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| September 2005 | Recent Issue |
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MARK YOUR CALENDAR The Annual Meeting of the Stratford Landing Citizens Association, including election of officers, will be held on Thursday, October 27, 2004, at 7:30 pm at Stratford Landing Elementary School. If you would like to run, or nominate someone to run, for one of the Association's elective offices, please notify the Secretary no later than September 20 of what office you want to run for and provide a brief bio so that we may print and distribute ballots and proxies with the next Newsletter. The Annual Meeting will be followed at 9:00 pm by our 38th Annual Candidate's Night. On the ballot this year will be all State-wide offices (Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General), as well as our member of the House of Delegates for the 44th District. We have invited all of the candidates to appear. So far we have received acceptances from Delegate Kris Amundson and one of her opponents, Gail Parker. Please come out, enjoy the evening, and make it worth the candidate's while to respond to our invitations. Last year we had a much higher rate of participation by our candidates than we did by our members. That was embarrassing! MEMBERSHIP DRIVE Our membership drive will begin with the delivery of this Newsletter, and, as usual, we hope that we can complete it by the end of September. Would you please make it easy on your Block Captain, and deliver your $10 dues to him or her? If you don't know who they are, they are listed in your community Directory. If yours has changed, and some have, please call Mary Lou Hoffman to find out who your block captain is. Block captains, could you please verify the information on the membership lists attached, deleting anything that is incorrect, adding anything we left out, noting who has paid their dues, and return the marked up lists (one copy is for your records) and the dues to Mary Lou Hoffman by September 30, if at all possible, or as soon thereafter as you can? Receipts for members who pay their dues are attached. Eligibility to vote at our Annual Meeting is limited to those households who are members in good standing -- i.e. those who have paid their dues -- so please help us to help you by paying your dues promptly, and keep your receipts to certify your household's membership. We are also providing the block captains with two copies of the new Stratford Landing Directory for each household. They are to be distributed ONLY to those households who pay their dues and become members in good standing. If you want the Directory, please pay your dues! If you need new "SL" bumper stickers, please see your block captain. Please display them on your cars, and ask your block captain for as many as you need. Block Captains, if you need more of them, please call either Mary Lou Hoffman or Rick Edgerton. The preferred place to display them is the left rear bumper. SCHELHORN ROAD The Supervisor Hyland's task force to study the issue of so-called "cut-through traffic" is still in existence. Although closing Fordson Road, Schelhorn Road, and Frances Drive to outside traffic is no longer on the table, the VDOT is now developing a plan for the placement of speed humps, speed tables and chokers to cut down speeding. They expect to present that plan to the Task Force some time in September. If the Task Force approves their plan, or some parts of it, it will be presented to the Hybla Valley Farms and Gum Springs communities for their approval. It is my understanding that if they approve it, it will still have to be approved by the Board of Supervisors, after a public hearing. If you haven't already written to Mr. Hyland to express your views, that wouldn't be a bad idea. We expect to have more to report on this matter in the next Newsletter. THE PETITION DRIVE Petitions have been circulated within the neighborhood calling for a special meeting for the SLCA to adopt a resolution which would urge the County to "establish a path (with no lighting, dock, boat launch, parking or picnic facilities) to allow us to access Little Hunting Creek from the pumping station property for the purpose of canoeing, kayaking and enjoyment of the creek". As most of you are well aware, last year we conducted a referendum on the question of whether "part of the site of the current Sewage Pumping Station at the foot of Londonderry Road be opened to the public for passive recreation use, including picnicing, fishing and boating. No off street parking would be provided. The park area would be closed after dark." That proposal was rejected by a vote of 104 opposed to 39 in favor. In my view, the two proposals call for substantially the same thing, and have, therefore, already been decisively rejected by the community. To call a special meeting would require those who rejected this proposal already to turn out and defend their position again for no substantial reason. The two proposals are substantially the same, and there has been no change in the County's plans for the property: the Pumping Station and its supporting facilities will continue to be in use for the indefinite future. Further, the petitions included a significant number of signatures that were illegible, multiple signatures from the same household (our members are households, therefore only one signature per household is acceptable), signatures from households who are not members in good standing of the Association, and signatures from minor children. It is not possible to tell without a major effort to verify signatures whether or not there are enough valid signatures to meet the requirements specified in the bylaws: 10% of the members in good standing. I have been accused of
being in dereliction of my duties to call a special meeting by the
sponsors of these petitions. If I had decided to call one, I would
be in dereliction of my duties to support a majority vote of the
members of this Association who have already voted on the issue.
