Q3 2020 Member Update

By Brett Funderburg

With the 3rd quarter of 2020 behind us, I wanted to give an update on several items that may be of interest to Members.

Vikram Shah, one of our newly elected directors from this year’s Annual Meeting has had to resign from the board due to unforeseen work commitments. We wish him well but this is disappointing news as Vikram was shaping up to be a valuable asset to the community. Hopefully he will be willing and able to serve at some point in the future. In the meantime, the Association’s Governing Documents empower the remaining board members to fill the open seat so there will be a fresh call for candidates going out and we’ll be reaching out to the other candidates from this year’s meeting to gauge interest and try to set up some interviews.

You may have noticed that the pace of repairs and maintenance has slowed considerably in recent months. We made the decision to cut back on our planned capital spending while we waited to see what impact COVID-19 would have on our cash position. Thus far, it appears that Member delinquency is only slightly higher than usual so we plan to gradually resume our planned maintenance and repair spending. If your household’s finances have been negatively impacted by the pandemic and you are unable to stay current with your HOA assessments, please reach out to Spectrum to work out a payment plan. This will allow you to avoid expenses related to collection on a delinquent account.

The last major project for this year is to rebuild the dumpster enclosure located in the community center parking lot. This project is currently out for bid and we are not expecting it to impact the use of any amenities at the community center complex. The basketball court remains closed due to coronavirus restrictions and we have identified a handful of repairs to the gate and fencing that we would like to undertake at some point but this may get pushed to next year. The tennis courts were resurfaced the week of July 20 following the installation of a retaining wall to address erosion and washout issues that were degrading the court surface sooner than expected and we hope our tennis players are enjoying the refreshed surface The pool will be closing for the season on October 31 and we want to thank everyone for cooperating with us on complying with the various and changing restrictions we were forced to implement due to the pandemic. We also want to especially thank our lifeguards this year, many of whom are from within the neighborhood. We do appreciate you all.

The Board did conclude its 2021 budget planning and adopted the new budget at the September meeting. In terms of direct operating expense, it looks very similar to the 2020 budget with a couple of exceptions. We did achieve a significant reduction in our property and casualty insurance premiums by switching carriers and in recent years, have placed a high priority on aggressive management and repair and maintenance of our irrigation system. This has resulted in big reductions in our water expense to the point that we are comfortable reducing the budgeted amount by about $10,000 heading into 2021. The big capital expenses for next year were identified by the independent reserve study and are primarily focused on some much needed repair and renovation around the pool including coping, tile, deck repairs and repairs to the plaster. In addition, we’re continuing to invest in overdue maintenance and upkeep of our landscaping, beds, trees, sod and hardscape including the concrete fence along Boulder Lane. The board welcomes input from Members at any time on other spending priorities which we may not have considered.

Our two primary management targets are: 1) an 80% or better operating expense ratio; and 2) capital expenses and reserve balances driven by the independent, triennial reserve study. With the series of assessment increases these last few years, we finally hit our target OpEx ratio of just under 80%. This has put us in a position to scale back assessment increases to a level in line with our annual 1.5 – 2% operating expense increases. I discussed this at the annual meeting and the feedback from members present was that having to remember to update auto-pay balances annually would be a source of error and likely lead to many unintended delinquencies and late fee expenses. In recognition of this, the board has elected to apply an approximately 8% increase to the annual assessment, bringing it to $526 annually. With this increase, we are aiming to avoid further increases until the 2024 timeframe assuming current trends hold and nothing dramatic affects our ongoing operations.

Finally, allow me to recognize a few individuals for their service to the community. First up is Sohum Sharma, shown here, who, as part of his Eagle Scout project, has done a very nice job constructing a new Gaga Ball pit at the community center. We are certainly grateful for his efforts and look forward to being able to use it when covid restrictions are lifted and this is possible. Congratulations to you, Mr. Sharma on achieving the rank of Eagle Scout!

Next up is current HOA member of the Board and licensed electrician, Mark Weaver, who, this year, has donated countless hours and literally tens of thousands of dollars worth of electrical work personally repairing and installing numerous security cameras, LED fixtures, wiring, conduit, breakers and all manner of gadgets; going so far as to even rent a scissor lift to replace a handful of lights at the pool parking lot with energy efficient LED lighting. Mark, thank you so much for your time and talent donated for our benefit – we appreciate you!

