|
|
 |
| AUTHORITY |
| These rules have been approved by the Board of Directors of the Lake Waubeeka Association, Inc. (LWA) under authority of its Articles of Association, its By-Laws, the July 24, 1951 Declaration of its developer Lake Tormid, Inc., and Section 47-244 of the Connecticut General Statutes, as amended. The LWA Board may modify these rules at any time. |
|
| COMMUNITY GOVERNMENT |
| 1) The LWA is governed by eleven directors elected by the members. Its officers include a President, First Vice President, Second Vice President, Treasurer, Financial Secretary, Recording Secretary, and Corresponding Secretary.
2) The directors meet at least once each month, and all members are invited to attend.
3) All members must pay an annual assessment to the LWA. The assessment is based on the annual budget and due in two halves, on June 1 and September 1 of each year. The whole amount plus interest retroactive to June 1 accrues if either payment is more than thirty days late.
4) The LWA’s regular newsletter, The Waubeekan, is printed for all residents and also posted online at www.waubeeka.org to give notice about meetings, elections, rule changes, community events, and the like. |
|
| COMMUNITY PROPERTY |
| 1) The LWA owns all land identified in the By-Laws other than the residents’ lots. This includes Lake Waubeeka and its surrounding perimeter varying between 10 and 45 feet in width, the 50-foot strips under and alongside the roads, accessways to and from the lake, woodlands throughout the community, and the various recreational areas. The LWA can trim, maintain, or remove all trees and shrubs on these lands, including those planted by residents. No one may build on, occupy, alter, or otherwise harm these lands without written permission from the LWA Board.
2) The LWA also owns the Community House and other facilities and equipment. No one may damage this property or deprive the community of its use.
3) Residents may apply to the LWA Board for written permission to reserve the Community House for private use, for a fee. Membership in good standing, proof of insurance, a security deposit, and other restrictions apply.
4) Community athletic fields and tennis facilities are open from 9:00 a.m. to dusk daily. Use is first-come, first-served and at the user’s own risk.
5) Logging, hunting, trapping, and open fires are prohibited throughout the community at all times.
6) Smoking is not permitted at any time in the Community House or any other building owned by the LWA.
7) Littering is not permitted on any LWA property. |
|
| WATER SYSTEM |
| 1) The LWA owns and maintains the community’s water system. No one may damage its pipes or equipment, interfere with its safe and proper operation, or impair the water supply, directly or indirectly.
2) The LWA will conduct repairs and maintenance of the community water mains at its expense. The LWA will also repair lateral piping for 15 feet past a resident’s property boundary or up to (but not including) the resident’s shutoff valve, whichever distance is shorter. The LWA is not responsible for any damage caused to a resident’s landscaping, fencing, or other structures incurred while conducting such repairs.
3) All residents who replace a shutoff valve must place the new valve within 15 feet of the property boundary closest to the water main.
4) All residents must immediately repair any leaks or other plumbing problems on their property or which they cause, and are responsible to the LWA for any harm resulting from their failure to do so. |
|
| LAKE AND BEACHES |
| 1) The beaches of Lake Waubeeka are open from dawn to 11:00 p.m. daily. No one may contaminate or otherwise threaten the normal and healthy conditions of the lake and its surrounding ecosystem, discharge or abandon any foreign or waste material in it directly or indirectly, or deprive the community of its use.
2) The LWA does not provide lifeguards. Swimming, fishing, ice skating, boating, and all other activities in and near the lake are at the user’s own risk. All persons are advised to comply with the swimming, boating, and child safety advisories issued by the American Red Cross.
3) No one should swim outside the designated swimming areas unless accompanied by another person in a boat.
4) No powerboats or engined vessels of any kind are allowed in the lake. Rowboats, canoes, sailboats, and paddleboats are permitted so long as they are thoroughly cleaned before being placed in the lake so as to avoid contamination. Boats are not permitted in designated swimming areas.
5) All boats must be parked only in designated areas, tagged with LWA registration stickers, and marked with an owner’s name and address. The LWA is not responsible for boats, oars, or other personal items stored or left on community property.
6) Members are permitted to sleep on the beaches, so long as they do not disturb nearby residents, clean up after themselves by 9:00 a.m., and obey all other applicable rules. Beaches must be left in the same condition in which they were found.
7) Glass bottles, pets, and bicycles are prohibited on the beaches at all times. |
|
| RESIDENCES |
| 1) Lots in our community are exclusively residential and cannot be used for commercial or business purposes. Only single-family homes of a minimum 600 square feet and garages for up to two cars are permitted. All construction must comply with applicable ordinances, regulations, and permit requirements, as well as the LWA’s By-Laws, rules, and Declaration.
2) All portions of structures and lots visible from the roadway and neighboring residences must be kept clean, orderly, and free from debris.
3) All residents are responsible for removing snow and ice from their driveways and walkways, removing or repairing any dangerous conditions, and otherwise maintaining the safety of their property. Dead trees on private property must be removed.
4) Fences and outdoor walls may be no higher than 3.5 feet.
5) Residents may not permit stagnant water and similar breeding conditions for mosquitoes to accumulate or remain on their property.
6) Before building on, removing any tree from, installing a fence or outdoor wall on, or otherwise altering any land near a property boundary, the resident must request and obtain written confirmation from the LWA Board that no property of the LWA will be impacted. The LWA Board may require a report from a licensed surveyor at the resident’s expense before granting this confirmation.
7) All residents must have their septic tanks cleaned by a licensed servicer at least every 24 months, even if their homes are seasonally vacant, and provide documentary proof they have done so upon the LWA’s request. This is necessary to preserve and protect the lake environment, residents’ health, and property values.
