As the sun began its descent in Arabian Ranches on 31 October 2012, residents started flocking to the Alvorada open park where a Halloween event organized by ECM was set ready for all the residents. The stream of people grew as the minutes passed, and soon hundreds of Arabian Ranches residents came strolling, skipping and laughing from all directions.

Families and kids flocked to the area to join in the fun activities Halloween planned for the evening. Kids got an opportunity to showcase their scariest costume for a chance to take home a prize. Residents wanting to participate left a light on between the hours of 6pm till 8pm for costumed kids trick or treating. Spirits high, giggles and spooky crackles filled the air as sunset approached and the crowds swelled. The judges faced a tough decision to shortlist the finalists of the Halloween Contest. After much deliberation, 16 winners took home certificates and prizes for their efforts.

Many residents lingered at the venue long past sunset, chatting with friends to enjoy the festive atmosphere. Meanwhile the streets of Arabian Ranches echoed with laughter and footsteps bounced down the streets as groups of kids dashed door to door trick or treating at the many decorated villas across the community. Turnout far exceeded expectations for Arabian Ranches’ first Halloween event and plans are already afoot to make next year’s Halloween event bigger and better.

Inside thisissue

02Say No To Damas Campaign OutcomeThe recently held ‘Say No to Damas’ campaign was made a success with our residents embracing it.

02Is your pool safe? Stay safe at home!Find here some tips to help you stay safe around the swimming pool area.

04Your Home! Your Sanctuary!Maintain a safe community with your participation. ECM offers tips on home safety.

03Washing of Cars in GarageCommunity residents are requested to maintain caution when washing cars in their villa garages.

For private circulation only.Published by Emaar Community Management: Contact us at communities@emaar.ae

Spooksville in Arabian Rancheson 31 Oct’12

COMMUNITY NEWSArabian Ranches - Issue No.4, 2012

The posters were hard to miss, standing at the entrances to almost every community at Arabian Ranches, listing details of owners who have failed to pay their long overdue Community Service Fees (CSF).

The CSF Default Awareness Campaign proved successful with achieving over 67% collection from long overdue defaulters of the community.

Many residents and owners are aware that timely payment of CSF directly contributes to the services and running of the communities in order to maintain Arabian Ranches to the high standards residents expect. When owners delay payments, this could result in detrimental effects on the community.

When the CSF Default Awareness campaign commenced, ECM received many phone calls and emails of support from owners and members of the Interim Board.

ECM would like to thank all the owners who have settled their outstanding debts and encourage remaining defaulting owners to make arrangements to bring their accounts to date.

Defaulter Awareness Campaign

SEASONSGREETINGSAND A HAPPYNEW YEAR!

SAY NO TODAMAS

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Say No To Damas Trees Campaign OutcomeThe recently held ‘Say No to Damas’ campaign was made a success with our residents embracing it wholeheartedly. A significant number of residents positively took up the special discounted rates offered during the campaign to remove the Damas trees from their villas.

As part of this initiative, ECM also removed the Damas trees planted within the common areas of the community in support of the campaign.

Mr. Prasad from Mirador La Coleccion, commended ECM for this initiative by saying,‘Thank you for the brochure and information on the ill’s of Damas trees in our community. I have these trees and have decided to get rid of them, I would support any initiative of the community to ban these trees and would request you to make it mandatory to remove these trees.’

Another resident, Robert Renton from Saheel said,‘We made the mistake of planting these trees in our garden. Five years later and damage to our pool and drains, we've finally removed the majority of them.’ He further highlights ‘Make a call and get ALL these trees removed from the Ranches. It's wrong and devalues the price of our property.’

With the help of ECM, the approved landscapers began their visits to quote for removal of the trees. In some cases trees were over 15 meters in some cases with roots stretched to neighboring properties. Residents in the neighborhood were delighted with the work and now they can rest easy that their pools are safe, gardens can grow properly with proper sunlight and nutrients reaching their own plants.

Mr. Nadjib H Boussaad from Saheel says,‘Please note that we have been victims of “Damas-Tree” all along our almost 8 years of residing in the Arabian Ranches – Saheel Community. I had planted 60 babies Damas-Trees myself thinking then of a great deal – AED 3 per tree and plenty of shade and privacy - now we have to pay AED 30,000 for removal plus wall structure repair expenses!’

