PO Box 10646   Kansas City, MO  64188-0646   May 2004

A happy hello to all New Mark residents. And a warm welcome to all the new families that have moved into our neighborhood.

Your involvement in your community is very important to the success of your Homes Association. It’s easy to become involved by simply attending your neighborhood board meetings which are held every 2nd Sunday of the month at 7:00 p.m. at the clubhouse. We welcome and encourage everyone to attend as often as possible.

Slow Down...Summer’s Coming
A reminder to all that the speed limit is 25 miles an hour. The school year is coming to a close and with the pool opening soon we will have more children out playing and riding their bikes. Drivers keep a heads up and slow down.

Thank You
A gracious thank you to Carolyn McLees and Sarah Leibowitz for organizing our neighborhood garage sale. They did a great job. Thank you for volunteering and helping our community.

Swimming Pool
The 2004 swimming pool season will start Memorial Day weekend. Hours and times the pool will be open will be posted at the gate. Remember the pool card that was issued to you will automatically be updated the first time you use it. (This is only for residents who are up-to-date with their Homes Association dues). Residents who have cards are reminded that last year you signed a pool policy and rules statement, your signatures are still on file and please abide by them. New residents should have been handed over a pool card at time of closing but will need to sign the policy and rules form. If you have lost your card the replacement fee is $20.00. Allow one (1) week to re-activate your card. For more information contact Eugene Gruhler at 734-9547 or Paula Reed at 734-9921.

Clubhouse
The clubhouse is available for rental to New Mark FPA residents at $50.00 plus $100.00 deposit. The deposit is refunded if the clubhouse cleanup is acceptable. Contact Pat Shomin at 734-2925 for more information.

Website
New Mark officially has its own web site. The address is: www.newmark-brooking.org. [Webmaster's note: URL updated] The board welcomes your input and ideas.

Recycling
Curbside recycling is just around the corner for our neighborhood. In March 2004, Kansas City kicked off its curbside recycling program, RecycleFIRST, in four phases. The first 75 neighborhoods began in March; another 75 will begin in June; 150 neighborhods - including ours - will begin in September and the final 150 neighborhoods begin in December. RecycleFIRST makes recycling in Kansas City a snap. There’s no paperwork to fill out. No phone calls to make. Just redeem the free RecycleFIRST bin coupon that will be mailed to you at the end of August. The coupon can be exchanged for one recycling bin at select Westlake Ace Hardware and Price Chopper store locations. The number of items recycled is unlimited, but the amount of trash picked up is reduced to two large bags of trash (up to 40 pounds each) per household each week. Trash tags will be required for each additional bag beyond the first two large bags of trash. Tags can be purchased for $1 each at Westlake Hardware and Price Chopper store locations. Complete details about the program including a list of what items can and can not be recycled will be included in the August mailing with the bin coupon. There is also full details available on the RecycleFIRST website: www.kcmo.org/recyclefirst.

A Personal Note From The New Mark FPA President…
Many of you are aware that there was a house fire in our neighborhood last spring on N. Harrison Drive. The structural damage was extensive, requiring more than nine months for half the building to be demolished and rebuilt from the foundation up. This half contained the garage and all the bedrooms and bathrooms, and the fire destroyed most of the family’s clothing and personal items as well as a vehicle in the garage. I was out of the state on business when the fire occurred and returned four days after the fire. I discovered the damage was more extensive than I had heard as I drove up Harrison Drive – to what was left of my house.

It was heart warming to hear how many good neighbors pitched in and provided food, clothing, donations, prayers, sorting and packing help, and other assistance to my wife and children in my absence. Since we were unable to thank many of you personally for your assistance, we are taking this opportunity to extend out grateful appreciation and heartfelt thanks to all of you for such an unexpected outpouring of aid in our time of need. We are very grateful for living in a neighborhood with such caring neighbors and would say again to our New Mark neighbors thank you so very much!
Eugene and Marian Gruhler and family

Grounds Update
Pond
During the past year there has been an effort to keep the pond as clean as reasonably possible. General clean up of the lake area took place on several occasions during the season as well as the adding of rock filler near the overflow. Also the addition of grass carp on two occasions in the spring and summer of 2003 took place in an effort to help to control the algae growth during the season.In an effort to further aid in controlling run off and limiting the amount of contamination associated with waste created by geese in the area, the Missouri Department of Conservation recommended creating a buffer or border around the pond consisting of five to six feet of natural grasses. While hopefully assisting in limiting runoff this would also serve to discourage the proliferation of geese and in return reduce the associated droppings which can encourage additional algae growth.As a reminder, the Department of Conservation also recommends not feeding the geese. Artificial feeding can contribute to disease because the geese gather closely where they feed. It is estimated that a mature goose deposits up to three pounds of waste material a day and a typical flock of 100 geese produces 54 tons of fecal matter each year. Geese can also be very territorial and at times aggressive; close contact should be avoided.

Words of Thanks
A special note of thanks goes out to Jim Upschulte for his work on the new rock wall and drainage system around the baby pool. Thanks Jim for all your hard work in helping maintain our pool area. Another word of thanks goes out to Kevin Keith for his efforts in preparing the pool for the upcoming summer season. And thank you to Bob Kopp for his upkeep and repairs to the security system at the pool and clubhouse. Let’s not forget Pat Gute for his cleanup around the spillway.

Newsletter
This newsletter comes to you in part by the generous support of the businesses you see advertising in this newsletter. Many of them are New Mark residents only too happy to lend a helping hand knowing that neighbors support neighborhood businesses. If you would like to advertise your business in future newsletter contact your New Mark Board for advertising rates.

Restrictions
If you are reporting a violation, a form must be completed and the compainant must attend an Association meeting to discuss the alleged violation in detail. Ask a board member for a copy of these forms. As a reminder, campers, boats, non-operational vehicles, and trailers are not to be stored on your property. Also listed in the New Mark Declarations and restrictions is the general upkeep of homeowner property - this would include weed control, lawn mowing, refuse disposal, etc. For information, contact Jim Windsor at 734-9565.

2004 New Mark First Pool Association Board of Directors
[Webmaster's note: see the website's "Board of Directors" page for the current list of officers.]