Resolution on Violations and Fines - Public Comment

Gil Citro Last updated 
RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL AMBERSON TOWERS CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION ON FINES AND SANCTIONS FOR VIOLATION OF RULES 

WHEREAS, Article III of the Unit Property Act expressly empowers Council to issue rulings, regulations and conditions which shall be binding upon all unit owners; and

WHEREAS, Section 306(3) of the Unit Property Act, 68 P.S. §700.306(3) , states that the duties of the Council shall include the promulgation, distribution and enforcement of rules governing the details of the use and operation of the property and the use of the common elements; and

WHEREAS, Article XVI of Amberson Towers’ Code of Regulations provides that Council shall from time to time issue rulings, regulations and conditions which shall be binding upon all Unit Owners which rulings, regulations and conditions shall be in the Council’s sole judgment for the general well being, safety, care and cleanliness of the building; and

 WHEREAS, certain provisions of the Pennsylvania Uniform Condominium Act (“UCA”), including Section 3302(11), apply to all condominiums created in the Commonwealth before the effective date of UCA, including but not limited to, the right to levy reasonable fines for violation of the Declaration, Code of Regulations, and Rules and Regulations of Amberson Towers, hereafter collectively referred to as the "Condominium Documents"; and 

WHEREAS, Section VIII(V) (General) of Amberson Towers’ Rules and Regulations, provides that Council may amend the Rules and Regulations by resolution; and 

WHEREAS, pursuant to Section VIII (General) of Amberson Towers’ Rules and Regulations, Council desires to amend the Rules and Regulations to adopt a consistent policy on enforcement of the Declaration, Code of Regulations, and Rules and Regulations through an equitable system of fines and sanctions; and 

WHEREAS, Council wishes to afford to owners accused of violations appropriate an appropriate opportunity for appeal, review, and due process, 

NOW THEREFORE, be it resolved by the Council of Amberson Towers Condominium Association as follows. 

Section 1. The Rules and Regulations shall be amended as follows: 

Violations of the Amberson Towers Condominium Association (ATCA) regulations, rules and policies shall be classified according to severity, intent, and history. Unless otherwise specified, violations shall be adjudicated, and penalties applied by majority vote of Council.  

Severity shall be classified as minor, moderate, or severe according to the following definitions:
  1. Minor Violations - Oversights which cause slight inconvenience to one or a few people (e.g. unintentionally playing music too loud during the day).
  2. Moderate Violations - Actions which demonstrate disregard for others. This includes actions which threaten wellbeing (e.g. smoking), create a moderate nuisance for one or a few people (e.g. blasting music), or a minor inconvenience to many people. (e.g. moving large items through the front entrance)
  3. Severe Violations - Actions which are reckless. This includes actions which create a risk of serious injury or property destruction (e.g. speeding in the garage) or a severe nuisance for many people (e.g. setting off a false fire alarm at night). 
The severity of specific violations is listed in Appendix A.  Council may, by majority vote, amend Appendix A to add additional specific violations or change the severity of existing violations.  Any violation not listed in Appendix A shall be considered moderate, unless Council votes to classify it otherwise.  Council may, by unanimous vote, make such classification of previously unlisted violations retroactive.  

Fines for violations shall be assessed as follows, for first, second, and repeated occurrences of the same or substantially similar violations within one year:

Minor: Warning / $50 / $100
Moderate: $50 / $100 / $250
Severe: $250 / $500 / $1000

If an individual in violation refuses to take corrective action, the violation will be considered to have been repeated an additional time (e.g., a first-time violation will be considered a second, and a second or subsequent will be considered a third).

Special Monetary Remedies

Monetary remedies shall be assessed differently in the following circumstances.
  1. Unauthorized Leasing 
    1. Unit owners may be fined the greater of 1) $100/day per adult who is found to be an unauthorized tenant, or 2) 150% of the total amount of rent charged to such person(s), except that Council may waive or reduce this fine for unintentional violations that were in good faith, but not to less than 100% of rent received.  
    2. Unit owners may be fined a flat fine of $100 per unit for failure to declare all occupants of their unit, other than Short-Term Guests, on the Unit Occupancy and Emergency Contact Form, if such occupancy was in keeping with the Occupancy and Lease Control Policy, other than for lack of registration.  
    3. In the event that the Association has insufficient information to determine the length of such violation, it shall be assumed to be one year, unless the owner(s) of the unit in violation present convincing evidence to the contrary, documenting both the length of any violation and the amount of any rent received.
Non-Monetary Remedies

Under the following circumstances, in which monetary penalties may not be sufficient and/or in which non-monetary remedies may be more effective or appropriate, Council may take the following actions, in addition to or instead of assessing monetary penalties: 
  1. In the event that owners of any unit distribute key fobs to individuals who are not family members and do not reside in the building, Council may deactivate the key fobs assigned to the unit and require that the owners obtain new key fobs.  For repeated violations, Council may, for up to one year, restrict key fobs for the unit to entry through the garage.  

  2. No person shall have a right to occupancy of the building other than owners and their minor dependents; for all others, occupancy of the building shall be a privilege. 

