Here are few of the improvements that will occur to the area:

Saturday, June 2^nd, will be a day of Pinery volunteerism to help spread the trail surface material plus other activities such as planting trees and shrubs, installing fences and signs, and reseeding areas disturbed during construction. When the days’ work is done a dedication ceremony will take place followed by food and a fiesta will begin for those who helped make the day a success.

Volunteers will need to arrive by 8:00 AM, sign in, and obtain their assignments. Teams will be created and a team leader from the Douglas County Parks and Trails Dept. will direct each team’s activities. Please bring a rake or shovel or any other tools you deem appropriate. Bring gloves, sunscreen, and a cap. The work involved is better suited to adult volunteers but teenagers are encouraged to volunteer as well. There are many jobs to complete and the team leaders will assign appropriate jobs for the volunteers. Local businesses are donating water and drinks throughout the day for thirsty workers. Volunteers are urged to bring a bag lunch for the noon break.

Work will stop at about 3:00 PM and wash up time will be allowed prior to the dedication ceremonies. After the dedication, a Fajita Buffet Fiesta will be served and volunteers and the surrounding communities will be serenaded by strolling Mariachis. Each volunteer will also be presented with a unique, commemorative cap and tee shirt for their efforts.

Now is a great time to help improve our community and this project will surely benefit many people for years to come. Special thanks must go to the following: Douglas County Parks and Trails, The Pinery Water District, the Pinery Country Club and our own Pinery Homeowners’ Association.

Every once in a while a Pinery resident steps forward to make this community a better place to live. Too often, too little is voiced to acknowledge the gratitude the PHA Board feels for the efforts of these exemplary citizens.

People like Carolyn Williamson, who keeps us all informed of the latest happenings by updating the Community Information signs whenever called upon, no matter what the time or weather.

And people like Doug Stephenson and Dave Kristick, who refinished the board table in our meeting room.

Thank you Carolyn, Doug, and Dave! Your dedication is truly appreciated!

The PHA office staff would like to offer Notary Public services to Homeowner Association members. Please drop by during office hours to take advantage of this convenience.

We also would like to thank Dennis Volz, of Custom Wood Studios, LLC, for donating two bluebird nesting boxes. We plan to have these mounted by the time you read this. Thanks, as well, to Al Dugas for alerting us to the bald eagle at Bingham Lake. The eagle is probably just passing through, but it's a real treat to see him.

We are looking forward to seeing and/or hearing from you all for a productive summer. An anniversary party is in the works for June-more news to come on the phone tree.

Deb Dieter

This years’ Pedal & Picnic is scheduled for August 11^th. This annual event has become a summer highlight in the Pinery neighborhoods, and for the past several years we have been fortunate to have Tom Kimball organize the event.

While we thank Tom for the excellent job he has done, it is time for someone else to step forward to take the “handlebars in hand.” Events such as this are impossible without the help of volunteers.

Please call the PHA office between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. weekdays to help perpetuate this fine Pinery tradition!

Ask your parents to call our Lake Committee Chairman, Doug Ravenholdt, or the PHA office at 303-841-8572, if they can volunteer to help make this event a wonderful success!

Please note that it is a federal offence to put unstamped articles in mailboxes! Any advertisings, notices, etc., must go through the postal system and are otherwise unlawful if stuffed into mail boxes.

Your consideration is appreciated.

Community Service Opportunities!

Are you a high school students looking for ways to fulfill community service requirements? Please check the PHA web page for opportunities right here in the Pinery!  Click here for more information.

Chuck Free has agreed to assist with mowing and Terry Smith has volunteered to fertilize and spray weeds. (THANK YOU TO BOTH OF THEM!) We still need volunteers to do trimming, weed-eating, occasional weed pulling, as well as additional mowers. Please call Tom at 303-840-6845. Helping out even once would be terrific!!!

Reminder: When heading out of town, please take extra care to ensure your dogs will not be running loose nor outside barking. If the board receives complaints and can not remedy the situation, we may be compelled to contact the sheriffs department.

During the April 3, 2001 meeting of the Architectural Control Committee, the election of three members was held. Each member will serve a two-year term was held.  Craig Haynes was re-elected, Tamara Hammond and Don Jacobsen were elected as new members to the board.  We welcome these members and want to thank all candidates for their commitment to maintaining the beauty of the Pinery.

Dick Nace and Dan Rohr chose not to run for a second and third term respectively.  We would like to take this opportunity to thank Dick and Dan for their many hours of service to the community in this capacity. 

Looking to Spring / Summer
We're entering that time of the year best suited for home fix-up and changes.  Take a look at your house and assess it's needs.  Is stain fading or paint peeling?  Please take this opportunity to correct any problems of this nature.  If your house colors are clearly within the earth tone range required by Covenants, and you will be re-painting or re-staining using the same colors, the ACC does not need to review the work.  If, however, there is any question as to whether the current colors were approved by the ACC, please submit color samples for review.  Please note that Re-application of unapproved colors is considered a Violation of Protective Covenants.

Any changes to the exterior of your property (including removal of trees) requires approval by the ACC prior to initiation of work.  Call 303-841-5305 if you have questions.

Garbage Cans and Air Conditioners
..don't seem to have much in common but, in our Covenants, trash containers and air conditioning units are to be "at the rear of dwellings and located on the site in such a manner as not to be conspicuous from the frontage street."  Please store your garbage containers out of view except on the day of pickup. 

