Wheelwright Cluster Board Meeting – March 11

Board Attendees: Kristina, Sandy, Cyndi, Kelly, Ruth

Members: 2207, 2237

Community Updates

Door colors and styles

  • Sandy has not heard back from Megan about updating glass door styles. 
  • Goal is to narrow down color choices to 6-7 colors, with 1-2 alternates. 
  • Residents will be able to pick any of the colors, not based on siding color, so there will be some freedom of choice there.
  • Board and members in attendance viewed mock up versions of the house colors with the suggested door colors. Of those mock ups, there was consensus on the following colors:
    • Burgundy red,
    • Purple but not too grapey,
    • Black,
    • Creamy white (slightly darker than Amber White used on stucco), 
    • Mid-tone gray brown,
    • Deep green,
    • Navy or strong blue,
    • Aqua or slate blue, and/or
    • Possibly a mid-range blue
  • Sandy agreed to get larger paint samples for the navy and strong blue to help decide which one is preferred as well as larger paint samples for aqua or slate blue.
    • Consensus was that it would be better to stick to one shade in a particular color than have a variety of different shades in that color family.

Spring Cluster Cleanup:

  • Date set for April 24th 
  • Projects:
    • General trash pick up (need to purchase more trash bags)
    • Kristina will make a list of projects and necessary supplies so we can coordinate purchases.
    • Possibilities include:
      • Erosion control on Cyndi’s hill 
        • Potential path (i.e., wood chips) to guide people to walk at base of hill rather than on the hill
        • Might need to grade the path some and set up edging to keep the wood chips from washing away
      • Wash, sand, and repaint/reseal the benches at the playground/tot lot. 
      • Build trash can enclosure for the trash can by the tot lot (Sandy).
      • Plant bulbs around the cluster.
      • One of the steps on the hill by Duncan’s old house is missing and should be replaced.
  • Socialization – Decided to delay community BBQ until this summer based on current social gathering guidelines and to give more people a chance to get vaccinated. This will be mentioned in the next newsletter.
  • Cyndi will lead and direct residents to various projects since Kristina works on Saturdays.

Parking lot rejuvenation – Zoom meeting with Tri-technologies on Wednesday March 24th at 7pm

  • Kristina is also looking at resealing the parking lot with Finley Asphalt and Dominion Paving rather than going with rejuvenation 
  • Estimate will include evaluation to determine if we are still on track for grind and mill in 2025

Erosion – Some work can be done on Cyndi’s hill during Cluster Clean Up

Tree Work – Pausing tree work due to pending cicada swarm. Planting new trees will wait until fall or next spring.

Landscaping – Sandy will look at planting more bulbs and flowers around the cluster. 

Snow/Ice – No real updates.

Concrete – Cyndi will reach out to Juan about replacing steps in front of Nick’s house as well as sidewalk surrounding steps.

Garbage/Recycling

  • Kristina got quotes from other companies
  • American Disposal Services quote was slightly under what we pay Bates 
    • Kristina will look into their capabilities to get more information
    • Do they already have customers that get pick up trash on Mondays and Thursdays? 
  • Waiting for estimates from Waste Management and Republic

Cluster Connect – RA’s newsletter to clusters in Reston

  • Wheelwright Board getting the RA’s newsletters and will forward to other board members 

Next meeting 

  • April 8th at 7 pm via Zoom

Wheelwright Cluster Board Meeting – January 14

Board Attendees: Kristina, Sandy, Cyndi, Kelly, Ruth

Members: 2207

Financials – Treasurer went over monthly financials and projected costs.

