I thought I'd share with everyone our experience with sending in a request to modify our landscaping.

On May 2nd we submitted our plan, a complete plant list, the Request for Modification form, and our check for $10.
We got an immediate response from Jennifer Harvey letting us know she would submit it to the committee for review.
About a week later we received a follow up email with 2 clarifying questions. We responded right away.
Then we waited and waited.
I inquired about the progress.
AND THEN FINALLY, today we got the official approval!

So the "approval process" took 49 days. Maybe if I had been more persistent earlier, it might have happened sooner?

We aren't doing anything major. We just want to remove the grass, add some new plants, flagstone patios, river rock, etc.

Unfortunately the damage from the hailstorm forced us to dip into the cash we had set aside for this project so we may not be able to act on it right away, but at least now that we have the approval we can get started when we are ready!

Hope this helps someone else who is curious about the process. The hail storm distracted us from our plans, otherwise I would have been bugging Jennifer for an approval sooner and maybe it wouldn't have taken quite as long. Still, I did have to remind her that we were waiting for the approval, so keep that in mind. She also mentioned in her email that we would be getting a "letter" stating their approval in the mail. VERY OFFICIAL

As fall (late Sept/early Oct.) is the single BEST time to plant plants in Austin, you will be much happier that you waited with the plants. The hardscape can, of course be installed anytime, but you may also get a better contracted rate in the fall for installations in the fall when people are done thinking about their outdoor spaces.

Bryna...where do I get the modification form request. I can't find any valid link on here. And who and where do I submit it?

Thanks

`terrence

I can't seem to find it, but if you email Jennifer Harvey she will email it to you or tell you where to find it.

jharvey@allianceonline.net

I don't think you need to submit forms if all you're doing is changing your landscaping. Here's what Jennifer Harvey told me when I asked about this:

"You do not need pre-approval to plant anything. You are required to have 80% of your plants from the approved plants list. You cannot however change one of the street trees. Any trees planted in the area between the road and sidewalk must stay and you cannot swap them out."

The approved plant list is on the mueller section at alliance.net, but you have to be a member to view it, I think. It *should* be on here too in a separate section but I don't think it is.

I should add that you cannot plant anything on the invasive plants section of the "do not plant list" (things like kudzu, running bamboo, english ivy). But you can plant things on the other section (non-native design character) of that list - they would just strongly prefer that you didn't.

Doug