Update on Castleview Elementary Sidewalk Access

Message from the Board of Directors

Dear Mabel Bridge Homeowners,

As a follow up to our last HOA meeting, we’ve gained new insight into the legality of the sidewalk access to the upcoming Castleview Elementary School. The Orange County Public School Board has determined that they do not want a sidewalk through our HOA-owned property, and prefer to use the sidewalk, as previously voted on and approved by the County Commission, that runs alongside the bus loop off of Thatcher Avenue. This will be the walking access for our community.

You may have noticed some construction that occurred and then was repaired back to its original state on our HOA common property that backs up to the new school. The school board attorney let our HOA attorney, the Law Offices of John Di Masi, know that building the gate and sidewalk was not part of the plans approved by the school board and should not have occurred. At the time, they were uncertain if it was the principal or the project manager who had decided to do this, but they were not authorized by the school board.

We engaged our HOA attorney to look into the sidewalk issue for us, because we knew our homeowners preferred the sidewalk on our HOA property as opposed to the bus-loop sidewalk. Our attorney made our desire clear to the school board, and also that we would need to be released of liability should an easement be created.

The school board attorney acknowledged that our points were valid, but they were going to continue on their approved plan. They also acknowledged that there is no easement on our property, it is Mabel Bridge HOA property, and the school board was unwilling to go back through the planning committee to secure the proper rights to build a sidewalk on our community land.

Our HOA attorney advised that even if we told the school board that we wanted the sidewalk there, they would have removed it until we had an easement in place and an agreement for use rights. We also looked further into our community bylaws and the board is not authorized to convey an easement for this purpose; it can acquire an interest in real property but not convey it, and it cannot grant an easement unless it is an easement for utilities and services, like water lines or cable, etc. without first obtaining the consent of the membership. [Article IV, Section 4.4 (E) permits the association to grant easements over and through the common areas. However, Article XII, Section 13.4 (A) requires 2/3 vote of the membership to encumber any portion of the common areas.]  

Therefore, our HOA Board is not the cause of the sidewalk being removed as has been miscommunicated, and the school board has chosen to use the bus loop sidewalk as voted and approved by the school board instead of a different access from our neighborhood into the school property.

Furthermore, we’ve been advised by our HOA attorney that where the school board property ends, it ends. Therefore, use of a different gate would be facilitating trespassing (for non-homeowners), so the school should be locking the side gate that exists. If someone were to get hurt on HOA common property, the HOA may be liable for that.

We were further advised by our attorney that our actions regarding our HOA property were in the best interest of our association and we would not have been doing our due diligence to allow unauthorized use of our HOA property to continue. More importantly, the school board would have stopped it on its own, regardless of our actions, because the principal and/or project manager were not authorized for that construction.

We hope this has cleared up any misinformation. We are honored to serve as your board and serve the best interests of our neighborhood.

Thank you for your time,

The Mabel Bridge HOA Board

School Discussion Planned for HOA Board Meeting on March 28 at 7PM

Attention Homeowners: The next HOA Board meeting is scheduled for 7pm on March 28th at Windermere Preparatory School in the cafeteria. See Meetings page for map and meeting details.

In addition to regular Board business, this meeting will have some special guests. The principal of Castleview Elementary (the new school opening in Aug 2019) has gracious agreed to come and meet with our residents to field any questions or concerns we have with the new school neighboring our community.

Many residents already have expressed concerns about added traffic from both the buses and parents as well as other drivers cutting through Mabel Bridge. To help address those concerns, representatives from Orange Country Sheriff’s Office have also kindly offered to be present at the meeting.

We are very grateful that these individuals are volunteering their evening to come speak with us and our residents. We ask that you please make every effort to attend the important meeting. The school discussion will begin promptly at 7pm.

If you are unable to attend the meeting and would like to send your comments or questions to the Board, please call or email our community manager, Maria Gomez, with your comments. Please be sure to indicate your questions are the March 28th Mabel Bridge meeting.

We look forward to seeing you there.

Thank you.

Helpful Information about Zoysia Lawn Issues

Attention Residents: The HOA lawn maintenance contractor recently took samples of the common area grass/turf and discovered nematodes were present in the Zoysia grass. These are tiny parasitic worms that feed on the roots and cause damage. The HOA property has been treated and should start to see improvement very soon. If you are experiencing thin or dying areas, you may want to consider researching nematodes and/or speaking with your lawn service provider for treatment. 


