June 2021 E-Newsletter
Table of Contents
Message from the VCA
The Vistoso Community Association is excited to introduce the staff from FirstService Residential!
Barbara Daoust – General Manager
The newest team member to join the Vistoso Community Association is Barbara Daoust as General Manager. Barbara has over 33 years in property management which includes experience in master associations, condominiums, declarant control communities, affordable housing, and apartments. She worked for municipal government for 11 years as Budget Officer and Assistant City Manager.
Barbara moved to Tucson in 2007 from the east coast with her husband and two children. She is excited to be part of Management Team servicing the Vistoso Community and looks forward to meeting with members of the community.
Trenais Bryant – Assistant Community Manager
Originally from Seattle, Trenais has been a resident of Tucson for over 20 years and is happy to call it home. She has worked for the Vistoso Community Association as the Assistant Manager for a little over two years now, coming from a career in Real Estate. She enjoys working for the Vistoso Community Association and in the Rancho Vistoso area.
Stephanie Medart – Community Coordinator
Stephanie is an Oro Valley native and takes pride in her community. She has a 20 year background in Property Management as well as 3 years of experience working for a Commercial Appraisers firm. She is excited to be a part of the Vistoso Community Association staff and looks forward to working diligently to upkeep the integrity and high standards of the neighborhood.
Joseph Watson – Compliance Coordinator
Joseph is a retired military veteran, and former aircraft contractor. He has over 24 years of management, and training of U.S. Air Force personnel and foreign nationals. Joseph is a dedicated professional in the fields of standardization and compliance. He has been in Tucson for the last 19 years.
We are Re-Opening
The VCA Office – Effective June 7th:
VCA Onsite office located at 945 W. Vistoso Highlands Drive will be open to the public Monday-Friday, from the hours of 10 a.m.-2 p.m. We ask that you please practice social distancing and wear your mask when in the office.
Hohokom and Wildlife Ridge Park Restrooms – Effective June 8th:
The restrooms at the parks will be available for use on June 8th. Please use at your own risk and practice suggested safety guidelines. If you need help with the restroom codes please contact the VCA Office at (520) 354-2729.
Do Not Feed The Wildlife!
Please do not feed the wildlife that pass through the community, do not place food items in the wash or any other areas outdoors. Feeding wildlife will eventually cause harm to wildlife and the individuals who feed them. The Arizona Department of Wildlife warns that javelina and other various animals in the community can inflict serious, or even fatal wounds on pets and humans if approached.
Remember: Feeding Wildlife in Pima County is a Petty Offense #13-2927. The Oro Valley Ordinance Article 18-4 states “No person shall feed and/or provide drink at any time for one (1) or more non-domesticated mammalian predators including, but not limited to, coyotes, raccoons, foxes, javelinas, skunks and opossums. (Ordinance-08-22, 2008.)” The fine carries a minimum mandatory of $25 up to a maximum of $1,500 per incident.
VCA Tennis Court Key Cards
We are continually working to make improvements within our community and at this time we are upgrading our tennis court key card system.
If you have a tennis court key card for Hohokom Park, please come by the office after June 9th to exchange your card for a new one.
The gate will continue to be unlocked during this time but will be locked again as of July 21st.
Should you need a special accommodation in regards to pick-up/drop-off of cards please call Stephanie Medart at (520) 354-2729. The Vistoso Community Association Office is located at 945 W. Vistoso Highlands Drive Oro Valley, AZ 85755
Preserve Vistoso Members Support Town Council’s efforts to negotiate sale of Vistoso Property
In April, The Conservation Fund (TCF) announced it had been invited by the Town of Oro Valley to resume formal negotiations with Romspen Vistoso, LLC, to purchase 202 acres of the Vistoso Golf Course at fair market value. TCF would place a conservation easement on the property to protect it in perpetuity as open space. The conservation easement would define exactly what would be allowed and what would not be allowed. For example, it would allow hiking trails, trail heads and parking areas, but not ball parks and amphitheaters. In a separate agreement, the six acres where the former club house and parking lot exist, currently zoned high-density residential, would be sold to a private developer. For more information, go to www.preservevistoso.org.
Get to know your Committees: Compliance Committee
The Vistoso Community Association (“VCA”) COMPLIANCE COMMITTEE assists the Board of Directors as it oversees resident compliance with the CC&Rs, Design Guidelines, and other policies, for the community benefit. This serves to maintain the preeminent design and aesthetics of Rancho Vistoso; and property values are maintained and even enhanced.
