Bringing El Dorado Hills residents closer together

By Justin Masters

A number of ideas including proposed changes, programs and opportunities for El Dorado Hills residents to enjoy a better quality of life and being an integral part of this community.

• Village oriented communities accomodating to families, and also encourages pride in our respective neighborhoods and overall community.
• High quality of education in our schools.
• An active and vibrant sports program for our children.
• Diverse number of organizations that cater to many tastes and interests.

Many of us have dedicated long hours to the success of our occupations and similarly enjoy the fruits of our labors, and it is this backdrop upon which I wish to paint a portrait of what my goals are as a board member of the EDH Community Services District.

Many of us are aware that the EDHCSD has undergone a period of weakness associated with rising costs and diminished fees. It is necessary to look upon the citizens for additional resources. However, we become justifiably skeptical when we are asked solely for money to throw at our problems.

I believe that through the education, encouragement and efforts of our citizens - young and old - that we can make our existing funds go further and enable money saved to be used for bike/walking trails, sports fields or other desireable features.

Some efforts will involve personal sacrifice in forgoing programs with minimal community interest, while others will require us to stretch to attain goals that benefit the community as a whole.

What are some of the ways in which this can be accomplished?

Community Activism

1. Involvement of our community members in planning and participation of community affairs and in volunteer activities. The city of Folsom has a park my family calls "Castle Park", which was built mostly through community members help. Using an allocated budget, I'd like to see the same kind of community activism (for instance) in getting bigger playground structures for our parks with the same money we use for smaller facilities. Many people within our community have unique skills and access to resources, equipment or materials that can greatly enhance not only our parks, but also the relationships of our many residents who pitch in.

Senior Programs

2. I'd also like to invite seniors to assist one another in communications and activities in such areas as computer training, organizing and running a seniors calendar and bulletin board for the announcement of upcoming events. This might include a computer-based forum for the discussion of topics of interest or concern to them - and including those who are homebound.

An additional suggestion for seniors might be an increased interaction between seniors and children in the community in such areas as in mentoring programs, guest instructors at local schools, "adopted" grandparents/children, and similar other types of programs that generate rewards and experiences far beyond what efforts are put into it. Seniors have had rich, full lives - full of experiences that are of interest to our upcoming generations. Children likewise bring a vitality into the lives of many they touch. I'd like to encourage programs that alllow this kind of interaction in a safe environment

Wider variety, self sustainable sports/recreation/classes

3. Review our current range of recreational programs and classes offered, and their self sustenance. Cut programs that do not generate sufficient community interest and support and bring in new programs of a wide variety on an infrequent basis to stimulate personal growth and interest in other areas. Invite members of the community to make suggestions for such classes, gather names of interested residents and perhaps even teach such classes. It will bring together people of similar interests which might lead to new friendships.

CSD Web site a community hub

4. Make greater use of the CSD web site, turning it into a community hub for information. This resource could be used for:

• Agendas for CSD meetings - educating residents in the democratic process.
• Mailing lists for desired announcements (clubs, theater productions, etc)
• Complete scheduling & secure registration process online for classes, as well as accepting suggestions for new classes or inviting community members to teach or demonstrate skills that would be of interest to others.
• Notices of public interest (ie, local garage sales, vehicles for sale, new store openings, product demonstrations, business tours and presentations
• Proposed designs for parks and updated progress reports.
• Police/criminal/scam alerts
• Current & complete CC&R's for each village online
• Design Review Committee Guidelines for public review
• Downloadable forms for home improvements as well as a checklist of items necessary for successful completion, and listing acceptable materials (ie, for roofing)
• Local school functions and events
• Recognition for local community members
• Volunteer opportunities
• Shared heavy (and expensive) tool rental usage
• Local or volume discounts
• Frequently requested information (local agency phone numbers, etc)
• Volunteer run discussion lists
• and many, many more.

5. Removal of inconsistencies in our current Design Review process, while preserving CC&R (Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions) rules that maintain our property values.

We constantly hear about how we have 90-100 separate CC&R's in our area. Why is the Design Review Committee (DRC) trying to force a single set of guidelines upon all residents, and why is it not available for public review?

Some of these guidelines (and personal preferences - as evidenced in some prior decisions) violate what is stated in our respective CC&R's (a legally binding document for the homeowner).

Some changes I'd like to implement include:

• Shorter terms of service (currently 4 years) with a maximum 4 year-consecutive-total term limits for Design Review Committee members (these are appointed by the CSD board, not elected positions). Shorter terms allow more residents to participate in the process and avoid longterm personal entrenchment, biases, and unprofessional behavior.
• Variable meeting times (Currently 1 day/week at 7:30 AM)
• Published DRC guidelines for public review
• Push some of the decisions back down to a local village-level committee for local CC&R adherence.

  Not all villages require an "earth-tone" paint color that is currently expected of everybody.

  Some older homes are not built with enough architectural support to handle stone tiles. Yet these preferences (to maintain property values) are - in some cases - imposed upon some homes, including some not under the DRC jurisdiction!

• I'd also propose that CC&R violations not be tied together, especially in areas where personal or property safety is concerned.

  The first yellow house incident was a shameful demonstration in how a home's paint color held back the approval of a roof replacement that posed property and health safety concerns, and the color was ultimately deemed not in violation - after volunteers had already painted the house!

  This left a bad taste in everybody's mouth as to the occasionally arbitrary nature in which these decisions are handed down. And now we have a second yellow house case that has gone to court because of the color was deemed unacceptable - when it matched the original color the builder had put on it!

• Revive a consistent and fair level of CC&R enforcement. Many of us can point to instances where such violations lower our property values. Those violating the CC&R's often point to other scofflaws as justification for their own violations.

  The CCR's apply to our individual villages, and as such, require each of us to adhere to the rules set forth in them. Sure, it's easy to point to others to justify our own poor behavior. The cost of CCR enforcement has gone up dramatically and probably reflects growing frustration with other scofflaws and engenders the attitude of "How much can I get away with?" and pits neighbor against neighbor.

  We all need to be accountable for our actions! After all, we moved into this area voluntarily with knowledge about the CC&R's in existence that maintain our property values didn't we?

All of these ideas require effort by each of us. I believe that many of us in the community care enough to be willing to help out in small ways to accomplish many of these goals!

Like you, I want the best environment for my family to grow up in, and that's why I've chosen to run for a El Dorado Hills CSD board position. With your assistance, we can do something about it! Without public participation, we have no right to complain about what we are left with!

I hope you like some of these suggestions and I welcome new ideas. Feel free to email me at vote4justin@innercite.com, or through the CSD if I'm elected.

I ask for your support in electing me to a board member position at the El Dorado Hills Community Services District.

Thank you,

Justin Masters