Mayfair of McLean Homeowner’s Association
Community Plan 2019–2023
Acknowledgements
The Mayfair of McLean Homeowners Association (HOA) would like to acknowledge the following individuals for the development of the first five-year Mayfair of McLean Community Plan (2019-2023):
Harold Damelin
Bethany Jones
Russel Jones
Bruce Louiselle
Ramona Mockoviak
John Mockoviak
Jon Roop
William Wilhoyte
We hope you find the plan helpful in understanding the future direction of our community.
Table of Contents:
I. Executive Summary.....………….………………………………………..…......4
ll. Mission Statements...…………………………………………………………....6
III. Community Profile…………………………………………………………….…7
lV. Goals and Objectives:
A. Design Review Committee......................................….. 9
B. Landscape Committee.......................................…........11
C. Hardscape Committee....................................…...........13
V. Financials:
A. Operating Budgets……………………………………………….. 15
B. Mayfair of McLean HOA Reserve Study…………….….… 16
C. Funding Reserve Analysis Revised......................…..... 21
D. New Supplemental Reserve Analysis ...................….. 22
VI. Mayfair of McLean the Community
A. Role of Community Volunteers................................. 23
B. Building a Sense of Community………………………..... 25
I. Executive Summary
The purpose of our Community Plan is to better understand and manage the long-term needs and resources required to accomplish Mayfair of McLean’s primary mission during the next five years (2019-2023) in an orderly, organized and proactive manner. Section II of this plan reviews the primary mission of our Homeowner’s Association, which are:
I. Enhance property value
ll. Manage common areas
lll. Promote the general welfare of the community
IV. Manage the community finances responsibly
Our resident volunteers will attain the primary mission through the actions of the board and its three standing committees and any special task forces that may be established from time to time, as needs require.
in reading this plan, one should gain a better understanding of the history of the community from when it was established in 1992 to the present. Section III details the major events and activities that have taken place that bring us to this point.
Section IV begins the detail of our Community Plan, organized by each of the three standing committees:
The recent formation of a Hardscape Committee is necessary to address the infrastructure of the community, ranging from paver sidewalks to the brick wall
and wooden fences surrounding our community, to light poles, irrigation systems and the street we drive on every day.
The Landscape Committee continues to address the approximately 300 trees in the community. How do we keep the trees healthy, pruned and under control?
The plantings outside the wall help distinguish our community as an upscale neighborhood that residents are proud to call home. With the changing climate conditions, extensive planning is required.
Ensuring we maintain the beautiful exterior facade of the homes in our community is an ongoing process conducted by the Design Review Committee (DRC). But the houses themselves are only one aspect of the DRC’s responsibilities. Other aspects include landscaping and the condition of rear decks and fences. These are some of the many issues that enhance property values.
Financials are the resources that permit us to maintain our upscale neighborhood. Annual dues, unfortunately, continue to increase as the demands of an older, established community increase. Section V will give readers a more detailed projection as to the increased expense requirements. The five-year plan attempts to control, reduce and eliminate the need for special assessments.
The Reserve Fund Study and corresponding funding will take on increased importance with the addition of the following elements in the next reserve funding analysis:
I. Brick wall maintenance
ll. Drainage
III. Landscaping - including tree replacement
lV. Sprinkler systems
V. Accent lighting systems
Expansion of the Reserve Fund Study should give us a more proactive approach in controlling unexpected expenses and, hence, the need for special assessments.
The role of community volunteers is discussed in Section VI, which details the scope of community participation necessary to maintain the community of Mayfair of McLean as an upscale and desirable place to live. The need for additional volunteers will increase as the demands of maintaining our community continue to grow.
ll. Mission Statements
The primary mission of Mayfair of McLean Homeowner’s Association is:
I. To enhance the property value of the community by conducting annual reviews of all individual residences to be in compliance with the design review guidelines.
II. To own, manage, maintain, improve and beautify the common area(s) of Mayfair of McLean
ill. To promote the comfort, safety and general welfare of the residents of Mayfair of McLean
IV. To collect assessments and disburse charges as may be required in a financially responsible manner.
Ill. Community Profile
McLean is an unincorporated community within Fairfax County, Virginia. it is a community that sporadically developed around a trolley stop of the Great Falls and Old Dominion Electrified Railroad at Chain Bridge Road, a major thoroughfare in Fairfax County from Colonial times. The railroad first carried passengers from Washington into Great Falls Park on July 4, 1906.
