Hidden Springs & Hidden Estates Neighborhood
Message from the President, Donna Fontaine
Winter 2022-23
Hi, Neighbors,
So much for a quiet hurricane season. First and foremost, I think our neighborhood did pretty well considering we had two hurricanes in six weeks. It was a good thing that many of you trimmed up your Laurel Oak trees before the storms hit. That's an important task to do every year.
I'm sure some of you noticed flooding along Pitch Pine Dr. and Hidden Springs Blvd. We have a drainage issue. The curbed area next to the easements and the streets have been retaining water for months. We had the County and water department out. According to them, there was so much rain in August and September, the water tables underground were high and weren't able to drain. Then Ian hit. Over the next few months, I'm hoping to find out if there is anything we can do drainage-wise.
We also have a problem with debris that is all over the neighborhood. I personally have been in contact with the County. What they are saying is that small piles of leaves and branches WILL NOT be picked up. It has to be placed in trashcans or garbage bags. Unfortunately, if we don't do that, the debris will stay there ad infinitum. If you have large debris that cannot be placed into trashcans or yard waste bags, please email: Darrell.Moody2@ocfl.net. He's our best resource. The more of you that email in, the quicker the response. Just remember, only large debris - not little branches and leaves.
We also had a lot of problems at two of our entrances with electrical issues. Conroy on the east side went dark. We called Duke Energy and they brought the battalion of repair trucks. They repaired what was "their portion," but we had to hire private electricians to do the rest. (See pics)
The main entrance, Pine Springs (north side), also went dark and we lost our sprinkler system for two months due to lack of electricity. We didn't really notice the grass having a problem because of all the rain in August and September, but a couple of weeks after Ian, we noticed it started turning brown. That's when we realized the meter at Pine Springs had no electric juice. Again, Duke was out, but the onus was on us to have things repaired. (See pics)
We also had a tree that was on a property on Cedar Pine that came down during Ian and broke our brick wall along Dr. Phillips Boulevard. The homeowner and Board both contributed to its repair. (See pics)
We fared well compared to many subdivisions in Orlando, so we can't complain.
On to happier news: The Board voted to get some help with Christmas decorations this year. Our current Board has been putting them up for years and years and years. Most of us are not 20 anymore, and it's getting harder and harder to climb up the walls, especially the Pine Springs entrance. We hired a company called Johannessen Lights Powered by Beacon Bay Construction. You'll have to go on YouTube and see his personal home. He opens up his home every Christmas season. My husband and I went last year. Pretty amazing and a fun thing to do during the holidays. The home has made national news a few times. Eric's company refurbished all the wreaths and swags so they're powered by electricity instead of battery. By doing that, the lights on all the decorations are whiter and brighter. Eric changed them all out to LED. We saved quite a bit of money by not having to purchase new decorations. He added a few things: Put lights up the palm trees at the Pine Springs entrance and added the lighted red bow on Pin Oak. We hope you all like them.
As you can imagine, we had a lot of additional costs. If any of you have still not paid your annual contribution of $110, please do. Your contributions are the only way we can maintain, repair and keep our subdivision attractive and safe.
The Board wishes all of you a safe and happy Holiday season. It's been quite a year. Let's hope things are calmer in 2023. Please remember to always reach out to us for questions, concerns or anything we can do to help.
Sincerely,
Donna Fontaine
HOA President