Election

General / By

10/14/2022

The HOA Board Election will be held Thursday October 27 between 6:00 PM and 8:00 PM at the Clubhouse. The Annual HOA Board Meeting is Wednesday October 26 at 7:00PM to discuss the 4th quarter and yearly progress. We also will ask for any more nominations (as per By-laws) at this meeting.

Nomination committee members are:

Charlie Breier at CBBreier@comcast.net

Ken Madeja at KenMadeja@aol.com

Patrick Lee at leepa05@icloud.com  630-253-0542

There are two ways to vote: 

1. In-person at the clubhouse on Election Day

2. “Early Vote” via Election Committee member (authorized proxy)

In-person: Simply come to the the Clubhouse between 6:00 PM and 8:00 PM on October 27 to vote. We will supply the ballots. 

“Early Vote”: Before election day (October 27), please contact Nomination Committee members to accept your townhouse/resident ballot. A resident can drop off a ballot or use a ballot/envelope the nomination committee member will supply. In addition, if you want/need a nomination committee member to pick up your ballot at your townhouse, simply contact the nomination committee and one of us will stop by to accept/supply the ballot/envelope. Either way, the ballot will be put in a sealed envelope and signed on the back by both the nomination committee member and the resident. The ballot will be kept in a secure location, verified and combined with the ballots accepted on election day.

This election is for 2 open director positions. Residents can vote for two different names on the ballot. Only one ballot per townhouse (resident) is accepted/valid. Ballots will be counted by the committee starting at 8:01 PM on Election Day.  

This election’s nominations are: 

Don Wittmer

Lela (Elizabeth) LaHa

Mike Hohlman

Their nomination applications are attached and available on the website in Documents.

The nomination committee is meeting to discuss Election Day logistics as this is our first time. We will send out an “Early Vote” ballot shortly.

Landscaping

Landscaping / By

09/23/1956

1. Bush Trimming is completed. There will be some more “fall cleanup” later on. 

2. The White Flag Areas “to be addressed this year” have been selected. We could not afford to address all areas. There will be a lot of dirt and seed nets applied to the areas to improve grass quality in the coming weeks. As explained previously, we have a “dirt quantity/quality” problem in many areas of Bella Vista, hence the lack of grass and many weeds. We are attempting to address that problem with this project. Unfortunately, we will not be able to make everybody happy this year.

3. All sprinkler systems are turned off.

A Few Things

Announcements / By

09/16/2022

White Flags – These are potential areas for topsoil and seed applications for the fall growing season. We will prioritize the candidates based upon “current grass quality” and cost, when the estimates come in.

Street Lights Issues  – Two Mandalay street lights are out. An electrician has been called. Possible fix next week, but we are at the mercy of their schedule in this new era.

Solicitors – We were visited by two ladies from Campbell Marketing trying to get customers to switch to Verizon. They were told to leave Bella Vista and they reluctantly did. 

HOA Election – If you want to run for an HOA Director position, read Lela’s email, give it careful thought and then submit your nomination. 

Reserve Fund Investment – Please read Don’s email about it. The policy has been posted on Bella Vista website under documents.

Sprinkler Heads – If there are any problems, let me know. We assume they all work perfectly unless we are told otherwise. 

Concrete Work – Hopefully we are starting some concrete sidewalk and mailbox work soon/today. Concrete contractors have been very unresponsive, so we won’t believe it until they show up. 

Clubhouse Signin / Use – We have discontinued the “signin requirement”. Please use good judgment in the clubhouse, as it is YOUR clubhouse. Please clean up and turn off lights when leaving. We can see security footage of all areas, so we do know who you are. 

Fall Landscaping Cleanup – We do NOT know when this will happen yet.

If you have any questions, let us know.

Landscaping Policy Updated

Landscaping / By

06-22-2022

Minor updates were made to the Landscaping Policy found in Documents regarding “responsibility for lights and whatever in mulch areas”. Any items placed in the mulch by residents are “at their own risk”. Landscapers and the HOA are not responsible for damages to these items, accidents may (and do) happen.

Trimming

Landscaping / By

06-20-2022

Trimming is happening. The landscapers will do their best to trim bushes properly, however if you have exotic plants or bonsai trees, that may not end well. Please be conservative with your “mulch plant” selections and get them approved BEFORE planting. Thank you.

Watering Schedule 2022

Landscaping / By

05-11-2022

Coral Gables – Borego – Zones 1 -15 – Monday, Wednesday, Saturday 4:00am to 11:00ish

Borego / Bella Vista – Zones 16 – 31 Sunday, Tuesday, Friday 4:00am to 11:00ish

Mandalay – – Zones 1 -15 – Monday, Wednesday, Saturday 4:00am to 11:00ish

Mandalay – Zones 16- 25 – Sunday, Tuesday, Friday 4:00am to 11:00ish

Solara – Zones 1 -9 – Monday, Wednesday, Saturday 4:00am to 9:00ish

Balboa – Zones 10 – 18 Sunday, Tuesday, Friday 4:00am to 9:00ish

Note: There may be extended watering times for certain zones (normally sodded areas) during drought conditions.

