Dear Neighbors,
Here is a summary on the status of the Road Committee as we closed out 2018 and updates for what we plan in 2019.
2018
In 2018 it rained. It rained more. It still kept raining. As a result, we the road suffered. It had washouts, potholes, and mud spots. We did the best we could to keep up with road repairs and even made significant progress fixing underlying issues with washouts in the steep hill section. One of the major projects we worked on was fixing the water drainage and flow issues from the top of the hill down to Lime Kiln. This involved digging a deeper culvert along the side of the road, adding large rocks (riprap) in steep sections of the culverts to slow water flow and protect the road from washing out, fixing persistent potholes, and adding gravel.
Another major effort the road committee had to take on in 2018 was trimming brush back along the road. This is a significant problem for the road and we really appreciate the neighbors who were responsible and cleared back the brush on their own property. However, there were still several property owners who neglected the brush along their property and we had to spend a significant amount of time finding contractors who could do the work at a reasonable cost. Please, take the time this year and keep the brush on your property cut back so that your neighbors can safely drive through and our work crews who maintain the road can do their job.
In 2018 we found a new contractor who also maintains the roads at camp highroad and has been able to provide a lot of great services for us at much less cost than we have had to pay in the past. For example, we had quotes to trim the brush along the section of road between the hill and the mirror from other contractors that were going to charge nearly as much as AW charged to clear the brush, plus do major road repairs. If you need someone to perform work on your driveway or spur we would recommend calling AW Smith (703-930-9750). Unlike other contractors, he works out in our area often so it is not burdensome for him to come out this way and he has a great understanding of what it takes to maintain and repair gravel roads.
2018 Finances
This is a dark spot for 2018 in our neighborhood. Due to increased labor and material costs along with all the required work on the road due to the rain, we spent nearly $6,000 more in 2018 than we brought in from dues. Obviously we can’t continue to maintain this trend. So as we discussed in newsletters last year and as a result of the dues poll we conducted, we must raise the dues in 2019 from $300 to $350 / year.
2019
The plan in 2019 is to continue to maintain the road as best we can, but we will have to be a lot more restrained with how frequently we make repairs in order to make up for the budget deficit last year. Even before the deficit last year, the finances of the Road Committee were not where we would like them to be in order to be prepared for handling major road washouts or other costly emergency repairs.
We would also like to thank the neighbors that have volunteered their time and equipment to help with maintaining the road and plowing snow. One request we have for those that do volunteer their time and equipment is to please reach out to us when you plan on working so that we can all coordinate our efforts. Last year, we had situations where members of the Road Committee had taken time off work to meet with contractors and get estimates for work to then have to call and cancel or modify work plans because a neighbor had come along and done some partial road repairs. So please, if you think something urgently needs to happen on the road and are considering taking care of it yourself, please just check-in so that all of our volunteer time and efforts are used efficiently.
Road Dues
As you are aware the annual GCF road dues for 2019 are now
due and will be increased, as was discussed and voted on last year, to $350
annually – the first increase in many years. Please consider this your bill
notice and send your $350 dues payments
for 2019 as soon as possible to:
Goose Creek Farms Road Committee
PO Box 604
Leesburg, VA 20176
*If you have not yet paid 2018, please send that payment ($300) in as well!
We are fortunate to have a community of individuals who work together to ensure the betterment of GCF without having an HOA involved, but that does require the diligence and contribution of all community members. That being said, there were a large number of residences that failed to contribute their 2018 road dues, which resulted in nearly $6,000 of expenditures in excess of what was contributed in 2018.
As you are aware, in 2018 we experienced significantly more rain than in prior years, thus there was more need for road repairs. As a result, it is particularly important that all members of our community participate in the upkeep of our road and the annual contribution of road dues. Regardless of where you live on GCL, all residents utilize the “hill” to enter and leave the community, which is historically the most costly part of the road to maintain. Please take this into consideration when deciding whether to contribute road dues to the community.
In the coming weeks we will be reaching out to each of the delinquent members of the community to determine why dues were not paid in 2018 and to begin the collection process for 2019. In the meantime, please advise of any questions or concerns by contacting the road committee.
Best regards,
Harley, Ashley, Mallory, and Cory
GCF Road Committee 2019