Day at the Property Manager’s Office

 

Our associations pay a fair bit of money each year to hire a property management company to look after their affairs. Greenacre Properties Inc. manages all three of the Village homeowner association. How do they earn their keep? Well, they do a lot of things, like collecting our annual assessments, managing that money, overseeing contracts, enforcing deed restrictions, and in general executing policies enacted by the boards of directors. However, if that were all they did they could probably close up shop around noon time. Here are several examples of how our property manager, Dan Ruskiewicz, spends much of his day.

 

I am a resident of Phase I in Country Club Village. We are preparing to redo and paint our fence, and we have a section that borders our backyard neighbor. We aren't sure if we are responsible for their side of that fence or not. If we are, do we need their permission to paint the fence.

If the interior of your fence isn’t visible from the street or to your adjacent neighbors, color architectural approval isn’t necessary. If it is visible, approval by the Architectural Review Committee (ARC) is necessary. Get a copy of the ARC Form from the web site and send it to the address on the form with a color sample.

If you own the fence and the paint will bleed through to the neighbor’s side or is visible on the neighbor’s side of the fence, I recommend that you make an agreement with the neighbor before you start painting. The only way you can determine who owns the fence is to run a line from the property boundary corner markers. If the fence is on your side of the line you own it. If not, your neighbor owns the fence and you can not paint it without his/her approval. It doesn't matter what side of the fence faces your direction or who installed the fence. The fence belongs to the owner of the property, unless there was a prior written agreement.

 Can you help with this problem? I’ve written the county: There has been a water line leak on North Village Drive flooding the sidewalk under the bridge that goes over the golf course - on the south side of the roadway just before Top of the Village Run that has been a problem for over two years now. The water was so bad at one time that it flooded the entire walkway through to the golf course. It was barricaded for repairs for more than six months. You would expect that after all that time the problem would be corrected. Well, the water is back with a vengeance more than ever. The problem is that this sidewalk is part of the major pathway around Carrollwood Village where joggers, bicyclists and others pass day and night. There is mud and slippery sludge and you have to climb the side of the overpass to get around it. Someone is going to get hurt.

I was told the leak was from a county water line. After several calls to the county, the leak was fixed. When the leak started again recently, we notified the county several times. The association's irrigation contractor, however, has advised me the leak is from the club’s golf course irrigation. We then notified the club management.

 I don't know who owns the sidewalk. If it is part of the county right-of-way, the county is responsible for repairing it. If not, it belongs to the club. In either case, the last time the sidewalk was ripped up, neither the county nor the club showed an interest in repairing it and it was repaired by a mysterious maintenance angel. The steep bank and area on the south side of the sidewalk is maintained by the club. The association doesn’t have the equipment to mow the steep overpass banks, nor can it mow along the sidewalk until the leak is repaired.

 

Thank you for your response. Just a thought ¾ if someone falls and slips on that sidewalk, who is going to be held responsible? Hope it’s not the association.  My husband is an insurance adjustor so we’re sensitive to these possibilities as we hear of them every day. Can you give me names and numbers to call?  Someone is going to slip and fall and sue.

 About the sidewalk next to the overpasses.  Whoever edges other sidewalks around the Village, and mows the sides of the overpass should talk to each other and work this out so someone takes care of it. 

We too are sensitive to liability. We worked for over three years to get the county to acknowledge that they are responsible for the sidewalks on the county right-of-way. The association's attorney had to provide precedent cases to convince the BOCC. Since they accepted their responsibility, the county has made a concerted effort to repair sidewalks.

No Village sidewalk belongs to the association. If the sidewalk is on private property, the property owner is responsible for its maintenance. If it’s not on private property, the sidewalk belongs to the county¾this includes sidewalks in front of all the single family homes. The association does not repair sidewalks, as to do so could create a liability for the association.

The association has never mowed the area south of the sidewalk, because it’s club property. The steep banks at the overpasses¾whether they belong to the county or the club are a liability that the association cannot accept since we don’t own the property. Thanks to this policy of the board of directors, we’ve avoided laws suits from Villagers who have fallen down the overpass as well as from a cyclist who went over the bank and received serious injuries. You’ve never paid the association to mow that area. Here are the telephone numbers you requested. Water leak: county (554-5010) or club (961-1381). Sidewalk repair and mowing: county (554-5006) or the club (961-1381).

