Spring Update
Apr 25
Dear Neighbors,
I hope everyone had a good Easter and are enjoying this wonderful Spring weather and the scenery we have going for us now. Just wish it would last.
I have noticed a lot of homes have beautiful azalea shrubs in the front or the sides of their house. While these are beautiful right now, as a security concern, you may wish to trim them down so they do not block your windows. Having them as large as they have become will allow an intruder to hide behind them unseen. After the azaleas finish blooming, you should consider trimming them back. This may also help your window sills from getting wood rot.
Please remember to return your trash cans after they have been emptied by Collierville within 24 hours. They should be stored so they are not visible from the street. Do not put your trash out by the curb for pickup too early, it makes the neighborhood look bad if you have a lot of stuff out there all week.
Do you remember stories of the “old” days when they had “barn raisings”? Where many families would gather at a neighbor’s home to help build their barn. We are going to have a “shed raising” for our neighborhood storage shed. I have submitted the plans for a building permit and waiting for its approval to schedule a date. We will need 4 or 5 folks with some building experience to help raise the shed. We can also use others to help as we will need to paint it after it is completed. Everyone is also welcome to come watch as it is being constructed. I have watched 2 YouTube videos so I am ready to go!
Please plan to attend the neighborhood party on May 4. There will be margaritas to taste (and judge) and fellowship with your neighbors. It should be fun, so be sure to come along. Bring your lawn chair and thirst, we will all have a good time.
Our Treasurer, Tom Powell, has served us well for almost 4 years and is planning to move out from our neighborhood in the near future. We have asked Ron Walker to take his place within the next month. Please thank Tom for all his work and Ron for agreeing to fill in as Treasurer for out HOA Board.
Enjoy the Spring weather and we will see you at the party.
Jim Stettler
HOA President
Cinco De Mayo Party
Party held May 4th @ 4PM on Laurel Knoll Circle. See homepage for details!
Sidewalk Falls
Dear Neighbors,
It looks like Spring is here and everyone is ready to get out and about. We had an incident today when a resident was walking on the sidewalk in The Laurels and tripped over a raised section and broke her elbow. Another resident had the same thing in an area at the big circle a few weeks ago (I have since put a warning sign along that section). We had a tough winter with a lot of freezing days and nights which may have raised some sidewalk panels with the frozen ground underneath. I am hoping many of these will drop back down now that the ground has warmed up again. Remember, it is the responsibility of the homeowner to maintain the sidewalk on your property.
Many of us just go to the mailbox and back and never look at the other sidewalk sections along our property lines. I did a little survey of sidewalks and found quite a few with raised sections along the expansion cracks. If you find such on your property, please try and find a way to mark it so others will not trip on this. Try painting a little along the crack to increase awareness of the danger.
As for our walking residents, you need to be aware of these problems also and be on the lookout. Many of us walk in the streets, thinking it may be safer. While it is true our traffic flow is not too bad, I don’t think I can officially recommend walking in the streets only. Please, just be careful when you are walking and talking or daydreaming as you go.
I am still seeing some dog poop that has not been picked up by the owner. Not only is this illegal from our Covenants, it is also an issue by the Town of Collierville. Not to mention the homeowner who now has a pile of poop in their yard. Please pick up after your pet!!!!
Remember if you are traveling, to let your neighbors know and leave some lights on in your home and at your entryway so your house does not look vacant. The Collierville police offer a free service to check your home several times a day. Use them and enjoy your trip!
We have a party this coming Sunday for St Patricks Day in the Big Circle. Come on out and mingle with your neighbors.
Be safe and enjoy our coming Spring.
Jim Stettler
Emergency Numbers
Dear Neighbors,
We had an incident this weekend with a new neighbor who has moved in but has not really established himself in The Laurels. His neighbor noticed water pooling on his sidewalk and driveway and pouring from the side drain of the house (usually from the drain pan around the A/C or water heater). We were able to shut down his water at the street and that seemed to stop the leak. Tonight, there was a Servicemaster truck pulling bags from his house. He said there were 3 rooms damaged from water leaking through the ceiling.