Similar damage can occur if you have grubs in your lawn. Additionally, when grubs are present, other pests like armadillos and moles will be attracted to your lawn since grubs are a food source. If you are noticing holes appearing around your property, you likely have grubs. This is also treatable by a lawn service provider.


This information is provided simply to help homeowners understand potential issues that may arise in Zoysia grass. Please remember, homeowners and residents are responsible for maintaining the lawn and landscaping on their lots in a neat and attractive, well-maintained, green, healthy and living condition.

New Community Manager Appointed – Maria Gomez

Effective December 2018:

The Mabel Bridge HOA employs a management company to advise on our operations and to handle the day-to-day management of our community. That management company is Leland Management, and our dedicated, professionally licensed Community Association Manager (CAM) is now Ms. Maria Gomez.

Maria can be reached via MGomez@LelandManagement.com and 407-781-0782. If you have any questions or concerns about Mabel Bridge HOA, or if you need to report a violation, Maria is the current point of contact.

As always, the community manager information can be found posted at the community entrances and at https://www.mabelbridgehoa.com/contact/

 

2019 Dues Increase – Update Auto Payments

11/30/2018

Attention Residents:

2019 HOA Dues will increase to $221 per quarter. Coupon books will be mailed to the homeowners address on file within the next few weeks. 

Please remember to update your automatic payments to reflect the new amount due.

If you established your automated payments through Leland Management, they will automatically update to the new amount. Please note, you will not receive a coupon book in the mail if you have automatic payments set up through Leland.

If your payments are made through your bank, you are responsible to update the payment amount with your bank. 

For questions about your account, please contact Leland Management

You can also log into your account to check your account status:

  • Visit https://www.lelandmanagement.com/
  • Click “Residents” (near the top of the screen)
  • Click “Residents Login”
  • Enter “Mabel” in the search box
  • Log into your account
Thank you for your cooperation to ensure your dues are paid correctly and on time.

Mabel Bridge HOA Pool Gate System Update

Attention Residents: Please see the notice below regarding a change to the Pool Gate System. Please also make note of the key distribution dates and the requirements to pick up your new pool key.

The same letter has been mailed to all homeowners.

Thank you.

IMPORTANT NOTICE:

Mabel Bridge HOA Pool Gate System Update

What You Need to Know:

The gate system at the Mabel Bridge community pool is being replaced. Your existing key FOB will not work with the new system, so in anticipation of this update, all homeowners will be issued a new key card for pool access. Each household will be issued one card. One additional card may be purchased for $25.

Once key cards have been distributed, we will send an email to the provided/required email with the exact date the new system will be turned on (tentatively Oct. 25).

Important Dates:

New cards will be distributed to residents at the pool on:

  • Saturday, Oct. 13, 2018 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
  • Monday, Oct. 22, 2018 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.

If you are unable to make these dates/times, please Contact the HOA Manager Debra Davis at ddavis@lelandmanagement.com or 407-781-5787. After Oct. 22, please contact Leland Management Gates Department at Gates@lelandmanagement.com or 407-781-1169. To purchase an additional card, please also contact the Gates Department.

What You Need to Do:

  1. Mark your calendar and plan to attend the distribution at the pool to obtain your new key card on one of the dates above.
  2. Bring a valid, government-issued ID with your Mabel Bridge address or you will not be able to claim your key card (one provided per household).
  3. Read, fill out and sign the included Pool Rules document and bring it with you to claim your key card (required).

Why is the Gate System Being Updated?

To mitigate ongoing security issues in the common area facilities, the Board has decided to implement a more secure system. This new gate system, in combination with our current security system, will allow us to better protect our property. With this new system, the Board will also be able to restrict pool access of Homeowners who have not fulfilled their obligations to the HOA. Additionally, the gates will be automatically locked after dusk when the pool area is officially closed.

Special Considerations for Renters and/or Homeowners not living in Mabel Bridge:

If your home is currently occupied by a tenant, the tenant may pick up the key card on your behalf if you do the following:

  • Contact the HOA Manager Debra Davis at ddavis@lelandmanagement.com with explicit written permission to distribute your key card to the tenant (prior to the distribution dates).
  • Provide a copy of the current lease.
  • Inform the tenant they must complete and bring the attached Pool Rules and a valid, government-issued ID during one of the two offered times for key card pickup.

