IN THIS ISSUE… Community Activities.…………...................2, 3 Pedestrians and Crosswalks……......................8 Message from the HOA……...………..……....3 Neighborhood Watch….………...…….…......12 Black History Month...……….……...……......6 How To Prune Frost Damaged Plants..…......13 False Alarm Reduction…….....…....……….....7 Activities Calendar..……..…….…...…..….....15 February 2011 Community Meetings 1. The next CDD Budget Workshop will be February 17th at 6:30PM in the Gathering Room. 2. The next CDD Meeting will be February 21st at 6:30PM in the Gathering Room. 3. HOA Meetings: The HOA Design Review Board will meet at 6:30PM on February 22nd followed by the HOA Meeting at 7PM. All meetings are held in the Gathering Room. Arbor Greene’s Annual Family Fun Day When: February 19, 2011 Where: Arbor Greene Clubhouse What Time: 10AM to 1PM It‟s that time again! Arbor Greene„s most exciting event is here again. Please join us for great food, games and lots of fun. We will have a tattoo station, carnival games and prizes, a bounce house, a rock climbing wall, laser tag and much more. We have a lot of wonderful and fun family activities planned. This is an event you will not want to miss! See you there! Please support our advertisers! Tell them you saw their ad in the Arbor Greene Gazette!
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Transcript
IN THIS ISSUE…
Community Activities.…………...................2, 3 Pedestrians and Crosswalks……......................8
Message from the HOA……...………..……....3 Neighborhood Watch….………...…….…......12
Black History Month...……….……...……......6 How To Prune Frost Damaged Plants..…......13
February 1st – 6th: Mow Ponds, Apply Herbicide in planter beds for weed control
February 7th – 12th: Fertilize seasonal color with liquid application, cut and remove any
low hanging Oak Tree branches along roadsides and sidewalks.
February 14th – 18th: Cut and remove freeze damaged foliage on plant material, treat turf
for any broadleaf weeds.
February 21st- 26th: Cut and remove brown frons on palm trees, apply fungicide and
liquid fertilize on cold weather damaged plant material.
**An ID tag or Guest Pass is required to use the Com-
munity Center Facilities. All users must be at least 14
years of age and have an ID tag. An adult 18 years of
age or older must escort anyone under 16 to the fitness
& weight rooms. All Guests using the Fitness and
Weight Rooms must have a guest pass that must be
obtained in advance of the day of use.**
Arbor Greene Book Club The Arbor Greene Book Club will discuss, The Help by Kath-ryn Stockett, on February 7th, please join us. We meet in the Gathering Room of the Community Center at 7:00pm on Mondays. All are welcome to join us and/or to make book suggestions for future discussion. Point of contact is Diane Wheeler, 813 994-9262.
Our current schedule follows: Mondays @ 7:00 pm February 7th– The Help by Kathryn Stockett March 7th--South of Broad by Pat Conroy April 4th-- Either Hurricane Punch or Atomic Lobster – both are by Tim Dorsey
Community Activities Message from the Arbor Greene HOA
The Homeowners Association is looking for volun-
teers. If you are interested in serving on the Board or
either of our two committees, please contact Martha
Failure to secure doors and windows before arming your alarm
What can you do to reduce false alarms?
Insure authorized users are familiar with your alarm system's operation
Secure all doors and windows prior to arming your alarm
Be aware of changes in the environment (i.e., new animals, design changes, seasonal decorations. plants, etc.) that might
have an impact on your alarm
Notify your monitoring facility of any changes (i.e., houseguests, name changes, new employees, employee terminations,
etc.)