    In the event of behavior which seriously, repeatedly or willfully infringes upon the rights of others, or seriously jeopardizes the health, safety and/or peace of the building, by any person who is not an owner or minor family member of an owner, Council may exclude such person from the building, by unanimous vote, and upon notice and opportunity to he heard, except in an emergency.  

    In the event of such behavior on the part of an owner or minor dependent, the Council may, by unanimous vote, petition a court for equitable relief appropriate to the circumstances, or, in an emergency, call the police to have the individual removed.
Enforcement
  1. All fines for violation of any provisions of Amberson Towers Declaration, Code of Regulations, and its Rules and Regulations by owners and tenants shall be levied against the unit of the owner(s). All fines for violations shall be assessed against the unit where the violation occurred. If the violation occurs in a common area of the building, the fine shall be levied against the unit owned or rented by the violator. If the violator is neither an owner or tenant, then the fine shall be levied against the unit of the owner or tenant whose family members, guests, invitees, visitors, or other occupants commit the violation.
  2. All fines levied against units which remain unpaid for thirty (30) days shall be subject to enforcement and collection. Any fines, costs and legal fees incurred by Amberson Towers may be enforced as assessments under Section 3315 of the Pennsylvania Uniform Condominium Act. In addition, Council may pursue enforcement through any available legal or equitable remedies, including but not limited to taking legal action to obtain an injunction against the unit owners or other violator(s), especially for continuing violations. Should Council retain the services of legal counsel, then the owner(s) shall also be liable for all costs and legal fees incurred by Amberson Towers.
Due Process
  1. Notice of the violation and specified fine and/or other sanctions shall be addressed to and delivered both to the unit owner(s) and to the residents(s) alleged to be in violation, if applicable, by hand delivery, first class mail, or by email, if the recipient is known to use email. Such notice shall specify 1) the nature of the violation, 2) action required to resolve it, 3) time frame within which it must be resolved, and 4) any applicable fines or sanctions.  
  2. Unit owners have the right to appeal the violation and applicable fine and/or sanction by requesting a hearing before the Council. All appeals must be submitted in writing and received by the Amberson Towers Management Office within ten (10) days of notification of the violation. Failure to do so shall constitute a final and binding determination of the violation(s) and fine(s).
  3. Appeals will be acted upon at a regular or special meeting of Council. The person filing the appeal will receive notice of the date and time when the appeal will be heard by Council, have the right to attend the meeting and be heard in support of the appeal.
  4. If a unit owner is not satisfied with the decision of Council as to whether they are guilty of a violation, they may request an appeal to a jury of five randomly selected owners.  Such recourse will only be available to unit owners.  

    In the event of such a request, the Election Committee will select at random five members of the jury, who 1) are resident owners, 2) voted in the most recent Council election, 3) are not known or not well known to the unit owner, and 4) are willing to serve.  Both the unit owner and the Council will present relevant facts to the jury.  To uphold the decision of Council, a majority vote of the jury will be required.  The jury will elect a foreperson to convey its decision.  

    The jury will be empowered to determine whether or not the owner is guilty of the offense charged, but not to issue other decisions or determine whether rules themselves are reasonable, to review decisions of Council other than assessment of fines and/or other sanctions to owner(s), or to review any decision rendered by a court.   Decisions of the jury will apply to the fact of the case tried only, and will not be considered to be a source of precedent in similar cases involved the same owner or other owners. 

Appendix A: Schedule of Violations
  1. Minor Violations
    1. Minor noise during the day (9 am to 9 pm)
  2. Moderate Violations
    1. Minor noise at night (9 pm to 9 am)
    2. Excessive noise during the day (e.g., blasting music, 9 am to 9 pm)
    3. Parking violations (in addition to possibility of towing)
    4. Construction outside of approved times (9 am to 5 pm weekdays, excluding holidays)
    5. False fire alarm during the day (9 am to 9 pm)
    6. Smoking
    7. Clogging the garbage chute (in addition to cost to clear)
    8. Moving large items through front entrance
    9. Unauthorized animal in building
    10. Failure to clean up after animal (outdoors)
    11. Verbal Harassment
  3. Severe Violations
    1. Excessive noise at night (e.g., blasting music, 9 pm to 9 am)
    2. False fire alarm at night (9 pm to 9 am)
    3. Speeding in the garage
    4. Modification of unit without approval
    5. Failure to clean up after animal (indoors)
    6. Deliberate property destruction (in addition to restitution)
    7. Physical harassment

Section 2. Any other resolution conflicting with this resolution or any parts thereof shall be and the same is hereby repealed. 

Section 3. This resolution shall take effect immediately. 

I hereby certify that the foregoing Resolution was adopted by the Council of Amberson Towers Condominium Association, at a duly assembled meeting of Council on the _______ day of ___________________, 2023. 

ATTEST: COUNCIL OF AMBERSON TOWERS CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION 

______________________________ By: ______________________________________ Secretary 

______________________________ By: ______________________________________ President

History:
  1. Discussed by Governance Committee: Sunday, October 20, 2023
  2. Discussed by Governance Committee: Sunday, November 19, 2023
  3. Posted in Governance Public: Tuesday, November 21, 2023
  4. Voted on by Council:  Sunday, December 4, 2023 (planned)