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Author Archives: jasperx
December Message from the President – An Invitation
Joe Casarez, GOCC President
Fellow Garden Oaks residents, please join us for the December Civic Club Holiday Party on Tuesday, December 3rd, at 7 PM at the American Legion Post 560 on Alba. The Civic Club will provide a main dish as well as iced tea, and we ask that each attendee bring a side dish or a dessert to share. The bar at the Post will be open if you want to celebrate with an adult beverage. Also, if you could bring an unwrapped toy for the Constables’ Toy Drive, that would be great support for their annual effort to make the holidays a bit more special for some children in need.
December’s gathering will be my last meeting as GOCC President. We will be voting on the 2020 budget and new officers for 2020. The past three years, for me, have been very rewarding, having served first as secretary, then vice-president and now president. I have enjoyed meeting a lot more people in the neighborhood and have seen how much the Civic Club has been a huge benefit to the neighborhood.
I have been truly impressed with the commitment of a core group of volunteers, especially those who give up their time to run our committees and major events. Their contributions are the backbone of our organization and frankly we would be lost without them. The Civic Club is a volunteer-driven organization, and we can always use more people and their talents. The benefits of getting involved include not only learning more about the neighborhood, but also giving back and meeting a lot of good and interesting people. I urge you to be more involved in the Garden Oaks community in 2020. There are so many ways to be involved. Join us at the GO Civic Club meetings and let’s work together to find a place where your ideas and talents can best be utilized to make Garden Oaks the great community that we love so much.
The GOCC Nominating Committee has generated a slate of candidates to stand for election at the December meeting. Volunteers can also be nominated for election to any position from the floor at the December meeting. Voting will be done by those who are present and are current civic club members. The nominated slate of officers is presented below.
I have enjoyed serving as your President and will look forward to continuing to see you at our meetings and neighborhood events.
My warmest regards and Happy Holidays!
Slate of Candidates for 2020 GOCC Officer Positions:
President – Tonya Knauth (currently Vice-President)
My husband Rick and I moved to Garden Oaks in 2004, put down roots and expanded our family here. Our three children all attended GOMM, and we have been active in GO Kids and Boy Scouts, to name just a few of the groups we have enjoyed being part of. We feel fortunate to live in a small-town environment in the middle of a big city. I have volunteered and served the neighborhood in many capacities, and I have a strong desire to continue to work for everyone to improve our community.
Vice-President – Kevin David
I moved to Garden Oaks in 1994. As a child I spent a lot of time in Garden Oaks with my aunts and grandparents. My mother was raised in Garden Oaks and my father was raised in Shepherd Park Plaza. My wife, two daughters and I really love the subdivision and all the wonderful people who reside in GO and make this such a great community. Over the years I have seen many changes. I witnessed farewells to some great neighborhood staples but we have had several family-friendly new businesses open to replace them. I look forward to serving and doing my part to make our lovely community a better and safer place for all of us to enjoy.
Treasurer – Jeff Martin
– My family has lived in Garden Oaks for 11 years. We love our neighbors and the community and are proud to call Garden Oaks home. The three of us have volunteered at GOMM in various ways over the last 10 years and made friends with many wonderful GO families. I am the Vice President and Treasurer with my current employer and served as Treasurer for our local Cub Scouts for 3 years.
Secretary – Adam Pryor
– My wife Kendra and I are both new to Garden Oaks, having moved into the neighborhood in August of this year. With a two-year-old daughter and a newborn on the way, we were drawn to the family-friendly nature of the neighborhood, while still providing the access to great restaurants and shopping in the immediate area. Being new to Garden Oaks, I have chosen to serve on the board to get better acquainted with my neighbors and to help foster a greater sense of community.
Nov. 5, 2019 Nick Freeman on 911Wildlife
The speaker for the November meeting will be Nick Freeman with 911Wildlife (911Wildlife.com). Nick will talk about how 911Wildlife humanly removes animals from houses, apartments, etc. No traps or poisons. One-way doors are installed to evict unwanted residents. Babies relocated so moms can move to new location. Come join us. Free pizza from Brother’s Pizza provided.
GOCC Elections – Message from the President
Hello neighbors, I hope everyone is doing well. The Garden Oaks Civic Club will be having its annual officers elections at the upcoming December holiday party. Every year, a nominating committee made up of GO Civic Club members is created to seek out neighbors who are interested in serving our community by filling any open officer position on the civic club board.
Sometimes the committee’s job is made easy because the current officers will decide to fill the position for another year. This year however, we have 3 officers who will be stepping down. The nominating committee will then meet to seek out neighbors who are willing to serve our community. This slate of candidates will then be presented at the December meeting and voted upon by the civic club members in attendance.
The Garden Oaks Civic Club (GOCC) provides a forum for the residents to actively engage, provide input on neighborhood issues, problem solve and become more cohesive as a neighborhood.
