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Table of Contents

• PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

• GROUNDS COMMITTEE

• PUBLIC RELATIONS COMMITTEE

• NEIGHBORS COME TOGETHER TO BUILD PLAYGROUND

• ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW

• DEERWOOD WE DID GOOD

• LEGAL UPDATES

• LANDSCAPE

My term on the DIA board expires at the end of March, as does the terms for Lee Evans, Rick Root and Glynn Thomas. Along with others on the board, I think we have made a significant number of improvements in the Deerwood community over the last three years. Now may be a good time to review some of those accomplishments. 

1) A Computerized Storm Water Simulation Model was implemented to determine the effectiveness of Deerwood's entire drainage system under various conditions of extremely heavy rains. The experts usually consider what they call 25-year and 100-year flooding conditions. We were extremely pleased to find only one major deficiency in the entire system - we fixed that one right away on Mineral Lake. Deerwood is fortunate that the model shows the system originally implemented in the early 1970s is still very stable. 

2) Commensurate with that effort, we prepared for the first time a computerized inventory of all drainage pipes in Deerwood. This inventory identified the pipe's material, diameter, length and date of original installation as well as changes made since that time. By determining the material used we were able to determine the susceptibility of each structure to severe deterioration that is most prevalent in corrugated metal piping (CMP). Of the total 34,400 feet of pipe, less than 10% were CMP. By 2006, the three-year plan to replace that entire CMP drainage pipe (10 total) will be complete. 

3) Working with the club board, we obtained an agreement to transfer to DIA certain common property that had been deeded to the club during the purchase of Deerwood in 1999 from Gate. This included the playground, boatyard and the JCDS crossing areas. The transfer will allow DIA to expand both the playground and boatyard and improve landscape at the school crossing area. 

4) Thanks to a lot of effort by Rick Root, his playground committee and many residents who volunteered their time and money, the play structures at the playground were completely replaced last fall. Work will be done this spring to rebuild the pavilion and add toilet facilities. The entire plan will be a several- year project. As with the rebuilding of the clubhouse and complete renovation of the golf course by the club, these playground improvements will not just provide a better, safer place for youngsters to enjoy, but they will enhance the value of all property in Deerwood. The pavilion will be available for all residents for cookouts and other activities. 

5) Last year we replaced the Security Company that previously operated the access control system with First Coast Security. This was a major undertaking and we are extremely pleased with the results of the decision. First Coast has been concentrating on making improvements to expedite the entry of residents' guests and service personnel through the gates. Residents, themselves, play a major role in this effort by pre-authorizing their expected guests either by computer entry (www.e-ezgate.net) or phone calls to the gate. 

In this regard, we installed a completely new entry system with EZ-Gate. That new computer system is more efficient and allows special programming to assist in various control activities. For example, we now are able to issue bar codes to regular service persons who come in several times every week and control the barcode reader to allow their entry only during regular working hours. 

6) Our web page, MyDeerwood.com, installed two years ago, has proved to be a great way to communicate with everyone in the community. It, of course, replaced cable channels 56 and 118, but is much more inclusive. All Covenants, Bylaws, and Articles of Incorporation are available to read or download, as are all Board member names and contact references along with DIA committee make-up. And you can receive the latest information on issues affecting the community. It's the single easiest way to find just about everything you may want to know about Deerwood. 

7) As this Newsletter goes to press, we are transitioning to a new property management company - Marsh Landing Management Company. They will take over the property management of Deerwood on April 1, 2005. This company has managed Marsh Landing since its inception and presently also manages the Jacksonville Golf and Country Club community. We are confidant residents will be pleased with their management effect. 

8) One of the most encompassing accomplishments has been the elimination of the Founder Member status for DIA membership, thus, allowing all property owners to vote on DIA issues and be eligible as a board candidate. This effort also benefits the club through the creation of transferable DIA certificates, which may be redeemed to cover part of the initiation cost to join the club. With this change, all Deerwood residents assumed personal responsibility for maintaining their community standards. 

These, of course, are not all of the accomplishment during the last three years, but may be the most significant. I hope many will find time to attend the Annual Meeting required by the Bylaws on March 31. For those who cannot make this meeting, I want to thank all of the community for the opportunity to serve you on the Board and for the past year as President. I also want to extend my deep appreciation to all of the board members, to Carla Bowers and Tobe' Budner and the rest of the MAY Management team who worked with us during the past three years, and especially to the involved and caring Deerwood residents - all of these have made this year most interesting and often very enjoyable. 

Finally, I offer my best to the new board that takes office on the first of April. The work is never over. We certainly have many carry over issues, and new challenges are bound to surface. I encourage others to get involved in their community - there's always something that you can do to help.

