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Announcement

GM Corner 17 November 2023

Friday, November 17, 2023

Hello, Team LMOA!

The Beach Bonfire event on November 11 was simply fantastic. Hundreds of neighbors came out to enjoy the warmth of the fire and friendly conversation. Live music from the New Outliers and free s'mores from the Young Residents and Families Committee gave the event a special touch. Thank you to the staff who set it up and to LMPD and LMVFR for keeping the area safe. We can't wait to hold this event again next year! Since there will be no GM Corner next week, LMOA staff and the Board would like to wish you a wonderful Thanksgiving now!

The major news topics at Lake Monticello continue to be Aqua Virginia and the 2024 Budget. Please continue reading for more news at Lake Monticello:

Holiday Closures: LMOA staff will observe the Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday, November 23 and Friday, November 24. The Administrative Offices will be closed on those days, and there will be no GM Corner that week. The Pub will also be closed on Thanksgiving Day. The deadline to preorder the Thanksgiving to-go menu is today at 3 PM. Find the link at lakemonticellogolf.org. Pick-up will be at the Ashlawn Clubhouse on November 22 between 12-4 PM.

Aqua Virginia Rate Increase: At last night’s regular Board meeting, President Larry Henson warned Lake Residents that Aqua Virginia may be implementing a rate increase of 30% for water and 23% for sewer effective January 1, 2024, even though the State Corporation Commission (SCC) has not yet approved an increase. According to Tom Diggs, the chair of the Community Development Committee, Aqua can do this. “Under SCC procedures, a utility can begin charging customers its proposed rates six months after its rate increase application is deemed to be complete,” Diggs said. “It appears that it was deemed complete at the end of July or early August, so the new rates could be in effect, at least temporarily, beginning in January or February. If the SCC approves the rate increase as submitted, it will be approved retroactively. If the SCC approves a rate increase of less than requested, the utility has to refund the amount it collected over what was approved. The manner and timing of that refund are specified in the SCC’s decision on the requested rate.”
Our Board President urges everyone to get involved by:

Attending monthly Water Workgroup meetings on the 2nd Tuesday of the month at 10 AM at the Ashlawn Clubhouse

Using the online form to contact the SCC and oppose the rate increase proposal. Our community needs your voice, please get involved!

Aqua Virginia Water Workgroup: At the November Water Workgroup meeting last Tuesday, the Western Region Supervisor of Aqua Virginia, Jay Divers, gave a report of operational upgrades, which included:

The installation of “SCADA” on five of Lake Monticello’s more crucial wastewater lift stations. A Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system is a combination of hardware and software that are used for controlling, monitoring, and analyzing industrial devices, allowing Aqua Virginia’s staff to prevent an overflow at five of the most problematic wastewater lift stations (there are about 55 lift stations in total). Divers anticipates five more lift stations will be fitted with SCADA by the end of 2024.
The placement of 10 smart manhole covers that detect potential leaks and alert Aqua Virginia. These covers can be moved to any of the 3000 manholes in our community to help Aqua Virginia’s staff identify trouble areas. Divers claimed that two of the covers have already enabled the crew to identify a restaurant that is causing significant grease buildup.
One brand-new lift station.
A new “jetter” (pushes the blockage) and vacuum truck.

According to Divers, grease buildup is a major problem in this area. For this reason, Aqua Virginia recently sent a notice to all Fluvanna County restaurants that use the company’s wastewater service. The notice states that Aqua Virginia will conduct grease trap inspections through a third party. “If a restaurant is not disposing of grease correctly, they will be given 30 days to comply,” Divers said. He also mentioned that several upgrades to the wastewater treatment plant have been or will be completed by the end of 2024. Lake Monticello residents can expect the results of the independent odor study by January 2024. The next Water Workgroup meeting will take place on December 12, 2023, at 10 AM in the Ashlawn Clubhouse.

LMBC Holiday Home Tour Tickets: The Lake Monticello Beautification Corps’ Holiday Home Tour will be held Saturday, December 9 from 12:30-5 PM. Take a peek inside five beautifully decorated homes for just $10 per person! Tickets include a map and are available at:

Ashlawn Clubhouse Help Desk
Newcomers and Old Friends meeting on November 19 at the Ashlawn Clubhouse, 3:30 PM
By contacting Yvonne at [email protected]
At each home on the day of the tour

After the tour, a raffle featuring a quilt made by the members of the LM Piecemakers will be held at the Ashlawn Clubhouse at 5:30 PM. The raffle will also include items such as woodwork, ceramics, original art, and photographs, all donated by local artists. Raffle tickets may still be purchased at the November 19 Newcomers and Old Friends meeting either before or after the meeting (Ashlawn Clubhouse, 3:30 - 5 PM).

Upcoming 2024 Billing Period: 2024 Annual Billing Statements will be sent out on January 5, 2024, and are due and payable in full no later than January 31, 2024. If you want to receive your billing statement electronically, please let Member Services know before December 21, 2023 if you have not already done so. Going paperless saves the organization significantly in paper and postage. We appreciate you choosing this option. Other reminders:

Semi-Annual and Monthly Payment Options are available upon approval from the Billing Office. (A letter explaining these payment options will be included with your statement).
A Monthly Payment Agreement must be submitted with each new billing year.
Your 2024 Annual Barcode Renewals include any Guest Barcode Renewals.
If you have a guest with a barcode that you do not want to have renewed, please email Andrea Powell at [email protected] by December 21, 2023, so that she can have that barcode deactivated now. Also, if you have sold a vehicle and did not have the barcode deactivated, please do so now by contacting Andrea.
Please remember that your Annual Barcode Renewals are due and payable in full on January 31, 2024. (No other payment options are available for the barcode renewals.)

Delinquent Dues: We are happy to report that 94% of our Members pay dues on time. To address the small percentage of Members who had been delinquent for a long period of time, LMOA began sending them to collections in late 2022. As a result, the organization has been successful in collecting $125K in outstanding dues payments in 2023.

Leaf Removal and Fire Hazard:

When blowing leaves, please do not blow yard debris into neighbors’ yards, creeks, ditches, the Lake, or other LMOA common property. Our Facilities and Operations Team (Maintenance) works hard to keep our common areas, including the golf course, clear of leaves. Please respect their efforts and do not add to the load.
You can leave up to 5 bags of leaves and yard debris beside your household trash tote for pickup; however, bags of household trash beside the totes will not be accepted. Sticks can be cut into small pieces and placed in your household trash tote, but not in the recycling tote. Thank you!
You have probably noticed the bad air quality and smelled the smoke here at Lake Monticello. There are several brush fires in our region, and many surrounding counties have issued a burn ban. Though Fluvanna County has not yet done so, you may want to refrain from lighting fires in our community. We have not had rain and brush fires can spread quickly.

Lion's Club Dog Walk: The dog walk hosted by the Rivanna Lion's Club has been moved to the Village in Palmyra. We will have more details for you soon!

Enjoy your weekend!

-Tom Schauder, LMOA General Manager

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GM Corner 17 November 2023