My message today serves two purposes. The first is to ask for volunteers to form and fulfill the task of the nominating committee. It is a pretty straightforward process that usually only requires a couple of meetings. The committee uses the current civic club member list to seek out volunteers to serve on the civic club board and then present that list to the current board for an election to take place.
The second purpose of my post is to ask for volunteers from the neighborhood to serve in the positions of secretary, treasurer and vice-president. I will be stepping down as President as will Teresa Coleman as Treasurer and Helen Sestak as Secretary. Current Vice-President, Tonya Knauth, will run for the President position.
This is a great opportunity for you, our neighbors, to provide a fresh new look and opportunity to share new ideas and perspectives to the benefit of our neighborhood.
I have served as secretary, vice-president and now president and it has been a great experience. I have met neighbors from every section of GO and have made many new friends.
I hope that you give some thought to volunteering to serve on the nominating committee or to fill one of the officer positions on the GO Civic Club board. If you are interested in either group, please contact me or any of the other officers. Our contact information can be found at the Garden Oaks website: https://www.gardenoaks.org/gocc-home/
We would like to complete the process sooner than later so I will check back in one week and provide an update on our request for volunteers.
Thank you all for your time and consideration.
Joe Casarez
Garden Oaks Civic Club President
Oct. 2, 2019 City Council Candidate Forum
Combined GOCC/SN 12 District C City Council Candidate Forum – Wednesday October 2
Candidates participating:
Candelario Cervantez
Michelle Ganz
Rodney Hill
Gladys House
Abbie Kamin
Shelley Kennedy
Sean Marshall
Greg Meyers
Bob Nowak
Daphne Scarbrough
Mary Jane Smith
Sept. 3, 2019 Mayoral Candidate Forum
Combined GOCC/Super Neighborhood 12 Mayoral Candidate Forum
Candidates participating:
Mayor Sylvester Turner
Bill King
Tony Buzbee
Sue Lovell
Dwight Boykins
Kendall Baker
Derrick Broze
Naofal Houjami
August 1, 2019 Church Parking Lot Update
Church Parking Lot
pdf of Update: Commercial Development
pdf of Letter from the Developer, Gulf Coast Development Group: GCCG Neighbor Letter
pdf of Declaration of Restrictions: DECLARATION OF RESTRICTIONS
Where: Garden Oaks Montessori Magnet
901 Sue Barnett Dr.
Cafeteria
When: Wednesday, April 18, at 7:30 p.m.
What: Informational meeting about the proposed sale of and release of deed restrictions for the Garden Oaks Baptist Church’s parking lot on Shepherd between the Chase Bank and Gabby’s.
The neighborhood attorney, Austin Barsalou, will be present and available to answer questions.
I have not vetted the information below with my fellow GOMO Directors, but I believe it to be accurate. It is based on prior conversations with Patrick Barry from Gulf Coast, GOMO Board meetings, and emails with the neighborhood attorney, Austin Barsalou. After this was posted on social media, some corrections have been made.
There have been some statements on social media lamenting specific information on the Gulf Coast-Section 1 proposal from GOMO. Frankly, there is limited bandwidth with a depleted GOMO Board in dealing with the conclusion of the Section 3 litigation, bankruptcy, and possible re-formation issues in addition to a project driven by a private enterprise on their timetable. There is only so much that we can do given our current circumstances.
First, a bit of clarification. I wish to distinguish below between our Garden Oaks Section 1 deed restrictions (referred to as “restrictions”) and the proposed new restrictions by Gulf Coast embedded in the Garden Oaks Baptist Church Declaration of Restrictions Document (referred to as “protections”).
Gulf Coast first approached GOMO towards the end of 2017 regarding their plans to purchase the Garden Oaks Baptist Church parking lot (in between Chase Bank and Gabby’s) and build a commercial center. Gulf Coast followed up in early 2018 with a similar message at the Garden Oaks Civic Club meeting. As a bit of history, these lots are residential, but the Garden Oaks Board of Trustees, successor to the Garden Oaks Company (an entity whose purpose was deed restriction enforcement) and 75% of Section 1 owners amended the Section 1 restrictions to permit these residential lots to be used by the Garden Oaks Baptist Church for non-residential, church purposes only.
Gulf Coast’s initial plan was to propose amending the current deed restrictions to remove the residential restrictions while placing additional restrictions in a separate agreement with the church (please see my additional attached post). This vote would have required approval by GOMO and a 75% vote of Section 1 homeowners. The additional protections laid out in the separate agreement between the developer and the church would have been only enforceable by the Garden Oaks Baptist Church, and not Section 1 or GOMO. This plan fell through once GOMO informed Gulf Coast that the Garden Oaks Company no longer exists and GOMO is not legally its successor. In discussion, it was then proposed to utilize a section of Texas Property Code recognizing GOMO as the neighborhood’s HOA and to hold a similar vote amending current deed restrictions and also requiring 75% of Section 1 homeowner approval. This process could have wrapped the additional new “protections” in the separate agreement into the Section 1 deed restrictions making them enforceable by GOMO. However there was concern by Gulf Coast regarding the legal standing of GOMO in light of the Section 3 litigation declarations (topic to be discussed at our Townhall this Wednesday) and the vote’s long-term legal standing.
