We struggled with the word "Happy" in the title of this blog post, as most of us aren't feeling too happy right now. Due to COVID19 most of us humans are grappling with the prospect of learning how to survive these new stay at home and safer at home orders.

Illness. Exhaustion. Depletion of resources. Like us, Mother Earth has been going through a rough patch. The difference is her plight has lasted much much longer. And like us, she's not out of the woods yet. But there have been some amazing environmental observations due to decreased human impact. Pollution is plummeting, rivers and canals are clean, and animals are reclaiming land. Charities are out there doing amazing work and people are connecting with nature like never before.

WLM is proud to be an essential service during this trying time. We will not stop in our mission to beautify and maintain the landscape of the Pike's Peak region so that us and our future generations can enjoy it for years and years to come. Earth day has always been very special to our company but it is even more pronounced this year as we've been able to see such drastic changes in such a short time due to the actions of humanity as a whole. We hope you join WLM in continuing solidarity to preserve the miracle of nature in all it's beauty and wonder.

Happy Earth day 2020!

We are so pleased to share WLM has received the 2019 Elite award for Landscape Maintenance through the ALCC (Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado). To enter the running, we had to provide specific information on our company that showed our dedication to improving Colorado's Landscapes via ongoing education; not a hard thing to do with 15 Certified Landscape Technicians on staff! We also had to pick a single property we service (now that's a hard thing to do!) and submit pictures, and an essay explaining all the improvements we've made on the property. Here's a small excerpt from our entry written by Eric Moroski:

How do we meet customer desires and deal with unusual landscaping challenges? What makes our maintenance of La Bellezza Peregrine award-worthy?

From the onset of our relationship with the builder/HOA back in 2008, detail was the #1 priority; something the previous contractor was failing at.  The Tuscan style property was half built and they had a different landscape company for installation and maintenance which created a situation where competitors had to play nice with each other.  The property is on the West side of Colorado Springs buffering native and has an incredible wildlife problem; deer walk around like they own the place and rabbits scurry from shrub to shrub avoiding the hawks while they nub down the bluegrass.  Plant selection was and continues to be a critical piece to have a successful landscape program.  The deer actually eat 3-Leaf Sumac, Russian Sage and other “deer-proof” plants.  The property manager has in place an annual event called a ‘Standing Tall Inspection’ where an HOA rep, property manager, builder rep and a landscape expert (our company) walk the entire property searching for deficiencies; what worked and what didn’t.  We create a report, price the items out and 99% of the time the work is approved, thus improving the property year by year.  Some of the deficiencies identified are then incorporated into the designs of the new landscapes being installed which creates a very proactive process.  Today the HOA is completely built out and aside from the standard set of maintenance tasks, we also complete custom weekly irrigation reports, weekly premium bed detail visits and monthly site reports from the account manager.

Diversified property management recently hosted a corporate fundraiser for the Care & Share Food Bank. In 2018, Care & Share was able to collect enough food and dollars to provide 15,083 meals to families in Southern Colorado. Their goal this year was to collect enough food and dollars to provide 30,000 meals.

Weisburg was more than happy to participate and had a goal to raise $1,000 (which is the equivalent of 10,000lbs of food!). We are THRILLED to report that we far exceeded our goal, and actually came in 3rd place out of the 16 local companies that participated.

Here are some Grand Totals for you:
• Grand Total Food Donated: 1,108 pounds
• Grand Total Funds Donated: $14,428.50
• Grand Total Meals Raised: 116,351 (WOW!)
• Grand Total Pounds Raised: 145,393
 
This wouldn't have been possible without the caring individuals within our company who took the time to donate money and perishable food items out of the goodness of their hearts. We know this food drive means so much to our community especially during the summer time.
 
Thank you for sharing in Diversified’s mission of Creating a Sense of Community.
We look forward to to participating again next year!

Every cent makes a difference. Did you know donating just $1 provides 8 meals for hungry families?

