The Homeowners Association - Where Does The Power Come From?

Tampa Bay, Fl
Opinion by: E. Eugene Webb PhD
Author: In Search of Robin, So You Want to Blog.

Community associations and Homeowners Associations derive their basic legal authority for their existence, activities, and actions from state statutes (laws) and certain legal documents.

Florida Statute 720, specifically Section 720.301 Definitions Section (4) Defines “Declaration of Covenants. These are the rules established by the developer or the Association that will absolutely control every facet of your life on your property and in your home.

What are the Declarations in a Homeowners Agreement?

From Fla Statute 720 (4) “Declaration of covenants,” or “declaration,” means a recorded written instrument or instruments in the nature of covenants running with the land which subject the land comprising the community to the jurisdiction and control of an association or associations in which the owners of the parcels, or their association representatives, must be members

If you are already railing and thinking “I’ll sue them,” think again.

Scroll down Statute 720 to Section 720.311 Dispute Resolution and read carefully. You will note that if you lose at any point, you will pay your legal fees and those of the Association.

Further:

When you agree to purchase a property or condo in Florida that is a managed community or building you essentially sign away a significant number of rights guaranteed under the US Constitution.

4.2 No Vested Rights. Each Owner by acceptance of a deed to a Home irrevocably waives any claim that such Owner has any vested rights pursuant to case law or statute with respect to this Declaration or any of the other Governing Documents. It is expressly intended that Declarant and the Association have the broad right to amend this Declaration and the other Governing Documents, except as limited by applicable law as it exists on the date this Declaration is recorded in the Public Records or except as expressly set forth herein.

In Florida, Statue 720 was lobbied into place by developers and lawyers.

For developers, it is a means to maintain control as a development is completed and makes it easier to establish a revenue flow (HOA dues) for the development of common property, for lawyers it is a boondoggle of revenue beyond belief and for the HOA industry it is heaven on earth.

Doubt me?

Click on these links:
HOA Lawyers Florida over 1,000,000 hits
HOA Management Companies Florida  over 2,000,000 Hits
HOA Industry in Florida almost 3,000,000 hits

If you think, this industry is without influence, I called a local newspaper and ask the editor if they had a reporter who covered HOAs and Condo Associations. He laughed and said, “Oh we don’t get into that mess.”

A big part of that “mess” is all the revenue that comes from developer and real estate advertising.

Why does the Florida Legislature continue to allow this type of feudal land development?

Since lawyers and developers have major influence and lobbying power in Tallahassee, it should be pretty easy to understand why the homeowners are on the losing end.

There have been some attempts to modify State Statute 720, but they are usually tweaks that benefit the industry and not the home owner.

If you are already stuck in one of these feudal kingdoms, your just stuck, unless you want to gamble a lot of money, and be sure to note that all the people who bleed money from this statue will do everything possible to make sure you don’t win even the slightest concession.

If your new to Florida and thinking about buying a home, carefully consider shopping for a development with no HOA or community association(almost impossible to find) or just buying a lot and building a home.  

Worried about amenities such as a club house, pool or golf course? A lot of cash starved HOAs allow outside memberships. Even a big price is better than a big assessment and a managed life.

Why don’t you send a link to this post to your Florida State Senator or Representative?

Not sure who that is? Here is a link Florida Legislature.

E-mail Doc at mail to: dr.gwebb@yahoo.com or send me a Facebook (E. Eugene Webb) Friend request. Like or share on Facebook and follow me on TWITTER  @DOC ON THE BAY.
See Doc's Photo Gallery at Bay Post Photos.  

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Please comment below.

Will Scooters Crash the Tampa Streetcar?

Tampa, Fl
From: Eye On Tampa Bay
Posted by: Sharon Calvert

We stumbled upon some interesting data on Facebook recently that raises some questions in our mind about the viability of transit compared scooters.

Scooting in Tampa in a rarely seen helmet https://www.tampagov.net/sites/default/files/styles/slideshow_full_carousel/public/scooter4.jpg

Will scooters success crash the TECO Streetcar ridership?

Scooters were introduced around downtown Tampa in the May 2019 timeframe. There were plenty of articles in the Tampa Bay Times and other publications about the good, the bad, and the ugly with scooters.

Scooters were deployed pretty quickly by 4 companies - Bird, Lime, Jump, and Spin, and some other's including Uber are now in the mix. One cannot be around downtown or SoHo area without seeing several scooter riders, and even more scooters available outside many establishments and street corners.

