Announcements

Announcement

GM Corner 15 December 2023

Friday, December 15, 2023

Happy Holidays, Team LMOA!

Can you believe it? This is the last GM Corner of 2023! Our Communications Director will send out the Year in Review next week, and we will pause in the week between Christmas and New Year's. The Year in Review can also be found this week and next week in the Fluvanna Review if you would like to save a copy. It captures many of the wonderful accomplishments this community achieved in 2023. We wish you all well in 2024! Please continue reading to get the latest news update:

Holiday Closures and Visitors:

Our administrative offices are closed on December 25 and 26 and January 1.
The Pub is closed on December 25, 26, and 31. It opens again on New Year's Day with brunch.
Please email large guest lists to [email protected]. Please communicate all guests to the Main Gate a few days in advance. Thank you!

Trash: A substitute driver missed half of Laguna Road today. GFL will send another truck on Monday morning. GFL also corrected a miscommunication: there will be a trash delay for both Christmas and New Year’s. Trash days will be December 29 and 30 and January 5 and 6. If your normal day is Thursday, your holiday trash day will be Friday. If your normal day is Friday, your holiday trash day will be Saturday.

2024 Budget: The Board of Directors approved the 2024 Budget at last night’s Board meeting thus closing a prolonged and difficult budget season. However, discussions on how to solve LMOA’s 10-Year Outlook challenge are far from over. As I reported last night, the following factors have contributed to a fund shortage that is predicted to deplete LMOA’s reserve funds in less than a decade:

High inflation.
$6 million in ERA and Reserves was spent to replace and repair deteriorated facilities from 2015 to 2017.
The choice to raise dues by 1.5% in 2020 instead of the normal increase of 3%.

In the months following the holidays, the community will need to decide how it wants to replenish the reserve funds. LMOA will provide a survey and two town hall meetings to share information and collect feedback before LMOA Members vote on a solution in the spring. Meanwhile, the new fee schedule will be posted on lmoa.org soon.

Troon Contract Negotiations: The final steps are being taken to extend a golf and pool operations contract with our contractor Troon. LMOA has decided to implement a new model for Food & Beverage (F&B) services; however, our partner has agreed to support The Pub until we transition to a new F&B Model. LMOA is looking to lease The Pub. More on that soon!

2024 Billing Period Reminders: your billing statement for 2024 will be sent to you in January. We encourage you to go paperless if you haven’t done so already. This helps the association save on printing and postage costs. If you want to join the initiative and receive your billing statement electronically, please send Member Services an email before December 21, 2023: [email protected]. If you have already signed up, there is no need to do so again. Also, please remember the following:

Semi-Annual and Monthly Payment Options are available upon approval from the Billing Office. (Your statement will be sent on January 5 and will explain these options.)
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.)

Aqua Virginia: Communications with our water and wastewater provider continue to be challenging. At the monthly Water Workgroup meeting, LMOA learned that Aqua Virginia will send a letter to all LMOA residents with grinder pumps, notifying them that malfunctions caused by prohibited items will result in a charge for grinder pump repairs. They say that Tariff Rules and Regulations #25 give them this right. The prohibited items include large amounts of grease, wipes (even flushable ones), diapers, sanitary napkins, etc. Our utility’s Communication Specialist, Heather Keefer, will provide more information on this soon. She reported that she is nearly finished creating a webpage with educational material specific to Lake Monticello. LMOA is following Aqua Virginia’s actions closely and seeking support from the proper institutions. We urge all residents to help oppose Aqua Virginia's large rate increase by writing to the State Corporation Commission. Please support your comments with reasons and examples and submit them HERE.

Exposed Sewer Lines: Aqua Virginia’s Western Region Supervisor, Jay Divers, informed attendees of the Water Workgroup on December 12 that there are about 95 exposed sewage lines that cross dry creek beds in our community; 83 are the property of homeowners. His crews inspect these lines regularly; however, an exposed pipe is prone to damage. If your property has a creek and you see a white or green pipe, this is likely your property and responsibility, Divers said. According to Divers, customers can contact Aqua Virginia’s Customer Service and request a technician inspect a pipe for further clarification. If the pipe is the homeowner’s responsibility, the homeowner may need to have the line buried at their own expense, he said.

New EC&C Administrator: LMOA welcomes Adam Kern to the team on December 18. He will train with Carol Cavanaugh until her retirement in March. Carol will retire after 33 years at LMOA. Congratulations to you both!

New Trees: The Wildlife Committee received funds to replace some of the trees that were cleared to build the new golf practice facility. 11 Virginia native trees were planted by Winton Farm Enterprises on December 8, 2023:

5 Redbuds
1 Bald Cypress
1 Dawn Redwood
1 Red Maple
1 White Oak
2 Swamp White Oaks

Our Golf Pro Mark Marshall said the contractor was easy to work with, and the project went smoothly. Winton Farm Enterprises will be maintaining the trees once a month for the next year per the contract.

Free Holiday Events on December 16:

YRF's Ugly Holiday Sweater Karaoke Party at the Ashlawn Clubhouse from 6-9 PM. The bar will be open for individual tabs and YRF will offer light hors d'oeuvres. Bring your best (or worst!) singing voice and don't forget to wear your favorite ugly holiday sweater for a chance to win the Ugliest Sweater Contest. Please RSVP at [email protected]!
Christmas Parade: Come out and wave at Santa! The parade leaves the Ashlawn Clubhouse at 2 PM (gather at 1:30 PM if you have a participating vehicle) and drives down Jefferson Drive towards the Marina, returning to the Ashlawn Clubhouse. Please do not throw candy on Jefferson Drive to prevent children from running into traffic. Thank you!
Class in Journaling: Join instructors Cynthia Moore and Kare Davidson at the Ashlawn Clubhouse from 3-4:15 PM and learn how to journal as a self-care and healing activity. Please do so by emailing [email protected].

Reservation-required Festivities: Please support our Food & Beverage operations by attending one or more of the following!

Have a wonderful close to 2023. See you in 2024!

-Tom Schauder, LMOA General Manager

We use Cookies

Side Navigation

Announcement

GM Corner 15 December 2023