September 2008

I’m writing this as Tropical Storm Hanna passes our community.  Fortunately, its impact seems to be even weaker than predicted.  So far, we haven’t had the heavy rain and wind that we expected.  However, this hurricane season is off to a very active start.  Everyone needs to be prepared.  An excellent source of information is the National Hurricane Center web site.  You can find the site at http://www.nhc.noaa.gov.  Just click on “Be Prepared” in the menu on the left.  An important thing to keep in mind for Hillsmere is water.  Since we are on wells, you will not have running water if the power goes out.  You should have drinking water on hand plus water that you can use to flush your toilets.  Just fill a bathtub with water before a storm, and use a bucket to pour into the toilet bowl to flush.  You can also buy jugs of drinking water at the supermarket to keep on hand for such an emergency.  The same preparedness would apply for winter storms, especially ice storms that can cause serious power outages.  If you know someone in our community who would be at risk in such an emergency (perhaps an elderly or disabled person), please email our Good Neighbor Program at goodneighbors@hillsmereshores.net.

I often write about crime since that is an issue of great concern to all of us.  On August 12, officers from the Southern District were called to a Baltimore  hospital  about  a  robbery  that  had occurred on the previous day.  The victim claimed that on August 11, at approximately 7:45 pm, he was walking his dog at Quiet Waters Park when several young males came out of the woods and demanded his money.  One of them had a gun.  He said that they assaulted and robbed him before they fled on foot.  Some of you may have heard of this disturbing incident.  Fortunately, for our community, the truth of what happened was quite different.  On August 27, Southern District Detectives re-interviewed the alleged victim regarding the assault and robbery.  It was during this interview that the alleged victim recanted his statement.  The incident never occurred at Quiet Waters Park as initially reported.  What really happened was that on August 11, at approximately 11:00 pm, he was assaulted and robbed in the area of Newtowne Drive, where he had gone in an attempt to purchase drugs.  While we should all be relieved that such an incident didn’t happen in Quiet Waters Park, we should still be careful when out and about, especially after dark.  In addition, you should always call 911 when you see something suspicious.

In the last issue of the Sea Breeze, I talked about the mosquito problem and how we had requested community spraying.  As I mentioned, we applied too late and would likely not receive spraying this season.  That is how it turned out.  We will be sure to apply on time next Spring.  If you sent in a request to be excluded from spraying, that should stay on file for next season.  We will publish all the information in the Sea Breeze again in the Spring.

There was another interesting issue that occurred recently that would have had a significant impact on some of our property owners.  County Councilwoman Cathy Vitale introduced a bill to prevent structures from encroaching too close to the B&A Trail.  Unfortunately, the bill that was introduced applied to all parks countywide and required a 50 foot setback from the park.  Since our covenants require a 30 foot setback from the road, the combination could have made some Hillsmere lots next to Quiet Waters Park unbuildable.  I received an email from one resident who was very concerned.  He wanted to know why Josh Cohen, our County Councilman, had not notified us about the bill.  The reason was that Cathy Vitale had agreed to amend the bill so that it only applied to linear parks, like the B&A Trail.  That would have eliminated any impact on our community.  The bill was withdrawn before it was considered.  I’m sure that Josh will keep us informed if this, or any other bill, comes up that could affect our community.

Speaking of county issues, if you live on the waterfront in Hillsmere, be sure to read the article by Bruce Walker, HSIA Treasurer, in this issue of the Sea Breeze about the Duvall Creek Dredging Project.  Nearly 1.3 million dollars has been budgeted for this project for the 2010 fiscal year.  However, this project only dredges the main channel.  Private property owners that want to have their docks connected to the channel must apply in the next few months to be included.

In addition to the gate, a security camera system was also installed at the marina.  The cameras, which work at night as well as in the daytime, cover the docks and the sandspit.  In the next few months, the views from the cameras will be accessible from the HSIA web site.  The new gate and cameras were entirely paid for by the marina budget.  No special tax money was used.  These are big improvements that will benefit all residents, not just slip holders.

We have a reservation system for residents who wish to use the community beach for parties and other events.  We make sure that only one event is scheduled for the same time.  The purpose is to make sure other residents can still use the beach, even if a party is going on.  We require a $200 security deposit that is returned in full if there is no damage and if all the trash is removed.  Jean Somers, our HSIA administrator, has asked me to remind all residents that you should NOT assume that you have a reservation unless you have received a confirmation email or phone call.  The beach is very popular, especially on summer weekends.  The reservations are taken as received.  We had a situation this summer where two residents left messages requesting the beach on the same day.  The second resident went ahead and sent out invitations without waiting for a confirmation.  It all ended well — but we needed to have two parties at one time on that day.  This kind of situation can be avoided by reserving early and waiting for a confirmation.