Nov 19th, 2002

GRADUATES!
Join with us in congratulating two of our neighbors in Hanover Square for successfully completing the Hanover Park Citizen's Police Academy.
Mary of 1309A, and Dave of 1311A are the newest residents who have decided to take an active part in the community and make a difference. To date 4 residents have graduated this course and more plan to sign up for the 2003 class.
The police academy is a yearly class open to all residents of Hanover Park over the age of 21. During the 10 week class you are taught may aspects of the hows and whys of police work, self defense and even dispatch.
One of the highlights of the course is a "ride along" with an officer on an actual parole.

CONGRATULATIONS MARY AND DAVE!

If you are interested in sighing up for this free course, Contact Officer Ken Herman at the Hanover Park Police Dept (630) 372-4400 and fill out an application. So that students get the most out of the class it is limited to a small class size, so if your interested sign up early.

Nov 19th, 2002

TREES, TREES, TREES
Take a walk down Kingsbury. See anything new?
The village has planted 6 trees down Kingsbury and one on Bristol. Along with the streetlights that were installed yesterday, these trees will  make the neighborhood look better and make people feel better about our home here in Hanover Square.
The trees were planted by the village itself and has cost us nothing out of our pockets.

THANK YOU AGAIN, to the village of Hanover Park and all the officials you helped get this done and help us improve and enhance our community!

Nov 18th, 2002

STREETLIGHTS
We'll we got em! Today The village has stood the streetlights up and ran the wiring to them.
Here is where you'll see them, one is on Kingsbury by the 1314 building and the other is on Bristol by the 7602 building.
Hopefully these will be fully operational by the end of the year.
Thank you to Chief Moeser, and all the village officials who made these lights possible and improving our community!

    
Click on photo for a larger version

7601 update
On Friday, November 15th, work was finally started on rebuilding the 7601 building that was damaged by the fire that started in the D unit garage of that building back in May. There have been a few more changes that the village has requested of the plans and therefore the plans need to be modified once again by the architect and resubmitted to the village for approval, but this should not delay work any further.
You can see more detailed information on the 7601 Page. CLICK HERE

Nov 14th, 2002

FINALLY!!
The plans have been approved and it looks like the work to rebuild 7601 will be starting in the next week. It is a pain staking process of getting drawings done, approved and ok'ed. But its done now and the building can start. Stay tuned for photos of the progress.

October 4th, 2002

I'll huff, and puff and blow that siding off!
Well unless you were not in the area you couldn't NOT notice the wind storm we had on this day. Unfortunately for the residents of 1313 B that very storm ripped off a good portion of the siding on the upper level of the unit facing Kingsbury.  Because of the age of the units this particular size of siding is no longer made and will take a bit of time to have made. But the repair crews have put up Tyvek ( a weather proofing house wrap ) to protect the wood from the rain until the siding can be replaced.

Click photo for larger picture

October 3rd, 2002

Let there be light, Part 2
It's official. At the October 3rd village meeting a proposal was made, accepted and granted for our neighborhood to get our first 2 street lights!
Ton Schaefer, Hanover Square president, and Dave Banister from 1311A, both attended the meeting and thanked the village for their help with lighting the streets.
As of Oct 8th when Tom met with village engineer Rodger Bolter, it looks like one of the two lights will be placed on Bristol Lane near 7602 and the other will be located on Kingsbury near 1314.
we will be requesting additional lights next year as well. Cross your fingers!

We also got another surprise. There will be 13 new trees planted along Kingsbury and Bristol as well!

THANK YOU to all the village officials who have given their time and efforts in helping better our neighborhood.

Insurance help
Village Clerk Sherry Creig has also helped a great deal by helping set up a meeting between Hanover Square board president and Illinois State Representative Terry Parke to discuss several issues concerning our neighborhood. We will post more when it becomes available

September 13th, 2002

Let there be light!
We have been just informed by Chief of Police Ron Moser that at the October 3rd village meeting he will be proposing that $5000 from a grant the police dept has gotten should be used to put in at least two street light in our area. One on Bristol and one on Kingsbury. This will be a great improvement to our neighborhood.

Thank you to Ron and all the village officials who have been helping us in keeping the improvements going here!

