Important neighborhood updates

Important updates / reminders from the HOA BOD.

1) Halloween is on Halloween this year, Saturday October 31st. Please turn on your porchlight from 5:00 - 8:00pm if you will be home and passing out candy for the kids.


2) The BOD wanted to remind everyone about maintaining their front yard light post. It has been brought to our attention that some of the neighborhood light posts are not working.

Our by-laws address the front yard light posts and the responsibility of the Owner to maintain it and to ensure that it is illuminated at night. See 6.5j in our by-laws, included below.

Please take this opportunity to check that your front yard light post is in good working order. Now is a great time to do so and if bulbs need to be replaced, that they are done so before the cold weather hits.

6.5(j) Declarant will install a front yard light post and lantern in a style and from a
manufacturer selected by Declarant. The first Occupant after Declarant shall energize the
front yard light post and lantern prior to occupancy. Each successive Owner shall
maintain the front yard light post and lantern in good and working condition and replace
such components when necessary with the same or a similar style as approved by the
ACC. The light post and lantern must be (1) located at least 5 feet and no more than 10
feet from the front street; (2) adjacent to the driveway; (3) elevated to a height of at least
6 feet; and (4) illuminated from dawn to dusk by means of a photo cell. Prior to
occupancy of a residence on a Lot, the Owner shall demonstrate to the ACC that such
light post and lantern is connected to electrical service (paid for by such Owner). No
owner shall tamper with such lantern controls.

3) Brush Pickup
The Town of Lisbon Fall brush pickup will begin on Monday, October 19, 2009.
Residents are asked to have their brush out by 6:00am that day. Only one pass will be
made through the Town and will take approximately one and a half weeks to complete.
No branches will be picked up that are over 8 feet in length.
Branches over 5 inches in diameter should be cut up and used for firewood.
All branches should be neatly stacked with the butt ends facing the road.
The crew will not pick up from vacant lots or new construction.
No stumps, railroad ties and landscape timbers are allowed.
No garden and yard waste, bagged, boxed or other containers of brush will be
picked up. Please take these items to the Compost site on Plainview Road.

4) Finally, the BOD would like to form a committee that would help to plan events or get-togethers throughout the year, whether it be a neighborhood cookout, Holiday parties, neighborhood golf, baseball game, etc. If you are interested in sharing your ideas and helping to plan some of these events, please let the board know at lakefiveestates@wi.rr.com.

Thanks in advance for your attention to these matters. As always, please provide the BOD any feedback on these items or anything else that you believe should be addressed.

Lake Five Estates BOD.

The HOA will begin to use the blog to increase communication by posting important information on the boards activities along with any information or announcements that the neighborhood should be aware of.

Update for the week of 9/15/09:

1) A new board was elected at the last HOA meeting. Your new board is as following:

- President - John Schneider
- VP - Jeff Engaldo
- Sec/Treasurer - Mark Urbin
- Leslie Malotky and Jim Strobel will remain on the board.

2) As a reminder, HOA dues in the amount of $400 are due on or before September 15, 2009. Please drop them off or mail to Mark Urbin. Any dues not paid within 10 days after the due date will be considered delinquent and the Association Member will be charged at 12% per annum on the unpaid dues. See section 6.2 of our by-laws.

3) Effective 8/29/2009 Leslie Malotky, Jeff Engaldo and Cindy Vance were nominated and approved as members of the HOA ACC. Thanks to all of them for agreeing to commit their time and expertise to this important role.

To further develop the ACC, the board as asked Leslie to put together a formal charter for this committee. This charter will include the following:

- The ACC will report all activity to the board monthly
- The ACC has the authority to approve or deny requests that are submitted
- The HOA BoD will act as the escalation point for disputes with the ACC and should be asked to facilitate or mediate any problems
- Decisions made by the BoD by majority vote shall be considered final.

4-Jun-07 HOA Meeting

Watch this space...

An interesting view!

Google Earth has an interesting view of the subdivision; click the picture for a larger view and use the "back" key to return to the main page

1-May-07 HOA Meeting

Tuesday, May 1st from 7-9pm
Sussex Library
Agenda
click image for details; "back" to return















Opening Comments (Leslie)
Garbage handling--please put garbage in closed/tied bags to avoid the trash from scattering durig pickup? Thx!

Common areas--please organize with your nearby neighbors to "Spring-clean" the areas near your home

Finances (Dave)
KEI contract has been renewed for maintenance of our common area; this year’s contract is about $2,700 less.

Insurance increase this year is to include fidelity bond required by the By-Laws as well as liability for the Association Directors and Officers.

