Voices of a Never Ending Dawn

This post has absolutely nothing to do with the Manors, but I have mentioned in passing to many of you about the film in which I make a brief appearance while discussing my grandfather's role in World War One. Some of you asked me to let you know when the film will be shown, so that is why I mentioned it in the the Fall Newsletter and again here in this posting.

In the summer of 1918 President Woodrow Wilson, at the urging of our allies in Britain and France, sent an infantry regiment to North Russia to join the fight against the Bolshevik Red Army with the hope of resurrecting the war against Germany on the Eastern Front. The 339th Infantry, along with the first battalion of the 310th Engineers and the 337th Ambulance and Hospital Companies, whose men were primarily from the Detroit and Michigan areas, were chosen for this task. My grandfather, Clement Grobbel, was a corporal in Company I of the 339th Infantry Regiment.

These men landed in Archangel, Russia in early September of 1918 and soon found themselves braving the cold arctic weather while fighting fierce battles in temperatures of fifty-degrees below zero. They fought numerous battles in Northern Russia for eight long months after WWI had ended until they were finally withdrawn in June of 1919. On the voyage home they began calling themselves "Polar Bears”.

"Voices of a Never Ending Dawn" is their story, told using their own words. This film was produced and directed by Pamela Peak, whose grandfather was also a "Polar Bear". It will have its television broadcast premiere from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM, Sunday, November 8, 2009 on WTVS - Detroit Public TV, Channel 56. WTVS can be found on Comcast channels 6 and 240 (HD). You can visit the film's official web site by clicking here.

I am the president of the Polar Bear Memorial Association and I've created the Association's web site which has a lot of content and links to information about the Polar Bears.

Central Park Commons Area Landscaping Project

The commons area to the south of the West Broadway entrance to the Manors is currently undergoing significant improvements to the landscaping. The red outlined area on this map indicates the location of the landscaping project. Grand/Sakwa, the developer of the Central Park Planned Unit Development, has hired Adams Landscaping to rehabilitate the irrigation system and improve the appearance of the trees, shrubs and lawns in this area.

All residents of the Gardens, Meadows, Manors and Kensington sub-associations will be receiving a copy of this letter from Adams Landscaping that explains the type of work that will be performed and asks for our cooperation while the new lawn gets established. The costs for these improvements are being funded by the developer, not the Central Park Master Association. Upon completion, the Master Association will become responsible for the costs to maintain these improvements.

Here is Adams Landscaping's timetable for this project:

• Install Meter – completed
• Repair irrigation – completed 09/21
• Complete vegetation kill – completed 09/22
• Distribute homeowner letters – completed by 09/25
• Begin grading operations, topsoil, seeding – starting the week of 10/05
• Finish complete project by 10/20

Sprinkler System "news"

The National Weather Service's current 7-Day Forecast for Utica, MI is unseasonably cool and damp, so as of today I have re-programmed the sprinkler system controllers to eliminate the afternoon watering cycle (except for the lawn surrounding the models on Lexington West). I have also scaled back the overnight watering times to 90% of normal to conserve water and reduce our bills. If and when the weather returns to warmer and drier conditions, I will scale the watering times back up accordingly.

The well-operated system along the berm will soon be undergoing some long-needed repairs to improve the performance of the two zones along the tree line on the top of the berm. Earlier today, Kramer-Triad authorized our irrigation contractor to proceed with the repairs they have identified and estimated. If they are correct with their diagnosis, the cost to fix the zones will be considerably less than the significantly different diagnosis and estimate we received from a different contractor last summer to correct the problems, which we first noticed upon the completion of the switch-over to the well water.

13 Things a Burglar Won't Tell You

1. Of course I look familiar. I was here just last week cleaning your carpets, painting your shutters, or delivering your new refrigerator.

2. Hey, thanks for letting me use the bathroom when I was working in your yard last week. While I was in there, I unlatched the back window to make my return a little easier.

3. Love those flowers. That tells me you have taste … and taste means there are nice things inside. Those yard toys your kids leave out always make me wonder what type of gaming system they have.

4. Yes, I really do look for newspapers piled up on the driveway. And I might leave a pizza flyer in your front door to see how long it takes you to remove it.

5. If it snows while you're out of town, get a neighbor to create car and foot tracks into the house. Virgin drifts in the driveway are a dead giveaway.

6. If decorative glass is part of your front entrance, don’t let your alarm company install the control pad where I can see if it’s set. That makes it too easy.

7. A good security company alarms the window over the sink. And the windows on the second floor, which often access the master bedroom—and your jewelry. It’s not a bad idea to put motion detectors up there too.

8. It’s raining, you’re fumbling with your umbrella, and you forget to lock your door—understandable. But understand this: I don’t take a day off because of bad weather.