The rail line bypassed the existing villages of Langley and Lewinsville, choosing a straighter right-of—way laid through forests, farmlands and fruit orchards about midway between the two villages. Originally the stop at Chain Bridge Road was called lngleside, after a community that was beginning to develop along Elm and Poplar Streets. However, by 1910, the name of the stop was changed to McLean, to honor one of the trolley’s founders, John T. McLean, who was also publisher of the Washington Post. The trolley was strictly a business venture designed to promote the beauty of the Great Falls. The founders had no intention of developing the area along the route.
The beginning of McLean is considered to start with the opening of Storm’s General Store beside the trolley tracks, facing Chain Bridge Road, in 1910. The McLean Post Office also operated from that store. By the mid 1920's a village had sprung up, including the Franklin Sherman School, the McLean Volunteer Fire Department, two churches, a Masonic Temple, a library, a civic association, a four—bay strip mall, and a real estate office.
The Great Falls and Old Dominion Railroad operated for 28 years then suffered a decline in ridership as Sunday excursions were more likely to be taken by the newly arrived Model T Ford. The roadbed was later paved ‘with asphalt to become Old Dominion Drive.
McLean remained a farming community and did not change significantly between the mid—1920’s and the end of World War II. After that war, many military personnel and government employees decided to stay in the greater Washington area, stimulating the construction of numerous, affordable single—family homes in the suburbs — such as McLean.
The area near Kirby and Westmorland remained farms until later. The farm to the West of Westmoreland was acquired by Fairfax County by eminent domain in the 1960's, and Longfellow School opened there in 1966. The remainder of that farm property was developed as the L’Ambiance housing development. Temple Rodef Shalom acquired a seven-acre lot on up the street in 1963.
The farm to the East of Westmoreland focused on fruits and vegetables and had a farm stand at the corner of Kirby and Westmoreland for several years. A large portion of that farm was developed as the Westmoreland Square housing area, which opened from 1967 to 1971. The remainder of that farm, where the original farmhouse was located, was eventually developed as the Mayfair of Mclean townhouse community. R3 zoning (townhouses) was approved by the County in 1976.
The plot plan for Mayfair of McLean, showing the 37 townhouses that were to be built, was approved by the county in 1989. Three successive developers built the townhouses in several blocks — the first at the top of the hill completed in 1992, and the final blocks at the bottom of the hill completed in 1999. Architectural consistency was maintained throughout the building process, resulting in the beautiful community now in place.
Original governance was held by the developers, through Articles of Incorporation in 1988 and the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions in 1992. The current Homeowners Association came into effect after the final homes were completed, under State Law. Bylaws of the HOA were last updated in 2013.
(Excerpts from Images of America - McLean, by Carole Herrick, Academia Publishing, 2011)
IV. GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
A. Design Review Committee (DRC)
The care and value of our properties are linked to the quality, integrity, and uniformity of our neighborhood environment. To that end, the DRC serves as oversight of the community on behalf of the homeowners to safeguard Mayfair’s environment, to avoid disputes, and enhance property values. In addition to being responsible for the exterior facades of the homes, the DRC also oversees landscaping (excluding enclosed backyards), as well as the condition of decks, backyard fences, driveways, stairways and exterior lighting.
The committee publishes Design Review Guidelines for use by homeowners, providing information to prepare a complete Architectural Review application. Moreover, it describes the philosophy, specific standards, and guidelines for homeowners to develop plans and designs for exterior changes to their property. This document also describes the organization and procedures of the architectural review and enforcement process. The intent of the document is to increase the owners’ and residents’ awareness of their responsibilities in the architectural review process. Both the DRC Guidelines and the Architectural Review Application are posted on the HOA website.
One of the most important functions of the DRC is to maintain and enhance the aesthetic quality and design of the homes and environment within Mayfair of
McLean. This is achieved by maintaining a sense of community beginning with the individual’s property and ending with the community at large. The committee’s diligent enforcement of the guidelines ensures owners and residents that design and aesthetic quality is maintained, thereby enhancing property values and the community's overall appearance.
As we look ahead to the next five years, we are dealing with a community that, while currently in very good overall condition, is aging. Therefore, it is prudent for both the HOA (for common areas, including community trees, and hardscape issues) and individual homeowners (for the exteriors of their homes) to expect and prepare for increasing maintenance, repair and replacement.
The HOA has started to prepare for this eventuality by establishing both the Landscaping Committee (dealing with common areas and community trees) and the Hardscape Committee. With these two new committees, along with the DRC, the HOA has for the first time an organized structure for dealing with
maintenance, repair and replacement issues that will likely evolve within the community over the next five years.
The first issue the DRC will address to is a review and a revision, where necessary, of the existing DRC guidelines and the Architectural Review application process that homeowners are required to submit before making certain repairs, changes or additions to the exterior areas of their homes. This review is needed to ensure that the guidelines are current and easy to understand and the application process is user friendly.
