I hope this note finds you well after a wonderful 2024 summer season at Indian Hills. I’m writing today to provide an update on the incredible progress in our community, and extend my gratitude to all who have contributed to making these outcomes possible.
First and foremost, I am thrilled with the two recently passed initiatives: the Boat Sticker Fee increase to fund our Lake Restoration Efforts, and the Roads Assessment to reconstruct our failing roads infrastructure. Both of these are monumental outcomes and illustrate the widespread support to improve our community.
Boat Sticker Fees for Lake Restoration
An incredible effort spearheaded by Ed Weston and Mike Schwartze Sr. started back in 2018/2019 with a focus on restoring our lake health, and this effort has been well documented. The passage of increases to boat sticker fees will generate funds to continue our path to improve the overall health of our most important community asset – the Lake.
Road Reconstruction Assessment
The groundwork for a road improvement effort was started by committees and boards that came before including a robust MIP effort in 2016 and several proposals that were put up over the last 8 years. We are excited to share with you the committee and planning efforts that have already begun after the passage of the Road Assessment at our upcoming annual meeting. Roads have been a top complaint for years, and the passage of this initiative will help to ensure well maintained roads in our community for years to come.
I’d like to give a special thank you to Michelle Cason in the office and Marsha Schramm for her leadership of the elections committee. Two additional ballots in one year warrants quite a bit of extra work, and they have done an amazing job supporting the community.
Volunteers
In addition to these important and vital initiatives providing badly needed funding for our community, I would like to highlight the great work being done by volunteers and club members this year. We’ve had volunteers step up to maintain common areas, fund some specific needs in the community, organize our usual fantastic events that bring everyone together, and assist in project planning. The dedication of members across our Booster, Ladies, and Men’s clubs, as well as other volunteers who have stepped up is inspiring and continues to push Indian Hills forward. We are fortunate to have such engaged and enthusiastic members who care for the well-being and growth within our community. For all of you who volunteer, I am personally grateful. Thank you.
Looking Ahead
As we build on the momentum of the last few years, I encourage everyone to stay involved. Whether through volunteering, attending meetings, or sharing your ideas and feedback, your input matters. Together we can create an even better Indian Hills than the one we’ve enjoyed for so many years. The list of recent accomplishments is long, and I’ll acknowledge major improvements that we’ve been able to make over the past 10 years: Cove 9 bridge, Security Gate and Improved Entrance, Community Center Renovation, Tennis Courts, Lake Restoration, and now passage of a Road Assessment. There are so many members who had their fingerprints on all of these major initiatives as well as many many other smaller projects and we appreciate all of the efforts.
This fall we’ll be electing four new members to join the Board of Directors. It’s been a pleasure to serve this year with Bob Dixon, Al Santiago, Gary Weber, Jon Howard, Mike Schwartze Sr, Dan Cannon, Barry Alick, and Tom Orelup. Dan Cannon after serving the last 4 years has decided to step away from the ILPOA board. Dan has been instrumental in supporting IT modernization and improving our systems and technology in the association. Barry Alick is running for re-election and he has been a key member of the board supporting our legal and office activities. Under Barry’s leadership, our unpaid past dues have gone to virtually $0 over the last three years and he has worked extremely hard on addressing nuisance properties using the legal tools available to our community. Tom Orelup is also up for re-election. Tom runs our maintenance team, ran the successful road committee and assessment initiative this year, supports water testing efforts, assists in the office, supports our annual audit, and anything else that needs attention. We have a handful of new faces running for the board, and I look forward to hearing from all the candidates next week at the annual meeting.
Finally, I want to thank all of you for your continued support for me and the board of directors. Having the opportunity to serve you all has been a truly rewarding experience, and your support for initiatives this year means the years to come will be even greater.
I hope to see you at the annual meeting on October 12th 2024 at 1PM at the community center.
Warm Regards,
Joe Mischik
President, ILPOA