Annual Clean-up Event! 16 March @ 9am

Our annual neighborhood clean-up event scheduled for Saturday, March 16, at 9:00 a.m.

 Jim Olsen and Randy will head this up...meet near the main entrance.

They will have some replacement plants for the island, and a list of tasks for our volunteers to take on that morning. 

That will include pruning, raking, edging, etc., so neighbors should come armed with tools, safety glasses, gloves and water to stay hydrated.

See you there!!!

Neighborhood Watch - 13 March @ 6pm

Neighborhood Watch Meeting


Topic Requested*: Internet Safety
Address of Event*: 9696 Westgate Circle

:
Date / Time*: 03/13/2019 06:00 PM
Duration (how long?)*: One hour

Event Details*: Quarterly Neighborhood Watch Meeting for Blue Angel Lake HOA

When
Wed Mar 13, 2019 6pm – 7pm 

Where
9696 Westgate Cir, Pensacola, FL 32507, USA (map)

Randy Delaney

ECSO Community Relations

Community Clean & Revitalization Gathering

Good Evening Neighbors,

I hope that everyone is having a good and prosperous new year.  The landscape committee is planning a community day to clean and revitalize the front entrance island. Please come out and help as much as you can on Saturday March 24 at 9:00 a.m. If you can, please bring lawn tools that may be of some help with our efforts. Thank you very much and hope to see you all there.

Michael (Mike) Clarke

Current HOA President  

Neighborhood Pets

All,

 

Good afternoon and I hope everyone had a great Christmas. May the New Year bring good health and financial well being to all Blue Angel Lake members and neighbors. Two items of great concern has been brought to my attention. It seems that a couple of our neighbors were bitten by a dog or dogs owned by another neighbor. Also, some dog owners are not curbing their animals by picking up their feces. We all should be respectful of our neighbors property, our common areas, and the street. Article VII Section 6. In part states that all pets must be contained on the owner’s property or on a leash. Those of us who own pets need to prevent them from running loose, biting others, and pick up their feces.

 

Thank you all and lets have a great 2018.

 

Michael (Mike) Clarke   

Current Hoa President

 

 

 

Escambia County pet ordinance: https://myescambia.com/our-services/animal-services/educational-information

 

Be a Responsible Pet Owner

Animal control means protecting:

• PETS and WILD ANIMALS ...from the many dangers they face in the wild and on the streets.
• PEOPLE AND PROPERTY ...from the dangers and nuisance of roaming, uncontrolled animals.

Violations of animal ordinances can result in impoundment of your pet and a fine to you, as the owner, plus mandatory court appearances in certain circumstances.  

These laws protect pets from injury and possible mistreatment, as well as protect citizens from the many problems caused by straying animals, such as bites, traffic accidents, soiled lawns and scattered trash.

---

Animal Control Laws: Did You Know?

Tethering

It is unlawful for any animal under the age of 6 months to be tied, chained or tethered outdoors. Animals over 6 months of age can be tethered providing all of the requirements of the county ordinance regarding tethering are met.

It shall be unlawful for any owner or person in possession of an animal and who confines the animal outdoors on private property to tie, chain or otherwise tether an animal that is over the age of six months except when the following conditions are met:

• The animal is in the visual range of the responsible party or the responsible party is located outdoors with the animal;
• The tether shall:
• Be a minimum of 10 feet in length or at least five times the length of the animal
• Terminate at both ends with a swivel
• Not weigh more than 1/16 of the animal's weight
• Be fastened on one end to an overhead pulley/running line
• The overhead pulley/running line shall:
• Be at least 15 feet in length
• Be no less than 5 feet above the ground
• Be secured on each end to a fixed location
• The tether must be fastened on one end to a properly fitting body harness or buckle-type collar made of nylon or leather.
• The tether shall be free from entanglement or other obstructions at all times.
• The animal shall have access to potable water, shelter and dry ground at all times.
• An animal shall not be tethered while sick, injured or in distress.
• An animal shall not be tethered outside during a period of extreme weather, including, but not limited to, tornadoes, tropical storms or hurricanes.
• Multiple animals must be tethered separately.

Sec. 10-16. - Cruelty to animals.