The DRC will continue to review of individual homes and point out any issues to the homeowners that require correction or repair to be in compliance with the DRC Guidelines. Based on prior DRC reviews, the following areas will possibly need to be addressed by multiple homeowners over the next five years:
Backyard fences and gates
Uneven walkways and driveways
Wood support railway ties and beams (certain homes)
Gutters and downspouts
Entry columns and bases
Garage doors and frames
Deterioration of cement between bricks on entry stairways
Power washing of front stairs and driveways
Exterior lighting
Landscaping in non— enclosed areas
Where the DRC finds that multiple homeowners may be in need of similar repairs or maintenance, it will attempt to assist homeowners in locating a contractor willing to work on multiple homes at the same time at a discounted rate. This was done about five years ago, when a group of homeowners needing new roofs got together and contracted with a company willing to install new roofs on multiple homes at the same time at a discounted price.
B. Landscape Committee
This plan acknowledges that annual rounds of pruning alone are not sufficient to manage the mature landscaping of Mayfair of McLean, especially its trees. The new plan offers an approach that is responsive to homeowners’ interests in having a beautiful community in which to live and that strategically and comprehensively manages the maturing landscaping so that it remains an asset to the value of our homes over time. All landscaping and trees will eventually need to be replaced and, in the interim, will need to be refreshed, treated and pruned in regular rotation.
The Landscaping Committee’s five-year plan is designed to work within its current (2018) budget.
Homeowner expectations about upkeep and maintenance of landscaping, trees and snow removal, will not decrease.
Even if re-bid, the general landscaping contract will not decrease in cost.
All goods, services and contracts are susceptible to annual cost-of-living increases, currently around 2%.
The Landscaping Committee relies on the Hardscape Committee to maintain lighting and sprinkler systems, on the Design Review Committee to help homeowners uphold commitments to care of their property, and on the willingness of homeowners to volunteer to serve on our committee.
Snow removal costs cannot be estimated with any degree of certainty and are estimated based on the experience of the past several years.
The new Mayfair of McLean Tree Inventory provides the community with a framework for decision-making about tree health and maintenance.
Decisions about landscaping will continue to be based on requests from individual homeowners, advice from professionals, and observations and judgments of committee members and the Mayfair of McLean Association Board. All decisions are subject to the availability of resources.
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C. Hardscape Committee
The responsibilities of the newly formed Hardscape Committee include:
· Asphalt Roadway, Curbs, Curb Painting
· Brick Exterior Wail and Stone Walkways
· Entrance Brick Structure and Signage
· Lighting Systems
· Wooden Exterior Fences
· Drainage Systems
· Sprinkler Systems
· Trash Disposal
· Mailboxes
· Concrete Table/Benches
· Control Systems
The 2018 Mayfair of McLean budget included funding for the recently completed asphalt road and curb work but not for other Hardscape Committee responsibilities.
An analysis of projected renewal, repair and replacement costs for all remaining Hardscape Committee responsibilities is part of this 5-year community plan.
The Hardscape Committee will conduct and submit and annual review to the HOA board and subsequently to homeowners for-consideration. Funding will be provided by the revised "Funding Reserve Analysis” and the "New Supplemental Reserve Analysis.” (See Section V. Financials)
The Hardscape Committee will work closely with the Landscaping and Design Review Committees to ensure that homeowner’s expectations will continue to be met and property values maintained.
Careful attention will be given to Hardscape areas that have been in operational use for more than two decades. As system lifespans expire and needed repair items are no longer available, decisions will have made regarding how best to maintain, replace or upgrade the various systems.
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B. Mayfair of Mclean HOA Reserve Study
What is the Basis for the Requirement of a Reserve Study?
The Virginia Property Owners Association Act (the "Act”) in Section 55-51-4.1 provides in pertinent part that the Association shall:
1. Conduct at least once every five years a study to determine the necessity and amount of reserves required to repair, replace and restore the capital components;
2. Review the results of that study at least annually to determine if reserves are sufficient; and
3. Make any adjustments the board of directors deems necessary to maintain reserves, as appropriate.
To the extent that the reserve study conducted in accordance with this section indicates a need to budget for reserves, the association budget shall include, without limitation:
1. The current estimated replacement cost, estimated remaining life, and estimated useful life of the capital components;
In 2015 the Association retained US! Commercial to update the then existing Reserve Study to meet the requirements of the Act. It is important to recognize that a Reserve Study is not to anticipate every possible event or contingency for all time. All of the respondents to the Association's request for a proposal to conduct the study specified a thirty (30) year time horizon. Given this, facilities that have an expected life of more than thirty (30) years would not and were not considered.
