Nabbing a Fugitive - Our Blockwatch In Action!

Hello Neighbors:

Just wanted to pass on our experience on Sunday AM where the keen eyes and ears of our neighborhood did their job in protecting our blocks within RM.

I got a knock at my door about 8 to 810 am.  A young man...16 at the most was panting, bent over in catching his breath and very sketchy.  He said he was being chased by several people and needed to come inside to hide.  I asked him to leave my property since I did not want a fight in my driveway.  He said no and crouched down behind my cars to hide himself from being seen by the road.  I told him maybe we needed to get him some help from the police.  I went inside to dress and look around from the 2nd story.  I did not see anyone coming down the street or looking for anyone.  I asked my wife to call 911 as I went back outside.

The young man asked again to come inside.  I said no.  I asked why he was being threatened.  He told me some lady had her kids after him.  I told him to go and hang out by the pier where people were fishing and leave my driveway.  He would not and kept hiding around my cars...again walking towards the front door and saying he needed to go inside.  I went back inside to look around from the back yard to see what may be coming down the street. 

I stayed inside while he was skittishly walking around our driveway and dirt lot just next door.  Within about 5 minutes a Maricopa PD car pulled up to my driveway.  He talked to the young man and asked him to get into the car.  I came out and asked what was happening.  He took my contact info and explained that a person fitting this description was just reported jumping a fence a few blocks away...possibly robbing a house. 

When I got to church I was met by a member that lives 3 streets behind us on Merced.  He (or his neighbor) apparently heard something coming from a home that is typically a winter visitor home.  Knowing this they kept watch and saw someone jump a fence.  The police were called related to an attempted robbery.  The suspect showed up at my home wanting to hide.  Not believing his "story" I did not help him...but hope that he will get the help he needs to change his ways.  I felt that I had missed a "Dog" moment (referring to Dog the Bounty Hunter, TV Show) to talk to the teen and help him realize this was not a good path in life.  My prayers are with him to choose to change.

Please keep an eye out for those homes around us.  We all need your help.  Thanks for being great neighbors...and thanks Maricopa PD for responding quickly.

Global Water bill went up? Not here at EWL...our bill went down.

New Global Water utility bills are out and I am hearing around town a buzz of frustration. Did your water bill go up?  Most residents and businesses in Maricopa will say yes.


Here at EWL our bill went down even though we used more than 500 gallons than last month.  How can this be?  We have put into place some easy to implement countermeasures to keep our bill stable.  We are also working to reduce our landscape water needs further.

Feel free to contact us if we can assist you in your water audit.

 

Dirt Complaint - Update

Neighbors,

As discussed previously ADEQ and Pinal County have contacted me regarding my complaint for the dirt, dust and stormwater erosion issues that we have seen throughout the subdivision.

Pinal County:

I was  told that they have little jurisdiction on the issue.  My previous complaint to them earlier this year (Jan 2010) was investigated and "forwarded" to ADEQ.  I was never contated by ADEQ as a follow up to the complaint nor by Pinal County till I filed this most recent complaint.

ADEQ:

I was visited on Tuesday this week by the inspector for ADEQ.  He took photos throughout the subdivision and asked for a copy of my area photos.  He stated:

• That there are numerous violations clearly visible throughout our subdivision.
• That the conditions of the grading permit (and thus SWPPP plan to address runoff of stormwater from a "disturbed" site) state:
• The company owning the property must stabilize the site.  This is basically a "glue" used to create tackiness in the soil to keep it from blowing around or running off.
• The company owning the property must maintain the stormwater controls or BMP's (silt fences, waddles, etc.).  They should have a log where they inspect the properties every 2 weeks to verify the BMP's are in proper working order and make repairs as necessary.
• The company owning the property must visit the site within 24 hours of a storm event (rain that totals 0.1-in or 0.2-in...forgot which) to inspect the stormwater BMP's and clean up any issues and make repairs.

The good news is that he will be preparing a report of our subdivision to document the results of his inspection.  He will be sending me a copy of the report for my reference and use. 

The bad news is that he has had some issues with determining which areas are owned by whom.  Since most or all of our subdivision is now bank owned it is harder to enforce the violations.
My complaints and frustration basically are that we as homeowners are suffering due to the negligence of our dirt lot "neighbors".  Near my home we have constant post storm dirt in our street, washing into our lot, blowing into our lot, getting on our cars, etc.  Throughout the subdivision there has been considerable damage that will now have to be fixed...and most likely by the HOA which is our dollars being spent to fix issues from these dirt lot owners.
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. I will keep you updated upon what I find and hear.

Dirt Complaint Follow-Up

I was contacted by ADEQ today. Our subdivision has been assigned to a state inspector. More updates will be provided when I hear more.

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Where to File Your Dirt Complaints

Rancho Mirage neighbors,

As a reminder from back in Aug I have reposted the following info.  If you are interested in filing complaints regarding the dirt runoff issues that we keep experiencing every time it rains please contact the following agencies...

Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) - Air Quality:

http://www.azdeq.gov/environ/air/

ADEQ Online Complaint Form:

http://www.azdeq.gov/function/compliance/complaint.html


Pinal County - Air Quality

http://pinalcountyaz.gov/DEPARTMENTS/AIRQUALITY/Pages/Home.aspx

Great discussion (with pictures) of what is PM2.5 and PM10 and how it effects our health.

http://pinalcountyaz.gov/Departments/AirQuality/Dust/Pages/Dust.aspx

Pinal County Online Complaint Form:

http://pinalcountyaz.gov/Departments/AirQuality/Pages/FileaComplaint.aspx


Please feel free to contact these governmental agencies to assist in the cleanup within our development. If you have not had a chance please read previous posts regarding stormwater. The post is to further clarify the issues discussed and give each of you the opportunity to be "heard". Most especially if more than 1 or 2 homeowners are contacting these agencies then maybe they will pressure the developers / landowners in our community to ensure they keep our vacant lots stabilized correctly. Then if a "mess" is made post storm they will be here quickly to clean it up.

Feel free to contact me directly with any questions.

Take care,

Emery