Welcome to Laurel Ridge Mountain!

Your Laurel Ridge Road Crew has been hard at work, maintaining and improving the 2.5 miles of our mountain roads in a transparent and equitable manner. The team evaluates every inch of Laurel Ridge roads on a quarterly basis, and then performs as much maintenance as funds allow (while maintaining a $3,500 reserve for emergencies).

OCTOBER UDPATE: TOUCH-UPS + ASPHALT PATCHING

After a few logistical delays, Dakota expects to complete the asphalt patching on Laurel Ridge Drive in the next two weeks. We still do not have adequate funding to meet our goal of two more quarterly road maintenance cycles in 2025. The Road Crew engaged Marek for a half-day visit this week to address a few critical issues currently affecting our roads, hopefully buying us some time on the next full quarterly maintenance (now scheduled for mid-November). For those of you with STRs, we apologize if your guests have a rough ride to your rental cabin during the busy October leaf season. Please know that we are doing our best with the funds available — and we are actively communicating with a few STR-owner neighbors who STILL choose not to contribute.

SECOND QUARTER ROAD MAINTENANCE

In July, Marek completed our second quarterly maintenance run, which included significant road improvements throughout the community — plus additional work on a few well-traveled sections (e.g., Laurel Mountain Rd.) that have taken a serious beating from record rainfall totals this year. In these areas, Marek’s water-diversion efforts included ditch clearing and redirection, culvert maintenance, and building up of the roadbed with six truckloads of additional gravel — in preparation for the upcoming asphalt patching project. At the same time, Marek performed the usual quarterly grading and gravel work throughout the community, resulting in much better road conditions overall.

SPECIAL PROJECT: ASPHALT PATCHING

Thanks to several owners who recently made their 2025 contributions — and additional contributions from a few Road Fund Superheroes — we were able to invest in longer-lasting solutions to several problem areas on the mountain. Dakota Green evaluated our failing tar-and-chip areas and recommended asphalt patching. While not a permanent fix, it will improve drainage on the tar-and-chip we already have in place and hopefully extend its usable life.

Dakota laid down a total of 15 tons of asphalt to address two areas that were in desperate need of repairs, and the Road Fund has authorized additional time and materials for a third critical spot:

1. LAUREL MOUNTAIN ROAD: At the bottom, Dakota smoothed the transition from gravel to tar and chip and filled large potholes. A bit further up, at the curve that had become so hard to navigate, he restored the road surface as much as possible. The area in between is still not in great shape and could easily use another 10 tons of asphalt — if and when funds become available.
2. LAUREL RIDGE DRIVE PART 1: At the intersection of Laurel Ridge Drive and Laurel Ridge Court, Dakota applied a layer of asphalt, which provides a much smoother ride and will also help prevent water runoff from further damaging the existing tar and chip.
3. LAUREL RIDGE DRIVE PART 2: Further up Laurel Ridge Drive, there is still more deterioration of the tar-and-chip switchbacks. Despite some logistical delays, Dakota and his crew are still on board to do this work ASAP and will do as much restoration as the remaining authorized funds allow.

PARTICIPATION IS UP — LET’S KEEP THE MOMENTUM!

Recent donations have brought our participation level to 73%, with 57 of 78 cabins contributing. We also have several new “Superheroes” who made additional contributions well beyond the suggested $500. These contributions funded the most recent road work, the current and scheduled asphalt patching, and will leave us with enough funds to do one of the two road maintenance runs needed for the remainder of the year.

However, without the participation of ALL homeowners, we will not have sufficient funds to adequately maintain the roads through the end of 2025. You can help. Please talk to your neighbors and make sure they know about the Road Fund. If you are, for some reason, unhappy with the Road Fund, please give us an opportunity to hear your concerns and hopefully turn things around. And last, if you can’t contribute the full $500 all at once, please consider taking advantage of our quarterly and monthly payment options. Otherwise, it’s going to be a very bumpy 2025 holiday season for all of us.

We hope everyone enjoys the slightly smoother ride to their cabin, along with the potential increase in their home’s value that good roads provide. And, as funding allows, we will continue to chip away at these areas that are so frustrating to us all.

Some things to think about:

1. Over 25% of our neighbors are not contributing to the Road Fund.
2. Neighbors who do not contribute are using the roads at the expense of those who do
3. Non-contributing STR owners are making a profit on the backs of Road Fund donors
4. We still do not have funds to adequately maintain the roads through the end of 2025

If you’ve already made your 2025 Road Fund contribution, thank you! If you haven’t, please consider doing your part to help maintain our community’s road system.