Agenda - Council - 12/13/2016 - Laserfiche WebLink

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r November 23, 2016 Page 4 sent correspondence to the Harers on November 14, 2016 asking them to cease and desist any collection of ballots sent to the Members of Northfork. These actions by the Harers have rendered the voting process unreliable. In fact, the Board received numerous responses on altered versions of the postcard that was sent. Despite all of this, the majority of the votes were for no chickens to be allowed on property within Northfork. As a caveat, non-returned ballots were deemed to be a "no" vote as was indicated in the correspondence accompanying the ballots. Non-returned ballots deemed to be a "no" vote is an entirely legitimate and appropriate counting method, as both Federal and State Government adopt the same practice in similar situations. The total vote count, including altered ballots that would otherwise be disqualified totals 111 "Yes" to 159 "No." Article VII Section I(c) of the Bylaws authorizes the Board to impose sanctions against Members who violate the Northfork'sRules and Regulations after affording an opportunity for the Member to be heard by the Board. In my correspondence to the Harers of October 25, 2016 they were informed that the Board would assess a weekly fee against the Harers if they did not comply with the Governing Documents. To date, the Harers have not submitted plans or specifications for their chicken coop to the Northfork Architectural Review Committee nor have they removed the chickens from their property. The Board has now assessed that fee and will continue to do so until the Harers comply with the Governing Documents. The actions taken by the Board in this process have been done so very conservatively. The Board attempted to communicate directly with the Harers without the involvement of legal counsel. The Board has made an attempt to have the Harers comply with the Governing Documents without having to impose a fee. The Harers have refused to comply and instead have made unfounded allegations of inappropriate actions taken by the Board now, and in the past. The fact of the matter is that the Harers, like the rest of the Members, have made the choice to live in a community that is part of a Homeowners Association. The Governing Documents are what the Members voluntarily decided to be subject to by living in Northfork. The Board is honoring those Governing Documents and attempting to treat all Members equally despite what the Harers would suggest. The Governing Documents control how the Board is structured and what powers they have. The Harers, like any other