Meeting Minutes – #3  8/4/2009   7pm

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Minutes for RHHA Meeting June 23, 2009, 7:00 pm

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These are excerpts from emails received from neighbors in reference to the formation of the Rhode Harbor Homeowners Association and the scheduled meeting. (minor elements have been removed to give the respondents a degree of anonymity, but their concerns are represented, in their words).

These emails have been posted in efforts to both address any and all concerns and to make sure that everyone’s thoughts are expressed to the community as a whole. Please use the below information and ponder potential solutions for the concerns that have been raised. We will try to address and discuss possible solutions at the meeting as a community. Please remember that everyone is a little emotional about the topics at hand and please try to be courteous and respectful to everyone.

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I received a home owner’s association letter yesterday and have a number of concerns, especially after I faxed it to my lawyer today:

1. There is a formal legal framework to establish a Maryland Home Owner’s Association…what I recieved yesterday is NOT legal, period…(according to my lawyer and they are the second largest law firm in the state)
2. I am all for a new pier
3. I have been a part of three new home owner associations (California, Washington D.C., and Davidsonville, Md) and each had SERIOUS issues that required the intervention of lawyers and the city/county/state (e.g., expensive)
4. I believe something can be achieved but there has to be elections, voting of by-laws, County/State approval, etc…
5. Costs are not trivial to this process, especially if there is not consensus in the neighborhood
6. One of the reasons why I left California was to escape the wraith of home owner’s associations and “personalities” dictating if I could leave my garage open or what color I “had” to paint my house. You all will see, once one rule is added the other’s just keeeeeeeeeeep coming and then wellah, we have created California in Mayo, MD. I have seen this, lived it, etc. and trust me, it is not something this neighborhood wants to experience.

Bottomline, any home owner association in this neighborhood that plans to dictate anything other than us upgrading our Pier, so that it can support the ENTIRE neighborhood, will not have my vote or support. I will not be present for the meeting.

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I was a little taken back yesterday evening when I opened my mail and found enclosed the letter regarding the Homeowners Association. I did not realize that one had been created and definitely never received any correspondence regarding a president being named to that association. I would think that this is something that the community would need to vote on as a whole and not just be created. As far as the pier goes, (WE) paid an amount years ago to you and to our knowledge nothing has been done with the money that was collected. It was slightly frustrating when Greg bought his house and automatically obtained two slips with the purchase of his house and people who had lived in the community for years prior to him were not even offered one of the slips. I’m not sure how legally those slips could have been sold with the house. It has been made very clear to us over the years that there is not a space for us at the pier so I do have a very hard time coming up with money to help solve issues for the families that somehow have been fortunate enough to be given and enjoy the available slips.
I will be happy to come to this meeting but I am not o.k. with this letter stating there will be mandatory fees when we have not even been given the consideration as a property owner to be a part of the process of electing officials, voting in those officials and creating this association. It makes me very suspicious as to what your plans are for our community and how far you plan on going with rules and regulations. I feel very blessed to live on such a great street with great neighbors and am not interested in being told what I will and will not have to do. Everyone seems to have respect for each other and I know plenty of the property owners on the street invested their money in this community because it was not governed by extreme rules and regulations and thus far it seems to have worked really good for people. I would be very careful how you proceed with the members of the community and everyone working very hard and living their lives. It is already a difficult enough world to be living in right now and nobody is looking to go home from a hard day of work to face politics in their community. Everyone I know in this neighborhood is hard working and takes a lot of pride in their homes and work hard to keep them maintained.
Thanks

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we received the HA notice and think it’s great that this is moving forward.  We completely support this and look forward to taking the next step.

Unfortunately, we are not sure if we will be in town on 17 May to participate in the first HA meeting.  I am sure it will be a vibrant event.  In case we will not be here for the meeting, I would like the opportunity to meet with you to discuss whatever issues you intend to bring up at the formal meeting so that you can have our opinion on record.  Perhaps Greg could join us as well.  I will be around tomorrow morning and will try to track you down to have an initial discussion and then maybe we set a time for a longer conversation in the coming weeks.

Thanks again for taking the lead on this – I am excited to see the ball rolling!!