September 13th, 2002

Lights on BRIGHTENS the neighborhood.
WOW! The neighborhood is brighter than ever before! The "LIGHTS ON" program is in full swing and a HUGE success. This is due to three reasons.

1. Tom Schaefer (board president) and Dave Banister (resident) changing bulbs and repairing all the poll lights on their own time and unpaid.

2. Many residents turning on their porch and garage lights.  THANK YOU!

3. And a HUGE THANK YOU to Dave Banister who has volunteered his time and talent to help SEVERAL residents repair and/or upgrade their garage lighting!

Have a look at these photos below. On the left is what the area looks like without the lights, and on the right is with LIGHTS ON!  See how much difference it makes? Wouldn't you feel safer and have piece of mind about your vehicles if your building had this many lights on?

Click photos to see them larger

7604 Bristol Garages - No lights	1311 Kingsbury Garages - LIGHT ON
1307 /1308 Walkway - No lights	1307 to 1310 Walkway - LIGHTS ON

September 13th, 2002

Police living in Hanover Square?
Well not really, but we have two residents who have been accepted into the 2002 Hanover Park Citizens Academy program. WAY TO GO Dave of 1311A and Mary of 1309A

This course is very informative. It gives Hanover Park residents the chance to see, from the inside, how and why police do the things they do. A few of the things learned are fingerprinting, crime scene investigation, traffic stops, and other topics. Two of the highlights are the ride along, where you get to ride with an officer on a patrol, and the trip to DuCom, the 911 center for our area.

Being a graduate myself of the 2000 class, I would recommend that anyone interested in any aspect of police work participate in this course.

And another WAY TO GO for Dave as he has taken and passed the villages test for electrical work and codes!

September 12th, 2002

Roof repairs in full swing.
You may have noticed many work trucks around the complex in the last few days. We are working on getting the roofs that need repair done before the snow flies.

So far this summer we have had roof work done on the following buildings......

1301, 1302, 1309, 1312, 1315, Kingsbury and
7606, 7608 Bristol.

What can we say, the buildings and most of the roofs are 30 years old and need the work. Unfortunately all this work costs money, and a lot of it. we have spent far over $20,000 on roofs this year alone, and more than likely the same or more again next year.

August 20th, 2002

Repair estimate is in for 7601.
Well work has started on rebuilding the damage caused by the fire in May on the 7601 building and we have gotten the official estimate from the insurance company.

$176,090.82 Is the total. Yes, that is a lot of money, and that is why our insurance went up and this is the reason we are soooo strict with the rules in Hanover Square. Every time we have to make a claim to repair a building the insurance premium goes up and in turn the association fees go up to pay for it.

PLEASE be VERY careful with your vehicles, with your grill, and with working in your unit or garage.

August 13th, 2002

New Security on site.
You may have noticed a change around the complex. Things are a bit quieter and less problems in general. That is due to the new security company that has been hired to patrols our complex. This firm is much more aggressive than the former company and has made a big impact in the short time they have been on site.

Please do not feel offended if they do not act very friendly. We have asked them to help out when needed but not to become "Friends" with the residents. This will help keep them stay tuned to watching for problems or potential problems.

August 6th, 2002

Work to begin on 7601.
Well we have gotten the first check from the insurance company for the claim made on the fire at 7601 Bristol.

Work should begin in the next few weeks once final demolition work in the D & C units is complete. Several things will be done to this building. First of all the Garage windows will not be replaced. This was a decision made by the board due to the upkeep problems with these windows. Second, due to the fact that we can not match the existing siding, the entire building will be resided. Next, garages will be repaired. as well as the C & D units. And all units will have the attics and vents cleaned from the smoke damage. There are several other minor things that will be done as well.

Over all it looks like this fire will be over $150,000 in damages. Needless to say that this was one of the factors that led to the huge increase in the insurance we all have to pay for to insure the buildings. We are now paying OVER $53,000 a year just for insurance. This is a HUGE amount, and this is the reason we are so strict with several of the rules in the complex. When someone ignores a rule and a fire happens, WE ALL SUFFER. PLEASE play it safe, use common sence and follow the rules. They are hear for all of our safety and well being.

