| Franklin Villager April – May 2016 |
Master Association Update
- The engineering firm of Uhler & Assocs. has finished the storm water management survey for each village. Franklin needs to rebuild 7 out of 50 of our water grates, regrout 9 of the 50 and 5 of 50 need to be “cleaned out”. Also 2 underwater pipes from the lower cul de sac to the retention pond will need work in 5 yrs.
- The remodeling of the lower bathroom of Sullivan House is now complete and the new outdoor furniture is in place. Everyone is invited to an open house June 8th from 4-7PM
- Bob Greco, president of the Master Association has retired and Boyd Mackleer has been named president till the July vote. Bob Bonner of Zephyr has been temporarily appointed to fill the empty spot till July
- A telecommunication committee headed by Rick Herschel has been established to start negotiations between Comcast and Verizon for a new, more inclusive cable TV offering since the current Comcast contract expires in May of 2018.
- The newly named Rec Center (old pool house) will be completely renovated between Sept. of 2016 and April of 2017. It will become a year round center open for meetings. Budget is $812,000. Bathrooms will be available all year for off-season sports.
- Sunoco Logistics is still planning to drill for a new pipeline along Boot Road in front of the shopping center and behind 8 houses in Quaker Village. Still lots of legal and logistical issues delaying the start.
- HMSG(Sports Group) will have a larger storage shed for storing sports equipment.
- Hershey’s Mill Marketing group held an “Open Community” Sunday 5-22. Attendance was high with 97 cars coming through security. With 64 homes currently on the market there were 37 open houses.
- The marketing group is keeping the awareness of the Mill in front of new buyers through ads in the Philadelphia Inquirer as well as our web page that gets between 1400 and 1800 hits a month.
Franklin Village Notes from the 5/25/16 meeting
- Concrete walkways will be completed this Spring. Pool walkway to be done first
- We are negotiating for a new termite control contract.
- Council verified the 55+ community rules — One 55+, one no less than 42, no children under 18 allowed.
- Individuals’ proof of insurance (HO6) policy are required every year to be sent to our management company.
- Our CIF(Capital Improvement fund) is $1458; the MA Association’s fee is $1700; and is due at closing on all sales, even owner to owner and current resident sales.
- Speeding still occurs in the village. We are looking at speed bumps like other villages have installed to control speeding. Many garages are on the main street and backing out can be dangerous.
Exterior garage trim can be replaced when damaged by homeowner, for a fee.
- Architectural Committee handed out the new Architectural Guidelines form. It will also be emailed to residents of FV and posted on the Franklin web page. Any exterior change, of any type or size, requires approval.
- Franklin Pool has been renovated with new plaster and blue bottom stripes and looks great. Thanks to Dom with help from Jeanette, Carl and the volunteer brushers.
- We currently have 10 homes on the market.
- Franklin Village road deterioration issues as discussed at the May Village meeting:
- The last 2 winters have taken a toll on our roads with many new cracks and spalling, especially the lower cul de sac.
- Our Reserve fund was scheduled to have the money for resurfacing by 2019 but we may not be able to wait.
- We have hired Asphalt Consultants to survey our roads and make suggestions as to what needs to be done, when, and at what costs.
- We have held off patching the roads, as it may mean spending good money after bad.
- Preliminary resurfacing estimates are in the $297,000 to over $300,000 and may be more after the survey as we also need some of our storm drains rebuilt.
- Asphalt prices are at their lowest now due to oil being low; but the cost of a barrel of oil has started to increase and could negatively impact cost in the future.
- Further deterioration of the roads if resurfacing is delayed may also cost more.
- There are a couple of holes now evident and safety can also be a concern.
- With 10 homes on the market the appearance of our roads could impact the sales.
- If done in 2016 the assessment could be in the $2,500-$3,000 range with later years possibly costing less because of reserve savings; or more depending on the cost of asphalt.
Asphalt Consultant’s professional survey should be done by the June Council meeting.
Next Village meeting scheduled for July 26th.
The Annual Ladies Luncheon was held this year at Outback Restaurant in Frazer.
The April 24th meeting was preceded by the Pot Luck Dinner, brought back by popular demand. An assortment of delicious appetizers, salads, side dishes, entrees and desserts were enjoyed by the approximately 55 attendees. Thanks to all the great cooks who contributed dishes and to the Social Committee and the residents who pitched into help with the cleanup afterwards.