Fairlington Glen

NEWSLETTER                                                                                                              November 2005

 

NOVEMBER 1ST BOARD MEETING

 

SNOW PLOWING. The Board approved a bid from NVM Contractors for snow plowing this winter. Costs include $120 per hour for the Bobcat Loader, $115 per hour for the Plow Truck, and $250 per ton for sand plus a $75 delivery charge.

 

TRASH. The Board approved a bid from Capitol Services for trash removal and recycling for 2006 at a cost of $4,645.44 per month.

 

LANDSCAPE. The Board approved a bid from Living Colour for landscape work and creation of a stepping stone path in Court 16 at a cost of $495.

 

 

ANNUAL MEETING

 

The Annual Meeting will be held on December 6th in the Fairlington Community Center. You should have received your meeting package including proxy forms. Please return the proxy forms as soon as possible, whether or not you plan on attending, to ensure the necessary quorum to conduct business. Proxies must be sent to Legum & Norman by November 28th. Your proxy is important, so please return it promptly.

 

 

B&G CANDIDATES FORUM

 

At 7:30 on Tuesday, November 15th, the Building & Grounds Committee will hold a Candidates Forum in the Fairlington Community Center. All those running for the Board are invited to meet the residents. There will be a question and answer session following brief remarks by the candidates.

 

 

PREVENTING BURST WATER PIPES

 

Unless you live in a Braddock, please secure your outside faucets (front and back) in order to prevent burst water pipes when the temperature drops and the weather remains cold. In the Barcroft units there is one valve to control both faucets located above the hot water heater in the utility room. For other units there are two valves ... one behind the disposal under the sink for the patio faucet and one over the hot water heater in the utility room for the front faucet. To shut off the water, turn the valves off inside the unit and open the valves outside in order to drain the pipes and keep them from freezing. Leave the heat in your unit on to at least 55 degrees (even when you are away) to prevent broken pipes.

 

 

CHECK FOR LEAKS

 

Water leaks are expensive to the Glen and may waste thousands of gallons of water. Potential sources for leaks include washers in faucets and shower heads, washing machine hoses, ice maker lines, HVAC units, and dishwashers. It is recommended that residents inspect their homes quarterly. It is also prudent to equip showers, sinks, and tubs with drain screens to catch the debris, hair, and bits of soap that can cause clogs and back-ups. During the quarterly inspection residents should check all exposed pipes for leaks and check all faucets for leaks or corrosion. Inspection of the rubber connecting hoses for dishwashers and washing machines is essential since, contrary to what some believe, such hoses do not last forever. Because these hoses wear from the inside out, a visual inspection will usually not reveal any worn spots and these hoses should generally be replaced every three to five years, or sooner if evidence of rot appears. The most substantial loss of water can come from our bathroom toilets:

 

•        Your toilet may have a leak at the overflow pipe if water is still running into the bowl or if water can be heard running after the tank has stopped filling.

 

•        You may have a silent, plunger-ball leak. To test for a silent leak, drop some food coloring into the tank and wait ten minutes. If the food coloring appears in the toilet bowl there is a silent leak.

 

 

FAIRLINGTON AT 50

 

Fairlington at 50 - 60th Anniversary Edition. A history of Fairlington, along with photographs (1943-2003), authored by resident Catherine Fellows, are available at $20. Order by calling 703-379-6860 (Sandy).

 

 

PHONE LISTS

 

The list of phone numbers and email addresses for the Board, Court Representatives, and other Glen personnel is attached. Changes to this list should be provided to Charlie Robbins at 703-998-6815 or at charles_robbins@hotmail.com

 

 

RICKY’S CORNER

 

•        Please inform your contractors (e.g., repairs, deliveries, moving) that they are not allowed to park on the grass. Should damage to grass or other landscape items occur due to your contractors, the unit co-owner will be assessed for the cost of repairs.

 

 

REMINDERS

 

THANKSGIVING DAY. Thanksgiving Day is Thursday November 24th. Please do not put trash out since it will not be picked up. Regular trash pickup will continue on Friday, November 25th. Have a wonderful holiday weekend.

 

PARKING. Parking spaces in the courtyards are assigned to residents for their sole use. There have been instances where contractors and delivery personnel park in the courtyards while conducting their business. Please inform these personnel that the parking spaces are reserved and they need to park in the street. In addition, with the holiday season upon us, many residents will be inviting guests to participate in the festivities. Please make sure they are aware that the parking spaces are reserved. This small courtesy to your neighbors goes a long way.

 

EXTERIOR RODENT AND PEST CONTROL. Avoid attracting rodents by preventing access to food supplies. All residents should:

 

         •        Make access into homes difficult by putting screening around any ducts or holes in the outer walls.

         •        Ensure that pet food and litter is disposed of promptly. This includes both the common areas and your patios.

