TARPON WOODS ENTRANCE & ISLANDS ALLIANCE
3448 Tarpon Woods Blvd.
Palm Harbor, FL 34685
Newsletter #21 – February 2010
Happy Twenty-ten Homeowners!
It’s hard to believe this volunteer group has existed 21 years as we begin a new decade. Let’s hope we all stay healthy
to its completion. We’re up to our usual request for an annual contribution of $25 to maintain the lighted Tarpon
Woods entrance sign as well as lawns, trees, plantings on two main islands and select common internal areas. This is
no doubt the only cost in the present economy which has remained the same for several years despite the increase in
many of our vendors’ costs. We like to believe it is partly due to prudent use of our small budget.
The 2009 mailings to residents of Tarpon Woods, Bridlewood & Stag Thicket prompted less than 50% participation for
this ongoing community enhancement effort which mirrors the interest shown in past years. Without an overall
Homeowners Association to legally collect this small amount, our only recourse is to rely on your feeling of pride in
our entryway and community.
For new residents who may not know the history of this Alliance, it was formed in 1994 by volunteers concerned with
improving a deteriorating 1970’s wooden sign on an ugly entrance. Some of those are still a part of this group!
Donations funded the two-sided granite TARPON WOODS sign. New sod, trees & bushes were slowly added as money
allowed and lawn care was contracted. Holiday lights came much later and the decorating work was done by this
group until the last three years. We hope you enjoyed the display this year which was the prettiest yet.
In addition to normal maintenance costs of lawn and plant care, fertilization & insecticides, water, electricity,
sprinkler system repairs, the concrete sign base had to be cleaned & new plantings put in on both entrance islands.
All these costs have risen and the level of care we can provide is directly proportionate to the funds collected. The
recent freeze will require extensive plant replacement, unfortunately.
We thank you in advance for helping us serve the community in maintaining the attractive entrance and other areas
we all enjoy. Please complete the Contribution Form attached and return it with your check to the letterhead
address.
Thank You,
Richard Mucciolo, Joan Rahm, Niecie Halfon, Phyllis Parcells, Bob Painter, Colin Swinborne, Ray Jacobs
You probably noticed the construction signs go up on TW Blvd. for Toniwood Rd. Here is an update from the public works department:
On Toniwood...
1. Pre-construction meeting held on Monday (1/4/10)
2. Message boards are anticipated to be put up tomorrow to advise residents of planned lane closure for Monday (1/11)
3. Mobilization of contractor anticipated for tomorrow with some jack & boring work taking place
4. Next week is anticipated to be the first full week of construction
5. Anticipated construction duration is 3 months
Hi Richard, 12/9/09
I had a report of an injured deer right before the entrance to the golf course on Tarpon Woods Blvd. It was in the median but managed to walk away. Will you please forward to your list. If anyone spots and injured deer (it was a baby) please call my cell phone at 431-2856.
Thank you,
Barb Walker, Palm Harbor, FL
4/2/09
TARPON WOODS ENTRANCE
We ask all residents to refrain from placing any kind of sign on the center island as you enter Tarpon Woods. This means garage sales, houses for sale, rent, etc. Please tell your Realtors not to place open house signs there either.
Thank you,
Mr. Mucciolo,
Commissioner Latvala requested I forward this E-Mail string to you. Please see message below and attachments.
Melissa K. Brooks-Barker, Executive Assistant
to Commissioner Susan Latvala
At the County commission meeting in December Commissioner Latvala brought up the question of the signs posted for land-use and zoning cases and the fact that they were not easy to read and did not hold up under the weather. The Planning Department agreed to look at an improved way of doing this. We performed some research with the other local agencies and how they did this and were amazed to find that they were doing the same method as we were or in some cases doing less.
Currently the required notice of public hearing sign is posted on parcel lots to let the public know that there will be a public hearing in the future regarding the use of land. The signage is posted in accordance with county ordinance and is removed after the subject hearing. As it was noted at the board meeting the notice of public hearing sign appears to show weathering or buckling and is difficult to read from the street. This situation occurs even though the signs are enclosed in plastic to reduce exposure to the elements and two wooden stakes are used to brace the sign to prevent buckling.
The project was undertaken to develop land-use action signage that would be easier to see, easier to read, able to withstand the elements longer, and provide a web address to the
The current land-use action signage is constructed of yellow cardboard with preprinted standard information and the specific case details are then written with a permanent black marker on the board indicating; case number, public hearing date /time, public hearing location, and with five blank lines to list what the owner has requested. The land-use action sign detail sheets are sealed in plastic and glued with the entire board mounted on two wooden stakes and placed on the affected property site. A picture of that sign which is yellow is attached.
The Planning Department after an evaluation has come up with the following improved approach. The proposed new version of the signage which was decided upon would be made of corrugated plastic with steel wire supports and preprinted text and would have a place for two laminated documents (land-use case information sheet and a case locator map). This corrugated plastic sign would be weather resistant and would withstand fading from ultraviolet light for a longer length of time. Laminating the actual case information sheet and locator map would seal out any condensation that usually forms with paper products that are just covered by plastic(the current procedure). An example of what this sign would look like is attached and is the blue sign.
This proposed signage contains larger text for the main title, the contact number, and a web address. The case information sheet and subject map would be a standard template that could be reproduced quickly and easily. This more detailed information cannot be read read from a street but does provide details to those people that wish to obtain that level of information.
We believe this new sign will hold up better with the weather and actually present a better image for the county.
In summary, the yellow sign attached is the current procedure and the blue sign is the new procedure.