Canal City Texas: Home

Canal City Restrictions, Conditions and Covenants

Tax Write Off

Are you tired of paying maintenance fees? Would you like to donate your lots to Canal City Property Owners Association? Canal City Property Owners association is a 501(c)3 tax exempt organization which can accept tax free donations.

If you would like to donate your property we will give you a certificate from a reputable appraiser which states all the property in Canal City is appraised at $25,000 a lot. The Canal City Property Owners Association will pay for the warranty deed. You won't pay for a thing.

Tax Write Off Form (pdf)

Owners List

Lots for Sale

View Lots For Sale

If you have any lots for sale and you want to post them on this site, please email your information and it will be posted on the Lots For Sale page.

Board Of Directors

Annual Meeting 2010 Agenda

Newsletters

November 24, 2009 (pdf)

September 1, 2009 (pdf)

June 2009 (pdf)

October 21, 2008

October 08, 2008

Useful Links

Communities Rebuilding Green After Natural Disasters

We Want Your Input

Notice: The Director's Ballot has been updated.

Please read the Information Letter and print, fill out and return the Ballot and Survey. Also, please print, fill out and return the Director's Ballot 2010.

7/24/10 2:06 PM...Norma Cases

Friday 7/23/10 this 8ft gator was removed from the canal between Van Sant and Pennington.

Beware! Alligator in Canal City

Norma Cases went outside on the morning of July 14 after her grandchildren had been checking the crab traps and saw an alligator in her canal. The alligator was very close and not at all startled by their presence. Please be careful!!!

Grant Nelson's Resignation from Board

January 10, 2010 Grant Nelson resigned his position on the Canal City board of directors. David Fortenberry, the Board Vice President assumed the role of acting president until the next meeting of the general membership this summer. January 24, 2010 Ron Samples was appointed to the board position vacated by Grant Nelson.

Grant Nelson is a long time resident of Canal City and has given countless hours working to make Canal City a great place to live and vacation. He served as Vice President of the Canal City property owner's association board of directors for many years before being elected to provide leadership as the President. Grant is passionate about the well being of Canal City and even when others of us weren't able to be on site, Grant was. This was particularly critical in the months after Hurricane Ike. In some ways we may have taken Grant for granted because he was always there when we needed someone to take care of things. We all owe Grant a huge thank you for his years of devoted service.

Dredging Canal City Canals

A proposal was brought to the Canal City Board of Directors for dredging the canals this year. Several bids for dredging two canals were received. The lowest was for $66,000. The Board voted to not accept any bids and to postpone dredging until 2011 for the following reasons:

The contractor had no previous experience dredging canals, and we do not currently have the ability to oversee any dredging operation.
In 2008, we spent $96,000 to have partitions of Smith and Jacob canal dredged. It was the opinion of the Board, and many residents, that we did not get the results expected for the money spent.
The cost would have been half the Canal City treasury. The board of directors has a fiduciary responsibility to the Canal City owners to assure that the money is spent wisely.
The Board is working on a comprehensive plan for systematic dredging of all three canals at costs consistent with the annual dues. This way, the Treasury will not be depleted over time. For example: One canal could be dredged each year on rotating bases. This would ensure that all canals are dredged every three years and the Association would not have to make special assessments due to Treasury depletion.

Fishing Tournament Cancelled

The fishing tournament scheduled for April 2010 has been canceled. If anyone is interested in coordinating the event for 2011 contact one of your board members

Newsletter for November 24, 2009

November 24, 2009 (pdf)

Click link above or in the right column to download.

Fishing Area Keys

Several people have been having trouble with their key to the fishing area. The solution appears to be sanding the burs off them a little (they are a little too tight). Hope this helps.

Newsletter for September 1, 2009

September 1, 2009 (pdf)

Click link above or in the right column to download.

Results Are In

Results of Canal City Property Owners Association ballot of July 25th, 2009.

Article 7 & 8 (RV restrictions) Yes: 113 No: 97 (54% in favor)
Article 5: (house exteriors) Yes: 165 No: 48 (77% in favor)
Article 20: (bulkhead correction) Yes: 149 No: 62 (71% in favor)
Article 24: (pets) Yes: 192 No: 22 (90% in favor)
Article 25: (architectural committee) Yes: 142 No: 73 (66% in favor)

Despite the fact that all of the changes had a majority of "yes" votes, the articles that were deed restriction changes (7, 8, 5 and 20) had insufficient total votes to pass. We confirmed this with our association attorney, Ronald F. Plackemeier. A deed restriction change requires a majority of all eligible property owners by lot. Mr. Plackemeier confirmed (despite blog postings to the contrary) that each lot has one vote and we can only count votes from property owners who are current in association dues. Mr. Plackemeier is a Galveston attorney specializing in real estate with 30 years of experience, and we will post his findings and references on the web site in the future.

