Below are the proposed neighborhood association bylaws. Please send any comments/questions to Dustin Burrows dustinburrows@mhbg.com before the May 17th bylaws meeting scheduled at J.T. Hutchinson Middle School on May 17th at 5:30 PM. Anyone is welcome to attend or submit comments.
Bylaws -- Proposed Amendments
http://www.scribd.com/full/30531107?access_key=key-hexobra57zhi8m3vuqj
In first pass, these by-laws look very reasonable. Sections 1 and 2 of Article III seem a little dense. My reading is that all "residents" of the UNIT get one vote, whether or not they are owners. And, only one vote per household/business.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate the reintroduction of various committees and the notion that all are residents are welcome to participate. This inclusiveness seemed to be lacking in earlier drafts of the by-laws that were circulating this spring.
Thanks, Dustin and the By-Laws committee, for your hard work.
Aaron Yoshinobu
The proposed changes in the bylaws in regard to membership would fundamentally change the purpose for which the Tech Terrace-UNIT group was organized: to be a group representing resident homeowners, the people who have the greatest stake in the neighborhood because they have a financial investment in their homes. They also continue living in the neighborhood and are not temporary residents for a year or two. Renters, most of whom seem to be students, tend to be transient, and they do not have a long-term view of the neighborhood. If renters wish to form their own association, then they are free to do so.
ReplyDeleteI also question the idea of giving every business a vote. In the past, businesses have come to the association and made their case. The association was been informed of changes that Cafe J and Lowes planned to make. There were no problems, and the association did not go on record in either of these cases, but left it to residents to weigh in as they desired. It seems to me that businesses can form their own association.
I do not understand why there is a sudden move to push through a rather convoluted set of by-laws in place of the clear ones that we now have. The ones that were proposed at the meeting before the last one were also clear, and with amendments about committees would have been a satisfactory document.
Perhaps someone can clarify what is going on?
Marliss:
ReplyDeleteThe debate within the By-Laws Committee, and presumably the entire membership, is: Are we a homeowners association or a neighborhood association? According the by-laws we operate under, we are called a neighborhood association; however, many have pointed out that we have acted more like a homeonwer's assocaiation.
The By-Laws Committee debated this issue at length, and both sides made very compelling arguments. Ultimately, the Committee came up with the compromise you see in the proposal -- include everyone, but limit non-homeowner's voting strength.
The by-laws deserve to be debated and voted on; They do not deserve to be implemented as written unless the membership votes on them. This move, in my opinion, is a response to the President's tactics to thwart the Committee's efforts to have the proposal presented and voted on. Perhp
I appreciate your comments, and know that several members of our Committee share your concerns and this subject will undoubtedly be debated at length, if we are allowed to have that discussion.
Also, the Committee will meet again on Monday, May 17 at 5:30 PM at Hutch. You are invited and welcome to attend.
Marliss,
ReplyDeleteThank you for asking the question here that many have asked in private. Are we a Homeowners Association or a Neighborhood Association?
I would like to add two other points that were made in the conversation during the drafting of the proposed bylaws concerning membership:
1) Our Mission statement from the 2004 bylaws indicates we are a NA:
“The purpose of this Association shall be to create a sense of community among residents in the area, to provide a means of communication of information among them, to protect and preserve the integrity of the community, to provide a means of action in the best interests of the entire community and to develop and maintain a sense of pride in our community”.
2) Our non-profit status is a 501c4, which is reserved for Neighborhood Associations only.
Another individual has also raised the concern about business being members and I believe we really need to revisit that point.
Please join us for the next discussion of bylaws May 17 5:30 pm at Hutch.
Thanks,
Celeste Yoshinobu
Communications Committee Chair