February 2002
Volume 4, Issue 2

SPRINGLAKES EASTER EGG HUNT AND PARTY

MARCH 16, 2002 10:00am 
Springlakes Park/Playground 
*Rain or Shine*

All Springlakes children are invited to an Easter Egg Hunt/Party . The party will be held in the Springlakes park/playground from 10:00 am until 11:30 am. Please arrive promptly at 10:00am so your child(ren) won’t miss the egg hunt! Please bring a bag or basket for collecting eggs. RSVP to Kristi Baker.

CHILDREN'S CHRISTMAS PARTY

Our children’s Christmas party was a huge success. There were approximately 50 children, plus parents at this years party! The children enjoyed decorating silver/gold pine cones, buttons, bags, cards, hats, and other holiday crafts. Santa brightened the day with his arrival. Everyone enjoyed the food and fellowship.

CHRISTMAS DECORATION AWARDS

1st Place - Mr. & Mrs. Earl Fagan, 154 Stone Mill Drive , Fat Man’s $40.00 gift certificate 

2nd Place - Mr. & Mrs. Joe Beam, 171 Kestwick Dr. East, Fat Man’s $30.00 gift certificate 

3rd Place - Mr. & Mrs. Paul Lejeume, 130 Springlakes Dr., Fat Man’s $20.00 gift certificate

Congratulations to all our winners!!!!

SPRINGLAKES OUT TO LUNCH BUNCH

March 12–Macaroni Grill 
August 13–Logan’s Roadhouse 
April 9–Rae’s Coastal Café 
September 10–The Upper Crust 
May 14–California Dreamin 
October 8–Cadwalladers 
June 11–Carrabas 
November 12–Monterrey (Washington Rd/Evans) 
July 9–Red Lobster 
December 10–French Market (Surrey Ctr)

The Springlakes “Lunch Bunch” would like to invite all interested ladies to join us for lunch the second Tuesday of every month. This is a great way for new residents to meet their neighbors and for old friends to catch up. The lunch bunch meets at 11:30am. Please call Sheila Pedraza (refer to the printed Springlakes directory for phone number) to arrange for seating ahead of time.

SEPTEMBER 11 FUNDRAISER

Congratulations and a job well done to John (8 years old) and Brian Buckley (6years old), directed by their mom, Leonie for a Springlakes neighborhood fundraiser for the September 11 tragedy. John and Brian went door to door collecting funds for the American Red Cross. After many hours of collections, a total of $1872.53 was collected from our neighborhood and matched by their parents. A donation was made to the American Red Cross in the amount of $3745.06 from Springlakes neighborhood. Thank-you to all who helped this be a huge success and WAY TO GO BRIAN AND JOHN FOR A JOB WELL DONE.

POOL COMMITTEE

Summer is just around the corner. The pool committee is working on plans for the upcoming season. The annual mid-winter pool membership meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, March 5, 2002, at 7:00 pm in the clubhouse. Topics to be discussed include management of the pool, budget, and improvements. All prospective pool members are invited to attend.

DIRECTORY CHANGES/CORRECTIONS

Any changes, additions, or corrections to the directory need to be made before March 15, 2002. 

Teen Services - If you would like to be added to the list or deleted from the present directory, please contact Charlene Rushin.

LOST AND FOUND

A green Gap (pieced wool) size 4 or 5 boys jacket was lost at the playground area. Please contact Lorraine Yarborough (refer to the printed Springlakes directory for phone number) if you found this jacket.

CRIME WATCH

Is your neighborhood as safe as you think it is? Do you want to find out what crimes, if any, have taken place in Springlakes and the surrounding area over the last year? If so, you are encouraged to attend a special CRIME WATCH MEETING AT THE SPRINGLAKES CLUBHOUSE ON TUESDAY, MARCH 19 AT 7 PM. The Columbia County Sheriff’s Department will be there to answer these questions, provide important safety tips for Master’s week and discuss any safety issues you might have. Refreshments will be served. We hope to see you there! 

Concerns still exist in the neighborhood about speeding and unsafe vehicle operation. Many of these issues were discussed at the recent Springlakes Community Association annual meeting. Plans for speed humps at key locations are currently being reviewed at the county level. Routine patrol by the Sheriff's Department continues to reinforce our desire for safe streets in our neighborhood. We ask all residents to share in this goal by driving responsibly, especially to and from work, and at night when low visibility can make it hazardous for pedestrians. 

