BOARD AVOIDING COMPLAINT

First of all I'm not a board member. I had previously posted the topic of our Board President using common ground for a dog run. As previously posted, I was threatened by the President's wife that her dog would bite my dogs and that this was "her property". I did research at the courthouse and discovered that this dog run is on 5 feet of the common ground.

I attended the next board meeting on 01.23.08 exposing the violation with photos of the dog run, feces,and straw placed on the common ground. The PM used the term "doctrine of Laches"; making this rule unenforceable.

The President's wife attended the meeting and instructed me to clean up the dog's feces if I'm so offended by it. I must admit, my reaction was less than cordial and we got into an verbal argument. The Vice President stood up and while staring right at me, adjourned the meeting. I felt as though I was being targeted for causing the disruption and that the President's wife provoked the argument. Since then, the President's wife will blatantly glare and scowl when we cross each other's paths in the neighborhood. I don't engage in any eye contact or communication with her.

Several days following the meeting, I e-mailed the PM quoting from the bylaws...1) failure by the Association or any member to enforce any covenant or restriction herein contained shall in no event be deemed a waiver of the rights to do so thereafter and 2)no pets or animals, whether under control or leash or otherwise, shall create a nuisance by the discharge of bodily waste on any part of the premises not owned in fee by the pet owner. I stated that the rights of the member's easement of enjoyment in and to the open space is being violated by preventing member's from entering common ground due to the dog's presence and feces. The PM never responded to my email as she's always done in the past.

There was another board meeting scheduled on 02.20.08 and upon arriving at the community center, a sign was posted cancelling the meeting, and that we would be notified of the new scheduled meeting. Since the PM never replied to my email, I sent a certified return/receipt letter and still no response.

As it stands today, the President's dog run, feces, and straw is still up and running on the common ground and there has been no notice of a rescheduled meeting.

Any thoughts?

DeniseC1

Before engaging an attorney, I recommend that you provide a written request to the board of directors containing the facts you have gathered, and asking the board to include your complaint on the agenda for the next board meeting for consideration and decision.

The laches business is humbug, IMHO.

If the board takes no action, then a discussion with an attorney is probably appropriate. Ask the attorney to send a letter to the board as the first step.

It sounds like your board will stall and delay, and try to wear you down. Not uncommon for boards that don't want to address an unpleasant issue.

"but frankly not surprised because it has occurred in my association, others throughout the nation."
From multiple recurring threads here, it is so sad, but true.
I once read that HOAs have changed normal greetings among neighbors from "How are you doing?" to "What are you doing?" It will not improve with the present set up of using neighbors to police neighbors. We all seem to accept city, county, state and federal control, but refuse to accept neighbor control. It is just too close and personal.

Denise,

I went back to your original post of Feb 16th and you had many good responses and ideas on how to handle this complaint. Go back on the search bar and key in your name "DeniseC1" and reread all of the great advice from those. It sounds to me like you are in the same spot that you were in back in Feb.

Your presumption is correct. I also made a typo; 15 feet of the common ground, not 5 feet. Because the dog run is connected from his back wall across "all of the common ground" designated in that area to a a row of pines, we homeowners cannot enter any of the common ground designated in the area behind his house.

I am trying to present this on a professional level, not emotional, but it's not always easy. Thanks for acknowledging that!

and denise, make sure you stay tenacious, and document everything with the facts (no opinions or conjectures). If they scheduled a meeting, Show up. Let them cancel it again, and document it. Write letters, copy them.

IMO, the best thing you can do is stay on the prowl. They are trying to win by ignoring you, and the defense against that is to simply stay tenacious. Eventually, they must meet, and can't cancel, and you will break that barrier. They will have another, of course, by then, but stay and fight that. If it helps, consider every time you stay focused a small victory over them, and that your persistence is really bugging them, more than you will ever know. Every day you remember the battle is a victory for you, and a punishment for them.