La Ventana resolves water dispute (Trinity, Howe: foreclosure, attorney, house)

[HappyTexan]

The further away from the city you move, the less city amenities you have.
If things like that bother you, stick within the city limits.

[Derek ATX]

Originally Posted by chickenfry

but ems are volunteers as well? (i realize they are likely qualified but response time and experience is of utmost importance in an emergent situation)

EMS is paid and staffed 24/7. So far they have run over 400 calls since Jan 1 so that's pretty experienced. The fire dept. is paid and volunteer combination. All volunteers go through the same training to be SFFMA certified firefighters. The stations are staffed most of the time and because they are volunteer/paid combinations the volunteers have to live in the district which enables a quick response. One of ours actually lives in La Ventanna. Last time I check I think our average response time was under 7 minutes.

[Leif]

Thanks Derek. I was a volunteer fireman for years in Nashville TN. We learned the hard way how fast 2300 gallons of water can go and built what we called a "portable pond" which we would draft from while the tanker ran for more. What lead to that was a terribly ironic story - we had great stop on a on a house fire but ran out of water, so while the tanker went for water the house went up. The house belonged to the president of the department!

We built the "pond" later that week.

I have nothing but respect for you and your colleagues! BTW, it never gets out of your blood - I always get a shot of adrenaline when I hear a mechanical siren.

[Derek ATX]

Originally Posted by Leif

Thanks Derek. I was a volunteer fireman for years in Nashville TN. We learned the hard way how fast 2300 gallons of water can go and built what we called a "portable pond" which we would draft from while the tanker ran for more. What lead to that was a terribly ironic story - we had great stop on a on a house fire but ran out of water, so while the tanker went for water the house went up. The house belonged to the president of the department!

We built the "pond" later that week.

I have nothing but respect for you and your colleagues! BTW, it never gets out of your blood - I always get a shot of adrenaline when I hear a mechanical siren.

I hear that. I did it all through college and was out of the game for about 7 years and then got back into when I realized there was a dept. I could join close by. My wife still doesn't understand that it's my way of relaxing and winding down after working all week. I guess I just enjoy stress!

[IC_deLight]

La Ventana did install fire hydrants around the subdivision. You may not recognize them - they are "mini-plugs". La Ventana also has a fire pond up front.

Although there have not been any house fires in La Ventana, there have been a few brush clearing incidents. The fire department always responded very quickly. There is a fairly new fire station on FM 1826 a few miles from La Ventana which helps reduce response time.

With respect to propane tanks, there is a prohibition against above-ground propane tanks, but no prohibition against buried propane tanks. In fact, some areas of the subdivision expressly provide that one only needs "written authorization" from the Architectural Committee for a buried propane tank. I am really curious who informed Leif otherwise. I would agree that the Board has inappropriately tried to prevent people from having alternatives to the privately owned central gas system. No HOA member ever agreed, however, to purchase propane from the central gas system.

There is a lawsuit going on right now between a bunch of residents and the homeowner association. The right to install buried propane tanks is just one of the issues. The money is on the residents to prevail in this action against the HOA Board. Hopefully some answers will be available at the end of March 2008.

As far as other shopping, most people choosing La Ventana probably preferred some seclusion, acreage, wildlife, and scenery. FM 1826 was repaved which makes the Austin trip quicker and quieter - and a lot less hectic than US 290. In addition, nearby Dripping Springs has several mom & pop restaurants. A Chili's and a McDonalds are arriving later this year. The Home Depot is scheduled to open this month. An HEB Plus is also coming to DS.

As far as schools are concerned, there are options in addition to public school. Several residents participate in home school groups and others enroll their children in private school. If you prefer public school, the school your child goes to depends on where you live in the subdivision. Much of the subdivision is in Hays Consolidated. About 15 lots are in Dripping Springs. I think most of the area in the "Preserve" is in Wimberley School District. If you prefer one district over the other, some of the schools allow you to attend from out-of-district, however, you must first get permission from the school.

[Leif]

Those are not Hydrants as they have insufficient volume for fire fighting. A pumper would collapse every nearby water heater on that type of system. You might be able to refill a truck slowly from those "blow downs" but they are designed for maintaining the system. The line underground is only 2 inches.

Propane is a very expensive fuel source, nearly double that of natural gas. The folks in Belle Terra are paying anywhere from 3 to 5 times NG on their captive community system. La Ventana is not that bad, but Propane is expensive.

I'm with you on rural living, but then you should also find better values too, but many areas in Hays are priced very high for the boonies. With gasoline over $3, it makes the remoteness less desirable.

[IC_deLight]

Thanks for your observation regarding the mini-plugs. I have to admit that I had concerns about the engineering of such a system. However, they were installed and advertised to residents as fire hydrants. In fact, residents paid a special assessment as part of this "deal". Sounds like the residents were had.

I agree with you about the propane systems too. These were developer "residual income" schemes that residents have started rebelling against. Propane is economically unregulated so residents have no choice but to pay whatever the propane vendor charges. However, I do think the La Ventana propane issue will be addressed by the lawsuit hearings in March 2008. This insidious central propane system is something to be wary of in MANY subdivisions around central Texas. La Ventana is one of the few subdivisions where residents will have a choice.

[Tom Williams 9]

Originally Posted by Derek ATX

Leif, You are right on just about all accounts. I do want to shed some light on the fire protection and EMS situation though. I am a member of the department that protects La Ventana and yes there are no hydrants there which is the case in most of this part of the county. Because of this all of the local fire departments have multiple tanker trucks that shuttle water to portable tanks that are set up next to the fire truck to pump from. We have yet to run out of water with this system and usually the tanker trucks are backed up because the pumpers can't pump it faster than we can shuttle it to tthe scene. It sounds odd to some people but it is actually a very effective system. There actually is one hydrant in LaVentana. It's what's called a "dry" hydrant. You can see it as a red pipe coming from out of the ground near the main gates. This pipe runs into the pond there and we use it to draft water from. Because there are no hydrants though, you will pay higher insurance premiums. As for EMS, it's about a 7 min. ride from La Ventana to SSW in an ambulance. There is only on trauma center in the area and that is Brackenridge. If you have a serious injury you will more than likely be flown out even if you live as close, (or far depending on how you look at it) as Circle C.


Derek

Is the pond you speak of where the ROA/MUD whatever draws the water from for the houses in the area or is that a different holding tank?

[Tom Williams 9]

if a homeowner is getting a sufficient amount of pure clean water with good pressure and it doesn't cost a rediculous amount more (lets say 2 - 5 %) then what difference does any of this ROA stuff really make?

[IC_deLight]

Originally Posted by Tom Williams 9

Is the pond you speak of where the ROA/MUD whatever draws the water from for the houses in the area or is that a different holding tank?

No, the water company relies upon a single well for the entire subdivision. Although often touted as a fire pond, the front pond cannot even function as a fire pond when the "inlet" for drawing from the pond is 6 feet above any pond water level. The front pond was supposed to be a fire pond. It is not a source of water for anything other than the longhorns.