On behalf of the Board,

Brett Funderburg

President, CCHOA

Canyon Creek Traffic and Pedestrian Safety (TAPS) Newsletter – Fall 2020

  • The Canyon Creek Traffic and Pedestrian Safety (TAPS) Committee completed a survey of city sidewalks that includes sidewalk issues reported by our community residents. This survey resulted in the documentation of 80 significant city sidewalk safety issues with sidewalk mismatches noted up to 4.5 inches. The survey found significant sidewalk issues on 26 different streets in our community. A list of these documented mismatches was submitted to the City of Austin in late 2019. Based on our request, a city crew repaired (considered “temporary repairs”) most of these noted sidewalk mismatches in May 2020. Our goal is to make the use of our neighborhood city sidewalks safe for all pedestrians and to offer a safe alternative to jogging on our city streets, which is not only unsafe but also illegal when a sidewalk is available. We will continue to work with City of Austin staff to further improve our city sidewalks.
  • The CC HOA board is continuing to utilize off-duty Travis County deputy constables to patrol our neighborhood streets to promote awareness that traffic and pedestrian safety is a high priority in our community. These paid deputy constable patrols are in addition to non-paid patrols by other law enforcement agencies such as APD and Travis County Sheriff’s Department. These patrols are performed at random times every week and have resulted in many citations for traffic violations, primarily speeding. The purpose of these citations is for traffic calming and safer, more cognizant drivers, not monetary punishment.
  • Austin City Council passed a new speed limit ordinance (# 20200611-045) that was signed by Mayor Steve Adler on June 11, 2020. The new ordinance restricts speed limits on all Austin neighborhood streets to 25 mph max after posting of new speed signs unless a different speed limit is determined by the City of Austin Traffic Engineer. The only basic exception is for larger neighborhood streets and major arterials such as Boulder Lane. New speed limit signs will be placed on hundreds of Austin neighborhood streets starting early next year, but central Austin will get priority on installation of the new speed limit signs. We will advise our residents when we get updated info on when CC may get new speed limit signs.
  • After reviewing the most recent data from the two radar speed units installed on Boulder, the Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Committee finds a couple of stand-out issues. The first is that during the period January 01, 2020 through July 20, 2020 there were 7 vehicles on north Boulder that were recorded traveling between 70 mph and 99 mph. There were an additional 9 vehicles on south Boulder recorded traveling between 70 and 90 mph. This is reckless driving and totally unacceptable behavior! Hopefully most of these egregious speeders are not residents of Canyon Creek. The second observation is that the average number of vehicles recorded traveling daily on Boulder Lane dropped around 40% in mid-March through July 20, 2020 due to Covid-19 related increase in work-from-home and virtual learning. We will continue to monitor this radar speed unit data as it is made available to us from the Austin Transportation Dept.
  • We have some good news to report! City council member Jimmy Flannigan’s D6 office has awarded funding to our Canyon Creek neighborhood on two different City of Austin mobility/safety fund projects (note: no expenditure or matching funds required by our HOA). Canyon Creek applied for this funding money from this special program, which is called the ¼ Cent Program (city ¼ cent sales tax for mobility improvements), to be used for local neighborhoods. One of the projects is for an additional radar speed unit (“DSDD”) to be installed for traffic calming on Chestnut Ridge Rd in the early December 2020 timeframe (see pic below). The specific location for this radar speed unit is under review. The second project award is for painted white “curb extensions” at the Boulder/Ember Glen intersection (pic of typical curb extensions is shown below) in front of the Canyon Creek Elementary School. We believe these painted curb extensions will offer a visual signal to drivers to slow down and watch for pedestrians at the school crossings before stopping at the posted stop sign. This project should be complete by November 2020.

