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Fernbank

Fanfare

August 2020

President’s Report

I hope you are all doing well and staying cool! Back in June, Fernbank held its first

ever virtual annual meeting. A total of 47 unit owners voted online using the Fernbank

website, and the results were reviewed at a community-wide Zoom meeting on June 14th.

The main topics of discussion included approval of last year’s meeting minutes, the budget

for next year, the committee chair reports, and election of Fernbank board members. The

annual meeting concluded with unit owner input; there were multiple excellent questions

and suggestions raised by unit owners! The answers to these questions, along with the

rest of the meeting minutes, are available on the Fernbank website under “Unit Owners

Association: Documents & Forms.” Overall, we received positive feedback and will likely

utilize a partial online component in the future, although I do look forward to seeing

everyone’s faces in person again one day!

The Fernbank Executive Board welcomes two new volunteers. Julie Siler was

elected as a new board member during the annual meeting, and Piper Dankworth Sutton

was nominated as chair of the Communications committee during our monthly July board

meeting. Both are eager, hardworking volunteers, and we are confident that they will

bring some fresh perspectives!

Fernbank in-person socials have been postponed due to safety precautions.

However, we are open to suggestions for safe social distancing activities. Fernbank does

own a Zoom account, which can be utilized if anyone wants to host a virtual neighborhood

event!

Fernbank

Fanfare

August 2020

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Ideas may include hosting a virtual cooking lesson or an art lesson, giving a musical

performance, or even arranging a virtual happy hour amongst neighbors. If you would like

to help organize an event, please reach out to our social committee chair, Cindy Morrow.

Last but not least, if you see our new neighbor Lochlan Beard cruising around the

neighborhood, tell him to keep his eyes on the road! 😉 My husband and I are happy to

announce our son, Lochlan, was born on June 21st. Although he won’t actually be driving

for quite a while, you may see him on our stroller walks instead. Feel free to wave hello!

He is lucky to be surrounded by so many friendly neighbors!

Best regards,

Lisa Beard

2020-2021 Fernbank Board and Committee Chairs

Executive Board

President Lisa Beard Vice-President Bruce Lapham Treasurer Lex Miller Secretary Tim Whetzel Julie Siler ARC Jim Stovall Beautification Judy Moore Covenants Steve Schatken Safety and Security Bob Beckett

Other Committee Chairs Beautification Scott Beard, Co-Chair Communications Piper Dankworth Sutton Roads Gene Kelly Social Cindy Morrow Welcome Betse Hinkley

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Beautification and Landscape Update

Submitted by Scott Beard

What’s new!

Since our last newsletter, the Beautification Committee has been hard at work! There has

been a lot of progress on several projects in the neighborhood, including two workdays

with a group of volunteers to spruce up some circles. Special thanks to Elisabeth, Tim and

Bruce for joining Judy and myself on those hot days! In addition, Brightside has weeded

and “preened” all of the circles and is in the process of completing a new round of mulch

on those spaces.

Some diseased pear trees were removed handily and at a good price! We are also looking

at costs for potential pruning of the trees near the entrance. At the Fernbank entrance

new plantings have replaced the overgrown juniper. We’ve added an assortment of

winter gem boxwoods, dwarf butterfly bushes, yellow abelia and perennial allium for

color on all three tiers. Boxwood and other bushes have also been trimmed.

The stone wall on Fernbank has a new look as

well. Three of the four blue spruce were

overcrowded and diseased and were removed.

Shrubbery has been trimmed and a new skip

laurel will be planted in early fall. It’s a little too

hot and dry now!

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Long-term Strategies

Circles: The river stone edging on many of the circles has sunk into the soil and is easily

scattered by large trucks navigating the turns. It is also extremely labor intensive to weed

these borders and we’d like to avoid using harsh chemicals. At the recommendation of

Brightside, one solution we are considering is removing the stones and underlying weed-

block material (which has disintegrated in most cases) on several of the circles and

replacing them with mulch. It’s a much more environmentally friendly solution!

Stonework: We are also evaluating the condition of much of our stonework in the

development. We haven’t had maintenance for a few years, and finding a tradesman is

difficult. We’ll continue to keep the board updated on future resources needed to protect

the integrity of the structures that add much to our neighborhood.

Fall Pruning

Fall is a good time for cleanup and prepping our trees and shrubbery for the next season.

Part of the committee’s task is to monitor common areas for dead, diseased, and

overgrown plantings. As a reminder, removing ash trees, trees under 4 inches in

diameter, or any dead trees does not require ARC approval. As our landscaping and the

neighborhood ages, it is important to not only keep shrubbery and other plantings well

maintained for their health, but also to help maintain the value of your property and that

of our neighbors.

