May 5, 2014

Improving communications and the future of this website

As many of you know, I've been posting neighborhood news on this Victor Gardens News website and it's companion Facebook page since 2007.  For those who've subscribed, I also have been sending infrequent emails to residents via email.

A recent Single Family Village Annual Meeting reinforced something that I've been thinking about for some time now.  At this point, our neighborhood may be better served by the various master and sub-associations moving to a professionally managed "official" website, email service, etc. 

In my Victor Gardens News website's early days, it was a great way for residents to know what was happening.  The developer, CPDC had long since given up communicating to us.  In that absence, I posted news that I thought would benefit our community and get the attention of City Hall.  In the years following CPDC's departure, our association's financial situation was poor.  There certainly wasn't any money or support for the professional management of an "official" Victor Gardens website.

In subsequent years, the associations have financially rebounded.  We're all in a much better position than we were before.  Now is a good time to start looking into the options of having an official Victor Gardens website and email service.  Although I've tried to keep up,  I'm simply not able to post everything that I think's important.  There aren't enough volunteers who've signed up to to help either. 
The more I think about it, the more I think that we'd be better served by paying for this service anyway.  A professional management company like Community Development Inc, has a portfolio of options that could be considered moving forward.

I've asked Holly Johnson at CDI if she could help us explore our options.  Whatever goes forward, it'll be the decision of each association's various boards.  For the Single Family Village HOA and the Master HOA, I think it may be time for a change.

- MV