Cypress Village HOA

[latishaodell]

I'd like the policy on basketball hoops reviewed and enforced.

Driving home last night, as we turned into the subdivision, one had been left out and with the strong winds, had blown over. Another vehicle was passing so I couldn't swerve over but had to brake hard to avoid hitting the hoop.

I'm certainly not against having them but they should be put away when finished rather than left on the sidewalk or street.

Thanks,

[ChadHammons]

Latisha,

The policy on basketball goals is being enforced regularly by HCMS (our management company). They regularly send letters to home owners who leave their basketball goals on the street or on the sidewalk. Basketball goals are permitted on homeowners driveways, though, provided they are not permanently installed.

It's an unfortunate side effect that, by requiring goals that are not permanently installed, they can be moved by very strong winds. The winds caused a lot of problems the other night. The cul de sac of Hillock looked like a landfill from everyone's recycleables blowing down the street, but I can't say that we should prohibit putting out trash in high winds.

I guess we all have to remember to be extra cautious in inclement weather, which includes high winds. We also should remember your suggestion from a couple of months ago, to slow down on our neighborhood streets, which would probably make it easier to brake to avoid obstacles in the roadways.

Thanks,
Chad

[latishaodell]

Chad,

Thanks for letting me know what the policies are and that they are being enforced.

Just to clarify, I was not speeding, I had simply turned into the subdivision and with the said hoop being right there at the first, I had to brake to avoid damage to my car or hit the oncoming car to avoid hitting the basketball hoop-the problem was more with the fact that, it was 9 p.m. at night hence it was dark, and black hoop in the road difficult to see until you are upon it as you turn into the subdivision.

[Robinson]

Basketball goals and recycle bins are two totally separate issues, as addressed separately in the deed. Let's try to be less sarcastic when responding to a legitimate request from a homeowner.

Unless there has been a change in the Deed that I am not aware of, Section 2.20 - Dwellings, states "Basketball backboards or hoops will only be permitted in the rear of the Dwelling Unit and may not be visible from the street." (emphasis added). Page 9, next to last sentence. The deed does not reference an allowance in the driveway. This has been impliedly allowed due to the obvious pavement in the driveway.

Therefore, Latisha has an excellent suggestion and the goals should not be left in the front yard period. The Board and HCMS should review this policy, and enforce it as written, as from what I read in your response, your interpretation is incorrect based on what I have cited. Enforcement can come with an allowance for homeowners to use their goals in the driveway while in use during the day, but store them in the rear of the home once they are no longer in use. Provided homeowners cannot follow this, they should not be permitted to have the goal in the front.

[ChadHammons]

My response was not meant to be sarcastic, and I hope it didn't come across as such. Basketball goals being blown into the street are very much related to trash being blown down the street. They're unfortunate and annoying and even hazardous, but both caused by the same thing.

My understanding of section 2.20 referring to basketball goals is for those permanently attached to the dwelling. It was written to state that homeowners may not attach backboards or hoops to the front of their house, like over their garage. I believe that is why it specifically mentions backboards and hoops, not basketball goals/stands in general. I know that was the intent of the writing, anyway, and that is how it has been enforced.

However, I will refer this back to HCMS for interpretation. They are the ones who send out letters for deed restriction violations. Thanks for pointing that out. I will post a follow-up reply here whenever I get one back.

[Robinson]

Hi Chad,

Regardless if it says backboards/ hoops or basketball goals, it is referring to something that is a permanent fixture in front of the home. If the goals remain in the front of the home and are kept there indefinitely without removal, they have become a permanent fixture for deed purposes.

Second, whether the hoop or backboard is affixed to the home or not, a hoop or backboard is attached to the overall unit known as a basketball goal. It would be redundant to have to state basketball goal when the deed has already addressed the two primary components of a goal, the backboard and hoop, leaving out the pole.

Third, if a hoop or backboard was intended to read as a fixture to the home as you believe, it would be covered in Sections 6.02 and 6.03 - Committee Authority and Approval, and not have to be addressed in the Dwelling section, further leading credence that the correct interpretation is basketball goal. As the deed is very restrictive on when a garage door can remain open, I doubt if its intent was to allow goals to just lay around in the front of the home.

Once again, I have no problem with the goals being used in the front of the home, but they should be removed to the back of the home or garage when not in use (same as a recycle bin for collection purposes).

The overall problem is a few people in this community are becoming too relaxed in their standards compared to the deed restrictions. There is a house with Christmas lights still up, there are homes that have had barbecue pits in front of them for nearly four months without removal.