  • Reminders:
    • Respect the right-of-way of pedestrians in our neighborhood – Note: it is state law that vehicles must yield the right of way to pedestrians standing at the entrance of or in crosswalks. To yield, vehicles must come to a complete stop and wait while pedestrians enter, cross and exit the crosswalk.
    • Drive within the posted speed limits for safety (trying to save a few extra seconds by speeding is not safe or smart and it can cost you a lot of money). Note speed limits are set based on ideal driving conditions so wet roads, heavy traffic or pedestrian presence warrants reducing speed below the posted limit.
    • If you see someone driving recklessly or if you experience “road rage”, call 911 immediately and report as many details of the reckless driving as possible such as the nature of the event, license plate number, make/model/color of vehicle, location, driver description, etc. Please do not chase or confront the driver.

Canyon Creek Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Newsletter – Fall 2019

The Canyon Creek Traffic and Pedestrian Safety (TAPS) Committee has completed a survey of city sidewalks that includes sidewalk issues reported by our community residents. This survey resulted in the documentation of 80 significant city sidewalk safety issues with sidewalk mismatches noted up to 4.5 inches. The survey found significant sidewalk issues on 26 different streets in our community. A list of these documented mismatches was submitted to the City of Austin the week of Nov 11, 2019.

Our committee has been notified that a city official will be coming to our neighborhood in the near future to observe and confirm our noted sidewalk issues. We expect the city to repair these noted issues after an assessment and a written plan is developed to mitigate these issues. Our goal is to make the use of our city sidewalks safe for all pedestrians and to offer a safe alternative to jogging on our city streets, which is not only unsafe but also illegal when a sidewalk is available.

  • The CC HOA board has approved a 2020 budget that includes doubling the frequency of paid deputy constable patrols starting in January 2020 from one patrol every two weeks to one patrol every week. These patrols have been taking place since November 2018. This should result in further traffic calming and should promote awareness that traffic and pedestrian safety is a high priority in our community. These paid deputy constable patrols are in addition to patrols by other law enforcement agencies such as APD and Travis County Sheriff’s Department. On average, 3-4 vehicles are ticketed per patrol for speeding and other moving violations.
  • Many of you may have noticed two new radar speed signs (officially called “Dynamic Speed Display Devices or “DSDD’s”) installed on Chestnut Ridge Rd. These DSDD’s are temporary and will be removed after collecting speed data for around six weeks. After these DSDD’s are removed, Austin Transportation Dept (ATD) personnel will analyze and evaluate the data. Our TAPS committee and the HOA board will be given access to this data and a decision will likely be made by the 1st quarter of 2020 on whether future additional traffic calming measures are justified. The purchase and installation of two permanent DSDD’s on Chestnut Ridge Rd is one possible outcome. However, the TAPS committee and HOA board will solicit feedback from homeowners concerning issues such as acceptance and possible placement locations before proceeding with any additional DSDD’s.

Reminders:

  • Respect the right-of-way of pedestrians in our neighborhood
    Note: it is state law that vehicles must yield the right of way to pedestrians standing at the entrance of or in crosswalks. To yield, vehicles must come to a complete stop and wait while pedestrians enter, cross and exit the crosswalk.
  • Drive within the posted speed limits for safety (trying to save a few extra seconds by speeding is not safe or smart and it can cost you a lot of money). Note speed limits are set based on ideal driving conditions so wet roads, heavy traffic or pedestrian presence warrants reducing speed below the posted limit.
  • If you see someone driving recklessly or if you experience “road rage”, call 911 immediately and report why it was reckless and with as many details of the vehicle as you have such as license plate number, make/model/color of vehicle, location, driver description, etc. Please do not chase or confront the driver.

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TxDOT Presentation made at the Canyon Creek Town Hall Meeting on Sep 16, 2019

RM 620 CORRIDOR Refinement Study.

This presentation was made by Bruce Byron, Public Information Lead, of TxDOT and explains some plans for improving mobility on and around RM 620. The main takeaways from this presentation are:

  • The 620/2222 bypass road is planned for completion in late 2020 and will relieve some traffic congestion on both 620 and 2222 when completed
  • RM 620 is already stretched way beyond its original design vehicular capacity, especially near the 620/2222 intersection and the 620/Anderson Mill intersection
  • The 620/Anderson Mill Rd intersection improvement project is now funded and construction of an overpass is planned to start in late 2023 after engineering and purchase of right-of-way properties are completed

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2020 Budget Prep

Brett Funderburg

The next HOA Board Meeting is set for Monday, Sept. 16 at the Church at Canyon Creek in an upstairs room of the main church building called the “Cross Room”. At this meeting the Board will consider and adopt the operating and capital budget for 2020. Before this meeting, I wanted to give an update on where we are, where we’ve come from and where we plan to go over the next couple of years.