In this case, since he was a new member to our neighborhood, we had no contact information to reach him or his emergency contact. A neighbor did remember the real estate agent’s name, who was notified and was able to contact the owner. This case shows why it is so important to have a valid emergency contact available for someone to be able to enter the house and make decisions if you are not there. It also pays to get to know your next door neighbor(s). If you don’t like the ones on your left, try the neighbors on the right! We are a very friendly neighborhood.
The latest cold weather has lifted some of the sidewalk areas on the cement path leading into the big circle pads on the East side. If you go in there, please watch your step.
I am hoping that Winter is now behind us and the days will be warmer and that Spring will be here soon. Enjoy the weather and watch out for each other.
Thank you.
Jim Stettler
Traffic/Storage Shed
Dear Neighbors,
Since the Town of Collierville did not like the idea of our putting up a prefabricated storage shed, we are looking at other options. We think we may just try and build a shed ourselves, if we can get approval. If we do, we will put a call out to you neighbors with building skills to come help design and build a shed to about the same size and height.
I had more bad news from the Collierville Traffic Engineer today. My request to change the STOP signs at the entrances to the large circle to become YIELD signs was denied. She cited some rules and regulations that disallowed it. So all you “criminals" who don’t stop at the signs, beware. She wanted me to have the Collierville Police put a watch on the traffic, but I asked her not to at this time.
She also denied any changes to the smaller traffic circle at Laurel Lane and E/W Laurel Hollow Lane. Here she cited the design of the circle and the traffic visibility issues. I am going to ask our landscaper to maybe cut some of the hedges to allow better visibility through them to see any conflicting traffic that may already be approaching or in the circle. In the meantime, please exercise caution at these points.
Remember the service for Sue Blackett will be on Thursday afternoon at Grace Church of the Nazarene, 8979 E. Shelby Drive, on Thursday from 11 - 1. I am sure Joe will appreciate your support.
Drive Safe!
Jim
Feb HOA Update
Dear Neighbors,
Spring is getting real close now and it is almost time to start thinking of working outside again. I have always heard the last chance of freeze here was mid-April, so you may not want to jump on it too quickly.
There are still some animal owners who are not cleaning up after their dog. Remember, there is a. $100 fine if we catch you leaving your pet’s poop. Almost everyone else is doing it, so why don’t you join the club.
Our new website, thelaurelshoa.com is really doing well. Lots of visitors and we can’t thank Mark Howell enough for all the time he has put into remaking this a much better and useable product. He is also a great photographer and has a bunch of beautiful pictures on the web site. He has asked me to put out the following note:
The photos taken at the Collierville Town Square during the recent snowstorm have been posted on the website. I hope you will take a few minutes to view them.
We have been asked how one can ‘share’ these pictures with folks outside of the Laurels Community. As our Laurel’s Facebook Group page is private you cannot share postings or pictures outside of the group members. However, our neighborhood website is public, so anyone wanting to see the pictures can simply come to our homepage. You can direct them there by sharing the website address on your own personal Facebook page or other social media: thelaurelshoa.com
Your post can be as simple as:
"Our neighborhood, The Laurels, has posted some photos of the neighborhood taken during the recent snowstorm including some at the Collierville Town Square. You can find these on our website at thelaurelshoa.com We hope you enjoy them as much as we have! "
We have a few or our residents who missed the discount cutoff for our annual HOA dues. We tried to let everyone know and even contacted them a few days prior. They will now be required to pay the full $800.
When going through the small traffic circle at E/W Hollow Lane and Laurel Lane, please exercise caution. Some of the hedges there make visibility a little hard so please slow down and allow the traffic in the circle to have the right of way.
We are going to check into having electricity run to the large center circle. We could host our neighborhood parties there as it is a larger space and centrally located.
Our request for the shed to store our entryway decorations has been denied by Collierville at this time. Seems the resin sheds do not match the structures of the homes in The Laurels. We will check more into this and see if we can come to some other accommodation.
I hope everyone enjoys our coming better weather. Be Safe.
