September 2019 Hickory Farms Newsletter
- Editor, Chuck Stewart (Still Meadow Rd)
Hickory Farms Board Calendar
- Oct. 08 - Board of Directors Meeting
- Oct. 29 - Annual HFCA Meeting (Green Acres, Cafeteria)
Social Calendar
- Oct. 05 - HFCA Yard Sale
- Oct. 19 - Monster Mash Party, All Ages
- Dec. 15 - 18 - Holiday Decorating Contest, Voting & Awards, All Ages
2020 Budget Information
Under the Hickory Farms Bylaws and the Virginia Property Owners Association Act, the Board of Directors must approve a budget and set an annual assessment for the forthcoming year. The Hickory Farms Board of Directors reviewed the 2020 budget and concluded a $250 annual assessment was needed. This increase from $200 to $250 is needed to replenish the reserve fund.
The 2020 budget and the increase of the 2020 annual assessment to $250 were approved by the HFCA Board of Directors on September 09, 2019.
It addition, on September 09, 2019, the Board approved a revision to our Rules and Regulations authorizing it to assess a fee for the preparation and delivery of a disclosure packet each time a home is sold. The Board also approved a fee of $146.71 for the disclosure packet, which is the amount authorized by the Common Interest Community Board in Richmond, to take effect on January 1.
For more information, see the HFCA 2020 Budget below or come to the HFCA annual meeting.
Annual HFCA Board Meeting
On Thursday, October 29, 2019, 7:30 – 9:30 PM, in the Green Acres cafeteria, 4401 Sideburn Rd., Fairfax, VA 22030, the Hickory Farms Community Association 2019 Annual Meeting will take place.
The Board members will give reports on their activities during 2019 and answer your questions. See below for the agenda.
If you are unable to attend, please use the proxy ballot available in the "download files" menu. The ballot has instructions for returning your proxy ballot by mail, Email, or asking an attending neighbor to bring it to the meeting.
See you at the meeting!
Rabbit Run Trail
An important piece of our common grounds is the stream valley woodland along Rabbit Run. Many residents use the trail; however, over the years, the creek has become deep-er due to runoff from adjacent properties. This process was accelerated by recent development adjacent to Hicko-ry Farms: Burke Station Court, the two large houses, and now the Carr Brothers’ “Stonewood” development of seven large, single-family homes on Burke Station Road. Although all of these developments satisfied storm water management requirements in place at the time of con-struction, they significantly altered the natural environment. In aggregate, they contributed to the increased pace of erosion in the main stream of Rabbit Run as well as its feeder watercourses.
The Board of Directors has been concerned about this problem for some time. Board members met with representatives from the Fairfax County Soil and Water Conservation District and Fairfax City (in connection with Stonewood) to address our concerns. The next step is to engage a Professional Engineer to identify specific problem areas, determine causes, and provide remedial steps and cost estimates. This consulting process will start soon, but it will take some time to work through. We will keep the community post-ed on developments as they occur.
The Board of Directors asks residents to exercise caution when using the Rabbit Run trail and bridges, especially on the first half of the trail leading north from Cotton Farm Road up to the final footbridge. There is one area where the bank is undercut very close to the narrow trail, with a 5’-6’ drop-off. While all the bridges are presently intact, the wa-tercourses under them are much deeper than in the past and the beams no longer have as much support on either bank because of in-creased erosion.
Again, if you plan to use the Rabbit Run trail, please exercise caution!
Hickory Farms Residents
Please let the Social Committee know about any newly arrived homeowners or any new renters, so that the Social Committee can be sure to welcome all newcomers! Please email any newcomer’s address to social@hickoryfarms.org.
Annual Nominating Committee
The annual nomination process for HFCA Board Members and Officers is now underway. HFCA-ACC Chairperson and Board member, Pam Barrett, is the 2020 Nominations Committee Chairperson. If you would like to serve with Pam, please contact her at 703-978-2132 or Pam1026@aol.com.
If you would like to nominate yourself or a neighbor for a Board position, please contact Pam so she can include the candidate’s name on the nominations slate to be voted on at our Annual Meeting on October 29th. Nominations will also be accepted from the floor at the Annual Meeting. To see who is currently on the Board of Directors, please click here. Please Note: Some of these volunteers may not be running for reelection.
Dozens of volunteers have stepped forward over the past 43 years to make Hickory Farms the wonderful place it is today. Please consider volunteering this year as a member of the Board of Directors and continue our record of great community service
Community Yard Sale on Saturday, October 5th!
It’s been TWO YEARS(!) since the last community yard sale. Here is your opportunity to sell what you no longer want!
We plan to hold the HFCA Community Yard Sale Saturday, October 5, from 8 AM to noon.
I’ll set up advertising, get the word out, hand out maps, post signs. All you have to do is put stuff out in your yard marked to sell.
IT’S NOT HARD!!
There will be a small fee to cover the advertising (usually about $10, but it depends how many people sign up).
If you’d like to participate, please let me (Pete Scala) know – call me at (703) 764-0730 or send me an e-mail at scalapr@verizon.net.
(OBTW, while the yard sale starts at 8 AM, people will actually begin to show up about 6 AM!!)
