THE BROOKSIDE BUGLE January/February 2014

Brookside Village Homes Association PO BOX 87326, Canton, MI 48187-1536

(734) 448-1312 E-mail us at: brooksidesubdivision@yahoo.com

NEW WAYS TO BE THE FUTURE OF BROOKSIDE VILLAGE! You don’t have to join the Brookside Village Homes Association board to help your neighborhood! The following is a list of ways you can help. Just contact the board by sending an e-mail to brooksidesubdivision@yahoo.com or call (734) 448-1312 to volunteer and get more details on what’s involved or to offer your own ideas. Please leave your name, number, and the best time to be contacted. • Upkeep/decorating of subdivision signs • Event sign setup and removal • Playground inspections/reports • Event planning assistance

HELP WANTED Although you don’t have to join the Brookside Village Homes Association board to help your neighborhood, the board is in need of a new Secretary. Duties include attending each monthly meeting, taking minutes, and distributing minutes to the board. If you are interested, please contact the board by sending an e-mail to brooksidesubdivision@yahoo.com or call (734) 448-1312. Leave your name, phone number, and the best time to be contacted. Thank you so much to Maria Drake for your exceptional service!!! You will be missed.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OUR HOME OWNERS IN BROOKSIDE VILLAGE!

Our wish for every home owner, family, and renter in Brookside Village is for a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2014.

-Brookside Village Homes Association Board of Directors

2014 BROOKSIDE VILLAGE HOMES ASSOCIATION BOARD MEETING SCHEDULE The first four meetings of the year are at the Canton Township Building, 1150 S. Canton Center Road, Lower Level, Room C. Meetings start at 6:30 p.m.

• Wednesday, January 8

• Wednesday, February 12

• Wednesday, March 12

• Wednesday, April 9 — Annual Home Owners Meeting

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

2014 ANNUAL MEETING This year’s Annual Brookside Village Home Owners meeting will be held Wednesday, April 9, 2014, in the Township Building, 1150 S. Canton Center Road, in Canton. Assembly will take place at 6:30 p.m. in Conference Room C.

The home owners meeting is an ideal time to meet current board members, ask questions about becoming a board member or volunteering to help; voice your opinion on such matters as dues, ordinances, or restrictions regarding your property; offer sugges-tions; or ask any questions you may have regarding YOUR home—the Brookside Village Subdivison.

Hopefully the warm spring weather will be favorable for attendance. Home owners are strongly urged to attend. Please join us—we’d love to meet you!

PLEASE TURN ON OUTSIDE LIGHTS Thank you to everyone who takes the time to turn on your outside lights, not only in the morning for the kids walking to their bus stops, but also in the evening. This is definitely a safety issue in our subdivision, since our community does not have street lights. Help keep our neighbor-hood safe! What could be easier than flipping on a light switch? For those of you whose property borders one of our parks, turning on a backyard light can only help to deter undesirable activities. Keep your lights on from dusk until dawn, and since the Brookside Villages Homes Association is not a law-enforcement agency, please report any suspicious activity to the Canton Police ASAP: (734) 394-5400.

RESIDENTIAL SPEED LIMIT IS 25 MPH: PLEASE SLOW DOWN! Often we notice drivers traveling a bit too fast through our subdivision. We have too many small children in our neighborhood for this to be tolerated. Think of them! Is it really that important to speed? The speed limit in our neighborhood is 25 miles per hour, and that is really fast enough. If you witness an offender, get the license plate number and vehicle description and call Canton Police: (734) 394-5400.

WELCOME NEW RESIDENTS

The Brookside Village Homes Association (BVHA) Board of Directors would like to extend a warm welcome to all new residents. As your Association, we provide services and activities for Brookside Village residents. Please feel free to call the Association at (734) 448-1312 with any questions you may have. Leave your name and phone number and the best time for you to be contacted.

PCCS WINTER SCHEDULE January 6: Classes resume January 20: No school for K-12 students January 21, 22, 23: ½ days, Grades 9-12 January 24: No school for K-12 students February 17-21: No school for K-12 students

2014 ASSOCIATION DUES 2014 Homes Association Dues will total $53.00 for the year—same as last year. As The Bugle is going to press, Brookside Village 2014 invoices are being printed and will all be mailed by late January 2014, if not sooner.

Please pay your dues when you receive your invoice. If 2014 invoices are not paid by March 31, 2014, a late fee of $3.25 will be assessed, and all future collection efforts will be charged to the home owner.

If you did not pay your 2013 dues, or there was a cumulative unpaid balance prior to 2013, your property will have been accessed a 6% interest fee on your unpaid balance as of December 31, 2013. This amount will be reflected on your 2014 invoice.

BE A GOOD NEIGHBOR How can YOU be a good neighbor? Just think about how you’d like your own neighbors to behave! • Follow Canton’s rules for leaf and snow removal. • After you’ve shoveled the snow off of your own

sidewalks, maybe you could help out an elderly neighbor by shoveling their snow too.

• Keep your outdoor noise to a respectful level—especially during holidays such as the Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve.