The Treasurer reported that there were 408 eligible voting lots (after subtracting unbuildable wetland lots that don't pay dues and those lots that were delinquent in dues). So we needed 205 votes to pass deed restriction changes. Considering the aftermath of hurricane Ike, we had a very good voter turnout and we were very close on some of the articles, but none of the deed restriction changes had enough votes to pass.

Two of the covenant changes were not deed restrictions, and therefore only require a majority of those voting (not a majority of all lots). We believe Article 24 and 25 passed, but are waiting for final confirmation from Mr. Plackemeier. We will post those results as soon as we confirmed them.

So where do we go from here?

Articles 7 & 8 about the RV restrictions were too close in "yes" versus "no" votes, so we are going to throw them out and go back to the drawing board. We're asking property owners for their ideas on how we can make a housing community and RVs coexist. This is an emotional topic with very strong opinions on both sides, but we believe there's a solution that will protect our community and still allow owners to enjoy their RVs. It's easy to attack any position ... please send us constructive ideas on how to make this work.
As for the deed restrictions that had 70% or greater "yes" votes, we'll work harder to contact more of the property owners and rerun those articles in a future ballot.

Want to Attend Meeting from Long Distance?

We have a free conference call # so any property owner can call in to participate in the meeting Saturday. We hope you will join us! The more participants the better.

Call # is: 605-475-4800
Access code: 906212#
Please mute phone (*6) if you are not speaking

Annual General Meeting 2009

When: Saturday, July 25th at 12pm (noon)

Where: First Baptist Church, Stowell, TX (near Winnie)

Newsletter and Voting Ballot

June 2009 Newsletter (pdf)

Voting Ballot (pdf)

Everyone should have received the newsletter and the voting ballot for the 5 recommended changes to our covenant and deed restrictions. If you haven't received them yet, please contact us and we'll email them to you asap. If you can't make the annual meeting on July 25th, please send in your signed ballot as soon as possible. We have to have a majority of property owners to pass these. We've been working on these for 5 months and believe they're critical to preventing Canal City from becoming a rental trailer community, which would change the face of our subdivision and destroy our property values. Permanent rental trailers were never intended but our current deed restrictions have loopholes that could be interpreted to allow that.

If you have any questions about any of these changes, please contact one of the board members. Canal City is truly one of the most unique subdivisions and together we can make it one of the best on the penninsula. (my cell number (931) 273-5484).

Auction Rescheduled

There will be no lot auctions until after the 1st of the year.

There will be no auction this Tuesday. It has been rescheduled for June 2.

Canal City Cleanup and More, March 21st

We need to have another clean up and policing of Canal City before the grass grows and we cannot see all the debris. We are shooting for March 21, 2009 at 9am. We will meet at Fred Tillman's house at 9am and again at noon for lunch. Canal City will provide the meat and drinks. We are asking for those who attend to please bring a side dish or dessert. Even if your place is cleaned up please come and help others clean their property. Just think a day at the beach! You may want to bring gloves and mosquito spray.

The dedication of a handicapped fishing pier for Bobby Sanford will be April 18,2009 at 10am in the fishing area on Van Zant. Come see all the improvements we have made over the winter. Improvements take time ane we think you will like what you see.

Canal City lots appraised at $25,000

Thank you all for cleaning up your properties. We have seen a great improvement since the last clean-up day. Galveston County will make their last pass for debris removal in the last part of Febuary. If any of you want your pilings removed and hauled to the road, please contact Mike Waltz at 832-264-5539. If anyone has an objection to going on your property, please let Grant know at 409-781-3682. Otherwise we will assume it is all right. The Galveston County Tax Assessor said they are not going to lower our taxes this year. Next year they will survey everyone's property and assess for lots only.

The foreclosure auction will be February 3rd, 10:00 am at the Old Galveston County Court House. These foreclosures are on lots whose owners can not be found and have not paid association fees or taxes for many years. This is a trustee sale of property. You can pay with cash or cashiers check after the auction at the attorneys office. There is no pre-registration needed. Everyone is welcome. The following lots will be sold: 129, 294, 330, 373, 391 and 459. There will also be property taxes due to the county on these lots but not at the auction.

We regret to announce that Robert "Bobby" Sandford passed away January 8th. There will be no funeral, but there will be a dedication this April. The date and location are TBA.

