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Article
Courtesy of the Sun Sentinel
By
Joe Kollin
Published October 10, 2004
PEMBROKE
PINES · Homeowners won't need the city's approval to paint their houses the
color of their choice.
In a 3-2 vote, city commissioners last week decided to abandon further
discussion of setting a palette for homes in developments unregulated by
mandatory homeowner associations.
The
commission followed in the footsteps of Weston and Tamarac, which heard
requests for color controls but decided against them. Some cities, including
Coral Springs, Lauderhill and Plantation, already regulate colors.
Mayor Frank Ortis and Commissioners Angelo Castillo and Iris Siple voted
against the measure, while Vice Mayor Ben Fiorendino and Commissioner William
B. Armstrong supported it.
Paul Girello, president of the neighborhood association for the Pembroke Lakes
area, proposed color controls earlier this year after a family painted its
house red.
The 1,700 houses in Pembroke Lakes have deed restrictions, but the development
does not have a mandatory homeowner association, making it more of a
traditional neighborhood. The neighborhood association is voluntary and can't
impose dues or enforce deed restrictions on owners as the mandatory
association can.
Girello wanted the city to regulate colors for all traditional neighborhoods,
but he couldn't get support. Even though the city promoted public hearings on
the issue through advertising and cable television notices, very few residents
showed up at the Planning & Zoning Board meetings where the issue was
discussed.
"The city should help communities protect themselves from people coming
in and doing what they want to do," Girello said.
But resident Anthony Joyce said owners who buy in traditional neighborhoods
may do so because they don't want to live with a lot of rules, and the city
should respect that.
Homeowners should have the right, within reason, to do what they want with
their property, added Carol Miles, who lives in a community controlled by a
mandatory homeowner association.
Castillo led the opposition to color regulations.
"I've been searching for a way to say yes [to color controls], but I
can't find any," he said, noting that Girello presented no petitions from
Pembroke Lakes homeowners demanding a law.
Castillo said he drove through the Pembroke Lakes area and talked to people
who purposely moved into a community without a mandatory association.
"We live in a country where property rights are at the highest
level," Siple said.
"I hesitate to tread on a property owner's rights," Castillo said.
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