Hello Neighbors,

On account of the miserable weather forecast for this evening, our pool party has been postponed until tomorrow.  Given that tomorrow is the day before school starts for many, we shifted the party time to earlier in the day.  The party will be from 12 pm until 4 pm.

WHAT:  Washingtonian Woods End of Summer Pool & Raft Party
WHEN:  Sunday, August 24th, 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm
WHERE: Pool
Bring your own rafts.
Music.
Pizza, Sodas and Carmen’s Italian Ice provided.
Glass containers are prohibited on the pool deck.

Please help us spread the word of this change, and we hope to see you all there!

Thank you,
Glenn Watts
Board of Directors, Washingtonian Woods HOA

Hello Neighbors,

As mentioned previously, on Monday 8/4/14, Washingtonian Woods resident Lisa Cline hosted a walking meeting at her home with Rick Kiegel, the project manager for the CCT.  The purpose of the meeting was to discuss how the CCT project will impact the homes along the south side of Great Seneca Highway, as well as our neighborhood as a whole.

Roughly 35 people attended the meeting, and the group walked the area between several houses in the Village and Great Seneca Highway.  Lisa’s recap of that meeting can be found here for your review.

Additionally, for those of you that have not yet already seen the recap of that meeting in the Town Courier, you can find it here.

We hope to have another meeting with Rick Kiegel for the entire community hosted at the Clubhouse sometime later on this September.  We will keep everyone posted as to when that meeting gets scheduled.

Additionally, Washingtonian Woods resident Jason Klemow has created an online survey in an attempt to get written documentation of how the residents of Washingtonian Woods feel about the CCT alignments and their potential impact on our neighborhood.  He plans to present the results of this survey at the next Board meeting on Tuesday, 8/26/14.  For those interested in taking the quick survey and getting your voice on record, please do so prior to Sunday 8/24/14.  The link to the survey may be found here.

For those interested in learning more about the Corridor Cities Transitway (CCT) as a whole, the web site for the project can be found here.

Thank you,
Glenn Watts
Board of Directors, Washingtonian Woods HOA

Hello Neighbors,

The Board of Directors is currently working on procuring new and updated neighborhood entrance signs.  The plan would be to replace all 5 existing neighborhood monuments (four along Muddy Branch Road, and one on Darnestown Road) over a 3 year period.  Spreading out the installation over multiple years, would allow us to maximize any potential benefits we may receive from the City of Gaithersburg’s Frederick J. Felton Neighborhood Matching Grant Program.

As some of you may have already noticed, a temporary mockup design of our new entrance sign can be seen at the Midsummer Drive entrance to the neighborhood (across from Mission Hills.)  If you haven’t already, please take a moment to drive by and see it.  A picture of it can be found below:

The Board plans to vote on the final design at the Board meeting on Tuesday 8/26/14.  All residents are welcome to attend.

Thank you,
Glenn Watts
Board of Directors, Washingtonian Woods HOA

Hello Neighbors,

Please join us for our annual neighborhood End of Summer Pool Party!

This year’s party will be held on Saturday, August 23rd just before MCPS students return to school.  We’ll have DJ music, and we will be providing pizza, soft drinks and Carmen’s Italian Ice.

New this year:  we’re letting everyone bring their own rafts!  We’ll also be keeping the pool open late again — until 10pm.  So, come on out and enjoy the fun with your family and neighbors.

WHAT:  Washingtonian Woods End of Summer Pool & Raft Party
WHEN:  Saturday, August 23rd, 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
WHERE: Pool
Bring your own rafts.
Glass containers are prohibited on the pool deck.
The pool will remain open until 10:00 pm.

Please help us spread the word, and we hope to see you all there!

Thank you,
Glenn Watts
Board of Directors, Washingtonian Woods HOA

Hello Neighbors,

We know that many of you have already coordinated directly with Lisa Cline regarding the CCT Great Seneca Alignment meeting; however, we want to make sure that everyone is aware that the meeting has been scheduled for tomorrow, should you wish to attend:

Monday, August 4th
9:30AM – 10:30AM
The Home of Lisa Cline
420 Upshire Circle

This is an opportunity to join fellow neighbors for an informational session with project manager Rick Kiegel regarding how the CCT project will impact the homes along the south side of Great Seneca Highway, and our neighborhood as a whole.

Questions: [email protected]

Thank you,
Glenn Watts
Board of Directors, Washingtonian Woods HOA

Hello Neighbors,

The Washingtonian Woods HOA Board of Directors has recently formed a new Architectural Subcommittee to further define how to maintain and change our homes in accordance with the HOA bylaws.  This is great news in that the application and approval process will be more streamlined and the original intent and architectural “harmony” of the neighborhood will be more closely adhered to.

Guidelines for changes to things like garage doors, landscaping, roofing, driveways, and more are being worked on right now.

In the meantime, please revisit the Bylaws and Covenants you received when you bought your home.

Q: Will I be asked to replace the windows I just put in last year, if they are in violation of the new standards?

A: No. This is a “moving forward” document and an addendum to the HOA bylaws.