If you need to know your townhouse’s zone numbers and times (although times may change as we react to watering needs), let the HOA board know and we can investigate.

Architectural

General / By

05/09/2022

This is the season for “outdoor projects”, as winter has finally left us. 

Please be aware of the Architectural Review process for Bella Vista. Please DO NOT assume that your outdoor project falls into the categories of  “this one doesn’t matter” or “this can’t need approval” or “nobody will notice”. When in doubt, please ask.

Please fill out an architectural form for any project (as per Bella Vista Covenants/By-Laws, please review Article III, if necessary). These include, but not limited to… privacy fences, lattice, Satellite Dishes, awnings, exterior painting, concrete work, etc. 

The architectural forms are available at the clubhouse or on the website.

Lela Laha is the Architectural Committee Chairperson. Please work with Lela for approvals.

Also, please keep in mind, for spring planting projects, please adhere to the Landscaping Policy documented on the website.

Mulch Edging and Aeration Issues

Landscaping / By

04-23-2022

MULCH EDGING:The Landscapers will be cutting the edges on the Mulch beds relatively soon (no exact date yet). In order to make this as painless as possible for Xfinity and AT&T customers, the HOA suggests you mark where your line comes in from the grass to the mulch bed with a very visible stake/whatever. If you need a stake, let me know as those short white stakes (that some residents are rumored to use as target practice) are perfect. The HOA has 20 or 30 (I lost count), so If you want one, let me know (offer good until I run out). If you need help, let me know.
AERATION:The recent Aeration caused about 6 or 7 residents pain and suffering as Xfinity and AT&T are supposed to bury their cables at least 6 inches deep, but they DO NOT. Our aeration cores measure maximum 3 inches, so no lines should have been cut, as 3 is less than 6, even these days. Unfortunately, the story (direct from a AT&T guy) is that they “contract out” the “bury job” and routinely bury lines 1-3 inches deep, costing AT&T millions of dollars a year to rebury lines. If your line isn’t buried yet, please tell them to bury yours deep! 

Dues Policy

General / By

Over the last few months, the HOA Board has frequently discussed the ongoing problem of “delinquent monthly dues/assessments payments”. After much discussion, we have decided to assess “late charges” for offenders. This does not mean you will get charged for 5 or 10 days late, but it does mean if there is a pattern as per policy, there will be a late charge assessed. 

There are simple ways to avoid this problem:

1. Schedule an automated payment via your bank. (Push a payment)

2. Schedule an automated payment via our HOA Financial Service CSM. (Pull a payment)

Both are very secure and both avoid late fees. 

Your CSM account has a full history of your payments for your reference. 

The policy document is posted on the Bella Vista website under documents. Please read the policy and if you have questions, let us know. Thanks.  

Insurance Coverage and Roof Policy

General / By

04-06-2022

The HOA Board has posted the Insurance-Roof Policy on the website under documents. 
If you don’t read anything else in the policy, please read the following. 

  1. It is important to mention that it is the responsibility of the homeowner to ensure that their insurance policy includes the roof of their unit. Some townhome policies may have been erroneously written as a “condo” policy which does not include the roof of the condo since in a condo building the roof is generally considered a common area item.

If you have any doubt as to what your insurance policy covers, please, please call your agent and ask, as it needs to cover 100% of the replacement cost of your townhouse, which includes the roof. Please do not assume “all is well”, as it may not be.

Reserve Study Meeting and Document Posted

Financials / By

03/09/2022
The Bella Vista 2022 Reserve Study document has been posted on the Website (bellavistabolingbrook.org) under Documents. If you have problems accessing it, let me know. 
There will be a general  “Reserve Study” meeting on Wednesday March 23 2022 at 7:00 at the clubhouse to provide an overview and answer some questions. 
Please keep in mind that a Reserve Study is strictly an educated projection of future revenues, potential costs and the timing of those costs. One of the purposes of a Reserve Study is to try to avoid special assessments for known expenses over the next 30 years. 
Please compile your questions after reading the Reserve Study. While we will try to answer all questions, please keep in mind that we cannot always predict the future, even though we do try. 

Buyer Capital Contribution Policy

Financials / By

02/22/2022

The HOA has approved a Buyer Capital Contribution Policy to help defer the costs of both the HOA and CSM to register a new resident of Bella Vista. This is to offset the addition time and expense with dealing with the legal documents from the Closing. It also covers the setup of CSM and additional Bella Vista paperwork/key fobs and insurance issues. The document is posted in the documents section of this website.