FRIENDLY REMINDER
To receive important information and pertinent neighborhood announcements via text · sign up by texting LAKEWOODHOA to 866-981-4574
The North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) will have an open public meeting at Mansfield High School on Thursday, April 16 from 5:30 to 7:30 to discuss the potential extension of Hwy. 360 from US 287 to US 67 near Venus.
Lakewood resident Michelle Madden is running for City Council in a special election on January 31.
See details in our Elections page.
HOA Board Meeting | Assessment Update
A meeting of the Lakewood HOA board of directors was held on Zoom on Wednesday, December 10 to approve a 2026 budget.
The 2025 financials were reviewed (we were under budget!!) and the proposed 2026 budget discussed, which included an increase in assessments to $125 per quarter (up from $118), or $500 per year. Two key reasons prompted the increase:
- A capital investment project to provide electricity and lighting to all entrances and monuments. This is a cost of about $10,000 per entrance, which will take approximately two years to complete in stages. In 2026 it is our intent to complete installation of power to the entrances at:
- S. Robinson Rd. & Fair Oaks Dr.
- S. Robinson Rd. at Camp Wisdom Rd.
- Camp Wisdom Rd. & Prairie Ln.
- Camp Wisdom Rd. & Matthew Rd.
- The Association has more than $87,000 in monies owed from assessments, fees and interest from 176 homeowners; 46 of those homeowners have a balance owed under $10. Three homes have filed for bankruptcy and have assessment debt and fines of more than $21,000. In other words, if everyone were paying their assessments on time, we probably would not be looking at another assessment increase.
Notices will be sent out to all homeowners of the assessment increase. Homeowners who use automatic withdrawals from the SBB portal need to manually change their withdrawal amount. This cannot be done automatically.
Neighborhood Pond/Creek Cleanup
On Saturday, November 15, homeowners and residents were invited to a cleanup of our neighborhood pond and creek. Over 240 pounds of trash were removed! We’re thankful for our friends who were willing to help keep our shared spaces looking presentable, while bonding with neighbors.
It is obvious that the chief contributors of the trash are four main polluters:
- Recyclables blown from bins on windy days into the pond and creek.
- Trash from storm drain release points around creek (meaning people putting trash into their storm drains)
- Illegal dumping (we retrieved 3 car tires!)
- Fishermen leaving behind their trash to go into the pond and creek
2025 Lakewood Fall Festival
Lakewood homeowners were again invited to join neighbors for an annual Fall Festival by our community pond. The weather was perfect, the catered BBQ was phenomenal, and the chance to meet and visit with our neighbors was special for all those who turned out.
2025 Annual Homeowners Meeting
The 2025 annual Lakewood homeowners business meeting was held on Tuesday, October 21 at Spring Creek BBQ on WestchaseDr. & Carrier Pkwy. With 56 homeowners needed for quorum (10% of the 560 homes), 76 participated in person or by proxy, as quorum was met. Over $1000 in door prizes were given to attendees to encourage attendance. This cost is justified because failure to meet quorum and rescheduling the meeting (by our bylaws) takes over $1200 in new postage and administrative fees.
- Financial statements of the Association were shared with attending homeowners. As of October 20, 269 owners showed a balance owed to the HOA totaling over $94,000. The operating and reserve account balance increased by more than $42,000. Expenses are expected to be below budget projections for the fiscal year at the end of December, and income will exceed expenses.
- 2025 board members Brad Masters (president), Becky Wagley (vice president), Michelle Madden (treasurer), Keith Fletcher (secretary) and Selena Ozuna (at-large) submitted their names for re-election, with no other candidates coming forward. A motion was made, and seconded, to accept the slate of candidates by acclimation. A vote was passed without opposition, giving the entire board another 1-year term in 2026.
- As a result of Q&A from attendees, action items included staining the wood fence behind the town homes on Prairie Ln. dividing the alleyway from the mobile home community. Also, new pet waste stations will be installed near the creek greenbelt along Jamie Dr. between Jacob Dr. and Robinson Rd.