The legal fund has reached it’s required $14,000 limit.

Data:






Committee Updates

Landscaping Update (Jim)
Reviewed plan for 2007 common areas maintenance.

Twin Pines does NOT have town-provided and town-serviced lights. Lisbon will install standard (wooden pole w/cross arm)street light for $1,850 and cover all electrical charges if desired.

Any plans to change the neighborhood entrance must be reviewed and approved by the Town of Lisbon.

Reviewed the current draft proposal for our front entrance enhancements. Due to cost, any plans would most likely be broken down into phases. Improvements will be subject to neighborhood vote prior to any activity being done. We (the board) hope to have additional proposals available to review at the June 4th meeting. Voting would be done via registered mail to give everyone an opportunity to vote.

ACC (Cindy Vance) & Enforcements (Mark Vance)
A brief summary of each area was shared.

Upcoming Election
With some debate, a tentative decision was reached:
Elections are not required as there are 5 candidates

New Board
Mark Vance, Lot 13
My wife and I, along with our two boys, have lived in Lake Five Estates for 5½ years. I am a CPA with 20 years of business experience. Currently I am self-employed and have a very limited work schedule so I have the time to volunteer to serve on the board. I believe we have a small subdivision and my goals for the board are simple:
· Keep our association fees as low as possible.
· Keep all homeowners well informed on significant decisions.
· Seek input from homeowners before any significant changes in the way the association operates.
· Use common sense to resolve issues that may arise.
· Maintain the current quality of our subdivision.
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MaryAnn Camacho, Lot 21 aka "Jerry's wife"
My motive as one of the newest members of this neighborhood community is to get to know people. I firmly believe you get out what you put in to something. Jerry and I have moved 8 times in 13 years and we're done moving. We plan to stay here and want to do our part to give back to the neighborhood and make a home.

I have over 20 years industry experience and am currently the General Manager for a team in our largest Service Division at GE Healthcare. My portfolio includes technical and process engineering as well as conflict resolution and negotiations. I have specific experience in HOA duties supporting Jerry as Treasurer for one of our previous subdivisions. I also served as an active "hands-on" landscape committee member. I volunteer in the community on several projects including direct leadership for major school makeovers in the inner-city every summer.

I see the subdivision's beautiful homes and know they are an investment we've all chosen to make. I am sensitive that it takes money to care for these assets and our surrounding subdivision. We should be prudent in our expenses and diligent in our administration of them. I plan to carry forward the great steps that have already been laid by the current board and leverage their experience and processes as we move forward.
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Kay Kaun, Lot #23
Jay and I moved here over a year ago, and love the neighborhood. I felt it was time for me to get involved in the Association and what better way than to volunteer for the board. I feel that the area we live in is beautiful and would like to be involved in insuring that it stays that way. I would work to keep expenses in line and still maintain the high level of quality that our neighborhood currently has.

I have a 4 year degree in accounting. I have worked in banking over 20 years, the last 10 as a Sr. V.P. Controller. After banking, I worked 4 years at an accounting firm. The last 3 years I have been "retired".
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Leslie Malotky, Lot 8
Current President
Along with my husband, John, and children, I have lived in the neighborhood for almost 5 years, the last two of which I have served as the Board President. I work in the information technology field and have 14 years of business experience managing people and projects around the globe in industries ranging from heavy machinery manufacturing in the oil and energy trade to information systems in the financial services business. I am a certified project manager, a Six Sigma Green Belt and a classically trained soprano. The board has done a lot of work toward establishing things like procedures for neighborly complaints and maintenance of common areas. My current goal for our neighborhood is to maintain the level of quality we have while keeping the business side of things as practical, equitable and efficient as possible so that we can move our focus on to becoming a community.
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Jim Strobel. Lot 2
Current Board Member
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Thoughts and comments are welcome!

9/25/06 Meeting Agenda

Monday, September 25, 2006
Pauline Haass Library
N64 W23820 Main Street
Sussex, WI 53089

• 6:30 p.m. Arrive / Set up / Organize / Socialize
  
  
• 7:00 p.m. Open Subdivision Meeting
  
  • Call to Order
    
  • Introduction of Members
    
  • Review & Approve Agenda
  
  
• 7:10 p.m. Opening Comments
  
  • Recognition of Speakers
    
  • Review of Recent Communications
    
  • Paperless Communication
    
  • Opening for Secretary
    
  • 2007 Board Elections
    
  • Restriction on Dues Increases
  
  
• 7:25 p.m. Common Area Maintenance
  
  • Review of new landscaping contract
  
  
• 7:45 p.m. Financials
  
  • Review of budget and expenses
  
  
• 8:05 p.m. Committees
  
  • Enforcement Process
  
  
• 8:30 p.m. Open Discussion
  
  • General Topics of Interest

Neighborhood Communication

The Board has received numerous comments with regard to neighborhood documents being distributed in various ways. To clarify for everyone, any communication from the Lake Five Estates Board of Directors will come from lakefiveestates@wi.rr.com or through the US Postal Service. Such communications will either be signed by the Board or their point of origination will be obvious (for example, there is no signature on the post card you received announcing the next meeting but the source is obvious).