Jim Stettler
Laurels HOA President
HOA News
Dear Neighbors,
I want to remind anyone who has not yet paid their annual HOA dues that you have until Jan 31 to pay your dues and take advantage of the $100 discount and pay only $700. Anytime after that, you will be required to pay the full $800. You can drop off your payment with any HOA Board member or mail it to: The Laurels HOA, PO Box 383163, Germantown, TN 38183-3163.
Since our annual meeting last week, we have had a Board meeting to determine which of the new Board members will fill which positions. Richard Haston is our Vice-President, Mark Howell is our Secretary and serving as the Webmaster, and Robert Crosier is taking over the Grounds/Landscaping. Tom Powell will remain as Treasurer and as I could not convince anyone else to take over as President, I will remain it for another year.
We are working on obtaining a permit to erect a storage shed in the SE corner of the neighborhood, within the area of the water pumping station. We will use this to store the decorations we use on the entryways and some miscellaneous HOA things we have currently stored in my garage. We will be putting out a call for volunteers to help set this up in the near future. I have calculated the cost to be under $800 for the shed and building a base for it to sit on.
As discussed in the annual meeting, we will not be hiring a company to put poop stations around the neighborhood for doggie waste. It is still required that you pick up after your own pet and take it home to discard the waste. I have noticed some folks are not doing this and remind you of a $100 fine for each occurrence if we can determine who is guilty. Remember to scoop the poop!!!
I spoke with the Town Traffic Engineer this last week about the stop signs at the entries to the large center circle. I know many of you ignore this sign and do not bother to stop there. I am asking her to consider changing these to Yield signs. The visibility is good at both entrances and 99% of the traffic turns right anyway. If she does agree to the change, I hope everyone will be careful and look before entering the traffic circle and “yield” to other traffic, if necessary. This way we will not have so many “criminals” in our neighborhood.
I think we have weathered most of the Memphis Winter and hopefully have some more milder weather from now on. Enjoy the season while you can, hot weather will be coming soon.
Jim Stettler
Annual Meeting Re-scheduled
Dear Neighbors,
I am sorry for all the confusion last week about having our annual meeting with changes going back and forth, but we have rescheduled the meeting for this coming Saturday, Jan 18 (NO SNOW)! It will be at Grace Evangelical Church next door, from 11 to 1. A light lunch will be provided for you. When you come to the meeting, if you are driving, you may need to use the West side roads (opposite side of the church from us), as they may have the other route blocked for their construction. Park at the rear of the church and enter in the door on the left side of the parking area.
We have 3 volunteers to join the HOA Board at this meeting, Richard Easton, Mark Howell and Robert Crosier. We will vote on these at this meeting. They will serve a 2-year term with the Board.
We hipe to see everyone there.
Jim Stettler
Annual Meeting Postponed
Neighbors:
Sorry for all the back and forth on this, but the church now does not think they will open Saturday morning. We will reschedule to a later date., hopefully Jan 18th. Check back here for confirmation of the makeup date. Thanks for understanding and enjoy the snow.
Jim
Year End Update
Dear Neighbors,
I hope everyone has had a great Christmas with family and friends. Now we turn our attention to the New Year and have great hopes for a happy and healthy one for all.
Now that the holiday is ending, we will need to be taking the entrance decorations down. We could use some help on Saturday, Jan 4, at noon. It usually is much easier taking them down than putting them up, so please consider coming to help with this. Speaking of help, does anyone have a convenient place and be willing to store these decorations? They all fit into about 5 storage bins. We will help you place them in your storage area and retrieve them next year when it is time to redecorate. Please let me know.
Just a reminder that our annual HOA dues are coming up. If you pay by Jan 31, the dues are $700, and they are $800 after that date. You can drop them off with any HOA Board member or mail them to: The Laurels HOA, PO Box 383163, Germantown, TN 38183-3163. Tom Powell, our Treasurer, usually has a box where you can drop them off by his front door. His address is 1934 Laurel Lane.
