Hidden Springs/Estates
Spring Newsletter 2021
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Spring greetings, Hidden Springs/Estates residents. We hope you enjoy our quarterly newsletter, which highlights neighborhood news, area happenings and other useful community information. To contact the HOA, you can email us or visit our website.
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Message from the President |
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Dear Neighbors,
Happy almost spring! It's that time of year again -- a time of renewal. As you all know, we have a Yard of the Quarter program that is sponsored by John Scolaro, our long-time resident and real estate agent. John graciously donates a $50 gift certificate to each winner of the Yard of the Quarter. Take a look at your exterior and landscaping. Can it use some refreshed flowers? New sod? Let's get some competition going! Make it fun! Let us know what improvements you made – we’d love to hear!
Our big money project this quarter was repairing the cement wall that abuts Dr. Phillips Boulevard. Most of you know that we DO NOT carry liability insurance on our walls. It's too expensive, and we don't have enough money to carry it. The wall was crashed into a few months ago by a Volkswagen, and there was a big gaping hole. Fortunately, we were able to identify the driver's vehicle and file a claim with the driver's insurance company. Since we were having that section repaired, we used some of our HOA funds and had the entire wall shored up. A brick mason repaired the cracks created by years of settling and painted the entire 625-foot wall. We hope you all are happy with the results. The more we do as a community, the stronger our property values become. See below in the newsletter for before-and-after photos.
Speaking of property values and beautifying Hidden Springs/Estates… We have a big problem, especially around the Pin Oak/Sago Palm area. We STILL continue to find dog waste bags throughout the neighborhood. One of our Board Members has picked up at least 25 full bags in just the past few weeks. There are also reports of bags being thrown into neighbors' yards, which is not very neighborly. We have even placed additional signage in an effort to reach who might be doing this. Please keep an eye out, and if you see this happening, please kindly ask the person to take their waste home to dispose. We appreciate your assistance with cleaning up after your pets and in general.
Hurricane season is not too far off. Please start thinking about what preparations you need to make, and trim your trees so they don’t cause damage to your property or a neighbor’s during a storm.
Finally, a couple of our board members have reported uneven sidewalks to Orange County. If you're a walker, please upload the Orange County 311 app to report uneven sidewalks. They will come out and repair. It's a danger if someone trips. Actually, anything you see that is within County Code Violations, you can use the app to anonymously report. You can report things like: A car blocking the sidewalk, grass that is 18 inches high, cars that are abandoned. The County is pretty good at coming out. If we all work together, we can keep Hidden Springs/Estates an attractive neighborhood to live in. It truly takes a village.
Thank you, and as always, please let us know if there is anything the Board can do for you.
Sincerely,
Donna Fontaine
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By Treasurer Tina Dottino
Thank you to all who have paid their 2020-2021 dues so far! To date, 185 families have paid their dues, and a few new families in our neighborhood have contributed as well. I would like to extend an extra special thank you to those who have paid more than the suggested amount, and to those who have paid past dues as well! The funds go toward providing for the safety and security of our residents with entrance lighting and Sheriff’s safety patrols. Dues also provide for the maintenance, irrigation and landscaping of our common areas. We’ve had a few unanticipated expenses this year with damage to the walls around our neighborhood. A car crash caused considerable damage to the wall on Dr. Phillips Boulevard this past fall. An insurance payment did cover the damage for that small section, but the Board decided to invest in repairing and repainting the entire length of the wall, which was in dire need of the upgrade. We could not do these maintenance tasks without your support. If you haven’t donated to the HOA, please consider making your $110 contribution when you receive your reminder notice to help offset some of these unanticipated, and unbudgeted, expenses. In addition, PayPal is a safe, easy, convenient way to make your donation! It all goes toward improving our neighborhood. Click here to read more and view this year's budget.
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Wall Repaired and Repainted |
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In November, a car hit the wall along Dr. Phillips Boulevard. The Board hired a brick mason to repair the hole that was caused by the accident. Once repaired, the entire wall (625 feet long and 5 feet high) was pressure washed and repainted. The driver's insurance covered the hole repair, pressure washing and repainting, but the wall was in need of additional work that was not caused by the accident. The Board voted to go ahead and have the brick mason repair the settlement cracks and block separation before repainting the wall. You can see by the before-and-after photos how great an improvement. |
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Yard of the Quarter: 5749 Cedar Pine Dr. -- Brandan Molthan |
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Congratulations to Yard of the Quarter Winner Brandan Molthan at 5749 Cedar Pine Dr. Brandan is no stranger to Dr. Phillips. Having grown up in Orange Tree, he attended Dr. Phillips Elementary, Southwest Middle and Dr. Phillips High. At the age of 21, he worked hard, saved his money and eventually purchased the home on Cedar Pine in 2015. Quite a feat for such a young age. Brandan now has two adorable children: McKinley, age 6, and Olivia, age 4.
