IMPORTANT NOTICE FOR LEEWOOD HOMEOWNERS

The next time you take your trash out or the snow plow comes through, the next time your lawn is mowed or the street paved ask yourself what these things have in common and what causes them to happen.

These are just a few of the many services that you receive that are often taken for granted because they happen so seamlessly with no effort on an individual homeowner’s part. They happen because your neighbors volunteer for the Leewood Homeowners Association.

They not only ensure that the trash is collected, streets are plowed after a snow, front lawns are mowed, streets paved, but they also ensure that the common area is maintained, general maintenance is performed such as removing graffiti from perimeter fences, financial records are maintained, bills paid, assessments collected, architectural standards maintained, curbs painted, mailboxes repaired and so on. What do your neighbors get from volunteering and why do they do it? They are not paid. They are more often than not criticized when something does not happen when or how it should. Seldom do they receive public praise. Some volunteer for altruistic reasons; it makes them feel good. Others do it out of a sense of paying back to society for the things they have. Many do it because they know that the quality of life in Leewood would rapidly deteriorate if these services are not maintained. All feel a sense of protecting their property values and ensuring that Leewood remains a pleasant place to live.

When the number of volunteers decreases, the quality and amount of services decrease in direct proportion. The Board of Directors, LHOA committees and all the volunteers must ensure that critical services are maintained. When there are not enough volunteers, some elective items do not get done, for example, painting the curbs. This is where the Association currently finds itself. We do not have enough volunteers to do all that needs to be done for Leewood. The recent resignation of board members Tom Harvat and Al Carchedi has made the situation worse.

Many advocate that we hire a property management company to provide services. This is an easy thing to say, but any Association with a property management company still needs a strong board and committees to oversee the company’s work. It would also likely result in an increase in our assessments either immediately or at some future date. Leewood has twice hired a property management firm. Both experiences ended with poor results. Each time volunteers had to work tirelessly to put the Association back together. There is an article in the News section of the website which talks about one of these experiences. Since then, Leewood has successfully operated without hiring a management company. Our finances are sound and we operate with one of the lowest assessments of any Association of our size in Northern Virginia.

So what can you do to help?

V O L U N T E E R

Think about spending two to three hours each month helping your Association and your neighbors. The annual meeting is coming up in April. At least three people are needed to fill the three vacancies that will exist on the Board at that time. It is extremely important that these positions be filled. The Board meets formally approximately two hours once each month. The Board, if fully staffed and working with the various committees and other volunteers, can spread the workload out so that no one spends an inordinate amount of time on any project. The Association desperately needs someone who can edit and issue a newsletter. Since the last editor quit, communications within Leewood have suffered tremendously. While we have a website, it does not reach all homeowners. Editing and issuing a newsletter on a monthly or even bi-monthly basis would require the time it takes to review articles submitted by homeowners, format the letter, get it printed and distributed. We even have standing offers for the door-to-door distribution, so the editor would not have to deliver it personally. For someone who likes to write and edit, this would be an ideal hobby. The Association needs people who can identify and arrange contracts for special one time projects. These projects would include such things as repairing mailboxes, painting curbs and other projects that are sporadic or one-time projects. The Association always needs homeowners who enjoy outdoor work and would like to help the Grounds and Maintenance Committee or on general clean-up projects. The Architectural Review Committee can use more members to further distribute the workload and reduce the time spent each month on inspections. Someone is needed who can write our minutes from a tape recording, and help out on writing letters – both activities can take place in free moments at home. These are just a few of the volunteer opportunities available. The annual meeting package will contain a list of other opportunities and a sign-up sheet. The Association will work with volunteers to try to accommodate their personal needs.

PLEASE volunteer and help your community. The probability of higher assessments, decreased services and general deterioration of the quality of life in Leewood looms large.