 Community. It's not just where you live, it's how you interact. Here at High Desert, we believe communication is the number one way to build our community: communication between neighbors, among homeowners and with management. This website is designed to keep every High Desert resident informed and up-to-date on the vital issues that affect us as homeowners. Here, you'll find quick access to our governing documents, policies and procedures, calendars of upcoming community meetings, copies of our latest newsletter, home improvement information, links to Village news and the e-mail addresses of your officers and directors. We hope this information will provide High Desert homeowners with what they need to know...and when they need to know it. For the latest news, scroll down. For more information on High Desert, see the Notices and Reminders page. Photo at left: An enormous, full moon rises over the Sandias on May 5th. Photo by Tom Kilroy, taken from his backyard in The Highlands. |
Recognition Dinner Honors High Desert Volunteers
 More than 65 dedicated volunteers and their guests were honored May 11 at the first annual High Desert Volunteer Recognition Dinner at Tanoan Country Club. The Board of Directors planned the evening to thank the dozens of volunteers who chair committees, serve as Voting Members, step up as Block Captains and help govern the Association. Tom Murdock, President of the Board, helped plan the evening. Three High Desert homeowners were jointly awarded the "2012 Outstanding Volunteer of the Year" award. Lynn Claffy (left), Caroline Enos (right) and Ray Berg (not shown) received the honor this year for their tireless service to the association and their community. They are shown in the photo (left) with Tom Murdock. "High Desert simply could not function without its volunteers." Tom told the gathering prior to the award ceremony. "Your willingness to give so generously of your time to the various committees and activities is a key factor in making High Desert a great community. We deeply appreciate your efforts." Tom continued, describing each committee and the volunteers who contribute their services to High Desert. His remarks follow in italics: "Perhaps the most visible committee is the Voting Members Committee, chaired by Peter Gilmour. Representatives are elected from each village and meet quarterly. Voting Members serve as a vital communication link between their village and your Board of Directors. Each year in April, they elect the members of the Board. There are 88 voting members and alternates. "The New Construction committee chaired by Ray Berg, ensures that new homes meet the requirements of the various governing documents for High Desert. There are about 100 lots remaining in High Desert. There are five members of the NCC, and they meet monthly. "The Modifications Committee, chaired by Dave Daniell, performs essentially the same function as the New Construction Committee, except as applied to any modifications to structure, landscaping, or other external features of existing homes. There are five members of the MC, which meets monthly. "Each year the Nominating Committee interviews all of the applicants for the Board of Directors, and selects the best qualified candidates for the slate presented to the VMs at the annual meeting in April. There are five volunteers on the NC. It is chaired by a Board member who is not up for re-election, and meets several times between December and March of each year. "There are three major contracts for services in High Desert – Landscaping, Courtesy Patrol, and Management. These three important contracts comprise 78 percent of our annual budget. Last year we formed a Contracts Committee for the purpose of reviewing and conducting a formal bidding process for each of these contracts. The Contracts Committee is chaired by Lynn Claffy. This process has just been completed for the management company contract, with HOAMCO the successful bidder. Now, work will begin on the Courtesy Patrol contract, and in the following year, the landscape contract. There are four members of this committee, and they meet monthly or as required. "The Landscape Committee, chaired by Ray Berg, helps to maintain the landscaping policies and practices in High Desert, recommends ways to enhance the landscaping, maintains the Demonstration Garden, and works on specific landscaping projects as needed. There are five members on this committee, and it meets monthly. "The Gated Villages Committee, chaired by Dave Bentley, is a sort of subset of the Voting Members Committee. It provides a forum for the gated village Voting Members to discuss issues directly affecting gated villages. "The Association participates in the Adopt-a-Highway program, and another group of volunteers maintains a one-mile stretch of Tramway, from Spain to north of Academy. "There are two other projects headed up by Ray Berg. High Desert Park was originally created during the development of High Desert, was deeded over to the City of Albuquerque, and is now officially a city park. However, it really doesn’t get sufficient maintenance to keep it looking nice, so there is a group of volunteers who periodically go in and clean things up. "When High Desert