As many of you know, 2019 is the first year since 2004 that the Association has raised its annual regular assessment. Most of the Association’s contracted expenses (landscaping, management fees, pool service, lifeguards, custodial, pest control, etc.) increase by about 3-5% annually. Some expenses, such as insurance, increase even more than that annually. In the intervening 15 years, the Association’s direct operating costs regularly increased without a corresponding increase in assessments to keep up. I spoke at length on this subject at the 2018 annual meeting and wrote up a summary that you can read here.

The draft budget for 2020’s direct operating costs is currently $488,451. The majority of these costs are non-discretionary expenses covering the direct care and management of the property. Our discretionary operating expenses center around the budget for our annual community events such as the spring egg hunt, fall and winter festivals, back to school pool party and the recently added movie night at the pool. The proposed budget for all community events is currently just over $12,000, or a bit over $9 per household.

In cash flowing commercial real-estate, one metric for analyzing a property is the Operating Expense Ratio (OER). In simple terms, this number is just the direct operating costs divided by gross revenue. A lower number is better and you typically want to see this in the 60-80% range which means that 20-40% of a property’s income is allocable to paying investors a return and for the reserve fund. Since the Association does not have investors to whom it must pay a return, I’ve internally set our target to the high end of that range at 80%. This means that 20% of our gross assessment income is allocated for reserves and capital projects. By comparison, 2018’s budgeted OER was 85%, a little too high for comfort. (And, in fact, the actual number is almost always higher due to unforeseen repairs and expenses that weren’t originally budgeted.) To gain insight into our expected capital expenses, the Association commissions a reserve study every 3 years to identify our needs out for the next 30 years along with the recommended annual contribution to reserves and the target balance of the reserve fund along the way. The reserve study only considers the “hard” assets of the Association and doesn’t include costs for major restoration or maintenance projects for landscaping, beds, sod, tree maintenance, etc. It should therefore be viewed as the most conservative assessment of our financial needs if the Board takes on no other projects. The reserve study, along with other projects the Board prioritizes drives the total capital expense budget.

For 2020, the reserve study calls for patch, seal and striping of the CCHOA pool/courts parking lot at an estimated $9500 (in round numbers) and another $18K in repairs to the concrete pool deck. Since there are additional repairs and maintenance to the pool identified for 2021, the draft budget I’m proposing defers the $18K deck expense to 2021 so that we can address all of these elements at once in a holistic way. In addition, the Board is prioritizing $70,000 in landscape improvements along Boulder Lane to address unsightly erosion, bare dirt, beds, tree wells and other hardscape that has fallen into disrepair. We’re also allocating $25,000 to address concerns from a number of HOA members on safety and security, make some long needed electrical repairs and a small handful of other items. Looking ahead, we have a lengthy list of deferred maintenance, upkeep and appearance projects that we are playing catch up with including the aforementioned maintenance and repairs to the pool concrete deck and tile, correcting erosion and drainage problems at the tennis courts, ongoing restoration of beds, sod and landscaping along Boulder Lane, addressing erosion and muddy washouts on our sidewalks among other things. We are prioritizing these items ahead of other long awaited projects such a new landscaping installation to the south entrance medians and installation of a shade canopy for the baby pool.

If we ignore for a moment the 3-5% annual increases in many of our actual direct operating costs and instead take the U.S. Department of Commerce’s average 2% annual inflation rate since 2004, then our regular assessments, simply pacing the inflation rate, should be at $549 per household; and if we consider 2.5% a conservative rate that blends all of our annual operating cost increases, then the regular assessment would be just shy of $600 each year. Taking all of the above into account, for 2020, we are targeting a 10% bump in the regular assessment, going from $440 to $484 ($3.66 per month per house). This gives us an operating expense ratio of 78% (slightly better than target) and with the capital expenses outlined above, leaves a net increase to our reserve fund of $32,443 as we exit 2020. As we address many of these deferred projects, I do expect our operating costs to increase somewhat as we pay more attention to maintaining these elements going forward. That said, managing our costs while properly running the Association and maintaining our Amenities and common areas has been and will continue to be a priority for all board members.

