2020-2021 Snow Event #1, Final Update #2

Good afternoon.

Thank you for your help keeping those No Parking areas clear during our rather weak snow event. All poles and tape have been removed from those curbs and parking may resume. The pool parking lot did not receive any vehicles for the event so normal parking restrictions are in effect. The marker poles designating the speed humps will remain through the rest of the season.

Thanks again – we’ll follow the same procedure should another significant snow event occur this season.

Regards,

Mark

2020-2021 Snow Event #1, Update #1

Good evening.

On Sunday, December 13, 2020 the PWCA declared a Snow Emergency based on the projected snow totals for this first event. While the snow total projections have been coming down, we will continue with the designation based on the variability in current forecasts for snow and ice accumulations.

Therefore the following is in effect:

  1. All white-painted curbs on Gainsborough Drive are No Parking Zones as of Tuesday, December 15, 200 at 6:00PM. ANY vehicle parked in No Parking Zones are subject to towing at owner expense.
  2. The pool parking lot is opened for parking effective Tuesday, December 15, 2020 at 5:00PM. Vehicles may park in the pool parking lot with valid permits during this event. Please remove your vehicles once the event is complete. Further notice will be provided for when open parking is terminated at the pool parking lot.

As this is our first event of the season please review the 2020-2021 Snow Removal Policy. Request you clear any sidewalks in front and to the rear (if appropriate) of your home. If the snow totals are sufficient, please consider removing snow around your mailboxes and fire
hydrants.

The Snow Emergency will be in effect until canceled via email blast for the specific Gainsborough Drive zones. Message board notices will be removed once all snow emergency no parking zones are cleared after the snow event.

Appreciate your help – the goal is our preparations were un-needed for this event. However, we also want to be prepared should this event go sideways on us. See the current newsletter for our Cold Weather Preparation article. If you need, you do have Tuesday to get your home and vehicles ready for winter events.

Stay safe and be prepared.

Mark

PWCA Information for Members and Residents (December 2020, Message #1)

Good evening. Please find listed below several updates for you.

Links:
CDC guidance: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
Johns Hopkins GLobal COVID-19 Map and Coronavirus Resources:
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
State-wide analysis and guidance: http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus/
County-specific guidance: https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/covid19/
County Emergency Preparedness:
https://fairfaxcountyemergency.wpcomstaging.com/category/coronavirus-covid-19/

UPDATED INFORMATION ITEMS:

  1. UPCOMING SNOW EVENT – DECLARATION OF SNOW EMERGENCY CONDITION, TUESDAY, 6:00PM. In accordance with the 2020-2021 Snow Removal Policy, the PWCA is declaring a Snow Emergency for the upcoming snow event on Wednesday, December 16, 2020. All white-painted curbs on Gainsborough Drive are No Parking Zones as of Tuesday, December 15, 200 at 6:00PM. All vehicles parked in No Parking Zones are subject to towing at owner expense. The Snow Emergency will be in effect until canceled via email blast for the specific Gainsborough Drive zones. Message board notices will be removed once all snow emergency no parking zones are cleared after the snow event. Please review the 2020-2021 Snow Removal Policy for further information. Further information to follow as the storm forecast becomes clarified over the next two days.
  2. BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING, DECEMBER 15, 2020, 7:00PM. The December board meeting will be conducted via the RingCentral virtual meeting framework. See the website under ‘Meetings’, select the year (2020), then the meeting (20201215). Document #01-1 contains the information to join the meeting.
  3. HOLIDAY TEMPORARY PARKING PASS REQUESTS – SUNDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2020. Please provide any temporary parking permit requests no later than December 20th for visitors you may have through the New Year. I would like to provide our volunteers who create those passes for you the time to spend with their families. Please see the website for a current list of parking official phone numbers.
  4. HOLIDAY TRASH, RECYCLING and YARD WASTE SCHEDULE.

4.1. YARD WASTE. The final dedicated yard waste pickup will be Friday, December 18. After this date yard waste will be picked up with regular trash.