Questions?  If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the HOA Manager Debra Davis at ddavis@lelandmanagement.com or 407-781-5787.

Taborfield Park Meeting Recap – 9/13/2018

On September 13, 2018, Orange County Parks and Recreation held a public input meeting for the park coming to Taborfield Ave, adjacent to the new elementary school and also to Mabel Bridge HOA amenities. Approximately 25 people were in attendance including residents from Mabel Bridge and Thornhill. Here’s a review of what was covered at the meeting:

General Info – Neighborhood Park

Orange County Parks and Rec have recently built 4 parks in Horizon West. There are 11 more to go to fulfill the master plan for the area. 

The Taborfield Park is 6.5 acres, which classifies it as a “Neighborhood Park.” $200,000 is dedicated for its design and engineering and $1M is dedicated for construction, Neighborhood Parks have:

  • No parking
  • No lights
  • No bathrooms

And neighboring schools typically will allow parking during non-school hours

Officials provided some examples of possible amenities for a Neighborhood Park including:
-Dog park
-Community garden
-Playground
-Gazebo
-Shade trees benches walking path
-Flexible with movable furniture
-Open field
-Skateboarding
-Bike racks
-Exercise stations

They also provided examples of amenities that are not considered in Neighborhood Parks:
-Athletic fields and courts (basketball, tennis)
-Gyms
-Pools and splash pads

The park will not have a fence surrounding it, but there will be a fence around the school property and bus access road, which will directly abut Mable Bridge property.

Public Input
A survey was made available to ask residents what amenities they are interested in for this particular park. They received 177 responses, which was a higher than usual response rate. The survey will be open until 9/27, but there was discussion about reissuing the survey with a requirement for respondents to provide physical home addresses. (UPDATE: It seems they updated the existing survey rather than reissuing it. The survey now asks for your address)

Public input requested the following during the meeting:
-Parking (off street)
-Dog park
-Basketball
-Tennis
-Pickelball
-Fitness/Exercise stations with shade
-Playground for ages 5-12 (this is also planned for Phase II at Lakeside Village Park)
-Shade trees (keep existing)
-Community garden
-ADA compliant swing
-Grill at pavilion
-Bike racks
-Drinking Fountain

Timing 

This was first of series of meetings planned for the park. The next meeting is scheduled for November 15th. Please mark your calendar. At the November meeting, a draft of the master plan will be presented and landscape architects will be on hand as well. If a third meeting is deemed necessary, it will be in January.

Construction is expected to begin in Oct 2019 and last approximately one year. They intend to open the park at the end of 2020.

Contacts – More Info

Remember to complete the survey if you haven’t already: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TaborfieldPark 

This message is provided by the HOA to help keep you informed. We are not involved in the development of the park or any decision making surrounding it. If you have questions or comments, please contact the Parks Dept directly: Email parks@ocfl.net.

New Public Park Adjacent to Mabel Bridge – Meeting Sept 13

The first public meeting about the new county park that will be adjacent to our neighborhood is coming Sept 13!

It’s important residents attend the meeting so we can stay up-to-date on the plans for this park and provide our input. 

The details are posted on Betsey VanderLey’s Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/events/483832005364274/

Here are the details provided: Join Orange County District 1 Commissioner Betsy VanderLey for the first public meeting to discuss the Taborfield Park property and amenities on Thursday, September 13th, 6 – 7 p.m. at Tibet-Butler Preserve, 8777 WInter Garden – Vineland Rd./CR 535, Orlando.

An additional way to provide input is completing the survey at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/taborfieldpark 

Questions or to RSVP, email parks@ocfl.net.

HOA Meeting Changes

The July Board of Directors meeting has been cancelled due to scheduling conflicts and difficulty finding a location.

The next Board meeting will be the BUDGET meeting, which is now scheduled for September 4 at First Baptist Church Windermere, Lakeside campus Building #2 (8464 Winter Garden Vineland Rd Orlando, FL 32836).

Meetings are always posted on https://www.mabelbridgehoa.com/meetings/