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| | Author | Messages | |
IrishCream
Posts:277
 | | 02/09/2008 11:48 PM |
 Alert | At 11:15 (or so), we heard a bunch of people outside our home who were fighting, screaming and burning rubber down the street! We called the cops and it took them a total of 12 minutes to get here (due to a train!). Needless to say, by the time law enforcement arrived on the scene, everyone had scattered in every direction. My husband and I gave our witness statements, but it almost seemed as if they (the police) weren't interested because they didn't get the chance to charge in and see some action. Oh well. A very good point that my husband makes is this: The train prevented the police from arriving on the scene in time to catch the hoodlums. This really should be a concern for anyone living south of the tracks, Maricopa Meadows, Alterra, Desert Cedars, etc. SO, does and could the train prevent those of us on "the wrong side of the tracks" from getting emergency help when needed? Granted, this was just a public disturbance, but what if it would have been a shooting or a heart attack or anything else life threatening?! Thoughts? | |
“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson | |
| | ErinC
Posts:135
| | 02/10/2008 9:04 AM |
Alert | | That is a concern because so much can happen in just five minutes, much less 12. There should be at least one patrol car south of the tracks at all times. That is just my opinion. I never would have thought about this. Thanks for bringing it to our attention. | | | |
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| | IrishCream
Posts:277
| | 02/10/2008 10:35 AM |
Alert | You're welcome, but I had never thought of it either before last night! I've lived here for almost 2 years and have only heard anything even remotely worth calling the police before, one time... just one time in two years, until last night!
I'm fairly certain that the "disturbors" are new to our neighborhood and I think the block banded together quite well to prove a point! FIVE Maricopa PD responding vehicles, one under cover and a grand total of 8 officers responded. Even if it did take 12 minutes lol. We will NOT stand for that type of behavior in our 'hood, you hoodlums! hehe | |
“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson | |
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| | Colgate
Posts:575
| | 02/11/2008 9:45 PM |
Alert | | Atleast for anything major heart attack, choking, the list goes on, the Fire Dept. in Alterra is trained as first responders. Well, for domestic, or public disturbance that is up to the police and they really need to be working in zones! If you are extremely concerned talk to the City Chief and ask how the shifts are broken up and if they work zones. | |
Live every day as if it were your last and smile! | |
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| | IrishCream
Posts:277
| | 02/15/2008 6:20 AM |
Alert | Yes, which I am grateful for, but I do think there needs to be a lot of attention paid to the fact that we did not see cops for 12 minutes. I know it seems like a relatively short amount of time, but like ErinC said, "There should be at least one patrol car south of the tracks at all times."
Response time should be at a minimal and only having the Fire Department to respond is simply unacceptible for certain situations. These men fight fires and assist with medical emergencies, but it is completely unfair to risk their lives for a public disturbance, domestic violence or gang related incident. They are here to help put out fires and save lives, not put themselves in front of a potentially deadly situation that could ultimately end with gun fire or any other form of physical attack.
We need police, who our tax dollars pay and who are trained to handle these situations, on our side of the tracks. I'm going to look into starting block watches here in Alterra. I've seen other subdivisions discuss them on the forum, so I'll take the forum and paper flier route to begin with. Of course, I will start the paper trail on my own block, but if anyone else wants to get one started on their block, we should band together and make it a reality.
Did you see the vandalism to the Alterra sign when you turn off Bowlin onto Alterra Pkwy South? What started as a Senita, Rancho El Dorado issue is spilling into our "hood" and that is just not cool! | |
“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson | |
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| | CMS
Posts:12
| | 02/15/2008 9:57 AM |
Alert | I'm sorry to hear about the disturbance on your street. This is my first time posting on 85239.com but I felt the block watch issue is definitely an issue I should address. I am on the Alterra HOA board and I also head up the Alterra Block Watch comittee. Luckily we have not had a lot of issues in Alterra but this has also lead to my complacency and I apologize for this. I will do my best to have a date and time scheduled for announcement at the next HOA meeting. It's best that we keep the Block Watch as part the HOA and not have a number of different factions with same intent of keeping our community safe.