4.2. CHRISTMAS SCHEDULE. NO TRASH COLLECTION on Friday, December 25, 2020, the next Trash collection will occur Tuesday, December 29, 2020.

4.3. NEW YEAR’S SCHEDULE. NO TRASH COLLECTION on Friday, January 1, 2021, next Trash collection will occur Tuesday, January 5, 2021.

4.4. CHRISTMAS TREE COLLECTION (first two weeks of January). Occurs on Tuesday, January 5, 2021; Friday, January 8, 2021; Tuesday, January 12, 2021; and Friday, January 15, 2021.

  1. 2020 ANNUAL MEETING EXCERPTS. The Annual Meeting occurred on November 17th and was conducted from opening through the Director elections in a parallel in-person/virtual format. The remainder of the meeting occurred in a fully-virtual format. See the website for draft Annual Meeting minutes.
  2. 2021 ANNUAL ASSESSMENT. As relayed earlier this year, the Annual Assessment for 2021 will be remain the same as 2020 – $345.00 per quarter due on the first day of each quarterly assessment period. Both the Assessment Notice and the Quarterly Assessment Timeline may be found on the website.
  3. COMMUNITY SECURITY. With the holiday season upon us please remember to secure your packages, vehicles and homes. Keep your assets locked and thereby prevent a thief from having an easy opportunity. As a reminder, the Police non-emergency number is (703) 691-2131 to report any suspicious activity or break-ins. Also consider leaving your porch lights on throughout the night.
  4. WADING POOL. We experienced a dramatic increase in water loss during the 2020 season. Post-season assessment revealed deficiencies in the concrete beam. Fix actions are ongoing – the goal is to fix the deficiencies before hard winter sets in but due to the current weather prognosis the work may have to be delayed to the spring.

UNCHANGED (OR MARGINALLY UPDATED) INFORMATION:

  1. ACC: All rules remain in effect. Out-of-cycle ACC violation processes are ongoing. The Spring 2021 Home Inspection will occur in March 2021.
  2. COMMUNICATIONS: The November/December 2020 newsletter is digital-only due to the COVID-19 impacts – if you need a hard copy please contact communications@parkwestcommunity.org.
  3. ECC: All rules remain in effect.

3.1. BULK WASTE PICKUP. Advanced notice is required for any bulk item pickup. Fees will be increased slightly to cover the additional handling costs due to COVID-19. Bulk items include furniture, mattresses, appliances, grills, exercise equipment, construction debris, or any other large item that would normally be collected with a rear-load trash truck.

3.2. GLASS RECYCLING (PURPLE CONTAINERS): Glass recycling has resumed and the purple recycling containers are throughout Fairfax County.

3.3. RECYCLING AND TRASH. Should you see someone placing trash or recycling out at an unauthorized time, feel free to take their picture (to include the residence they are coming from/returning to) and email the pictures to environment@parkwestcommunity.org.

3.4. YARD DEBRIS PICKUP. Yard Debris is picked up on TUESDAY and FRIDAY in a specific yard debris truck. All yard waste requirements and constraints are in effect as normal. See the Community Rules Section 3.7 for information.

3.5. TOT LOT. In accordance with the Forward Virginia Blueprint and resulting Fairfax County guidance, the playground was opened effective 17 June 2020. There is no special cleaning on any surface – USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Adhere to social distancing requirements.

3.6. BASKETBALL COURT. In accordance with the Forward Virginia Blueprint and resulting Fairfax County guidance, the basketball court was opened effective 17 June 2020. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Users must stay ten (10) feet apart.

3.7. LENDING LIBRARY PATIO. In accordance with the Forward Virginia Blueprint and resulting Fairfax County guidance, the patio itself was opened effective 17 June 2020. There is no special cleaning on any surface – USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Adhere to social distancing requirements.

3.8. LENDING LIBRARY (CLOSED). In accordance with Phase 3 of the Forward Virginia Blueprint and resulting Fairfax County guidance, the Library remains CLOSED due to the restrictions on shared equipment.