Investment Corporation first began the development of High Desert, they created a Demonstration Garden just to the west of High Desert Park. After a few years, the garden was not maintained and it declined. Now, another group of volunteers have brought the Demo Garden back to life. Stop by and take a look. They have done a great job of restoring it. "The Albuquerque Police Department sponsors the Neighborhood Watch program. High Desert is an active participant in this effort, and nearly all of the villages have Neighborhood Watch captains, and individual block captains. This important program helps keep homeowners aware of crime and safety issues. The HDROA Crime Prevention Committee headed by Nancy Winger works closely with the neighborhood watch program, considers ways to control crime and promote safety, and coordinates the Courtesy Patrol and APD. "The Welcome Committee holds a wine and cheese party twice a year, and prepares a welcome kit for each new family moving into High Desert. Co-Chaired by Thea Berg and Susan Gall, it gives newcomers an introduction to High Desert and helps build a sense of community. "The High Desert website and newsletter are important sources of information and news about our community. Jay Hartfield and Rebecca Murphy maintain the website, and Rebecca is the editor of the Apache Plume. "The Community Events committee currently lacks a volunteer chairperson, and so is somewhat inactive at the moment. If you would like to see more events in High Desert, you might consider volunteering or suggesting someone to help out. "And finally, there is the Board of Directors, the group that governs the affairs of the Association. There are seven members on the Board, with each member serving a two-year term. "All of you volunteer your time and energies on a committee to make our community better. But for some of you, once is not enough. The following people have volunteered for two committees: "Thea Berg: Alternate Voting Member for Overlook and Welcome Committee Co-Chair Pat Diem: Board of Directors and Contracts Committee member James DeBlois: Voting Member for Tierra del Oso and Neighborhood Watch Captain Diane Goodwin: Voting Member for Chamisa and Neighborhood Watch Captain Fred Gorenz: Voting Member for Desert Highlands and Modifications Committee member Loretta Gorman: Alternate Voting Member for Enclave and Nominating Committee member Bill Hughes: Voting Member for Pinon Point and Neighborhood Watch Captain Tom Kilroy: Alternate Voting Member for Highlands and Nominating Committee member Russ Welsch: Voting Member for Wilderness Village and New Construction Committee member Charles Wernle: Voting Member Alternate for Desert Song and Neighborhood Watch Captain Nancy Winger: Voting Member for Highlands and Crime Prevention Committee Chair Clay Wright: Alternate Voting Member for Pinon Point, and Neighborhood Watch and now a member of the Board of Directors "For some of you, twice is not enough. The following people serve on three committees  "Dave Bentley: Board of Directors Vice President, Gated Villages Committee Chair, Contracts Committee member Dave Daniell: Board of Directors, Landscape Advisory Committee member, Modifications Committee Chair Jay Hartfield: Board of Directors Pro Tem, Website/Newsletter Chair and Nominating Chair "For still more of you, three is not enough. Members of four (or more) committees include: Ray Berg: New Construction Committee Chair, Landscape Advisory Committee Chair, Adopt-a-Highway Committee Chair, Demonstration Garden Chair, Trails Maintenance Chair Lynn Claffy: Voting Member for Solterra, Nominating Committee member, Contract Committee Chair, Neighborhood Watch Captain Caroline Enos: Voting Member for Trillium, Nominating Committee member, Contracts Committee member and Neighborhood Watch Captain "When the Board was planning this event, we thought it would be appropriate to create a “Volunteer of the Year” award. But when we went to select the recipient, there was a problem, because there were three volunteers whose service to High Desert stood head and shoulders above all others. So, we decided to call it the “2012 Outstanding Volunteer” and I am delighted to award it to Ray Berg, Lynn Claffy, and Caroline Enos. "We sincerely hope that you have enjoyed the volunteer recognition dinner, and we look forward to seeing you next year. On behalf of the Association, thanks to all of you again for volunteering." Photo: Margo Murdock, Landscape Advisory Committee; Holly Buchanan, Voting Member for Aerie; and Nancy Lindas, Neighborhood Watch Block Captain, enjoy the 2012 Annual Volunteer Recognition Dinner on May 11. |
Voting Members Elect New Board Directors at Annual Meeting
| Voting Members unanimously elected four directors to the High Desert Board at their Annual Meeting April 19, 2012. The newest member of the board is homeowner Clay Wright, a four-year resident of Pinon Point. He joins three re-elected board members: David Bentley, Jr., Tom Murdock and Reg Rider. All four elected members were recommended by the Nominating Committee to Voting Members. No nominations were made from the floor. Other members of the board whose terms expire in 2013 include Dave Daniell, Mary V. Kurkjian, and Pat Diem.
