Town Crier Articles

Information gathered from the community will be used by your Board of Directors in developing a comprehensive  plan to address the exterior maintenance problems that Fortress has identified.  (Owners can access the reports from Fortress on the NTRA website - Association section, Committees & Policies page under "Village Walk Information.")

 

Please put Friday, 19 April 2024 on your calendar and plan to attend this critically important meeting that will affect everyone’s future in Village Walk.

NTRA committees are seeking new members. These committees advise the NTRA Board of Directors and provide information that helps the Board make decisions that impact everyone in each of our neighborhoods. They also take on projects to maintain and improve the New Town experience.

 

No experience is required for committee membership. All you really need is an interest in our community and fresh ideas that can help New Town be a better place in which to live. Tenants are welcome on several Committees as non-voting members.

 

Generally, Committees meet for about an hour once a month, either face-to-face at our Association meeting room or by Zoom.  Committee members may even join by Zoom if they are out of the area. Meetings generally last about an hour and ideas and recommendations for the Board of Directors are discussed and developed. In addition, plans for upcoming New Town initiatives are made.

 

The following is a list of the seven NTRA committees with membership needs:

• The Activities Committee has room for one more voting member, but welcomes all interested New Town residents to join them. Activities needs members to help plan and conduct social activities throughout our community.  They plan many of the events that you see advertised in New Town. If you like planning and conducting social events, this is the committee for you.

Two major new developments are poised on New Town’s doorstep and are progressing through the James City County rezoning review process: Westwood Park and Cardinal Ridge. In order for either development to be approved, the James City County 2045 Comprehensive Plan will also need to be revised to change the area designation from public land (PL) to multiuse (MU). This Master Plan revision process is expected to occur concurrent with the rezoning actions. 

 

Neither site is scheduled yet for public hearing before the Planning Commission, since comments from County staff are still being addressed. Stay informed about these important zoning actions and do your homework with the plan links provided below in preparation for any future opportunities for public input.

 

As indicated last month, the New Town Residential Association's (NTRA) commercial landscaping contractor, James River Grounds Management (JRGM), provides our Association with landscaping services throughout the year.  This is a standard service for each lot and is not customized landscaping for our residents. The NTRA contract with JRGM provides for the following turf care services: mowing and edging.

 

You can expect the grass throughout New Town to be mowed approximately once per week beginning in late March and continuing through mid-November, weather permitting. Periods of inclement weather can delay and/or postpone mowing if the service would be detrimental to the turf or be unsafe to perform. While riding mowers will be used in many locations throughout New Town, only smaller push mowers will be used for small turf areas and on slopes. This is safer and helps prevent damage to the grass and the surrounding property. The majority of the grass in New Town is fescue and it will be cut to a height of 3 to 4 inches. Summer grass such as the Zoysia in Lydias Park and also in a few other parts of New Town will be cut appropriately for the variety.

 

During a normal week, JRGM starts mowing in Shirley Park and part of Village walk on Monday. Tuesday, mowing in Village Walk is continued and extended through Savannah Square and Chelsea Green.  On Wednesday and Thursday, they are usually mowing Charlotte Park. Of course, weather and a few other factors can impact this schedule. If you have an irrigation system or if you just water your grass manually, please do not water a day or two before your scheduled service days. This will decrease turf damage from mowing equipment and allow JRGM to provide our community better service.

 

Each lawn service will include edging around all tree beds, poles, signage, fencing, foundations, and all vertical structures. Scalping is not only unsightly; it is detrimental to lawn growth and should never occur. JRGM staff have been trained to properly and safely use their edging equipment. When the mowing and edging is completed JRGM will remove all clippings from sidewalks, paved areas, and mulched beds.

 

Sometimes, weather will impact the receipt of landscaping services. Whenever a scheduled service is going to be missed, JRGM will advise Chesapeake Bay Management of the situation. The service will then be provided to the community as soon as the turf areas are dry enough to allow safe mowing without turf damage. If this delay is more than a couple of days, JRGM will advise the affected neighborhoods and provide an estimated date that the delayed service will be provided.

 

Next month’s topic is weed & pest control during the late spring, summer and fall.

Sadly, Chuck passed away on February 29th, about 60 days after the death of his wife Susan. The Stetlers arrived in 2011, theirs was the second home built, as Charlotte Park’s single family homes were being developed. Thus, Chuck had a wealth of institutional knowledge about the NTRA. We fondly called him “Mr. Mayor” since all manner of issues were within his grasp. 