3.9. COMMON AREAS. In accordance with the Forward Virginia Blueprint and resulting Fairfax County guidance, the common areas were opened effective 17 June 2020. There is no special cleaning on any surface – USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Adhere to social distancing requirements.

  1. PARKING: All rules remain in effect. The Resident Owner and Non-Resident Owner Parking Permit (Hangtag) Renewals for 2020 are canceled. 2021 distribution remains planned for April 2021.
  2. SOCIAL: All 2020 events were canceled due to the pandemic. 2021 planned events will be assessed for viability based on pandemic guidance issued through the state and county.
  3. COMMUNITY SUPPORT REQUEST. This request remains active – thank you to those who have responded so far.

Stay safe and well,

Mark

PWCA Information for Members and Residents (November 2020, Message #2)

Good evening. This is a targeted message tonight and does not include the normal full range of information I normally include.

1. ANNUAL MEETING – TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2020, 8:00PM, POOL PARKING LOT. If you haven’t completed your proxy please do so as soon as you can in advance of our meeting tomorrow evening. Between the cold and anticipated wind we have made a modification to the agenda tomorrow evening. We will accomplish the elections in person at a minimum but the remainder of the meeting is now planned as virtual-only at this time. Revised agenda attached. As stated before, everyone attending the in-person part of the meeting will need to follow all Virginia and CDC requirements such as wearing masks, social distancing, and the maximum participation limit. There will be no food or beverages served, no door prizes will be given, there are no restroom facilities available, and no supplied seating – if you need a chair please bring your own. The meeting will be available to you virtually in the same manner as the monthly Board meetings currently are. All information may also be found on our website either as a link to item header in the post or on the website by clicking “Association Information”, “Association Meetings”, scroll down to “2020”, then select 20201117 (Annual Meeting). All residents, whether you are a renter or an owner, are encouraged to attend to find out the current status and way-ahead for our community – just this year we’d appreciate you attending virtually rather than physically.

2. BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING, NOVEMBER 19, 2020, 7:00PM. The November board meeting is canceled. The information for the now-canceled meeting may be found on the website. See the website under ‘Association Meetings’, select the year (2020), then the meeting (20201119).

3. TREE WORK. We will be conducting arbor care work over the next two days. Non-reserved curb spaces are the only parking areas impacted by this work.

4. POOL HOUSE HOLIDAY LIGHTING PROJECT. We have a couple of volunteers for this – could use 1 or 2 more to lessen the time requirements. While the Tree Lighting social has been canceled there is some desire to still light the pool house and fence for the season. As my wrist is in a cast we will need some volunteers to spend some time to decorate if we want to have lights this season. Please email if you are interested and we’ll set up a date and time to gather and accomplish the work.

Stay safe and well,

Mark

PWCA Information for Members and Residents (November 2020, Message #1)

Good afternoon. Please find listed below several updates for you.

Links:
CDC guidance: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
Johns Hopkins GLobal COVID-19 Map and Coronavirus Resources: https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
State-wide analysis and guidance: http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus/
County-specific guidance: https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/covid19/
County Emergency Preparedness: https://fairfaxcountyemergency.wpcomstaging.com/category/coronavirus-covid-19/

UPDATED INFORMATION ITEMS:

