January 2001 Newsletter

PHA  HOMEOWNER

PHA BOARD POSITIONS

Elections to fill three PHA Board positions will be held at the next PHA General Membership Meeting on Wednesday, January 17, 2001. These are two-year terms. Board members are expected to attend monthly Board meetings as well as the thrice-annual General Meetings. Board Members share the responsibility of operating the Pinery Homeowners’ Association by working on community projects. No experience is necessary – only a willingness to serve the community. If you are interested in running for a position, please contact the PHA office at 303-841-8572.

You will have an opportunity to meet the candidates at the January 17^th General Meeting.

Greenbelts In Danger!

 Many of our greenbelts and open space corridors are under attack! Not from guns or bullets but from the needless and seemingly endless dumping of trash, clippings and garden waste. Many of our greenbelts are natural drainages, which could be plugged and/or rendered less functional during a severe rainstorm by the material now being dumped into them. Without the drainage system, storm waters could affect many homes. Added to this safety hazard is the growing unsightliness of these areas by the aging and drying materials that could also cause a fire hazard.

These greenbelts and drainage areas are extremely important to home values and any deterioration of these areas can also be a financial impact to owners who are selling their homes.

The PHA wants to help stop this open space and drainage area damage and asks all of the Pinery residents to call our office if someone is dumping in these areas. Again, our motive is to help protect our community and not to penalize anyone.

We Need Your Help!

 Sometime in November, several lights at the PHA Storage Lot were apparently shot out. If you have any specific information in this case, please call our office 303-841-8572. The PHA bears significant expense in the repair and replacement of these fixtures (damage estimated at $3,500). If you ever are a witness to vandalism, please call the Douglas County Sheriff’s department and the Pinery Homeowners’ Association immediately.

Coffee Anyone?

 A commercial ‘Espresso’ sign, approximately 15’ x 2’ has been abandoned at the Storage Lot. Please call the PHA office if you are interested in taking it off our hands (303-841-8572).  

High Speed Internet In The Pinery?

 Several residents have contacted the PHA to inquire about high speed internet service for the Pinery. The short answer is “Not soon”. We have contacted several high-speed Internet providers and have obtained the following: 

1.      AT&T Cable “@home.com”:
      AT&T does not know when they will be able to serve our area but it will be at least (1) one       year from now.  (@home.com referred us back to AT&T).

 2.      QWEST:
      has no idea when their “Megabit” service would be available in our area.

 3.      “DirectPC” (a service arm of DirectTV, the dish company):
      They can provide service but require a separate dish and you must provide your own ISP (e.g. AOL, Compuserve, etc.). You pay the $20 dish charges in addition to your ISP charges.

 These were the only high speed service providers we know of but anyone in the Pinery knows of another service we could call, we will be glad to do so. If anyone hears about the availability of high-speed service in the Pinery, please let the PHA office know and we will put it in our newsletter.

Men Working...

You may have noticed that repairs to the light fixtures at the PHA RV Storage Lot have been completed, as have those at the entrance to the Pinery at North Pinery Parkway.

Your PHA Board strives to serve and meet the needs of this community!

Public Lands and Tree Houses

 Several tree houses in The Pinery have been recently removed because of the damages done to the trees they were built in. Persons have used large nails and deck screws to attach scrap lumber to the trucks of these trees and then have added platforms amongst the limbs and branches.

While the idea of a tree house is usually a normal young persons “get away” place, the damages done to trees and stands of scrub oak is devastating. The loss of any tree or stand of scrub oak is forever and seldom is this growing habitat replaced. Our community is blessed with many areas that are habitats for animals of many types. These surroundings, offered by our natural growth areas, provide beauty and refuge for our wildlife and our residential vistas. We can’t allow this amenity to be damaged by anyone! We therefore ask our community to watch out for persons attaching or building any kind of structure in trees or scrub oak stands, and report their activity to the PHA office. Our intent is not to penalize but to educate and control the damage to our community’s natural assets. Everyone’s cooperation is solicited to insure that we maintain the natural beauty that surrounds all around us.

Private property owners of course can choose to deal with this issue through applications to the Architectural Control Committee which requires an approved plan for any exterior construction on all lots within the Pinery Planned Development..

Don’t Know Much About History…

The PHA is very pleased to have enlisted the expertise of local columnist and Historian, Ruth Miller, in writing a Pinery History article for our Newsletter from time to time. Please watch this space in future publications!

Living On the Wild Side

 From time to time the PHA office receives calls from concerned residents regarding the proper handling of wildlife issues in the Pinery. Recently, such a call addressed inadvertent harm to a pet when it ingested poison intended for mice or squirrels. This prompted an appeal to the Colorado Division of Wildlife on how wildlife issues can be handled legally and responsibly. What follows is an excerpt from Urban Wildlife Rescue, Inc.

 “Many wildlife populations increase and decrease naturally, in response to available food, nesting areas, etc. When an animal is trapped or relocated from its habitat, a void is created. The food and nesting habitat once used by the trapped animal is now available to other animals. As long as the habitat is suitable, another animal or ecologically similar species moving into the area may fill the void. If too many voids are created, pregnancy rates and the number of young born per litter will increase in order to fill the voids and take advantage of the available resources. This ultimately results in a population increase.”