Brandan has worked in the construction field since he was 15. After working for various companies, he recently started his own construction company called McKinley Contracting (yes, named after his oldest daughter). His company is a full-service construction company. They can do everything from full builds to re-roofing to all types of renovations. No job too small; no job too big.(Brandan@mckinleycontracting.com)
After purchasing the home on Cedar Pine, he went to work. He removed all the overgrown bushes and trees. After clearing the landscape, he noticed the home looked kind of like a farmhouse; similar to what he had seen in Dallas, Texas, when he worked a stint there. He saw homes in Dallas with a black accent wall, which inspired him to paint his house black.
In addition, he replaced the entire front lawn and planted Podocarpus along the front and sides of the home. He changed the walkway of the home from a curved cement walkway to square pads separated by decorative rocks that lead to the front of the home. He also had a mailbox built.
Our dedicated Yard of the Quarter sponsor, John Scolaro with Coldwell Banker Realty, awarded Brandan a $50 Ace Hardware gift certificate. Thank you, John, for your generous support!
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Real Estate Market Update |
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Orlando's Market (February 2021) |
There are fewer homes on the market to start off in 2021. More people are moving to Central Florida, furthering the gap between supply and demand. The Orlando metropolitan area gained 60,977 new residents in 2020, the most in the last five years. Buyers are quickly snatching up available homes. In January, homes spent an average of just 40 days on the market versus 60 days in January 2020.
Hidden Springs/Estates Activity
Sales closed December through February 22 between $340,000 and $405,000 with the average sales price at $368,750. There were three homes sold with pools, three homes were financed and one home was a cash transaction. As of February 23, there are no homes currently on the market in Hidden Springs/Estates. As the spring buying season approaches, it’s a great time to contact your resident Realtor for advice to prepare your home and take advantage of the current market conditions.
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Real Estate Report for Hidden Springs/Estates
November 17, 2020 - February 22, 2021
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All content displayed above is deemed reliable, but not guaranteed. Website users are advised to verify all information with their real estate representative. Copyright® My Florida Regional MLS DBA Stellar MLS. Digital Millennium Copyright Act Take-Down Notice
Feel free to contact John Scolaro with Coldwell Banker Realty at 407-230-5567 or email orlandorealtor.john@gmail.com if you're thinking about selling your home and would like a free market home evaluation.
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Holiday Lights Contest Winners |
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Thank you to all those who made our neighborhood bright and festive this holiday season! We awarded three winners for our Holiday Lights Contest. They were all awarded a $25 gift certificate to The Home Depot. The lights on Pitch Pine were even synchronized to music!
Jeremy and Vania Perdomo
5852 Pitch Pine Drive
Sheila, Terri and David Webb
7801 Pine Haven Court
Ernest and Marcia Lynn
5055 Caspian Court
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Your annual contributions help Hidden Springs/Estates pay for a deputy to watch out for suspicious activity, monitor motorists' speed and help protect our community overall.
Safety Report November-January
There have been some incidents of door-to-door solicitation. Remember, this is a NO SOLICITING neighborhood. Signs are posted at all entrances. Please do not let solicitors in your house or buy anything from them. If you are interested in what they are selling, please call the company directly and make an appointment. Let's continue to stay vigilant and report any suspicious activity.
If you notice anything suspicious in the neighborhood, please call 407-836-HELP (4357) for a non-emergency or 911 for an emergency.
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Are you missing our neighborhood events? You aren't the only one! Due to COVID-19, all of our annual and quarterly events are on hold. If you are new to Hidden Springs/Estates, you probably don't know that we have Happy Hours for adults about every three months, an Easter egg hunt in the spring and the National Night Out event in the fall. All of these have been put on hold for health and safety reasons. As a community, it is fun and essential to meet our neighbors, so as soon as restrictions ease and we are able to hold events safely, we will resume. In the meantime, stay safe and take a walk in the neighborhood. |
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Garbage and Recycling is picked up on Tuesdays for Hidden Springs/Estates residents. Yard waste and Large Items are picked up on Wednesdays. Items should be placed at the curb no later earlier than 6:00 p.m. the night before and no later than 6:00 a.m. on your scheduled collection day. Roll carts should be placed behind your home/fence or in your garage so they are no visible from the street when being stored. Frequently asked questions can be found here. For more information, please visit the Orange County website.
