Can HOA rules restrict parking on paublic street?

My guess is that it isn't the bylaws that need to be changed but the CCRs which handle those kind of restrictions and also give the Board the authority to enforce that type of rule or the ability to create a rule, so long as it is "fair and reasonable".

Rob,

Contrary to what Melissa stated, as indicated by this 2012 newspaper article in Arizona, it is possible to regulate parking on private streets. However, as Richard said, the rule needs to be within the CC&Rs, the restriction is then within the terms of the contract. Said terms could then be upheld on members only (as they are the only ones who agreed with those terms). The restriction should also be able to be applied to renters but upheld through the members (as the member is responsible for the actions of their tenants).

You would not be able to enforce that restriction on joe public who just wanted to park their RV on a safe street.

Tim the OP said this is a Public street not private. One can restrict on private but not public unless they go to the city and get an ordinance. Which in our case just allowedmus to have painted curbs over signs. However, city still controlled and owned the roads.

Melissa,

I understand that it is a private street. I disagree that they need an ordinance for restrictions. I believe I've added enough links to support my belief.

Granted, the ability to restrict public street parking varies from State to State. However, that is not the same as saying you can't restrict or you can only restrict if you have an ordinance for it. Again, I provided some links for anyone that wishes to dive into the topic in more detail.

Our city required us to request an ordinace when we had our roads turned over to public and wanted 1 side of the road parking. This was due to narrow roads and emergency vehicles getting stuck. I drove around with the fire marshall and city rep to get it done. However, the city required signs every few hundred feet or so saying no parking. Which looked tacky and caused yard cutting issues. So we went to the CODE people to have our curbs painted instead.

The city then still in charge of enforcing those restrictions NOT us. The city writes tickets. We just restrict people to park in garages or driveways. No abandoned or working on cars in yard or street.

By preventing members and residents by parking on the street but not the general public (which is what the MO court opinion said)that the CC&Rs were a contract and the Association was simply enforcing the terms of the contract.

CCRs - covenants and restrictions, a/k/a "the contract"

By-Laws - how the CORPORATION is operated

Resolutions - BOD rules governing the use of common elements

Unless restricted in the actual CCRs you may NOT make a rule restricting a public (non HOA owned) element

Such rule, in any event, would NOT be proper for the corporate By-Laws

These are the FACTS of the situation

If you can get the membership to contractually agree with public street parking restrictions (said restrictions would ONLY apply to HOA OWNERS) you may amend the CCRs as per the included procedure

Said restrictions re; public streets would NOT apply to:

Vendors
Contractors
Visitors
Guests
etc.

they would apply ONLY to people who CONTRACTED AMONGST THEMSELVES

then: ? enforcement ? equally against ALL members !

FUH~GED~'BOUT~IT

John

I was recommending that the OP approach the public authorities to see if the appropriate govt agency would be willing to impose more restrictive measures to these particular streets than are currently in place.

If the public officials respond positively, then the change can be made by the govt and the HOA will not be imposing requirements on anyone.

I believe that this approach would fit within the public/private distinctions that you described.

Skeptical Remark: Typically government officials are responsive to requests that promote their getting re-elected.

Pragmatic Remark: Offering to pay for the signs that the HOA would like installed makes the official's decision easier.

Common Sense Remark: We work hard to maintain good relations with our local officials. We wouldn't ask for anything inappropriate or that would jeopardize their ability to make independent decisions.

I agree John. I think enforcement would be a huge challenge. What board member wants to stay up all night and observe where all the neighbors park?

because:

Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely.

In other words: Because they think they can control others.

see: http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/absolute-power-corrupts-absolutely.html and remember that Adolph Hitler was elected into his position.

The OP hasn't replied to anyone's suggestions, etc.

I wonder if his HOA has campers, RVs, etc. of non-residents parking there?

I read that. I thought I had read something more Florida specific in the past but I cannot find anything. One Florida site I found mentions there are no Florida case laws to point to but mentions other cases like the one you mention. I suppose it depends on how you argue the case too. I have read a lot where courts upheld such restrictions when the argument was based solely on the fact that the streets were municipally controlled. Now I imagine if a HOA used their by-laws to create such a restriction that would be a huge no-no.

I would still argue against regulating public streets, looking at cases like the one where a HOA attempted to govern the placement of a sign someone placed in their car, or out-of-state cases or laws, like the one in Arizona. Maybe make a FHA claim that the HOA uses such rules to try and restrict family size because such rules are preventing from having multiple adults with their own transportation from residing in the same property. But then again, I guess it depends on how you argue the case in front of a judge.

See article:
http://blogs.sun-sentinel.com/condoblog/2010/08/florida%E2%80%99s-third-district-court-of-appeal-issues-ruling-on-truck-parking-restrictions.html

Suppose I live near, but not within, an HOA that has a public street running through it. The HOA has a rule against overnight parking on the street. I need a place to park the work truck I drive for my employer so I park it on that public street overnight. It's against the HOA rules but not against city code. I am not a member of the HOA and my employer is not a member, either. Just what could the HOA do?

Well, since you asked what the association "could" do, The HOA could possibly tape a warning onto the vehicle or have it towed. The HOA would be wrong, as their ban would be unenforceable upon you (and they would likely have to pay for the tow). However, that doesn't keep them from doing the wrong thing.

Now, had you asked what could the Association legally do, that would be a simple answer - nothing unless the Association, as in Melissa's Association, convinced the city to create a special parking district that prevented any vehicles from parking on the street or created special parking permits. Of course, then similar to Melissa's Association, your issue would be with the city and not the HOA.

I would.

Thanks everyone.
I appreciate all the replies and advice/ comments.

