Happy Mardi Gras, Richlanders!
You survived New Years and Lunar New Years. While Feburary barely qualifies as a month, there is still lots going on! Today is Groundhog Day (February 2nd). Will Phil predict an early spring or six more weeks of winter? Only time will tell. If you don't like groundhogs, you can always celebrate National Tater Tot Day (and really, who doesn't love a good crunchy tot!). Then the Krewe of Richland Mardi Gras Ball on Feburary 11, followed quickly by the Super Bowl on Feb 12. And then, of course, there's the big one: Valentine's Day on February 14th. Grab your sweetie or hit the town with your single friends for a night of love and romance... or pizza and binge-watching, whichever you prefer. And fittingly, Mardi Gras this year is Febuary 21, followed by Nationaly Margarita Day on the 22nd!
So whether you're a fan of Groundhog Day, Super Bowl Sunday, Valentine's Day, or Tug of War, or the Battle of the Alamo, we've got a little something for everyone this February. Get ready to celebrate!
Krewe of Richland Mardi Gras Ball (2/11)
Dust off your finest evening attire, don your fanciest masquerade mask and FIND A BABYSITTER for the Krewe of Richland’s first ever Mardi Gras Ball (adults only). There will be food (just a few Louisiana favorites: gumbo, jambalaya, red beans & rice), music provided by the Richland HOA sound specialists, and dancing the night away. Bring your own alcoholic beverages, if desired. This is an adult only neighborhood event. We have had a lot of interest in this event and there are only a few spots left before we hit our capacity limit. Email graduates@richlander.com with the names of the adults attending from your household today!
Social Committee
HAPPY 2023 from the Richland Social Committee!
- Christina Arrington
- Gani Banire-Shittu
- Kathy Burnette
- Cornell Cullom
- Carol Frye
- Jill Jones
- Maritza Makemson
- Natasha Thompson
- Gabe Thompson
Huge Thank You for all that you do to make Richland a great place to live!
We hope you had an opportunity to join the Social Committee in some of the wonderful community events last year! We had a fun packed year and are gearing up for an even greater 2023! This year we want to increase the engagement from our community.
Please check Richland Facebook and go to the Events tab or download the NABR app to stay connected with what is planned every month! You don't want to just hear about the fun your neighbors are having, you want to be a part of the fun!
Bingo returns Wednesday, February 15th, 7pm at the Clubhouse.
If you would like to volunteer at any of the events, email us at social@richlander.com.
The Richland Social Committee
Amenities and Activities
- The Richland Book Club usually meets the 4th Tuesday of every month at 7pm at the Clubhouse. Please contact Ingrid Shell directly at ingrid.r.shell@gmail.com for more details.
- Bingo is generally held the 3rd Wednesday of every month at the Clubhouse. Bingo retrns Febuary 15th. Please check the FB Page, or email Social@richlander.com for more information.
- Tennis - Please remember, Richland only allows one reservemycourt.com account per household. You can have multiple names attached to each account; if you have duplicates, we have started deactivating accounts.
- Pool - it's still closed, no we won't be opening it up for ice baths!
Senior Adults May Qualify for Tax Breaks
Older adults qualify for some tax breaks in Gwinnett. Residents who are 65 or older as of January 1 with Georgia taxable income below $112,048 might qualify for the Senior School Tax Homestead Exemption. An emissions waiver is available for seniors 65 or older whose vehicles are at least 10 years old and driven less than 5,000 miles per year. To check eligibility and apply, visit GwinnettTaxCommissioner.com/Seniors.
Richland Nature Series
The first Nature Series was a wild success! We had almost 50 residents attend. Join us
March 2nd at the clubhouse as we invite expert speakers to share their knowledge about our furry, finned, feathered, slimy, and supernatural neighbors. Clearly, we're not afraid to get down and dirty with the grossest, most intriguing, and paranormal creatures on the planet - or at least in Richland!
March 2nd at the clubhouse as we invite expert speakers to share their knowledge about our furry, finned, feathered, slimy, and supernatural neighbors. Clearly, we're not afraid to get down and dirty with the grossest, most intriguing, and paranormal creatures on the planet - or at least in Richland!
- March 2nd @ 6:30p: Professors Mia Malloy and Jill Penn from the GGC Bird Lab will present "Backyard Birds: Who are they and What do they want?
- April: Amphibians and Reptiles
- May: Bats
- June: Buttworms!
Whether you're a nature enthusiast or just looking for a fun and educational evening out, Richland Nature Series has something for everyone. So mark your calendars and get ready to go wild with Richland Nature Series!
Quinton Place Sidewalk
The HOA Board would like to extend a special thanks to Margo Meeks. When the Richlad HOA petitioned the county to put a sidewalk along Quinton Place (this was quite some time ago), we were told to reach out to the Department of Transportation. At the last town hall meeting, She also reminded our County Commissioner about the need for the sidewalk. She stayed engaged with the DOT who reached out to her not long ago then it all got put into motion. Margo, thanks for all of the time and effort you put into getting that sidewalk! It was like Christmas morning, waking up to find the County was pouring concrete and a new sidewalk being gifted! Your tax $$$$ at work! Woo Hoo!!!