Early reports about scooters dumped on sidewalks and yards have subsided, as the riders seem to have improved their scooter manners.

There are still some valid concerns about safety. One rider was killed in an accident with a truck. Scooters can run up to 20 mph. Helmets are recommended, but rarely used. The vast majority of injured scooter riders were not wearing helmets. The wheels are small, which can lead to loss of control in potholes and cracks in the roads.

A safety class was offered. But we still saw a scooter rider literally slaloming down Cleveland Street last night.

Much like driving, scooter accidents often involve alcohol and drugs.

A new study published Thursday in Trauma Surgery & Acute Care Open found that out of 103 patients treated at three trauma centers for e-scooter-related injuries, 79% were tested for alcohol and 48% of that group was found to have a blood-alcohol level of more than 0.08, which is the legal limit for drivers in most states.

It's not just alcohol that has impaired scooter users and led to injuries. Sixty percent of the 103 patients in the study were also screened for drugs, and 52% of them tested positive.

Scooters are not a safe or legal way to support over-imbibing while bar hopping.  Yes, there have been cases of DUI convictions.

Despite the risks, scooters have some key advantages for micro-mobility.

First of all, they are convenient. A scooter just for you is likely nearby. Just grab one, do the app thing, and head off, when you want, from where you are, to where you want. No waiting around for a bus or streetcar to come around, or the expense of ride-sharing for a mile or two trip.

This convenience and mobility independence is the significant value of scooters. Point to point commuting always wins out over transit.

This mobility convenience and independence is the same as with cars, which is why cars are faster and more highly utilized than transit.

It helps that the scooters are electric, so the riders effort is minimal compared to bikes. And no greenhouse gases!

They are much faster than walking, averaging around 10 mph, and up to 20 mph, so suitable for a much quicker ride compared to walking the same distance.

Scooters also appear to be a good option for the "last mile" problem with transit. Transit almost never gets to your doorstep. Covering that last mile, usually on foot, is not appealing to most. Hopping on a scooter can make it much more amenable.

The data from the Facebook post shows a big uptake on scooter ridership.

How do those scooter ridership numbers compare to the other touted transit service available in downtown Tampa, the TECO Streetcar's ridership?

Scooters and TECO Streetcar ridership 2019

HART has only published ridership data through July 2019 as of this writing. But a quick comparison shows the number of scooter riders more than doubled the streetcar riders in the scooter's first full month! 

Scooters have been averaging 117,321 rides a month since June. Clearly they tend towards short scoots averaging about a mile, but short scoots seems to be their sweet spot.

Granted it's not an exact comparison. The streetcar suffers from its limited fixed route -- it goes where it goes, which most often is not where you want to go. It goes when it wants to go, which often means waiting for the next streetcar. Watching scooters and cars go by while you wait.

But hey! The streetcar is free these days! It has increased ridership! Around double since it's been free. 

But you could be there by now if you just scooted.

And the streetcar won't get you near SoHo, Grand Central, University of Tampa, Hyde Park, Julian B. Lane Park, Harbour Island, Encore!, Tampa General, among other spots around downtown Tampa anytime soon.

But a scooter can.

That three to five bucks seems to be worth it for the 10 min average scooter ride for a lot of people. But not so much if you had to wait for the streetcar. And even less so if you had to pay for the streetcar.

Scooters, led by private companies, which were deployed in weeks, with no subsidies, improves your mobility, for a fee, beats the limited and free TECO streetcar.

Of course, HART and the city of Tampa want to expand and modernize the streetcar system.

The City should a) commit to an aggressive implementation of the existing plan to modernize the streetcar by increasing capacity and speed to extend into Tampa Heights, b) begin planning for the extension beyond Tampa Heights (Phase 4), and c) work with HART to develop a long term funding approach for streetcar system operations, focusing on maintaining high quality levels of service and free and/or reduced fares.

Below is a peek at their plans as they are today. While the streetcar route is extended, it will still suffer from the limitations of the fixed route that mostly goes where you are not going.

Tampa Streetcar Modernization and Extension

So far, the cost estimates are lowballed at around $170 million (2017 dollars) for a 1.3 mile extension and modernization of the existing route so it is more receptive to modern light rail cars. The quaintness of the streetcar will be no more. Not much has been completed beyond some planning studies. Ridership estimates, if they exist, have not be released. Don't be surprised if it's a huge expense (the highly touted Phoenix light rail extension is now costing over $200 million per mile) which likely will not be free.