Don’t forget the drains!

We have a lot of challenges in our neighborhood with steep slopes and runoff from

properties outside of the development. Keep an eye on your drains and culverts to keep

them clear of overgrowth and debris, especially after heavy rainfall. If you see standing

water, please give Judy or myself a call.

Finally a reminder…..

As the dogdays of summer continue, please be mindful of your neighbors and remember

Fernbank’s policy regarding commercial mowers: “Commercial lawn mowers are urged

NOT to mow after 5:00 pm on Friday and Saturday and NOT AT ALL on Sundays. All

residents are requested to adhere to these hours.”

Thanks everyone for all you do to help keep our neighborhood looking great!

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Fernbank Urban Hunt Submitted by Tim Murphy

The West Virginia Division of Natural Resources has approved the 2020/2021

Fernbank Urban Deer Hunt, for the 2020 season. The “Urban” hunt is authorized to

local communities to manage the health and size of the Deer herd, and to reduce

damage caused by over-population. The WV Division of Natural Resources controls

the hunt dates, locations, and annual harvest.

The size of the local deer population, in and around Fernbank, is estimated at about

30% greater than the local area should support. The result: damage to Fernbank

plantings, local farm crops, and automobiles.

Fernbank has established rules to manage the hunt, which comply with WV DNR

regulations and which will minimally impact our residents. All hunters are

experienced, have received safety training, are licensed by the State of WV, and use

their personal equipment.

All hunters sign a personal liability waiver holding FUOA harmless (the same

waiver is used by the NCTC Urban hunt). Hunters are provided with a card to be

placed on the dash while in the Fernbank area, identifying that their vehicle is

authorized to be in that area.

Deer move through vegetation corridors, where they can browse the brush, stay

hidden from sight, and see, hear, and smell danger. I generally see deer in the early

morning and late afternoon / evening, when they return to the deeper woods to

bed down and eat. I have also seen where they bed down in my yard.

When you startle a deer, they usually stop, the head goes erect, turns towards the

noise, and the ears are up leaning forward. Deer have great hearing, a long snout

with great smell capability, and great eyesight. They are looking at you to see if you

are a threat. We Fernbank residents follow daily patterns that the deer observe,

and they are accustomed to seeing and hearing us. When we do not appear to be a

threat, the deer ignore us, and go back to eating.

Beginning in mid-August, the hunters will identify deer traffic patterns, put up

personal cameras, and plan tree stand locations, so as to not affect our residents.

Deer stands are located in high deer movement areas, and sites are selected based

on noticeable paths, verified by camera records. Note: deer stand heights above

ground at 10 to 15 feet, provide a downward slant of about 25 yards. No stands are

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placed near walking paths or areas used by residents. All stands, cameras and

other equipment are the personal property of the hunters. No hunter is in

someone’s back yard.

Deer meat is for the hunters and family’s personal use. Deer meat is also given to

“Hunters for the Hungry” which donates the meat to local charities to feed the

homeless. All donated meat is processed by WV certified processors that verify the

meat has no disease and is safe for consumption.

The Urban Deer Hunt daily hours are from ½ hour before Sunrise through ½ hour

after sunset. For the 2020 season, WV DNR has again split part of the season. The

authorized Urban Hunt dates begin on September 5, 2020 through December 31,

2020 and begin January 11, 2021 through January 31, 2021.

Questions, please contact coordinator, Tim Murphy

From Farmland to Golfing Community Submitted by Wayne Goodrich

The land we now know as Cress Creek has passed through many hands over the

years. During his lifetime, David Billmyer acquired several large tracts of land in

the Shepherdstown area. Some years after his death in 1897, his sons, Edward E.

and George W. Billmyer put together a slick real estate brochure, The Country

Estates of David Billmyer Near Shepherdstown, W. VA, offering for sale six separate

farms and tracts of land. Three of those farms, “Willow Dale”, “Orndorff”, and

“Etchison” were contiguous properties containing a total of 603 acres along

Shepherd Grade Road. It is difficult to say if any sales resulted directly from that

marketing effort but the lands were eventually sold.

On December 10, 1940, Walter H. and Eliza Crowl purchased two tracts of land, the

“Tolliver Farm” and an adjoining strip of land containing about one acre that the

deed describes as part of the real estate designated as the “Willow Dale” farm.

