Deletions and changes to FCPOA proposed amended deed restrictions.
These deletions and changes are proposed to make the amended restrictions more moderate, and more similar to the current (original) deed restrictions. All deletions are additional controversial restrictions that have been proposed by the FCPOA, but were not in the original restrictions. The intent and purpose of these additional restrictions is not the issue. At issue here is the means by which the FCPOA is authorized to use to accomplish these purposes, and the effect of these means on the quality of life in Forest Cove. Deed restrictions that provide the FCPOA with more power to use force to meet their goals does not guarantee that those goals will be met. But it does have the potential to be abused, and to have a negative impact on the quality of many peoples lives.
George Washington said "Government is not reason, it is not eloquence, it is force". Remember Lord Acton's dictum "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely". And conservative economist Milton Friedman said "The government solution to a problem is usually as bad as the problem."
Deletions are in bold italics, changes are in color. The text that is in bold italics has been deleted from the alternate version of the amended restrictions.
(a) No lot shall be used …
(5) In Forest Cove, Section Six (6), a stable wherein horses may be kept for the sole enjoyment and use of the persons occupying the lot is permitted; further, Lots One, Two (2) and Three (3) in Block Seventeen (17), and Lots One (1) and Two (2) in Block Thirty-Two (32), may be used for either single-family residential purposes or church purposes. As used herein "church purposes" means religious worship, ministries intended to further the instruction of a particular religion, and the operation of a school to provide youths with a religious-based education, provided that the school is operated by a religious organization that also conducts religious worship services on the property.
Notwithstanding any other provision herein to the contrary, not more than two (2) horses shall be kept on any lot at any given time.
(b) No building or …
No owner shall commence … The owner shall be given the opportunity to meet with the board of directors of Forest Cove Property Owners Association, Inc. to contest the violation if a written request for a hearing is submitted to the board of directors of Forest Cove Property Owners Association, Inc. within fifteen (15) days of the date the owner receives the notice of violation. The owner will be responsible for all legal expenses and fees incurred by the Association to secure compliance.
(e) No trailer, recreational vehicle, basement, tent, shack, garage, barn or other outbuilding erected on the tract shall be at any time used as a residence, temporary or permanent, nor shall any structure of a temporary character be used as a residence, nor shall any used residence be moved onto a residential lot.
(h) Except for lots …, no fence, wall, hedge, or pergola or other detached structure higher than two (2) feet above the ground, shall be erected, grown or maintained on any part of any lot forward of the front building line of said lot or nearer to the street than the side building line on any corner lot. All proposed fences must be approved by the Forest Cove Property Owners Association, Inc. with respect to height, location, type of materials and appearance.
(i) No noxious or offensive activity shall be carried on upon any lot or shall anything be done thereon which may be or become a nuisance and annoyance to the neighborhood. The Board of Directors of the Association shall have the authority to determine whether a nuisance exists on any lot and its determination shall be final. For the purpose of this provision, a nuisance shall be any activity or condition on a lot which is reasonably considered to be an annoyance to surrounding residents of ordinary sensibilities (including, but not limited to, conditions or activities which are unreasonably loud or unsightly or which create safety concerns) and which might be calculated to reduce the desirability of the property as a residential neighborhood. The owner or occupant of each lot shall at all times keep the grass, weeds, bushes and trees thereon cut and/or trimmed in a reasonably neat and attractive condition and maintain all flower beds. The owner or occupant of each lot shall also at all times keep the residential dwelling and all other improvements on the lot in an attractive and well-maintained condition. No owner shall use any lot for the visible storage of materials and equipment or permit the accumulation of garbage, trash or debris of any kind on the lot. In the event the owner or occupant of any lot fails to maintain the lot in a reasonable manner as required by this covenant and such failure continues after ten (10) days written notice from the Association, the Association may, at its option, without liability to the owner or occupant in trespass or otherwise, enter upon said lot and cause the lot and/or the exterior of any improvement on the lot to be maintained and placed in compliance with these Restrictions. In such event, the Association may charge the owner or occupant of the lot for all costs incurred to complete the work. The owner or occupant, as the case may be, agrees by the purchase or occupancy of such lot, to pay all charges incurred by the Association, immediately upon receipt of a statement issued by the Association. Payment of such charges shall be secured by the lien created in paragraph (r) of these Restrictions. Interest thereon at the rate of twelve percent (12%) per annum shall accrue on such sum commencing the thirtieth (30th) day after a written invoice is delivered to the owner or occupant until paid.
j) With respect, Notwithstanding any other provision herein to the contrary, not more than two (2) horses shall be kept on any lot at any given time.
(m) No lot shall be used or maintained as a dumping ground for rubbish. Trash, garbage, or other wastes shall be kept in sanitary containers. All trash containers shall be screened from view from any street in the Subdivision except on trash collection days, but then only for the shortest time reasonably necessary to effect such collection.
(n) No boats or trailers may be parked nearer to the street than the front building line of any lot or nearer to the street than the side building line on any corner lot. No inoperable vehicle may be parked on any lot in view from any street. For the purpose of this restriction, a vehicle is operable only if it is capable of being operated on a public street and displays all current and necessary licenses and permits.
(o) Antennas for direct broadcast satellites which are forty inches or smaller in diameter, antennas for multichannel multipoint distribution services which are forty inches or smaller when measured diagonally, and normal television antennas may be installed on a lot, provided that they are placed in the least obtrusive location which still enables the reception of an acceptable quality signal. All other antennas are prohibited. No antenna shall be erected or placed on a lot without the prior written consent of the Architectural Control Committee.
(r) Each residential lot is hereby subjected to an annual maintenance charge …
Commencing on January 1st of the year next following the year in which these Restrictions become effective (the initial year), the maximum annual maintenance charge shall be $150.00$100.00. …
After the initial year, the maximum annual maintenance charge may be increased without a vote of the members in the following manner only:
The review of the annual maintenance charge shall be held in October of each year at the regularly scheduled Board of Directors meeting of the Forest Cove Property Owners Association. This annual maintenance charge review and all justifications for an increase in the charge shall be held as an open meeting, in its entirety, available to all current property owners. The amount of the annual maintenance charge may be increased in percentage increments up to a maximum limit of 5% of the current annual maintenance charge in effect at the time of the scheduled meeting. Approval of an annual maintenance charge increase requires an approval of two-thirds (2/3) of the members of the Board of Directors. Each member shall be polled individually and their vote recorded in the minutes. Any change in the annual maintenance charge, as a result of the annual meeting held for that purpose, shall become effective on January I of the following year. Redress is only available to the property owners after the vote for an annual maintenance charge increase has been taken and approved by the Board of Directors. This redress method is as follows:
The maximum annual charge may be increased in any year above five percent (5%) only if approved by the vote of owners representing not less than a majority of all lots subject to an annual maintenance charge by the Association.
To secure the payment of each annual maintenance charge and other sums due the Association under this provision, there is hereby created and fixed a separate and valid lien upon and against each residential lot and all improvements on each lot for the benefit of the Association. Such lien shall be deemed subordinate to any mortgage or lien for the purchase of any lot or for the construction of improvements on the lot. The collection of the annual maintenance charge and other sums due may not be enforced by a suit to foreclose the Association's lien or a suit for a money judgment and, in the extent of such a suit, the expense incurred in collecting all delinquent amounts, including interest, costs and attorney's fees, shall be chargeable to and the personal obligation of the defaulting property owner.