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I am extremely frustrated by the entire thing.  I do agree that we need to come up with an agressive plan to address the pier but I do not believe that this is the way to go about it.  There was never an election, Joe cannot become president by default especially when there are no guidelines.  Between the 2 of you, you have already hammered out that there would be MANDATORY fees and slip fees.  How do you propose the slip fees are to be handled?  Has that been worked out?  I have heard that people may be able to rent their slips if they choose not to use them.  Sorry, I will not have strangers using the right a way at any given hour when my children are home.  I did not sign up for that.  It isn’t a marina, it is a neighborhood.  Many of us were sold our houses with the slips and that is why we chose the neighborhood.  There surely is not enough slips for all the homes in the neighborhood let alone to have slips that can be rented or leased out.

This is not an informal meeting that you guys put together.  This meeting date and time came from an organization which legally does not exist and  you even used the formal names of all the residents on the letters.  I will not be part of a home owners association that regulates my property and its use.  I did not buy my property under those pretenses and therefore won’t be part of it.  If it is an organization with strict guidelines that it is ONLY for the pier and common area that surrounds the pier than with the proper leadership and direction than we will join.  As I am sure you are aware, I am not the only one that was taken aback at the events that are taking place.

I have asked around my office and to a few real property lawyers and what is taking place is not legal.  I think we need to step back and have an informational meeting where everyone has input and is able to voice their opinions and concerns and we can decide where to go from there.  But as far as introducing our organization and our president, I think we should wait to do that until we actually have one.

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I will have to say that I am a little shocked by the mail that I received today.  I had an idea it was coming but was shocked that this association has already been formed and that the community has already had the initial meeting and elected you president of the organization.  It seems that our household must have missed another meeting since it has already been set forth that there will be mandatory annual dues and elective slip fees.  This is very misleading as to where you are intending to go with the organization.

I understand the issues with the pier and I understand the unfair upkeep of the “common grounds” (especially since I am the one that usually maintains the grass in the common areas).  I have attached a few things on homeowner’s associations that I found within a few minutes on the web that may be able to give you some guidelines as to how to do what you are trying to accomplish.

http://www.justanswer.com/questions/1fz2r-start-mandatory-homeowners
http://www.ehow.com/how_2293143_start-homeowners-association.html
http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/wiki/Form_HOA.asp

We plan to attend the proposed meeting but  we will not be there to attend a community association meeting because one has not been formed.   We will be there to gain information about the possibility of a a community association.

April 22, 2009

Dear Rhode Harbor Home Owner,

It is my pleasure to formally announce the creation of The Rhode Harbor Homeowner’s Association.

Now that the neighborhood is completely developed and the original landowners and neighborhood developers Joan and Earl Young have turned over the reigns of management to us as a community, it is time to properly finalize the transaction. By forming the homeowners association, we will be legally recognized by Anne Arundel County and given rights to access and manage common areas of our neighborhood.

As many have voiced their opinions regarding the extent to which the homeowner’s association will be able to set mandates on individual property owners within the community, let it be said that the primary purpose of The Rhode Harbor Homeowner’s Association’s will be to establish a legal entity which will enable us to access, maintain, and improve our shared waterfront area and pier.

Though it is a common goal for all of us within the community to keep any homeowner’s fees to an extreme minimum, we all need to understand that certain legal fees, required insurance, property taxes and utilities must be paid through the homeowner’s association. Furthermore, as maintenance and improvements are made to the common property, the homeowner’s association will accrue additional expenditures. It will be necessary for the burden of costs to be shared equally by each landowner, regardless of actual or intended use.

Association funds will be supported through mandatory annual dues and elective slip fees.

There is a meeting scheduled for Sunday, May 17, 2009 at 3pm where we can all sit down and discuss ideas and get to know each other as a community. As it is important to confirm that all homeowners receive this letter and are given the opportunity to attend this meeting, PLEASE RETURN THE ENCLOSED RSVP/CONFIRMATION CARD.

Also, if you have any questions or concerns, please voice them either by letter or email before Sunday, May 10, 2009. This will give us adequate time to seek out answers in advance of the meeting.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation and support in establishing The Rhode Harbor Homeowner’s Association and for helping us to move forward as a community.

Sincerely,

Joe Zambrana

Joe Zambrana – President

Rhode Harbor Homeowner’s Association

3912 Rhode Harbor Road

Edgewater, Md. 21037

(443) 607-8166

Email: RhodeHarbor@Comcast.net

Website: http://Home.Comcast.net/~RhodeHarbor