  1. ANNUAL MEETING – TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2020 (RAIN DATE NOVEMBER 19, 2020), 8:00PM, POOL PARKING LOT. Due to the challenges in securing interior meeting locations the 2020 Annual Meeting of the Members of the Association will occur in the Pool Parking Lot. Between the pandemic increasing around us and the cold weather anticipated for the meeting, official participation by proxy is STRONGLY encouraged. This is
    intended to be a short meeting due to the environmental considerations. Everyone choosing to physically attend will need to follow all Virginia and CDC requirements such as wearing masks and social distancing. There will be no food or beverages served, no door prizes will be given, there are no restroom facilities available, and no supplied seating – if you need a chair please bring your own. The meeting will be available to you virtually in the same manner as the monthly Board meetings currently are. For owners, please see the annual meeting documents that were mailed or emailed to you for additional information. All information may also be found on our website. All residents, whether you are a renter or an owner, are encouraged to attend to find out the current status and way-ahead for our community – just this year we’d appreciate you attending virtually rather than physically.
  2. BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING, NOVEMBER 19, 2020, 7:00PM. If needed, the November board meeting will be conducted via the RingCentral virtual meeting framework. See the website under ‘Meetings’, select the year (2020), then the meeting (20201119). Document #01-1 contains the information to join the meeting. This meeting is under consideration for cancellation. If cancellation occurs another message will be forthcoming to officially cancel the meeting.
  3. POOL HOUSE HOLIDAY LIGHTING PROJECT. While the Tree Lighting social has been canceled there is some desire to still light the pool house and fence for the season. As my wrist is in a cast we will need some volunteers to spend some time to decorate if we want to have lights this season. Please email if you are interested and we’ll set up a date and time to gather and accomplish the work.

UNCHANGED (OR MARGINALLY UPDATED) INFORMATION:

  1. ACC: All rules remain in effect. Out-of-cycle ACC violation processes are ongoing. The Spring 2021 Home Inspection will occur in March 2021.
  2. COMMUNICATIONS: The November 2020 newsletter will be digital-only due to the COVID-19 impacts – if you need a hard copy please contact communications@parkwestcommunity.org.
  3. ECC: All rules remain in effect.

6.1. BULK WASTE PICKUP. Advanced notice is required for any bulk item pickup. Fees will be increased slightly to cover the additional handling costs due to COVID-19. Bulk items include furniture, mattresses, appliances, grills, exercise equipment, construction debris,
or any other large item that would normally be collected with a rear-load trash truck.

6.2. GLASS RECYCLING (PURPLE CONTAINERS): Glass recycling has resumed and the purple recycling containers are throughout Fairfax County.

6.3. RECYCLING AND TRASH. Should you see someone placing trash or recycling out at an unauthorized time, feel free to take their picture (to include the residence they are coming from/returning to) and email the pictures to environment@parkwestcommunity.org.

6.4. YARD DEBRIS PICKUP. Yard Debris is picked up on TUESDAY and FRIDAY in a specific yard debris truck. All yard waste requirements and constraints are in effect as normal. See the Community Rules Section 3.7 for information.

6.5. TOT LOT. In accordance with the Forward Virginia Blueprint and resulting Fairfax County guidance, the playground was opened effective 17 June 2020. There is no special cleaning on any surface – USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Adhere to social distancing requirements.

6.6. BASKETBALL COURT. In accordance with the Forward Virginia Blueprint and resulting Fairfax County guidance, the basketball court was opened effective 17 June 2020. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Users must stay ten (10) feet apart.

6.7. LENDING LIBRARY PATIO. In accordance with the Forward Virginia Blueprint and resulting Fairfax County guidance, the patio itself was opened effective 17 June 2020. There is no special cleaning on any surface – USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Adhere to social distancing requirements.

6.8. LENDING LIBRARY (CLOSED). In accordance with Phase 3 of the Forward Virginia Blueprint and resulting Fairfax County guidance, the Library remains CLOSED due to the restrictions on shared equipment.

6.9. COMMON AREAS. In accordance with the Forward Virginia Blueprint and resulting Fairfax County guidance, the common areas were opened effective 17 June 2020. There is no special cleaning on any surface – USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Adhere to social distancing requirements.

  1. PARKING: All rules remain in effect. The Resident Owner and Non-Resident Owner Parking Permit (Hangtag) Renewals for 2020 are canceled. 2021 distribution remains planned for April 2021.
  2. SOCIAL: We continue to assess viability of future events based on pandemic guidance issued through the state and county.
  3. COMMUNITY SUPPORT REQUEST. This request remains active – thank you to those who have responded so far.

Stay safe and well,

Mark