Insufficient Response by HOA to Complaint

On June 12th I filed a Complaint with the S.C. Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) about street-parking enforcement by the HOA.

The HOA missed the 20-day deadline to respond but, on July 27, Julie Brinkley, property manager for Town & Country, responded.

In my complaint I asked the DCA to find out what Section of the Governing Documents allows the HOA to enforce parking on the publicly-owned streets in The Summit, which are not part of the Common Property.

The HOA responded, over Julie's signature, as follows:

"The Association is governed by the recorded Declaration and any duly adopted rules and regulations regarding parking. The Board administers and enforces the governing documents in good faith and in accordance with its authority."

While what Julie wrote is true, it does not address the enforcement of so-called parking "violations" on the streets in The Summit. She answered a question that was not asked. She failed to answer the question that was asked.

The DCA is toothless, thanks to their charter which is limited by the State legislature.

The DCA shouldn't accept her response, but it will. 

The Board of Directors, representing 2,480 Members, should direct the property manager to cease issuing parking violation notices about street parking. Street parking is regulated by, and only by, Richland County and the State of South Carolina!

The problem started when a visitor parking in front of my residence for three hours one afternoon about 6-7 years ago. Several days later a Violation Notice was received. I challenged it. I also obtained a copy of the Deed by which the Developer had transferred Barony Place Circle to Richland County 20+ years ago. The recorded Deed contained no parking restrictions. I delivered that Deed to the HOA as proof that it had no authority to restrict parking.

Justin Martin didn't agree and would not cite any Section in the Governing Documents that authorized enforcement. In November 2024 William Hill, then Safety Committee Chair, would not provide any Section. Danny Trapp,  while President of the HOA, would not provide any Section. The property managers (CAMS and Town & Country) would not. 

That's because there are NO SECTIONS in the Governing Documents that allow the HOA to enforce limits on street parking!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sept. 2nd Board Meeting - Any of This?

At last night's Board of Directors meeting, were any of these items discussed? Was there any discussion by the Board about removing Danny Trapp as Board President? Update on lawsuit against Gus Philpott and (failed) Motion for Contempt that had been filed on May 28, heard on July 24, and decided against the HOA on August 29? How did that Motion even get filed in May without the approval of the Board? Report on the total costs on the lawsuit already paid by the HOA and the pending bills for legal work already performed? Discussion about how the lawsuit against resident (not homeowner) Gus Philpott even got started, since it is prohibited by the CC&Rs and was never approved by the Voting Members or  by the Board of Directors? Who is responsible for that? Who, if anyone, authorized Board President Danny Trapp to direct that the lawsuit be filed in December by the HOA's then-new law firm in the name of the HOA? Delivery of the 2024 Annual Audit? Did the auditor, Becca Brendle,...
Read more

What Letter to Danny?

The Minutes of the September 2, 2025 Board Meeting include a report by the then-chairperson of the HOA's Neighborhood Committee that "The committee met on August 16th on the litigation matter and voted to send a letter to Danny." First of all, I don't think it was the Neighborhood Committee that met on August 16th; I think it was a meeting of the Voting Members. The Neighborhood Committee would have nothing to do with the "litigation matter"; meaning the HOA's lawsuit against Gus Philpott (me). What did that letter say? Was it a friendly "You're doing a great job, Danny" letter or was it a letter critical of the litigation that had been filed by Danny in the name of the HOA?  Did the letter make some demands on Danny Trapp? If that letter really was sent by the Neighborhood Committee, then a copy of it should be included in the Minutes of the Committee's meeting. And those Minutes can be inspected by any Member of the HOA by going to th...
Read more

Study Your Board Candidates - Linda Potter

Contact your "recognized Voting Member" and ask him/her to elect only directors who are  of the highest caliber,   selected for interpersonal skills, dedicat(ed) to the betterment of our Association and community, and  free of any personal agenda. (Source: HOA Mission Statement, Nominating Committee) OK, let's look at the eight candidates, one by one. Eighth, Linda Potter Linda is a homeowner in the Founders Ridge neighborhood. She was elected to the Board on November 7, 2023. Linda served as Board Treasurer from November 2023 to November 2024.  For the most part, Linda's participation in Board meetings was to present motions for items for which the Board had to authorize spending. As I recall, she played an important role in moving HOA funds from low-interest accounts (0.05% and 0.75%) to market-rate interest, substantially increasing the interest earnings on that money. There were few reports, if any, about the status of the finances of the Association. Linda ...
Read more