Crowl established a dairy operation at that site (near the intersection of Shepherd

Grade and Scrabble Roads) that produced, bottled and sold milk under the label

“W. H. Crowl, Willowdale Dairy, Shepherdstown, WV”. I guess Crowl thought since

he owned a small part of what once was the original “Willow Dale” farm that he

could use the name for his milk products. Crowl was not the only local dairy

farmer to bottle and sell his own milk, others doing the same included Dandridge,

Emery and W. H. Knode.

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Mary Grove Shepherd Ringgold became the owner of some of the Billmyer

property along Shepherd Grade, including the “Willow Dale” farm and the “Entler

Tract” lying west of Shepherd Grade. Mary Ringgold already owned some of the

land surrounding those tracts and when she died in 1960, all of Mary Ringgold’s

real estate was devised to her grandson, Henry Shepherd, V. On June 16, 1964,

Shepherd sold the “Willow Dale” farm, “Entler Tract” and other lands, totaling

about 360 acres, to William B. ‘Bill’ and Jane W. Snyder. The following year, on

January 7, William B. Snyder, Henry Shepherd and John B. Schley formed

Willowdale, Inc. with its stated purpose “to purchase, improve, develop, lease,

exchange, sell, dispose of and otherwise deal in and turn to account real estate; to

purchase, lease, build, construct, erect, occupy and manage buildings of every kind

and character whatsoever, to finance the purchase, improvement, development

and construction of land and buildings belonging to or to be acquired by this

company. . .”

On February 1, 1974, in a ‘straw-man’ transaction, Bill and Jane Snyder transferred

the 360 acres to Willowdale, Inc. The property on the west side of Shepherd Grade

was platted for development in two phases with Section I containing twenty lots

and Section II with thirty-eight lots. The long-term plan of Willowdale, Inc. was the

eventual development of its property east of Shepherd Grade as Willowdale East;

however, Bill Snyder was the major force behind Willowdale, Inc. and his death in

February 1979 ended the plans to develop Willowdale East. In 1983 and 1984, the

land owned by Willowdale, Inc. was sold to Margaret Drennen who later

transferred the property to Home Hill Corporation and began platting and

developing Cress Creek.

Editor’s note: Wayne Goodrich is a Shepherdstown native and Willowdale neighbor

ARC Update Submitted by Jim Stovall

This has been a relatively busy season for your Architectural Review Committee

(ARC). While there are currently no active applications for new home construction

we know of four lots on which owners are at various stages of planning. Your ARC

also has approved two deck enlargements, a front porch screening and several tree

removal proposals. Owners should note that while the Design Guidelines are

relatively detailed for new home construction there are fewer specifics for

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structural (hardscape) and landscape (softscape) alterations. In these cases the

Committee’s job is to balance the wishes of the unit owners with our charge given

in the Guidelines, to observe “consistency of development, while respecting the

natural setting and allowing creative expression within individual environments.”

We urge all unit owners to become familiar with the Guidelines, and to contact an

ARC member for assistance with any question about a project you may have in

mind. For easy access you can find the guidelines on the website

fernbank@cresscreek.org

Remembering Our Neighbors

Sadly our community has lost three residents during the last few months. Long-

time Shepherdstown resident Mark Smith, 83 passed away on June 13, 2020 which

happened to be his and Susan’s 61st wedding anniversary. Mark and Susan moved

to Fernbank in 2013 after living in town since 1996. Mark was very active in the

community serving four years on the Town Council and also serving on the Library

Commission and the Water Board. According to Susan, Mark, a former naval

officer, was happiest at sea, whether he be on a 12 foot sailboat, the U.S.S.

Wisconsin, or the Queen Mary. It makes perfect sense then that his favorite city

was Venice. Mark was a lover of cairn terriers, single malt scotch, and chocolate

chip cookies. Mark’s family is what he loved the most and what was most

important to him.

Frank Staro, 79 passed away on July 23, 2020 from complications due to cancer.

Dr. Staro was a highly regarded surgeon for over 30 years on Long Island and well

loved by his patients. Upon retirement, Frank and then wife Elisabeth moved to

Shepherdstown, and became very involved in the community. Frank was an avid

golfer and long-standing member at the Club at Cress Creek and according to

golfing buddy Steve Schatken, “was full of life and always ready with a story or a

quip to keep us entertained.” Frank was very proud of his Italian heritage and

celebrated it through his love of family, friends, fine food and wine, and travel.

Although Frank and his wife Loraine Strait met unexpectedly later in life, they felt

very lucky for their time together even though it was short.

Stephen Kent, 84 passed away on July 10, 2020. Dr. Kent was a pharmacologist at

GW Medical Center who resided mainly in Potomac, MD with his son. He loved art,

music and theater and was very fond of CATF.