Neighborhood Watch Schedule
| Day | Date | 1st Person | 2nd Person |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri | Oct 4 | David Cain | |
| Sat | Oct 5 | George Rosenkranz | Bob Montgomery |
| Fri | Oct 11 | Ron Arnold | Charles Walter |
| Sat | Oct 12 | Dave Dempster | Dawn Dempster |
| Fri | Oct 18 | Bruce Bernhardt | Nancy Bernhardt |
| Sat | Oct 19 | Jim Marshall | Carol Marshall |
| Fri | Oct 25 | Kirk Randall | Albert Chong |
| Sat | Oct 26 | Jim Bever | Barbara Bever |
| Fri | Nov 1 | Susan Mulliner | Brenton Mulliner |
| Sat | Nov 2 | David Froberg | Beverly Froberg |
| Fri | Nov 8 | Debbi Buchanan | Michelle Bush |
| Sat | Nov 9 | Mark Jean-Pierre | |
| Fri | Nov 15 | John Kitzmiller | |
| Sat | Nov 16 | Rick Loranger | Judy Loranger |
| Fri | Nov 22 | Harry Herchert | Ginny Herchert |
| Sat | Nov 23 | Jason Zhao | Laura Feng |
| Fri | Nov 29 | Kirk Randall | Albert Chong |
| Sat | Nov 30 | Lei Zhu | Maggie Zhu |
| Fri | Dec 6 | Brian Roethlisberger | Rob Mikula |
| Sat | Dec 7 | Tony Dong | |
| Fri | Dec 13 | David Tropiano | Sarah Tropiano |
| Sat | Dec 14 | Tom Barrett | Pam Barrett |
| Fri | Dec 20 | David Cain | |
| Sat | Dec 21 | Jim Marshall | Carol Marshall |
| Fri | Dec 27 | Lt Trieu | Will Lunsford |
| Sat | Dec 28 | Pete Scala | Rose Scala |
Architectural Control Committee Activities
April 9 - May 14
Improvement Applications and Approvals
- Storage Shed- 4344 Still Meadow Rd.
- New roof with vents - 10111 Spinning Wheel Ct.
- New very large patio - 4317 Still Meadow Rd.
- New steps, new walkway, driveway expansion - 4296 Country Squire Lane
- New fence - 4335 Farm House Lane
- Fence paint -4381 Harvester Farm Lane
VPOAA inspections
- 4352 Harvester Farm Lane
May 15-June 11
Improvement Applications and Approvals
- New siding, windows and front entry door - 4278 Country Squire Lane
VPOAA inspections
- 4338 Fann house Lane
- 10118 Spinning Wheel Ct.
June 12 - July 9
Improvement Applications and Approvals
- Deck Repairs - 4375 Farm House Lane
- New Fence - 4338 Farm House Lane
July 10 - August 13
Improvement Applications and Approvals
- Driveway widening and carport enclosure - 4375 Farm House Lane
- New shed - 4375 Farm House Lane
VPOAA inspections
- 10020 Cotton Farm Road
Proposed 2020 Budget
| Income | |
|---|---|
| Annual Assessment - 2020 Year | $49,500.00 |
| Annual Assessment - Pre-Paid | |
| Late Fees | |
| Interest - Checking | $12.00 |
| Legal Fees/Liens | |
| Advertising | $1,200.00 |
| VPOAA Disclosure Package Fees | $881.00 |
| Total Income | $ 51,593.00 |
| Expenses | |
| Common Grounds Maintenance | $ 23,690.00 |
| Common Grounds Improvement | $ 6,090.00 |
| Common Grounds Remediation | $ 4,120.00 |
| Legal Fees | $ 2,060.00 |
| Printing | $ 1,545.00 |
| Social | $ 1,545.00 |
| Neighborhood Watch | $ 206.00 |
| Management Liability Insurance | $ 2,060.00 |
| Commercial Crime Insurance | $ 618.00 |
| General Liability Insurance | $ 309.00 |
| Tax Preparation/Audit | $ 335.00 |
| Taxes & Government Charges/Fees | $ 247.00 |
| Administrative Fees | $ 824.00 |
| Bank Charges | $ 52.00 |
| Postage | $258.00 |
| Strategic Projects | $2,000.00 |
| Capital Refresh | $2,200.00 |
| Total Expenses | $48,159.00 |
| Net Income or (Loss) | $3,434.00 |
Notes:
- $25,180.80 Reserve Fund as of 9/11/2019 – It is HFCA policy to maintain a reserve fund invested in low risk financial instruments.
- The 2020 budget and setting of the 2020 annual assessment were approved by the HFCA Board of Direc-tors on September 09, 2019. The 2020 annual assessment is $250.00. Under the Hickory Farms Bylaws and the Virginia Property Owners Association Act, the Board of Directors must approve a budget and set an annual assessment for the forthcoming year.
- On September 9, 2019, the Board approved a revision to our Rules and Regulations authorizing it to as-sess a fee for the preparation and delivery of a disclosure packet each time a home is sold. The Board also approved a fee of $146.71, which is the amount authorized by the Common Interest Community Board in Richmond, to take effect on January 1.
Upper Commons