9. I always knock first. If you answer, I’ll ask for directions somewhere or offer to clean your gutters. (Don’t take me up on it.)

10. Do you really think I won’t look in your sock drawer? I always check dresser drawers, the bedside table, and the medicine cabinet.

11. Here’s a helpful hint: I almost never go into kids’ rooms.

12. You’re right: I won’t have enough time to break into that safe where you keep your valuables. But if it’s not bolted down, I’ll take it with me.

13. A loud TV or radio can be a better deterrent than the best alarm system. If you’re reluctant to leave your TV on while you’re out of town, you can buy a $35 device that works on a timer and simulates the flickering glow of a real television. (Find it at faketv.com)


And the other 8:

1. Sometimes, I carry a clipboard. Sometimes, I dress like a lawn guy and carry a rake. I do my best to never, ever look like a crook.

2. The two things I hate most: loud dogs and nosy neighbors.

3. I’ll break a window to get in, even if it makes a little noise. If your neighbor hears one loud sound, he’ll stop what he’s doing and wait to hear it again. If he doesn’t hear it again, he’ll just go back to what he was doing. It’s human nature.

4. I’m not complaining, but why would you pay all that money for a fancy alarm system and leave your house without setting it?

5. I love looking in your windows. I’m looking for signs that you’re home, and for flat screen TVs or gaming systems I’d like. I’ll drive or walk through your neighborhood at night, before you close the blinds, just to pick my targets.

6. Avoid announcing your vacation on your Facebook page. It’s easier than you think to look up your address.

7. To you, leaving that window open just a crack during the day is a way to let in a little fresh air. To me, it’s an invitation.

8. If you don’t answer when I knock, I try the door. Occasionally, I hit the jackpot and walk right in.

Sources: Convicted burglars in North Carolina, Oregon, California, and Kentucky; security consultant Chris McGoey, who runs crimedoctor.com; and Richard T. Wright, a criminology professor at the University of Missouri–St. Louis, who interviewed 105 burglars for his book Burglars on the Job.

Reader's Digest Contributing Editor Janice Lieberman shared these and more tips on the Today Show and in her blog.

("Hat tip" to Manors co-owner Jackie Colonnesi)

Street Signs & Dollar Spots

AUGUST 18th UPDATE: The new street sign posts were installed today along with the available sign plates (shown above is the new post and signs at the corner of Lexington West and Regent) . Because of an error on the part of the sign plate printer, some posts are missing one or both sign plates. The job will be finished as soon as the printer makes up the corrected sign plates.

The street signs which were ordered earlier this summer are scheduled for installation sometime during the week of August 10th. They will be installed where Lexington North intersects Regent, Watling and Lexington East. A sign will also be installed at the corner of Regent and Lexington West. Lack of signage has been an on-going problem for visitors and delivery trucks and could become a safety issue if it causes a delay in fire or police response. For whatever reason, the original developer never saw fit to place signage at those corners, so your Association will fund the installations.





With the recent arrival of warmer and humid weather, the dormant Dollar Spot fungus has reared its ugly brown spots (shown above, click to enlarge) in certain areas of the Manors. It is very expensive to apply fungicide, which may also require repeated applications to fully eradicate it, only to find that it has returned the following season. After consulting with our fertilizer contractor, we will try accelerating or adding to the fertilizing schedule to keep the grass roots healthy so they can recover instead of burning out. You can help by avoiding walking through infected areas, since the fungus can be spread by contact.

First Amendments to our Condominium Documents

On Saturday, Aug. 1, 2009, representatives of Lombardo Homes hand-delivered to each co-owner's front door a copy of the First Amendment to the Master Deed and Bylaws of the Manors at Central Park Condominium Association. The amendments are the result of changes initiated by the developer so that they can market Units 1-14 as "site condos".

Click here to read the post I wrote on April 17, 2009 that explains the practical effects of the Amendments and how the changes to the "Percentage of Value" were determined.

Note that the First Amendments were recorded on April 16, 2009 and that you did not receive your copy of the amendments from Lombardo Homes until 107 days later, despite the fact that Article IX, Paragraph (E) of the Master Deed states, "Co-owners... shall be notified in writing of proposed amendments not less than (10) days before the amendment is recorded...."

Not only did Lombardo Homes fail to provide advance written notification of the amendments, they attempted to pass off the duplication and distribution costs off to our Condominium Association (which would have been a $400+ hit to our budget).

On June 19, 2009, I sent an e-mail to Lombardo Homes asking whether the amendments had been recorded, since we had not yet received copies of them despite the fact they had just installed advertising banners on the Van Dyke entrance announcing the new models for Units 1-14. I received a reply indicating that they had been recorded on April 16th and that a digital copy had been sent to Kramer-Triad for reproduction and distribution to all co-owners.

