Manager’s Report

Marilyn Smith, General Manager

As a child, do you remember being taught The Golden Rule? Treat others as you would like to be treated yourself.

There seems to be a lot of divisiveness in Casta del Sol, which I have been told, has been on-going for some time now. What is divisiveness? Per Merriam-Webster, it means creating disunity or dissension. However, being part of an engaging community should give us a sense of belonging. It enables us to share personal relatedness and support perpetual growth of each other, ourselves, and our environment.

Diversity can be a good thing. It is okay to disagree with others, but how you do it is critical. Name calling, maligning others, creating false narratives, yelling and hostile behavior are not acceptable, and is no way to treat your neighbors, staff, or for that matter, anyone. I would like to encourage everyone to take a moment and reflect on what you personally can do for the betterment of the community of Casta del Sol. Life is short and can be taken away from us at any moment. So, please take some time to think about what is profoundly important in life.

I would like to urge everyone when they are upset about an issue, to think about the matter for a while prior to addressing the issue to see if it truly is worth creating discord. Listen to others and their perspectives, be empathetic, offer support to one another, invoke higher principles, and in general—be neighborly

Marilyn Smith, msmith@powerstonepm.com

Casta del Sol HOA - Board of Directors -

President: Marci Smith marcitaylorsmith@gmail.com

Vice President: David Shostak davidrshostak@gmail.com

Treasurer: Karen Warren kwarrencds@gmail.com

Secretary: Linda Silverman dirsilverman71@yahoo.com

Directors: Lori Gilbertson lori9CDS@gmail.com

Joe Hachadoorian joecdsbod@gmail.com

Matt Loftus mloft107@gmail.com

For Courier staffing contact information, please see page 26

The Casta Courier is published monthly by the Casta del Sol Homeowners Association. The mailing address is 27651 Casta del Sol Drive, Mission Viejo, Calif. 92692. Deadline for submitting material for the next month appears at the bottom of this page.

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CdS Homeowners Association and Farmer Publications, accept no responsibility for content, accuracy or opinion, expressed or implied, of articles, letters or advertisements. Inclusion of advertisements does not carry with it any endorsement, actual or implied, for the product or services advertised. The CdS Homeowners Association and Farmer Publications have content Rules and Restrictions that must be met, and accept no responsibility for damage occasioned through use of products or services advertised herein.

Landscape Notes

Bill Thornton, Landscape Services Coordinator

Greenbelt Rules and Regulations

During Greenbelt Committee meetings over the years, we continue to discuss homeowners encroaching into the common area in violation of Casta del Sol’s Rules & Regulations. Committee members, who are all resident volunteers, spend many hours walking the property inspecting and reporting property in need of replanting, and looking for items in non-compliance with the rules and regulations. They are all dedicated to making Casta as pleasant and beautiful a place as possible within the budget and environmental conditions of the area. One of the most difficult tasks

Submissions to the Courier

The Opinion Letters section of the Courier has been temporarily suspended.

Contributions to our ongoing series are encouraged: Where in the World (travel stories), Sharing Our Roots (ancestry), Remember When? (activities/items from the past), and local Restaurant Reviews. Our staff will work with residents to write and/or edit the above submissions. We’re also looking for submissions about recent, unique remodels. Please send submissions or story ideas to debrafriedman0@ gmail.com they face is educating homeowners as to what they can and cannot do in the landscape. Some of the most common violations are birdfeeders, birdbaths, potted plants, private plants, rocks, area lights, etc., encroaching into the common areas. Also, stored items like tiles, wood, and pots with water located in the foundation areas that draw and provide a home for rodents and mosquitos. It makes the committee members’ task unpleasant having to write up non-compliance notices instead of concentrating on important planning to improve the community.

The Courier Committee meets in the Fiesta Room on the second Wednesday of the month at 9:30 a.m.

Please help the HOA and Greenbelt Committee by taking the time to read the rules and regulations starting on page 55 of the official 2022-2023 Casta del Sol telephone directory. All the landscape and tree contractors’ maintenance activities are on a schedule and residents do not need to call for that information. Mowing

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