Parking

Based on this posting, you are not being discriminated against.


Limited, as the Association, i.e. the board, has authority over the common area.
You can gather support and amend the governing documents.
You can gather support and remove the board (recall or at next election) with those who will get rid of the permits.
You could verify options with an attorney versed in contract law (as the covenants are a contract).

The larger issue is that municipalities allow developers to design condos and town home developments without enough parking. I would say 3 per home/lot/unit would be best. This is why the parking issues occur.

Your Board is simply trying to manage the parking so it's the most fair to everyone.
(count the number of spaces, divide by number of units and you see how many spaces should be allotted to each unit).

I would suspect that if you have a better option that is fair to all that eliminates permits, then the boad and membership would be willing to listen.

A better question is why the DEVELOPER didn't consider two or three parking spaces. That said, remember the developer's prime directive is to sell houses or condos, so if they can put as many as possible on the property (even if it's the size of a postage stamp), that's what they'll do. Once the community's turned over to the homeowners, it's their problem.

You don't say how old your community is, but you should also remember when most cities were established, there were no cars AT ALL, and when they became in vogue, people who could afford them usually made do with one. Nowadays, you, your spouse and all your kids may have cars, but unfortunately, the size of the property hasn't changed and can't change. All of this sounds cynical, but that's life in these modern times. Actually, it's one reason why many people are looking for areas that are more receptive to public transportation, walking or bikes.

As Tim said, the board is trying to manage the problem in a way that's fair to all homeowners, and I'm certain you aren't the only one who have this problem. As for petitioning the city, what's wrong with YOU going around to your neighbors with said petition and then going to the next city council meeting, zoning board or whoever regulates street parking in your area? Unless you or someone else can come up with a better plan, you'll have to cope as best you can - you saw the parking before you bought your unit and made the decision to buy, so it's not like you didn't know how much parking was there.

Actually I did not know of the parking problem until I had already moved in. I was excited just to be a homeowner again. The community was built in 1984 and parking was not the only issue. Being built on a hill, you know the saying shit rolls downhill? Well, raw sewage became a problem for the people at the bottom of the hill to where the owners sued the developer. I didn't know about this until a month ago after my water nearly flooded my unit because the developer decided to put it inside the condo instead of inside the closet in the balcony. But that's another story. I will ask the neighbors to see if they would be willing to petition the city for street parking.

Yep, street width is another issue that municipalities don't manage well.
Basically, if the city/County isn't owning the streets, the developer can make them narrower then a public street would be. Hence the need to minimize parking on them for emergency vehicles.

Research on the web shows that 20 feet of unobstructed road way is minimum for emergency vehicles. An additional 8 feet for street parking. Therefore, if the roadway is less then 28 feet wide (curb to curb), It's best not to have street parking for safety reasons.

Regarding trees, I found out the hard way that removing trees may require County/city approval as there has to be a minimum number of trees/bushes in a development. These are usually approved on a county map.

When I say I learned the hard way, our board was changing the design of our island due to so many trees dying and having to be removed. One individual gathered support from the neighbors to the point I thought I was in front of a lynch mob. That same individual also turned the issue into the County. The County said replant per the approved plan and do it quickly (within a month) or face fines.

Hence, tree removal likely isn't an option.