Our annual HOA meeting is scheduled for Jan 11, at Grace Evangelical Church next door. It starts at 11 and should be over by 1. We will be serving lunch. We need to elect 3 new members to our Board for a 2-year term. We do have 2 volunteers to serve now and still need at least one more person to step up and help out. We will also have some items to discuss that need attention.
Have you checked out our updated web page yet? The website, www.thelaurelshoa.com has some great pictures of our neighborhood and neighbors that Mark Howell has put on there. There are a lot of information items and useful things that you can access. Be sure to check it out and thank Mark when you see him.
So don’t forget to pay your dues, come to the annual meeting, volunteer for the HOA Board and/or Christmas decoration storage, check out the website and have a Happy New Year! Thanks.
Jim Stettler
Holiday Party Report, Update Directory
Dear Neighbors:
We had a great turnout for The Laurels Progressive Christmas Party last night. Many thanks to Rosalie Johnson and her Social Committee for putting this together, and for the hosts who opened their homes to our fellow neighbors. It is a great way to renew friendships and get together with others in the neighborhood. The music was great and The Laurels’ Choir is sounding better every year as we sang Christmas carols.
I would like to thank the neighbors who helped us decorate the main entrance for the holidays. A special thanks goes to Julia Davis and my wife, Karen, for helping make and replace all the bows on the wreaths. Please thank the following folks when you see them for their help in putting the decorations up: Rick and Nancy Yeager, Ron Walker (and Josie gets an honorable mention for arriving a little late), Tom and Debbie Wiles, Bert and Dorrie Simms, Jan Slate, Karen Stettler and Pam Evans, for her excellent supervision.
As you consider all that this holiday means, please remember the “angel” in our neighborhood, Petra Sneed, who is running a charity that donates bicycles to needy children. Her charity, Mike’s Bikes, is donating 600 bicycles to children in Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi and St Louis. She has been doing this for several years and it keeps growing. Please consider making a donation to her charity if you can. She lives at 1877 E. Laurel Hollow Lane.
It is time to update our neighborhood directory. PLEASE review your entry in the current directory and let us know if there are any changes: No longer working? New primary email? Change of emergency contact? Change of husband/wife? No longer have a land line phone number? Whatever, please let me or your block captain know of any changes or additions. We will try and get the new directory out by the end of January. Please thank Jim Paulsen for printing these for us every year, at no cost to the neighborhood.
Enjoy the holiday and have a merry Christmas!
Jim Stettler
Runoff Election, Annual Meeting
Dear Neighbors,
I want to remind everyone who has not voted in the runoff election yet for Collierville Alderman, that early voting is still open from 11-2 this week, on Saturday: 12 - 4, and next week, M - Wed: 4 - 7 PM, and Thursday 3 - 7 PM. Actual Election Day will be Dec 10. All our voting will be at Compassion Church on Houston Levee Rd, just prior to the Huey’s restaurant. Please vote.
I have had several reports of close calls at the traffic circle on Laurel Lane and E/W Laurel Hollow Lane. There are some bushes which tend to block your view a little, so please be careful when driving down Laurel Lane or making the turns into or out of Laurel Hollow Lane. If everyone was driving at 20 mph, there shouldn’t be much of a problem stopping if you have to. But that is another issue!
The Laurel’s Christmas party will be Sunday night, Dec 1. It looks like it will be a cold night and just right to get us into the winter/Christmas feeling.
Speaking of really cold weather, it is going to get quite cold here from Thanksgiving day and then for at least 5 days after, so be sure to secure your water hoses and faucets to protect them from freezing. You may wish to cover some of your more sensitive plants.
I have not exactly been inundated with volunteers for the HOA Board, so please give it some serious thought and let me know if you are willing to serve. Our annual meeting will be Jan 11, from 11 - 1, at Grace Evan Church. Another issue to be discussed at the meeting will be an option to change our Covenants & Restrictions as far as home rentals. Do we want to allow them or not? Only long term? No short term rentals allowed? What is considered short term?
Remember your annual HOA dues are supposed to be paid by Jan 31 to take advantage of the $100 discount. Otherwise, after that date you will owe $800.
Thank you and have a happy and blessed Thanksgiving!
