Parking Violations
We received a notice today from EnTrust…
Orchards At Anderson Heights
enTrust Association Management
2823 Richmond Dr NE Albuquerque NM 87107May 04, 2010
RE: Parking Violation
Dear ,
Section 10.8.2 of the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restriction of Orchards at Anderson Heights states in part: “Vehicles shall be parked only in garages, driveway areas specially designated for parking, or on a street. Parking on landscaped areas of front, side, or rear yards, is prohibited. Parking vehicles so as to block ares and driveways or on commons elements is prohibited. …vehicles parked in violation of any restrictions set forth in this Declaration or otherwise promulgated by the Association may be towed or otherwise removed at the sole risk and expense of the owner of such vehicle.
Section 10.8.5 of the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions of Orchards at Anderson Heights states in part: “…no abandoned or inoperable automobiles or vehicles of any kind shall be stored or parked in the Community. An ‘abandoned or inoperable vehicle’ shall be defined as any automobile, truck, motorcycle, or other similar vehicle, which has not been driven under its own propulsion of for a period of 72 hr or longer… or which is not then currently registered and licensed…”
Please be advised that enforcement of these and the related sections of the CC&Rs begins on June 1, 2010. Parking violation stickers will be affixed to vehicles in violation of these CC&Rs, and if not moved within 48 hours, will be subject to towing at the owner’s risk and expense. Costs for towing are payable to the towing company; fees for towing without consent are set by the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission, and the Association is not adding any fees to this schedule.
Please not that you may download a copy fo the entire CC&R at the Orchards blog: http://www.theorchardsblog.net/ – registration is free (and required to download the document).
Should you have any concerns or questions regarding the enforcement of these provisions, you may contact enTrust Association Management for clarification.
At the Direction of the Board
EnTrust Association Management
chris
I should say, I checked my mail today… we prob received it a few days ago! LOL
I have a question. Since I’m retired my vehicles can sit in the driveway for 4-5 days or more without being used, am I to assume these will be considered “abandoned or inoperable” and subject to towing? I know others whose vehicles also sit in thier driveways for extended times.
This is one notice I hope folks pay attention to.
@David,
Get your resume ready – might have to end retirement! JK!!
I would hope the issue would be with cars parked on the street/sidewalk rather than in driveways… I’m just guessing.
Also – that was the first piece of “official” mail from any of our management companies that included the blog URL!
David-
We are focusing parking enforcement efforts on vehicles which are:
(1) parked on sidewalks;
(2) parked in driveways IF the vehicle covers 50% or more of the sidewalk; and
(3) on landscaping, whether that landscaping is on a lot or a common area.
Sidewalks and landscaping are NOT parking spaces.
David, your car is safe if it is fully in the driveway and not covering the sidewalk. The “abandoned” part refers to cars that are on the streets and left there for many days at a time without being moved.
IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT STREET PARKING… There are occasions that a person can have a car on a street for an extended period of time, such as for vacations or illness. The best thing for that owner to do is to call enTrust and let them know as soon as he or she knows the car must be left on the street for more than the specified amount of time. enTrust is working closely with the tow company to ensure that only ‘true’ violations are stickered or towed. We are taking as many reasonable steps as we can to make sure of that.
Please keep the questions coming, or you can contact enTrust – they can also answer any additional questions about this policy.
Thank you for your input!
Mark Racicot
Secretary, The Orchards HOA Board of Directors
In reading David’s question, I think a few more comments are in order.
AT THIS TIME, no vehicles are towed without first having a sticker placed in a conspicuous location on the vehicle; even so, owners will have 48 hours to move the vehicle or otherwise fix the violation. If the Board changes this approach to towing, notice of the change will be sent out via USPS, just like the mailing that just went out.
Regarding the stickers, the CC&Rs require that before any vehicle is towed that reasonable notice must be given, either in the form of a letter or a sticker placed conspicuously on the vehicle. The Board has selected a (very generous) notice period of 48 hours before towing a vehicle, and the sticker will be the primary method of notice. If parking violations continue, however, the Board may reduce the 48-hour notice to a shorter “reasonable” period, though we haven’t selected the next interval. If the problem persists after that, the Board may seek a more direct tow policy: no notice. This is not uncommon in gated/private communities. In other Albuquerque communities, there never has been a sticker policy or ‘notice’ before a tow. The rules are enforced harshly in some of those communities, and we wanted to attempt a less-aggressive method before considering anything approaching that level of enforcement.
The CC&Rs also prohibit vehicles that are not properly registered. Any vehicle, whether parked on a street or in a driveway, may be cited and towed if found within the Community without current registration. The same towing rules apply – that is, the vehicle gets the parking violation sticker and if not moved, the vehicle is towed 48 hours later.
I really encourage everyone to get the CC&Rs and look through them. A copy should have been provided to each owner at signing; renters in my opinion should have been given a copy by their landlord when they signed their rental agreement or lease, but of course, the Board can’t really control that transaction. (That’s a shame because the CC&Rs apply to owners AND renters alike, and the HOA may pursue both if a renter violates CC&Rs.)
Mark Racicot
Secretary, The Orchards HOA Board of Directors
Glad this is coming along. I see plenty of cars parked on landscaping all the time.
Just a reminder… This isn’t going to be a quick-fix. People are still going to park incorrectly and due to timing, the towing company will not catch them. The towing inspections are done on a random basis, and we hope to catch most people eventually.
If you see someone parked on a sidewalk or on landscaping and the vehicle doesn’t have a sticker, call enTrust and let them know so they can get the towing company out to place the sticker…though it is still possible that the owner might move the car in the meantime…
Mark Racicot
Secretary, The Orchards HOA BoD