Annual Meeting Jan. 29 7:00 PM at Northwood Hills Elementary. New directors will be elected, budgets for coming year discussed, and state of the association addressed. Come and bring a new member prospect with you.

New Member Drive gets underway. Read about all the benefits of membership -- then talk to a non-member neighbor. Story on page 3

New Preferred Merchant Discount program can save $ for NHHA members. Story on page 4 explains, insert lists restaurants & retailers.

You will now be fined if you waste water on your lawn & landscape. City imposes new restrict-ions on how and when you can irrigate. Page 4.

Oak Wilt disease a major threat to NH oak trees. Where it comes from and what you can do about it described on page 5.

Northwood Hills real estate facts and figures for last five years. Cris Murrey details rising trends in area home sales. Page 6.

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE By Fred Williams

As I sit down to write this year-end message, it is the holiday season and Northwood Hills never looked better to me. We are all very fortunate to live in an area with such great homes and wonderful neighbors. I hope you had a fine holiday and I wish you all a Happy New Year.

2001 was a good one for your association. We finished the year with about 500 members, which is down slightly from last year. The decrease is due to members moving out and not being replaced by those moving in. For 2002 we have a plan to call on new residents and persuade them to join NHHA. In addition, membership chairman John Larranaga is developing a discount program for members (see story below).

NHHA Patrol coverage was very consistent this year, averaging about 260 hours each month. We're pleased with the low crime rate in Northwood Hills and want to keep it that way in 2002.

Barbara McAlister , our new Board Member in charge of Beautification has done an excellent job. The Meadowcreek median west of Hillcrest was reworked. New Northwood Hills markers were installed on Spring Valley at Hillcrest (see related story below) and on Meandering Way at Belt Line. Plus -- the southeast corner of Belt Line at Hillcrest was cleaned up.

Lynn and Mark Carlton deserve credit for a bigger and better Fourth of July celebration. We had a great Fall Festival at Fretz Park. Our thanks go to Ross Sanders for all his hard work as Special Events Chairman.

Gene Saunders continues to star as our very talented Webmaster. His work makes www.northwoodhills.org the best association Web site in Dallas.

Plan now to attend our Annual Meeting Tuesday January 29, 7 PM at Northwood Hills Elementary School. We'll elect new directors and get 2002 off to a great start!

Beautification takes a hit…

NH ENTRANCE MARKER WIPED OUT DEC. 26 BY WAYWARD DRIVER

'Twas the night after Christmas, as best we can tell, when our new entrance marker was knocked all to heck. The Northwood Hills plaque and planter at Spring Valley and Hillcrest was about 75% demolished.

Judging from tire tracks it appeared that a driver traveling north on Brookridge turned west onto Spring Valley in the east-bound traffic lane. In an attempt to correct his mistake he jumped the curb of the median and plowed into our installation, bringing his vehicle to a halt with its front end half-buried in the planter. He then backed out of the debris and fled.

Apparently, the accident was neither witnessed nor reported, and we might never have known whodunit -- except for one telltale clue: when the vehicle came to rest bumper-down in the planter, its license plate made a perfect impression in the sand.

The police officer ultimately sent to the scene was our own Sgt. Rivera of the NHHA Neighborhood Patrol (when off-duty). He made note of the license plate number in his report. A detective has been assigned to investigate the incident, but there are no further developments at the time of this writing.

Meanwhile, plans for rebuilding the marker are underway.

Please clip and save…

BULK TRASH PICK-UP CONTINUES TO BE A PROBLEM FOR N.HILLS

Warnings and citations for improper bulk trash treatment grew in our neighborhood during 2001. If everyone would just follow the rules, Northwood Hills would be a better place to live.

The rules are easy:

1. Do not place bulk trash at curbside before Thursday prior to pick-up.
2. Bulk trash must be on your property -- not in the street.
3. All bulk trash must be at curbside by 7AM Monday of pick-up week.
4. Pick-up weeks are those beginning with the second Monday of each month:

January 14	July 8
February 11	August 12
March 11	September 9
April 8	October 14
May 13	November 11
June 10	December 9

Good neighbors in a great neighborhood…

TIME TO COUNT OUR BLESSINGS AS WE START THE NEW YEAR

As a resident of Northwood Hills, you benefit from our homeowners association whether you're a member or not. You receive our newsletter four times a year. You get an on-going program of median landscaping and area beautification. And you have access to our first-class Web site at www.northwoodhills.org.

But as a member of NHHA, you will enjoy many additional benefits, such as:

NHHA e-mail alerts notifying you of upcoming events as well as giving you timely reports on safety, security and crime in your specific area.

NHHA Neighborhood Patrol, armed off-duty police officers in highly visible marked police cruisers, on call only to members, patrolling our neighborhood streets and alleys 260 hours per month. In the event of trouble or any suspicious activity, you can call the Patrol using a private cell phone number given only to members of NHHA. In addition, you can have your home watched while you are away, and even have the Patrol officer meet you at your home when you are returning late at night.

NHHA supporting network of neighbors, involved in our community, helping and caring for one another.

All these benefits are yours for only $20 per month paid quarterly, semi-annually, or annually. You can become a member today by simply picking up the telephone -- or if you prefer, by using the written application.

(webmaster's note: or by printing our online form)

To join Northwood Hills Homeowners Association, Inc., just call any of the following NHHA Ambassadors:

Eileen Birnbaum	972-490-4616
7116 Gateridge
Jean Bond	972-490-6472
7520 Maplecrest
Judy Davis	972-661-0304
6726 Dartbrook
Susan Hall	972-233-4646
7125 Briar Cove
Steve Kaspar	972-490-4616
6210 Meadowcreek
Marion Mitchell	972-239-2958
7371 Paldao
Bill Rogge	972-960-2148
7050 Teakwood

Questions about membership or dues? Call Pat Williams 972-392-2252 or e-mail membership@northwoodhills.org. Welcome to NHHA and the community of Northwood Hills!

