Fallsmead residents may be planning to take advantage of summer weather to repave driveways, especially in light of the group discount offered by B&B Paving. The Architectural Control Committee ("ACC") has a few reminders about driveways.

 

Modifications to or enlargements of driveway footprints are subject to ACC review and approval in accordance with the ACC's Driveway Guidelines. No review is needed if the driveway footprint remains unmodified. The Driveway Guidelines were published in the  December 2016 and February 2017 issues of the Fallsmead Forum.

 

Residents should also be mindful that intrusions into the public right-of-way are prohibited by the City and will not be approved by the ACC. Generally, the public right-of-way begins either at the top of the driveway apron if a street has no sidewalks or at the top of the sidewalk if it does. Residents may contact the City for more information about the public right-of-way. 

 

If you have any questions about how the Guidelines may apply to your situation, please send an email message to acc@fallsmead.org for a prompt reply. Thank you for your cooperation!

This week, Fallsmead.org was upgraded to a new version of the software that runs the website. Although most of the website still looks exactly the same, there are major changes to the Online Neighborhood Directory and in your personal "Your Profile" section:

Some of the changes that were made during the system upgrade require action on your part to make sure the transition from the old system to the new system was successful. PLEASE LOG IN TO YOUR FALLSMEAD.ORG ACCOUNT AND DO THE FOLLOWING (if you do not know your password, we will be sending everyone in the system a password reminder – this is also great for Level 2 users who have not used their new accounts yet!):

If you have attended a recent community meeting or have read the Fallsmead Forum, you know that the Architectural Control Committee (ACC) has been drafting guidelines for solar panel installations in the Fallsmead. The ACC's proposed guidelines, published in the last issue of the on-line Forum for community review and comment, were approved by the Board at its June meeting and are effective immediately. The guidelines comply with federal, state and local regulations and will be updated as those and the technology evolve. Similar guidelines have been successfully used in nearby communities.

 

A solar panel installation is an exterior addition as defined in the Covenants. Fallsmead residents should be aware that the ACC will use these guidelines in its review of any proposed solar panel installations. The guidelines should be  taken into account early in the planning of any installation. The ACC will work cooperatively with residents planning solar panel installations so that those installations are safe, minimize visibility to the extent practical without degrading performance significantly, and harmonious with Fallsmead's design and aesthetic.

 

Click here to see a copy of the guidelines. If you have any questions about the solar panel installation guidelines or their applicability, please contact the ACC at acc@fallsmead.org.

The Fallsmead Board has approved new ACC guidelines for trash can screens. The updated guidelines are noted below.

 

"Screens to hide trash and recycling containers are permitted subject to the following: 

Visit the FAQ and Resident's Info page to see more information about the proper storage of trash cans in Fallsmead.

Residents, if you are planning on selling your home, please be sure to contact our neighborhood treasurer, Eric Wexler, for the packet of official Homeowners Association Resale Documents.  His email address is treasurer@fallsmead.org. The fee for the HOA documents is $100.

 

You can submit a payment for your HOA resale documents by either 1) sending a check made payable to Fallsmead Homes Corporation to Fallsmead Homes Corporation, PO Box 1565, Rockville, MD 20849-1565, or 2) submitting a payment online via PayPal or credit card on our Online Payments page.

 

If you are a new resident and haven't received your new homeowner's welcome packet, please also be sure to contact Eric and he will get it to you.

If you registered at Fallsmead.org and never heard back from anyone, please let us know at communications@fallsmead.org! Once we manually approve people (which we usually do within a few hours of people registering), the website automatically generates an email that includes your password.  You should have gotten this email within 24 hours of registering.

We suspect that some of these registration emails may have gotten lost in spam for some people, but this is something that we can easily fix as long as you let us know that it is a problem.

For any future registrants, if you don't hear back within 24 hours of registering, please let us know. Thanks!