Hi ALPHA Homeowners!
The change in weather is upon us. The warmer temps no doubt signals the coming of summer and all of the activity that the season brings.
This is going to be a busy month for emailed information from the Board of Directors as we have been feverishly working on a number of projects and have several important dates to pass on. Watch your email or check back here often to see what’s coming up.
Weather permitting, the ALPHA pool is scheduled to open on Friday, June 1st 2012. We’ll be installing the solar panels this month and hope to have them installed early enough so that the water is warm on opening day.
However, there is still a lot of work to do in order to get the pool ready and we could use your help. The Spring Clean Up Day has yet to be scheduled, but it’s coming very soon. If you can lend a hand in the month of May, even for just an hour or two, drop us a note.
We apologize for the late notice.
The ALPHA Board Meeting will take place at 3:00pm on Saturday, May 5, 2012.
LOCATION: ALPHA Swimming Pool
Breadcrumbs will now be displayed along with a search window at the bottom of each page allowing you to quickly find any other information we’ve previously posted.
We’ve removed many pages that haven’t been viewed much and will be adding other, more relevant content over the next few months, which we’ll update you with via email as changes are made.
There are a number of other enhancements, but we’ll let you find those out on your own.
California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
Tuolumne – Calaveras
CONTACT: Nancy Longmore, Fire Prevention Specialist II, 209/754-3831
RELEASE DATE: April 23, 2012
Burn Permits Required May 1, 2012
San Andreas – Tuesday, May 1, 2012, at 8AM, the Tuolumne-Calaveras Unit of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) will require burning permits within State Responsibility Areas of Tuolumne County, Calaveras County, Eastern Stanislaus County and Eastern San Joaquin County.
Until CAL FIRE stations are fully staffed later in the season, permits will be available only during business hours Monday through Friday, at the following locations:
Remember that personnel may be away from the station for extended periods of time when they are responding to emergencies.
Burn permit terms include limiting pile size to a maximum of four feet by four feet (four feet in diameter, and four feet high) and clearing down to bare mineral soil 10 feet from the outer edges of burn piles. Burn hours will remain open until further notice, but outdoor burning may be done ONLY on permissive burn days. Remember that burn day status is determined on the basis of air quality: how quickly smoke will disperse. Therefore, many permissible burn days are very windy. Tuolumne-Calaveras Unit Chief Brian Kirk would like everyone to remember that even if it is a permissible burn day, never burn on windy days. Have tools and water close by in order to suppress any escape from your burning operation.
Wildfire is coming. Are you ready? “Getting your property ready for the coming fire season by creating100 feet of defensible space around all structures is an excellent way to protect not only your home, but your neighborhood and community as well,” Chief Kirk says.
It is your responsibility to check burn day status by calling your local Air Pollution Control District with jurisdiction over your area.
As a way to help us update and manage the information regarding rentals in Lilac Park, the Board of Directors is requesting that all ALPHA Homeowners complete a short form. See link below.
There are several reasons the board wants to have this information, and providing it is required by law. If we receive any complaints or reports of inappropriate activity taking place on the property, the Board must have current information to be able to follow up in a timely fashion.
Additionally, over the last several months a few homeowners have noticed a significant increase in traffic at unusual hours to various homes in Lilac Park. While this traffic may very well be innocent, other concerned homeowners have noted that it may be attributed to illegal activity.
There have also been a number of thefts and other crimes reported recently in Lilac Park, including a case of arson. Having up-to-date information about who is living in our community will allow the board to communicate appropriately with renters, homeowners, and, if necessary, local law enforcement.
If you rent your Lilac Park home, for either short or long-term stays, please take a moment to fill out the Rental Information Form.
Click here to go to the Rental Information Form.
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If you want your tenants to have access to the pool in 2012, please be sure to complete the “Tenant Authorization Form.” Completing this form will send an authorization to you that you can give to your tenants, which will allow them access to the pool.
With the completion of the new solar panel installation planned for May, we expect to see an increase in pool use this year and it is our aim to avoid any miscommunication about who can and cannot use the pool.
Completion of this form is required for both short term and long term tenants.
Click here to go to the Tenant Authorization Form.
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If you rent your Lilac Park home, this is a just a friendly reminder that SB 183 (carbon monoxide detector), passed by the California Legislature in July, 2011. It is enforceable after January 1, 2013.
If you have any kind of appliance or heater that burns fossil fuels in your Lilac Park home, a carbon monoxide detector is required by law. If you do not install and maintain one and someone is injured due to a carbon monoxide poisoning, you could be liable both civilly and criminally.
The purpose of this note is simply to inform you of the new law. ALPHA is not going to be monitoring or enforcing this requirement and it’s unclear if anyone else is either. However, if you don’t have one installed and something happens in your rental, you could be liable for injuries resulting from a malfunctioning appliance or other problem.
Ace Hardware carries a few different types of CO detectors and cost is between $20 and $60. Many use wall power and do not require batteries.
We encourage everyone to call the police IMMEDIATELY if they feel a situation or circumstance is suspicious. DO NOT think you are bothering deputies; this is why they are here! DO NOT be embarrassed if your suspicions prove unfounded.
IF IN DOUBT, CALL! It is better to err on the side of safety. Following is a partial list of incidents that should be reported to the police by dialing 9-1-1. This list is not intended to be complete. Use your own judgment when calling the police.
While some, if not all, of the above situations could have innocent explanations, the police would rather prevent illegal activity than be called to investigate a crime after it is committed.
Please remember, timely reporting is important. Dial 9-1-1 as soon as you witness
suspicious activity and DO NOT take any action on your own!
I was asked more than once last summer if the board had considered or was planning to install WiFi Internet Access at the ALPHA pool. The board discussed it at one meeting early last year, but because of the ongoing costs and the yearly contract involved with most hi-speed Internet providers, it was dismissed as too expensive.
Since we’re approaching the 2012 pool season, I thought I would ask you, the association, about whether or not you would use hi-speed Internet access at the pool. If you rent your home, your pool-authorized tenants would have access to the service too.
Authorized pool users could connect to the Internet wirelessly using their laptop, tablet, or other mobile device to check email, surf the web, check the weather, fishing conditions, etc.
The ALPHA Board could use it in a number of ways, too, including: homeowner/renter sign-in when using the pool, automated time card management for the Pool Attendant, snack bar sales tracking, a future web cam, and required pool-data logging, among other things. However, having the Internet just for administrative use doesn’t make much financial sense unless a large number of pool users could benefit from it, too.
When you get a moment, please vote in the pool, er … poll, via the link below. You will need the homeowner password for the ALPHA web site to vote. We protected the page so that only ALPHA Homeowners and other authorized pool users can participate.
Vote Here.
I appreciate your feedback.
~Mark
“Classic Car Cruise Nights”, Murphys
Bring your classic car. Free to all.
Meet at Murphys Historic Hotel, 457 Main Street, downtown Murphys, from 6 to 9 pm. Local DJ “Decade Music” will be playing. Food. Raffles.
For more info contact Terri at 209-728-9971.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Air Faire Fly-In & Open House, Calaveras Airport, San Andreas, 209-736-2501
Location: Open House, Calaveras Airport, San Andreas, 209-736-2501
Description: Come early and stay late at the Carol Kennedy Airport. Admission is free. Take a scenic airplane ride for only $5 for kids up to 18, and $10 for adults. Classic aircrafts and cars will be on display, along with live music, breakfast and lunch are available, including Bratwurst and BBQ tri-tip.
For more info call Kathy at 209-736-2501 or kz@mlode.com.