Q: What if I have a change pending now? Will the writing of this new document hold me up?

A: No. Our property management company (PMP) and the HOA Board of Directors are proceeding as usual. The HOA responds to requests within 60 days of receipt of application; usually sooner.  Please understand, however, if your project falls under a category that is “under discussion.”  This may cause a slight delay.  (We will be in touch, if that’s the case.)

Q: Can’t I just paint my door the same color as my neighbor’s door to save time?

A: No. And here’s why: over the last twenty-some years, many homeowners made unapproved changes.  They incurred violations and it cost them money.  Starting this year, we are getting back to the original intent and look of the neighborhood — but a 2014 version of this neighborhood.

We promise that this is a great, invigorating step toward maintaining the appearance and value of one of Gaithersburg’s most classic family neighborhoods.

Look for details in your mailbox and on our website, www.washwoods.org, later this year.

Thank you,
Michelle Culp
Board of Directors, Washingtonian Woods HOA
Chair, Architectural Subcommittee

Hello Neighbors,

MTA project manager Rick Kiegel recently requested a meeting with members of our community to discuss the current CCT (Corridor Cities Transitway) alignment along Great Seneca Highway and how it will affect Washingtonian Woods.  Specifically, he requested an in-person meeting with us to explain and walk the area behind some of the houses on Upshire Circle.

Fellow neighbor, Lisa Cline, will be organizing the date and time of the meeting with Mr. Kiegel.  Interested residents should contact Lisa directly at:  [email protected] or 301-978-9789.  Please include best way to reach you (phone, email, doorbell) and when you are available between 9AM and 5PM, M-F over the next few weeks.  She will be in touch with a time that enables everyone to attend who is interested in this important matter.

The two pictures below illustrate just how close the current Great Seneca alignment may approach our neighborhood:

In the first picture below, everything to the right of the screen already exists as Great Seneca Highway.  Everything to the left — two bus lanes buffered by two grassy medians — will be new.

Mr. Kiegel will be discussing how the MTA plans to fit the land labeled “SWM” (storm water management) and “Proposed Transitway” into the small strip of land behind the houses on Upshire Circle, the tennis courts, and the nature trails of Washingtonian Woods Park.

This is an opportunity for members of our community to engage directly with the State and potentially influence the use of these lands that border our neighborhood.

For those interested in learning more about the Corridor Cities Transitway (CCT) as a whole, the web site for the project can be found here.

Thank you,
Glenn Watts
Board of Directors, Washingtonian Woods HOA

Hello Neighbors,

As mentioned previously, last Monday, 6/30/14, the Mayor & Gaithersburg City Council held a public tour and discussion at the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) site that backs up to our community.  The purpose of this meeting was to begin discussing how the property could be used as a recreational area.

For those of you that have not yet already seen the excellent recap of that meeting in the Gaithersburg Gazette, you can find it here.

Additionally, several of our neighbors including myself attended the meeting.  Neighbor Liz Rubenstein’s thorough meeting notes can also be found here, for your review.

The next step in the process will be the establishment of an Ad Hoc Committee to determine how best to design and develop this property moving forward.  Once the City Council has established the Committee and its formal Charge, the City will advertise the opportunity for volunteers to express interest in joining the Committee.  In the meantime, however, if any neighbors would like to proactively express interest in serving on the Committee, please feel free to reach out to Assistant City Manager, Dennis Enslinger ([email protected]) and he will let you know when the official request for volunteers goes out to the public.

This is a great opportunity for members of our community to engage with the City and directly influence the use of this land that borders our neighborhood.

Thank you,
Glenn Watts
Board of Directors, Washingtonian Woods HOA

Hello Neighbors,

Tonight at 7:30pm the Mayor & City Council will hold a public tour and discussion at the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) site that backs up to our community.  

As mentioned previously, The Gaithersburg Capital budget allocates $1.4 million over the course of the next couple years to develop a city park on this 10-acre Consumer Product Safety Commission site. The City Council is just at the beginning of that process and will be soliciting lots of community input over the coming months before any plans for the site are finalized.

Anyone who would like to attend can simply just show up at 7:30pm. Just drive up the CPSC entrance road off of Darnestown. The gate should be open.

Some background:
http://gaithersburg.patch.com/groups/politics-and-elections/p/gaithersburg-acquires-former-consumer-product-safety-commission-testing-lab

Thanks,
Glenn Watts
Board of Directors, Washingtonian Woods HOA

Hello Neighbors,

Given tonight’s forecast of an 80% chance of severe thunderstorms, and tomorrow night’s forecast of a 100% chance of spectacular, we have decided to move our End of School Party to tomorrow night.

We will move the start time one hour earlier, so the party will run from 5 PM until 10 PM.

Here are the new updated details:
WHAT: Washingtonian Woods End of School Pool Party
WHERE: Pool
WHEN: Saturday, June 14th, 5:00pm – 10:00pm
Pizza and soft drinks will be provided. 
Glass containers are prohibited on the pool deck.

Please help us spread the word.