What is the Purpose of or Reserve Study?
The purpose of a reserve study is to provide a reasonable basis to fund, over time, the cost of replacing what are referred to in the Act as the "capital components” of the Association's common property. To do this, two factors need to be estimated for each of the” capital components”: First, the cost to replace each of the” capital components” needs to be estimated; second, the estimated remaining useful life of each component needs to be estimated. Based on these two factors, a table is prepared showing for each of the years in the Reserve study period the amount that would have to be spent in that year to replace that item or those items that have met the end of its or their useful life. Based on this table the following question is answered: What amount must be budgeted and accrued in each year such that the Association will have sufficient funds on hand to pay for the restoration of a capital component that has met the end of its useful life?
To see this, consider the following simplified hypothetical example. Assume three capital components with the following costs and year of demise.
Component Cost Replacement Year
A $5,000 3
B $8,000 5
C $15,000 10
Given these assumptions the answer is that the Association would have to budget and accrue $2,800 in each of the 10 years to meet the commitments. At the beginning of the 10th year the Reserve fund would contain $12,200. In year 10 it would accrue an additional $2,800 and thus have $15,000 to pay for the restoration of component C in that year.
What are the Components of the Association’s Reserve Study?
The Association reserves for those items that have a reasonably predictable need for repair, replacement, or restoration. These components have been referred to as the” hardscape” components of the Association's common facilities. The
specific components historically reserved for in the Association’s Reserve Study are:
· Road Mill and Overlay
· Street and Curb Painting and Repair ‘
· Concrete Curbing Repair
· Street and Sidewalk Paver Replacement and Repair
· Wood Perimeter Fencing Replacement and Repair
· Monument Entry Sign Repair
· Monument Lighting
· Exterior Pole Lights Replacement and Repair
· Mailbox Replacement and Repair
The Reserve Study is not intended to accumulate funds for unpredictable catastrophic events such as storms, disease, or vandalism nor for items that will require periodic replacement or repair but for which there is no basis to predict their occurrence. These items include, but are not limited to the brick exterior wall, drainage, tree replacement, the sprinkler system, and the like.
How is the Annual Reserve Requirement Determined?
The estimated cost of each component is arrayed on a spreadsheet by year given the assumption as to remaining life and estimated useful life. For example, if at the date of the study, say 2019, an item is estimated to have three years of remaining life and five years of useful life, the cost of that item will appear in 2021, 2026, 2031, and 2036 during the 2019-2039 20-year study period. The Board has determined that a 20-year study period is sufficiently long to provide reasonable financial security with the ability to periodically adjust funding to reflect a change in circumstances without causing drastic changes in the annual funding requirement.
Once the spreadsheet is populated with the data and the starting Reserve balance, a spreadsheet tool known as "goal seek” is employed to answer the following question: What does the annual funding have to be such that the Reserve balance does not fall below a targeted amount? The Board has determined that the minimum targeted balance should not fall below $2,500 in any of the 20 study years. The result of the analysis will be a specific annual amount that, if accrued annually, will result in sufficient Reserve funds to meet the commitments. This "goal seek” analysis is updated annually to reflect any changes to cost estimates, timing of expenditures, and actual Reserve accruals.
Is the Annual Funding Requirement included in the Annual Budget Approved Each Year?
The annual Reserve funding requirement is not currently included in the annual budget. The Association’s budget is based on the approved annual assessment that determines the total annual revenue that is available to meet non—reserved for costs and expenses. Based on historical experience and known or anticipated changes to those expenses, the Board approves an estimated sum of expenditures excluding the annual Reserve funding requirement. The total revenue from the assessment less the estimated expenditures produces the amount of Reserves estimated to be accrued in that ensuing year. if the result is a level of Reserves less than sufficient to meet Reserve commitments, the Board would have to consider proposing an increase in the annual assessment. As an alternative, the Board could consider a one—t_irne Special Assessment to meet any shortfall. For example, the 2018 Budget was based on annual assessment revenue of $88,245 and expenditures of $82,778 leaving $5,467 to fund Reserves. The actual amount of the funding of Reserves in 2018 will depend on actual expenses
Have Any Changes Been Made to the Underlying Reserve Analysis?