In the meantime, this weekend I will do my best to have the AlterraHOA website updated with more detailed information concerning the Block Watch committee as well as the other committees created by the HOA. I'll also post the contact information for myself as well as the numbers for the proper authorities.
The biggest thing though for those not already aware, if you suspect something illegal contact the police immediately. In no way, shape, or form should anyone take action themselves, and there is no reason not to contact the police. It's not entirely necessary to have bands of roaming neighbors policing the community if everyone simply looks out for each other and is willing to make a call when something is wrong. | | | |
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|  | IrishCream
Posts:277
| | 02/15/2008 11:23 AM |
Alert | CMS, I appreciate your attention to these issues, but I can not help but notice that you posted the exact same response in the first three topics dealing with these issues. We do not need an the HOA board who gives "cookie cutter" answers and suggests a less than acceptable solution to a very real issue that could become a reality in a relatively short amount of time.
The HOA feels they need to jump on residents who have some weeds growing out front or who park on the street or whose trash barrells stay out overnight. Instead, their time could be better spent spending our dues to hire someone to clean up the trash around the mail boxes or weed the vacant properties. I find it slightly ridiculous that my dues go to an organization that wants to hassel me for not being able to get rid of weeds that are virtually impossible to get rid of during this time of year and allow my streets to become littered with trash that the Maricopa Waste spills into them. Then they have the audacity to end their contract with said garbage company and pass the buck (literally) on to the residents.
The HOA is a task force set in place to ensure that the community looks heavenly for potential buyers, they are not going to do anything to seriously address our concerns as residents. I believe that the residents SHOULD take matters into their own hands as far as a block watch is concerned because we live on these streets and we are the ones who must deal with the disturbances and vandalism. Yes, you may live here and be on the board, but don't fool yourself into thinking that we, the owners and residents, will rally behind an organization that goes out of its way to make living here only comfortable as long as we conform to their long list of demands.
No one, hopefully, will be out "policing" the streets, we will simply be paying more attention to the goings on in our neighborhoods and calling the authorities when/if anything suspicious rears it's head. | |
“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson | |
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| | CMS
Posts:12
| | 02/15/2008 12:00 PM |
Alert | Irish Cream, I had responded the same to all three topics because they referenced the same issue, the need for a Block Watch. I simply wanted it known that there is already one that anyone in the community is more then free to be a part of. Being that the HOA already has this created it seems logical to have one group working together rather then multiple groups overlapping each others attempts at progress.
Concerning the actions of the HOA and the spending of dues. All HOA board members are residents of Alterra and pay the same dues as everyone else. We are all concerned where the funds go and we on the board make every attempt to save our fellow homeowners as much as possible every step of the way. The financials are reviewed at every board meeting and while not every cost paid will make every community member happy they are made in the best interest of everyone.
As for penalties, if someone receives a notice they have every right in the world to dispute it. The board reviews all disputes, and I'm very happy to say that we are all extremely level headed in our decisions. None of us volunteered to be board members because we thought there were riches and fame to follow, but because we all care about our community, just like you.
And lastly, the policies and procedures we are required to review and enforce are given to all homeowners and everyone should be aware of what is a violation and what is not. If there is a violation we issue out a warning as an attempt for the infraction to be corrected. If a fine is accessed it is after the warning has expired and the issue has not been resolved. As for the board members, we were elected by the homeowners that chose to vote for their HOA board. All of our actions are in the best interest of our community, none of us have more then the goal of continuing to ensure Alterra is save and sound. | | | |
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| | Lurky Loo
Posts:36
| | 02/15/2008 12:18 PM |
Alert | Posted By IrishCream on 02/15/2008 11:23 AM
Then they have the audacity to end their contract with said garbage company and pass the buck (literally) on to the residents. You realize that you (literally) are paying the same amount to the garbage company directly instead of paying it to the HOA so they can pay the garbage company, right? Oh, yeah, and that means the HOA isn't paying for all of the delinquent homeowners and vacant houses. That (literally) saves everybody in Alterra money. | | | |
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| | IrishCream
Posts:277
| | 02/15/2008 12:44 PM |
Alert | The reason that I address all of these issues as a "resident" as oppossed to a "home owner" is because I lease my property. The HOA dues are paid by the owner of the property, not by us (apparently it doesn't even come out of our rent, it's one big check that they send for all their properties), now we have a trash bill in addition to the rent because the bill from Maricopa Waste was sent to us, the resident and not the home owner. There are several others who are in the same situation right here on our block. Maricopa is an expensive place to live as it is and we didn't get a notice from the HOA that this was happening, we got a past due bill from Maricopa Waste though.
