Sugarmill Plantation RACC Committee

SugarMill Plantation
RACC Committee

The Board Passes Architectural Planning Criteria Recommendations

The board passed the Architectural Planning Criteria presented by the Residential Architectural Control Committee. The committee had spent many hours reviewing the satellite and antennae, game and play structure, and fence and wall regulations before making their recommendations. A copy of the new criteria is included below and on the web site.

RACC Guide Lines

ARCHITECTURAL PLANNING CRITERIA

PREFERRED PLACEMENT PLANNING CRITERIA FOR SATELLITE DISHES AND ANTENNAS:

Satellite dishes and antennas will be located to the rear of the lot or unit or on the inside portion of corner lots within the set back lines and mounted at the most inconspicuous position as to blend with the architecture, roof and soffit lines. Satellite dishes and antennas will not be mounted to the front portion of the unit and viewable from the street. If reception of an acceptable quality signal is not available under the above guidelines, RACC will assist the owner in finding a suitable location.

GAME & PLAY STRUCTURES:

All play structures will be located at the rear of the lot or unit or on the inside portion of corner lots within the back setline. No platform, doghouse, tennis court, playhouse or structure of similar kind in nature shall be constructed on any part of a lot located in front of the rear line of the unit construction on the lot and such structure must have prior approval of RACC. RACC additionally requires the signatures of the adjacent homeowners, including neighbors to the rear of the lot or unit, to among other things, ease or eliminate privacy issues to those neighbors most affected. Play structures must be maintained in safe operating condition and acceptable appearance. Portable Basketball Goals will be approved with the provision that they are in fact portable and removed from view when not in use. If left to fall into ill repair or left to deteriorate in appearance, the board may request repairs of removal.

FENCES AND WALLS:

The compositions, location, color and height of any fence or wall to be constructed on any lot is subject to RACC approval. RACC will require that the composition of any fence or wall is consistent with material used in surrounding building and other fences, if any. The preferred style to date is 6 feet high; Shadow Box either of Cedar, Cypress or pressure treated Southern Yellow Pine. Shadow Box fence is an open boarded of at least one inch, (gap) having the opposite side offset evenly allowing air movement with a finished look on both sides. Fence boards must be at least 3 inches but not more than 6 inches in width. Other fence styles will be considered on a case-by-case basis (consideration does not mean approval). In no event and for no purpose shall chain link fence be installed on any lot. Certain Lots adjacent to roadways will be subject to buffer easement as described in Article II, section 3. No owner whose lot is subject to the Buffer Easement shall install a fence, which encroaches on the buffer easement. Without limiting the applicable provisions or requirements, the type and location of fences, which are or may obstruct the sight lines at intersections, may be restricted.

SCREENED ENCLOSURES

The enclosure must be a screened structure that is attached to the home that can not exceed the width or height of the home. RACC approval must be obtained prior to installation.

RACC Committee Members

Maureen and Ross Kline
Pam and Mike Charneski
Celeste and Exavier Jackson
David Norris

Letter from the RACC COMMITTEE

September 2000

Dear Fellow Sugarmill Home Owner:

SUBJECT: THE NEW RACC COMMITTEE

We would like to take a moment to introduce ourselves and describe our duties as your RACC Committee. We are a group of Sugarmill Homeowners just like you who attended the Homeowners Association meeting several months ago. The Board of Directors asked anyone interested in working voluntarily on a committee to sign their name to the lists provided. We signed the list for 'The RACC" Committee and were put together to form the present RACC. We are Sugarmill Homeowners and have the best interests of all Sugarmill Homeowners in mind when making out decisions.

We use the Sugarmill Plantation Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, Restrictions and Easements (Residential) to aide us in the decision making process. The "Covenant" is the rules we as homeowners and renters agreed to follow when we chose to reside in the Sugarmill Community. The guidelines of the "Covenant' are what make Sugarmill such a special place. Compare Sugarmill to any other "non-gated" community. We are sure you will agree Sugarmill Plantation stands out as an ideal community where the homeowners take pride in their homes and in the hard work needed to keep them a cut above the rest. This is evident in the unique beauty of our neighborhoods and our rising property values. We know there have been problems in the past. Let us look forward to the future. We know working together will help to solve some of the problems.

Like you, we know the approval process can be a bumpy road confusing and ever infuriating at times. Getting approval for changes to our property should not be an up-hill battle. We are hoping to change this. We will meet often to evaluating each application as we receive it. We will make our recommendations to the Board of Directors in a timely manner. Bennett Management will send you the official approved paperwork.

The duties of The RACC Committee outlined in Section 5 of the Sugarmill Plantation Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, Restrictions and Easements (Residential) are helpful in understanding the approval process. Here are several ways to make getting approval a little easier for all involved:

1) You MUST complete and submit an Application for Architectural Changes. This Application forms are available from either the Sugarmill web site: http://sugarmill.hypermart.net, Bennett Management @ 1-800-982-5612 and will soon be available at the pool during regular hours of operation.

2) Get approval before starting work for architectural changes. Failure to do so can be costly mistake for everyone involved.

3) If your project involves two or more changes, please submit a request form for each change This will aid in filling and miscommunication which may cause delays (example: if you wanted approval for a fence and a satellite dish you would need one application for the fence and another application for the satellite dish).

4) When Filling out your application take a moment to review the section of the "covenant" which relates to your particular situation. Make sure you are within the guidelines of the "Covenant". You can obtain a copy of the "Covenant" from the Sugarmill web site: http://sugarmill.hypermart.net or from Bennett Management for a fee of $3.50 (to cover postage). The RACC Committee reviews the Sugarmill Plantation Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, Restrictions and Easements (Residential) for each application we receive.

5) Follow the directions. Complete the forms in full include, if necessary product information (example: paint color samples if you are painting).

6) A Platt map is required along with your application showing the location of any architectural changes to your property (example: fence, sidewalk, play structure, satellite dish antenna, etc.). If you do not have a Platt map, contact the County Court House in Woodbine, GA. to obtain a copy. You can reach them Monday - Friday at 576-5601.

7) If your project requires a building permit, it is your responsibility to obtain the necessary permits and present them with your application. We can not approve any application without the necessary building permits or if the permit information is differs from the application or Platt map with regards to location, easements, size and the like.

8) The RACC Committee can not make an informed decision if we do not have the necessary information we need. Insufficient information will result in delays. We want you to start your projects in a timely manner.

9) If you start a project without approval and/or unwilling to cooperate with the RACC Committee, we will be forced to turn your application over to Bennett Management for possible legal action.

10) Mail Application for Architectural Changes to:

RACC Committee
c/o Sugarmill
P O Box 6004
St. Marys, GA 31558

If you work with us, we will do our best to serve as your new RACC Committee. We are homeowners too and like you want to see Sugarmill Plantation be the best, it can be. Thank you for your time we look forward to working with you in the future.

Respectfully yours,

The RACC Committee