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Article
Courtesy of The Sun Sentinel
By
Marci Shatzman
Published April 3, 2005
Democracy
operates inside a gated community just like it does on the outside.
"If it's a hot subject, a lot of people show up. If it's not, nobody
does," Sam Hershkowitz says about meetings of The Grove Master
Association.
In fact, there were more people, including Sam, at the executive board table
than in the audience at the March meeting. But the unit owners who showed up
to discuss a fence and a foundation not working properly were heard, and that
was the point. The Grove, a community of 501 homes and condos west of Boynton
Beach, already had a liberal policy on freedom of speech. But when the new
condo and homeowner association laws went into effect in October, the master
board took its policy further.
Joe Cohen, the president, is so proud of their efforts, he hopes other master
associations will consider their policy as a model.
The old homeowner law didn't address speaking at board meetings, which allowed
for broad interpretation, said Bill Last, a retired New York lawyer who is
vice president of legal affairs for The Grove.
Some communities used the law to discourage freedom of speech, but The Grove
encouraged it. They allowed time before and after meetings for public comment,
not during the proceedings. But even then, they made exceptions.
"If someone got up there and wanted to speak, we rarely shut them
down," Sam said.
But sometimes people took advantage.
"Whoever is presiding has to tread a fine line and not let two or three
vocal people disrupt the meeting," Bill said, pointing to county and
state government as bad examples.
"When you allow people to break into a meeting, we lost control,"
Joe said.
So, when the new laws kicked in, it gave Joe and the board the impetus to
change theirs.
The condo law allows unit owners to speak on designated agenda items.
"The association may adopt reasonable rules governing the frequency,
duration and manner of unit owner statements," it says. The HOA law is
stricter, saying owners can speak but must petition the board on agenda items
first.
The Grove has homeowner associations and a condo association, so Joe consulted
Bill and their lawyer and was told they complied with both laws.
"We felt that was much too constricting and the community has to have
access to the board so we're not considered sitting in an ivory tower, coming
up with rules and regulations," Bill said.
When they gather a half-hour before meetings, each resident may ask one
question about any subject before the meeting. They can ask more, but they
have to get back in line.
"We try to keep it under a minute and if they repeat themselves we cut
in," Joe said.
The big change is audience participation during the meeting, after the
committee reports, but there are limits about what can be brought up.
"An amendment comes up for a vote and has to be seconded. The board will
discuss it, and then we allow any resident to have input on just that
amendment. After all the discussion, a vote is called," Joe said.
People can see what's on the agenda in advance on the clubhouse bulletin board
and on the in-house TV station.
Six people lined up at the mic to discuss the fence and the balky fountain
before the March meeting. When Joe called the meeting to order, it was 7:22
p.m., eight minutes short of the half-hour allotted. After the committee
reports, there were a few questions about the community tree maintenance
contract and one question about pruning the palms after the meeting was
adjourned.
"People are much happier about having their voices heard," said
Arnie Esbin, editor of The Grove Globe. He can tell because there are
no angry letters to the editor.
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