8) The LWA Board must be notified before any sale, transfer, or lease of a property or residence. A resale certificate will be issued upon request; a fee may apply.
9) Every member who owns a lot on which no residence has been built must, when construction begins, pay a Capital Equalizing Charge. The LWA Board will determine this charge in its discretion to assess a fair contribution toward the existing community facilities for which other members have already been paying. |
|
| PETS |
| 1) Residents are responsible for their pets at all times. This includes monitoring the pet’s own well-being in addition to protecting all people, property, and other animals from them. Residents may not allow their pets to make noise disruptive to others.
2) Residents must always curb their pets (i.e., clean up all droppings).
3) Pets are not permitted on the beaches, athletic fields, or playground, or in the Community House or any other building owned by the LWA. Dogs must be leashed whenever outdoors, except in the fenced dog run adjacent to the athletic fields.
4) No resident may own or keep any animal that is nondomesticated, intended for consumption, or housed in outdoor caging or pens. |
|
| REFUSE |
| 1) Garbage, large furniture items, and neatly-raked piles of leaves (not branches) will be collected every Monday if left curbside. Additional pickups, of garbage only, occur Thursdays between July 4 and Labor Day. All garbage must be properly sealed and secured against wildlife.
2) Recyclable glass, cans, plastics, paper, and cardboard will be collected every Monday if left curbside in blue or clear plastic bags.
3) Residents may also use the dumpster behind the Community House for household trash but not for recyclables, construction materials, furniture, and the like. |
|
| VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC |
| 1) Motorized vehicles may not be operated or parked on any land owned by the LWA (except on roadways and areas designated for such use), or on any land owned by another member without the member’s permission.
2) To protect the safety of the residents, especially children, the speed limit for all community roads is 15 miles per hour. All roadway signs (speed limit, one way, stop, no parking, and the like) must be obeyed.
3) Because the LWA plows snow on community roads, vehicles should not be parked on them during the winter months. The LWA is not responsible for snowplow damage to any vehicle parked along a roadway.
4) No more than one car per household is permitted in the beach parking areas during the summer months. Any parked car blocking another car must display the owner’s name on its dashboard.
5) Abandoned, unregistered, and nuisance vehicles on or obstructing community property will be towed at the owner’s expense.
6) No all-terrain vehicle, go-cart, or snowmobile can be operated on any property owned by the LWA. |
|
| DOCKS |
| 1) All docks on Lake Waubeeka are constructed and maintained by members, but available for use by any member without trespassing on private property. Use of all docks is at the user’s own risk.
2) Docks may not exceed 96 square feet or extend more than 18 feet into the lake. Dressing rooms, oar lockers, and similar structures are not permitted. Docks may not contain styrofoam or other contaminant materials.
3) Members must apply to the LWA Board in advance for written permission to construct or modify any dock. Membership in good standing and other restrictions apply. All applications must specify: (a) the proposed dock’s location and distance to the nearest existing docks in both directions; (b) its length, width, and height above the water; (c) its manner of attachment and/or floatation; and (d) its construction and finishing materials. At a meeting of which the applicant is given notice and an opportunity to attend, applications will be granted, granted conditioned on modifications, or denied in the LWA Board’s discretion upon aesthetic, safety, practical, and other considerations.
4) The LWA Board may, in its discretion, require any dock it deems to be unsafe or unsightly to be repaired, modified, or removed at the member’s expense.
5) When any member sells, leases, or transfers a property with a dock, the LWA Board may, in its discretion, require the new or prior member to repair, modify, or remove the dock at the new or prior member’s expense, or take such other action in the community’s interest. |
|
| SECURITY |
| 1) Access to the community is restricted by a gate, which digitally photographs all vehicles which enter and exit, and is controlled with electronic passes and codes. However, no one can guarantee any resident’s security, and the LWA is not responsible for criminal activity or any failure of the gate system.
2) No one may damage the LWA’s security equipment, deprive the community of its use, or otherwise compromise the community’s security. Breaking the gate for any reason is punishable by a fine.
3) Residents are responsible for the well-being and conduct of all persons to whom they distribute passes and codes or otherwise allow access to the community.
4) Residents must notify the LWA Board to arrange access for delivery services other than pre-authorized providers.
5) Residents must notify the LWA Board of the names of all persons renting their residences, and when such persons are no longer renting their residences. |
|
| ENFORCEMENT |
| 1) The LWA Board may enforce these rules and protect the interests of the community by imposing fees and fines, through litigation in the LWA’s name, and as it otherwise deems appropriate and as allowed by law. The following is a non-exclusive list of fines imposed: |
|
| Breaking the security gate |
$100 |
| Littering on any LWA property |
$100 |
| Smoking in any LWA building |
$50 |
| Failing to clean up after a pet |
$25 |
| Failing to obey a roadway sign |
$25 |
| Speeding (for each mile per hour over 15) |
$5 |
| Other violations and repeat violations |
As determined
by the Board |
|
|
| 2) Interest accrues at the rate of 1.5% for each whole or part month upon any assessment, equalization charge, fine, and other debt owed to the LWA for so long as it remains unpaid. Delinquencies are vigorously pursued, and the resident is responsible for all collection expenses including court costs and attorney’s fees.
3) All payments received or recovered by the LWA will be applied against a member’s account in the following order: collection expenses, interest on unpaid fines, principal of unpaid fines, interest on oldest unpaid assessments, principal of oldest unpaid assessments, and the current assessment.
4) Failure to pay any assessment, equalization charge, or other debt owed to the LWA, as well as other violations of its rules or by-laws, could also result in loss of membership privileges and the use of community facilities.
5) The LWA Board has sole discretion to interpret these rules and its By-Laws and Declaration, and also to grant exemptions on a case-by-case basis. |
|
|
