Happy February everyone! We hope you are taking the opportunity to enjoy some winter sunshine on our community parks and pathways. Our public green spaces, even when they are covered in snow, are part of what makes Discovery Ridge the best community in Calgary.
‘To keep our beautiful community looking its best, we would like to remind everyone to make use of the public trash bins that are located throughout the neighborhood. The NDHA installed dog waste bag dispensers at various locations in the community for when you ‘forget’ or run out. ULS does NOT clean up dog poop. Please remember to clean up after Fido; don’t leave a ‘full poop’ bag on the path system for someone else to pick up, or to attract coyotes and bobcats. Everyone will appreciate it being placed in a bin rather than finding it on the ground when the snow melts. Thanks!
Spring Projects – Did you Know…?
With spring on the horizon, some of you will be planning home and yard improvements for the warmer months. Please do your due diligence and research how to proceed under city bylaws, city development processes, and especially, what is allowed under any restrictive covenants, easements, or other instruments registered against your property title. Work done without required permits or that go against instruments on your title could cause difficulties with the City or with your homeowner’s insurance. It is YOU, not your contractor, who will ultimately be held responsible for any infractions.
All homes in Discovery Ridge were built under a specific set of Architectural Guidelines set out by the developer (United Properties for most of us). These guidelines were meant to guarantee a specific quality standard and “look” for the community when it was being built, to ensure a beautiful living environment and long-term property value in the community. It is a big part of the reason most of us bought homes in Discovery Ridge. Homeowners who also belong to condo associations will have specific condo association bylaws to follow that may have additional requirements over non-condo owners. When the development first began in Discovery Ridge, the developer registered a Restrictive Covenant regarding fencing on the title of most properties in the community. The rules are extremely strict, are incremental to city bylaws, and are enforceable through the courts. Every owner should be familiar with what is allowed on their property. Be sure you are following ALL the rules that apply to your property to avoid expensive mistakes. Property title and associated registered instrument details can be found for a fee at a local Registries office or on Alberta’s “Spin2” website.
NDHA Fees & Invoices:
Each winter, the NDHA Board works on a budget for the upcoming year. We look to our main contracts (landscaping, snow clearing, holiday lighting, other maintenance services), one-off projects that need to be done, and our expected revenue from the annual fees. While the Board has not completed this process for 2025, it looks as though we will not need to increase the annual fees this year.
2025 NDHA invoicing will take place in February. Your invoice will be sent via the email address associated with your account, or by post mail if no email is on file. Please be on the lookout for it. Several households have yet to pay their 2024 fee, which was due June 29th, 2024. These outstanding accounts had an interest charge of 18% per annum applied effective December 31st, 2024, per the terms of the encumbrance on the land title. Thank you to those who pay your fee on time. Prompt payment allows us to continue this important work in Discovery Ridge, something that we ALL benefit from.
The Canada Post strike in late 2024 showed us how disruptive it is when we are prevented from sending or receiving paper mail. While nobody can guarantee Canada Post will not be back on strike at the crucial moment, you can ensure you get your NDHA invoice in a timely way by registering your email with the NDHA. Use your member portal on our website to confirm or add your contact details. If you are new to the community and need to set up your member portal, contact our Director of Memberships at ndhamembership@ndha.ca.
We are always happy to hear input, feedback, and suggestions from our NDHA members. You can access our website, email us at General@ndha.ca, or call us at 403-237-9595. We would love to hear from you and are happy to respond to your questions.