Unfortunately, shortly after the Annual Meeting, Reg Rider, after many years of dedicated service to the Association, found it necessary to tender his resignation from the Board. In accordance with the Bylaws, the Board will move forward to appoint a Board member to fill this vacancy until the next election. New officers were elected by the HDROA Board of Directors at a subsequent meeting April 22. They are: Reg announced that the Board had voted to award the upcoming three-year property management contract to HOAMCO, the current holder of High Desert’s management contract.  Over the past year, the High Desert Contracts Committee, under the leadership of Lynn Claffy, conducted a formal procurement process with written proposals, reviewed eight companies, narrowed the list to five and finally recommended HOAMCO to the Board in January. HOAMCO’s new three-year contract will begin in July with an optional renewal of three individual one-year terms. HOAMCO’s CEO Justin Scott (seen in photo at right) attended the Annual Meeting and thanked the Board and Voting Members for selecting his company which has held the contract since 2002. Budget Report Mary V. Kurkjian, Treasurer for the Board of Directors, presented the Budget Report to Voting Members. The budget for the Association’s upcoming fiscal year (beginning in July) was adopted by the Board in March. Mary noted that the Master Community assessments will remain at $53 per household with only slight adjustments for several of the gated communities. She noted that High Desert insurance expenses will increase about 5 percent, management costs will remain much the same, and security expenses will rise about 2.7 percent. She noted that $1000 was reserved for neighborhood events in High Desert, adding “If your neighborhood wants to do something to increase community spirit and you need funds, just come to the board with your request.” Another $6000 was set aside for community-wide events which include Welcome Committee gatherings and any planned association wide picnics. Board Report Reg Rider, President of the Board, gave an overview of the past year to Voting Members in his Board Report. He noted that a new irrigation system has been installed which will help to reduce water use and conserve valuable resources. He praised the members of the Contracts Committee for their work reviewing property management companies this year. He said High Desert has finished the financial year in excellent shape, adding, “I can point out many associations that are not in very good shape. But High Desert is a financially solid community with no near-time worries.” |
High Desert trip to the Santa Fe Opera planned for Saturday, August 18, 2012
 High Desert residents and friends are in for a real treat at this year’s opera! We will experience Tosca, composed by Giacomo Puccini and one of the most popular operas. It is sung in Italian (with English subtitles) and features the American debut of renowned soprano Amanda Echalaz in the leading role. Thomas Hampson returns to Santa Fe in the role of the villain Scarpia, after an absence of almost three decades. Even though opera ticket prices have gone up this year, it will be well worth it. And if you have never experienced the Santa Fe Opera, Tosca is an excellent first choice.We will go by chartered bus to the restaurant Dinner for Two and then on to the Santa Fe Opera. The bus will depart High Desert Park around 4:00 p.m. and we expect to return to the Park between 12:00 and 1:00 a.m. Tickets are limited, so be sure to get yours soon. The last date of sales is June 22, 2012. Ah, Tosca! Bewitched by her glamour and charisma, even the hated Baron Scarpia called her la divina. Scarpia is the corrupt police chief and suavely cruel aristocrat before whom all Rome trembles. Scarpia fawns over Tosca while calculating how to inflame her jealousy and entrap her as a romantic conquest, and even killing him cannot put an end to his egomaniacal ruthlessness. He is a terrifying presence throughout the opera, from the opening chords through the diva’s final words, “Scarpia, I will meet you before God!” The rest of the story? Come with us and see! Questions? Call Rita Stafford at the High Desert office at 314-5862. Click here to download the Tosca Opera Form 2012 (All ticket reservations and payments must be received no later than Friday, June 22, 2012) |
Demo Garden Needs Volunteers To Take Project to Next Phase
 Want to help out on a worthy project for your community? The High Desert Demonstration Garden project needs volunteers now to erect and paint fencing, plant flowers, rake new gravel, install and repair irrigation lines, prune, identify plants and lay down stone pathways. “The Demo Garden has moved into a very active phase this spring,” said Ray Berg (shown in photo at left) who is overseeing the volunteer project. “The garden is ready for planting and we need to get projects completed before it gets too hot this summer.” Homeowners interested in volunteering for any job at the Demonstration Garden should email Ray at rsberg01@comcast.net. He will contact volunteers and arrange for tools, instructions and meeting times. “We don’t require that volunteers help out on every project,” Ray said. “If all you can do is help paint the fence this Saturday, that would be great. We need lots of people for lots of different jobs so that we can get this project up and running.”  