There will definitely be a few minor tweaks to these numbers as some final quotes come in late for our insurance renewals, and from other vendors but I am not expecting any material swings at this point. Please consider attending the meeting if you can.

View the draft budget.

View the reserve study

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Spring 2019 Canyon Creek Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Newsletter

Canyon Creek Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Newsletter Spring 2019

Link to PDF Version

 The Canyon Creek Traffic and Pedestrian Safety (TAPS) Committee is working with the City of Austin to address the numerous sidewalk safety hazards. TAPS needs your help to identify specific uneven, mismatched, or broken sidewalk locations. Please report any specific sidewalk hazards to traffic@canyoncreek.net. Be sure to include the specific street address / location and nature of the hazard. After this list is compiled, the committee will formally request the city to repair the noted hazards. Note: The city will likely make temporary repairs first, followed later by a more permanent fix as city ATD crew schedules allow.

 The Canyon Creek Traffic and Pedestrian Safety (TAPS) Committee is working with the City of Austin to address the numerous sidewalk safety hazards. TAPS needs your help to identify specific uneven, mismatched, or broken sidewalk locations. Please report any specific sidewalk hazards to traffic@canyoncreek.net. Be sure to include the specific street address / location and nature of the hazard. After this list is compiled, the committee will formally request the city to repair the noted hazards. Note: The city will likely make temporary repairs first, followed later by a more permanent fix as city ATD crew schedules allow.

 The Canyon Creek HOA board authorized paid patrols starting last year by off-duty Travis County deputy constables to provide and promote traffic calming and more awareness of traffic and pedestrian safety in our neighborhood. In addition, other law enforcement agencies, such as City of Austin police and Travis County Sheriff’s Department deputies patrol our community (they are not directly paid for by the CC HOA). Here are a few examples of what a traffic citation can cost you from Travis County:

  • +15 mph over posted 35 mph speed limit $257 ($107 court cost + $10/mph over)
  • +10 mph over posted 20 mph speed limit in a school zone $307 ($107 court costs + 20/mph over)
  • Failure to fully stop at a stop sign: $257

 The two radar speed signs (officially called DSDDs) installed on Boulder Lane are indeed calming traffic. There has been a noted general speed reduction according to actual recorded data provided by the city of Austin (ATD). The CC HOA board has allocated money for the possible addition of two new DSDDs to be installed on Chestnut Ridge sometime in 2020. In addition, the TAPS committee has recently made an official request to the Austin Traffic Department (ATD) to add our community to the waiting list for two temporary (mobile) DSDDs on Chestnut Ridge to collect data and determine if Chestnut Ridge is a candidate for future DSDDs. If these temporary mobile DSDDs are approved by ATD, it will likely be several months before actual availability and placement. The TAPS committee and the HOA board will canvas and solicit feedback from homeowners on Chestnut Ridge and surrounding streets concerning the desirability, acceptance, and possible locations of potential permanently installed DSDDs before any final decision is made on the purchase and installation of these additional units.

 The TAPS committee encourages children and adults to cross the streets near Canyon Creek Elementary School only at designated crosswalks whenever possible and specifically only at crosswalks that have crossing guards, when available. Crossing the streets at intersections without a crossing guard, when a guard is available, is discouraged for safety reasons.

 Reminders:

  • Respect the right-of-way of pedestrians in our neighborhood. Note: it is state law that vehicles must yield the right of way to pedestrians standing at the entrance of or in crosswalks. To yield, vehicles must come to a complete stop and wait while pedestrians enter, cross, and exit the crosswalk.
  • Drive within the posted speed limits for safety (trying to save a few extra seconds by speeding is not safe or smart, and it can cost you a lot of money). Note: speed limits are set based on ideal driving conditions, so wet roads, heavy traffic, or pedestrian presence warrants reducing speed below the posted limit.
  • If you see someone driving recklessly or if you experience “road rage”, call 911 immediately and report why the driving was reckless and with as many details of the vehicle as you have, such as license plate number, make/model/color of vehicle, location, driver description, etc. Please do not chase or confront the driver.