Jim Stettler
Annual Meeting, Runoff Election
Dear Neighbors,
Please put Jan 11 on your calendar for our annual Laurels Homeowners’ Meeting. It should run from 11 to 1 and lunch will be provided. It will be held at Grace Evangelical Church next door. We have a few ideas to present and will need to vote on 3 new HOA Board members. Please plan to attend if you are able.
Speaking of new HOA Board members, we are in need of 3 volunteers to replace the 3 of our Board whose terms are up. There is not a lot of time involved in these positions and it is a chance for you to help give back to the neighborhood. Please let me, or any current Board member, know if you are interested and willing to serve.
An item that we would like to discuss at this meeting will be a suggestion to consider building a community center in the large center circle of The Laurels. It would require an assessment, probably to be paid in increments over 4 - 5 years, to fund this. It could be used for the various activities that we have in The Laurels, like club meetings, card games or Mah Jong, private or public parties, etc. I think it would add to the property values of our neighborhood if we decide to proceed.
Speaking of money, just a reminder that our annual HOA dues are coming up again. If you pay before Jan 31, 2025, the amount is $700. If you pay after that date, the dues are $800. You can pay any Board member or mail your dues to: The Laurels HOA, PO Box 383163, Germantown, TN 38183-3163.
The town of Collierville is holding a run-off election for the Alderman 3 position. The candidates are Nick Robbins and Chad Lindsay.
I don’t know if I am allowed to say this or not, but I think the best choice for our neighborhood, and keeping the Chick-fil-A problem at bay, is Nick Robbins. Since the election is only between the 2 candidates, it will be a quick vote (it will take you longer to sign in then actually vote). The location for voting is our normal voting site, Compassion Church on Houston Levee (just before you get to Huey’s restaurant). The times are staggered and there is normally not a lot of interest for these runoff elections, so it is most important that you vote on a candidate if you get a chance. Actual Election Day will be on Dec 10, times to be announced, but will probably from 8 am to 7 pm.
Early Voting will take place at Compassion Church, 3505 South Houston Levee Road
Early Voting Times and Dates:
Wednesday, November 20 - 11 a.m. - 3 p.m.Thursday, November 21 - 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.Friday, November 22 - 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Saturday, November 23 - 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.Monday, November 25 - 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.Tuesday, November 26 - 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.Wednesday, November 27 - 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.Saturday, November 30 - 12 p.m. (noon) - 4 p.m.Monday, December 2 - 4 p.m. - 7 p.m.Tuesday, December 3 - 4 p.m. - 7 p.m.Wednesday, December 4 - 4 p.m. - 7 p.m.Thursday, December 5 - 3 p.m. - 7 p.m
Next Sunday, Nov 24, we will plan on decorating The Laurels’ entrance for Christmas. We plan to start at 2 pm so stop by if you are willing to help. I want to thank Julia Davis for making new bows for the wreaths, and my wife, Karen, for helping refresh all the decorations.
If you are interested in participating in The Laurel’s Christmas party on Dec 1, be sure to notify Rosalie Johnson as soon as possible to get your name on her list to get assigned a party house. This is always a very nice gathering and great way to mix with your fellow neighbors from around The Laurels, plus you get to start the Christmas season on a bright note.
Thanks again for helping maintain The Laurels as the great neighborhood it has become. Have a safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving.
Jim Stettler
Upcoming Holiday Party
Jingle & Mingle
Laurels Holiday Party
Sunday December 1
5-7 PM @Assigned Hosts Home
7-9 The Bradfords for Dessert & Holiday Music
Reservations Requirred: Call or text Rosalie at 901-340-9835
Estate Sale, Early Voting
Dear Neighbors,
As I mentioned in the last email, there is going to be an estate sale this week in the big circle. There will also be a neighborhood garage sale on Saturday morning. If you would like to participate or may want to add some things to another’s sale, contact Jan Slate. There will be a veteran’s charity organization coming through on Monday morning to pick up any unsold items you wish to get rid of that didn’t sell. Please be sure to let Jan know you wish to participate in this.
