3/26/24

Dear Residents,

We now have a Facebook group for Shadowoak Subdivision.  It is a closed group, available to Shadowoak residents only.  If you search on Facebook for Shadowoak Subdivision, you can ask to join the group.  There are 2 questions you will be asked to answer, and the answers will be visible only to the administrators.  We hope this group helps to promote community spirit and communication among our residents.

Paula Kleypas

Dear Shadowoak Homeowners,

I want to share with you some upcoming projects and news from the HOA.

First of all, Teri Larson (secretary of HOA) and I have been joined by Chuck Kleypas (my husband) on the HOA Board.  His position (until such time as someone else volunteers for the job) is Treasurer.  He has over 35 years of experience in cost estimation/cost control and has been thoroughly researching the subdivision finances for as far back as we can find records (approximately 9 years).  It has been enlightening to see how our money has been spent over the last nine years.  This is giving us a better picture of our finances, and allows us to plan better for the future.

Secondly, one of the projects we need to work on is the appearance of our common ground.  This includes the pond area and the circles in the cul-de-sacs.  I spoke with the technician who takes care of our pond last Fall and he made some suggestions on improving the appearance and functionality of the pond.  We are currently collecting money (from increased HOA fees) in order to dredge the forebay of the pond.  We hope to have enough to take care of this in 2025.  The other issue at the pond is overgrowth along the shoreline.  We have a lot of elm trees and sprouts, which are invasive.  We also have some honeysuckle, mostly at the front of the pond where the water comes in, which is another invasive plant.  Having someone come in and remove these plants would be quite expensive, so we are hoping to get a group of people and do this ourselves in order to keep our HOA fees from increasing.  Not only will this involve chain saws and yard tools, we will also need to dispose of the cut brush.  If the elms are put into the pond, they will sprout and create a worse problem, so we need to physically remove all the brush.  Our hope is that people who have yard waste service will agree to take some of the brush.  If you can’t physically take the brush to your house, we can organize some kind of delivery service.  Not everyone may be physically able to help, but taking some yard waste would be a great help to our project.

Chuck and I have put pink ribbons around the pond, to indicate where we need to take things out.  We will leave the trees (except for one or two that are definitely dead), and would like to remove the brush.  There is an area at the outlet of the pond which also has some heavy brush that must be removed, as the technician who monitors our pond water quality cannot get down to the shoreline.  We will try to schedule some work days to get this started.  If anyone is so inclined to go down there sometime when they are free, and is able to cut a few things down and take them away, that would be amazing.  This is not going to happen overnight.  It may take a year or two, but I think we, as a community can accomplish this and restore our pond to a more scenic area of our neighborhood.  In case you are not aware, there are two entrances to the pond via Common Ground corridors.  One is located on Vistaoak Court. between the homes at 210 Vistaoak and 218 Vistaoak.  The other entrance is located on Shadowoak Drive between the homes at 1119 and 1123 Shadowoak.  These Common Ground corridors to access the pond are not on private property, and all Shadowoak Subdivision residents have access to the pond via these two entrances.

We would also like to do some work on the circles.  This would also involve some yard work, and hauling out some yard waste.  If you know of a specific circle that you want to work with, please contact me and we will try to help you get some volunteers.

What we would like to know from you is, would you be interested in helping at the pond?  In what capacity?  Can you take some of the yard waste?  Would you be interested in helping at one or more of the circles that are in need of attention?  Would you be willing to put your name on a list of volunteers who can be called upon to help with these issues?  Please email me if you are willing to help.

I appreciate you reading this rather long news update.  The Board is greatly interested in creating a community spirit in Shadowoak which will bring us all closer together and make our subdivision a place to be proud of.

Thanks,

Paula Kleypas

President, Shadowoak HOA

pkleypas@gmail.com

WARNING!

Please do not walk, sled or skate on the

pond (water retention basin).  With the recent

cold temperatures, it can appear to be

frozen solid, but we have underwater bubblers

 to improve the oxygen levels, and they keep

the pond from freezing completely.  It is not

safe to walk, sled or skate on!

FRIENDLY REMINDER

Please keep your storm sewers free of leaves and debris.  When (or if!) we get large rains, the leaves clog the storm sewers and water levels rise in the streets.  The same goes for ice and snow:  melting snow and ice can’t flow down the sewer when the sewer opening is packed with snow.

Thanks for your help!

Minutes from 11-16-23 Shadowoak HOA Meeting

Officer Brian Hessling informed attendees of the increase in automobile thefts in the area and gave tips on securing your vehicle and home.

Paula Kleypas gave a short summary about the need to dredge the forebay of the water retention area (also known as the pond) and projected costs, as well as the recent services of the mapping and attempted leak fix.  To cover those expenses as well as the increased cost in maintenance of the common ground and electricity, a vote will be taken tonight to increase the dues to $175 for 2024, and $150 for the years thereafter.

Several residents spoke up about the importance of maintaining the water retention system, and that it will be more expensive if not addressed soon. We were also reminded that there hasn’t been an increase in HOA fees for many years.

Future community projects in the subdivision include dealing with the willows and other over-growth at the water retention area.  We will try to have some work days to take out as much of the over-growth as we can, without incurring expenses to the HOA. Please let us know if you are interested.

Two residents were nominated by proxy for the position of president, but no additional names were added by those in attendance.

The residents at the meeting voted and those votes were added to the proxy votes received, resulting in overwhelming support for the increase of the HOA fee.

Paula Kleypas was voted in as president of the Shadowoak Subdivision.

We want to thank Bill Oesterle for his many years serving as President of the Shadowoak HOA.  He put in much time and effort to take care of our subdivision.