If you have seen one of these blue placards while walking your dog, it is part of an effort by the Settlers Landing Community Association to help keep our waterways clean.

More than 60 placards, provided by Lorne Field of the Chesterfield County Department of Environmental Engineering, were installed near storm drains last fall by members of the board of directors. They are meant to serve as a friendly reminder of the impact that our individual actions have on the environment. In addition, they provide a constructive means for neighbors to report the dumping of leaves and yard waste in storm drains, which is against county ordinances.

Last April, volunteers from the Settlers Landing Community Association spruced up the medians at the entrances to our neighborhood. This year, we’re hoping to get some help to not only spread mountains of mulch (see above), but to plant a new set of flowers as well. If you have a green thumb, or just like to get your hands dirty, we’ll supply the planting materials. Email us and we’ll be in touch.

The holiday season must be around the corner … judging from the appearance of Santa Claus in the mall, decorations on people’s homes and t.v. commercials suggesting all kinds of gift ideas. That also means planning is underway for our annual Holiday Gala.

This year’s celebration will be on Saturday, Dec. 3 from 1-4 PM at the Greenfield Community Center. As usual, our neighbors in Greenfield and North Settlers Landing are invited to enjoy crafts and story time for the kids, snacks for the adults, and music from the Richmond Jazz Society for all. And, Santa will be here, too, to take requests.

Please bring either a new unwrapped toy or canned food.  We will donate items to the Catholic Charities Food Pantry and to the Chesterfield Christmas Mother.

Happy (almost) holidays!

http://www.youtube.com/user/SettlersLandingVA

Here is our latest video, shot with an iPod Touch … look for the car that makes an illegal right turn:

Here is the link to the original email we sent last week:

http://clt.bme1.net/c/b/3B63D6

The new owners of 1801 Wrens Nest Road haven’t wasted any time. Matthew and Tina Bowles closed on their purchase of the property on Tuesday, Oct. 18. The day before, workers started tearing down trees. By Friday, the house was demolished, leaving only the foundation and chimney.

According to a cousin of Matt Bowles, the new house will be built by family and friends in the construction industry. They intend to submit their plans to the county soon and have the house completed in a few months. For more details, NBC-12 has a story on the house’s demolition on its website.

Kenneth Layne, the sole survivor of the fire that destroyed the house last December, will hopefully be able to move on from this tragedy as well. According to this article, a conviction against him for possessing two weapons will not lead to jail time.

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=186586191418670

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=186588208085135

Field also mentioned the county’s illicit discharge ordinance, which makes it illegal to dump pollutants into the storm sewer system, which eventually feeds into county waterways and the Chesapeake Bay. Pollutants include anything that isn’t normally in storm water, including pesticides, herbicides, and yard waste.

The Chesapeake Bay may be 200 miles long and fed by more than 150 rivers and streams, but you can help make it cleaner for the people and wildlife that depend on it. Lorne Field, an environmental outreach coordinator at the Chesterfield County Department of Environmental Engineering, will talk about what we can do as a community at the next board meeting of Settlers Landing Community Association.

The meeting will be this Thursday, Oct. 6 from 7:00-8:30 PM at Greenfield Elementary School in the library. If you can’t make it, keep an eye on our Facebook page and on The Hub for videos of Field’s presentation.

The SLCA Board of Directors will discuss other pending projects after the guest speaker. Read the agenda to find out what they’ll talk about .

In a Sept. 20 story, NBC-12 reported that responsibility for the burned-out home on Wrens Nest Road is now in the hands of Cassandra Johnson (pictured above). She is one of the co-owners of the home and the daughter of Tracey Johnson, who perished in the fire that took place last December. The younger Johnson says the house is under contract. Once the sale is closed, which is expected to occur next month, the new owner will have 20 days to fix up the home or demolish it.

This news won’t bring back Tracey Johnson or her son, who was also killed by the fire. But it will hopefully bring a sense of closure to her family and mark a period of renewal for a community that has mourned the loss of a neighbor and part of its fabric for the last nine months.

http://clt.bme1.net/c/b/30858B