Actually, authority to call a special meeting is delegated to the
Executive Committee, not the President, and the Executive Committee
has not had this issue presented to it, since it is in recess until
September 13. I strongly support your right to make your wishes
known to the leadership of your Citizens Association. I introduced
the procedures for taking referenda that are now written into our
bylaws. I have taken at least one referendum or poll on a significant
issue every year that I have been President, and I have felt that
the results were binding on me and the Association. I want to know
what positions you want me to take on the issues, not to tell you
what position I am going to take. Not all of the members of your
Executive Committee feel that way, but I do. These petitions do
not convince me of anything I did not already know: that a significant
number of you would like very much to have public access to the
creek. But that is not what it is about. What it is about is the
core of democracy: the majority rules. The next Neighborhood
Watch meeting will be held on Thursday, September 15, at 7:30 pm
at the Mount Vernon Government Center. The Stratford Landing Citizens Association has again selected AP Lawn and Landscaping of Alexandria to maintain the landscaping around the "Stratford Landing" signs at the three entrances to our community. They are generously discounting their services. Please call Armando Pisfil at 703-360-3939 to find out what AP can do to beautify your property. OTHER ORGANIZATION'S NEWS STRATFORD WOMAN'S CLUB The Stratford Woman's
Club will hold its first meeting of the season on Thursday, September
8 at Heritage Presbyterian Church. A social period will begin at
9:30 am, with the business meeting starting at 10 am. The meeting
will be followed by a salad/ dessert luncheon. We would love to
have you join us. Please call Jane Morningstar at 703-519-0833 or
Mary Lou Hoffman at 703-360-7267 for more information. (Mary Lou
Hoffman)
The Mount Vernon Genealogical Society meets the third Tuesday of each month at 1pm at the Hollin Hall Senior Center, 1500 Shenandoah Road, Room 112. The September meeting will be held on September 20th. The meetings are free and open to the public. This is a great way to learn about tracing your roots and finding out about the rest of your family tree. TEACH
AND TOUCH A LIFE FOREVER Registration continues for the upcoming school year beginning this September. Our weekday morning program is open to ages 2 through Pre-K. We offer two, three, and five day enrollment with extended day, stay and play options. Our learning environment encourages individual growth through early childhood education while sharing Christian values through Bible stories, prayer and chapel. These experiences, led by caring teachers, allow the children to discover and grow in their God-given gifts and abilities. Enrollment is limited, and we encourage families who may be interested to contact us at 703-799-2217 or phbc.preschool @vacoxmail.com. You may also visit our website at www.plymouthhaven.org/preschool. (Beth Barrera) LITTLE
HUNTING CREEK CLEANUP Join your neighbors and Friends of Little Hunting Creek to clean up trash from the creek and pull invasive and exotic plants the morning of October 15th. Invasives will be pulled adjacent to the Sewage Pumping Station (Londonderry and Stockton Parkway). To collect trash from the creek, bring your boat or canoe to 8706 Stockton Parkway. High tide is at 6:30 am, so plan to come early if you're going by boat. Be sure to wear long pants and sleeves, sturdy shoes or boots, and a hat. Bring sunscreen and insect repellant. Be prepared to get muddy. Bring water. Gloves and trash bags will be provided. If you are going to pull invasives, loppers will be helpful. Contact: Paul Siegel, 703-360-0691, email lhcwc@zzapp.org. Do come and join us, and bring the kids. It's fun, believe it or not. (Betsy Martin) WEST POTOMAC HIGH SCHOOL CREW BOOSTERS West Potomac High School Crew has been part of our local community since 1968 (it was Fort Hunt Crew through 1985 -- JRE) providing safe, fun and healthy rowing programs to our community youth. The crew program currently stores our rowing equipment at the Occoquan Rowing Facility which is very expensive and far from the site where our children row. WPHS Crew wishes to use a small portion of Fairfax County's Little Hunting Creek pumping station site to locate a low profile, environmentally sensitive building for storage of rowing shells and equipment. This will be designed to be compatible with the Stratford Landing community with the Stratford Landing community with minimal neighborhood impact. WPHS Crew proposes to use the site for boat storage and occasional maintenance only. We propose very limited
use of the site and always under the supervision of designated,
responsible and accountable adults. We are not requesting any change
to the current policy of keeping the entire site closed and locked
except for limited specified access. This proposal requires no on-street
parking in the Stratford Landing community. Any parking required
will be within the existing secured portion of the site and only
limited traffic will be generated. The pumping station is located
at the intersection of Stockton Parkway and Londonderry Road. Should
you desire more information, or have any questions or concerns,
please contact WPCB President, Anne Stilwell (annestilwell@ earthlink.net)
or your Stratford Landing neighbors Laurie Cushman (lauriecush@aol.com)
or Ellen Meyer (eastellen@aol.com). Additionally, please plan to
attend the October SLCA meeting where we will be available in person
to discuss this proposal and answer questions. (Anne Stilwell) PERSONAL ITEMS I am seeking an experienced nanny/sitter for my two boys, ages 3 and 5 in my home in Stratford Landing for all weekdays in October. Hours will be from 11:30 am - 5:00 pm. Please call 703-799-4065. (SH) HELP WANTED As you see below, our
Executive Committee currently has a vacancy: Planning & Zoning.
The job involves attending one MVCCA meeting, normally the first
Tuesday of the month and one SLCA meeting, usually the first 2-digit
Tuesday of each month, except August in both cases. Please call
Rick Edgerton if you are interested serving your community in this
position. Rick Edgerton (703) 360-2813
Annie McNeff (703) 780-7756 Linda Sweeney (703) 360-8470
Celia Boertlein (703)
360-3735 Mary Lou Hoffman (703)
360-7267 Jay Spiegel (703) 619-0101 Mike Avila (703) 619-0522
Leah Gunter (703) 799-1631 Jack Shawn (703) 780-4752
Alan Rubinstein (703) 360-2141 (vacant) * Indicates elected officers; all other positions are appointed. This newsletter is published bi-monthly (normally February, April, June, September, October, and December) by the Stratford Landing Citizens Association, Inc. for the benefit and information of its member residents. All members may submit items for inclusion in the "Other News" and "Personal Items" sections by submitting them to the President or Secretary in writing by the 20th of the month preceding publication. Other contributions to this publication are welcome, subject to editing. Unless otherwise attributed, the President is responsible for the content of this Newsletter.
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