Updated: Jul 24, 2022
July 4th – also known as Independence Day – is a time to celebrate America. The holiday marks the day in 1776 when the Second Continental Congress unanimously adopted the Declaration of Independence, signaling the official separation of the 13 original colonies from Great Britain amid the Revolutionary War.
NEWS FOR THIS MONTH
Hello dear neighbors. By the time you read this, summer will have officially begun. I hope you all enjoy a relaxing couple of months with family. If you are traveling, be safe and have a wonderful time! Below, you will find items I wish to share for the month of July (in no order).
Happy Birthday Southwest Ranches! We are celebrating 22 years as a town…our “Copper Jubilee”!
If you are traveling, please utilize the Davie Police Department’s Vacation Watch Program…it will give you an amazing piece of mind. Go to https://www.frontlinepss.com/daviepd (vacation watch) to complete the form.
Storm season is upon us…emergencies happen…for our elderly, at-risk, or vulnerable population, we are here for you. Here are a few items I would like to bring to your attention (if you need anything, do not hesitate to reach-out to your SRHOA board):
You may register with the Vulnerable Population Registry online at Broward.org/atrisk. If you do not have access to a computer, you may call Town Hall at 954.434.0008, the Broward County Call Center at 311, or 954.831.4000.
The following link will take you to the Directory of Resources for Broward County Senior Citizens (an extensive guide of senior services and help agencies) https://www.adrcbroward.org/sites/default/files/documents/20192020adrcresourcedirectory.pdf
The Davie Police Department provides services as well through their At-Risk Resident application. Please visit https://www.frontlinepss.com/daviepd to apply.
If you believe you are witnessing illegal fishing or hunting of our local wildlife, please call the Davie Police Department immediately at 954.693.8200. Try to gather visual information (vehicle color, plate, descriptions of persons involved, etc.) but do not get physically involved or put yourself in harm’s way.
The Waggler welcomes articles from the SRHOA and its town council members. Thank you to our neighbor Nadine Elkoury, Councilman Bob Hartmann, and Vice-president DaNell D’Alfonso for this month’s submissions (DaNell is spearheading the “Officer of the Month” series).
Although the 4th of July celebration is approaching, not all members of the community welcome the loud noises which take place. By this, I am referring to our pets and livestock. I would like to share the following, as taken from the Town of Davie:
Chapter 791 of the Florida Statutes provides that the illegal use of fireworks is a first-degree misdemeanor, which means those convicted could face up to a year in prison, a $1,000 fine, and court costs. Section 7-3 of the Town Code also prohibits exploding of any fireworks within 1,000 feet of any livestock enclosure, stable or kennel. The general public can legally purchase and use sparklers and similar novelty items that do not explode or launch into the air, while large public fireworks shows may be conducted only by way of a Town-issued license.
Phantom Fireworks has some animal-friendly products you may wish to explore (https://fireworks.com/blog/noiseless-fireworks)
Mail theft is still an issue. Do not become a victim. The USPS provides a service called “informed Delivery” that might minimize people becoming victims. Anyone in a household can sign up on this link: https://informeddelivery.usps.com/box/pa... and follow the instructions on the page. This service is a daily email of any scannable pieces of mail and notifies the person of any packages coming as well as that day with the package tracking number. Though nothing is 100% guaranteed, it’s something people can use in case of package interception or stolen re-routed credit card pickups.
The property appraiser’s office has vital information on protecting yourself from fraud, keeping your deed safe from thieves, and new exemptions on the horizon. Please visit Marty Kiar’s property appraiser site at http://bcpa.net/
The David Police Department needs used horse tack (halters and lead ropes). We are hoping to equip all their cars with at least one set in case of any large animal emergencies.
Should you be in need of mosquito spraying, go to https://browardcountyfl.qscend.com/311/request/add to complete the application. You will be sent an email and/or text verification for your request.
The future Saving Sage Animal Shelter & Clinic is located on Commercial Blvd in Sunrise, FL and offers 5,000 square feet of interior space plus a large outdoor lot. It has the potential to be a dream, state-of-the-art animal rescue facility. The clinic will be one of few low-cost spay/neuter and vaccine facilities in South Florida, which helps to reduce the overabundance of homeless animals on our streets. To support this amazing organizing, please visit https://givebutter.com/savingsage
The Traffic and Safety Board has submitted their traffic calming/safety requests to the town. The expenditures, which will be covered by forfeiture funds, were unanimously approved at the June 9th Council meeting. Items will include laser radar guns, signage, flashing speed mounts, and added patrols. Thank you to our SRHOA neighbor, Ed Gonzalez, for his work on this important board.
REMINDERS
Support Southwest Ranches’ Certified Community Habitat status by certifying your own backyard through the National Wildlife Federation’s backyard habitat program…it is easy, plus you may purchase and proudly display a certification sign. Go to nwf.org/certifiedwildlifehabitat today to certify. Plant of the month: Firebush. A great pollinator, bird, and mammal friendly plant, this showy native will be a welcome addition to any South Florida yard. Plant it, sit back, and enjoy the show!