Community Garage Sale
The next bi-annual Lakewood Community Garage Sale is coming up the first Saturday of October. CLICK HERE to apply for the permit needed from the City to host a garage sale.
We do this twice a year, on the first Saturday of May and October.
The Big Event
The city of Grand Prairie’s annual citywide volunteerism day is Saturday, March 22. That means two things: First, an opportunity for you and your friends and neighbors to volunteer yourselves and give back to people in need around your community. Or, secondly, your chance to submit a service project in need of assistance, even getting a home up to code with trash and debris removal.
Click here to sign up to volunteer.
Click here to submit a request for assistance and to see the parameters of request submissions.
Water Rate Increase
If you noticed an increase in your water bill from the City, it’s because the City recently raised water (and sewer) rates by 7.5% across all of Grand Prairie, commercial and residential, effective on October 1. The measure was approved unanimously by the city council as part of a consent agenda at the Council meeting on September 17 (Item 16).
Here is the city’s update on new water rates. On average, for a household that uses 10,000 gallons of water a month, the city tells us that increase will be approximately $9.00 per month.
Lakewood Fall Festival
We want to thank everyone who came out to the 2024 Fall Festival to meet and greet neighbors and enjoy dinner from Olive Garden. We had a fantastic turnout! If you did not receive the invite via email or text be sure you are signed up for text message alerts from SBB and the HOA, see the “friendly reminder” at the top of this page.
Annual Community Business Meeting
The annual Lakewood Community Meeting was Tuesday, October 29 at Spring Creek BBQ on Westchase Dr. Thank you to the 63 homeowners present in person or by proxy to meet quorum.
For the Board of Directors election, 2024 directors Brad Masters, Becky Wagley, Michelle Madden and Keith Fletcher returned to the ballot, along with open-floor nominees Selena Ozuna, Jamie Ba and Cynthia Francis. Ballots were counted by Jennifer Harper of SBB Management and Lakewood homeowner Derek Foster.
The 2025 Board of Directors elected are Brad Masters, Becky Wagley, Michelle Madden, Keith Fletcher and Selena Ozuna.
GARBAGE/RECYCLING PICK-UP FYI
There will be no garbage or recycling pickup on the following holidays:
- Thursday, November 28, 2024 (Thanksgiving Day)
- Wednesday, December 25, 2024 (Christmas Day)
- Wednesday, January 1, 2025 (New Year’s Day)
- Monday, May 26, 2025 (Memorial Day)
- Monday, September 1, 2025 (Labor Day)
After the mid-week holiday, garbage/recycling pick-up is delayed/shifted one day.
To avoid any confusion, CLICK HERE
On September 11, the City of Grand Prairie put out a notice to most of Lakewood that two West Nile positive mosquito samples had been detected from regular surveillance traps.
To be clear, West Nile positive mosquitos have been detected near Lakewood, there is no known reporting of a human with West Nile virus related to this. But there could be, so this is why we must stay vigilant and the fight is fairly easy.
The city will not solve mosquito problems with spray. Only residents can reduce mosquito populations by being vigilant about making sure that no standing pools or puddles of water exist on your property. Mosquitos lay eggs in stagnant water, or water that will not ripple. If there is no stagnant water to lay eggs, mosquitos will go somewhere else to find it. It’s that simple. Controlled sprays can kill active adult mosquitos, but cannot kill larvae or keep them from hatching. Spraying even a mile into the atmosphere is a very short-term mediation, not a long term solution. Mosquitos will be here long after us. You won’t spray them into extinction. You just make them go somewhere else further away to lay eggs and multiply.
There are many kinds of nuisance mosquitos, but only one species carries the West Nile virus, the Culex Quinquefaciatus. In fact, only females actually carry the virus. The City of GP has surveillance traps in a constant search for culex quinquefaciatus mosquitos. When they are found, it is a sign that West Nile could be present. Those mosquitos are then tested, and two such tested mosquitos were positive for West Nile this week near Lakewood.
