From the Editor/President

By Stephen Sapp

Winter seemed to take a long time to get here this year, but when it did—wow, did it ever arrive! It’s been an up-and-down weather pattern, and we may still have some more winter before all is said and done. In addition to more snow than we have seen for some time and colder weather than in recent years, we have also experienced some high winds that have resulted in downed branches and overturned tables.

But I have seen some signs of promise that spring is coming: The most obvious one of course is the lengthening of daylight at both ends of the day (we recently experienced our last post-7:00 a.m. sunrise of Standard Time), and a big maple tree behind our home even has visible buds on the tips of its branches! So stay bundled up a little longer and look forward to the warmer weather that is sure to come soon!

In the meantime, however, if we do have more snow, please remember that owners are asked to clear snow from the sidewalk in front of their homes. Also, fallen branches, twigs, leaves, and other debris from back and front yards and driveways should be disposed of using compostable paper bags that are collected with our regular trash pickup on Thursdays (not blown into or dumped on common property, including the streets).

Let us know what you think of this Winter issue of Ripples. If you would like to submit an item for our Spring issue, please email me at ssapp@miami.edu. Photos of life in Lakeport are always welcome as well!

Switching now to my role as Lakeport’s Board President, I want to stress the importance of volunteers for making Lakeport the wonderful place to live that we all know it to be. Many residents give a great deal of their time and energy in many ways, and I (as should we all) want to thank them for all they do (see the “Thanks to Volunteers” article elsewhere in this issue). As the pictures accompanying this column show, Lakeportians have cleared blockages created by snowplows, have helped neighbors by shoveling their driveways, and have made sure they have what they need when snow and ice make it difficult for some folks to get out and about. We just sent a request for volunteers to help remove invasives in Lakeport on March 1, and later this spring we will issue a call for volunteers for the Spring Workday, one of two major annual cleanups, in which there are always tasks that virtually anyone can do (though perhaps not “virtually”!).

Speaking of volunteers, I want to mention several people who are leaving Lakeport who have been especially valuable members of our community. Paul Renard and his wife Mary are moving to Bend, Oregon, to be close to family, and we wish them the best. Paul in particular has contributed to Lakeport in many ways throughout his years here, among others by serving on the Board, as Chair of the Maintenance Committee (doing much of the work himself to save money), and by overseeing the construction of our new dock in the face of many challenges.

Jeanette Malin-Berdel and Joerg Dronia will return to Germany soon because his tour as commander of German military forces in North America has come to an end. Jeanette has served as Secretary of the Board and on the Landscape Committee, has been a regular member of the Book Club, and has faithfully swept goose droppings off the dock, and both have been active in various aspects of life in Lakeport, participating in fall and spring workdays and contributing the wonderful tables and benches for our dock parties. We wish them gute Reise as they return to their homeland!

Finally, I want to repeat several requests:

• When making repairs to your home, be sure to consult Lakeport’s Cluster standards and RA’s Cluster-Property Guidelines before starting any work. 
• Remember that common parking spaces are meant to be shared rather than treated as regular personal spaces. You should routinely use your own garage/carport and driveway for your vehicles and leave common spaces for guests and service vehicles.
• Please do not put out rat poison because it can kill other animals as well, especially predators who eat the poisoned rats and then die. We were saddened to see the body of a dead fox at the edge of the lake behind our home, probably there because it had ingested poison which increased its thirst. Many of us enjoy seeing the foxes in the neighborhood, and they likely do more to control vermin than poison does.  
• Do not remove, add, or modify plants in common areas without the permission of Lakeport’s Landscape Committee.
• As I do every issue, I will urge you once again to set up Direct Debit for your quarterly assessment payments, the next of which is due January 1 (see “Reminders” elsewhere in this issue for how to do this). The main advantage is that you never have to worry about being late and incurring extra fees, but you also save the hassle and expense of mailing a check (or being charged a fee for using a credit card online). I have heard from several people that they don’t like to use automated payments because they want to know exactly how much their bills are, but unlike electricity or water, for example, you already will know exactly how much your quarterly assessment will be, and rates are posted in the online “HOA Fee Payment: Charges for assessment, fees, administrative charges ” in the Residents tab of the Lakeport website (under “HOA Fee Payment”)! So please consider this time- and cost-saving way to pay your assessments (it will also mean Board members don’t have to send reminders to owners who haven’t paid so they don’t get charged a late fee).
• Also please check the Directory and add/update your information if necessary. If former residents are listed, email webmaster@lakeportcluster.org to request their names be removed, If you have renters, ask them to submit the form at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfFILfWGBoWIgWlBPSQmIKj4kIX0kPA7XsRjnsaOsNXuvVSkw/viewform?dods&gxids=7628.