It’s that time of year again, and now is the perfect time to prepare your manufactured home community for the holiday season. While this is a time for celebration and spending time with loved ones, community owners have to stay focused on safety as well. That starts with planning and maintenance, so you can mitigate the risk involved with the uptick in visitors and deliveries that the holiday season brings. 

Inspections and Winter Weather Prep

While Thanksgiving and Christmas are right around the corner, so is the colder weather. It’s important to prep and inspect your office building and any community buildings to make sure they are ready for winter.

Areas to Inspect: 
  • Roofs 
  • Drainage Systems
  • Gutters 
  • Water Lines 
  • Heating Systems

Prepare for Higher Traffic and Deliveries 

With the holidays comes an uptick in traffic. This will be from both visitors and delivery personnel. With more people coming in and out of the community, there is more risk for you as a community owner, but there are steps you can take to mitigate risk. 

  • Repair Roads and Sidewalks 

Before the holiday season kicks off in full swing, ensure that the roadways and sidewalks are thoroughly inspected for large, uneven cracks, potholes, or other damage. This could cause someone to trip and fall or cause damage to someone’s vehicle. As the community owner, you could be held responsible for their injuries or the damage. Make sure that this damage is repaired promptly.

Winter Prep Reminder: If you are in an area that receives snow and ice, keep road salt on hand to apply to walkways and roads when needed to reduce the risk of slips and falls and accidents.

  • Ensure Proper Lighting 

Now that the time change has happened and it gets darker sooner, it’s more important than ever to ensure proper lighting. This includes streetlights, lights around common areas, such as playgrounds, and walkway lights. This will mitigate the risk of injury and also help reduce the chances of theft with the increased number of packages being delivered in the community. 

  • Proper Road Signage 

With the increased vehicle traffic from deliveries and guests, it’s imperative that proper road signage is posted and visible. This includes stop signs, yield signs, and speed limit signs. Ensure that the necessary signage is posted and undamaged before the holidays kick off. 

  • Security Measures

If you don’t have security cameras in your community, now is the perfect time to add them. With increased risk of theft of packages and deliveries, having cameras and signs warning of the cameras is a great way to mitigate the risk. It will also help identify suspects if something does happen in your community. Learn more about improving security in your community here. 

Decorate for the Holidays & Host Holiday Events 

Now for the fun part: decorating for the holidays! Decorating the community spaces isn’t just about making the space look nice (which it does), but also shows the residents that you care about the community and fosters a sense of community pride. It’s a great way to encourage residents to decorate their own spaces and promotes positivity throughout the community. 

Another great way to engage with residents is to host holiday events. 

Here are some holiday event ideas for your community:

  • Community Potluck or Community Thanksgiving 
  • Food Drive
  • Tree Lighting Ceremony 
  • Decorating Contest – Encourage residents to decorate their homes and pass out prizes 
  • Toy Drive 
  • Craft Workshop 
  • Christmas Movie Night
  • Holiday Brunch 

Communicate with Residents 

Keeping residents in the know should be at the top of the priority list. Here are some items that you should include in your newsletters/community reminders: 

  • Package and Delivery Safety Reminders and Tips 
  • Traffic Safety Reminders 
  • Holiday Safety Reminders About Holiday Lights, Candles, and Space Heaters
  • Event Reminders 
  • Weather Alerts 
  • Reminder of Rules about Visitors and Parking Rules 
  • Cold Weather Safety for Pets 
  • Schedule Changes and Office Hours 
  • Decorating Guidelines 
  • Tips for Winterizing Their Homes 
  • Emergency Contact Information 

For more tips for your manufactured home community, visit our resources page here, and learn more in our blog here.