Find out more here at the City website.
See details from Grand Prairie PD’s Officer K. Dixon with Lakewood residents on Saturday, September 7th on our Crime & Safety page here.
PLAYGROUND UPGRADE!
The good news: the new playground upgrade is open!
The better news: we came in under budget!
Thanks to Dallas Playsets and our partners at SBB Managment for helping us navigate this long overdue upgrade to our park area next to the pond. Included in the price of the equipment is a maintenance plan that should keep the playset looking great for years. Notice the addition of three benches and a picnic table, also.
BLOCKING YOUR (OR YOUR NEIGHBOR’S) MAILBOX
It is a misdemeanor offense in the City of Grand Prairie to park within five (5) feet of a mailbox between the hours of 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM, except on Sundays. This was added to the City’s “Offences and Miscellaneous Provisions” of the Code of Ordinances, Article I, in General section 17-32, Chapter 17, on June 2, 2020. It was one of the first city ordinances passed following Covid-19 shutdowns as more people received necessary items, such as prescription drugs, through the US Mail.
The US Postal Service is within its rights to refuse postal delivery to a mailbox blocked by a vehicle. There is no current state law restricting or penalizing cars parked in front of a mailbox.
If you have an issue with a neighbor blocking your shared mailbox, please report to the city’s Code Compliance office via the link here.
Blocking a mailbox Monday-Saturday between 8am and 5pm in Grand Prairie is ordinance No. 10853-2020.
Well, we lost a beautiful oak from our neighborhood park and pond from the post-Memorial Day storms of May 28. We will need to wait for the ground to dry before crews can work to remove it, so we appreciate your patience in resolving this matter.
Several more trees were lost along Camp Wisdom and Robinson Road around Lakewood in our common areas. Sustained winds of 20+ mph were recorded at Grand Prairie Airport, with gusts up to 40 mph.
If another big wind storm event should happen again, or for any other act of nature that brings heavy debris to your neighborhood streets, please reach out to our neighborhood management team at SBB at either support@sbbmanagement.com or the customer service line at 972-960-2800.
For more on the Neighborhood Watch meeting on March 2nd with Grand Prairie Police Department’s K.D. Dixon, see our recap in the Crime & Safety page.
BUSINESS ADVERTISING SIGNAGE A NO-NO
Advertisements like this are NOT allowed in Lakewood, on private property or on common grounds. If you see one in a common area like this feel free to remove or alert a member of the HOA Board to remove. Roofers, HVAC techs, plumbers, home service businesses, etc., love to mark their turf on residential property. This is not allowed. Contact your HOA reps and let us deal with homeowners.
Also: political signs are allowed on private property only, with the home owner’s permission. Political signs *are NOT permitted in common areas* (grounds maintained by the HOA, not a home owner). More here.
COMMON AREA TRASH CANS
We had a recent ordeal where a resident made a complaint on social media on what appeared to be our porter service for the pond and playground area neglecting or skipping scheduled trash pickup. When the porter service responded what they found was that the trash can in question, the trash bag, was essentially 3/4 empty, but someone had attempted to stuff an oversized piece of trash into the can which did not clear the frame of the trash can, clogging any trash from reaching the bag below. Subsequently, more people added to the perimeter of trash around the can. This was a completely avoidable incident if residents had just made sure their trash was properly disposed into the receptacle, and perhaps breaking down a larger piece of trash into something smaller to clear the hole. These trash cans are designed with a top that helps keep rainwater from filling the bag and trash from blowing out. These lids easily lift open to put larger items in the trash.