Even if recycle bins and goals can be compared due to their sharing the same hazardous cause, we know that only one of them is a potential hazard 7 nights of the week, as the other is brought out on Fridays and removed on Saturdays. For this reason alone, goals should be removed to the rear of the home when not in use to minimize the hazard. There is no good reason for them being in the front of the home everyday considering they usually have wheels. The primary reason they are there is due to laziness. The same laziness that leads to uncut lawns, Christmas lights hanging at Easter, refusing to clean out a garage so that you can park a car in it as opposed to parking overnight on the street, and grills in the front of the home.

I would like for this community to stay nice. Unfortunately, I believe there are some homeowners who don't understand the fundamental responsibilities that come with owning a home. I know there is a process, but when I see the same crap at the same homes for months with no change from the homeowner, it becomes irritating.

A final note; for those who are attempting to sell their homes, it is not only their home that is factored into the potential homebuyer's decision-making, but also the upkeep of the neighbors' homes.

[ChadHammons]

First, let me say I'm still waiting for a reply from HCMS.

Second, I don't want to argue with any of your subjective points, mostly because I agree with them. I wish everyone knew our deed restrictions as well as you do. However, there is one point that I have to disagree on. This statement: "If the goals remain in the front of the home and are kept there indefinitely without removal, they have become a permanent fixture for deed purposes. "

We have to remember that deed restrictions are a legal document, and as such, the definitions therein are set by legal precedences, not personal interpretations. For example, if I left a tricycle in my front yard for three years, it would still not be considered permanent because of the ease with which I could move it. Similarly, a basketball goal on a movable base is not considered permanent regardless of how long it sits in one place, unless it is somehow anchored to the ground or to a structure that is anchored.

I'm not a lawyer, though, and that's why the HOA has lawyers who constantly look for redefinitions in the legal precedence. I can almost guarentee you that any battle we could conceive of in the realm of HOAs has probably already taken place in a courtroom, and the decisions from those battles stand as legal precedence.

Now, I say all that just to point out that it is possible that the reason the writers of our deed restrictions specified backboards and hoops, instead of just basketball goals, was that by precedence, that is how they distinguish between a movable goal, vs just the hoop or backboard affixed to the structure of a dwelling.

Perhaps this is all too big of an argument for such a small point, and I'm mostly just playing devil's advocate, here. I don't have a basketball goal that I'm trying to defend, but at the same time, I think it's the responsibility of the HOA Board to see things from all points of view, not just their personal feelings.

Regarding the other violations you mentioned, we're aware of most of the violations you probably see, but the only way to make our management company aware of all of them is to tell us or tell them directly. Since they only do a drive through at certain times, maybe take pictures of what is bothering you and send them through email or something? We all live in the same community, and if something is bad enough to devalue your home, then it's devaluing my home and my neighbor's home, etc... Chances are that HCMS is working to correct the problem, but it won't hurt to voice your opinion to them. Their contact information is on our main page (www.cypressvillagehoa.com), and we have a new manager now, so I'll update that information.

I'm also going to post a copy of our full deed restrictions in this forum under "HOA Documents." Hopefully that will make it easier to reference our deed restrictions for those of us who may have misplaced our copy.

Let me know if there's anything else I can do to help.

[Robinson]

Thanks for posting the Deed. Is there a way to require any current homeowner who is selling their home to provide a copy to the potential buyer?

P.S.
I have a law degree; a fixture is not always judged by its ease in movement. It can become constructively annexed, and along with its adaptation to the the home and intent of the homeowner, it becomes a fixture (E.g. small yard fountain or solar lights). Your tricycle could in fact become a fixture (Which would then require you to apply to the architectural committee for approval). The definitions do not have to be set by legal precedence for a Deed Restriction. It is up to the community to define the terms of the contractual agreement as the homeowners deem necessary. Don't get caught up in legal precedence with deed enforcements; it is a term oft used, and rarely understood in the practice of law. It's weight is limited as long as what is in the dead is reasonable and does not present an undue burden that infringes on basic rights that the person has not chosen to give up. Our deed language is based on a template by HCMS. We do have the ability to change it for clarification purposes, just as we have the ability to choose our management company.

My purpose for this post is to inform any reader that we are not limited by what HCMS says if we do not believe it is fundamentally right for our community. Because HCMS manages many communities, it is beneficial practice for them to have consistency in their language for consolidation purposes.

I will follow your advice by pointing out to HCMS some of the things I notice they are persistent. Thanks Chad.