• Each unique HOA/property has a snow contract with Weisburg that details the exact scope of snow clearing work that we are to complete. The only exception is if your HOA  point of contact/representative for snow directs us to do something (or not do something) that is normally in the contract. (more on this later)*
• During storms, we only perform preliminary rough plowing, and treat zero-tolerance properties and other immediate hazards.
• It is policy to wait until snow has stopped completely before we begin full clears. This is because if we go out and perform services before the storm stops, we would likely need to return to the property to do the same services again. This causes a higher than necessary invoice and is not an efficient way to use our resources.
• WLM cannot take special snow removal requests from individual homeowners. All requests must    go through the HOA or property manager. We cannot complete any work that is not approved due to liability issues and billing restrictions.
• In extreme blizzard-like conditions, snow workers may not be able to work safely when the wind chill factor drops below 20 degrees Fahrenheit. Weisburg reserves the right to temporarily halt snow clearing operations on individual driveways, walkways, and steps when weather conditions pose a risk to worker safety.

How does Weisburg know when to begin snow clearing services?
 
Your HOA has two options in their contract when it comes to initiation of services: Automatically, or initiated by the HOA point of contact.

Automatically: If this option is selected, Weisburg will initiate shoveling services within 24 hours of the end of any snowstorm. These services are based on thresholds and other specifics in the snow contract that is unique to each HOA. Some properties have low thresholds where we shovel even if there is only a trace amount of snowfall. This is usually hand shoveling of North facing areas and mailboxes. Other properties may have thresholds of  4" or more, where Weisburg would have to wait until accumulation reaches that 4" before we could perform services. There are also thresholds for plowing, and drifts. If you have any questions about what the thresholds are for your HOA, please contact your property manager or an HOA board member.
 
Initiated by HOA point of contact: For properties that have chosen the option to initiate snow services themselves, Weisburg will wait until we get a phone call or email before we begin services. We will then respond within a reasonable amount of time, but priority is given to customers which have automatic services.
 
* In some cases, the HOA point of contact will contact Weisburg and give directions that don't match up with normal thresholds. For example, the HOA point of contact may request that we not shovel or plow lower priority areas until directed to, or not at all. This could be to save money, or other extenuating circumstances.  If you see areas that are normally serviced go untreated for a lengthy amount of time, please contact your HOA point of contact for snow; they may have given us directions that differ from the regular snow contract.
How does Weisburg manage to meet contract expectations in cases of prolonged snowstorms and heavy snow events of 6" or more?

When these situations arise, our focus is "rough plowing" based off of the following priorities:
• Priority 1 - Rough Plowing of roadway driving lanes if specified.  Plowing may have to be performed several times due to equipment limitations. 
• Priority 2 - Rough Hand Work if specified.  Note: individual driveways and walks at HOAs are usually not cleared until snow diminishes or stops.
• Priority 3 - Rough application of salting chemicals if specified.
 
Then as the storm diminishes or stops completely, our focus is to do a final clearing based off the following priorities:
• Priority 1 - Plowing of roadway driving lanes to reasonable width, if specified.      Driveways will often be back-dragged with plows rather than hand-shoveled.  In most cases, plowing will precede hand shoveling. 
• Priority 2 - Hand shoveling on sidewalks and individual driveways. When accumulation exceeds 6 inches or when drift conditions exist, snow shoveling may be delayed due  to labor limitations. 
• Priority 3 - Application of salting chemicals to specified surfaces after snow is cleared if slippery conditions exist. 
• Priority 4 - Lower-Use Common Area Sidewalks if specified (i.e. walkways that are not in close proximity to building or home entrances). 
 
Why are there still big piles of snow on my property after snow clearing services have been completed?  (What's the difference between snow clearing and snow removal?)
 
Unfortunately it is common vernacular to use the term "snow removal", when really the appropriate term is "snow clearing" - Weisburg does not "remove" snow from properties. We clear the snow from streets and walkways and place it in designated areas. These areas are usually downhill, in South and West facing areas with lots of sun exposure so they will melt quickly. We try to avoid pushing piles into shady areas and uphill to avoid freeze-thaw situations as much as possible.
In terms of blizzards or very heavy snow, these designated areas become full and we have to push snow wherever is available. We will remove and haul away excess snow piles during final clearing if requested/deemed necessary by the HOA (this is rare).
 
What should I do if I feel that the snow clearing services where I live are not meeting my expectations?
 
Get in touch with your HOA board or property manager to clarify any confusion that may exist about what the snow clearing contract dictates. Each HOA makes decisions based on the best interests of their residents while keeping the budget in mind. We renew snow contracts annually, however contracts may be amended at any time to reflect any changes that might be required to meet the needs of each HOA.