What are the fines associated with false alarms? Security system owners will be fined for false alarms that occur within a one year period and to which law enforcement per-
sonnel have been dispatched:
1st and 2nd occurrence– warning notice
3rd occurrence- $75 fine
4th occurrence- $100 fine
5th occurrence- $150 fine
6th occurrence- $300 fine
7th occurrence and above- $500 fine per incident
Persons who fail to pay the fines will be required to appear before the Code Enforcement Board/ Special
Magistrate, which could assess liens against the owner’s properties. If an appeal is not successful, peti-
tioner’s will be required to pay the fine and administrative costs. Works Cited: http://www.tampagov.net
ARBOR GREENE GAZETTE ● FEBRUARY 2011 PAGE 8
Attention Residents: Strict Enforcement of Parking and Traffic Laws in Arbor Greene Pedestrians and Crosswalks– It’s The Law
Effective immediately, the Tampa Police Department officers will be
strictly enforcing the “No Parking” and the posted speed limit of 30
MPH laws in Arbor Greene. Parents taking their child or children to a
bus stop should not park within 30 feet of an intersection or “round-a-
bout” circle or where “No Parking” signs are posted. TPD will begin to
give citations, not warnings for violations. Why not give your child or
children some exercise and the unique experience of letting them walk to
the bus stop area. Remember how we parents, when we were
young, would walk in the snow for miles to get to school. Let them at
least experience the part where they walk to the bus stop. What an ex-
perience they will have.
Speeders beware: For the safety of our residents and children that may
not think about the danger of crossing the roads or playing near the
street, TPD will be monitoring the streets in the community and enforcing the posted speed limit. Drivers should
pay close attention to the crosswalks in the community and ensure they “Yield to Pedestrians” in the crosswalk. A
recent survey by the Arbor Greene CDD staff revealed two thirds of drivers were not yielding to pedestrians in the
Devonshire crosswalk. TPD will be enforcing the state law regarding crosswalks and drivers not obeying the law.
The state law that applies within Arbor Greene is as follows:
FSS 316.130 (7c) states “When traffic control signals are not in place or in operation and there is no signage indi-
cating otherwise, the driver of a vehicle shall yield the right-of-way, slowing down or stopping if need be to so
yield, to a pedestrian crossing the roadway within a crosswalk when the pedestrian is upon the half of the roadway
upon which the vehicle is traveling or when the pedestrian is approaching so closely from the opposite half of the
roadway as to be in danger. Any pedestrian crossing a roadway at a point where a pedestrian tunnel or overhead
pedestrian crossing has been provided shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the roadway.”
For resident walkers and runners, please don’t assume a vehicle will yield or stop for you when you begin to
cross a street.
FSS 316.130 paragraph 8 states: “No pedestrian shall suddenly leave a curb or other place of safety and walk or
run into the path of a vehicle which is so close that it is impossible for the driver to yield.” Make certain the vehicle
driver sees you before you cross the street. Runners should use the sidewalks and not run in the streets.
Arbor Greene has four (4) designated crosswalks on two of our most heavily traveled roadways. Two crosswalks
are on Arbor Greene Drive, one at Devonshire Lake Drive intersection and one at the Community Center entrance
at the intersection at Arbor Wind Drive. The other two crosswalks are located on Arbor Creek Drive at the intersec-
tion of Avalon Lane and the remaining crosswalk is located at the intersection of Arbor Run Drive. These cross-
walks provide a safe and convenient area for our residents to cross the streets, but only if vehicle drivers adhere
to the Florida State Statues.
The Arbor Greene CDD Staff conducted a crosswalk study at the Devonshire crosswalk. The study was conducted
from 5:00 am until 8:00pm. During that time, 6,674 vehicles entered and exited Arbor Greene. 44 pedestrians
crossed the crosswalk during the 15 hour time period that the study was conducted. Only 37% of the vehicle
driver's yielded to pedestrians in the crosswalk.
In order to keep our neighborhoods safe, we as a community need to be more aware of our surroundings. The na-
tional average for pedestrian deaths is 1.59 deaths per 100,000 people. Whenever approaching a crosswalk you
should always slow your vehicle down to give yourself enough time to check and see if there are any pedestrians
waiting to cross or starting to cross.
For our residents sake, why not drive 25 MPH and provide a margin of safety for our kids and elder residents?
