As I sit here writing this message I just realized that one year has passed since I took over from Chuck Hoffman as President of Fairmont Village. Time sure flies when you're having fun. Those of you who attended our annual members meeting were given an explanation of our new painting schedule. I think this will be a benefit for all and still help us to control our overall costs. As was explained at the meeting our monthly dues have increased by $9 of which $5 was our increase from Meadowcrest and the balance or $4 was mainly contracted increases from the service providers that service Fairmont. Our new monthly dues still are the lowest in Meadowcrest. It is your BOD`s hope to keep the dues as low as possible but still maintain the service we all expect.

As I look back over the summer one of the areas where I think we have made great progress is the shape our lawns are in. Because of last yearls drought we started the year with many dead spots and our grass in poor shape overall. Because of more normal rainfall and the effort of many people our lawns are looking much better as the year ends. We spent significant money on resodding dead or bare areas, upgrading our irrigation system and working with TruGreen to better meet our needs. We have just spent over $4500 on a aeration and Potash treatment to help strengthen the grass root system which will only help our lawns look even better next year and for years to come.

There have been many questions on who is responsible for the care and maintenance of your shrubs and trees. Fairmont is responsible for the care of your shrubs. We will replace dead shrubs at Fairmont`s expense and we will also do the trimming of these shrubs. If we are forced to replace any of your shrubs and you are not happy at the size of the proposed replacement you can ask to have larger shrubs but it will be your responsibility to pay the cost difference. WE DO PLAN ON A MAJOR SHRUB REPLACEMENT OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS SO PLEASE BE PATIENT! We are also responsible for the care and maintenance of the trees in Fairmont. We are responsible for trimming and if a tree were to die we will remove the dead tree and replace that tree with a new tree not necessarily the same size or species. We will not remove trees because they are ugly or because their leaves or seeds make a mess. You may request to have a tree removed from your property at your expense but that request must be approved by the Fairmont BOD and if it is approved you the homeowner must also agree to replace that tree with a new tree at your expense also. I am sure there will be exceptions to all of the above but this I hope will give you a basic kind of guide line to work with .

With the Holiday season approaching I want to thank all my fellow Fairmont Board of Directors and all the many volunteers that answered my call for help and hope that you all have a Happy and Healthy Holiday Season!

Submitted by William Ryan