Mayor Breitkreuz’s next “Q & A with Mayor Breitkreuz,” along with the SWR Farmers’ Market, will resume in September. We ask you stay connected for updates.
Remember, the Council meets face-to-face at Town Hall on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month. Occasionally, dates may change. Please check the Southwest Rancher and/or www.southwestranches.org for meeting dates, times, and agendas. Internet viewing is also an option, just go to your YouTube connection and type “Town of Southwest Ranches Official Channel.”
Please stay connected…join our SRHOA Gmail (sunshinerancheshoa@gmail.com), visit our website (www.sunshineranches.org), or view our posts at facebook.com/SunshineRanches.
As always be safe, be happy, and be loved.
Chris
President Christine Brownlow introduced Mac Rivenbark as a new board member. He is a veteran and a resident of our town. Chris called the meeting to order at 7:37 PM and asked Mac to take us through the Pledge of Allegiance. Chris welcomed everyone and acknowledged veterans as part of Memorial Day. Next month’s meeting will be on Wednesday, June 29 via Zoom.
Davie Police/Crime Report: Detective Hobales provided his update: 87 citations in SWR, and 42 in Sunshine Ranches. Crime overall was light, however, there are catalytic convertors being stolen throughout the area. He urged residents to keep cars close to their houses, locked and in a well-lit area. Det. Hobales has stressed repeatedly for residents not to leave keyfobs in their cars. Finally, there was a horse rescue today from a canal.
Chris would like to do an Officer of the Month on The Waggler to highlight the Davie Police members and introduce them to the community. We have 14 officers assigned to us. Jason Halberg, Treasurer, also suggested alternating with Fire Department as “Get to know your First Responders”. We are looking for articles for The Waggler and Det. Hobales will consider writing an article. Chris also raised concerns about the elderly population in our area.
Town Council Member Comments: Mayor Steve Breitkreuz led off with great news about Volunteer Rd and Sheridan: there will be no northbound traffic leaving Holman Automotive onto 148th Ave. (Volunteer Road). Initially, the Council did a resolution opposing the change and after a lot of back and forth, Davie has taken the same position as us, and while not yet final, the Mayor was encouraged that it will not pass.
Hurricane season is here and we need to make sure that we plan early before important items run out. Please prepare! Special meeting on Thursday, June 2 regarding the sale of the property out west (west of SW 196), CCA property which the Town bought and is now selling. We have a reputable buyer; will be warehouse use and low impact since it’s not near homes. Mayor is very happy with this and thanked the administration, esp. Keith.
Gary Jablowski gave an update on several items: Green Meadows phase 2 is about completed; Dykes Road drainage is underway, Transportation TSDR is continuing; Guard rails on Stirling and Hancock are complete. Also gave brief updates on other items including the America Rescue plan, and a Federal community request: Our community rating system at 100% will help our flood insurance rates to go down.
Sally Broken asked Mr. Jablowski about the Church property lot which is now up for sale which was to be developed by resident/developer Carlos Martinez. Gary is advocating for larger lots and proposed the Rural Ranches Plus (RR+) as a new zoning category. We currently have Rural Ranches (RR) and Rural Estates (RE). RR is 2 net acres, which is the lot size for Mr. Martinez’s proposed development. Sally expressed that she has sat on the county board for years and that 2 net acres are very acceptable for lot size. We had a rich discussion by many members who expressed their opinion and support of keeping the lot size at 2 net acres (RR) for the proposed new development as presented by developer Martinez. With respect to our current zoning, the developer is complying. Most of us live under RR and many who live on the east side of SWR expressed support of the existing plan. Councilmember Gary stated that he heard us loud and clear. Jason said that we want to work together and asked for support. In summary, President Chris said that it is needful that the community’s opinions be heard, since we reached out to the community and got a unanimous vote by attendees at the February 23rd SRHOA meeting.
Councilmember Bob Hartmann praised the Davie Police’s Homeowners Vacation Extra Watch. You must set it up about 1 week in advance. Davie will watch your house 2 days to 2 weeks and will visit your house. This is a free service and he encouraged residents to use it! Finally, Bob advised that his 4 year term as Councilman is coming up and he will be running again this year.
Councilman David Kuczenski wrote an article in the DRW explaining Quasi-Judicial which will be coming out next issue. David was very adamant about the U-Turn issue having an eastbound northbound turn onto Volunteer Rd., which is a significant win for us. We passed a resolution opposing this and the Mayor was very diligent in his actions. Also supported Davie Vacation Watch.