Advocacy Opportunities
Thanks also to Don Tam, our HOA Board Member who has committed his time and passion to connecting with our various elected officials. He's coordinated 2 town hall meetings at the clubhouse and invited various elected or appointed representatives. We'e mentioned concerns with the schools (safety, staffing, etc), the sidewalk, the lakes, etc. Two issues we feel we can as a neighborhood be impactful:
- Lake Sedimentation - we continue to elevate the need for County involvement in remediating the sediment that has accumulated in the regional watershed lakes. This impacts the water quality and increases the flood risk both within Richland as well as downstream of the lakes. Several residents have emailed our county commissioner Matthew Holtkamp. We are planning to meet with him and other county officals again this month.
- Schools and Education - We are also encouraging as many people as possible to attend the upcoming Gwinnett County School Board meeting February 27 @ 7pm to share your concerns around Teacher Retention, School Discipline and Education. We invited our school board Representative Steve Knudsen to our Town Hall - but he chose not to respond to our request. His term expires Dec 2026.
Richland HOA Management Updates
It's time for another exciting update on all the community projects your HOA is tirelessly working on (because let's face it, nothing is more exciting than reading about the lighting). Without further ado, let's dive into all the thrilling updates on the various projects we've got going on around the neighborhood. Just try not to fall asleep before we get to the part about the pressure washing.
Clubhouse
- Adjusted the LED Pool light down due to lake owner complaint. Light was located on the dumpster side of the pool deck – completed
- Clubhouse furniture – helped assemble furniture and installed furniture pads on the bottom feet of the new furniture.
- Handicap ramp repair/re-enforce decking $2,850 - completed
- Removing and rebuild front steps to clubhouse $3,650 - completed
- Repair steps and re-enforce decking from main pool gate to upper clubhouse $1750 – completed
- New cameras, 32 channel recorder - $9,450 – standing by for updated quote for additional camera to cover exit for big parking lot Landscaping/Grounds
- Completed mulching behind lower tennis pavilion
- 1 Bridge will be rebuilt between upper and lower courts - $18k – requesting updated quote.
- Still researching options for feature pool enhancement. Budget approved for project - $40k-$60k
- Requested quote from AMS to replace waterline tile and plaster both pools:Waterline tile = $13,000
- New step ladders = $2,660
- Main Pool Plaster = $31,600
- Feature Pool = $17,300
- Total = $64,560
Tennis
- Windscreen for lower tennis courts - installed
- Lower tennis pavilion remove rotten landing and replace with step $2,500 – completed
- Pressure washing and re-staining lower tennis pavilion – Sourceone $1500
Other
- Portsmouth Entrance –– Proposal for landscape concept design work $2,800 and construction documents $2,300 – total $5,100. We may need to budget $40-$50k actual construction – expect to have concept in about 2 weeks
- Lake OCS maintenance – Date is estimated to be sometime in 2023.
- Richlake Bathymetric Study - The Study was conducted in December. The report indicates there is approximately 53,119.1 cubic yards of soft sediment, with an average sediment depth of 3.78 feet. Over time, the accumulation of sediment throughout the waterbody will decrease the water volume, which decreases the flood buffering capacity and can lead to flooding and increased shoreline erosion. The Board is evaluating next steps.
Other Unnoffical Business
As many of you may know, we recently elected new board members (See Below). Now, many of us have titles that make us feel egotistical and self-important. Just ask the Treasurer - he's gone to Hawaii 5 times this month, and it's only Feb 2nd! Anyway, our beloved "Member-at-Large" feels left out and wants to go on his own power trip.
We've tried explaining that the Member-at-Large has all the same responsibilities and privileges as other members of the board, but he just won't listen.
Since we have no legal authority to vote or make any decisions through online polling, we figured this is the best approach to take care of this issue.
So, listen up! Do you think it's time to shake things up and give our beloved Member-at-Large a makeover? Should we ditch the old-fashioned moniker and embrace the future with a new, high-tech title? Should we rename our Member-at-Large position and give him the honorary title of "Director of Scientific Programming"? He guarantees us that with this title, we'll be on the cutting edge of innovation and will ensure that the Richland HOA is always ahead of the curve.
Let your voice be heard!
Newly Elected Positions
Dr. Jay Bulot – President
Alan Meeks – Vice President
Don Tam– Treasurer
Jill Jones – Secretary
Dr. Ricky Fiorillo – Member at Large
Stay up to date with all the happenings in the Richland Community. Download the NABR Network App for your phone, or check it out on the website. Once you set up your account, you set your preferences to receive communications through text message alerts or opt to receive the same information via email or you can just regularly check the community feed for updates. Additionally, you are able to pay dues, reserve the clubhouse and submit ACC requests all virtually.
The Richland HOA also has a private Facebook Group. If you haven't yet joined, you can do so by following the this link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/richlandhoa.
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