The Harlan’s Creek Meadows HOA has issued a formal citation under Ordinance 14-B. The Nightcrawler has until the 14th to respond. It has not responded.
HARLAN’S CREEK, WV — The Harlan’s Creek Meadows Homeowners Association has issued a formal notice of citation to a Fresno Nightcrawler observed crossing Elm Street at dusk on four consecutive Thursdays, in what the Association is characterising as a clear and ongoing violation of Ordinance 14-B, Pedestrian Visibility Standards, subsection two, which requires all pedestrians using Elm Street between the hours of 6:00 and 9:00 p.m. to wear or carry reflective materials sufficient to ensure visibility from a distance of no less than thirty metres.
The Nightcrawler was not wearing reflective materials. The Nightcrawler was not wearing anything. HOA Compliance Officer Denise Hartwell confirmed the citation was issued Tuesday morning and has been placed in a sealed envelope taped to the stop sign at the corner of Elm and Birchwood, which she described as the most appropriate available point of service. She noted the Association had consulted its bylaws and found no provision for alternative delivery methods.
We are not making a statement about the nature of the entity. We are making a statement about the visibility standards applicable to all pedestrians within the Harlan’s Creek Meadows jurisdiction, of which Elm Street is indisputably one.
— Denise Hartwell, HOA Compliance Officer, Harlan’s Creek Meadows
Sightings were first reported to the Association on September 18th by resident Barry Hutchins, 71, who described the creature as approximately seven feet tall, entirely white, moving on two legs with what he characterised as a gait suggesting either profound calm or a complete absence of knees. Hutchins filed a written complaint in the standard format, attached four photographs taken on his phone from a distance of approximately forty feet, and noted that he had attempted to make eye contact and received no response, which he described as consistent with previous encounters. The Association has confirmed receipt of the complaint. The photographs are under review. Hutchins’ sighting count now stands at fourteen. His credibility rating with the DCA remains on file.
The Board Has Requested Its Presence. The Board Is Still Requesting.
The citation directs the Nightcrawler to appear at the next open board session, scheduled for the 14th at 7:00 p.m. in the community hall on Sycamore Drive, if it wishes to contest the notice. Attendance is described in the citation as strongly encouraged but not compulsory, as the Association acknowledges it has no enforcement mechanism applicable to the entity at this stage. Compliance Officer Hartwell confirmed that a seat has nonetheless been reserved at the end of the second row and that the agenda has been amended to include a ten-minute window under New Business, Item 4: Citation Response — Elm Street Entity. Items 5 through 8 have been pushed accordingly.
DCA ADVISORY
The Department of Cryptid Affairs has confirmed receipt of the HOA’s notification under Form DCA-9 (Local Jurisdiction Supplement). A DCA spokesperson stated that the Fresno Nightcrawler classification carries a standard advisory of non-engagement and that the issuance of municipal citations to classified entities falls outside current DCA operational guidance. The spokesperson added that this does not mean it should not have been done. The spokesperson then ended the call.
FAST FACTS
• Ordinance 14-B (Pedestrian Visibility Standards) was adopted by the Harlan’s Creek Meadows HOA in 2019 following an unrelated incident on Sycamore Drive that the Association has declined to reference directly in any subsequent documentation.
• The Nightcrawler has been observed crossing Elm Street at dusk on four consecutive Thursdays. It has not varied its route. It has not varied its timing. It has not acknowledged the stop sign.
• The sealed envelope containing the citation remained on the stop sign for approximately six hours before disappearing. Compliance Officer Hartwell has noted its absence in the enforcement log and is awaiting guidance on whether this constitutes receipt.
• Six witnesses have reported the crossings. Credibility across the witness group is assessed at two out of five. Barry Hutchins accounts for four of the six reports and has offered to present his photographs at the board session using the community hall projector, which he has confirmed he knows how to operate.
It took the envelope. I’m choosing to interpret that as engagement with the process.
— Denise Hartwell, HOA Compliance Officer
DCA Field Representative Arthur Bellamy confirmed he was aware of the situation and that the Harlan’s Creek field office had received a copy of the citation through standard channels. He declined to characterise the HOA’s approach as appropriate or inappropriate. He declined to characterise the Nightcrawler’s presence in Harlan’s Creek Meadows as expected or unexpected. He said, after a pause that this reporter noted in her records, that Elm Street at dusk on a Thursday was a matter the field office had been aware of for some time. He did not specify how long. He thanked this reporter for the call and ended it before a follow-up question was possible.
The board session on the 14th is open to all Harlan’s Creek Meadows residents. Parking is available in the community hall lot. Residents are advised that the agenda runs to eight items and that refreshments will be provided. Compliance Officer Hartwell confirmed that the seat in the second row will remain reserved regardless of whether the entity attends. She noted that in her eleven years with the Association, no citation has gone formally uncontested, and that she saw no reason to treat this one differently. The citation fine, if upheld, is forty dollars. Payment methods accepted are cheque or exact cash. The Association does not currently have a policy on alternative forms of tender. Hartwell acknowledged this may require review.
haroldridgeway@whatthecryptid.com Harold “Hal” Ridgeway · Lead Anchor — WTC Facebook