After many years of dedicated service to the Springlakes community. Karen Lombardy has stepped down as the Crime Watch Committee Chairperson. She has worked hard to make the program effective and keep pace with changes at the Sheriff's Department. We appreciate her efforts to keep Springlakes a safe neighborhood for all residents. The 2002 Crime Watch Committee will be co-chaired by Bryan and Janet Drouin.

PRESIDENT'S NOTE

I would like to express my appreciation for your support this past year with the many activities of the Association and would ask for your continued support for the coming year. During the annual meeting in January there were a number of difficult issues discussed and hopefully the outcome will make Springlakes Community and Association even stronger. I am very pleased and welcome the new Board of Directors and Committee members. They bring added diversity and insight to keep our community at its best as I finish up my last term as President and on the Board of Directors.

During the annual meeting there were a number of questions on the Board of Directors election process and ballot votes. Since then, the Association attorney, Doug Bachelor has written a legal opinion on the election regarding the use of cumulative voting and proxy ballots at the Annual meeting. The Association accounting firm, Berry & Associates then recounted the ballots based upon this opinion. When the votes were recounted in accordance with the legal opinion and again recounted without any cumulative or proxy votes, the results of the election did not change. A new bylaws committee is being formed and will be chaired by Larry Flynn who made the motion to form the committee during the annual meeting. This committee will review and recommend updates to our Association bylaws using the opinion and voting results as reference. Bylaws review items will include cumulative voting, Board of Director term and fiscal limits. Please give Larry a call if you have input to this committee. Once the bylaws changes have been proposed, a special mid-year meeting will be scheduled for the Springlakes homeowners to vote on these bylaws changes.

Following the annual meeting, the Cofield/McBride pond homeowners accepted the Board of Directors proposal for the Association to take ownership of the pond and make improvements to the pond with a one-time $800 fee paid by each pond homeowners at closing. The property is expected to close in March. In the mean time, Tom Dunn, the pond developer agreed to have the power turned on to the well and the pond level has risen dramatically to almost acceptable levels.

The development of the new 7.5-acre Cofield property is underway. Bids are being secured to begin detailed engineering. A new Common Grounds Development committee is being formed to oversee the development of this new area in Phase I and the Clubhouse/Pool area in Phase II. The existing tennis courts surfaces are in poor condition and options are also being evaluated to repair or resurface these courts for now and eventually leave one court in the Phase II commons ground development. Detailed design is expected to be completed this spring and will be followed by securing financing and construction bids. Construction is expected to begin later this summer.

The Board of Directors is also looking at 9.6 acres at 4210 Day Road next to our new 7.5 acre Cofield property. The price on this property has dropped substantially; including a 4532 SQFT house ideally suited as a clubhouse, tennis court and two ponds. Options for securing this property are being evaluated and would be subject to a vote by the Springlakes homeowners at a special called meeting.

Our County Commissioner, Tom Mercer, has been keeping the Association updated on the Flowing Wells widening project. It appears it will be 2-3 years before construction begins. This will include a center median like Wheeler road and a light at the Quail Springs entrance. Currently easements and right of ways are being secured before the final widening project planning can proceed. We will keep you updated as they are made available.

We have a very busy year ahead with many ambitious projects. Special thanks to all of the volunteers who worked on the various committees last year and the coming year to make our community the best it can be! 

Again, thanks for your continued support! 

Reece Bridges

As we welcome in another New Year, it’s time for all of us to get ready for Spring. The warmer temperatures will give us an opportunity to get out in the yard and tidy up from the long winter. Spring is a time for planting and cleaning. Take a few weekends to spruce up and clean up around your properties – dispose of old yard waste, remove trash containers from view, screen air conditioning units, sweep up along the curb - show your neighbors that you want Springlakes to look its best. Preserving our curb appeal protects our property values!

The Covenants Committee is already busy with requests for spring home improvement projects. Residents are reminded that any project that alters and/or changes the exterior appearance of your Lot requires prior written approval from the Committee before any work can start. The Covenants Committee meets the third Tuesday of every month to review project requests and violations. If you are planning a project in the near future, be sure to include covenants in your initial planning and allow the Covenants Committee adequate time for project review. If you require earlier approval due to contractor requirements, we will do our best to work with you.

PLEASE NOTE - DUE TO THE SCHEDULED NEIGHBORHOOD CRIME WATCH MEETING ON MARCH 19^TH, THE COVENANTS COMMITTEE WILL HAVE ITS NEXT MEETING ON MARCH 12^TH. PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR PROJECT REQUESTS PRIOR TO MARCH 12^TH FOR REVIEW AT THE MARCH COVENANTS MEETING.

WELCOME NEWEST RESIDENTS