Also, as "tenants", we do not receive the Newsletter either. The owners of our home are an LLC and really couldn't care less what we are informed of or not. I did not know that there was a block watch and I certainly never know anything about any changes that happen. The HOA needs to work harder to address these issues as well. The HOA has been here longer than we have and they should have a sense of what the community knows about and what it doesn't. Do not assume that every single resident gets this information, because we don't!
If there is already a block watch intiated by the HOA, I will do what I can to spread the word, but the fact that you rely on people to show up for the meetings to address these things is very short sighted. Most of my neighbors don't even get home until 6 or 6:30, they are not going to go out of there way to go to a meeting that won't accomplish much anyway.
I am not trying to be combative here, I just want things to be done. If there are disturbances like the one the other night, I want everyone to be on top of it and let those new neighbor's know that this is the wrong place for them to be acting like that. If I now have to pay for my own trash removal out of my pocket, I would like some notice. If there are going to be changes in how things are done, again, I want to be informed! I may only be leasing at this point, but I should be just as important as the home owners. Our property looks better and is better taken care of than the properties that are owned around us. We took our Christmas lights down well before we had to and we do not disturb our neighbors with wild parties that spiral out of control.
I just want to see some real action and I want to be informed. I live here, not the owners! | |
“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson | |
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| | azcopa
Posts:49
| | 02/15/2008 1:11 PM |
Alert | IrishCreme:
I do not post here often but I thought I would throw my two cents in. Being that you lease your property what changes occur reguarding HOA and the trash are really a problem between you and you leasing company. They are the ones that should have contacted you and perhaps they are the ones that should be picking up the tab on your trash bill if trash collection was part of your leasing contract. I do agree however that commucation from the HOA is lacking somewhat. As a Home Owner, I do pay my HOA fees directly out of my budget. It is very difficult for me to attend the meetings for the very same reason you pointed out, that I often get home after the meetings have started. So I thought that the starting of a web site would be a great idea to get the word out. I have checked the site at least weekly and have noticed that no updates have been posted since October. I find it hard to believe there are no minute notes (no matter how productive) in November, January. So I guess I would have to wonder how much we spend on a website that never gets updated. Even the minutes that are posted are pretty much useless. Good luck with getting word out about the Neighborhood watch, I think it is a good idea that everyone keeps a eye out for them selves and there neighbors....... | | | |
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| | IrishCream
Posts:277
| | 02/15/2008 1:35 PM |
Alert | I would think that the HOA, in the interest of all residents, would hold meetings on the weekends. I know people would be more willing to plan weekend activities around a meeting than they would be to leave work early to attend them.
As I said, I do not know anything about the meetings and, unfortunately, the owners really don't update us. The one owner even laughed as he said "Geez, I don't think I've even opened anything from any of the HOA's where I own homes." Yes, they should be more vigilant in letting us know these things, but they just aren't. I would hope that the HOA would consider that this is the way some "investors" approach their ownership and leasing situations. I would attend meetings if they were held at a more convenient time and I would be more actively involved if I had more information to be active about lol. | |
“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson | |
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| | CMS
Posts:12
| | 02/15/2008 1:40 PM |
Alert | I meant to add this before I left work but didn't have a chance to. The best place (after this weekend) to find out information about Alterra and the HOA is the website; AlterraHOA.com.
I'll be working on it this weekend to get it fully up to date and will add to it or update it going forward at least once a week, more so if there are events or news that should be published.
As for cost, we paid for the domain name and the hosting fee, the work that has been done to it and will continue be done is free. I'm still a bit of a novice but have always enjoyed creating websites, so this will be a good exercise for me.
The lack of updates has been my fault but that will be rectified.