To use this membership form, please make check payable to Northwood Hills Homeowners Association, Inc., $240 for the full year, $120 for the half, $60 for the quarter.

Name______________________________

Spouse's name_______________________

Address_____________________________

Home telephone______________________

E-mail______________________________

Mail to NHHA, P.O.Box 800874
 Dallas, TX 75380-0874.

Year 2001 Real Estate Review

By Cris Murrey

61 homes in Northwood Hills were reported sold in 2001, according to the Greater Dallas Association of Realtors. The sales were fairly evenly spaced throughout the year - 13 in the 1st Quarter, 16 in the 2nd Quarter, 18 in the 3rd Quarter, and 14 in the 4th Quarter. 16 homes sold after September 11, 2001. Despite the downturn in the economy, values in our neighborhood remained high. This year saw more homes on the market at any one time than usual, and 28 homes were listed for sale but were withdrawn from the market without being sold.

The following statistics are for general information only and should not be used to apply to any particular home in Northwood Hills. The value of any particular home will depend on items such as location, view, age, amenities, size, condition, and updates.

One more benefit for members…

NHHA INTRODUCES NEW PREFERRED MERCHANT DISCOUNT PROGRAM

By John Larranaga

New for 2002 -- eight area restaurants and nine retailers will give you a discount for being a member of Northwood Hills Homeowners Association, Inc.! And consider this: what you save in a year by trading at these preferred locations could easily pay for your NHHA dues.

Just remove and save the bright yellow insert in this newsletter, then make a point to do business with the Preferred Merchants listed on it.

A key element in this new program is your 2002 NHHA membership card. You will receive your card when you pay your first quarter dues. Dues reminders were mailed to current members earlier this month.

Don't delay -- get your dues in the mail and get your special NHHA Preferred Merchant discount card.

Then go shopping and take the family to dinner afterward! Enjoy!

Fines range from $250 to $2,000…

CITY IMPOSES TOUGH NEW RESTRICTIONS ON WATERING YOUR LAWN

In a move that caught many by surprise the City of Dallas has imposed new outdoor watering restrictions on homeowners effective October 1, 2001. Additional limits will take effect June 1, 2002.

Now in effect: It is an offense to water a landscape in a manner that wastes water or causes runoff. Do not cause water to fall on sidewalks, driveways or other areas that are not lawns or landscapes.

It is an offense to operate an irrigation system with broken or missing sprinkler heads or one that is poorly maintained and leads to water waste.

Do not water or irrigate your landscape during any form of precipitation.

Effective June 1, 2002: No lawn watering between 10AM and 6PM from June 1 - September 30 of any year.

A person commits an offense if violations occur on property that he owns, leases or manages. Violations of new out-door watering restrictions will result in fines from $250 up to $2,000.

HOW TO GET POTHOLES FIXED ON YOUR STREET

Old-timers may recall when the city had work crews out looking for potholes to fix. Those days ended back in the 1980s when our local economy took a nose-dive. Today if there's a pothole on your street that needs repair, you've got to ask for it.

Call 311, report the precise location using a house address if possible, and ask for a case number. If the pothole hasn't been filled within a week or ten days, call back and request a progress report, using the assigned case number. Our experience lately has been pretty good -- probably a result of all the attention paid to potholes in the recent mayor's race.

Prevention may be only answer…

OAK WILT DISEASE THREATENS TREES IN NORTHWOOD HILLS

The beauty of our homes and winding streets is enhanced by the presence of majestic oak trees -- mostly red oak and live oak -- some of which may be over a hundred years old. But many have been wiped out in recent years by a menacing disease called Oak Wilt. The frightening truth is that our Northwood Hills area has the highest incidence of Oak Wilt in this part of north Texas. So it is crucial that homeowners know the facts about this threat and what they can do to protect their precious trees.

The following information has been extracted from a paper written by Russell N. Peters of Arborilogical Services, Inc., Wylie, Texas:

Oak Wilt is caused by a fungus that blocks the vessels in a tree that carry water and nutrients up to its leaves. The disease is spread by an insect carrying the fungus spores from infected trees overland to healthy trees -- usually in the spring. It can also spread from infected trees to healthy trees by underground root contact. Once a tree is infected, only rarely can the disease be reversed and the tree restored to health. Prevention, on the other hand, has a 90% chance of success. Two methods of prevention are recommended.

First, avoid pruning red oaks and live oaks during the period from mid-February through May. At this time the spore-bearing insect, which feeds on sap, is most active in north Texas and the cuts in a tree's bark caused by pruning attract it.

Second, to prevent spread of the disease by root contact from nearby infected trees, healthy trees can be treated by injecting fungicide into the root flare around their base. This treatment usually provides about two years of protection.

Symptoms of Oak Wilt infection differ by oak species. Symptoms on red oaks are usually seen as an oily green sheen on the leaves that rapidly turns a tan color before they fall off. Symptoms on live oaks vary, but the most common appears as a color change in the veins of the leaves, the lateral veins turning brown while the rest of the leaf remains green. Defoliation often occurs simultaneously.

If your yard contains prized red oaks or live oaks, it will pay you to remain alert to the threat of Oak Wilt. Prune your trees only during the "safe" months after the end of May and before mid-February. And be aware of the condition of oak trees on adjacent property -- watching for any tell-tale symptoms of infection.

You may also want to get acquainted with a local tree service, just in case.