The High Desert Demonstration Garden is located on ¾ of an acre at the High Desert Park on Academy. The Park is maintained by the City of Albuquerque, but the long-neglected Demonstration Garden has been reclaimed by High Desert volunteers working under Ray Berg. The city pays for water and has donated about two dozen small plant identification signs. The original irrigation lines and pathways were built by High Desert’s developer to highlight low-water use, native and other permitted plants for High Desert homeowners in 2001. The park was then turned over to the city but, due to budget restrictions, it was neglected. The garden rapidly became heavily overgrown with Apache plume and chamisa over the next decade, obscuring the paths and choking out plants. In August of 2010, Ray discovered blueprints of the garden and he and other residents became determined to resurrect the area as a place for residents to see living examples of plants found on the High Desert Permitted Plants list. Most of the original irrigation remained in place despite neglect, and the city agreed to begin watering the area again once the lines were repaired. The Association, through the Board, allocated limited funds last year for repairing the irrigation lines and purchasing plants and fencing. But all the labor involved in clearing and removing brush, restoring paths, pruning, repairing irrigation lines and putting up fencing has come from High Desert volunteers working weekends and evenings over the past two years. Ray estimates that High Desert volunteers have put in more than 400 hours of work since August 2010.  The Demonstration Garden paths wind just south of the High Desert Park parking lot. The new fence (see picture above, right) highlights the garden’s east boundary and points the way to the path. Trees provide shade and Ray wants a bench installed under one particularly leafy popular tree so that visitors can sit and take in the beauty of the garden. A big part of the project involves accurate identification of the existing as well as new plants so that signs (see photo at left) can be provided by the city. Volunteers will order and install new plants this spring to provide a well-rounded example of both native specifies and low water plants listed on the Permitted Plants List for High Desert. “The Permitted Plants List is not just made up of native plants,” said Ray. “It also includes a number of plants that are low-water use and that do very well here in a high desert environment.” Ray and his volunteers designed a webpage that shows photographs and descriptions of each plant highlighted in the Demonstration Garden. (Click here or click on Demo Garden in the menu bar at left.) The website address (http://DemoGarden.HighDesertLiving.net) is highlighted on a sign at the park. “People can walk through here with their iPads or tablets and see descriptions and photos of the plants they like,” Ray said. “The website will help make the Permitted Plants List accessible and useful to High Desert owners.” “We need manpower this spring,” said Ray. “We’ve done a lot so far, but now we are looking at more than we can accomplish with the number of volunteers that we have.” But Ray isn’t just looking at what needs to be done right now. He also sees the Demonstration Garden as it could be—as it will be in a few years when the biggest projects are behind and the plants have grown. “I see that eventually everything will be nicely laid out here,” he said. “The mature plants will be properly tended and there will be identification signs for all of them. There will be a wide spectrum of plants, too, that will be occasionally updated as needed by volunteers that are familiar with High Desert requirements and what grows best here. There will be well-maintained gravel paths and benches for people to sit in the shade. We’ll have a large selection of colorful flowers growing and irrigation lines to each plant. There will be a fully functional webpage with updated pictures and descriptions. This will be a very special place for High Desert residents to visit.” Ray’s vision is one that he hopes will be completed in full before too many more seasons have passed. But right now there is a fence that needs to be painted, and irrigation lines to be repaired. Plants need to be ordered and a load of gravel brought in. Work parties are scheduled for many upcoming Saturdays. “We’ve got to get to work right away,” Ray said. “We’ve got a lot to do.” Volunteers can contact Ray at rsberg01@comcast.net. |
Be a Good Neighbor ...
Keep Your Trees and Shrubs Trimmed at the Property Line
and Dispose of Your Green Waste Properly
 High Desert residents are reminded that an adjoining property owner may cut any vegetation that grows over the property line onto their land. This applies to private properties and association common property, i.e. common walls, view fence, etc. The High Desert Residential Owners Association (HDROA) will be routinely trimming tree branches, shrubs, bushes, and vegetation of any kind that extends onto the common areas, especially species that cause damage to common property. Likewise, any homeowner may trim vegetation that grows onto their property from a neighbor’s yard. Trimming vegetation from a neighboring property may only extend as far as the property line. Don’t get carried away and trim beyond that line. If you would like to control how your trees and shrubs are trimmed, you should make sure to keep all growth from your vegetation on your side of the property line. Otherwise, your neighbor or the Association may do it for you. Also, every year the association is forced to clean up green waste that is disposed of on common property, in arroyos or vacant lots, at a HDROA expense. Please refrain from this activity and if you observe it happening call Guardsmark at 362-2314. |
Who Did That?
