L.A. LOOKS Wildlife Corner by Barbara Ann Comer The limpkin is a large, LA (LW) HOA CONTACTS • Marti Schmidt, President/Treasurer president@lakeashtonhoa.org • John Donahue, VP & ARC Director vp@lakeashtonhoa.org • Glen Hart, VP2 & Compliance Director vp2@lakeashtonhoa.org • Tim Doyle, Secretary secretary@lakeashtonhoa.org • Deanne Mayne, Secretary 2 & Compliance Director, sec2@lakeashtonhoa.org chocolate-brown wading bird heavily streaked with white. Most newcomers to Lake Ashton are alarmed when they hear wild wails in the middle of the night. This mostly solitary and usually quiet, unassuming bird can awaken the marsh with its racket. The limpkin's range in the United States is mainly in Florida and many believe it should be the state bird rather than the Northern Mockingbird. Limpkins can be found at Lake Ashton in the retention ponds searching for snails, frogs and insects. Their preferred food is the apple snail and it’s always fun to find the leftover shells with holes in them from the surgery performed by the limpkin. It's a real treat to see limpkins with a line of downy young babies trailing behind their look-alike parents. LA (LW) HOA NEWS Beginning March 19th, we are pleased to announce that ARC will be holding ongoing office hours on the third Wednesday of each month at 3:30pm. These sessions will take place in the Clubhouse Card Room. This is a great opportunity for residents to come and discuss any ARC-related questions or concerns they might have. Whether you need assistance with a project, advice on resources, or simply want to meet our team, we are here to help. We look forward to seeing you there and encourage you to make the most of this monthly opportunity to engage with ARC. Mark your calendars and join us for our next session! 18 CDD VS HOA: WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE? By Bill Testa, LA II HOA President A Community Development District (CDD) is a government entity that provides infrastructure, such as roads, utilities, and amenities, to planned communities (PUDs). The CDD has taxing authority to maintain these services. The CDD also issues bonds to finance construction, repaid over 30 years via property tax bills. Additionally, homeowners pay an annual Operations & Maintenance (O&M) assessment for staffing and upkeep of the district. A Homeowners Association (HOA) collects fees from homeowners to maintain the community, covering upkeep and enforcing Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&Rs). In communities without a CDD, the HOA solely handles maintenance. The HOA ensures properties comply with standards through Architectural Review Committees (ARC) and may issue fines for rule violations. Lake Ashton is a CDD Community. As such, the CDD Board is responsible to maintain the infrastructure, facilities and amenities. The HOA is responsible for the standards and appearance of the homes. To simplify our situation, the CDD is responsible for everything in the district up to the resident’s property line. The HOA is responsible for the establishing and enforcing of the rules and standards to be followed by the residents on their properties.
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