While the ‘Say No to Damas’ campaign officially ended in late October ‘12, residents interest in learning more about the dangers and how to remove these trees continues. ECM continually receives queries through residents appreciating this initiative and wanting to participate. We would like to thank everyone who participated in this campaign and would encourage residents to join us in preserving the wellbeing of the community.

Splashing around the swimming pool is a sure way to have fun. Make safety a priority to protectyour children and others around the water. Here are some useful tips to help you and your littleones stay safe. Most children are drawn to water. It's sparkly, things float on it and it's fun to splash.But water safety is no laughing matter. Anyone can have a water-related accident - even childrenwho know how to swim.

Specific Pool Safety tips include the following:• For newborn infants and children through four years of age, parents and caregivers should never-even for a moment-leave children alone or in the care of another child, while in or near bathtubs, pools, spas, or wading pools, or near irrigation ditches or other open bodies of water. • Remember, infants can drown in just one inch of water. Hence, with children of this age, practice “touch supervision”; that means that a supervising adult should be within an arm’s length of the child with full attention focused on the child at all times when they are in or near water. • The supervising adult should not be engaged in distracting activities, such as talking on a telephone, socializing, or tending to household chores. • Home swimming pools should be surrounded by a fence that prevents a child from getting to the pool from the house. There is no substitute for at least a four-foot-high, non-climbable, four-sided fence with a self-closing, self-latching gate. • Parents, caregivers, and pool owners should possibly learn CPR or BLS (Basic Life Support) and store a safety ring with a rope beside the pool. • Make sure you always have a phone in the pool area. • Parents should make sure they do not leave any pool toys in the water, a child may fall in while trying to retrieve the toy. • Toddlers, youngsters with an intellectual disability, and children with seizure disorders are particularly vulnerable to drowning, but all youngsters are in danger if unsupervised in or near water. • Even a child who knows how to swim may drown a few feet from safety.

Remember, children should be supervised at all times. Swimming lessons should not be considered a way to drown proof your child.

Is Your Pool Safe? Stay Safe at Home!

Before After Before After

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All residents in the community are requested to maintain caution when washing their villa garages and vehicles. Excessive use of water should be avoided when washing vehicles or your garages as it leads to water overflowing into the common area.

Harsh and corrosive cleaning agents play a major role in causing a lot of damage to the roads and pathways of the common area. Often, damages start small and are usually neglected by residents or the household staff while washing their garages or vehicles. We recommend that dust, sand, and dirt, should be swept clean from your garage or your car and be collected with a dustpan and placed in a box or bag for the trash prior to washing it. In doing this, it will avoid dirt flowing on to the road. The flowing of cleaning fluids and grease affects community aesthetics and increases the maintenance cost for the upkeep of common areas.

Washing of Cars in Garage

Before You Go! Make sure your home does not appear desertedby doing the following:• Discontinue newspaper delivery• Check all doors and windows• Close unnecessary water supply valves• Switch off electrical appliance• Inform your neighbours and security that you will be away• Use timers for household lights• Continue garden maintenance

Before Travelling for the Holidays

The holidays are just around the corner, and for many people, that means lots of festivities with friends and loved ones. With all of the merriment that’s sure to ensue, it’s important that residents who are hosting celebrations are not only considerate of their neighbours, but also take note of the community rules. Here are a few key items to look up that are particularly pertinent during the holiday season:

Outdoor Decorations: Decking the halls with seasonal ornaments is a great way to bring the holiday spirit home. Many love to spread the joy by decorating the outside of their homes and front yards as well, but before you scurry up that ladder to hang the decorative lights along the side of your roof, take a quick peek at the Master Community Rules available on www.emaar.com to find out the guidelines for outdoor decorations, as well as the guidelines for flags and signs if you plan on decorating with those. This will help make sure your outdoor winter wonderland isn’t a violation.

Parties: We hope you all have plenty of chances to eat, drink and be merry this holiday season. If you plan on hosting a large get-together or party, there are a few things you’ll want to keep in mind. First, keep the revelry and noise to a minimum, and wind the party down at a reasonable time-you don’t want your celebrating to interfere with your neighbours’ attempts to get visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads.

Parking: The holidays bring many people together, and that means extra cars will need to be parked. To make sure your guests are covered, look at the rules on visitor parking in the community, including where they can park and for how long.

