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DON”T TREAD ON US

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DON"T TREAD ON US
SIGNS ON PRIVATE PROPERTY
The 1st Amendment to the Constitution gives each of us at Holly Lake Ranch the right to express ourselves as we see fit on our own property. It is backed by individual State Laws such as Texas Property Code Title II. Restrictive Covenants. Freedom of Speech is to be preserved.
Under the Restrictive Covenants (Subdivision Restriction) that we accepted when we purchased our property, the only mention of signs says nothing about signs in general, it is specific for commercial signs: ‘ No "For Sale" sign or "For Rent" signs, or any other advertising structure, may be displayed in the Subdivisions without prior written approval of the Developer.' For Sale, For Rent and advertising structures on home owner's property are the only signs under the jurisdiction of the Board of Directors.
The By-Laws and Court Judgment is the next layer down in the governing documents. Under Article IV, Section 8-Authority. The board of directors shall have the authority to promulgate from time to time such rules and regulations governing the usage of the common and recreational facilities of the Corporation as the Board shall deem necessary. The Board of Directors shall have the authority to establish fines and/or penalties for the violation of any such rules and regulation and to enforce, the judicial process if necessary, any fines or penalties so established. NOTE THAT THE BOARD HAS ATHORITY OVER COMMON AND RECREATIONAL FACILITIES...NOT HOMEOWNERS PROPERTY IN THIS AREA..
Now we come to the last document, the Rules & Regulation, which are suppose to be following what is present in the above two documents. Under 1. General-U. Residential and Other Sign Policy (Revised 07/27/10) exceeds the authority of the Board as it is aimed at our rights as property owners, not over common and recreational facilities.
We keep getting our rights threaten by people we elect to represent us. Now it is happening at home because we have two board members that are completing their first year and think they can do anything they want regardless of what the By-Laws and the Court Judgment states is the limit of their authority.
Their idea behind this is that it will make Holly Lake homes more sale-able. That is a joke. We have for the 20 years that I have been here not had an issue with signs until the last six months. AND the reason we are not selling homes at a rate we would like is because the economy is hurting.
Bottom line, We do have the right to express ourselves with signs on our own property (with the exception noted in the second paragraph above and it is illegal for anyone-including the Association-to come on our property and remove anything without a court order. It is my hope that our two new 2010 board members take the above under consideration and rescind the sign rule that they push into implementation.
Sven Sterner, HLR home owner. All the information used above can be found in the governing documents on the HLR web site, Texas AG Office web site, and U.S. Constitution web site. This is my opinion, not a legal opinion. SLS