All Outdoor Lighting needs written DRC permission prior to installing

Dear TrailMark Residents,

During our September 8th HOA meeting, we discussed the topic that all outdoor lighting on your home requires written DRC approval prior to installing. This rule is strictly for the 659 single family homes and not the Star Canyon Patio Homes, nor the Star Canyon Condos, as their covenants are enforced by a separate HOA.  

Recently, there have been some neighbors who have installed new outdoor lighting without submitting for DRC approval. For example, outdoor lighting on homes consists of but is not limited to: recessed can lights on porches, coach lights next to garage doors, porch lights on the sides or backs of homes, flood lights, pathway lighting, cafe lights on patios, etc.

We are reminding all residents that in our CCR’s located on the TrailMark.org website, sections 4.1 – 4.24 clearly define your legal responsibility as a TrailMark homeowner, that you must follow the process of submitting for DRC approval, and wait for written DRC permission prior to starting any outdoor improvement to your home.  Furthermore, in our Design Guidelines on page 9, also found on TrailMark.org under section #9 titled, “Outdoor Lighting,” the first sentence reads, “All outdoor lighting is subject to Committee approval.”

One exception to this rule are Christmas lights since they are seasonal and temporary. Our guidelines allow homeowners to decorate for the holidays 30 days prior to the holiday, and remove all of the holiday lights/displays by 30 days after the holiday. A glowing example is when the HOA decorates many of the pine trees at the entrance of the neighborhood around Thanksgiving, and politely turns the Christmas lights off and removes them sometime in January.

Please understand that these CCR’s and Design Guidelines are set to make living in TrailMark peaceful. None of us want to live next to neighbors who are shining a bright light in our windows, or living next to the guy who has lights strung in their trees or porch 365 days a year 24/7. This is why our DRC has prohibited any type of “Jellyfish” lighting in TrailMark.  

Unfortunately, when homeowners refuse or ignore to follow the process, it ends up costing all 799 households unnecessary money to enforce our covenant enforcement policy. When lighting goes up without DRC approval, we have no choice but to send a courtesy notice to remove the un-approved lighting.

Our DRC is very fair and careful to make sure that when homeowners submit for any type of outdoor lighting, that the lighting is not unreasonably bright or causes unreasonable glare to other neighbors or motorists. The DRC is also charged to make sure that the outdoor lighting enhances the overall appearance of the residence and is compatible with the design of the structure/home. 

So being blunt, please do not install new coach lights (next to your garage doors), hang cafe lights on your patio, string lights in your trees, or install pathway lighting without submitting a DRC Home Improvement request form that is easily found on TrailMark.org under the button marked DOCS and FORMS. The DRC meets on the first and third Wednesdays of every month and will respond back to you in a timely manner.