 

Chuck first volunteered for the NTRA’s Finance Committee. With an eye for return on investments, he championed a proposal to show the Developer Board how the NTRA’s replacement reserve funds could generate more money if invested in a CD ladder (See February 2016 Town Crier, page 5). As a reward for his insights, Chuck was nominated from the floor of the NTRA Annual Meeting and elected to the 2016 Residential Advisory Board (RAB). He served as Vice Chair and then RAB Chair from 2017 through the assumption of Homeowner control in mid-2020. He kept his sanity by following professional sports, watching the stock market, and grilling on his beloved Green Egg. “I am a man of few words. At least that’s what my wife, Susan tells me. I’m quiet because I listen to what our residents have to say.”

The winter months brought with their chilling winds the loss of several neighbors, including Larry Salzman, a long-time New Town leader. Now as we enter Spring and begin to look forward, it is worthwhile to share some reflections. Most of us who have lived in New Town for more than a few years knew Larry as the “Developer” in his roles as President of the New Town Residential Developer Board, President of the New Town Commercial Association, and point person for New Town Associates.  I had the unique experience of interacting with Larry often in my years on the Residential Advisory Board (RAB) and as a member of the NTRA Developer Board before it was turned over to the homeowners, and more recently as a neighbor just a few houses up from Larry and Bonnie’s home.

 

Larry was a key player right from the start of New Town, when it was just a vision of a walkable community held by the consortium of the Casey family, William & Mary, James City County, New Town Associates, and others a quarter of a century ago. Anyone who has served in a leadership position knows that things never go perfectly smoothly or even as planned. Larry was in position to have responsibility for a complex interaction between Atlantic Homes (the main builder), New Town Management, the commercial side, VDOT, and James City County. No doubt there were some mistakes made and some strong disagreements at times between the developers and the homeowners. However, under his watch he established the RAB to give homeowners a voice during Developer control, which was not a requirement.

 

At times, when something went wrong, critics typically blamed the Developer. Sometimes it was the Developer’s misjudgment. But I know of more than one occasion when the real problem had to be placed at the door of the management company, the builder, and oh my, even the RAB. Despite some contentious episodes, Larry always held the vision of a friendly walking community. Behind the scenes he worked to better fulfill that vision for our evolving community.

 

Larry was a businessman and most of the time we only knew him in his more formal roles. However, he had a kind softness too. For example, I was often with him in those mysterious Board meetings called Closed Executive Sessions. Frequently, these meetings were about homeowners who were not following the declarations and time had come to impose sanctions and fines. Larry was always very sensitive to the reasons the person had gotten into the predicament. On one occasion, we had to insist Larry get with the rest of the Board to practice “tough love” because the violator had received multiple warnings and registered letters. Even when the history of violations was frustrating, it did not keep Larry from being sensitive toward homeowners.

 

Larry was consistently passionate about building a strong community and often mentioned moving here someday. In late 2020 he in fact became a neighbor. I remember his dog Kelly who often appearing in Zoom Board meetings during the Covid years. Those of us who have dogs got to know Larry in a different light when we would meet Larry walking sweet Kelly. We found Larry and Bonnie to be good neighbors and he will be missed. To honor Larry, we all should stay committed to the vision he championed, revitalize the flow of volunteers to the Association, and most of all be neighborly.

 

(along with representatives of Town Management LLC and the New Town Commercial Association)

Tornadoes are nature’s most violent storms.  By definition a tornado is a violently rotating column of air touching the ground, usually attached to the base of a thunderstorm. Spawned from powerful thunderstorms, tornadoes can cause fatalities and devastate a neighborhood in seconds. 

 

Here in Williamsburg, we occasionally hear about “tornado watches,” but less often about “tornado warnings.” You may ask, “What’s the difference?” The National Weather Service (NWS) issues a Tornado Watch when weather conditions in an area indicate an increased risk for severe weather that may be capable of producing a tornado. However, when the NWS issues a Tornado Warning, it does so when a tornado has been sighted or indicated by weather radar. In this case, one should take shelter IMMEDIATELY.  Warning times vary in the range of 10 to 15 minutes.

 

The 6 warning signs that a tornado is approaching may include:                            

• The color of the sky may change to a dark greenish color.
• A strange quiet occurring within or shortly after a thunderstorm.
• A loud roar that sounds similar to a freight train.                                                                    
• An approaching cloud of debris, especially at ground level.
• Debris falling from the sky.
• A rotating funnel-shaped cloud that extends from a thunderstorm.