Zone Captains

 The Falls Run Neighborhood Watch is an organization made up of Community volunteers who donate their time and effort to assist in maintaining the safety and security of Falls Run Community.  All residents are eligible, and in fact are encouraged, to participate in promoting a safe atmosphere in our Community.  Although an independent entity, the Neighborhood Watch cooperates with the Falls Run Community Association Board of Directors and follows any guidelines issued by that group for the safety and security of Falls Run residents.

 Neighborhood Watch is governed by a Leadership Council composed of a Director, Deputy Director, Secretary, Treasurer, Training Officer, and the Captains of the various zones into which the Community has been divided to administer the program.  At present, the Community is divided into sixteen zones, but this number may change over time.  The five officers are elected by a majority vote of the Leadership Council for a one-year term and may be reelected.  Zone captains are chosen by the Council from among volunteers for those positions.  A quorum of three-quarters of the Council’s membership is required for the election of officers and the approval of the Neighborhood Watch budget.

 Meetings of the Leadership Council are held periodically as called by the Director to conduct the necessary business of the Program.  In addition to the five officers, each zone has one vote on issues which come before the Council.  That vote may be cast by the Zone Captain or a designated alternate attending the meeting in his/her place. 

 Zone captains are responsible for setting up and scheduling teams of volunteers to patrol the streets within their zone.  The timing and frequency of these patrols are set forth in the patrol guidelines in effect in each of the zones.  These guidelines may vary somewhat from zone to zone and may be changed by a majority vote of the Council.  Zone captains may select one or more individuals from among residents of the zone to serve as his/her Block Captains, or assistants in administering the zone.

Vehicular patrols clearly marked as Neighborhood Watch will augment the efforts of the foot patrols conducted within each zone.  Vehicular patrols will cover the entire Community according to a schedule to be worked out by the Council.  Volunteers will assist the Council in the scheduling and administration of these patrols.

 It is intended that the Neighborhood Watch program will be financially self-sufficient, at least initially.  Funds for Neighborhood Watch will be maintained in a dedicated bank account to which the Treasurer and two other members of the Council will have signature rights.  Checks for approved expenses in excess of $50 must be signed by two of these three individuals.  The treasurer may retain a petty cash fund not to exceed $50.  The annual budget, as well as any expenses not initially included in the budget, must be approved by a two-thirds vote of the Council.  The Treasurer will provide a detailed accounting of income and expenditures at each meeting of the Leadership Council and within ten days of a request submitted in writing to the Director through any member of the Council.  It is anticipated that resident donations to the support of the Neighborhood Watch will be sufficient to run the program, at least for the next two years.  If this proves not to be the case, this Operating Directive will be modified to meet the demands of the program’s expenditures.

Appeal for Safe Driving in Falls Run

 The Falls Run Board of Directors has created a new ad hoc committee to be called the Traffic Safety Committee. I have been asked to be its chairperson. The committee has been charged with making recommendations to promote safe, courteous driving within our community. Yes, Falls Run is an "active adult" community, but many of our residents have varying degrees of disabilities. A good number of our neighbors require canes or other assisted walking devices, limiting their mobility and thus their ability to avoid dangerous traffic situations. Some residents even require scooters to navigate the streets of our community. This situation requires that drivers of motorized vehicles be especially careful and courteous toward pedestrians when driving in Falls Run. 

The Board, as well as many residents, are concerned with the tendency of many drivers, primarily contractors and delivery vehicles, but also a number of Falls Run residents, to greatly exceed the posted speed limit and/or ignore stop signs, solely because traffic on the streets of Falls Run is so light. Yes, 15 mph is very slow and often requires a foot on the brakes to maintain, but this speed limit was set with the demographics of the community in mind. 

The Traffic Safety Committee has been authorized to consider any and all measures to calm the traffic in the community and encourage strict adherence to the posted speed limits. We have decided to begin our efforts with a concentrated public awareness campaign, on the theory that many drivers do not realize just how fast they are traveling on our streets. We also want to alert drivers to the necessity of full stops, not the notorious "California stops," at all stop signs regardless of the amount of traffic. Simultaneously, we are appealing to our residents to promote safe driving practices among their neighbors and to suggest to the committee means of improving traffic safety in Falls Run before someone is seriously injured, or even killed, on our streets.