         •        If you can not put garbage out for the regular pickup and store it on your patio, place it in a closed receptacle.

 

The Glen has a contract with Triple “S” for exterior rodent control problems only. If you see mouse or rat droppings or have actually seen the critters, call 703-352-7738 and ask to speak to P.J. Gilmer. Do not call Ricky. Please do not try to get rid of them yourself; you may end up destroying wildlife which is harmless to you and the community. If you have an exterior general pest control problem (ants, termites, bees, wasps, yellow jackets, etc.) please call the maintenance office and leave a message for Ricky.

 

SEWER LINES. While sewer backups are very infrequent due to the efforts of Ricky and his crew plus our sewer replacement efforts, they still occur. We need to support ongoing efforts by keeping items that contribute to sewer blockages and backups out of the sewer system so that neither you nor your neighbors have to experience a backup. Please be considerate by not putting sanitary napkins, dental floss, baby wipes, paper towels, condoms, tampons, or diapers down the commode ... our sewers are designed solely for human waste. In addition, please inform your guests, house sitters, babysitters, etc. that our sewer lines are fragile and must be treated accordingly.

 

KITCHEN SINK BACKUPS. If you experience a backup of your kitchen sink, do not assume that the Glen is responsible ... most sink backups are the result of clogged pipes within the unit. The best way to determine where the fault lies is to flush the basement toilet. If it flushes properly, the backup is not a sewer problem and the co-owner is responsible for efforts to clear the backup. Please coordinate with your neighbors regarding both the repairs and what should and should not be placed in the sink drain since you probably share a common pipe.

 

RECYCLING. Materials that can be recycled are:

 

         •        Plastics with a 1 or 2 in the recycle symbol.

         •        Aluminum and tin cans with lids removed.

         •        Mixed glass including clear, brown, and green bottles and jars (not household items such as china, light bulbs, drinking glasses, etc.). Please remove plastic caps and rings.

         •        Newspapers in paper bags or tied with string (not in plastic bags since this adds to the recycling expense).

         •        Broken down corrugated boxes.

 

Please note the recycling of everything other than paper products does not need to be sorted prior to being placed in the containers. This is done after the recyclables are picked up so feel free to mix your glass, plastic, and aluminum. Please rinse all containers since containers with contaminants can not be recycled. Do not put recyclables in plastic bags.

 

COMMON AREAS. In order to maintain the quality of the Glen and ensure common areas are maintained in a consistent manner, significant restrictions are in place regarding what residents can do. When in doubt about doing something in common areas such as adding items to the flower beds, leaving personal articles in the common areas, and placing items on fences or having items in the patio area that are visible above the top of the fences, please check the Handbook or call Legum & Norman.

 

FENCES. Our fences are part of the common areas and must be treated accordingly. While the Glen repairs and replaces fences as needed, co-owners are responsible for the expense of damage caused by excessive wear and tear and other circumstances within the co-owner’s control. Examples of things that are not permitted are:

         •        painting either inside or outside

         •        attaching sheds

         •        hooking planters over the top ledge

         •        draping items over any portion

 

REPORTING PROBLEMS. You can contact Ricky and the chairpersons of the Landscape Subcommittee and Pool Committee by calling 703-820-9567. You can leave a message by pressing “1" for the Landscape Subcommittee and “2" for the Pool Committee. To leave a message for Ricky, wait for the tone at the end of the recorded message or press “9" or “#” to end the recorded message and go to the tone. Please be courteous and don’t call these people at home. If you have an after-hours emergency maintenance problem or can not reach Ricky after a reasonable time, please call the Legum & Norman 24-hour emergency repair number ... 703-600-6000

 

HANDBOOK. All residents and co-owners should have a copy of the Fairlington Glen Handbook dated November 1999. Please review it occasionally since it provides essential information to ensure that you and your neighbors enjoy the wonderful experience of living in the Glen.

 

 

MEETINGS

 

All Glen meetings are held in the Fairlington Community Center at 3308 South Stafford Street. All residents are welcome.

         •        Board of Directors, 7:30pm, 1st Tuesday of the month

         •        Building and Grounds Committee, 7:30pm, 3rd Tuesday of the month (no meetings in August, November, and December)

         •        Landscape Subcommittee, 7:00pm, 2nd Tuesday of the month (no meetings in July, November, and December)

 

 

ON THE INTERNET

 

Visit “http://www.fairlington.org/glenindex.htm” for draft Board minutes, newsletters, and the Handbook. Please contact John Fuller if you have comments on Fairlington Glen information on this site.

 

 

 

The Fairlington Glen Newsletter is a communication channel by which the Board of Directors disseminates information to Glen residents and co-owners. Please provide any comments or recommendations to the Board Secretary, John Fuller, at fairlingtonglen@aol.com, or to any other Board member, prior to the monthly Board of Directors meeting.