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Watering Days & Code Enforcement |
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You may currently water your lawn ONE DAY a week. On March 14, you can begin watering your lawn TWO DAYS A WEEK. If your irrigation system is automatic, please update it to water just one day per week if you haven't already to avoid any citations and fees. Orange County Watering Restrictions and Irrigation Schedule can be viewed here.
Now is a great time for walking. If you find a sidewalk that has become a trip hazard, please report it to 311 and the county will fix it. 311 is a great way to connect with local government services. They can help you with animal concerns, neighborhood inquiries, traffic matters, road conditions and more. You can contact them via phone, website or app. Learn more at https://www.orangecountyfl.net/Home/311HelpInfo.aspx#.YCl5sWhKg70. Try it, you'll like it.
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Established in Colombia in 2010, CFS specializes in high-quality coffee. The menu includes a wide variety of coffee drinks, breakfasts, smoothie bowls, healthy toasts, salads, bread and arepa sandwiches, artisan pastry, vegan options, all with a tasty and healthy concept around it. There are several locations, including 7535 W Sand Lake Road. |
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COMING SOON: WORLD'S LARGEST WHITE CASTLE OPENING IN ORLANDO THIS SPRING |
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White Castle's largest location in the world is coming soon near Walt Disney World at 1595 Darryl Carter Parkway. They are scheduled to open in mid-April.
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Originally scheduled to open March 2, Portillo's has pushed back their opening to March 23 due to construction delays. However, they will soon be serving up their famous Chicago-style hot dogs, Italian beef sandwiches and shakes at 7715 Palm Parkway. |
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Please welcome the following new residents to Hidden Springs/Estates! Each is given a welcome basket from the HOA filled with goodies and neighborhood information. Special thanks to Karen Butler and John Scolaro for their work in putting together and delivering these wonderful welcome baskets to our new residents each quarter. And thanks to Woof Gang Bakery next to Fresh Market for always donating items for our baskets. If you have anything you can contribute to our welcome baskets, please contact us.
Current list of sales and purchaser information:
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Pictured above:
October 23, 2020
Bernd De Graaf and Yvo Van Beek
6130 Cedar Pine Dr.
December 17, 2020
Aaron J. & Juliana M. Goff
5749 Tamarack Dr.
December 18, 2020
Audrey Fletcher
5785 Tamarack Dr.
January 21, 2021
Anthony Duarte
5717 Sago Palm Dr.
February 1, 2021
Levan Zhizhilashvili
6114 Cedar Pine Dr.
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Database Updates
Please make sure that you keep the Hidden Springs/Estates Homeowners Association updated with your latest email address and any resident name changes. We continually update our records by adding proper names and email addresses into our database. If you know someone who has recently moved in or who does not receive our emails, please tell them to contact us so they can receive our quarterly newsletters, event updates and alerts form the HOA.
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Board of Directors and Supporters |
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President
Donna Fontaine
Vice President
Fred Hawkins
Treasurer
Tina Dottino
Secretary
Charles Simonel
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Contact Management & Welcoming Director
Karen Butler
Sr. Database Director
Denise Bradley
Newsletter & Web Editor
Kendle Arribas
Orange County Code Enforcement Liaison
Anonymous
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Click here to see our supporters. If you are interested in promoting your business to Hidden Springs/Estates residents with a business card ad on our Supporters page for $25, please contact the HOA for more information.
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Although it is the Hidden Springs/Estates Homeowners Association's (HSE HOA) intent to provide accurate and up-to-date information, no warranty, express or implied, is made regarding accuracy, adequacy, completeness, legality, reliability or usefulness of any information contained on the pages of this newsletter. The HSE HOA assumes no liability for damages, incurred by the user of this information, which occur directly or indirectly as a result of errors, omissions or discrepancies in the information. The HSE HOA provides this information on an "as is" basis. The HSE HOA reserves the right to make changes and updates to the information at any time and without notice. Any person or entity who relies on information contained herein does so at his or her own risk.
Copyright © 2020. All Rights Reserved.
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