The Committee is composed entirely of Vistoso Association property owners (“owners”) appointed by the Board Chair with the Board’s approval. Thus community standards are enforced solely by your peers.
The Committee also works with others at the VCA to inform the community about its mission and to educate the community about the various compliance problems commonly encountered
The process of enforcement is as follows:
- Possible rule violations are identified by a contractor who drives through the community frequently. That contractor brings possible violations to the attention of the Committee. In addition, Association owners may file a complaint with the Committee concerning an alleged violation.
- The Committee communicates (usually by letter) with the owner (not tenants) to bring an alleged problem to the owner’s attention.
- The owner usually brings the property into compliance and the matter is closed.
- If the problem persists the Committee communicates further with the owner. If compliance is still not achieved the Committee, after affording the owner an opportunity to discuss the matter in person, will recommend the owner be fined in accordance with a fine schedule found on the Website.
The Committee encourages all resident/members to become familiar with VCA rules and to contact the Committee or VCA staff if questions concerning compliance arise. Early contacts usually make the resolution of a problem much easier for all involved.
Design Guidelines – Planning Ahead of Project Start Date
The purpose of the Design Guidelines is to ensure the overall cohesiveness and aesthetics of the Vistoso Community Association (VCA) Master Planned community. The Design Guidelines document can be found on the VCA website, under the Helpful Documents tab. Also available on the website is the Architectural Request Change Form, which is located under the Resident Information tab that lists VCA Forms.
The VCA staff asks residents to plan your landscape, architectural, or paint color changes, even just a refresh of the same color, well ahead of your project start date. Currently, residents using landscape/pool companies or other related vendors may find them still behind schedule from the past year’s challenges because of some needed construction materials to start a project as proposed.
When submitting your Architectural Request Change Form far in advance of your proposed project, it provides the Architectural Review Committee the opportunity to approve the project so as to not delay your work. Please ensure the information you provide be comprehensive and detailed to help the approval process. Work may not proceed without the written approval of the ARC Committee. To learn more about the administrative details regarding the Design Guideline approval process, please click HERE.
Vistoso Community Association Association Volunteering = Low Assessments for You!
Volunteering for Vistoso Community Association (VCA) may not result in a paycheck, but giving a few hours a month to your Association will help keep your annual assessment low, with results in a more efficiently operated/managed community and can even lend to the appreciation of your property.
The above claims may seem like an exaggeration but they are true statements. You may wonder how I, Bob Mariani, can make these claims. Well, it’s based on 40 years of experience managing homeowners’ associations, mostly large-scale such as Sun City and Sun Lakes. What I consistently found during my past career is that communities with a large, active volunteer network were much more efficiently and economically operated.
Any of your valuable time and/or expertise you offer to the Association will help improve management/operations and may result in the implementation of cost savings projects. For example, one volunteer in a community I managed had a background in solar. With his help and the assistance of other volunteers, a huge solar project was developed, approved and installed. The project is now saving this community thousands of dollars every month. This example of a successful project made possible through volunteerism is only one of many examples I could write about.
The fact is that if we, the property owners in VCA, had to pay for the time and expertise provided by our current volunteers, our assessments would be much higher. Additional volunteer time and expertise will ultimately provide the resources for a more well run association. Giving a little of you to VCA is also giving to yourself. So, please consider stepping up to help assure that our community is the best that it can be for all of us. A Volunteer Application Form is available on VCA’s website: www.ranchovistosohoa.com, or contacting the VCA site office at 520 354-2729.
Vistoso Community Association Parks
Spring is here, and summer is upon us! Time to explore and enjoy the parks, wildlife, and natural beauty the Vistoso Community Association offers!
The VCA (Master Association) has 10 parks that are accessible for VCA residents only. The recreational community amenities and the newly adopted park rules are described on the VCA website – under the title heading, “Community Information.” Additionally, Honey Bee Canyon, off Rancho Vistoso Boulevard, owned by Pima County, offers trails and ramadas for county residents’ use.
Need to Know:
Center Pointe Vistoso, in a centralized location within the VCA, is a private park complex for Center Pointe Vistoso residents only. Please recognize the explicit No Trespassing signage at the drive-in entry to the parking lot , citing that the general public is not permitted to access or use the parking lot or any amenities in the Center Pointe Vistoso park complex.
The Vistoso Community Association requests everyone be mindful and respectful of the amenities within our collective communities; they are private property. Accessing use of private communities and their amenities outside of ownership is trespassing.