Illegal Overnight Guests Have to Pay For Cards

The arbitrator has issued its ruling…

It's Official - The Board has the right to charge for guest cards. But will they?

The answer is very likely "NO". Despite unit owner complaints, Andres Lizerralde and Lynn Nunes have never wavered in their enabling of unit owners who illegally rent their units. A former Boardfmember stepped down and was immediately served with a code violation for renting for less than 30 days. Carlos Hernandez was appointed to the board in his stead. Carlos is well known to the building but had not been an owner. To meet board eligibility requirements, Demetrios Georghiou added Carlos as a manager to his LLC documents for Unit 1627. Particularly concerning was that Demetrios, who owns several units, was an active petitioner in the arbitration against the Association challenging the right to charge for guest cards.

The Board Gets A Legal Reprimand:

Remember the contentious Thanksgiving Board meeting when the Board reduced guest card fees to $50, despite significant opposition from unit owners?

The arbitrator has now ruled that the Board failed to follow proper procedures in notifying unit owners before eliminating the tiered guest card system. It turns out unit owner concerns raised at the time were entirely justified, and that any changes to the rules and regulations are deemed invalid.

As a result, the tiered guest card system is technically in effect once again, and this ruling is retroactive. The Board will definitely convene to change the rules but this time any future changes must meet the standard of reasonableness. This will be the next point of contention...

The Arbitrator Did Not Rule on What Is Reasonable

While the arbitrator expressly did not rule on what is 'reasonable', I believe the Board and the petitioners will attempt to spin a non-binding footnote into justification for limiting guest card fees to between $10 and $50.

Poll the People:

What is reasonable is what is supported by the majority of the community, is fiscally prudent and is aligned with our governing documents. To ascertain 'reasonable', the Board must do what it refused to do in March 2024, properly inform owners and hear from everyone before making further changes to our rules and regulations. The best way to ascertain what is reasonable to and for our community is, as we have been asking for a year now, to poll the people. This can be easily done by setting up a voting system - through a third party - so unit owners may weigh in on these very important matters.

Legally, this ruling delivered a win to the 400+ unit owners who are not in arbitration against the association and not exploiting the guest card system to support illegal overnight rentals. It remains to be seen whether any meaningful community engagement, enforcement of our rules or reform will follow. Either way, the arbitrator’s rebuke of the Board's actions was loud and clear.

Gound Hog Day:

This is Groundhog Day. With this ruling the Board is given a rare second chance to course correct. In the past, this Board has failed to consider the entire community and adherence to our rules. It has failed to distinguish between guests that are family and friends and those that are paying to stay. It has failed to take action against unit owners who are known to be renting their units for less than 30 days. It has been acting as if all guests are legal and affording them our rights and protections. The board has created major frustration amongst unit owners and is the sole reason this website and my communications exist.

Moving Forward as a Community:

The Board has said they want peace. If peace means not having to deal with me, the path has always been the same.

1) Simply make a distinction between legal and illegal guests

2) Create a fining committee to impose consequences, as per our rules, for infractions for those advertising and renting less than 30 days

3) Respect the concerns of all unit owners, not just a select few.

Do-overs in life are rare. I am not sure why this Board has refused to take these very simple steps, but I hope it leans into this opportunity to do something different for the benefit of our community.

The ball has always been in their court…