HOA considering restrictions on home-based businesses? (merged)

Nothing is going to be accomplished by people yelling, attacking, suggesting, whatever on this forum. This is a place to discuss ideas, suggestions, hints, etc. not a place where the HOA board is going to make a policy. As has been stated several times the issue was brought before the board at the May board meeting and was tabled until the June meeting. My guess is that what will be decided at the June meeting is either to continue with our current policy or following county guidelines, or the board will decide to enact their own guidelines. If they decided to create new guidelines it will still be several months away from final approval.
Anyone out there that has a specific opinion should make sure the entire board hears it. Only the 4 resident members are actively involved on this forum so you will need to either put your opinion in writing and send it to the whole board or come to our meeting on June 10th at 5:30pm so you can be heard.
Please stop attacking each other here. This is an emotional issue and people have many differing opinions depending on how it may effect them. By having it brought before the board it is now bigger then 1 person, 1 preschool or 1 street but that does not make the issue that started it any different.

Staci

 

Mrs. Smith,

I have a question about what you think should occur on my street. I live on a street adjacent to Hillside and everyday parents park on my street, blocking mailboxes, driveways and fire hydrants. I also know for a fact that some of these parents reside on your street.

My street only has 17 homes and 35 children. 13 of the children are preschool age and younger. The parents speed down the street and don't always look. Should my street be regulated too?

You can say I knew that the school was next to my house when I bought it but the parents picking kids up also knew they were "walkers."

I just want to make sure that you are all practicing what you preach and truly understand what you are asking since it is a PUBLIC road.

Can't we all just get along and just be a little more courteous and cautious?

 

Mr. Baker has posted on the Broadlands forums before (while running for office) and Karlene has posted advertisements for her school here in the past, so I would imagine they are aware of the discussion here.

I hope that Celebrate Calm can become involved and find an acceptable solution for all parties involved. Any policy instated by the HOA would affect not only Little Sprouts preschool but all the other preschools and in-home daycares in Broadlands. An agreement made with the help of Celebrate Calm could solve the problem on Ms. Baker's street without dictating policy for the entire community.

Mrs. Smith, please do not take the comments made on this board as attacks. I think that after this same issue being dealt with in Lansdowne people are just especially sensitive to the situation on your street and how it could affect the community.

 

My three year old son attends Little Sprouts. Today we were out driving - not on neighborhood roads, the speed limit was 45, and he calls out to me, "Miss Karlene says to go slow!" I know some people don't find anything amusing about the situation, but I thought it was funny.

 

luftinarr, your post above says it best. Mrs Smith seems to be primarily concerned with people's driving habits, but she is blaming a neighbor for how people drive on the street!?! There are existing laws on driving habits, and those should be enforced. Having some new ill-defined rules passed for the entire community simply makes no sense and is totally uncalled for. I am seriously concerned about the spill-over to telecommuters and others who may work from home on occasion. Despite repeated requests, Mrs Smith has not shared the language of the proposed restrictions she is seeking. You have to ask yourself why that is. If she has so much time to complain on-line and with the HOA all the time, why not take 5 minutes and draft up something to share here?

To your comment that reads -- and I quote -- "You dont live on this street so you dont understand." Most of the people in the community don't live on your little street, so what are you trying to say? You want new rules passed for the entire community, and then you criticize people who don't live on your little street for having an opinion about something that impacts them. You can't expect people to shut the heck over something that affects us all!

Your posts sure sound like you are picking on your neighbor rather than trying to solve the real problem, as luftinarr has pointed out, speeding drivers!

 

When has an anonymous forum topic EVER solved a problem??

 

OKay Gryphon whatever you say...

 

Hang on. I thought she wasn't concerned with the traffic, but the bad driving habits (speeding). Which is it? If she is concerned with the volume of cars, then is there a proposal to limit how many visitors a house can have per day? Is the solution to say that each Broadlands resident can only have 3, 4, or 5 vehicles come and go from their property per day?

This statement makes no sense. If you only have one car on a road and the driver is speeding and mows down an innocent child, how can "the way people drive be irrelevant" to paraphrase what you said?

Also, I'll continue to have reservations about how any restrictions could impact telecommuters until the telecommuters in the community have been given the chance to review the language of the new restrictions that these people want. Reagan said, "trust but verify." Well, I will trust when I can verify that what she wants does not inadvertently harm telecommuters.

 

If you ever want to get support for your proposal and rise above making snide comments on a website, please post your proposed new restrictions for the Broadlands community to review. If they are reasonable and well defined, I bet people will support them. It would save you a lot of hassle and could redefine the debate into something productive. However, from the tone of your posts, I sense that you are more interested in attacking your neighbor than working out a real solution that the Broadlands community could support.

 

Why don't we just restrict the number of cars for each home. I'm sure that will reduce the number of speeders and bad drivers out there too.

 

Now you are getting back into the area as to what is allowed. Therefore the Bible study groups, Girl Scouts and Mary Kay folks will be up in arms. In about 10 years time my cul-de-sac will have about 15 more drivers than when I moved in and there will be about 6 cars of mine alone now who will say what is excessive traffic? There is really no good solution to this problem that will make everyone happy and hope the HOA will stay out of it and let the folks on the street involved get together and decide what works on their street.

 

Mr. Linux, who's to say that telecomuting won't be next? Also, are you going to tell a CPA/Lawyer they can not have clients over and conduct business? Where does it end?

 

Boy, I am glad that have mostly been a lurker for this thread.

SOME of what's posted is even too moronic for me to reply to.

 

And all without Lee's help!

 

That's why the best government is self-government. If neighbors--fellow parents of children living in a cul de sac--cannot get together to find a common solution and work things out, they invite big brother in. That's why I would personally love to find a solution to this by sitting down, in person, and addressing both sides' concerns in a methodical manner.

It could be a model for the community to use in the future, so we don't even have to mention the HOA getting involved (and I doubt the HOA wants to get involved in this kind of matter to begin with!).

 

Didn't the two parties already try to negotiate and couldn't come to an agreement.

The neighbors wanted gave Mrs. Baker a number they felt was appropriate and she didn't agree with it. And this is why the HOA is now involved.

 

Got a big ole open mouth guffaw from me on that one!