President’s report. We sent a card to Senator Book, regarding her dad who has cancer. George Callis sent $1000 for the Scholarship Fund. Gave a shout-out to the Parkers who have a 48 anniversary in late May. Also gave an update about our elderly community. Chris wants to create an Elder Help Group, in conjunction with the blessing of the Town and the Council. We had a great discussion on how to identify the needs and people who need assistance, as well as how to get residents involved in this. Other items: School will be out, so please remember the 25 MPH limit. July is award presentation for scholarship recipients. The August meeting will be in person at Wunderbar.
VP report: we now have a new Communications person who will help, esp. with social media. Will look for fun and upbeat ways to feature and support our neighborhood.
Treasurer’s report: Balance $37,093 as of April 30, 2022. We also had a discussion about our budget and how it is split, including the expense side of the budget, the largest portion of which is the production of the The Waggler. We will show the breakout in a future Waggler.
Membership report: 233 members.
Meeting was adjourned at 9:22 PM.
Jason Halberg advised that President Christine Brownlow’s would not be in attendance. He introduced DaNell D’Alfonso as the new Vice President for the SRHOA. The meeting was called to order at 7:37 PM by DaNell and Jason led us in the Pledge of Allegiance. DaNell welcomed everyone. Next month’s meeting will be on Wednesday, February 23rd via Zoom.
Davie Police/Crime Report: Detective Hobales provided an update. 133 citations in SWR, 42 in Sunshine Ranches. Crime overall was light, however, there are catalytic convertors being stolen throughout the area. He urged residents to keep cars close to their houses, locked and in a well-lit area. Detective Hobales introduced Det. Jessica Wollschlager, the Town’s expert auto theft detective.
Det. Hobales has stressed repeatedly for residents not to leave keyfobs in their cars. Firearms and keyfobs are being left in cars and there have been “rumors” spreading around about this area being a good target for thefts due to cars being left unlocked.
A resident asked about 911 calls not being answered, which was on the local news recently, and wanted to find out about response times. Detective Hobales confirmed that there is a staff shortage at this time.
Town Council Member Comments:
Mayor Steve Breitkreuz advised that the Farmers Market will be held this Saturday and that it will be the last market until the fall. All of the vendors and participants have been very pleased with this new addition to our town. The location is the southwest corner of Dykes and Griffin Roads and the time is from 10 am to 2 pm.
Councilman David Kuczenski… FPL has been installing underground powerlines on Luray and Mustang Roads and is putting transformers in front of every road. This does not include AT&T or Comcast lines, just FPL. Want to know if we want to have an FPL rep come to the next HOA meeting or have a separate meeting for the whole town. Each Homeowner will have to give an easement to FPL and we will need to come up with a decision. FPL published info about how flooding could affect electric service with underground power lines vs. above the ground powerlines.
Judy Parker had reiterated her concern about heavy traffic on Mustang. Luray will be the next road to be paved, so the concern is that folks are crossing over to get to Franklin Academy. Concern about speeding and heavier traffic. Shotz community is also concerned about the increased traffic. Carlos Martinez asked about the clean-up of our canals and what we can do. David said that it is Central Broward’s jurisdiction. In the past, they used to clean the canals but there is no funding for cleaning of the canals at this time.
Councilman Jim Allbritton thanked the board for the invitation to the great Party at the Park which took place in April. Residents in Green Meadows are very pleased with the Farmers Market. He also gave a shout-out to the Sheik run, as $10,000 was raised for the Scholarship Fund. He invited all to the committee meeting on May 3 to help address the speeding issues on Volunteer Road and throughout. Earth Day at Caloosa Park was a success, new plants were put in. Finally, Green Meadows District 3 is working to get its Association back together! Looking forward to having that up again, and they will be joining us by the end of the year.
DaNell introduced Carlos Martinez, a town resident, and developer who bought the land on Griffin and Hancock from the Baptist Church. The closing was 2 months ago and he sent a copy of the warranty deed to Jason. Looking forward to getting the project started. Mr. Mayor and Councilmembers Jim and David signed off to allow Carlos to speak freely. Mr. Martinez shared his vision and current site plan for the development: 16 lots on 40 acres, each 2 acres net, not 2 acres plus (gross per lot is 2.5 acres); provide horse trails, including an interior horse trail in the development. Will not be public roads. All properties will slope toward their own pond, so no water will be passed on to others, thus maintaining all water on site. Mr. Martinez wants to have full support and for all neighbors to feel involved. He said that as a resident and as a neighbor himself, he wants to feel the needs. He has spoken to Andy Burns and Councilmembers. Will not be putting any entrances into the community.
There were several questions and discussions. Many residents showed support and some said that this is the best development plan yet. DaNell thanked him and shared that President Chris is in support.
President’s report. May meeting will be on Zoom. In the summer, will look to do some in-person meetings. Picnic in the Park was great; we had $450 in donations and added several new members. We will be doing a Military Tribute in the May Waggler. The Plaques are up!
Treasurer’s report: Balance $36,437 as of March 31, 2022.
Membership report: 233 members.
Meeting was adjourned at 9:21 PM.