Colony Assistance

[LesMartin]

Hello Friends. I am a prospective landlord and will be trying my luck this spring at a local golf course. The ground socket for the PMC-24 has already been installed and is ready to go for spring. The reason I am posting in this forum is to obtain some advice about a dilemma I am facing.
Last summer I discovered an active martin colony not too far from my home with several pairs in residence. Unfortunately the property was for sale with the landlord of the colony having since moved on. The birds were left to their own devices and no maintenance of the birdhouses was being performed. I drove by the property last July only to find two fledglings stranded on the ground. They were fairly easy to catch so I took them to a local wildlife rehabilitator and they were returned to the colony a few days later able to fly. My point is, without supervision this colony will perish and viable breeding martins will be lost. The property has since been sold however I have not yet introduced myself to the new owners.
Having illustrated the scenario I would like to ask the knowledgeable and experienced members of the forum about what they would do if they were in my position. One possibility I was thinking of would be to ask the current owners if they would let me manage the colony. The problem is the houses and gourds are on hinged poles so they cannot be raised and lowered easily. If I were to manage the colony on my own I would refit the houses with new telescoping poles. I believe in strict sparrow control and am thinking if the owners realized what I was doing they might evict me from the property. If this were to happen then the colony would certainly be doomed.
Another scenario would be to buy the houses and gourds outright then reassemble them at the golf course about three miles down the road. The problem with this is that in my mind I would feel sorry for the birds coming back all the way from Brazil only to find nothing there. Maybe I am too sentimental. I asked a fellow martin enthusiast and he said to just purchase the birdhouses because the martins would certainly find other places to nest in the area such as the golf course. The golf course is ideal martin habitat with flyways that go on forever in every direction and many large ponds. I have wanted a colony of these birds since I was a boy and I believe now is the time.
There you have it. I appreciate any and all comments on my post. Your advice is very valuable to me and it will affect what I will do. Again, thank you for your time and good luck with the martins this year.

Les

[Archer]

Welcome to the forum Les, thank you for your interest in martins, they need more friends like you. I would talk to the new owners and get a feel for them and their interest in Martins. If they have no interest in hosting then it would be better that the house be removed from that location and placed where it can be managed.

[William A]

Les, I appreciate you concern and dedication. I agree with Archer. Better to get rid of the housing than endanger the birds. They will find the new housing at the golf course. Good luck and please let us know how it works out. It would be better yet to get the housing moved before they arrive back.

[LesMartin]

Thanks a lot Archer and William. I appreciate your responses. The martins are due back here in Ontario the beginning of April so I will have plenty of time relocate the colony to a better location. I had a feeling you were going to say that. Your advice is priceless.