2020 Budget Review

  • Final numbers show a profit of $18,161.75

2021 Budget Review

  • 1st quarter dues just went out
  • Not a lot of rainy day funds and costs increasing so dues may need to be adjusted or services eliminated

Annual Meeting Review

  • Parking lot rejuvenation interest
    • Kristina will look into this to get names of people from potential companies who have had this work done
    • Also look for feedback from other neighborhoods if they’ve done similar work in their community
  • Erosion 
    • Completed
    • Reston Association will inspect work the week of Jan 18-22
    • No one needs to be present for inspection 
    • Inspection good for two years
    • Additional erosion projects to be evaluated for 2021 (Ruth and Kristina)
      • Focus on the hill by the tot lot – low lying gourds or pumpkins? (Cyndi)
      • Other alternatives like native sedges? (Kristina) 
  • Tree Work
    • Stump grinding behind 2250 was successful
    • Company slated to come back to reseed grass where truck damaged ground
  • Concrete (Cyndi)
    • Lower cluster slated to be done in spring 2021
    • Need to evaluate new spots that may have arisen due to weathering during winter
    • Some damage done to resident property during concrete work in fall
      • Cyndi will look into compensation for those areas
    • Look for property boundaries to assess ownership of stairs in lower cluster 
  • Landscaping (Sandy)
    • Lower cluster peninsula areas need to be addressed using grounds maintenance funds 
  • Electric car charging stations – community not ready to install but may be interested in the future
  • Glass collection option was not approved by the community
  • Community thought we should give composting a try and Sarah Keally offered to maintain it
  • Design Review Board (DRB) Application (Sandy)
    • Shingle guidelines will need to be updated so they will be included with color palette application to RA Design Review Board 
    • Annual meeting came to consensus about color palette for house colors and will be included in DRB Application 
    • Door options and colors still need votes by community 
      • We can add new colors in future if resident really likes a different color within the Alura color palette
      • Community agreed to give residents 10 years to comply with new color palette if approved by DRB

Action/Discussion Items

  • Complaints about Garbage/Recycling pickup
    • Standalone trash bags being placed in recycling truck rather than trash truck
    • Bates suggested moving recycling pickup to Wednesdays but this could be an issue with residents having to put bins out three times a week and increases possibility of people leaving bins out all week
      • Decided to leave trash pickup schedule as it is
      • Communicate with community about new recycling guidelines to improve compliance
      • Look into hiring a second company to pick up recycling on Monday
        • Would this be more expensive than hiring a new company to handle all trash and recycling?
  • Purchasing a compost bin
    • Site selected adjacent to tot lot
  • Decided to purchase a bin ($279 at Home Depot) that is designed to have good airflow (which might be better in a shaded area like the tot lot) and is mid-range in terms of size (187 g)
  • Update parking list (Kristina, Cyndi, Ruth) to make sure all cars parked are owned by residents of the cluster
    • Send out reminders about motorcycle parking in reserved spots, not sidewalk
    • Keep an eye out for cars with expired registrations (provide some leeway due to current registration process with DMV because of covid) 
  • The Cluster wheelbarrow is fixed!!! Located behind Cyndi’s house right now.
  • Need to update Cluster guidelines (Kristina will talk to Jessica)
  • Dog waste stations not viable given our current budget
  • Suggestion to put exercise equipment in place of tot lot or next to it
    • Tot lot is used and is an attractive feature to prospective families
    • Possible increase in liability
    • Compost to be situated near tot lot so another location would need to be selected
    • If we have budget to redo tot lot at a future point, we could look for designs to incorporate activities for children and adults
    • If RA plans to install exercise circuit around Snakeden Branch loop behind the cluster, see if we can get a stop posted close to the rear of our community
    • Not enough money in budget to pursue now
  • Native seedling sale to take place in February 
    • https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/soil-water-conservation/native-seedling-sale
    • Could be an opportunity to purchase native plants for erosion control
  • Landscape follow-up
    • Possible replacement for cherry tree behind 2250
    • Landscaping company agreed to reseed areas where grass did not grow because of late timing of grass seeding work in the fall and the amount of leaves that fell on lawns 

Board Members agreed to work with contractors or committees:

  • Snow Removal (Mike Peyton) – Kelly
  • Landscaping (Chris Hughes) – Sandy 
  • Garbage Pickup (Theresa Cunningham) – Kristina 
  • Concrete (Juan) – Cyndi 
  • Dominion (watchlights) – Cyndi 
  • Legal (Chesapeake) – Kristina 
  • Tree Committee Liaison – Sandy
  • Community outreach – Kristina 
    • E-news
    • Facebook updates
    • Sign

Next meeting 

  • February 11th
  • Upcoming meetings to be held on 2nd Thursday in the month
  • Virtual only