THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, June 4, 1994 TAG: 9406030509
SECTION: REAL ESTATE WEEKLY PAGE: 09 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: G. Robert Kirkland and Michael A. Inman
DATELINE: 940604 LENGTH: Medium
Our neighborhood needs a lot of things, like repainting of the common areas and better enforcement of rules and regulations. Several residents violate the covenants with unauthorized yard decorations and storm doors, to name a few items.
{REST} Still, I can't seem to get the board to act. What can I do to make something happen?
It sounds like your community association's board of directors lacks leadership and decisiveness. As a unit owner, you can enforce the covenants on your own, though this is not a desirable approach.
Instead, you should advise the board to meet with an association management firm or an association attorney. Both can help board members make an orderly plan to eliminate violations and address maintenance issues.
Board members must realize they have a fiduciary duty to the community to promptly notify owners who violate the rules.
If the board repeatedly fails to act on a certain violation, it may lose the right to enforce the rule. If offenders refuse to comply within a reasonable time, the board needs to take legal action.
Perhaps your board does not understand its obligations, or perhaps it is gun-shy about taking action against neighbors.
In either case, hiring a management firm to do the job could help put distance between the board and the violators. Also, the management company could help the board prepare a schedule for required maintenance items, such as painting.
If the board will not listen to you or an attorney or management firm, you may have to bring a suit on your own to wake up the members.
By the way, many residents, yourself included, say they don't have time to serve. But you need to make time for worthwhile endeavors - preserving and protecting your community is one of them.
by CNB