Current Board Activities – June 2007
Shed Update
Over the past 11 months the Board has been actively
seeking the removal of a storage shed on one of the properties in our
subdivision. These are
specifically prohibited in the Bylaws, and we have initiated a lawsuit against
the owner. As you may be aware,
legal issues take time to work their way through the system.
On May
22, there was a Case Evaluation Conference [Oakland County Courthouse] in front
of 3 attorneys, the intent of which is to try to settle the case by arriving at
a dollar value for the case which
both parties can conceivably accept. The Case Evaluation Panel, has no authority to
recommend injunctive relief (namely, the
removal of the shed) and only a judge has that power.
Nevertheless, the Association participated in case
evaluation on the expectation that the process might show the defendant that
her legal position will not be very well received in court. From our
perspective, the case evaluators made it very clear that the Association is on
solid ground, the shed is in violation of the bylaws and should be removed.
Our attorney will be filing a motion for Summary
Judgment for the immediate removal of the shed, and that motion should be heard
by the court in about 7 weeks.
Based on case law and the Case Evaluation meeting, our attorney is
confident that the Association will prevail, the shed will come down and all
legal and removal costs will be recovered.
Delinquencies
We filed Small Claims actions against 3 delinquent
homeowners that have not paid their annual assessment for 2-3 years. The Bank filed a foreclosure on one of
the residents and while they failed to appear, we were awarded a judgment
against them. The 2nd
resident also failed to appear and we were awarded a judgment against them as
well. The 3rd resident did appear and we were able to secure a
commitment for a defined monthly payment schedule and have begun to reduce
their unpaid balance.
In addition to the delinquencies referenced above, as
of May 10 there are 2 additional homeowners that had not yet paid their 2007
annual assessment. In Rhodes
management, the property management firm sent each of them multiple delinquency
letters along with fines, and based on their lack of response, we have already
filed against them in Small Claims Court. We are confident that additional
judgments will be awarded to the Association.
While the Board would rather spend its limited
available time on other efforts, we will continue to utilize every collection
tool available to the Association in order to collect the amount money due.
Currently, the Association is owed about
$8,400.
As you may recall from the paperwork provided to all new homeowners, all
of our water rates are scheduled to double after five (5) years from the date
the permit on our property was filed. In addition, there were some recent
articles in the local newspapers discussing MichiganÕs poor economy and
depressed housing market, and the fact that the Village of Holly is considering
a proposed water rate increase.
As a result, the Board has begun a feasibility study
to evaluate on a Òcost to benefitÓ basis, the value of installing 2-3 wells to
provide water to all of the common areas.
Last year, you may recall that there were a number of
cars and trucks that were using the walking path as an alternate route to
bypass traffic on Academy Rd. In
addition to posing a hazard to children playing on the cul-de-sac, these
vehicles also cracked the sidewalk in numerous areas, and had to be replaced.
As a result, we recently contacted Pulte and at our
request, they delivered a 600 lb boulder that we placed at a specific
chokepoint near two drainage pipes.
While it has no impact on foot traffic it does prevent vehicles from
using it. One of the neighbors
reported that this past Friday, they noted a white Bronco that was driving
along the path was forced to turn around so it obviously works.
i. Photos from all social events have been added and we
believe they may help to stimulate sales by demonstrating that WOR is a great
place to live and raise children.
Over the past 6 weeks, weÕve had a number of discussions with PulteÕs Marketing
Manager, E-Commerce and believe they will agree to cross link our site to
theirs. This will allow anyone that visits the WOR link on the Pulte website to
see what our Association is doing, and hopefully encourage them to visit our
community and buy a home.
ii. In the event you have any questions or suggestions for
improving the website or activities within the subdivision, please feel free to
drop us a note at: boardmembers@woodlandsofriverside.com.
As you may be aware, our bylaws currently place
restrictions on satellite dishes.
While this is standard language in most Association bylaws, and 6-7
residents currently have installed them, it has been brought to our attention
that these restrictions are in conflict with Section 1.4000 of Title 47 of the
Code of Federal Regulations contained within the FCC Over-the-Air Reception
Devices (OTARD) Rule.
Based on this, the only requirement is that current
residents with dishes and anyone wishing to install one must complete a Specific Modification for the file. A copy of this document has been posted
to the Forms & Resolutions page on our website.
Over the past 6 months, some residents have questioned
the use of and need for these forms, and weÕre concerned that homeowners may
view them intrusive and unnecessary, which is not the intent. To date,
virtually every request has been approved within a few days.
The purpose of the form is just to assure that any
requested change is allowed and in keeping with the Michigan Condominium Act,
and that the proposed project is in keeping with our communityÕs bylaws and
property setbacks.
We need a copy of the blueprint or sketch of the
proposed project [with dimensions] along with the form to assure that it is
aesthetic and will not create a problem with their neighbors. We want this process to be simple for
everyone and have made every effort to keep the paperwork to a minimum.
The last thing anyone wants is to be required to
remove a completed project because it is inconsistent with the master plan
and/or has created discord within the community. We hope this explanation is satisfactory and all homeowners
will support our efforts in this matter.
This form has also been posted to the Forms & Resolutions page on
our website.