We responded by pointing out that

• Article IX, Paragraph (K) of the Master Deed states that "A person causing or requesting an amendment to the Condominium Documents shall be responsible for costs and expenses of the amendment...."
• Kramer-Triad would therefore assist Lombardo Homes only by providing them with a set of pre-addressed mailing labels they could use to make an accurate distribution.

The address labels were mailed to Lombardo Homes on June 30, 2009, yet it took them another month to get the amendments copied and distributed to you.

If you compare the "Percentage of Value" numbers in my April 17th post with those contained in the First Amendment documents you received, you will notice that the percentages do not match.

UPDATED Nov. 19, 2009:

This is because in the original Master Deed, Article X, Section 10.1 Central Park Master Community states that, "All assessments levied against the Co-owners and their Unit pursuant to such Master Declaration shall be equal and shall not be apportioned among the Co-Owners in accordance with the percentages of value assigned to the Units owned by them." Therefore, the annual dues for the Central Park Master Association had to be backed out of the percentage of value calculations which resulted in the 0.17422% and 0.64185% values you find in the recorded Amended Master Deed.

Change to lawn mowing schedule

The owner of GM LawnPro and I met earlier this week to discussed the cutting height and mowing frequency. He will raise the cutting height on his lawn mowers beginning with the next mowing.

He said that he is seeing unnaturally slow growth of the lawns both here at the Manors and at his other clients, which he attributes to the cool wet weather we had in early spring that has remained cool but with less rain. He proposed - and I accepted - a reduced frequency of cutting until the lawn growth rate returns to normal. He will make his next cut on Tuesday June 16th and the next one 10 days after that (Friday June 26th) - and so on - until we agree that the growth rate has recovered and requires mowing on a normal 7 day cycle. If we finish the growing season with less than the 26 contracted mowings, we will receive a credit.

Retention Ponds

The Central Park Master Association (CPMA) is responsible for maintaining the six retention ponds scattered around the Central Park development. Kramer-Triad is the property manager for the CPMA (as well as the Manors) and on our behalf, they have contracted with LakePro of Swartz Creek, MI to maintain the six ponds located on our common property.

Per the contract, Lake Pro services our ponds six times each year, beginning in mid-April and continuing at regular intervals through September (about four weeks apart). During each visit, they chemically treat the ponds to control algae, provide floating and submerged weed control and also apply a blue dye to improve the water appearance.

JUNE 4 UPDATE: The CPMA Board of Directors at their June 4, 2009 meeting authorized Kramer-Triad to amend the contract with LakePro to add two additional treatments for the 2009 season, bringing the total to eight. They also directed Kramer-Triad to inform the Board members via e-mail when LakePro notifies them that they have delivered each treatment.

JUNE 8 UPDATE: LakePro has given us tentative treatment dates for the remainder of the summer. They are June 11, June 18, July 1, July 14, July 27, August 11 and September 3.

Factors that contribute to the rapid growth of algae include water temperature, rainfall and the amount of nutrients introduced by lawn fertilization and waterfowl. While we cannot control most of these factors, we can try to keep the geese population to a minimum. Please do not feed the waterfowl (or any other wildlife, such as the deer). Kramer-Triad has also installed exclusion devices on some of the ponds that will hopefully convince the geese to hang out elsewhere.

Central Park Picnic

The residents of the Meadows and Gardens subdivisions to our south are organizing a Central Park Picnic this Saturday (June 6th) from 3pm to 6pm. All residents of the Manors and Kensington condos are also invited to attend. The event with take place on the commons area that is just south of the intersection of West Broadway and Central Park North.

Lawn Mowing delayed one day

GM ProLawn has informed me through Kramer-Triad that because of the holiday and wet weather earlier this week, they will be cutting our lawns this coming Saturday instead of the regularly scheduled Friday.

Minutes of the Annual Meeting of the Central Park Master Association

The approved minutes of the April 6, 2009 Annual Meeting of the Central Park Master Association can be read here.

Landscaping work

Back to Nature will be doing our fertilizing and weed control this growing season and they made the first application back on May 8th. GM ProLawn will be performing our lawn and landscaping maintenance this year. This is the same company that did our snow removal over the past winter. GM ProLawn has been on-site yesterday and today to do the bed edging and weeding and to also finish repairing snow plow damage from this past winter. All lawns will receive a full cut today and on the following weeks, Fridays will be our designated lawn cutting day (subject to change due to weather or holidays).

Please assist the GM Prolawn crew by removing all of your belongings that are on the grass, such as garden hoses, toys, lawn furniture, etc.

The sprinkler system has been ready for use since April 15th and I am waiting until the grass shows evidence that it needs supplemental watering before I turn it on. Over the past 24 days, my rain gauge has measured 3.8 inches of precipitation, but it looks like later this week it will be much drier and warmer.