Hello River Island East

Well, it seems that summer vacation has come to an end, not summer, unfortunately, just summer vacation.  School is here, so if you hear ringing, it isn’t your tinnitus, it is just school bells. Summer is not my favorite season, but if I am being optimistic about it I CAN say that lounging by the pool, escaping to our central coast and the summertime food like fresh melons, corn on the cob, and tomato recipes are definitely the highlights of a lazy summertime routine.

Speaking of lounging in the pool. Kelly and Weston Phillips (without being asked) fixed the broken cantilever shade umbrella at the pool! If you appreciate being in the water yet also being in the shade like I do, let them know how much we appreciate them. Thank you Wes and Kelly!!!!

There really isn’t much to talk about “yet” here at RIE, we are still waiting on the CA Water Board to get back to us about our Waste Water Effluent Disposal Site plans, so nothing has gone to bid yet. This means we still do not have an exact number for the terrible awful emergency assessment. As previously mentioned many times, we won’t know the amount till we select our bid. We are guessing somewhere between $10 – 15 thousand dollars.

The scuttlebutt around the neighborhood is that some homeowners are saying that they just do not have the money. But that won’t fly when we reach the point that the assessment must be paid. Everyone needs to be prepared now by coming up with your plan whether that is taking out a personal loan through a bank or credit union, arranging a home equity loan with a line of credit or whatever. We cannot stick our heads in the sand and hope it will go away. It won’t, and you are going to want to continue to flush your toilets.

Jay Rigler IS working on some things that might be able to help, but we don’t know if any of those will actually work or not.  Every right has its responsibilities. We chose to live in this gorgeous HOA, surrounded by nature and sometimes Mother Nature shows her angry side and wipes out your leach lines. No different from needing a new roof or a new AC unit, so start planning now.

Moving on to a positive note.  We have some AMAZING neighbors who take it upon themselves to make a difference in our little part of the world.  They are owed some kudos for sure.

Thank you to Kathy Magill and Shirley Houser for singlehandedly “fixing” the feral cat problem. They have caught each female (except for one), had them spade, AND found homes for most. They have spent a ton of money doing this and they did it for us.

Thank you to Morris Tharp and Marty McCormick for arranging to have the potholes at both gates cold patched.

Thank you to Michael Mahoney, Frank Furstinger and Holly Pregler for rushing to Priscilla’s at the front gate when a huge Sycamore limb fell onto the stone wall and into her yard. This was literally taken care of within minutes of her call.  These are the kinds of neighbors I want to have for sure.

Thank you to Frank and Holly for taking it upon themselves to do some weeding for a neighbor who had fallen and had a traumatic shoulder injury. Nobody asked them to do this. They. Just. Did.

Lastly, a suspicious vehicle was reported driving through our neighborhood to the Sheriff’s department a couple weeks ago and later that same evening a generator was stolen from River Island Golf Course.  Coincidence? I think not.  So thank you for calling this in, but if you do feel the need to call the Sheriff about suspicious activity, can you also please call Rita and let her know so that we might be able to get more information from you about the car or the person, that way the case might be able to be solved, this time it wasn’t because we just didn’t know who to contact.

Not to burst your bubble if you are a person who loves the heat and the long, lazy days of summer, but for me . . .I am ready for crisp air, pretty leaves, sweaters, football and most of all PUMPKINS. I. Love. FALL!

Dana Branch-River Island Tributary Editor