The Board of Directors DOES NOT place unmailed flyers into mailboxes and DOES NOT distribute personal information from one homeowner to another unless we are specifically referring an inquiry to somebody who has volunteered to be on a committee such as the ACC or Landscaping committee. Any other information you may have received was not affiliated with the Board.

As several homeowners have pointed out, putting unmailed flyers or papers into a mailbox is a federal offense. The law requires anything put in a mailbox to have proper postage affixed AND to be delivered through the US Postal Service. A few owners have discussed reporting such incidents to local authorities. This is also the Board's recommendation if you are concerned about this activity as it does fall under the jurisdiction of the local authorities.

Sincerely,
Leslie Malotky - President
Lake Five Estates Community Association, Inc.

Sept. 2006 Association Meeting

Monday, September 25^th, 2006
Sussex Library
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Agenda will be posted here shortly.

**A lot of neighborhood communication is done via email. To save postage costs, we would like to make this our exclusive mode of communication with opt-out options for non-essential communications. If you would like to receive email communications from Lake Five Estates HOA, please send a note to lakefiveestates@wi.rr.com

Common Address Ordinance

Here is an article of interest from the Sussex Sun regarding Lisbon's enforcement of the common address ordinance:
Link to Sussex Sun

Discussion of Dues Increase and Covenant Changes

Thank you for your recent comments and feedback via email regarding the increase in dues. In response, I am of the opinion that this is YOUR association and the board members have been appointed to administer any necessary services and uphold the covenants. Those who attended the meeting prior to the elections wanted a commitment from each candidate that we would not
make modifications to the covenants during the first term of the homeowner-run Board and we have strived to meet that commitment despite multiple opportunities to make some rules more reasonable and clear.

Nonetheless, it is within your rights as homeowners to make any changes or modification to the rules that govern the Association provided we have a majority vote in favor of the change. To be clear, by majority I mean at least 50% of the votes to be cast (16 in most cases) must be in favor of the change, abstentions will be counted as part of the total. (For more details on this requirement, see Article 2 of our By-Laws, section 2.2b).

I am glad to see that you are openly discussing these issues and sharing your ideas with each other. To be fair to those who are not on the Lake Five Estates email distribution, I would require that we provide an advance written communication to everyone should the Association chose to move forward with a vote.

To aid in your discussions, I submit to you the following details:

1) The dues this year were adjusted based primarily upon actual fixed costs (electricity, care of common areas, etc). This is one of the main reasons that a vote was not held - those items that would be candidates for removal would not have had a significant impact on the overall budget.

2) The $600 budgeted for administration includes costs to cover postage and printing supplies for mailings, which we try to keep to a minimum. If everyone was willing to rely on electronic communication, that would reduce some of our costs.

3) The administration budget also includes a few hundred dollars to have an attorney review our CCRs and the to-be-developed enforcement procedures. The Board has been very generous with waivers for those who have sought them (to the dismay of some homeowners). The additional money budgeted for an attorney is a direct result of those homeowners who neither follow the rules nor communicate to the Board the reason they need a waiver.

4) In the past year, each member contributed $75 through their dues to replenish the Association's Litigation fund. The fund was depleted as a result of two situations which required legal action to be taken. This cost was despite one case resulting in a court order for the defendent to partially reimburse the Association's legal costs and the other case settling out of court. This demonstrates how costly it can be for all of us when just one member of the Association fails to abide by the CCRs or respond to written notices from the Board. It also demonstrates why it is so critical for us to establish effective enforcement procedures that make litigation a final attempt only.