Heretofore, the Reserve Analysis has been based on the assumption that the Reserve components had a defined useful life and would be totally replaced at the end of that period. This has been the working assumption of each of the outside engineering firms retained by the Association over the years. Experience and logic suggests this is not a very accurate assumption for certain of the Reserve components. For example, while it is reasonable and logical to assume the street will have to be milled and paved in its entirety on a periodic basis, it is not reasonable that all the exterior pole lights will need to be replaced in the same year just because that year matches the estimated end of the useful life of a street light or that the entire wood perimeter fence would need to be replaced in a single year. For that reason, the underlying Reserve Analysis has been redone to redistribute costs on a partial and periodic basis over the 20-year planning cycle. For example, the most recent engineering study had all exterior pole lights replaced in 2026 at a cost, adjusted for inflation, of $32,250. The revised Reserve Analysis estimates expenditures of $2,500 for this component (2018 dollars) every three years. (This value is increased by an annual inflation rate of 2.5%). Similar changes have been made to other components in the Reserve Analysis, street and curb repair, street and sidewalk repair, and the wood perimeter fence repair and replacement.
Does the Existence of the Reserve Fund Make Special Assessments Unnecessary?
The Reserve fund does not preclude the potential for a Special Assessment. As mentioned previously there are items that could cause a need for a Special assessment that are not included in the component list. To minimize the potential for a Special Assessment, it would be necessary to establish a supplemental Reserve Fund for the more unpredictable events that, while likely to occur at some point are not predictable on any engineering basis. For example, a Special Assessment was needed in the recent past to pay for the replacement of all existing perimeter trees due to a universal infestation. To minimize a reoccurrence of that, a Supplemental Reserve Fund could be established with a dedicated funding source. Such a fund could be used to pay for brick wall maintenance, drainage issues, tree replacement, sprinkler system replacement, and accent lighting.
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VI. Mayfair of McLean the Community
A. Role of Community Volunteers
The strength and backbone of Mayfair of McLean are our volunteers. Our community volunteers bring expertise from a wide variety of vocations and career endeavors to focus on the betterment of the Mayfair of McLean community.
Countless hours are spent by our community volunteers in meetings, assignment preparation and implementation of specific activities. We need to continue to encourage additional participation of volunteers in all aspects of the community.
The following are Mayfair of McLean’s current volunteers and the role they fulfill in our community:
Officers:
President - John Mockoviak
Vice-President - Harold Damelin
Secretary - Julie Warren
Treasurer - Harriet Damelin
Board of Directors:
John Mockoviak
Harold Damelin
Julie Warren
Bruce Louiselle
William Wilhoyte
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Committee Members:
· Design Review Committee
- Chair- Harold Damelin
- Rick Jensen
- Rich Martinez
· Landscaping Committee
- Chair - Ramona Mockoviak
- Carol King
- Bruce Louiselle
· Hardscape Committee
- Chair - William Wilhoyte
- Joelle Van Over
- Scott Sirlin
· Webmaster
- Sing Lee
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Special Projects -Task Forces:
· Fairfax Water Authority Project
- Terry Marlow - Project Leader
· Alternative Funding Task Force
- Chair - Ramona Mockoviak
- Larry Warren
- Paul Malarkey
- John Mockoviak
· Funding Reserve Analysis Task Force
- Bruce Louiselle
- Ronald Taylor
- Bill Wilhoyte
- John Mockoviak
B. Building a Sense of Community
What is building a sense of community? How does this apply to Mayfair of McLean HOA? The following is a brief attempt to answer these two questions outlining four important aspects of ’’building a sense of community.”
MEMBERSHIP: A sense of community starts with membership, which is a feeling a homeowner has in belonging to the community and can identify with other homeowners who also live in Mayfair of McLean.
INFLUENCE: The sense of community extends to a feeling of being able to influence the community in positive ways. And recognize the opportunities to become more involved in the direction of committees, task forces and the board.
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INTEGRATION AND FULFILLMENT OF NEEDS: This is when the needs of Mayfair of McLean and the individual homeowner align in a manner that is beneficial to both. We need to talk about milestones (community and individuals), achievements and life success. We have underutilized our website to feature contributions of our homeowners.
We have a highly educated, talented and successful community of great people. Let’s not keep it a secret.
SHARED CONNECTIONS: And finally building a sense of community involves shared connections. Mayfair of McLean should be a place where we feel comfortable discussing the most interesting topics without concern of negativity. It should be a community where we feel comfortable sharing a joke or a story with a neighbor. Most of all we should enjoy our community and have fun.
In 2019 we will resurrect community social gatherings in the circle at the end of our community. We will attempt to foster more community involvement in managing Mayfair of McLean. This should include homeowner surveys, opinion polls and questionnaires on a wide variety of topics ranging from financial issues, to landscaping needs, to infrastructure concerns, to what homeowners would like in our website and other important issues.
Community service is the rent we pay for living.