| By Dave Janik, Community Association Manager, HOAMCO Throughout the year we encounter landscaping in common areas (medians, parks, open space, along common walls, etc.) that has been altered or removed by someone other than the landscape company the association pays to do this work. Unfortunately this leads to misshaped landscape material or dead/dying plant material because the plant is not one that tolerates pruning/topping.In some cases the plant has even been poisoned. In many instances we are able to get a pretty good idea who might have done it. The reasons range from “I don’t like that plant,” to “it causes my sinuses to act up,” to “it blocks my view.” The last comment is the one most often heard when someone complains about a plant. Unfortunately, unless specifically protected in a legal document, mountain or city views are NOT guaranteed anywhere in High Desert. The cost of this inappropriate landscape work is costly to each member of the association. Topping a pinon tree will likely result in it having to be removed and replaced. A new mature tree will cost approximately $600 for the tree and labor to remove the old tree and plant the new one. Currently there are about 12- 15 trees under consideration for replacement due to un-approved/inappropriate pruning. Additionally, if the plants are salvageable, it may take 20 hours of labor over a three to four-year period to prune them back into the correct shape plus additional labor to fertilize and water them. Each homeowner pays for this unlawful activity. When High Desert was designed, certain features were included in the planning, and landscaping was part of that plan. If you would like to have a voice in how the landscaping is done, you are encouraged to contact the landscape committee and become a part of the ongoing review process. Below  you will see pictures of landscaping performed by someone other than the association’s landscape company and what the landscape plan intends for these plants to look like. The first picture shows a Pinon tree that was incorrectly "topped," meaning it was pruned from the top down. The second photo shows a correctly pruned set of Pinon trees.  The third photo shows a Desert Willow tree that was not pruned in a way to foster growth or health.  The final picture shows a properly pruned Desert Willow. |
See Updates and Recent Crime Alerts From APD to All Neighborhoods in Foothills Area Command
| Alerts are periodically sent by email to neighborhoods in the Foothills Command Area of the Albuquerque Police Department by Crime Prevention Specialist Jill Garcia. High Desert is included in the Foothills Command Area which stretches from the north end of Tramway down to the Sandia National Labs Open Space area and east to Eubank. Please note that these alerts are provided for general information and awareness, but do not necessarily apply specifically to the High Desert community. Click here to see the new Alerts page. |
High Desert Welcome Committee Holds Wine & Cheese Party for New Residents
 More than two dozen High Desert homeowners, both new and established, attended the Welcome Committee's spring Wine and Cheese Party March 30th at the home of Horton and Joan Newsom in Wilderness Village. The Welcome Committee, co-chaired by Susan Gall and Thea Berg, hosts two Wine and Cheese get-togethers each year to welcome new owners to the community. The two-hour gathering featured a short presentation by Reg Rider, President of the High Desert Residential Owners Association Board of Directors. He welcomed new residents and briefly explained how the Board and Voting Members function to govern High Desert. He and several Board members fielded questions on snow removal, landscaping and arroyo maintenance. The next Welcome Committee Wine and Cheese Party will be held in the autumn. New residents will receive a mailed invitation. Photo below: The High Desert Welcome Committee cleans up after a successful Wine and Cheese Party. Left to right: Lori Enright, Joan Newsom, Sandra Jacoby, Susan Gall and Thea Berg.  |
High Desert Homeowners in 10 Villages
Receive New Recycling Carts as Part of City’s Recycling Program
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Ten High Desert villages have become part of the city’s new Cart Based Curbside Recycling Program this month with residents receiving blue recycling carts for use in place of bagging and bundling all recyclables. The new containers were delivered to residents of Desert Mountain (see picture left) March 22. Free Green Waste Pickup April 30 through May 11
Spring is here at last...and for many High Desert residents, that means getting outside and cleaning up the yard. All those bags of extra leaves, weeds and brush won't require an extra trip to the indoor dump, however.  Residents can place bagged green waste on the curb on their regular trash pick-up days between April 30 and May 11. The city's Solid Waste Department will remove the bags for no additional cost.Solid Waste Residential customers must place green waste — such as leaves, grass, and brush — in trash bags. Please note the following restrictions. • Bags must not weigh more than 40 pounds each. • Branches must be cut to four-foot lengths and bundled securely. • Items for green recycling must be placed at the curb for collection by 7 a.m. on the regular trash pickup day. • Items should be placed 5 feet away from automated trash containers. Prohibited Items: Collection crews will not pick up the following items: • Dirt • Construction debris • Gravel • Construction material • Tree stumps For more information, please visit www.cabq.gov/solidwaste. |
Wildfire Season Has Started in New Mexico:
