2022 Annual Report

2022 President’s Report

by Brooke Whitkofski, Board President

I survived a year as Ledgewood’s Board President. I’d like to thank the majority of residents who are happy living in Ledgewood and who appreciate the efforts of the board. Our volunteer board trustees spend many hours throughout the year working in cooperation with each other, the city and residents for the continued sustainability and betterment of our community.

While we remain fiscally sound, The Ledgewood Association is facing over 8% inflation, increasing gas and other utility prices, and supply chain shortages. A chlorine shortage resulted in skyrocketing prices this year, but no, we are not going to fill the pool in with dirt as some residents would like.

We made the decision to raise the annual assessment, for the first time in three years to continue to meet our operating budget and ensure we can reserve funds for capital expenses in the future. Adding money to the reserve fund isn’t just a prudent thing to do, it is also the law. In Ohio, homeowners' associations (HOAs) are required to maintain funding reserves that allow them to replace or repair major capital items without needing to resort to special assessments.

An example of a capital improvement project completed this year is the park renovation. This represents a culmination of work started by a committee of residents in the Fall of 2020. The committee had several ideas that were vetted but ultimately it was decided that Ledgewood doesn’t have enough tennis players to justify the cost of maintaining four tennis courts. We have two remaining tennis courts and those also have pickle ball lines. Other ideas included a dog park (which would greatly increase insurance costs), a pavilion (not in the budget right now but maybe in the future) and water / electricity (very expensive to get both to our park). Hopefully kids (and dogs!) will soon be playing games on the new grassy field.

I thank the trustees for all of their hard work and their updates follow.

Pool

by Holly Zadony

The 2022 Ledgewood pool season was a very enjoyable one!

The opening of Ledgewood Pool did not go as smoothly as we would have liked. Sadly, the owner of our pool maintenance company passed away very unexpectedly right before Memorial Day weekend. Luckily, we were able to have the pool up and running one week later.

The summer weather was great and the pool was enjoyed by residents and guests alike. We had many fun neighborhood events at the pool this summer.  Our 4th of July party was very well attended. Pizza and hot dogs were provided while neighbors brought sides and desserts to share. 

As always, the "Greasy Watermelon" game was a favorite among the neighborhood kids!  We also held our 2nd annual Christmas in July pool party. Ledgewood Pool was decked out in its Christmas best, including decorated trees, wreaths, and garland.  Christmas music played throughout the day and the children enjoyed fun, music "pass the gift" games. Many residents brought Christmas cookies and treats to share. 

The Ledgewood Pool had one Late Night Swim. Residents took advantage of the opportunity to swim past 8:00 pm and the kids enjoyed swimming well into the late evening!

Swim team was finally back to its normal schedule this year. The team continues to grow by leaps and bounds!  This year, we had over 40 kids on the team. Our team worked very hard this season and placed 3rd at Champs out of the entire league!

We are still dealing with a slow leak that mostly affects the pool during the winter months. The pool cover will remain off of the pool until the leak is successfully discovered and fixed.

Thank you to the entire pool staff who kept the pool safe and clean this summer. Pool manager Lindsey Schneider kept everything running smoothly. Assistant manager James Race kept the pool clean and at the perfect temperature. The lifeguards did a wonderful job implementing the rules at the pool and working diligently to keep everyone safe.

Most importantly, thank you to our residents who helped make this pool season a wonderful one! As always, it is such a joy to spend time with neighbors and friends at our neighborhood's greatest gem - Ledgewood Pool.

Architectural Review

by Zarina-Melik-Stepanova & Ari Jakstas

The Annual Architectural Walk-Through was restructured this year and took an updated shape. Instead of taking place once during the summer, the walk-through was extended from mid-May through mid-September. The Architectural Review board members walked various parts of the neighborhood every two to three weeks and noted any improvements that needed to take place. Appropriate letters were sent accordingly and many improvements took place due to this process throughout this summer and into the fall. 

As a neighborhood, one of our major challenges continues to be our lampposts. Please be diligent in maintaining them as you are able. As we all know, our lampposts provide not only an aesthetically pleasing addition to the neighborhood, but also light our streets and keep our neighbors safe. The City of Strongsville has an ordinance that

lampposts must be working as these lights are the only form of light for safety and protection for residents. If you have a problem that goes beyond just changing the light bulb, you can reach out to Maintenance Manager Eric Schmiedlin who is responsible for the general maintenance of the Ledgewood properties and common grounds. (Eric is not contracted by the association to fix residents’ lamp posts, but he is able to do so for

a fee paid by the resident.  Messages can be left for Eric at the maintenance garage at 440.238.6000). If you would like to be helpful and report a lamp post outage, there is a submission form on our website. We encourage you to use it. 

The Architectural Review team regularly continues to approve requests for improvements such as fences, sheds, front and back patios, and retaining walls. This often involves a visit to the property, phone calls and e-mails with residents and contractors in addition to communication with the city. If you have an improvement to your home exterior, please submit a review request available on our website. 

Common Grounds

By Ken Tocco

The primary responsibilities of the Common Grounds trustee are to maintain all areas of Ledgewood property that are designated as common ground and manage the work of Ledgewood maintenance personnel.  This includes negotiating and monitoring the landscape services contract, dealing with tree removal contractors and public utilities.  Additionally, I deal with residents regarding a wide variety of issues, such as parts for driveway light poles, and keys for the tennis courts.

There are also maintenance projects that require oversight.  A great example is the rebuilding of the retention wall at the far end of the pool.  Contractor estimates were in the $30-50,000 range.  Instead, we purchased the materials directly, and the work was done by our maintenance personnel resulting in savings of tens of thousands of dollars.  In 2023 Phase two will be done on the section of the wall at the right-hand corner of the pool. 

Annual Meeting

The Ledgewood Association annual meeting will take place:

Thursday, November 17, 2022 at 7 pm at the Ledgewood Clubhouse

Can’t join in Person? Register to Join via Zoom

You are invited to a Zoom meeting.

November 17, 2022 7:00 p.m. Log-in 6:45 p.m.

Register in advance for this meeting:

https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIpc-igrj4rEtITluIWIRf5mxpo__auxHqT  

Once you register using the link above, you will receive an email with a clickable link to join the meeting and a dial-in option.