Fall 2018 – Canyon Creek Neighborhood Pedestrian & Traffic Safety News

Traffic Safety Alert:

Drivers, slow down when approaching the crosswalks in Canyon Creek.

Prepare to stop for pedestrians crossing the street!

Neighborhood Pedestrian & Driver Safety Reminders:

• Respect the right-of-way of pedestrians throughout the entire neighborhood.

• Slow when approaching crosswalks and school zones and always look for pedestrians.

• Remember, there are children playing and walking throughout Canyon Creek.

• The speed limit along sections of Boulder, is 35 mph. At 35 mph, it takes 136 feet to come to a complete stop. There is a 50% chance of a severe injury if a pedestrian is struck by a vehicle at 31 mph, and there is a 25% chance of a fatal injury if a pedestrian is struck by a vehicle at 32 mph. So, drive carefully.

• It’s not cool to speed through a neighborhood, especially one which has children walking to school, going to bus stops, and biking to the parks. Drive cool, not fast.

• Set an example for the student drivers and others driving through the community. Drive at or below the speed limit and always yield to pedestrians.

• If you’re a parent of a student driver, remind them to drive responsibly.

• The best “power trip” is a fast jog or walk through the neighborhood, it’s not speeding or tailgating other drivers to pressure them to speed up.

• If you see someone driving recklessly or you experience road rage, call 911.

• Let’s work together to keep Canyon Creek safe and pedestrian friendly!

• Remember, we’re all in this neighborhood together. Be neighborly.

Canyon Creek Traffic Safety Announcement

The CC HOA board has reviewed data provided by the Austin Transportation Dept (ATD) for the two radar speed units (formally called Dynamic Speed Display Unit or DSDD) installed in July on Boulder Lane. (see chart below) There is some good news and some quite shocking news. The good news is that average vehicular speed recorded on both the N. Boulder and S. Boulder radar speed units was 35 mph (in 35 mph posted zones). The shocking news is that there were 789 vehicles recorded on N. Boulder at speeds exceeding 45 mph and 15 vehicles exceeding 60 mph. One vehicle on N. Boulder was recorded at a speed of 73 mph. The data for S. Boulder was questionably better where 733 vehicles were recorded exceeding 45 mph and 9 vehicles were exceeding 60 mph. One vehicle on S. Boulder was recorded at 77 mph.  This is shocking and verifies what essentially all residents in Canyon Creek already knew: we have a significant and unacceptable traffic safety issue.

Canyon Creek Traffic Safety Announcement:

The CC HOA board is currently investigating options to provide further traffic calming such as requesting additional Austin police patrols and asks every driver in the community to make an effort to slow down to the posted speed limits. Additional police patrols alone will not fix this problem, it can only offer some degree of traffic calming. Traffic safety is even more important now that our schools are back in session and more children will be walking along Boulder and other neighborhood streets. Again, we ask that all residents in Canyon Creek do their part to help mitigate this traffic safety issue to prevent a vehicular tragedy from occurring.

Slow down, watch pedestrians, yield to those in crosswalks and stop for school bus loading and unloading on undivided streets.

The DSDD units will be left place and data will continue to be studied going forward in order to determine further actions by the appropriate authorities.

Please contact the Canyon Creek board at board@canyoncreek.net or the CC traffic safety group for questions or comments:

Randy Lawson: randylawson96@gmail.com

Dave Marshall: dave.marshall.austin@gmail.com

Mark Weaver: JMarkWeaver@gmail.com

May 14 Q2 CCHOA Meeting Slides and Bathhouse Renovation Update

Mark Weaver

This document presents an outline of the Q2 CCHOA meeting held on May 14 2018 and gives an important update on the bathhouse renovation. The first half of the meeting covered topics such as Firewise clean up, Spectrum Management’s report, violation notices, Traffic safety and control.  The later half of the meeting the Board presented a new option, named “Option 2.5”, to the bathhouse renovation project. Residents can read the details about this option, along with the budget breakdown, reserve breakdown, and renovation timeline starting at page 27 of the PDF document. Please send your comments, suggestions, and questions to board@canyoncreek.net regarding the information in this PDF document.