Early voting will start on Wednesday, the 16th and ends on the 31st. The polls are open from 11 - 7 weekdays and 9 - 4 on Saturdays. Bring a government issued picture ID to be able to cast your vote. You can vote at any voting station in Shelby County during the early voting period. The closest ones are on Shelton Rd, between Wolf River and Byhalia Rd. On Election Day, November 5, you must cast your ballot at our precinct voting spot, Compassion Church on Houston Levee, just before Huey’s restaurant. As we all know, this is a very important election for federal and local officials. So please be sure to vote!!
Jim Stettler
Candidate Meetings, Trash Cans, Upcoming Chilli Cookoff
Hey Neighbors:
We had a good turnout for the meeting with the Candidates on Monday night. Maureen Fraser, a candidate for Mayor, and 4 of the Alderman candidates were there for the Q&A that lasted 2 hours. I hope we turned those residents who attended into informed voters.
The daughter of Pat Powell, Lisa Brown, is having an estate sale at Pat’s home at 1857 Laurel Lane on Oct 18, 19 and 20.Pat passed away earlier this year and she is trying to sell a lot of the furnishings. You can expect more traffic than usual around the big circle, so be careful.
I don’t think many people are aware that Collierville trash says there should be about 5’ separation between your trash cans when you put them out on the street for pickup. They need space to get their “claws” out to grab the trash bin to lift up into the truck. I notice a lot of people sit them right next to each other. While you may not have 5’, you can at least give them a little spacing to make their job easier.
Rosalie Johnson is looking for contestants for the chili contest at the Oct 20 gathering for our Fall Fling Party. Step up if you have a good recipe, or just want to experiment on other people. Come and do the chili tasting and enjoy the gathering with your neighbors and friends.
We are in the process of updating our entryway Christmas decorations. The current ones are about 7 years old and the bows and some decorations need to be updated. If you are interested in helping or have a knack for this sort of thing, please contact Kaaren Stettler, 849-3271, to volunteer to contribute to the effort.
We will probably put the decorations up at the entrance the weekend of Thanksgiving (another chance to lend a hand!).
Enjoy the cooler weather and get ready for the holidays!
Jim Stettler
Busy Fall Calendar
Dear Neighbors:
I just want to remind everyone that now that Fall is here and things are getting busy once again. There is a lot going on and the holidays will be upon us before we know it.
We will start planning on our annual Homeowner’s Meeting for January very soon. We will be looking for volunteers to replace 3 of our current Board members, whose terms are ending. If you are interested in working for the neighborhood on the HOA Board, please let me or any one of the current Board members know. Terms are for 2 years and the work is really not that hard, but can be very rewarding.
We have a lot of events on our calendar coming up and want to remind all of you what is planned so far:
Sunday, Sep 29 Bourbon Tasting @ Big Circle 6 PM Bring a chair, a glass and a bottle of bourbon to share
Monday, Sep 30 Candidate Meeting @ The Farms 7 PM Hear from other Mayoral and Alderman candidates for C-Ville
Monday, Oct 7 HOA Board Mtg @ Stettlers 7 PM
Oct 16 - 31 Early Voting 9 - 7 Vote at any Shelby County voting station. VOTE!
Sunday, Oct 20 Chili Contest @ Laurel Knoll Circ 5 PM Laurel’s Fall Fling party
Tuesday, Nov 5 Election Day @ Compassion Church Located on Houston Levee Rd, just before Huey’s. VOTE!
The MahJong lessons are going well, I hear. Check with Pam Evans if you are interested. The other clubs are all active and will be planning special events for the next few months also.
We have not had a date set yet for the Christmas Progressive party, so watch for information to sign up and volunteer. This is always a fun part of our neighborhood and we hope more people will get involved.
Enjoy the great Fall weather. Keep in touch with your neighbors and take part in the activities of the season.
Jim Stettler
Political Signage
Dear Neighbors,
Several people have asked about putting political signs in their yards. According to the Tennessee Freedom of Speech Act, we should not restrict the rights of people to place such signs, within certain limits, such as their size or location. This Act overrides our HOA covenants. The signs may only be displayed 60 days prior to Election Day and removed within one day after. You may only display one sign per candidate.