• Encourage your guests to park on the correct side of the street when visiting.

• Pick up after your dogs. • Greet your neighbors with a smile or a wave and a

friendly hello!

SNOW REMOVAL IN

As the weather grows colder, please take the time to review Canton’s guidelines on clearing snow from your property. Unshoveled snow can become danger-ous patches of ice. Canton has Ordinances to prevent snow-related accidents from occurring:

Canton Charter Township, (Wayne Co.), Michigan, Code of Ordinances PART I - GENERAL ORDINANCES Chapter 62 - STREETS, SIDEWALKS AND OTHER PUBLIC PLACES Sec. 62-37. - Ice and snow removal. No person shall permit ice or an accumulation of snow to remain on any sidewalk adjacent to a lot or parcel occupied by him, or on a sidewalk adjacent to any unoccupied lot or parcel owned by him, for a longer period than 72 hours after the ice or snow has formed or fallen. (Ord. No. 145, as amended, § 7, 7-24-2001)

As is the case every winter, any homeowner in viola-tion of this ordinance will be responsible for anyone falling or getting hurt while attempting to walk on their sidewalks. If you have a concern over this compli-ance issue, YOU can call these phone numbers—for ordinance complaints: (734) 394-5400; for ordinance questions: (734) 394-5335; or the Clerk's Dept: (734) 394-5125, for General Ordinance questions. Let’s all work together this coming winter to keep our neighborhood safe!

PARKING ON THE STREET In our subdivision, when you park on the street close to an intersection, there should be at least a ten foot clearance between the sidewalk at the corner and the end of your parked car. Thanks for noting!

SNOW ETIQUETTE FOR BROOKSIDE VILLAGE • In a snow emergency, MOVE ALL VEHICLES

OFF THE STREET AS SOON AS POSSIBLE to allow for snow plowing during snow falls of 2 inches or more.

• Use brightly colored stakes to mark edges of property in the case of sprinkler systems, etc., to alert snowplow drivers of areas to avoid.

• Please also mark fire hydrants with brightly colored stakes.

• DO NOT PUSH SNOW FROM DRIVEWAYS AND SIDEWALKS INTO THE STREET.

• Please help your elderly and/or disabled neighbors by clearing the snow in front of their mailboxes.

• Under township ordinance, home-owners must remove the snow and/or ice from their side-walks within 72 hours (see “Snow Removal in Canton,” left).

The Brookside Village Homes Association will alert our contracted snow plow company to salt icy entrances and school bus stop intersections. If you notice a hazardous icy street condition in the subdivision please report it to (734) 448-1312. Please be patient and limit your calls to one per day at the most. Remember, your board members are volunteers, and will do their very best to monitor calls as they come in and remedy the situation as soon as possible.

REMINDERS

WINTER POND SAFETY The pond located south of Finley near Lotz is a reten-tion pond designed to hold runoff from the streets. The water in the pond may contain oil, antifreeze, road salt, and so on. The pond continuously drains into Fellows Creek. Because of these factors, the pond never completely freezes, and should be considered UNSAFE for any type of activity, including ice skating or sledding. Parents—please make sure your children are aware of this!

CHRISTMAS TREES This is a friendly reminder to not dump Christmas trees in the common areas and easements of our subdivision. Natural trees will be picked up on your trash day during the FIRST TWO WEEKS IN JANUARY. Please remove all stands and ornaments. Thank you!

* * * * COUPON * * * * FREE Home Warranty at closing

with Bob—a $415 value!

2014 ADVERTISING RATES FOR THE BROOKSIDE BUGLE Advertisement Price per issue

5 lines for residents Example: Teenage babysitting; something for sale

—

$5.00

5 lines for business — $10.00

Business card size 3.5 x 2 in. $15.00

Quarter page vertical or horizontal

3.5 x 5 in. 7.5 x 2.5 in. $40.00

Half page horizontal 4.5 x 7.5 in. $70.00

DEADLINES FOR ADVERTISING IN THE BROOKSIDE BUGLE

Issue Request ad by Ad materials and payment due

January/February December 18 December 25

March/April February 18 February 25

May/June April 18 April 25

July/August June 18 June 25

September/October August 18 August 25

November/December October 18 October 25

ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES Support The Brookside Bugle by placing ads in this publication. It is an inexpensive conduit for marketing your enterprises within this community. We can work with you to create just what you need! Refer to the sizes, prices, and schedule below. Send an e-mail to brooksidesubdivision@yahoo.com. Please allow 7 days for a response.

THE BROOKSIDE BUGLE YOUR NEWS What are we missing? Please tell us what you would like to see included in this communication.

E-mail us at brooksidesubdivision@yahoo.com or call (734) 448-1312.

ATTENTION REALTORS AND TITLE COMPANIES When you require information on Brookside Village subdivision from the Homes Association, such as dues, information on a specific property, or a status letter, please call (734) 448-1312 and leave your name, phone number, and best time to be contacted, or e-mail the request to brooksideaccounting@yahoo.com. Also, our entire set of Bylaws, Covenants, and Restrictions are posted on the subdivision’s website.