August 5th, 2002

Talks with the village.
A meeting took place on Monday night at the village hall. In attendance were the following...

Some of the topics discussed were speeding and parking on Kingsbury, police in our area and response time, crime in the Hanover Square & Larkspur complexes, lighting on Kingsbury, and several community improvements such as the rebuild of Ranger Park, trees on Kingsbury and the island landscaping on Bristol Ct., as well as other issues concerning our neighborhood.

This was just the first of many meetings we hope to have with the village to help us improve the neighborhood and community. Some issues are going to be brought to the attention of state officials as well.

We the board of Hanover Square would like to extend our gratitude to ALL the Hanover Park Officials who attended the meeting and have shown that they care about our area, and for their willingness to help us to the best of their abilities. It is refreshing to know that we can work with the village and our voices do not fall on def ears.

THANK YOU!

August 3rd, 2002

Lights, CAMERAS, action.
Sadly, while the Hanover Square Meeting was going on July 25th a security camera was stolen and garage light was vandalized. The light has been repaired, and the camera has been replaced. In fact, a number of wireless, hidden security cameras have been installed. The cameras have been installed and being kept hidden for several reasons. One, the cameras are not cheep and we don't want them to be vandalized. Two, if the bad guys don't know where they are, they can't knowingly hide from them. Some of the camera's have sound as well so both audio & video are recorded.

Signs, like the one to the left,  have been posted at several places in the complex.  This has been done by the generosity of two neighborhood residents who have paid for and installed the cameras and signs at no cost to the association. It is our hope that the cameras will prevent crime from happening, and if something does happen hopefully catch the criminals in the act ON TAPE! And if something is caught on tape it WILL be turned over to the police.

Be assured, the cameras are not pointing at any unit windows or doors so there is no worry about invading any ones privacy.

July 25th, 2002

Hanover Square Meeting on the 25th..
WOW !  What can we say? It was GREAT to see so many residents at the meeting Thursday night. Most were there for no other reason but to show support and learn about what is happening in our complex.. This is a positive trend that I hope we see a lot more of. If we ALL work together WE can ALL make this a place we are all proud of!

We hope that those of you who were able to make it to the meeting learned a lot about how things operate and see the issues that the volunteers on the board must deal with on a daily basis. 

Stay tuned, we hope to have some exciting news to announce in the next few weeks!

July 21st, 2002

More police presence.
You may have noticed a dramatic increase in police presence in the neighborhood. Since issues were brought to the attention of the mayor, village trustees and Police chief at the village meeting last Thursday there has been a much needed improvement in the patrols in the neighborhood.
We realize that this  HUGE increase will only be temporary but we hope that it will not be reduced back down to how it was before.
 

We have also just gotten word that our "Trespass Agreement" with the police department is still good. What does that mean for residents of Hanover Square? Well, now that we know it is still active we can now inform the police department of people who have cause problems in our complex and place them on our "Banned List". This is a list of people who we do not want on our property. When they are seen on the grounds by police, Hanover Square residents, or security they can and will be arrested for trespassing.

July 18th, 2002

More positive feedback on website.
Director of Community Development for Hanover Park, John Said had this to say...... 
"...I was impressed by your website. What a convenient way to provide information to your residents and keep them up-to-date! I also appreciated the various references to the Village including phone numbers and web address."
Thank you John for your comments. It means a great deal to all of us here. Its great to see the village is interested in our neighborhood.

Board presidents attend village meeting.
On Thursday July 18th Hanover Square board president Tom Schaefer along with Larkspur board president attended the village town meeting at the village hall to bring issues concerning our neighborhood to the attention of Mayor Irv Bock, the village trustees and Police chief Ron Moser.
A few of the topics discussed were speeding & accidents on Kingsbury, Problems with teens loitering, threatening residents and disturbing the peace, as well as area improvements.

July 15th, 2002

Working together.
On Monday Hanover Square board of directors and management met with Larkspurs board and management to discuss several issues that concern both our developments. Some of the items discussed were lighting, garbage, issues about the stretch of Kingsbury between us and much more. If both our complexes can work together we can make the positive upturn in the neighborhood going.

July 7th, 2002

A word of Thanks.
Below is a letter we received from Mary K. A resident at 1309 A Kingsbury.