet are visible. Wear reflective clothing and your pet a reflective collar/leash and carry a flash-light if need be. If you see something suspicious don’t hesitate to call 911 - It is better to be safe than sorry. Summary of HHFA Semiannual Meeting -Introductions of Board and Committee members and homeowners were made - The June 13, 2016 Semiannual Meeting minutes were approved - The 2016 financial report was presented by Ken Snodgrass and accepted - A preview of the 2017 budget was made by Ken indicating that fees will not need to be increased remaining at $110. The Board will adopt a budget and fees at its December meeting. - Ken gave an update on the snow plowing and salting indicating the Wild Brothers have been contracted for another year. - Harold reported the Baptist Manor has not contacted us about a zoning request. - Harold reported that the Website, NEXTDOOR, will be used to notify homeowners about our social activates

Page 5 Holly Hill Farms Newsletter Spring 2017

and semiannual meetings will be posted. - Middlebelt project and the Board’s letter to the home owners was discussed. -Architectural committee reported there has been 6-8 projects approved. -New homeowners are given a welcome packet. Anyone who has not received one should contact Harold - Our Home and Garden Beautification award program continues with winners to be announced. Homeowners are encouraged to nominate deserving homes. - The City is expanding its Neighborhood Watch program by adding programs made possible by the Safety mil-lage passed a few years ago. Farmington Hills remains one of the safest cities in the country. Car break-ins has doubled mostly to unlocked cars. Cars should be kept locked and valuable items removed. - Kathy reported that last summer’s Home and Garden Tour was a success with over people attending and en-joying a good picnic. Yoga will continue on Wednesday from 6:30-7:30p. Check NEXTDOOR for details. - Milena Goldi and Sharon Snodgrass gave reports on the Middlebelt project and traffic on Sugarspring. They have done an outstanding job making things better. - Officer elections were held with these results. Harold Larsen-President, Tim Pike-Vice President, Ken Snodgrass-Treasurer and Doug Haynes-Secretary. The officers were thanked for their service. - Meeting adjourned at 9:35p. The next semiannual meeting will be held in May.

Thanks for your support of Holly Hill Farms!

Page 6 Holly Hill Farms Newsletter Spring 2017

2016

2016

Exp

ed

itu

res

EX

PE

NS

ES

A

pp

rov

ed

A

ctu

al

(ov

er)

/un

der

Item

B

ud

get

Exp

en

dit

ure

s

Bu

dg

et

Rem

ark

s

Main

ten

an

ce A

cco

un

t

S

no

w r

em

ova

l/sa

lting

$9,2

00.0

0

$9,2

00.0

0

$0.0

0 C

ontr

act

is $

9200

Main

tain

ing e

ntr

ance

s &

$1,6

50.0

0

$883

.00

$767

.00 $

440

law

n m

ow

ing,

$2

75 la

ndsc

apin

g,

$16

8 m

ain

t,

Insu

rance

$1,2

50.0

0

$1,2

61.0

0

($11.0

0)

Ne

wsl

ett

er

& p

ost

age

$580

.00

$564

.00

$16.0

0 N

ew

slett

er

$134,

post

age $

278,

$15

2 d

irect

ory

E

lect

rici

ty

$500

.00

$388

.00

$112

.00 $

266

ent

mark

er

ele

ctrici

ty,

$12

2 s

treet

light

Wate

r $1,0

50.0

0

$983

.00

$67.0

0

Off

ice E

xpense

s $250

.00

$250

.00

$0.0

0 $

87 o

ffic

e s

upplie

s, $

163 c

opie

s M

isc

& le

gal

$450

.00

$319

.00

$131

.00 $

197

liens,

$52 m

isc,

$70 C

OH

A

Contin

gency

$500

.00

$0.0

0

$500

.00

Main

ten

an

ce s

ub

tota

l $15,4

30.0

0

$13,8

48.0

0

$1,5

82.0

0

So

cia

l A

cco

un

t

H

allo

we

en p

art

y $50.0

0

$50.0

0

Yog

a

$0.0

0

$0.0

0

Gard

en P

art

y $400

.00

$532

.00

($132.0

0)

Pon

d F

un

Da

ys

$60.0

0

$60.0

0

Acc

t F

ees

$10.0

0

($10.0

0)

So

cia

l S

ub

tota

l $510

.00

$542

.00

($32.0

0)

TO

TA

L E

XP

EN

SE

$15,9

40.0

0

$14,3

58.0

0

$1,5

82.0

0

2016

2016

2016

Bu

dg

et

INC

OM

E

Ap

pro

ved

A

ctu

al

ov

er/

(un

der)

Item

B

ud

get

Inco

me

2015

Actu

al

Rem

ark

s

Main

ten

ance

dues

& in

tere

st

$13,7

65.0

0

$15,2

60.0

0

$1,4

95.0

0 1

24 lo

ts @

$110 +

$16

30 b

ack

pa

yments

+ $

20 in

tere

st

Soci

al d

ues

$1,0

60.0

0

$1,0

70.0

0

$10.0

0 1

07 lo

ts @

$10.0

0

TO

TA

L IN

CO

ME

$14,8

25.0

0

$16,3

30.0

0

$1,5

05.0

0

Bu

dg

et

Actu

al

10/3

1/1

6

S

ur-

Su

rplu

s/(

Defi

cit

) A

cco

un

t B

ala

nce

Main

t A

cco

un

t ($

1,6

65.0

0)

$1,4

12.0

0

$14,5

43.6

3

S

ocia

l A

cco

un

t $540

.00

$528

.00

$4,4

05.0

4 K

en S

nodgra

ss

To

tal

($1,1

25.0

0)

$1,9

40.0

0

$18,9

48.6

7 8

No

v16

2015

/16

Fina

ncia

l Rep

ort