5) The landscaping contract for the next year reflects a significant cost increase. Many people are under the impression that the contract only covers mowing because that was the only visible work provided under the previous contract. Mowing in the new contract (near weekly mowing of most common areas, rough cut of the larger outlots like the one behind lots 13 - 16 twice a year) is less than 50% of the total cost. The new contract includes the application of 50 yards of mulch, applied fertilizer and weed control products in turf areas and plantings 3 - 4 times per year, hand weeding of planting beds weekly, regular pruning of trees and bushes, winter preparation pruning of trees and bushes, leaf removal and clean-up in the fall, general clean-up and winter damage repair in the spring, and more. These are all things that need to be done with some frequency (I realize that there are wide opinion differences in the mowing requirements). Note that this contract does not include any enhancements to the entrance or any planting or maintenance of annuals, those are services we are "saving up for" with our reserve funds to avoid any special assessments. I feel confident that this contract provides a good compromise between cost and desired services.

6) When comparing our neighborhood to others, please make sure you are making fair comparisons. We have about a 90 acre neighborhood with 30 homes which is an average of three acres per home. A significant portion of our neighborhood is protected natural reserve area, including wetlands and wildlife habitat. This provides for privacy, beautiful scenery and integration with nature that you would not get on a 1/2 acre lot in a neighboring community. Furthermore, their dues are probably lower because of the revenue generated from the public golf courses in their neighborhoods while we have homeowners who don’t even want walking trails passing their property. If you know someone in a neighborhood of similar size with similar features that is paying less for dues, I would be more than happy to contact the president of their association to discuss how they have been able to do it.

7) As a reminder, the Board of Directors consisted of the developers prior to earlier last year. The By-Laws and Covenants have always been the governing documents but I understand that they have not always been upheld or referred to in dealings many of you had with "the Board" in the past. When control was transferred to the homeowners, we assumed control of Lake Five Estates Community Association, Inc. with no information or documentation on any previous agreements made with homeowners. Out of fairness to everyone, the CCRs will prevail when discrepancies are found between actions taken by the previous and current Board members.

I hope these points help you to better understand the challenges facing the Board and how decisions made by individual homeowners can impact the cost to everyone. The books are open for anyone to see and we do try to respond as thoroughly as possible to your questions. I am confident that each board member respects the need to manage your hard earned money with the same care and discernment with which they handle their own.

Warm regards,

Leslie Malotky - President
Lake Five Estates Community Association, Inc.

Neighborhood Reminder

Hello Friends and Neighbors,

I continue to receive regular reports of neighbors who are in violation of neighborhood rules - the two most common reports are cars not parked in garages and yard lights not being lit from dusk to dawn. Both of these situations are specifically described, in no uncertain terms, in the Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions as being violations of neighborhood rules.

The processing of complaints and enforcement procedures are time consuming and costly to both Board members and your fellow neighbors. I would ask that you please respect the spirit of the covenants and take whatever actions necessary to both ensure your compliance and respect the rights of your neighbors to live in a neighborhood that meets the expectations set forth in the documents we all received upon moving into Lake Five Estates. Making some room in your garage or calling an electrician are two easy ways to maintain a consistent standard of property maintenance.

To further address this concern, I am asking for volunteers to participate in a committee to establish consistent enforcement procedures. I have also asked the other Board members to approve funds to have an attorney review our CCRs and the proposed enforcement procedure and these funds have been included as administrative fees in the recent dues collection. My main priorities in this matter are balancing the best interests of the neighborhood with the Board's obligations and what can be legally supported.

Warmly,

Leslie Malotky - President
Lake Five Estates Community Association, Inc.

Question About Garbage Collection

Q: What can be done about the garbage that gets blown into our yards and common areas?

A: The Board has contacted our waste services provider to notify them of the recurring problem of garbage falling off of their trucks. They have indicated that they will remind the drivers of their responsibility to pick up any garbage that is dropped during their route. If you continue to have problems, contact the Board for a phone number to reach them directly. To help prevent problems, please make sure your garbage is set out in tightly tied bags and that your recyclable paper is also tied securely.

Leslie Malotky - President
Lake Five Estates Community Association, Inc.

Question About New Owners

Q: How do we know that future neighbors purchasing existing homes will be aware of the CCRs?

A: Sellers are required by law to disclose if an Association governs the property. Many realtors send a questionnaire directly to the Board to get more information. In addition, the Board has directly contacted every agent with a listing in our neighborhood to inform them of our covenants and to offer assistance should potential buyers have further questions.

Leslie Malotky
President - Lake Five Estates Community Association, Inc.

Landscaping Update

We are finally starting to get some warmer days and the board would like to bring you up to date on developments and plans for the upcoming summer season in our subdivision.

The Landscaping committee has been hard at work with maintenance plans for the 2006 growing season. After providing specifications to eight contractors and inviting them to tour our site, they narrowed the bids to three. Then, based on cost vs. benefits, the committee recommended to the Board who we should contract with. The board unanimously accepted their recommendation and you may have already seen their trucks in our neighborhood.