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| | azcopa
Posts:49
| | 02/15/2008 2:05 PM |
Alert | Quite frankly, the HOA is never going to please everyone. If they plan meetings on the weekends others will complain that they don't want to waste time on the weekends. It's a no win situation. I'm glad to read that the website will be getting updated on a regular basis. For me that is the best form on communication, but not everyone has access to computer or internet. The HOA has sent out cards with the dates and times of there monthly meetings for 2008, if you haven't recieved one hopefully the website will post the dates. I know that I am hopefully going to make the next one, haven't been to any yet and would like to see how the process works.
I am sorry about the owners of you property not caring about giving you the information. Maybe when you get your next bill from Maricopa trash you should forward it to them or deduct the amout from you rent.......( that might make them wake up lol) | | | |
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| | dkmopars
Posts:29
| | 02/16/2008 7:40 AM |
Alert | As a resident of Alterrra I usually remainly fairly quiet on this forum but I want to jump in and my opinion in some of the items being discussed here. First off, I think it is great the HOA does all they can to try to have homeowners keep their property "WeedFREE", my husband takes about a 1/2 hour each week and sprays all the weeds on our property, not because the HOA requires it, but because we take pride in how our property looks.
Next, paying our garage fees directly we a great idea. Being in the real estate industry myself I can tell you there are alot of homeowners out there having financial issues, therefore they are not paying their dues, and in turn, costing the HOA money. If the HOA was responsible for paying the quarterly garage bill for all of us, they in turn are paying it for the "Non Payers" too, it was costing us lots of money. I don't mind writing and extra check each quarter. I am glad to see we aren't wasting money on the deadbeats anymore.
As far as the Police, I am sure they are very aware of the Railroad tracks and trying to cross them in an emergency. If it continues to be a problem then anyone south of the tracks should start going to the Township meetings to voice their concern. This has nothing to due with the HOA. Lastly, I don't hear of any type of meetings on the weekends, nor have I ever. School Board meetings, Township meetings, Planning Board meetings, they are always during the week in the evening. If someone wishes to attend an important meeting than perhaps they can make arrangements to get out of work an hour early that day. Perhaps they can even go and make a suggestion the meeting starts at 7pm instead of 6:30pm. But change won't happen if we don't go and voice our opinions. I know I am guilty of know going too. I always intend to go to our meetings, but something always seems to come up and I miss it.
Let's all try to work together, being negative brings negativity, if we are all positive about changes, we will live in a positive enviroment! | | | |
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| | IrishCream
Posts:277
| | 02/16/2008 8:56 AM |
Alert | Dkmopars, I have to agree with you on the negativity thing, and I realize that I am guilty of negative talk and thinking, that is not where I wish to be. I apologize for sounding so negative. It's just that we were/are spraying for weeds, but for some reason, this one particular type of weed just does not want to go lol. I had my boys out there Thursday with trash bags, I didn't care if it was cold lol. "Pull as many as you can and we'll get more tomorrow," but then it rained, washing away all the weed killer haha!
As for the garbage, we really are coming out of a very tough year financially, but notice: coming out of. We will be able to add the garbage bill next month, but the past two months and of course, getting a late bill has resulted in no trash pick up at our hoise. My neighbors have been great and have been letting us share their barrells, thank goodness. So, it's not a major issue, but I wish that Maricopa Waste would have sent us some kind of warning. Also, the HOA must be aware that there are residents here that do not get the information they send out?! Right?
I guess as far as the disturbance, I just don't want this to become another Senita or Rancho. I know they have problems with their HOA and, never having had an HOA before, I guess that's where I assumed the blame lied, you know? As stated, if they have something in place, I am more than willing to support that and spread the word. I was only thinking to start block watches because I was not aware that this was already a concern that was being addressed.
But, there is an incredible amount of garbage around our mail box and the weeds are pretty outrageous too. I pick up what I can carry in addition to my mail, but then quickly forget about it once I'm back in my house. Maybe I'll go out there today and clean it up and spray the weeds. After all, it's my neighborhood lol. Instead of complaining, I should just do it.
As far as meetings on the weekend, all of them, I think that it should at least be offered and see what others think. If they want REAL community involvement, maybe the weekend would be a good alternative? I know that it would be for my family and a few others that I know. I'm just making suggestions. Maybe I should suggest these things to the HOA directly, but why not gauge how we feel first? Maybe it is just me?! | |
“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson | |
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