The Canal City Property Owners Association Board strongly encourages all owners to hold on to their property. We believe that with the Utility Board working on a peninsula-wide waste-water treatment plant, and development plans for the former Cade Ranch, now The Retreat on Bolivar Ranch, our property values will not only recover but will increase in the years ahead.

We, the property owners, are not waiting for these improvements. We're already getting input from the owners to rebuild a better and safer Canal City. However, if there are property owners who are facing financial challenges due to the hurricane or other factors, rather than accepting a low offer from real estate speculators, please contact the Association Board.

We have another option for those who may need to sell quickly. If anyone wishes to donate their lot to Canal City, they can write that contribution off on taxes because Canal City is a non-profit organization. We recently had the lots appraised by a certified appraiser, and they were valued at $25,000 for an average lot without bulk-heading or boat slip. We will provide anyone donating a lot a copy of that official appraisal. The Association will also pick up the cost of the transfer. Please contact Grant Nelson or David Fortenberry for more information.

Clean Up Day A Success

Canal City Cleanup Day on Saturday November 15,2008 has come and gone. Those who came put a dent in the clean up but we are far from being finished. The remainder of the property owners will need to clean up their lots and haul debris away themselves, unless the debris is picked up within the next two weeks and placed by the side of the road.

We want to particularly thank Barney Cases and Mike Walz for providing tractors. Thanks to Loretta Howard who brought a crew from Longview, Texas, and Dave and Lilli Stevens who came from Tennessee. Thanks to Fred and Pam Tillman for the use of their house and for providing a place for all to meet and eat, plus great potato salad and slaw. Also thanks to Lonnie Austin for the great desserts, and to the ladies who helped cook hamburgers and hot dogs. Thanks to all for your help.

It was a cold day but at least none had to break a sweat and the mosquitos behaved themselves. I picked up a claw foot tub, a half circular decorated iron table and a sportsman trailer. Anyone missing these items can call Grant Nelson at 409-781-3682.

We have a number of lots coming up for foreclosure on Tuesday 2 December at the old Galveston Courthouse at 10:00 am. They are lots 243, 295, 477, and 478. These lots are from owners who haven't paid association fees since the 90's and cannot be reached and none of these lots had property damaged by Ike.

Canal City Cleanup Day: Saturday, November 15th, 2008 at 9:00 at Tillman residence on VanSant.

Governor Perry Announces Eckels, Newby to Lead Hurricane Ike Recovery and Coordination Effort

News Story on Bolivar Water, Electric and more

Restore Bolivar Meeting

Please attend Wednesday, October 15, 4pm at Jefferson County Courthouse in the Jury Impaneling Room @ 1001 Pearl in Beaumont. Last time there was seating room only so please arrive early to get inside and get a good seat. Speakers will be Galveston County Commissioner Doyle and Galveston County Judge Yarborough. If you cannot attend, results from the meeting will be posted on the www.restorebolivar.com website.

Mail Update

Please be sure to provide forwarding mail address to the post office in Stowell and pick up your mail. After October 20, it will be returned to sender if it does not have a new address.

Gov. Perry Joins HUD, FEMA to Launch Rental Assistance Program

AUSTIN - Gov. Rick Perry today joined U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Steve Preston and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Deputy Administrator Harvey Johnson to announce a rental assistance program for Texans displaced by Hurricane Ike. The program, created at Gov. Perry's request, will help Texans find intermediate housing and provide temporary rental payments.

Notice: NEW Requirements for Bolivar Visitors

I just received new instructions late tonight (early Thursday morning CST) via Dad from Lynette Johnson-Hardcastle, the President of the Bolivar Utility District. See the previous notice as well for more details on the required documentation.

Be advised that the commissioners court has decided to allow residents with proper identification to enter through High Island starting on Friday 9/26 from 7am - 2pm.
During this time all traffic will be going into the peninsula for "Look & Leave". People will be allowed to gather personal possessions as well as check on their property.
After 2pm traffic entering will be shutoff inbound, and people will be allowed to exit. At 4pm, everyone that entered will be expected to leave the peninsula.

Notice: Requirements for Bolivar Visitors

Some form of ID showing you are property owner in Gilchrist (i.e. utility bill, TX driver's license with Gilchrist address, etc.)
Access only between 8am and 5pm
Entrance only via High Island (not ferry)

If your driver's license does not show Gilchrist as your address,then you must bring some documentation (e.g. utility bill, deed, etc.) as proof of property ownership.

Notice: Do NOT cut off your Canal City water and electricity services.

I just spoke with Dad and he said there are some indications that if you cut off your utility services, there may be a problem getting them turned back on. It is important to continue your water and electric services and continue paying the bill.

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