Hello Bentwater!

As we get into the warmer months, I want to remind everyone that maintaining your trees is a vital part of property maintenance. There have been recent instances of trees damaging homes because winds blew limbs across someone’s roof when the limbs were too close to the roof to begin with. Take a look at your trees and see if it might be time for some trimming.

Speaking of trees, we have had an explosion of web worms throughout the neighborhood and all over the county. You may have seen the e-blast and posting on the website, but in case you didn’t, we have taken steps to engage a professional to address the common area trees, and I contacted the Country Club about the trees on their properties. There’s a lot of misinformation out there about this issue, so you should consider seeking professional advice. Texas A&M AgriLife Extension also has information here: https://landscapeipm.tamu.edu/

The months of April and May were some of the wettest months we’ve had in a long time. One negative result of so much rain so often is our vacant lots can’t be mowed regularly because they’re too wet, and the ground too soft. When it rains for a whole day or two, it takes a minimum of 3 days without rain for the ground to dry enough to support the weight of a mower. Just a couple of days ago, we had to pull 3 mowers out of the mud on vacant lots that looked more accessible than they turned out to be. We still have about 350 vacant lots, and we do our best to keep them mowed on a regular schedule. When it rains like it has lately, and it’s just not possible to mow, it puts us behind schedule. We ask for your patience and understanding when this happens.

Finally, as everyone has probably heard by now, there has been some criminal activity in Bentwater lately in the form of thefts of property. Please remember to report these crimes to the Montgomery County Sheriff's Department. Their non-emergency number is 936-760-5800. I was also notified that someone has seen a person on their front porch camera trying to open their door in the middle of the night. Everybody knows that cameras don’t work great in darkness, but also know that law enforcement has the ability and expertise to enhance video, sometimes making it much more usable in identifying a suspect. Bottom line, report everything to the proper authorities.

Robert Yetter