We think you are going to be pleasantly surprised. Our chosen provider comes with some outstanding references including Miller Park, Marquette University and several upscale subdivisions. In addition to the normal maintenance, they have agreed to help us with capital improvements well into the future. Not only were we impressed with their suggestions and capabilities, their price was the lowest of the three final bidders.

While we have the funds to initiate the contract and take us through the first few months, the 2007 dues we will begin collecting this June are necessary to complete the contract. Your timely response to our request for dues is essential to maintaining and improving our image. Should you have further questions about the services provided by, please contact the Board.

Speaking of images, summer is also the time of the year when it is easy to slip with covenant compliance. This has, and continues to be, a delicate area for the Board. We want to recognize and respect everyone’s right to enjoy their property and display their individuality, but it is critical that we maintain our overall appearance. We ask that you not only respect the written mandates of the covenants but also the spirit. As outlined in our member meeting last fall, we do have a procedure for variances should you have a temporary and unavoidable need.

We also expect that there will be considerable construction activity this summer in the Twin Pines subdivision. With the prevailing westerly winds, we can expect construction debris coming our way. When you see it, please pick it up and dispose of it.

As always, we welcome your constructive suggestions and comments….

Leslie, Jim and Dave

New Landscaping Service

A new landscaping service was selected after the landscaping committee reviewed several proposals and the Board approved their recommended service provider. They have been doing a wonderful job managing our relationship with our new vendor and handing any contract and service questions. While we have had to request a few changes to the work they have performed, we are seeing a much more consistent and quality level of service.

Board Annoucement

With much regret, I must announce that I have accepted the resignations of Don and Amy from their positions as board members. During the past several months while we transitioned from the old administration to the new, the Board has had weekly meetings and detailed homework assignments while we became familiar with all of the legal, procedural, financial and other challenges facing us. Don and Amy were major contributors to those efforts and we owe them a debt of gratitude for their hard work.

As we move forward, the remaining members of the board (Leslie, Jim and Dave) feel that the heavy work has been done and we can effectively administer the subdivision activities with three board members. We have had success by appointing special committees to handle certain activities and will make more opportunities available in the future for others to get involved in.

We wish Don and Amy success in their personal lives and are proud to call them our neighbors!

Sincerely,

Leslie Malotky
President - Lake Five Estates Community Association, Inc.

Board Restructuring

The Board has restructured following the resignation of two members. Current Board members are Leslie Malotky (President), Dave DeYoung (Treasurer and Secretary) and Jim Strobel (Board Member). The Board has been pleased with the results realized through the use of special committees to address specific topic areas (i.e. Architectural Control and Landscaping committees) and would like to thank those homeowners who have volunteered their time.

Subdivision Lot Information

Control Documents:

By Laws Subdivision Homeowners Association Rules Architectural Control Board Rules

Minimum Living Area Requirements

Single Story: 2,300 Square feet Two Story: 2,850 Square feet

All lots have pre-approved septic systems

Mound lots are in 1-12,29, and 30; All others are in-ground systems. Underground gas, electric, telephone & cable are available Overhead Map Directions

Lake Five Area Special Features

Minutes away from shopping, dining, churches, and entertainment	Access to almost 15 acres of additional land dedicated to Waukesha County
2 miles to Town of Lisbon Park offering picnic sites, playgrounds, baseball and volleyball	2 Private Ski Hills less than 8 minutes away
7 Championship Golf Courses less then 20 minutes away	2 miles to County Bug Line for walking, biking, horses and snowmobiling
Area Schools
Merton Elementary School	Arrowhead High School

A Note From The President

June, 2005

“Your new board is looking forward to serving the homeowners of our beautiful neighborhood with care and dedication! We have had the opportunity to meet and get to know each other a little better, as well as to begin organizing ourselves as a team and start identifying our objectives.

“We have received tremendous feedback from many of your neighbors and understand there is a significant amount of work to be done. To meet that challenge, we plan to meet weekly until we are able to meet your expectations by addressing your concerns, including disclosure of Association financial information, consistent processes for dealing with complaints and covenant violations, and proposals for improvements to our entry and common area landscaping. As we discuss these issues and others, agendas and minutes for future board meetings will be made public.

“We believe that each member serving on the board has only our neighborhood's best interests at heart, and I am excited to work with a group of people who share my values of ethical service to others, equitable enforcement of the covenants, and preserving everyone's basic human right to being treated with respect and courtesy.”

Leslie Malotky – President
Lake Five Estates Community Association, Inc.