Bulletin Board

To provide an arena (not a "Blog" spot) for reporting things not in the public media world, this page is dedicated to and designed around activities that are happening in the District, by or on behalf of the Residents.  If you have an item of interest to recommend for posting on this page, please email it to the District Manager:  [email protected].

District Announcements

• Harmony Businesses — Listed under More Information About Harmony.
• Golf Carts In Harmony — Authorized by Osceola County Ordinance 2019-54.
• Garden & Parking Area — Contracts signed for Vehicle Storage Facility expansion.
  — Rental Fees set by HCDD, then administered by HROA.
  — State Law requires Sales Tax be collected on all rentals.
• OUC Streetlight Loans — Payoff of final pair of loans completed October 31, 2018.
• HCDD Meetings — Board Minutes in Summary format only a/o February 28, 2019.
  — Until further notice, Location Changed (see Meetings page).
  [ Creative Inspiration Journey School, 2030 Old Hickory Tree Rd, St Cloud, FL ]

Board Approvals

• Fiscal Year 2020 Budget — Fiscal Budget/Assessments – Adopted: 07/25/2019
• Field Staff Increase — Promoted by Board Chairman – Approved: 08/29/2019
• New Utility Vehicle — Promoted by Board Chairman – Approved: 08/29/2019
• Move Billy's Trail — South End to District Property – Approved: 02/28/2019

Around Town.

• Developer Initiatives — Expand Harmony West to Surround Buck Lake
  — Rezone Harmony PD to Facilitate Galt's Landing
• No Cat Lake Camping — Announced at March 31, 2016 HCDD Board meeting
• Harmony Volleyball — Lakeshore Park Court:  6:00pm Thursday; all skill levels
• Board Elections — Next General Election of Board Supervisors is November 3, 2020.
  — Open Seats will be 1, 3, & 5; Slate of candidates will be listed here.

Acknowledgments

• Online Boat Reservation System — Choose the boat you want, when you want.

This online reservation system has been provided free to Harmony residents through the generosity of Jungle Lasers and Harmony resident, Mark Catanese.  The product used is Geo3.0 (pronounced jee-oh-three-oh).  Currently available only for boats, in the future it may be expanded to include other District Recreational Facilities.

For daily boat operations, contact the Dockmaster (Fri-Sat 407-394-2183; Sun-Thu 407-223-3899).

• Harmony, FL Weather Report — Current Conditions and Five Day Forecast

Community Activities

• Resident Activity Happenings — Sponsored by HROA Social Committee
• Community Announcements — Current Specials and Sponsored Events
• Community Events Calendar — HROA Social Committee Reference (NA)
• Champions Events Calendar — Champions Management Reference (NA)

Volleyball Court at Lakeshore Park

[ See also list under Around Town. ]

{ If you have an item of community interest, please submit it. }

Chairman's Corner

• The Harmony Community Development District held its regular monthly meeting on Thursday August 29, 2019 @ 6:00pm.  The meeting was held in a classroom at the new Creative Inspiration Journey (charter) School in St. Cloud.  Access to this facility was made available through the good offices of Harmony resident, Patty Marquis.  We were joined by ≈six Harmony residents; and all 5 Supervisors were in attendance.
• You may remember that the Board has discussed "trails" for the past several months.  A significant part of those discussions have dealt with two primary aspects of the multi-faceted proposals which were submitted.  Relocation of a portion of Billy's Trail from Developer to CDD land is awaiting removal of a section of electric fencing by the cattle land lessee.  Beyond that, consideration is being given to adding boardwalks &/or other enhancements to the wetland area along Buck Lake north of Neighborhood F (Cherry Hill) which is on Dark Sky Drive.  Advocacy for these changes has not been universal, so additional ideas & concepts will be solicited to establish acceptable sets of improved access points to Buck Lake.  Instituting the selected changes will, of necessity, require a multi-layered permitting processes involving at least three governmental agencies.
• Video streaming of Board meetings is another on-going topic.  The laws governing this activity are somewhat convoluted.  They involve ADA provisions for subtitles, public records custody and retention requirements, and a host of other potential pitfalls that need to be carefully avoided.  Accordingly, this remains a continuing discussion.
• Another on-going Topic has been the need to move the Field Services operations trailer and storage pods off of private land.  This is another complicated process with many moving pieces, including utility relocations & permitting.  Further, because the existing trailer is 22 years old, it exhibits a moderate degree of wear & tear, and general age-based deterioration.  Once it was realized that it would cost ≈8K$ just to move it, the Board authorized the procurement, emplacement, & securement of a new trailer.  The cost for this, which includes utilities provisioning plus various sundries, is estimated to be ≈$55,000.  Although a more permanent structure will eventually be needed, the immediacy of the need is what dictated the purchase of a new trailer at this time.
• One day before the meeting, we received a quote for $263,000 to treat an infestation of "Old World Climbing Fern"; which is a fast growing and spreading invasive species that, under our wetlands control permit, must be treated.  It is to be noted that this activity is not a simple process, and requires input from various people and agencies.  The good news is that Field Services staff includes two licensed herbicide application technicians as a part of our pond maintenance program.  Under that umbrella, we already own a 4-wheeler & trailer-mounted sprayer intended specifically for herbicide application.  By using the equipment and personnel already in-place, we should be able to treat the invasive fern infestation for <$100,000; which is a significant savings.
• The next item addressed by the Board was approval to add one more Field Services staffer.  While this was a planned (and budgeted) expense, purposefully included by me to increase customer (resident) service levels by providing for, amongst other things {if the Board approves}, the cleaning of ALL CDD-maintained sidewalks throughout the community (excluding neighborhoods F, H2, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, & A2), the mandate for treating the invasive fern infestation [as explained above] solidifies (in my opinion) the need for additional manpower; particularly since, from industry experience, the species of fern needing treatment is so resilient that it is nearly impossible to eradicate, but it can be controlled by close monitoring & follow-up treatments as needed.  To facilitate this, the selected new hire must possess (acquire) the necessary skill-set training to be (become) a licensed herbicide application technician so that we have three licensees.  As Harmony ages and maintenance needs increase, he/she will also be used to handle the ever increasing irrigation system breakdowns and sidewalk panel replacements.
• Due to the projected workload increases, there is a need for an additional work vehicle; and after careful consideration of the requirements, the Board approved the purchase of a Polaris PRO 2000XD 4-wheeler.  This unit was selected based on its exceptional towing capacity; which is needed to haul our pressure-washer trailer with a full tank of water.  Currently, the only way for us to do that is to use the GMC pickup; and that is a very inefficient use of an important asset.  It is also inefficient to send out an existing low-capacity work vehicle with only a half-tank of water.  Hence, the selection of a new high-capacity vehicle and its assignment to hauling the pressure-washer trailer; with an existing vehicle reassigned to the new hire for general purpose duties.  Budgeted for FY2020, the new hire and vehicle purchase will be made after October 1^st.
• The District Manager, Kristen Suit, reported that the District's finances remain strong with income slightly over and expenses slightly under monthly projections.  The Board approved the FY2020 meeting schedule, with all meetings being held at the Creative Inspiration Journey (charter) School facility in St. Cloud.  With the Buck Lake Sharing Agreement now mutually approved by Harmony West, we will soon be deeded the land parcel (VC10) at the far east end of Lakeshore Park.  Once that is done, a complete transformation of the area is anticipated, with likely construction of a new Community Center just over the horizon.  The CDD Board will begin laying the groundwork for this huge undertaking, with input and suggestions sought from residents as to what is needed.  Stay tuned!!
• Thanks for reading — see you next month!!

[email protected]