 “Since vertebrate species that have become pests have done so simply because they are so adapted to the prevailing habitat conditions, biological control, in particular the making of a habitat unsuitable to the species in question when such can be accomplished, is generally considered a much more desirable and effective procedure for controlling animals than just attempting to destroy or otherwise remove troublesome individuals. Also, …the destruction of individuals by artificial means (shooting, poisoning, etc.) or by natural predation may have only a temporary effect and in the long run may result in stimulating the offending population of animals to increase to a level of density that is greater than it would have been if no control had been attempted.”

 In short, attempts to eradicate indigenous pests are pointless in the long run. Most of us have chosen to share this unique community with the wildlife it includes. Let us each think through all the possible repercussions of our actions when we try to alter this environment, and take responsibility for any harm inadvertently caused.

NEWS FROM THE WATER BOARD:
Dec 2000 / Jan 2001

At the December 12^th monthly board meeting, the Board of the Pinery Water District voted to include that property known as “Reata” into the District. This was the first major change to the District boundary in many years and caused us to look carefully at the pros and cons of this action. In the end, the action should prove extremely beneficial to all members of the District. 

 In recent months some discussion has continued to be made about the District subsidizing growth. I wish to try and put this misinformation to rest. Please be assured that all development must pay its way. This is happening with all new development, to include Reata, for the last five years of this current board of directors. Also, each developer must provide, at no cost to the District, water rights adequate to serve their needs. What this means is that the current water resources of the District will not be used to support such new infrastructure as golf courses. New wells, in aquifers not currently in use by the District, will be used to support these water demands. As for increased residential needs, developers are given the option of providing cash in lieu of water rights, but so far no developer has utilized this option. The bottom line in all of this is that new growth does, and will continue to, pay for itself.   

I am also happy to write that the Denver Regional Council of Government (DRCOG) recently approved the Pinery Wastewater Utility Master Plan without modification. We are the first wastewater treatment agency to meet this new regulatory requirement in the DRCOG area, as well as the first in the Cherry Creek Basin. We could not have done this without the help of our staff and Montgomery Watson, our Wastewater Consultant. What this means to the District is that we have taken the steps needed to minimize impacts upon our local and regional environments in accordance with current and future laws. All members of the District can rest assured that we are going above and beyond the minimums needed to ensure the continued protection of our environment and local residents. We understand the trust emplaced upon you to the Directors and staff of the District. We will continue to strive to be in the forefront in this area for all actions that we accomplish for the District. The next step of this action is for review and approval of the State of Colorado Department of Health and the Environment. We anticipate this to be received within the next 6 – 12 months.

We hope that all of you had a happy and joyous holiday season. As we look to this New Year, we will continue to strive to be very proactive in ensuring the best operations of the District.

If you or any other member of the District has questions or concerns on any water or sanitary sewer issues, please feel free to contact us at (303) 841-2797.   If you wish to meet with us in person, we encourage you to attend the regularly scheduled board meetings, held at the District Offices, the second Tuesday of every month, at 7 o’clock in the evenings. If this is not possible, then please stop by the District Office during the week, Monday through Friday, 8-4 daily. Someone is always available to meet with you and discuss your concerns.

David C. Eyre, Civil Engineer, P.E.
Director

BIRD SANCTUARY GREETINGS!!

Many thanks to all who helped prepare the sanctuary for winter. Our plants look quite cozy, and I bet they're ready for anything winter can dish out!!   We're trying another crop of wildflowers, and I'm very optimistic this one will succeed.   Watch this space for spring projects!!

Best wishes for a magical holiday season. Thank you, everyone, for all the wonderful gifts of time and donations that you've given to this project. May you be rewarded many times over with the beauty of nature in the coming year!!

Sincerely, Deb Dieter

2001 ACC Election
Candidate Information Needed

At the April 3, 2001 meeting of the Architectural Control Committee, an election will be held to fill the expired two-year terms of three board members. The committee meets once each month (normally the first Tuesday); special meetings are scheduled as needed. Each board member is assigned responsibilities requiring 2-4 hours per month to complete. Candidates for the position will be published in the March issue of the Pinery Homeowner. Residents interested in serving the community in this way should call 303-841-5305 no later than February 1, 2001.

COVENANT CORNER

The Pinery Architectural Control Committee

From the “Architectural Standards”…

 Pinery Protective Covenants require that any change to the exterior of your home be submitted for approval to the Architectural Control Committee for approval prior to commencement of work. Covenants direct the ACC to develop standards for reviewing plans submitted by homeowners for approval. A complete copy of these standards is available at the ACC office, please call 303-841-5305, and we’ll be happy to mail you the package. 

What follows is the third in a series of excerpts from the Pinery Architectural Standards.

Colors

All structures within the Pinery are required to be in earth tones indigenous to the area. The purpose of this stipulation is so that structures within the Pinery blend as much as possible with the natural environment. A sample board of approved shades is available in the PACC office. Some colors not allowed are white, black, red, blue, yellow, purple, orange and pink. 

 Submittal for architectural review is not required if repainting using the same colors previously approved by the ACC. If you are unsure of the prior approval status, please submit samples of the colors prior to repainting.

 If changing colors, for shades which clearly appear on the office color board, the ACC requests that color chips be submitted so that  we may update our files. If there is any question as to whether or not a color falls within the desired earth tone range, color chips must be submitted for board review and approval prior to commencement of painting.