The conceptual plans call for the streetcar modernization and construction to begin 2021 and operational in 2024.

Did I mention that the scooter companies had their mobility solution deployed in weeks, at no cost to the taxpayers, and immediately had double the ridership as the streetcar?

Not to mention the new route extension plans call for exclusive transit lanes for most of the Tampa Street and all of the Florida Avenue route. These roads are the primary ingress and egress to downtown from the north side, so expect traffic congestion to increase due to these routes. 

Will there be more "modern" streetcar or scooter riders in 2024? Who knows. We do know there are now more paying scooter riders in the first full month than the free streetcar riders.

Will raising scooter rates reduce the number of scooter trips? No surprise if it does. Just like paying for the streetcar depressed its ridership compared to its current free rides. Here's hoping free ridership on the modernized streetcar is not extended further as another subsidy to downtown Tampa.

Perhaps it's a bit early to assume scooters will cannibilize streetcar ridership. It may coexist nicely and help with the last mile problem. 

But no one is asking these questions that we are aware of.

Think about that before your politicians spend your money.

Posted by EyeOn TampaBay at 5:30 AM 

This post is contributed by EYE ON TAMPA BAY. The views expressed in this post are the blog publisher's and do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher of Bay Post Internet.

Cross Posted with permission from: Eye On Tampa Bay

Pay for athletes. What about all students getting on the payroll?

Tampa Bay, Fl
Opinion by: E. Eugene Webb PhD
Author: In Search of Robin, So You Want to Blog.

The recent efforts to allow college football players to receive compensation for the use of their image and likeness brings up a number of important questions.

Most important to me at least, is why just football players or athletes for that matter?

What about all the rest of the athletes? The tennis players, the golfers, the basketball, players the field and track runners, the squash players, the soccer players and the list goes on and on. And what about the cheerleaders should they have the ability to earn a few bucks from their images.

Then there are all the other students on the campus that would probably like to have an opportunity to cash in on their presence at the University.

What about the student researcher, the student biology major, the student medical major, the student business major, and again the list goes on and on.

Shouldn’t these students also have the ability to take advantage of their presence at the University?

All of this seems just a little bit biased to me, and it makes a lot more sense if instead of the governor promoting the football players primarily or the athletes in general that we took a look at the whole university because everybody there, for the most part, is contributing something to something and their image may be just as valuable.

How about the really handsome guy or what about the really lovely girl who would like to model or use his or her image for some revenue opportunity?    

It just seems to me that it would be appropriate for all members of the student body should to be able to use their image and likeness for whatever purpose they desire.

All of this looks like just another effort by universities to figure out some way to get their fingers into the pie.

One of the things Governor DeSantis needs to be extremely careful about in the development of this program, regardless of whether or not it includes anybody besides the golden boys on the football field, is the fact that state universities should not be allowed to reduce football scholarships, to increase tuitions or be allowed to share in any of this revenue directly.

A lot of people think this whole idea of the student athletes being allowed to derive revenue and income from their opportunity to play football on Florida state college campuses and probably private college campuses as well is a slippery slope.

I agree.

Anytime you start letting large amounts of money filter and float around a university campus the one thing you can be sure of is the only person who’s not going to benefit from all that money is probably the student athlete.

By the time the managers, promoters, representatives, marketing people, advertising agencies, the college the football team, and everybody else takes their cut these kids are going to be lucky if there’s enough left to go to Starbucks for a coffee.

I do think this program is a good idea I just think that before we dash right out and focus or center of the thing on student athletes, we need to take a look at the whole campus look at the amount of money that’s being piled up in debt by the students for student loans and maybe this is an opportunity to begin to have a serious effect on that.

Oh, by the way, if all this goes into place again the governor needs to slap an absolute limit on tuition at state universities, in fact, I think it’s time that it was rolled back and rolled back significantly.

The golden age of education and millions of borrowed dollars floating around on these college campuses needs to come to an end.                         

E-mail Doc at mail to: dr.gwebb@yahoo.com or send me a Facebook (E. Eugene Webb) Friend request. Like or share on Facebook and follow me on TWITTER  @DOC ON THE BAY.
See Doc's Photo Gallery at Bay Post Photos.  

Disclosures:

Please comment below.