Following the Master Community Rules and regulations helps ensure that all of our residents can enjoy this special time of year, so please help us by doing your part. Stay safe and have a wonderful holiday season.

Rules for the Holidays

Residents of the community are requested to regularly maintain their DEWA cabinets to keep up the appearance of the community. Please note that the upkeep of DEWA meter cabinets are the responsibility of individual homeowners and leaving this unattended for long periods could lead to a higher costs for rectification.

DEWA CabinetMaintenance

USEFUL NUMBERS

Fire 997Ambulance 998Police 999Al Ameen 800 4888

Dubai Municipality 800 900Taxi (RTA) 800 9090DEWA 991Community Security Hotline (24 hrs) 04 308 9555

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This is the time for outdoor barbecue parties and sleeping under the stars, but bothersome bugs can ruin outdoor fun. Many people spray themselves and their lawns with chemical repellants to get rid of these pests, but there are natural alternatives that are environmentally friendly to your home and our community. Here are a few tips to help you enjoy a bug-free garden.

Get growing. Planting a simple garden can do wonders in keeping the bug count down. Plants like garlic, radishes, marigolds, nasturtium, oregano, sage, rosemary and mint are easy to cultivate and can make the area in and around your garden uninviting to the creepy crawlers, as they act as natural bug repellants. Pest-control never looked or tasted so good!

Wet and wild. Eliminate stagnant or standing water in your yard; it provides breeding grounds for mosquitoes. Emptying used kiddy pools and fountains and refilling them with fresh water, cleaning gutters of leaves and other rain-blocking debris and filling in puddles with dirt are just some of the ways to reduce the buzzing bugs in your yard.

Going to the birds. Setting up a few bird houses in your yard is not only a great way to enjoy the beauty of our feathered friends, but it also mitigates bug problems, since many birds love to dine on dragonflies, beetles and the ilk.

Candle in the wind. When outdoors, ignite an all-natural bug repellant candle nearby to keep the bugs at bay, and enjoy the sweet smell of citronella, lavender, mint and other aromas that pests find repugnant.

Light up the night. Many high-flying insects are drawn to light. So, why not install an elevated yellow bug light on your back yard to attract those critters up and away from the ground (and you!) when you spend an evening outdoors.

Everyone wants a safe place to call home and while as managers, ECM works hard to reduce possible dangers in our community, we can’t do it alone. It’s up to everyone to pitch in to make our community a safe place to live in. Thankfully, taking a few simple steps can go a long way in keeping theft and vandalism out of the community. Know Your Neighbours. And not just the neighbours on your block, but also the neighbours from all parts of the community. At the very least, you’ll get a better idea of who actually lives (and in turn, who belongs) here. Talking with your neighbours will also give you the chance to find out if there have noticed any crimes or suspicious activity in the community recently so that you can be on the lookout as well.

Leave Your Energy Effecient Light On. A good way to deter break-ins is to make sure your front porch light stays on all night, even when you’re out of town. Not only does it signal that someone’s home, it also makes it harder for vandals to hide among the shadows. If you’re worried that you’ll either forget to turn the light on at night or off in the morning, you can purchase an inexpensive timer that will automatically do that for you every day. Also, if you see any street lights around the community that are burnt out, please let ECM know by emailing communities@emaar.ae as soon as possible so that, we can replace them for everyone’s safety.

Lock Up. If you want to keep unwanted guests out, don’t make your home inviting. Even when you’re around, it’s best to keep all gates, doors and garages locked at all times. It’s also a good idea to keep your windows closed and locked when possible, especially on the ground floor. Put On Your Walking Shoes. Taking a stroll around the community isn’t just good exercise, you can casually patrol the community for anything suspicious or unusual. Also, when more residents regularly walk around the community, it can help scare off hooligans who are afraid of getting caught in the act.

See Something, Say Something. If you notice a crime or a suspicious activity, regardless of how small the incident may seem, notify the community security on 04 3089555 and the police immediately. Of course, only call 999 if it is an emergency; otherwise, contact Al Ameen service on 800 4888. We all have a responsibility to the community to help keep it safe and incorporating even a few of these tips can go a long way. Do your part to make the community a place you’re happy to call home.

Your Home! Your Sanctuary!

Put a Stop to your Gardens Most Wanted Pests… Naturally