This brings us to the CURRENT PROPOSAL. Gulf Coast is proposing a release of deed restrictions that requires the approval of the owners of over 50% of the frontage of the lots in Section 1. The legal distinction here is a process involving a release of deed restrictions rather than amending the deed restrictions. At this point, GOMO consulted with legal counsel who responded that this process is legal. However, GOMO remained concerned that the new “protections” would still only be enforceable by the Garden Oaks Baptist Church. GOMO successfully lobbied Gulf Coast to rewrite the Garden Oaks Baptist Church Declaration of Restrictions to allow for enforcement of the proposed “protections” by any Section 1 homeowner, GOMO, and any future Garden Oaks neighborhood HOA.
Our Section 1 deed restrictions reserve numerous lots for commercial use. In addition, there are several lots that have “turned” commercial since the inception of the neighborhood. An outstanding issue is whether the commercial lot owners can participate along with Section 1 homeowners in the proposed vote to release the deed restrictions on the Church parking lot. GOMO’s guiding principal has been that if the Section 1 homeowners agree to the release of the restrictions, and if our neighborhood can enforce the new “protections,” then it is acceptable. However, due to concern that the commercial lots might skew the result, we are trying to estimate the total linear feet of the old commercial lots, plus the new commercial lots and compare to an estimate of the total linear feet of the residential lots. This data analysis is still outstanding and obviously Gulf Coast has just commenced their campaign with Section 1.
The vote process is legal, and GOMO has worked to ensure that the new “protections” can be enforced by our neighborhood. GOMO takes no official stance on the vote, either for or against release of the deed restrictions. GOMO will support Section 1 in however they choose to vote. The following is my “unofficial” opinion of the current situation. The “protections” seem to be expansive, reasonable, and will serve to protect the neighborhood. These protections certainly go beyond what (doesn’t) exists on the other commercial lots in Section 1. I expect these lots will eventually go commercial, so there is consideration that if this vote fails, the next proposal could be deemed worse for the neighborhood. On the other hand, increased traffic will be a problem. Perhaps not as bad as what may occur with the new HEB further south, but Shepherd cannot be widened further to accommodate a dedicated turn lane. Our neighbors in Section 1A (directly behind the parking lot) will be most affected, and although Gulf Coast has promised to mitigate noise based on the types of renters they will allow (and opening/closing hours), our friends will be concerned about their future property values. Finally, the participation of commercial properties in the vote is a challenge for all of us. They are listed in the Section 1 deed restrictions, but GOMO does not send them notice of our meetings. The commercial properties have never attended a meeting and have not paid a transfer fee to the neighborhood. I’m not sure this rises to a valid legal argument prohibiting their participation, however.
If you have stayed with me this far, please allow me to make an appeal to attend the GOMO Townhall this Wednesday, April 11 from 7-8:30PM at the Garden Oaks Elementary School (GOMM). We will discuss the bankruptcy situation (and the bankruptcy attorneys have promised me they will attend), but most importantly begin the discussion of bringing the neighborhood together post-litigation. I have been on the GOMO Board for 6 months (I joined the day after receipt of the appellate courts verdict), and it is incredible how divisive this issue has become. I pride myself on process, and I joined GOMO as I had a vision for how to pull our neighborhood out of this. Bringing the litigation to a close was a goal, and bankruptcy will definitively solve the issues of possible transfer fee repayments and remove concerns of a process run by GOMO that has inherent conflicts of interest. GOMO will emerge re-organized and free of all legal and financial entanglements, but the hardest part will remain. GOMO is improperly formed, and that broken egg cannot be patched up again.
Interestingly, the Oak Forest HOA has a fairly robust model that may not necessitate re-formation, but if the neighborhood wants a HOA with a mandatory funding mechanism, it will require a re-formation campaign. With input from GOMO Directors, I have created a Powerpoint presentation that highlights some benefits of re-formation that can fix some of the procedural issues with GOMO. But nothing can be accomplished without first speaking to both the litigants and the GOMO Directors involved with the litigation case about what happened. In medicine, some errors can be based on perception or cognition, but the majority of errors are based on poor communication. I will request a group of those in attendance at the Townhall to form a committee to explore re-formation (2 members per Section, from all Sections 1-5) that will also examine the roots of the litigation and lessons learned.
The Garden Oaks Baptist Church parking lot issue demonstrates that the neighborhood needs a strong HOA, and currently it is weak with many unfilled Director positions and struggling to come to terms with the improper formation issue. I am hoping the Townhall on Wednesday will provide a fresh start.
–Vic Seghers