In Jo's Yard - 6 Getting ARC Approval

It is March 2018 when Grounded Solutions (www.groundedsol.com) provides the final designs by email as PDF attachments.  Amanda, the designer, notes “I've done my best to keep the design clean, yet natural, for a true habitat experience for birds, butterflies and other pollinators. Seasonal color will be abundant while also being constrained to a more architectural shape of the shrubs and grasses.” 

Now I need to get approval from The Villages’ ARC (Architectural Review Committee).  In Maryland, I lived in a townhouse community for almost 30 years, and was on the Board there.  The community intermittently had an ARC.  There were plenty of rules about public appearance, so I am not unfamiliar with the concept.  I was fortunate to have input from Steve Turnipseed, president of The Villages Chapter of FNPS. 

I dutifully went to the website to find the proper requirements and application form: https://www.districtgov.org/       I clicked on the COMMITTEES tab and chose Architectural Review Committee from the drop down menu.  The left hand side showed FORMS AND PUBLICATIONS.  The bottom of that page showed ARC Application Process -> oops, that’s just a flow chart.  Architectural Review Committee (ARC) Application Form -> AHA!  That’s the ticket!  It’s remarkably short (It has since been revised Oct 2018 to include a CHECKLIST). 

I submit my request to ARC on March 25 and inform them in the email that I plan to attend the April 4 meeting, when they review my request.  On April 3, I make a call to be sure that I will be on the next day’s review schedule.  I am informed that my request was referred to “the Developer” because my Village (Pine Hills) is new and does not yet have a representative on the ARC.  So I call the Developer to find out if I can meet with him.  I get an appointment for Thursday, April 5.  When I sit down with him and give him my address, he immediately replies – Oh I think I approved that already, and asks an AA to look for a copy.  Voila!  The approval expires Oct 31, 2018.  That works for me. 

Now to contact Green Isle Gardens, A Florida Native Plant Nursery (WEBSITE: http://www.greenislegardens.com/           VIDEO - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZvdbo6NQMs)


                                                    My Stamp of Approval