Rabies Vaccinations

Escambia County residents are required to have any dogs, cats and ferrets 4 months or older vaccinated against rabies by a licensed veterinarian. These animals must be re-vaccinated 12 months after the initial vaccination.  Thereafter, the vaccinations shall conform to the vaccine manufacturer’s directions.

County License

Owners of all dogs, cats and ferrets are required to purchase an Escambia County animal license. Proof of rabies vaccination is required to obtain a county license. A metal numbered tag is issued with each license and must be worn by the animal at all times. County Animal license is valid for one year from date of rabies vaccination. In the event of a three-year rabies vaccination, the owner still must renew the license annually.

Sec. 10-8. - Vaccination of animals required

Leash Laws

Owned animals are not permitted to roam freely on any private or public property in Escambia County without consent of the owner or lessee. The animal must be under direct control of the owner when off of the animal owner’s property.

Sec. 10-12. - Direct control.

Neighborhood Watch

Neighborhood Watch Meeting

Dear Fellow Neighbors,

You may have read recently that Escambia County is currently in the midst of a budget battle and, among other things, that battle will severly impact the the staff of the Sheriff's Office, creating a manpower shortage and likely discontinuing patrols to our area. We have therefore reenergized our Neighborhood Watch program here in Blue Angel Lake in an effort to thwart any potential problems as a result of the decreased surveillance.

On Tuesday evening, September 19, Bob Stott and I attended a 4-hour Neighborhood Watch Academy conducted by the Escambia County Sheriff's Office. A lot of very good and useful information was presented during the lecture which will be condensed into a one hour presentation to us by David Craig, the Community Watch Organizer for Escambia County, and Deputy Enderson. That presentation will be held on Tuesday evening, October 17 at 6:00 at my home on 9696 Westgate Circle.

I encourage you to attend that meeting so that we can learn how to better safeguard our homes and our properties. As was noted in the Academy, when a group of neighbors exert a cohesive effort to employ situational awareness, they can drive most dangers from their neighborhood.  We will be taught how to identify threats in our environment and how to prevent them. I will leave you with two important points that were emphasized:

1. 95% of home invasions start with a knock on the door. Do not open your door to strangers, but do make them aware that somebody is in the house

2. "See something - say something". If you see something suspicious in the neighbohood, call 436-9620. If you don't call, you are potentially the victim the next time. Florida statute requires that if one calls the number above and states "send a deputy", the Sheriff's Office must comply. Identify yourself as a Neighborhood Watch member.

I hope to see you at my home on October 17.

Randy Delaney

Neighborhood Watch Coordinator, Blue Angel Lake HOA

Blog Open and Key to Happiness...

Dear Fellow Neighbors,

We communicated to you recently that Blue Angel Lake HOA has created a "blog" for our community which will formatted by neighborhood volunteer Matthew Rings. A blog, by its purest definition is a website containing a writer's or group or writers'  experiences, observations or opinions. Our intent is to have us all share in information that others in the neighborhood may find interesting or even valuable; i.e. a recent break-in, the health of our lake, a new hybrid grass that is more tolerant of Florida summers, or even that killer recipe for banana pudding. Therefore, the community blog is open to all to contribute and articles will not be approved by the Board or anyone else. We do however ask that if and when you post information, it be in keeping with the spirit of cooperation and free of any offensive language in order to help foster a communal spirit in Blue Angel Lake.

According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, the happiest people are those who pursue a purposeful life, who volunteer their time and contribute to the communities that they reside in. People simply need to be  valued and needed, and we here in the HOA are no different. We have a number of volunteers who silently and willingly contribute to the betterment of our neighborhood. You may have seen them planting flowers at our front entrance, repairing a sprinkler head or pressure washing the curb in the common areas of our streets. These folks are the heart and soul of what makes us tick and we truly appreciate them. We likewise appreciate your written thoughts and ideas on our blog that the rest of us may find informative or beneficial.

Our blog web address is   blueangellake.blogspot.com

We look forward to hearing from you.