Our roads are extremely narrow and we're trying to make it as safe as possible, especially after dark. We do not have street lights in our community. We rely solely on post lights that are on everyone's front yard.

This has nothing to do with BOD "dictatorship". We are trying to be good stewards regarding the safety of our community and the egress of safety equipment in case of an emergency. Some neighbors think THEY own the roads and don't have any consideration for safe parking practices.

Keep the replies coming and thanks again.

Rob

Thanks John.
All good points.

I'm still doing my research on this and going to the sheriff's operations office was my first stop. They gave me the number to the county ordinance officer and I have yet to contact him.

The problem I see as you pointed out is the restrictions only applying to the owners. Our community is 10 y.o. and many of the new owners have not received the CC&R's. If they didn't know the restrictions coming it's going to be a challenge holding the accountable to the CCRs. Our county does have parking restrictions on the county website, and that may be another avenue to take.

This week, I'm going to contact the CM attorney and get his take on the issue.

I appreciate it.

Rob

Rob,

In re-reading your original post, I noticed that you described the streets as "public." This is not a very good description as I can think of several different ways in which a street may be public: Each of these situations (and there may be others) would require a different approach by the HOA if it wishes to prohibit parking.

1. The street is owned by and maintained by a government agency

The association would need to amend it's CC&R's to contractually prohibit members from parking on the street.

2. The street is on easements on private property and dedicated to the public for use as a roadway

This is a tough call but because the land is still owned by members, the association probably could not exercise control over the real estate without an amendment to the CC&R's.

3. The street is on property deeded to the association but dedicated to the public for use as a roadway

The association should be able to control parking by adopting rules but would not otherwise have the authority to prevent owners from using the road for ingress and egress.

I realize there will be differences from state to state but have been dealing with this very issue.

I a the president of my master HOA. There is a sub where the board became non-functioning so we took over enforcement. The issue was that parking was not enforced by the sub even when the board was functioning so now we are dealing with lots of people upset as we are now telling them they are in violation.

Yes, the master covenants indicate it is applicable and the sub covenants also said compliance to master was required but this was not happening. We consulted a lawyer to make sure we were doing the best and legal thing.

It came down to Colorado that yes they are enforceable. Now the issue can be how the streets were annexed at time of development. If they were public access then regardless of what the cc&r says, it is not enforceable. If they were deemed private as part of the community, then it would be enforceable.

My concern with adding this into your cc&r's is since this is something new you are wanting to do, you would need to determine the original filed intent of the roadways (assuming it's similar to my state) do your cc&r's require majority vote to amend or add to? That may be a challenge as I'm sure there will be some not fond of the idea.

While I support the no overnight street parking in my community, it takes up 30% plus of our board meetings in disputes.

Why do you support no overnight street parking? What is the unique issue presenting itself in your HOA that it's an issue having cars on the street during the period where there is the least amount of traffic or people out & about?

Thanks Mark.
The entire street parking topic perplexes me, and to be clear, my question was in good faith.

yet I'm still struggling with street parking being an issue.
Presumably, the vehicles that are parked in the street overnight would otherwise be parked in a driveway. If they're in a driveway, they're just as susceptible to nefarious acts as they would be if parked in the street. I live in a small rural association and I've had a vehicle broken into in my driveway. My motion-activated flood lights apparently did little to deter their efforts.

A disabled/inoperative vehicle seems to be another topic entirely. It would be as unattractive and as much a deterrent to future owners regardless as to where it was parked (driveway or street). A rule pertaining to inoperable vehicles should cover that without worrying about street parking.

I understand that a lot of HOAs have regulations pertaining to street parking, but I'm still not seeing how it's worth the battle. When it's dark and the vehicles can't be seen, why does it matter?

the bottom line:

The HOA may enforce CONTRACTURAL restrictions ONLY against a contract signer/member/owner.

A member of the general public may park their vehicle as per municipal regulations on said public street ~ if they are violating a CONTACT, i.e. COVENANT, it is an HOA contractual issue.

If they are city/town streets, the city/town governs them. (but see above for any (private) contractual members restrictions

If county streets, the county governs them. (but see above for any (private) contractual members restrictions

If the streets are PUBLIC then they are open to the public.

The HOA is free to attempt to have the authority having jurisdiction change the street parking rules.

If the streets are 'narrow' it would be common to have parking on one side only or alternate day/side parking for cleaning purposes.

The required vehicle 'labeling' and/or guest parking issue will be your worst nightmare ~ enforcement of CONTRACTUAL parking restrictions on a PUBLIC street against members (only) would be extremely difficult if not impossible.

Be careful what you wish for.

I had this issues just recently with my HOA here in florida. My subdivision is about 9 years old and my HOA decided to enforce the CC&R that says "no parking on the street" this year. Our street is a public/county maintained road. How the HOA was enforcing the "no parking on the street" rule was by having cars towed. That was completely illegal to tow cars from the public street. After many emails, going to meetings and taking my HOA to mediations, they finally stopped the towing. The county police department contacted the towing company and told them to stop. I might end up in court for the reimbursement of the towing fees I had to pay. Several homeowners during a meeting talked about parking on one side of the street from the 1st - 15th of the month then switch to the other side for the rest of the month. Its something that can't be enforced but it is something that can be suggested to the homeowners. My problem was the homeowners are willing to work something out about parking on the street to make it safe but our HOA didn't want to hear it and continued to tow until I was able to stop them. We did have that problem of cars parked on the street making it hard to get through and even an ambulance was not able to make it through during an emergency but towing our cars was to much. I plan on contacting another HOA that seems to not have any parking issues and how do they handle it. It may not be something you can enforce but let homeowners know the safety problem its causing and ask for a solution. You will be surprised how a lot of them are willing to help.

hope this was helpful