Tom McConnell
President

GROUNDS COMMITTEE
Les Beadling, Chairperson

Work on our drainage infrastructure begun in 2003 will continue this year. We plan to complete five projects this year. The first project, 240 feet of pipe that drains storm water from the area located West of the residential properties along Lakecrest Lane into Lake Laurel. Failure of this pipe could result in flooding of the lots with a Lakecrest Lane address. The four remaining projects for 2005 are as follows: 

1. Approximately 191 feet of pipe draining storm water from catch basins located on both sides of the north end of Pine Lake Road into Lake Soady. Failure of this pipe could result in flooding of lots on both sides of the northern end of Pine Lake Road. 

2. Approximately 42 feet of pipe located under Hollyridge Road just to the West of its intersection with Hunters Grove Road. Failure of this pipe could not only result in flooding in the area but could create a sinkhole in Hollyridge Road that would be a traffic hazard. 

3. Approximately 228 feet of pipe that drains both sides of Hunters Grove Road near its intersection with Woodsdale Lane South. Failure of this pipe could result in flooding of the lots on both sides of Hunters Grove Road near this intersection. 

4. Approximately 157 feet of pipe that drains the west side of Woodsdale Lane and the east side of Hunters Grove Road near their intersection. Failure of this pipe could result in flooding of lots along a lengthy section of both of these roads. 

To those residents who have and who will endure the inconvenience of having these drainage projects near your homes, we appreciate your tolerance. 

In 2003 Deerwood Improvement Association entered into an agreement with the Deerwood Country Club to acquire 1.3 acres of land in the vicinity of the existing Boat and RV storage yard. This newly acquired land will be used to build a new Boat and RV storage yard that will be about three times the size of our present storage area. We look forward to bringing this improvement to the Deerwood community this year.

PUBLIC RELATIONS COMMITTEE
Katie Kight, Chairperson

NEIGHBORS COME TOGETHER TO BUILD PLAYGROUND
Cathy Driscoll

October 11th-17th, 2004 was the longest week of my life. Ask anyone who worked on the playground project and they will say, "Amen, to that!" Looking at the property (generously cleared for us by resident Andy Senesac's Realco Wrecking) that Monday morning it seemed impossible that we'd be looking at a completed playground by Sunday evening. Many residents deserve heartfelt thanks for their volunteered time, talent and treasure. The outpouring of support for this project ranged from brand-new residents like the Camerons, to many like the Weavers and Davises, who'd worked on the original playground 19 years ago. There were young dads, like Blake Bowmaster and Clint Drawdy, as well as dads-to-be like Steve Carter and Alan Helquist. Thank goodness, there were plenty of laborers who devoted time despite the fact their own children were grown, like Les Beadling and Cliff Trunick. Bob Weiland literally contributed blood, sweat and tears as he worked on the project every day. Neighborhood realtor Barbara Dawes earned sweat equity leveling ground and mulching, and John Frus deserves honorable mention for his patient instruction and supervision of teenaged woodworkers. I wish I could mention by name every person who contributed! 

The following businesses either donated food or provided it at a significant discount: Tijuana Flats (Ellen & Camp Fitch); River City Brewing Company (the Candelinos); Carrabas; Pizza Hut; Tango's Pizza; Chick-Fil-A; Mojo's Barbeque; Firehouse Subs; the Deerwood Club and our good friends at both Deerwood Town Center Publix and Reedy Branch Publix. Kindly consider showing your appreciation by patronizing these businesses. Monica Bernhardt, who grew up in Deerwood, worked countless hours to ensure our labor force was fed three meals per day, Monday through Sunday. Thank you, Monica! Her brother, Wes, cooked an incredible spaghetti dinner for us on Wednesday. Yum! Thanks to everyone who donated food, soda, water and ice to our grateful laborers, as well as to those who served us. Thank you to all who made monetary contributions to the project, enabling our budget to stretch farther. Also thanks to Herman and Filberto who work around our community and took time away from other projects. 

Rick Root was the hardest working General Coordinator the Leather & Associates consultants say they'd ever met. Thanks to Rick for taking on the many headaches associated with a project this size. Thanks to DeeDee, Billy and Bill Fenwick, Sr. for countless hours devoted to acquiring, distributing and maintaining the tools on this project. Thanks to Mark Hickinbotham (and donations by Ring Power) for ordering and coordinating the materials needed. Kelly Root and Sharon Thames kept their sense of humor all week as they learned to use power tools while sharing responsibility for coordinating volunteers with yours truly. Kurt Cetin and Kathy Henderson showed their commitment by working every day as well as on our "punch list" workday the following week. Whether you were able to spend two hours helping or the whole week, thank you to every resident who helped create a neighborhood park we can all be proud of. 

The DIA Board has allocated funds for Phase II of the park to begin this spring. This will include installation of brick pavers (thank you to Jan Olsen, Fran Hickin-botham and Jackie O'Hare for coordinating this effort), planting shade trees in planter boxes within the playground, planting shade trees at the south end of the playground, construction of a new pavilion with attached kitchen area and bathrooms (!) and replacing, repairing, and painting the wood fencing along the back of the playground. We expect all of these to be done in a time frame permitted by the money that will be allocated each year to the playground project. Phase II should be completed with budgeted funds in 2005. 