Blue Angel Lake Board

Blue Angel Lake Report
Hello again Blue Angel Lake friends and neighbors!  It’s been some time since the last report due, in part, to media and communication changes which have taken place.  Now that the new community website is live, we wanted to use that platform to provide the latest on the lake.
We certainly appear to be out of the dry climate cycle which may have been a result of the strong El Nino weather pattern which persisted over the past couple of years.  The lake levels have been consistently higher than average since last fall.  So, our lake pump has had some well-deserved R&R in 2017!  Outside of maintenance fees to the Lake Doctor, no additional funds have been spent from the committee budget.  That’s always good news!  Hopefully, this will continue until we enter the dry season in Oct and Nov.  See the spreadsheet attached for detailed information and measurements.
Detailed current weather data for Blue Angel Lake available at http://www.wunderground.com/personal-weather-station/dashboard?ID=KFLPENSA61

Will the rain continue to keep the lake level high through 2017?  It’s extremely difficult to predict in this area due to the pop-up nature of our summer storms as well as the gamble with tropical systems.  However, there are a few broad weather patterns which remain consistent over the years.  Without boring you too deeply with meteorological forecast models, my guess is we will see moderate rainfall through August and September.  Though, fewer will likely be heavy rainfall events.  October and November are very likely to be quite dry as they traditionally are.
Considering the above, I’m predicting no more than 2 pumping sessions may be required for the remainder of the year.  To estimate costs, consider a session to last 4 days (average from last year).  If the cost to run the pump is $24/per day, then we may want to allocate $192 for pumping this year.
LAKE HEALTH - Overall, I’m happy to report the lake remains in optimal health and remains suitable for swimming!  That said, the Lake Doctor did observe a few minor concerns.  Regular treatment of invasive aquatic weeds have been reported.  Small algae patches, bladderwort, spike rush, and floating shield lilies have been listed over the months.   The main contributing factor is the increased inflow (rain run-off) bringing higher than average nutrient loads.

         
While we can’t completely prevent excess nutrients from entering the pond, we can limit it by following a few suggestions on the application of lawn fertilizers.  The chemicals in fertilizer (primarily nitrogen) act like red bull for aquatic plant life.  So, it’s important we limit the amount that enters the water.

Follow the instructions on any fertilizer packaging, of course.  However, being mindful of weather forecasts before application will significantly reduce runoff risks.  Periods of 3 or more days with little to no chance of significant rainfall are preferred.  Consider watering your lawn within 24 hours of application so the chemicals become more soluble.  The goal is to allow time for the fertilizer to seep into the ground before periods of heavy rains.  Avoiding application to known water run-off areas and within 25’ to 50’ of the shoreline will dramatically reduce risks as well.

A potentially serious concern about the increased use of boats on the lake was identified in the Lake Doctors July report.  The biologist warned about the hazards of accidentally contaminating the lake with invasive plant-life.  The shield lilies were reported as being highly uncommon here and potentially difficult to manage.  They generally spread by adhering to boats used in contaminated bodies of water.  It’s recommended to thoroughly clean any boat, used elsewhere, before reintroducing it to our lake.  The same is true for rafts and even tubes.

AQUATIC LIFE – The marine life, and ecosystem in general, continue to remain healthy.  Earlier in the spring, I took a GoPro camera, a long selfie stick, and a kayak (thanks Randy) to survey a large swath of the pond.   I was interested in the quality of deeper breeding sites and found 4 different sites suitable for protecting young fish.  These included a couple of discarded Christmas tree structures still intact, the rock beds lining the run-off culverts, along with a larger pile of natural debris from trees branches in the deeper portions of the pond.  Shallow grass beds and sections of brush overreach exist providing prime breeding areas for the minnow population as well.

The sunfish (bream) and bass population appear steady and a healthy supply of minnows are evident.  So, no concerns to raise in this arena!  Of course, the turtle population is still a little excessive but no negative impacts have been reported.  I’ve personally noticed more snakes than I have in years past.  However, with the exception of one cottonmouth, the majority have been non-venomous rat snakes.
     

Please also remember to avoid feeding with bread and other table foods.  Instead, consider pond pellets.  Barnes Feed store has large bags for under $20.  However, be careful not to overfeed as the lake’s ecosystem should be self-sustainable and we want to avoid the aquatic life becoming fully dependent.

That wraps up your mid-2017 report!  If you have any questions, concerns, or feedback you’d like to provide, we’d love to hear from you.  Articles you’d like to contribute to the newsletter are certainly welcome as well!  Please send your comments to cecarlson1@gmail.com for review.  Thanks for your time and hope to see you around the lake soon!