Let‟s all be more considerate of others and follow the established laws and get along better together.
Not only is it important for us to yield to pedestrians for our safety and for our families safety, it is also the
LAW! You have heard it before; TEAM Together, Everyone Accomplishes More. Just do it!
ARBOR GREENE GAZETTE ● FEBRUARY 2011 PAGE 9
ARBOR GREENE GAZETTE ● FEBRUARY 2011 PAGE 10
Home Owner’s Beware
On December 28, 2010 at approximately 7:30PM, the club
attendant on duty, observed three young males, two white,
one non-white, arrive at the Club on bicycles. They entered
the Club through the locker room. The attendant heard them
in the locker room, checked for IDs and none had one. Since
they did not have ID tags, they were requested to leave the
Club. They then left, but were later found in the locker room
again. After being asked again to leave, they apparently re-
turned and burned a hole in the shade/window curtain. A
resident user told the attendant about the damage. The shade
will have to be replaced.
The Tampa Police Department (TPD) was called and re-
sponded at approximately 8:50PM and a police report was
made. TPD had an arson crime investigation unit in the area
and they responded also. TPD was provided a video of the
three youths from our outside camera. TPD did stop and
question several youths on bikes in the community. One resi-
dent from the Landing called the morning of 12-29-10 inquir-
ing about the vandalism as her kids were questioned by TPD.
She also stated some of her Christmas decorations were damaged the night before. This was the second incident this
past holiday season of decorations being damaged.
Additionally, our maintenance assistant checked the parks the following morning and found the picnic table top, in
the Trace park damaged by a fire. The plastic coating was burned off.
The three youths returned to the club the following morning and the Arbor Greene club manager recognized them
from the security tapes. TPD was called, questioned them and one admitted to the Club crime. Later, another one
admitted to the Trace playground crime. All three were arrested and taken to Juvenile Detention. None of the three
live in Arbor Greene, each was issued a trespassing warrant which forbids them from returning to Arbor Greene.
Our security cameras helped us ID and solve these crimes. At least, we have a chance of being reimbursed for the
damages. Had our security not been working, the three youths may have committed more crimes in the commu-
nity. In fact, more damage was subsequently found to the Trace and Landing Monument signs and the Landing bas-
ketball court. Also, having the additional club attendant checking ID tags proved helpful. Thanks to our CDD Staff
for their help in reporting the incidents and following up.
* If you observe suspicious behavior, please call the Tampa Police at 813-231-6130. However, if you think a crime
has occurred or is about to happen against person(s) or property, then immediately dial 9-1-1. In either case, DO
NOT confront the individuals and do call from a safe location, i.e., do not allow the suspects to see you on your
phone or see you coming from your home, etc.
Let's try to make Arbor Greene a place where AG residents watch for criminals and report them to the Tampa po-
lice ... let's discourage criminals from thinking AG is an easy place to commit a crime and get away with it. AG is
our community and we want criminals to avoid our community.
Overall, Arbor Greene is a safe and relatively secure community. Never the less, we have had several incidents of
vandalism in our community, which are crimes that cause residents or Arbor Greene CDD to spend money to repair
the damages/loss of property. We, as residents, recognize who belongs in our neighborhoods and who does not re-
side here. We can help the Tampa police in their efforts to decrease future incidents of vandalism if we look for sus-
picious person(s) or behavior and call the TPD.
Why not join the Neighborhood Watch Association and play an active part in preventing crime in our
neighborhoods. Call Paul or Hally Boucher at 453-7295.
ARBOR GREENE GAZETTE ● FEBRUARY 2011 PAGE 11
ARBOR GREENE GAZETTE ● FEBRUARY 2011 PAGE 12
A Message From the Neighborhood Watch Directors
Hello Arbor Greene neighbors. We hope you and your family had a happy
and safe holiday season. Now that we have started a new year, we want to
tell you about the benefits of joining Arbor Greene‟s (AG) Neighborhood
Watch Association (NWA). We want to encourage other AG residents to
become involved in improving our community‟s safety and security, espe-
cially in our continuing poor economy, criminals are looking for property to
steal. Unfortunately, during the past year, some AG homes, garages, and fa-
cilities were burglarized and vandalized. By working together, we can help
limit further opportunities for criminals, keeping our community safer and
making AG a better place to live.