STORM WATER / WATERSHED
The water that drains from our neighborhood streets into the storm drains *is not treated*. This is standard practice. Unlike sewer water from our homes, storm drain water is not treated, but released directly into the environment in nearby streams, creeks and rivers. Everyone should be familiar with their neighborhood watershed. Here in Lakewood, from both sides of Camp Wisdom Rd., our storm drains empty out near our neighborhood pond. Ours is what’s known as the Alsplaugh Watershed, emptying into Alsplaugh Branch of Mountain Creek, which flows northeasterly to the Trinity River, which then takes a southeasterly bend towards the Gulf of Mexico. Yes, everything that goes into your storm drain, including the trash, animal waste, pesticides or chemicals sprayed off of driveways, etc., is on a one-way path towards the Atlantic Ocean. Please be cautious of what does, or may, go into your storm drain.
STREET LIGHT OUTAGE
The City and Oncor are responsible for fixing and replacing street light outages, not your HOA. However, outages must be reported by residents and citizens. The City and Oncor do not patrol every street of this city at night looking for outages. Nor does your HOA. Please help take responsibility for your neighborhood safety and report outages here, scroll down to “Report Street Light Outage” tab. Note that you will need the closest home address to the affected light to accurately report this.
ANIMAL COMPLAINTS
Please know that due to our proximity to Joe Pool Lake and surrounding unincorporated wooded greenbelt, extending to our south and west to Lynn Creek Park, and to our east along the dam towards Mountain Creek, we are neighbors with foxes, bobcats and coyotes, skunks and opossums, and other wildlife. When animals become a threat or a nuisance call the City of Grand Prairie Animal Control at 972-237-8575. To report roadkill in streets, animal noise complaints or otherwise, report them to the City for resolution.
Our community pond is frequented by ducks and, seasonally, geese and egrets. Please know that egrets can be particularly destructive. They are known to pull shingles from houses for nesting, just as an example. They can also be very loud. And, to be blunt, they can leave excrement on par with large dogs – and drop it from high places. But please also know that when egrets begin nesting they are federally protected. We have a love/hate relationship with our egrets here at Lakewood, both Cattle Egrets and Great Egrets, but advise to read up on the City’s recommendations for migratory birds and many of their federal protections. Bottom line: you can help curb the local egret population by keeping your trees properly trimmed. This will not harm them but simply send them seeking a good nesting spot somewhere else.
RESPECT/COURTESY TO YOUR NEIGHBORS: When walking your dog; please carry some sort of poop bag with you for those RELIEVER WASTE your animals leave behind. We have a doggie station that is equipped with bags and attached waste can for those needs along your walk in the park and trail area. But a simple plastic baggie will do!
FYI – Under city ordinance Section 5-18, all dogs and cats owned by Grand Prairie residents must at all times wear an identification tag containing the name, address and telephone number of the owner. Under Section 5-9, all dogs, cats and ferrets within the city are required to wear a metal tag that serves as proof of rabies vaccination.
-PARKING PARALLEL ON NEIGHBORHOOD STREETS: Please have the courtesy NOT to park directly across from another vehicle. This causes chaos and uneasy tension for Service Vehicles passing through, EMS vehicles, as well as, GPISD school buses and the City of Grand Prairie Trash/Disposal Trucks!! Because all of our homes were designed with driveways, unless its a quick stop in/out, PLEASE UTILIZE YOUR DRIVEWAY MORE!! Leave the streets CLEAR for visitors or contract vehicles working in the neighborhood.
-SLOW DOWN IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD: Please slow it down when driving through the neighborhood. Especially when children are present; ie., Before/After School, Weekends, and Summer Months.
-TRASH: Note that days for Trash P/U are Mondays and Thursdays. Recycle days are the same. Big Bulk Days are on Mondays only, unless there has been a scheduled pickup. Please DO NOT place trash on curbside prior to 7pm the day before.
-CRIME WATCH: If you witness something unusual or suspect foul activity please don’t hesitate to call 911
Please feel free to email me with questions or concerns that you feel should be addressed to make our community more appealing to reside or visit!