Reminders


Improve Lighting in Lakeport:
Now that it’s getting darker, please leave your lights on at night. A well-lit community is one of the most basic measures we can take to ensure the safety of our residents and the security of our property. One way to further the goal of safe lighting is for residents to leave their lights on at night, especially those in end units with short post lights, which according to long-time Lakeport residents used to be standard practice. This is of course voluntary, but doing this small thing would be a gracious contribution to the overall safety and attractiveness of our community. 


Report Suspicious Activity.
If you see suspicious activity, don’t confront anybody but instead call the Fairfax County Police non-emergency number, 703-691-2131 (use this number also to report vandalism or any other crime that has already occurred). The police request that even if you just have a “gut feeling” something is wrong, you notify them with as many details as possible. It is helpful if you can also take photos unobtrusively. Police will be dispatched (or you may be able to provide a report over the phone). Also notify Lakeport’s Neighborhood Watch coordinator Chuck Foster at chuckfost@aol.com. Please pay special attention to suspicious activity or sounds near the Lakeport dock, in the woods, or at night.

Maintenance of the exterior of your home: With the RA inspection approaching in the spring, now is a good time to line up contractors to make repairs to the exterior of your home to avoid a violation. Also check out the Fall Maintenance Checklist article in this issue for smaller maintenance projects that could save you major expenses and headaches in the future. 

You Must Replace Any Tree You Remove. If you recently removed a tree (dead or alive) on your property, remember that Reston Association requires that you replace it with another tree. RA has several resources for finding a replacement tree: See the lists of recommended small trees at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1a1epMYHN4gx8EB7l_K68ewk8bZnXnh1-/view

and https://www.dropbox.com/sh/5eeek6x2yjzhzl6/AAC5MThw7Rx_e-zZ108TCq2_a/Nature%20%26%20Environmental%20Resources/General%20Information?dl=0&preview=Trees+in+Reston.pdf&subfolder_nav_tracking=1.   

Party Walls: Although sometimes counterintuitive, the RA Deeds make the repair of any architectural element that falls on the property line between two houses (e.g., wall, trim, fence) a joint responsibility. If you aren’t sure whose responsibility it is to pay for the repair or replacement of a shared wall or trim, please see https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxSpjzCTaI6Jd0xnbEZEcEhLT3NiWjRKODNlZDBtTWdRdTBJ/view for information relating to party walls. 

Glass recycling: Glass pickup, free for all Lakeport residents, will always be the last Wednesday of each month, but if you’re ever unsure of the date, you can go to http://www.lakeportcluster.org/ and check the calendar under the photo of the Community of the Year banner on the left. Just leave your glass by the curb in a plastic bin or sturdy cardboard box by 7:00 a.m. (they may come by 7:30 a.m.); bins/boxes will be emptied and left (plastic or paper bags cannot be used). Your glass will be taken to the glass recycling center in Lorton so that it doesn’t end up in the landfill with your garbage (it is no longer allowed in the regular recycle bins).

Regular trash collection: If your trash or recycling is not picked up by 2:00 p.m. on a scheduled collection day, please call ADS at 703-388-0500 (also imprinted on the outside of your trash bin if you forget the number).

Drive Slowly: Neighborhood kids are outside, playing on sidewalks and in the streets. Please remember to drive slowly and keep your eyes out for children (and other pedestrians), especially given that the need to maintain a six-foot separation means that people cannot pass on the sidewalk and may well be farther out in the street than expected.


Help Keep Our Community Clean and Beautiful:
Please contribute to the appearance of our community by picking up trash anywhere you see it while you’re out walking and enjoying nature in Lakeport. Also, if you notice overflowing trash from the can in Triangle Park or the one at South Lakes Village, please take a photo and forward it to the Board so we can pass it on to Reston Association or South Lakes Village management company. 

Dog Waste: If you see a dog walker who fails to pick up the dog’s waste, please remind the person that doggie bags are available at two stations on the RA walking path in Lakeport and another on Lakespray Way.


Geese:
We continue to experience problems with goose poop on our dock. Please don’t feed the geese (not only does this attract them, it’s not healthy for them), but do feel free to shoo them off the dock (just be sure not to harm them or allow them to attack you—we just want to make their time on our dock unpleasant enough that they will choose to hang out somewhere else!). 


Never Again Be Late Paying Your Quarterly Assessment:
If you’ve been contacted by the Board for not paying your assessment as the end of the month nears (or even if you haven’t), please consider paying your quarterly assessments by direct debit through your bank instead of sending a check or paying online (which incurs an extra fee). If you decide to switch to automatic debit, it means that you never have to worry about incurring late fees because you forgot to make the payment (currently $25 plus the charge from SCS for sending the letter). Alternatively, you could pay the entire assessment at the beginning of the year ($1380 for 2020). Either way, you save the Board time spent reminding people who haven’t paid shortly before the late fee would be incurred, as well as extra costs to the Association for processing and mailing quarterly statements (last year we paid around $600 to have statements sent to owners who had not prepaid or set up direct debit). You can cancel the arrangement at any time. To take advantage of this convenient way to pay your Lakeport assessment fees, follow the instructions for filling out and mailing the form at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1U_9xgrDVzZlOBoUG04XT2vlxmWa99C6q/view

Questions for the Management Company: If you have a question about quarterly assessments or other questions for Select Community Services (SCS), contact Lakeport’s portfolio manager Ali Long at along@scs-management.com.

Update Your Contact Information: Please go to the Lakeport Directory (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K6Qm0NXCpH62r3OeYg5XMTZ7b-irCYYH/view) and check the contact information listed there for you. If a correction is needed, either send an email to webmaster@lakeportcluster.org and copy along@scs-management.com or fill out the form at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfFILfWGBoWIgWlBPSQmIKj4kIX0kPA7XsRjnsaOsNXuvVSkw/viewform. If your home has renters, please ask them to fill out the form to be listed in the directory. Remember also that if you need to contact a neighbor or just forget someone’s name, you can always check this directory. 


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