With the warm summer we had last year, many may be considering the addition of air conditioning.  As with any change to the exterior, adding air conditioning units to the exterior requires approval by the ACC.  Please send a photo of the side of your house the unit is to be installed on with location indicated and a plot plan indicating location.

Many thanks to Jim Bagley for organizing the first Pinery Community Art Show. A total of thirty-seven art works including twenty-five mixed media and twelve photographs were beautifully displayed in a transformed community meeting room that would do any gallery proud.

To round out the exhibit, the Parker Artists’ Guild displayed paintings for viewing enjoyment only and were not part of the judged works.

Thank you to all who worked so hard to make this event happen: Jim Bagley, Doug Stephenson, Dave Kristick, John Bacon, Ron Henkel, Betty Arndt, Andrea Dickkut, and Pam Hostetler.

Special thanks to all the artists!

Photography:

• First Place – Ron Beller
• Second Place – Chauncey Walden
• Third Place – Doug Reed
• Honorable Mention – Brad Muir; Jessie Bartolac; Margot Terry

Mixed Media:

• First Place – Jean Bouquet
• Second Place – Lynn Richards
• Third Place – Kerry McGuire
• Honorable Mention – Lisa Fletcher-Hupman; Jim Bagley, Andrea Dickutt

Living in "The Pinery" offers many benefits that are often overlooked or forgotten in the fast pace of life these days. Amenities like our Bingham Lake, community parks, greenbelts and the rural and scenic surroundings we enjoy are often taken for granted.

Many of our greenbelts and open space areas are littered with papers, cans, bottles and other trash, seriously detracting from the beauty. This will eventually diminish home values and render our development less attractive for resale.

As usual after a long winter, a lot of our lawns and flowerbeds may be looking a bit spotty and in need of some care. A good way to help without using a lot of chemicals and fertilizers is through the use of “biosolids” from the Pinery Wastewater Treatment Plant. Don’t be afraid of where this purely organic compost comes from, it is perfectly safe and meets all State of Colorado standards for biosolids. In the April 2001 Pinery Waterline was a complete article about what they are and how good they are for the soil and lawns of your yards. I personally use them in my yard and they really help to cut down on the need for fertilizer and extra water when it is hot come August and September, not to mention how they make plants and grass grow.

In order to maximize the availability of this product to Pinery residents, we are going to be conducting an Open House during the PHA Large Item Drop off, currently scheduled for the 3^rd weekend of June (remember my comment about a busy June?). The only stipulations are that you must be a member of the district, fill out a short form so that we can track how they are used, and bring your own buckets, trailer, pick-up trucks, etc. We will limit people to a maximum of 5 cubic yards per year (about a pick-up or trailer load, the staff will have the front-end loader available for the larger containers, but please bring a shovel to help with the buckets and smaller loads), supplies this early in the year is limited, but more will be available later in the summer. We will also be conducting tours of the plant and recently completed new maintenance building. We hope that a lot of you will take this opportunity to not only get rid of a few large unwanted items, but also partake in a wonderful and organic way to spruce up your yards and flower beds.

As always, you are cordially invited to attend any of our monthly meetings. These are held monthly, 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, or give us a call at (303) 841-2797. Someone is always available to meet with you and discuss your concerns.

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

To be included on this years’ map which be distributed to “shoppers” as they enter the Pinery, please complete the form below and drop it off at the PHA office no later than Tuesday, May 29^th. You may want to post a garage sale sign on your property to help direct the shoppers as well.

The PHA will place classified ads in the Douglas County News Press, The Denver Post, and The Rocky Mountain News to publicize the community wide sale.

Start with the easiest and least expensive actions. Begin your work closest to your house and move outward. Keep working on the more difficult items until you have completed your entire project.

Two factors have emerged as the primary determinants of a home's ability to survive wildfire. These are the home's roofing material and the quality of the "defensible space" surrounding it. We have seen this proven at both the Hi Meadow and Bobcat Fires.

Defensible space is an area around the structure where fuels and vegetation are treated, cleared or reduced to slow the spread of wildfire towards the structure. It also reduces the chance of a structure fire moving from the building to the surrounding forest. Defensible space provides room for firefighters to do their jobs. Your house is more likely to withstand a wildfire if grasses, brush, trees and other common forest fuels are managed to reduce a fire's intensity.

The actual design and development of your defensible space depends on several factors: size and shape of buildings, building materials, slope of the ground on where the structure is built, topography, and size and type of vegetation on your property. You may want to request additional guidance and or suggestions from Parker Fire Protection District or the Colorado Forest Service.

Parker Fire Protection District has many avenues to assist a homeowner: a Free Wildfire Risk Assessment, educational materials, and two web sites with available material. We are currently looking for homes that will be models for wildfire mitigation. We have one site completed on Village Road. These homes will have a risk assessment conducted, a plan formulated and mitigation conducted FREE of charge.

Your home is located in a dynamic ever-changing environment. Trees and shrubs continue to grow, plants die and are damaged, new plants begin to grow, and plants drop their leaves and needles. Like other parts of your home, defensible space requires maintenance. Use the checklist on the previous page each year to determine if additional work or maintenance is necessary.

Depositing yard debris in the area greenbelts poses a serious fire danger!