Neighborhood Meeting: Thursday, August 5, 2010 at 5:30 PM in the main conference room of the Blacksburg Motor Company Building at 400 South Main Street.

Planning Commission Public Hearing: Tuesday, September 7, 2010 at 7:30 PM in the Roger E. Hedgepeth Chambers on the 2nd floor of the Municipal Building at 300 South Main Street.

Questions? Call the Planning and Building Department at 540-961-1126 and visit www.blacksburg.gov.

At the meeting, neighbors voiced opinions on both sides of the issue. The final vote was 20 to 3 in favor of adopting the fee. The change will be enacted by a revision to Article XIV of the Wyatt Farm By-Laws. The new version of the by-laws has been posted to the neighborhood web site.

So, after much discussion, we are now formally presenting the idea of establishing an initiation fee to the membership. This change will be accomplished by a rewording of the appropriate Article in the Wyatt Farm By-Laws (one paragraph). This document shows the original paragraph and the proposed rewording. If approved, this change will go into effect July 1, 2010.

As you might expect, the amount of an initiation fee is a function of the amenities provided by a neighborhood. We created a list of the amenities at Wyatt Farm, and compared it to other neighborhoods with initiation fees. This led us to conclude that an appropriate initiation fee for Wyatt Farm would be a one-time fee equal to the current annual dues.

As part of this change we are eliminating the minor fee currently charged to buyers for the “homeowner packet” that contains information important for new owners and for the real estate transaction. We will still create and deliver the packet (electronically), but the cost will be subsumed by the initiation fee.

All homeowners are invited to vote, for or against, the rewording of the by-laws and therefore the establishment of the initiation fee. We will hold a special homeowners meeting for anyone wishing to discuss this issue, and then tally the vote. The meeting will be held at the home of Lisa and Mike Goatley, 2213 Birchleaf Lane, on Tuesday, June 1 at 7:00 pm.

Proxy votes are welcome if you can’t come to the meeting. No special form is needed — simply send email to info@wyattfarm.org with your vote. If you vote against the proposed change, please indicate your reasons so that the Board can factor them into further discussions.

Thanks to the homeowners who initially brought this idea to our attention!

The playground committee, made up of Julie Hodge, Kristine Lattimer, John Lewis, and Sarah Woolsey, presented their proposal for the installation and maintenance of a playground in the Wyatt Farm Commons area near the pavilion. A question-and-answer period followed, and finally a vote was taken. Including proxy votes, the playground was approved with a vote of 71 in favor and 4 against. Installation of the playground and additional landscaping will take place in the spring.

The HOA Board and the membership in general expressed their warmest regards to Tom Rubenstein for the excellent leadership he has provided our neighborhood during his tenure as president. The Board will determine who will serve as president for the 2010 at their January meeting.

Full minutes of the Annual Meeting will be posted on this web site soon.

[Update] The proposal files have now been separated for easier download:

• Proposal Summary (start here)
• 3D rendering of playground layout (landscape shown is not representative of our plan)
• Playground Model (top view), Annotated
• Playground Model (top view)
• Line item quote for playground equipment
• Line item quote for landscape elements

Homeowners are asked to download and review the proposal carefully, then come to the Annual Meeting on December 10 at which the playground committee will present the proposal and answer any questions. Following the discussion, a vote on the proposal will be taken.

If you absolutely cannot attend the meeting, you may submit your vote on the proposal by proxy, which must be signed and delivered to the meeting by another homeowner. Only one vote may be submitted, in person or by proxy, per lot. The proxy voting form can be downloaded here.

2009 is shaping up to be a great year at Wyatt Farm. Check out the 2009 Budget and the new web page about the Wyatt Farm Commons project.

• The Wyatt Farm Commons community development project
• Expenses for 2008 and the 2009 budget
• Board member makeup for 2009

All homeowners are encouraged to attend.

At the end of this calendar year, we are losing several of our Board members for one reason or another. So please consider getting involved on the Board as well.

Other business conducted at the Oct 28 meeting is summarized in the meeting minutes.