 

 

Yesterday several cat owners in Buckingham received a flyer from “Cats Indoors” stating if we didn't keep our cats in the house they would be picked up. Needless to say they are upset because there is no Hillsborough ordinance that says we must leash our cats or keep them indoors. Just to show what cowards these people are there was no return address on the flyer. It is our contention if someone comes onto our property and catnaps our cats, we can have said person arrested for stealing our property let alone trespassing. Do you know anything about this organization? Obviously they got a hold of the cat license spreadsheet from the county. We all neuter, license and rabies shoot our animals yearly. Can you look into this for us?

 

I believe the county Animal Control Ordinance prohibits cats from running free in the neighborhood. If the cat is on someone's property, or on county right of way, the neighbor can catch it and turn it over to Animal Control. This has been done in Phase II. However, nobody has the right to enter private property without the consent of the owner to catch a cat or for any reason. They would be trespassing. You can get more info on the ordinance by calling Animal Control at 744-5660. I don't know anything about the organization “Cats Indoors”.

 

 

We are members of the Carrollwood Neighborhood Association. I have a problem. There is a big pothole in North Carrollwood Drive right beside the driveway to the Landmark Plaza. To be more specific, the driveway is between the 3-story white Landmark Office Center and the Landmark Plaza. Can you please tell me whether the association will fix this pothole for us?

The Carrollwood Village Homeowners Association does not own any road in Carrollwood Village, nor is it responsible for road repair. If the pothole is on North Village Drive, please call the county at 554-5006. If you are referring to the short road between Bank of America and St Joseph's Diagnostic Center, it is either the county, or it could be a private road. The county can tell you if it is a private road.

 

I have listed a property on Dartmoor Lane and asked the owners if it was okay to put signs out directing potential buyers to the location. They advised it was okay with the association. Unfortunately, two of the signs were removed and taken. The owners were unaware of restrictions regarding signs, but have now found out otherwise. Sorry for the error. Would you happen to know where my signs are and if so, I would like to come and pick them up asap. 

 Please call Village Lawn Care at 977-6414. They may have the signs. If they do you can pick them up at their office.

 

 

: We have a neighbor in the back of us, who drains his pool into our back yard. I'm not sure how long he has been doing this and not sure why.  All the houses surrounding our property drain their water into the street.  My husband take great pride in his lawn and has not complained to date. Well, the grass is dying.  Chemlawn made it a point to knock at my door during our monthly lawn treatment to tell me this guy needs to stop draining his water on our grass.  Is there something written in the association rules regarding drainage? If not written is there something you can do to help?  My husband has mention this in the past and nothing has been done.  Sorry to be another complaining homeowner!

I’ve checked the Phase II and Lennox deed restrictions and easements and there is nothing relating to the draining of pool water. I don't know if this is a violation of the law since your neighbor is damaging your property. You might ask our off duty deputy patrol for advise¾call him at 263-8660. If your neighbor isn’t breaking the law, I suggest you notify him in writing that he is damaging  your property. If he fails to take corrective action, mediation or legal action may be appropriate.

 

My wife and I are planning some home improvement projects for our home on Wayside Willow Court. One of our first projects is painting the exterior of our home. We have noticed that the exterior of the homes in our neighborhood are painted in a limited combination of colors. In reviewing the Homeowners Association Bylaws, we do not find any list of approved colors. Please let us know if this list exists and where we may obtain it.

On another note, we found one of our vehicles had been rummaged through sometime in the early morning of December 13th. Nothing was found to be missing but we wanted you to know in case you report this type of event to the security company.

Any change or modification to the exterior of your house or property requires prior approval of the Architectural Review Committee (ARC). Therefore, if you wish to change the color of your house you must submit the colors to the ARC for approval  prior to painting. Any color of existing houses in your village are acceptable and will be approved. Other colors will be approved based on compatibility of the colors with the other houses in the subdivision. You can download an ARC Request form from the website.

I will advise the community patrol of the incident concerning your car so they can keep a closer eye on parked vehicles in your subdivision. If you would like to contact the patrol direct mobile phone number is 263-8660.