AG NWA is an all-volunteer program by and for AG residents. Our group‟s
membership is slowly growing; increasing our members‟ security awareness
and helping to deter criminal activity in AG. You too can join the group and
be involved at varying levels of participation. At the most basic level, you
can join the NWA e-mail distribution group. Becoming a member of the
NWA e-mail distribution group does not obligate a resident to engage in any other NWA activities. Simply e-mail
[email protected] with your full name and the sub-community which you live in (e.g., The Land-
ing, Trace, Estuary, etc.). As an e-mail member, you will receive Tampa Police Department (TPD) criminal activity
reports for North Tampa, along with relevant security tips meant to prevent or deter similar crime. You will also re-
ceive basic home security tips as well as seasonal security information meant to prevent various crimes. We also
send out alerts which we receive from the TPD and other law enforcement agencies about criminal activities in the
Tampa area. AG e-mail distribution members also provide us with data regarding suspicious or criminal activities
which are then shared with other e-mail members and the TPD.
As a member of the NWA or just a concerned resident, the TPD encourages all of us to be their “eyes and ears” by
actively watching who is in our neighborhood. Some criminals will pose as repairmen or delivery persons, so we
need to keep an eye out for these perpetrators. The TPD does not know who belongs in our community, and they
will normally send a police unit to check out suspicious persons if we call the TPD suspicious activity number (813-
231-6130). If a crime is about to happen or has occurred against any person(s) or property, immediately dial 9-1-1.
In either case, call TPD from a safe distance and do not confront these individuals. Please see the AG Club Atten-
dant for your free refrigerator magnet which contains these and other important phone numbers.
An additional way to participate in NWA activities is to request us to coordinate a TPD Roll Call near your resi-
dence or somewhere within your community. TPD patrolman meet for shift-changes and briefings within various
Tampa communities as part of their daily duties; these are known as Roll Calls. This is a great opportunity encour-
aged by TPD Chief Jane Castor to provide TPD presence in areas prone to varying levels of criminal activity. The
Roll Call allows AG residents a brief chance to interact with TPD officers and provides a visual deterrent to crimi-
nals.
Members of AG NWA are only authorized to officially patrol their community after attending the mandatory TPD
Mobile Training course. This class provides details regarding laws and permitted activities of an NWA patrol. With-
out this training, a resident is not officially authorized to patrol a community due to potential civil/criminal liabili-
ties and lack of support. However, AG residents should continue to feel comfortable to enjoy walks, jogs, and bike
rides through the community with their cell phones. As concerned citizens, AG residents are encouraged to contact
the TPD in response to any observed suspicious or criminal activity while enjoying these treks through our commu-
nity.
If you have any questions regarding the information in this article, please e-mail the address above.
Thank you for your time and we encourage you to become involved in your AG NWA!
The Tennis Court Reservation System is Required for Advanced Reservations. Just go to www.arborgreene.org and follow the link and the instructions to register on the site and you‟ll be all set. If you don‟t make a
reservation, you can sign up on the reservation sheet at the sun shelter bulletin board at Court #1. You must sign up to use a court. Court
reservations are held for 10 minutes, after that, they become open/available. Children under 14 must be with an adult 18 years or
older. ID tags are required for all residents and members. Residents must accompany all guests without a guest pass. Save Electricity! If no
one is waiting for your court, please turn off the lights.
Arbor Greene Tennis Leagues Interested in fun, organized and competitive tennis? Arbor Greene has several teams that may be just what you‟re looking for!
If you have not played in a few years and would like to get back into it, please contact any of the Captains below for more in-
formation. If you're wondering what your "level" might be, find out on this website describing the NTRP Playing Levels: