PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

By Fred Williams

It's spring in Texas, and you surely know that when you drive through our lovely community of Northwood Hills. The neighborhoods look great -- beautiful trees and flowers in bloom everywhere.

Our annual membership meeting was held on January 31, 2000 at NH Elementary. Four directors were elected to two-year terms: Barbara Dunn, Cris Murrey, Ross Sanders, and myself. The Board appointed me President and Gene Hoffmann Treasurer, filling the positions left vacant by Larry Baker and Glyn Jordan. Both of these gentlemen did a wonderful job for NHHA and we presented them with plaques in grateful recognition of their efforts.

Guest speakers were Dallas City Council members Lois Finkelman, District 11, and Sandy Greyson, District 12. New Deputy Chief of Police Troy McClain also said a few words. Our treasurer presented our 2000 Budget which was approved after brief discussion by the members.

Your Board has met several times and set some objectives for the year:

1. Membership needs to increase. We now have 529 members which is nearly half of our 1,125 homes. We need to reach at least 600. Cris Murrey has agreed to head a membership drive, but we need your help recruiting new members. An application is printed in this issue.
2. Special activities will continue. We want to improve based on what we learned last year. See Ross Sanders' article inside.
3. We hope to expand neighborhood patrol. We can add patrol hours if we get enough new members.
4. We must cope with changing traffic patterns. Work on the new 635/75 interchange, scheduled to begin in first quarter 2001, will create traffic problems on many of our neighborhood streets. Barbara Dunn is working with various organizations on solutions for this problem.
5. Code enforcement will be strengthened. It has improved, but we can do better. Allen Rudy will lead this.
6. We have budgeted $22,900 for beautification. Val Collins will be planning new projects for this year.

We have a busy -- and hopefully productive -- year ahead of us. When you drive through Northwood Hills this spring, you can see why it's worth the effort.

NEARLY EVERY OTHER NH HOMEOWNER IS A MEMBER OF NHHA

The load is getting a little lighter. We added 28 new members in first quarter 2000, but lost twelve, giving us a net gain of sixteen. Our current 529 members are nearly 50% of eligible homeowners -- but the goal by year-end is to increase our membership by 100. Considering that there are always about 60 homes in the process of being sold, nearly one-half of our potential are now members. Member totals by NHHA area are shown below.

NHHA Membership Map Not Yet Available Online

NHHA needs your help. Talk to your neighbors. Welcome new families when they move in near you. Invite them all to join NHHA, using the form below. If you need more information, call the NHHA HotLine, 972-480-5249, or check our Website at www.northwoodhills.org.

For your information, all members' names, addresses, phone and fax numbers, e-mail addresses and dues information are kept in strict privacy.

Invite your neighbors to join NHHA using this handy membership form.

NAME_____________________________
SPOUSE'S NAME___________________
ADDRESS__________________________
HOME TEL.________________________
E-MAIL____________________________

Dues are $240 a year payable annually, semi-annually ($120), or quarterly ($60). Mail checks to NHHA, P.O. Box 800874 Dallas, TX 75380-0874.

HOW YOU CAN STOP UNWANTED HANDBILLS

By Allen Rudy

Bothered by handbills, ads and solicitations placed at your front door? There is relief. The Dallas City Code prohibits distribution of such materials at private residences if the homeowner places a sign "in a conspicuous position near the entrance" indicating they don't want such items left there.

Once you have placed a sign reading, "No Solicitation" or "No Advertisements" near your door, and you receive unwanted materials, simply call 311 and report it. The City will take action to warn and then issue a citation to the distributor if further violations occur.

NHHA has arranged with Fast Signs at 14760 Preston Rd. to make signs for our members at a discount. The sign is 6"X12" aluminum, dark green with gold lettering, attached to a steel stake, and costs $24.75. But you must take this newsletter with you to get this special price.

LATEST UPDATE ON DEVELOPMENTS AT SPRING VALLEY & COIT

By Larry Baker

NHHA has been monitoring two projects involving the key intersection of Spring Valley and Coit Road. One is the projected upgrading and expansion of the shopping center where the old Holly Tree apartments once stood, including a new Albertsons Foods supermarket. The other is the Spring Valley/Coit Rd. Urban Design Study by the City of Dallas Planning Department.

With regard to Albertsons, we had hoped to be able to publish a construction timetable for this newsletter. However, the parties are still negotiating and a final okay will have to wait. We understand that the negotiations involve how to structure the total package of the new construction and the existing shopping center. As soon as we hear of any final agreement, we will publish the information on our Web Site, so keep checking www.northwoodhills.org.

The Urban Design Study of Spring Valley/Coit is being done to insure that homeowners and businesses in the vicinity are prepared for the impact of the interchange construction at LBJ and Central and the widening of LBJ. The City Planning Department has been meeting with local business and neighborhood leaders since February, 1999, and preliminary plans are now being formulated. Reports of these plans will be forthcoming soon and we'll report them in this newsletter and on our Web site.

For related information, see the adjacent column by Fred Williams.

PREPARE TO SLOW DOWN FOR "ROAD WORK AHEAD."

By Fred Williams

Road construction season, bringing orange cones and lane closures, begins for us in June and seems to continue forever. This year, the cities of Dallas and Richardson will be resurfacing Coit Road from Spring Valley north to the Dallas city limits. The work is scheduled to be done in sections:

    Spring Valley to Lamp Post
    Lamp Post to Belt Line Rd.
    Belt Line to Roundrock
    Roundrock to Arapaho
    Arapaho to Melrose
    Melrose to Campbell
    Campbell to northern city limit

The contractor will close one lane at a time in each direction within the segment being repaired. An additional lane may be closed during non-peak hours of 9AM to 3:30PM.

That's the easy one to deal with. The biggest headache ahead is construction of the new interchange at LBJ and Central, scheduled to begin in early 2001 and take seven years to complete.

A major concern is increased auto traffic in surrounding neighborhoods as frustrated drivers look for ways to avoid traffic jams. The City of Dallas Traffic and Transportation Dept. will be seeking ways to mitigate these problems, working with a steering committee of homeowners associations, RISD representatives, and local business owners.

Watch for future reports on all this from Barbara Dunn, our NHHA member on the steering committee. And as the British say, "Keep a stiff upper lip."

PLAN NOW TO BRING FAMILY AND FRIENDS TO THESE SPECIAL EVENTS

By Ross Sanders

Last year saw increased participation and enthusiasm for the expanded NHHA social calendar. For 2000, activities have been identified, committees formed, and plans are underway for another big year. All of this activity is aimed at family participation as well as bringing our Northwood Hills neighbors together. So please note the following events and dates:

Spring Clean-up, May 20-21. Get that junk out of the garage and bring it to the Fretz Park parking lot, Meandering Way entrance, where NHHA will have a giant roll-off container waiting to receive your throw-aways. No hazardous waste, please, such as oil, paint, etc. We hope to have another clean-up event for these items in the fall.

Annual July 4 Parade, Family Fun & Games. Decorate your car, truck, bike or trike, your kids, pets, yourself, and meet at Northwood Elementary at 9:30 AM. The parade starts at 10 sharp, followed by refreshments, snacks, games, prizes, and entertainment. This will be the best ever!

Fall Festival of Fun, Sept. 23. At Fretz Park, the festivities get going at 5pm with special entertainment for the children. Bring a picnic dinner and enjoy the terrific Town North Concert Band from 6 to 7pm.

Second Annual NHHA Golf Tournament, Sept. 25. Once again at Ridgeview Ranch, a shotgun start beginning 8:30AM, best two balls of foursome. $70 per player

includes green fee, cart, range balls, lunch, team and individual prizes. Sign up below!

NHHA GOLF TOURNAMENT
8AM Monday, Sept. 25
Ridgeview Ranch Golf Club
$70 Per Player
Price includes green fee, range balls,
buffet lunch, team and individual prizes.
Guests of NHHA members welcome.

Name_______________________________

Address_____________________________

Home Phone_________________________

E-mail______________________________

My handicap______or avg. score_______

I'll form my own foursome ____________

Please place me in a foursome__________

Send this information to:
Larry Baker, 7642 Dentcrest Dr.
Dallas, TX 75240

ADOPT YOUR BLOCK AND BE A LITTER GITTER

Thoughtless persons are trashing our neighborhood. Talk to your children, friends and neighbors about how litter damages our environment and quality of life. Then do something about it -- pick it up wherever you see it. It only takes seconds to stop and toss litter into a litter bag or the trunk of your car.

NORTHWOOD HILLS HAS EXCELLENT 1st QUARTER IN HOME SALES

By Cris Murrey

What a great first quarter for real estate in Northwood Hills! At press time, seventeen homes have been reported sold, according to the Greater Dallas Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service. The average sales price was $348,465, average price per square foot was $93.35, and aver-age number of days on the market was 78.

Currently there are 22 homes listed for sale. Six of those currently have option contracts. The prices range from a high of $849,900 to a low of $179,900. Five other homes have contracts pending.

When new neighbors move in near you, please advise NHHA via our Website: www.northwoodhills.org. Thanks!

AN OPEN INVITATION TO VISIT NORTHWOOD HILLS ELEMENTARY

By Everett Williams, Principal

Northwood Hills Elementary School is the neighborhood school for most of you in NHHA. Many now have or have had children here, and many of you have voted here. But if you haven't visited our facility recently, please know that you are always welcome to stop by for a tour. I especially like to show visitors around when children are here and in their classes.

First-time visitors frequently remark on how well maintained our thirty-five year old facility is. Other comments I get often include how well behaved our students are and what interesting things they are work-ing on. We have a state of the art multi-media computer lab. Additionally, there are now at least three (soon to be five) computers in every classroom. Our math/ science enrichment lab (the NEST) is a "must see." Our average class size is 19 students. First through sixth graders are learning Spanish along with the standard elementary subjects.

We have caring, well-trained teachers who work hard to challenge all of their diverse student population. And our wonderful PTA parents are continuously involved in finding ways to make NHE a better place.

You can probably tell that I am excited about Northwood Hills Elementary School, and proud to have been principal here for the past sixteen years.

Along with our faculty and staff, I look forward to meeting each and every one of you. Come see us!

Comments? Please drop us an email.
Material Copyright © 2000 Northwood Hills Homeowners Association, Inc.