Be Alert and Careful to Prevent Fires in High Desert
 Albuquerque’s wildfire season started early this year with several small fires fought recently in the Bosque. It’s never too early to be aware of the causes of wildfire and what you can do to help prevent wildfires in High Desert and in adjacent Open Space areas.Wildfires are generally caused by lighting, sparks from falling rocks, and human activity, including smoking, neglect of open fires, and fireworks. (The photo at left shows an isolated lightning-sparked fire in the Sandias, as seen from High Desert, last fall.) Open Space Fire Prevention: Nearly record low precipitation throughout the Southwest in recent years has created the need for strict enforcement of fire restrictions in Open Space lands. Early detection can be the difference between a small or large scale fire. To help prevent wildfires, Stage I Fire Restrictions are in place throughout the year in all Albuquerque Open Space areas. These restrictions include: 1. No smoking in Open Space areas 2. No fireworks in any Open Space 3. No open fires (i.e., campfires, or barbeques) at any time in Open Space. (Open Space does manage designated picnic areas such as the Elena Gallegos/Albert G. Simms Park with grills suitable for charcoal grilling 4. No camping permitted in Open Space . Anyone found violating these restrictions is subject to a fine of up to $500, imprisonment up to 90 days, or both. Citizens that witness suspicious activity need to call 505-242-COPS. Stage II Restrictions intensifies the restrictions from those of Stage I. If Stage II Restriction are put into effect, a notice will be posted on this website. To see up-to-date information on Albuquerque Open Space, click here. The City of Albuquerque has posted the following information for residents interested in making their property as resistant to wildfire as possible: • Construct roofs and exterior structures of dwellings with non-combustible or fire resistant materials such as fire-resistant roofing materials, tile, slate, sheet iron, aluminum, brick or stone. • Treat wood siding, cedar shakes, exterior wood paneling and other highly combustible materials with fire retardant chemicals. • Use non-flammable landscaping materials within five feet of your house. • Clean dead leaves and needles from your roof and gutters. • Cover chimneys and stovepipes with non-flammable mesh. • Stack woodpiles 100 feet from all structures. High Desert residents owning property that abuts to arroyos have certain rights and responsibilities concerning those arroyos. To read those guidelines in full, click here to view the pdf. Fire Safety Inside: • Install smoke alarms. • Install smoke alarms in bedrooms if you sleep with the door closed. • Keep a charged, ABC-type fire extinguisher in the kitchen and garage; make sure family members know how to properly use it. • Have an evacuation plan and practice it once a month. |
Free Classified Ads to High Desert Residents Selling Household Items and Teens Looking for Babysitting, Snow Shoveling or Other Jobs
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Are you a High Desert resident looking to sell household items? Maybe you are a High Desert teen looking for babysitting jobs or interested in making some money shoveling snow or doing other household tasks. If so, your classified ad can run free on this website. Another Successful Studio Tour For High Desert
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Perfect autumn weather and purple helium balloons greeted visitors and residents touring 14 High Desert artists' studios Saturday, October 15 during the 3rd Annual High Desert Studio Tour. The Studio Tour is an annual event of the High Desert Welcome Committee under the co-chairmanship of Thea Berg and Susan Gall.
Volunteers Needed for High Desert Projects
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If you are interested in volunteering, please contact me—Ray Berg at 366-8104 or rsberg01@comcast.net for more information or to get on the notification list for more details. This will also ensure that we have adequate tools and supplies for the participants. Foothills Trail Maintenance: The Foothills Trail #365 Maintenance Project helps keep the trails along the east side of High Desert in usable condition. We repair erosion damage, block some of the proliferation of "user trails" to help protect the fragile ecosystem, and cut back vegetation that can block safe trail use. This year has been a particularly difficult year for the trails because of the lack of rain since early February. The Forest Service has been looking into transporting rock and other materials to worksites via all-terrain vehicles so we won’t have to be hauling rock ourselves. This should make the work significantly easier and quicker. We will see you in the field.
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This year we will again have several volunteer activities in and around the community, including continuing the exciting developments in the Demonstration Garden Project at High Desert Park (see story above). These projects represent a wonderful opportunity for you as a High Desert resident to give something back to your community. Since many of you use the parks, trails and pathways in and around the community, you can help maintain these community amenities to the standards everybody would like see in our High Desert neighborhoods.Billing Information For Residents
| High Desert residents now have several options for paying assessments. Billing information and payment instructions can be found on the Billing Information page. |
Notices & Reminders
| To see "Notices and Reminders" for High Desert, click here. |