Phase III of the park renovation will include rebuilding, resurfacing and expanding the basketball court and installing various other features including adult fitness stations and a sand volleyball pit. We are in the process of obtaining a use easement from JEA in order to build soccer fields and a baseball diamond. Also in process is the engineering work for the entire parcel, which will include drainage, utilities and parking. Expect Phase III items to be completed, as budgeted funds allow, by 2009. If you want to know more about the park project or how you can be a part of it, contact your DIA district representative or the Committee Chair, Rick Root. 

I hope you share my pride in being a part of Deerwood's Renaissance.

ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW
Lee Evans, Chairperson

The Covenants and Restrictions provide that any change to the exterior of a property be approved by the Association. The Board has delegated that function to the Architectural Review Committee that is composed of three Board members, an independent architect, and a representative of the management company. The committee formally meets twice a month. 

Most requests are approved. Some need additional information or modification, and then are approved at a subsequent meeting. A few requests are not approved as they fall outside of the Covenants or aesthetically don't fit the character of Deerwood. 

The following is a summary of the activity handled during 2004. 

By action taken: 

Requests submitted … … … … … … ..195 
Requests approved … … … … … … ...182 
Plans awaiting modification … … … … ..6 
Requests rejected … … … … … … … … .7 

By category: 

Tear down and rebuilds … … … … …3 
Additions … … … … … … … … … … 31 
Minor exterior change … … … … …58 
Tree removals … … … … … … … … 86 
Fences, new & replacement … …  17

DEERWOOD WE DID GOOD
Denise Derby

If we adults could roll back a few years, slim down our waistlines and shed a whole lot of pounds; we could really have a great time in our new playground. The children of Deerwood would probably welcome us too. Alas, the only sliding some of us will do is into the golf carts and we won't even talk about the "swings". 

BUT WE DID GOOD! 

Those who envisioned our new playground are to be commended. Those who volunteered to build it are to be thanked. Those who support the program are to be seen as generous not only in their financial commitment, but in their hearts. There are some of us who will say, "I don't have kids" or "My children are grown" why should I be appraised for this? There are some of us who drive by the playground and see the little ones playing and think of our adult children when they were once little ones and for a moment remember our children's joy in running around their playsets. We can come up with many reasons why we shouldn't invest in our playground but those reasons seem to fade when we watch Deerwood families spending time together, children being children, and play being done without electronic gizmos. 

Who knows, maybe some of us can roll back a few years, get that waistline into the 30's, and finally lose those pounds. At one time some of us could play some great summer pick up basketball. Maybe you'll see us on the court in 2006 for some one on one. It's nice to dream!!

LEGAL UPDATES
Lee Evans, Chairperson

The DIA is currently involved in three cases. One dates back to 2001 and involves the Association as a defendant for failing to approve construction over a building restriction line. Your community obtained a favorable decision at Summary Judgment in 2003 but the resident has appealed that decision, and we currently await a decision from the Appellant Court. 

The second case was filed by the Association is 2003 against a resident who began building an unapproved structure. In 2004, the Association obtained a favorable decision at Summary Judgment. An architectural plan was ultimately submitted and approved. Unfortunately, the completed construction does not conform to the approved plans and the legal matter continues. In both of these cases, the association is petitioning the court to recover our legal expenses. 

The third case was filed within the past 30 days and again involves an unapproved structure that was built in 2003. Attempts to work out a mutually agreeable solution with the resident failed. 

From 2001 through 2004, the Association expended approximately $130,000 on legal fees for these two cases. That averages $32,500 per year or $35 per property owner. Based on the 2005 assessment, the litigation cost is roughly 2% of budget. 

At times, incorrect information flows though the rumor mills. We hope this clarifies any misconceptions.

Landscape
By Karen Merrell
Chris Cavell, Chairperson

Your Deerwood Landscape Committee is focusing again on beautifying our Community. With the cooler weather, plans were put in motion to make the entrance of James Island more attractive. This will be a continuing work in progress with some trees removed, and specimen Ligustrums, Sago Palms, and annual flowers added. No work has been done to these beds in over twenty years. We hope you like the new Estate signs! 

Future plans include the Drop Off Zone for the Jacksonville Country Day School, and surrounding area as soon as the land is deeded to DIA. Irrigation and paving will be added to enhance the area. The island, located in the northwest quadrant of Windward Way, has received new landscaping on one end. Look for the new Hollies added to the Summit Ridge Island. The park located at the Hunters Grove and Crosswicks Road intersection is being improved. The DLC has acquired 1,500 pine seedlings courtesy of JEA, which will be placed behind Mineral Lake and other locations. 

We would like you to please consider joining our Landscape Committee because we need your input. Clubhouse. Our meeting are scheduled for the second Tuesday of every month at the Deerwood Country Club and last only one hour. Your suggestions are appreciated, and your compliments are loved. Please call: Karen Merrell (642-9636), or Chris Cavell (728-8282).

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