This being said, I don’t think our neighborhood wants our tiny front yards covered in political signs. All signs should be 16 sq ft or less and located in your flower bed. No signs at all between the sidewalk and the street.
Please be considerate of your neighbor’s choices if they happen to disagree with yours. Any signs up 2 days after the election will be removed.
Thank you.
Jim Stettler
Local Election, Misc Updates
Dear Neighbors:
The HOA is sponsoring a meeting with one of the candidates for Mayor of Collierville, Mr. Billy Patton, on Aug 27. This will be held at The Farms, on Houston Levee Road, from 7 to 9 PM. There are a lot of areas which concern all of us, and not just for the Chick-fil-A issue. Collierville has some growing problems and it is important we all understand and become informed as to what these are and who may be best fitted to solving them. Mr. John Stamps, who is an Alderman running for re-election, will be there also. We need a lot of people to come and listen to these gentlemen and decide if they can earn your vote in the November election coming up. Please plan to come on Tuesday night, August 27th.
On some more local notes:
Mark Howell is working on redesigning our HOA webpage to make it more useable for all of us in The Laurels. He has done a lot of work on this but would like to have an assistant to help carry it on in the future or if he is unavailable. If you have experience with web sites and would like to help, please contact me or Mark.
As you all know, we have several traffic circles in The Laurels. They are quite common in Europe, but not so much here in America. The vehicle in the circle has the right of way and traffic outside of the circle should yield to them. However, this is Memphis and you are all licensed Memphis drivers, so you should know better than to trust the other guy! The one circle which is most difficult is at Laurel Lane and Laurel Hollow Lane, East and West, intersection. Traffic on Laurel Lane feels they have a straight shot and do not tend to yield to the circle traffic. Please be aware and be careful using this traffic circle.
You should know that the new macadam (asphalt) in our alleys will get quite warm in the hot summer sun and it turns soft. If you pull out into the alley and stop and turn your tires while stationary, you may dig a rut in the surface. Please just be aware and start moving the vehicle before turning your wheels if possible.
There have been some questions about being able to have a house for rent in The Laurels. We have many more homes for sale now than ever and they do not seem to be moving as fast as they usually do. Just so you are aware, the only restriction to renting your home is that you may not post any signage that can be seen from the street. We have had people renting houses in our neighborhood before and it has not been a problem. However, we do not really want short term leases or an Airbnb. We will need to discuss this at the annual meeting in January if we wish to amend our Covenants and Restrictions. Even if we do, we can probably not prevent anyone currently on the market from renting, as they would be grandfathered in under our current rules. By the same token, if you are sitting on a home that is not selling, you may wish to rent it to try and recover some of the expenses of maintaining the house. Its open for discussion!
Thanks:
Jim Stettler
New Streetlight Bulbs, Alley Paving
If you had not noticed yet, MLGW has replaced all of our street lights with new ones. They are supposedly more efficient and better lighting, and, hopefully, their sensors work correctly. A good excuse to take a walk on these fine evenings around the neighborhood.
We are hoping the alley paving work will begin on or around June 11. This date is dependent on possible weather delays on their other jobs. We will let you know if there are any drastic changes. For those who access the alleys for parking, you may have to plan on parking on the street for a week or so until your section is completed. Your trash may need to be taken to the front of the house instead of along the alley during this time also. We will coordinate with Collierville if it comes to this. It may take up to 2 weeks for them to complete the whole job.
I hope you are enjoying these fine late Spring days. All the rain has really helped the flowers and shrubs to grow.
If you are planning on being gone for any length of time on a vacation, be sure to let your neighbors know so they can keep a lookout on your home and property while you are gone. You can use the Collierville Police to run some inspections around your home at no charge. Just sign up on line.
I want to thank Dick Daniels for helping to set the flags out for Memorial Day. We will be putting some decorations out for the 4th of July around the end of May. If you want to help, please let me know.
Have a great summer and be safe!
Jim Stettler