Article Courtesy Sun Sentinel
By Joe Kollin
Posted April 13, 2004
As legislators debated in Tallahassee on
Monday, residents rallied to get state law changed to help them fight what
they label abuse by the boards that govern condominium and homeowner associations.
| Cyber Citizens for
Justice, a St. Augustine-based grass-roots organization fighting on behalf
of unit owners, rallied outside offices of state Sen. Jeff Atwater in Oakland
Park and North Palm Beach.
Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, is sponsoring
a bill (SB 2984) to help owners in communities governed by mandatory homeowner
associations. Cyber Citizens, however, contends the bill doesn't go far
enough because it doesn't provide for an ombudsman to enforce homeowner
association law and resolve disputes between
owners and boards. |
Phil Castronova, center, of Cyber Citizens for Justice Inc.,
addresses the media in front of state Sen. Jeff Atwater’s
office
in North Palm Beach on Monday. |
The Senate Regulated Industries Committee
approved the bill in an 11-0 vote, the first test of the measure that would
give owners the right to attend and speak up at their association
| meetings, prevent
boards from foreclosing on their homes because they haven't paid a fine,
give homeowners the right to fly the American flag at their homes, and
provide state-sponsored mediation and arbitration for disputes.
The committee was considering measures
that would add regulation to two popular but different forms of housing
in Florida, those governed by condo associations and those run by mandatory
homeowner associations. A different law with different requirements regulates
each. |
Bill’s backers
Tamarac residents Rose Marshall, left, Beth Cortazzo,
center,
and Joan Williams rally outside Oakland Park’s City Hall
on
Monday. |
On the condo measure, the committee, in
an 8-2 vote, passed a separate bill designed to protect owners from their
boards. The measure (HB 1223, SB 498) provides an ombudsman, but only for
condos. Introduced by Sen. Rudy Garcia, R-Miami, and backed in
| the House by Rep.
Julio Robaina, R-Miami, it also would make it tough for boards to change
existing rules on parking, renting and pets. It would also require sellers
to give buyers a question-and-answer sheet on condo issues.
"It looks good. It's another victory,"
Robaina said Monday.
Residents gathered about 100 signatures
outside Atwater's offices. Cyber Citizens founder and President Jan Bergemann
had limited time to stage the rally because the Senate waited until
Thursday, immediately before |
Petitioners
Aaron Chappell, center, of Miami Beach and other residents
whose homes are governed by associations drop off a petition
at Oakland Park City Hall on Monday. |
the Easter weekend, to set up Monday's committee
hearing. The petitions demand an ombudsman for both condos and homeowner
associations.
| Supporters of Atwater's
homeowner association bill said it doesn't need an ombudsman because it
would require the state Department of Business & Professional Regulation
to enforce the law and resolve disputes.
But Bergemann said he would rather see
Atwater's bill die than pass without an ombudsman.
"If they don't want enforcement with an
ombudsman, let's kill the useless bill and get the parties together over
the summer," he said. "You can't have 40 pages of laws [in Atwater's bill]
without providing any enforceability." Atwater said he was surprised to
hear of the criticism. "We're getting calls, letters and e-mails |
Signing on
Phil Castronova signs a petition in front of state Sen.
Jeff
Atwater’s offices in North Palm Beach. |
from homeowners thanking us for finally giving
them a voice, knowing they won't be thrown into a lawsuit every time they
speak up, for giving them to ability to check records, better disclosure
before they buy into a community and the ability to have arbitration,"
Atwater said.
Bergemann said the problem is that Atwater's
bill would provide mediation and arbitration by the state business regulation
department, the agency that for years has enforced condo law and mediated
disputes. The agency is considered so weak that the condo bill wants to
replace it with an ombudsman.
Whether an ombudsman or a state agency,
the purpose is to have a place for homeowners to go to resolve disputes
and make boards obey the state homeowner law. The only alternative now
is to hire a lawyer and go to court.
Staff Writer Tal Abbady contributed to this report. |
