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Proposed Bylaw Amendments

Documents Review Committee. Proposed Bylaw Amendments. The Documents Review Committee was established by the Board of Directors in 2011, in response to continuing quality of life concerns expressed by residents that existing governing documents did not adequately address. Background.

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Proposed Bylaw Amendments

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  1. Documents Review Committee Proposed Bylaw Amendments

  2. The Documents Review Committee was established by the Board of Directors in 2011, in response to continuing quality of life concerns expressed by residents that existing governing documents did not adequately address Background

  3. Declaration Legal document that establishes and defines the condominium, including percentage ownership and voting interests that apply to each unit • Bylaws Establishes broad legal basis for how the condominium is to be internally governed • Rules and Regulations Establish specific policies and procedures that implement the declaration and bylaws Governing Documents

  4. Conduct a detailed comprehensive review of all Rock Creek Gardens governing documents • Propose amendments to the declaration and bylaws as considered necessary and appropriate to achieve compliance and/or consistency with state law, and enable administrative modernization and efficiencies • Revise existing or draft new rules and regulations as considered necessary to implement the amended declaration and bylaws • Make the bylaws easier to understand: • Reorganize content to enable a more logical flow of subject matter • Rewrite sections as necessary to simplify language, eliminate “legalese” and unnecessarily obtuse verbiage, to the extent practical • Subdivide unnecessarily long and complex sections into subsections to enhance clarity Documents Review Committee Charter

  5. Committee Membership Kevin Upton 2252 Washington Ave. Sharon Brown 2212 Washington Ave. Linda Defendeifer 2244 Washington Ave. Kelli Serena (Board of Directors Liaison) 2244 Washington Ave.

  6. Declaration and bylaws have not been updated since RCG was established, in 1980 • Bylaws have not kept pace with changes in state laws • No systemic procedures for keeping documents up-to-date • Rules and regulations not always consistent with the bylaws and have significant functional gaps, including— • No defined rulemaking process • No provisions for imposing sanctions on violators Principal findings

  7. Declaration • No changes • Bylaws • Total of 72 proposed amendments • Rules and Regulations • Revise based on outcome of bylaw amendments ratification vote • Include new rules that define the rulemaking process and provide sanctions for violations • Establish a standing Rules Committee to monitor changes in the law, review bylaw or rules changes proposed by unit owners, and develop necessary proposed amendments Committee recommendationsDeveloped In Consultation With the RCG Legal Counsel

  8. Total of 72 recommended amendments in four separate categories: • Category A: Changes needed to achieve compliance and consistency with state law • Category B: Administrative Changes • Category C: Clarification and Simplification Changes • Category D: Property Management Changes Proposed bylaw amendments

  9. Article IV Section 6 (Item No. 3) • Lowers Annual Meeting quorum from 40% of unit owners to 25% • Article IV Section 8 (Item No. 5) • Lowers plurality requirement from 51% of all unit owners to simple majority of those present and voting • Article IV Section 9 (Item No. 6) • Allows casting of proxy votes by electronic means • New (Item No. 10) • Allows the Board to conduct closed executive sessions for specific purposes specified in the law • New (Item No. 18) • Authorizes the Council to foreclose on liens for unpaid assessments, as provided for in the law • Article IX Section 1 (Item No. 19) • Strengthens the residential nature of RCG by prohibiting other-than-passive home-based businesses as allowed by law • Article IX Section 2 (Item No. 20) • Requires use of a standard lease form that, among other things, makes tenants equally subject to provisions of the bylaws, and rules and regulations • Authorizes the Council to collect directly from tenants if the unit owner is delinquent in assessment payments, as allowed by law • Article XI Section 3 (Item No. 24) • Changes unit owner insurance provision from optional to mandatory, with a minimum coverage of $5,000 • Article XVI Section 1 (Item No 29) • Lowers the plurality required for ratification of amendments from 75% to 66 2/3%, as provided for in the law Significant Changes Category A: Compliance and Consistency with State Law

  10. Article IV Section 5 (Item No. 36) • Allows for delivery of legal notices by electronic means to consenting unit owners • Article IV Section 9 (Item No. 6) • Increases the number of proxy votes that can be submitted by a single unit owner from one to three • Article V Section 1 (Item No. 37) • Reduces the maximum number of Directors from 9 to 7 and requires Directors to be unit owners • Article X Section 7 (Item No. 46) • Increases the spending cap for improvements to the common elements from $25,000 to $50,000 Significant Changes Category B: Administrative Changes

  11. No substantive changes to the existing bylaws in this category Numerous non-substantive changes to 16 existing sections to simplify language and promote comprehension, as mandated by the committee charter Significant Changes Category C: Clarification and Simplification Changes

  12. Article IX Section 3 (Item 65) • Clarifies carpeting requirement to specify that this subsection applies to floor surfaces that are located directly above another unit (less kitchens, closets, and bathrooms) • Article IX Section 3(e) (Item 66) • Clarifies wording on numbers and types of pets permitted to reflect the 2011 community-wide vote of unit owners Significant Changes Category D: Property Management Changes

  13. Our bylaws are antiquated. No updates since the community was established in 1980 • Proposed amendments not only bring our bylaws into compliance with state law but also update and modernize the bylaws, to include: • Provisions for electronic delivery of legal notices • Provisions for electronic casting of proxy votes • More efficient collection of delinquent accounts • Reinforcement and clarification of the residential nature of the community • Beyond modernization, ratification of the proposed amendments will make the bylaws significantly easier for unit owners to comprehend Summary

  14. VOTE!!! • Even changes needed to achieve compliance with state law require ratification by 66 2/3% of ALL of the unit owners (not just of votes cast)! • Because the plurality applies to all of the unit owners, not voting or casting a blank ballot is the same thing as voting NO on all proposed amendments • Votes may be cast either— • In person, at the Annual Meeting to be held on May 22, at the Rock Creek Forest Elementary school OR, • By proxy, delivered to the Rock Creek Gardens Office, anytime in advance of the meeting • Review and update the rules and regulations based on the amended and restated bylaws • Publish a “Resident’s Handbook,” designed to explain, in plain English, how the community operates and to include a complete set of updated rules and regulations • Post the amended and restated bylaws, and the Resident’s Handbook to the Rock Creek Gardens website Next steps

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