Pitman Creek North Homeowners Association General Meeting
May 4, 2024. 10:00 AM
Hackberry Park
Board in Attendance:
Clifford Cockrell
Jandy Thompson
Janet Dansby
Nick Biggs
Kristin Roberts
Claudia McGuire
There were 20 neighbors in attendance.
Clifford Cockrell, President, started the meeting by thanking everyone for participating in the meeting. He reviewed the past year business, the HOA purpose and introduced the current board. He called for a vote to re-elect the board. It was unanimous. Clifford’s notes follow:
“Hello and welcome to the Pitman Creek North HOA annual meeting for 2024. My name is Clifford Cockrell, and I have served on the board for 7 years, including 6 years as President. Our organization’s formal name is the Pitman Creek North Homeowners Association, established in the early 1980s. Our founders opted for a voluntary rather than mandatory membership model. I’m sure many of you have encountered mandatory HOAs, which often require membership and adherence to strict rules and guidelines. Our HOA is different; we adopt a softer approach, hoping that residents choose to join and contribute to making our community a better place to live. We do not impose mandatory rules or possess any regulatory power.
Traditionally, our HOA focuses on three main activities:
- Community engagement,
- Acting as a platform to disseminate information,
- Garden maintenance and beautification.
In terms of community engagement, we organize numerous social functions throughout the year to provide residents opportunities to meet and get to know their neighbors. We sponsor at least two annual parties in the park, timed to coincide with spring and fall. One of our most popular events encourages residents to decorate their homes with Halloween-inspired themes, with prizes awarded for the best displays in various categories.
We maintain a website, a Facebook page, and a yearly newsletter to keep everyone informed about community happenings. We also have a “welcome wagon” representative who greets new neighbors.
Our third focus is on the gardens and green spaces. Although these are city-owned, we have a long-standing commitment to their maintenance and beautification. During my presidency, we installed solar lights at most entrances and upgraded signage along 15th Street and Park. We are also planning a new large stone sign for a screening wall that the city will soon construct along 15th Street. This will mirror the sign across the street near the Pitman Creek Estates subdivision.
Now that I have introduced our organization, I would like to present our board members. Please stand or raise your hand if you are present. All of these remarkable individuals volunteer their time throughout the year to enhance our community.
Finally, I will ask you to vote to approve the board for another year. All in favor of these dedicated volunteers serving another term, please say “Aye.” Those opposed, please say “Nay.””
Jandy Thompson, Vice-President, did a review of the 2023 neighborhood survey. A few highlights:
- What makes PCN special?
a. Location, Friendly Neighbors, HOA/Activities - What would you change or improve?
a. Upkeep lawns, Less street parking, More connection opportunities - Suggestions & Issues
a. Benches or restroom in park
b. Gated community
c. Get rid of the squirrels
d. More lighting
e. Round islands on Columbia
f. Install islands on Rio Grande - Also addressed opportunities to serve on the board; landscaping/upkeep of gardens, communications, treasurer. All positions could use additional help from the neighborhood.
Question & Answers were invited:
- Provide a list of 3-4 vendors who could help those who need it with lawn care
a. Possible, but do not want to be responsible for bad service or report - Contact the city for code violations that are observed
- Keep asking the city about upgrades to park, new wall, etc.
a. Clifford will continue looking into this - Aquatic Center was suggested for neighbors to get water exercise
- How could we promote neighborhood businesses
a. Kristin Roberts suggested a community network event in the park - It was brought up that the community just west of us would like to join in some of our events/activities.
a. Kristin Roberts had a conversation and will follow up with their HOA president.
Issues brought to the Board’s attention and discussed:
- Speeding on Rio Grande is getting out of control. Can we do anything to bring that to the city’s attention? Clifford will ask.
- The circle gardens – are they better than speed bumps? It has been rumored that these circle gardens might be going away, but that has not been confirmed with the city. Clifford will check.
- Plano has a citizens’ Police and Fire Academy training for education. We can encourage our neighbors to attend that academy if interested.
- Why won’t the city fix what is broken at the garden entrance? Clifford and Jandy addressed the issues of antiquated equipment and the costs of completely replacing the system. Also, with the wall being torn down and replaced, we don’t really know what all will be involved with that. If the city is willing to let us keep and maintain the other three smaller garden entrances and the city pays the water bill, we should consider that a win. We do not have the funds at the moment to do any permanent work on the main garden entrance.
- Short term rentals? There will be no new permits granted for now, but this is still an issue that hasn’t been fully resolved with the city.
- How to increase membership? It was suggested that we start street or block captains again. It was also suggested that people just host something in their front yard or at the park. Do a street donuts & coffee morning or a pizza dinner or hot dogs; simple things that will help us meet and get to know our neighbors better. The Board would consider partially funding a small event such as these mentioned.
Clifford Cockrell adjourned the meeting at 11:15 a.m.