Here is what Article IV, Section 11 d says about parking in the street:

“Adequate off-street parking shall be provided for each Lot. Vehicles or residents shall not be routinely parked on subdivision streets, nor shall vehicles be routinely parked on any portion of a Lot other than a paved driveway or a garage.”

Under this Article, the interpretation of routinely may differ from person to person. 

Since the spirit of the Covenants and Restrictions are about safety and maintaining property values, here are the questions to ask ourselves before parking in the street.

• Do my cars or my visitor’s cars create a visual safety hazard for other cars, walkers, joggers or bicycle riders passing on the street where the car is parked?

• Is the convenience of my parking in the street an inconvenience or safety hazard for my neighbors and friends? 

• Is it possible to park my cars and my visitor’s cars in the driveway instead of the street so my neighbors and friends are not inconvenienced or put at a safety risk?

When it comes to illegally parked cars (cars parked facing the wrong direction, cars without license plates, commercial vehicles), the HOA is not equipped to police these vehicles and encourage residents to call the non-emergency police number when those vehicles are observed near their homes. That number is 770-957-9121. For your own safety, the police have asked that we enlist their help for these situations and accept anonymous calls from all concerned citizens. The Henry County Police department does not expect homeowners or an HOA to investigate illegal activity, including illegally parked cars.

Thank you for the trust you have placed in The Woods Of Lake Dow Homeowners Association board members. We’ll continue to work to earn that trust through every action we take and ask all homeowners to take a fresh look at the Covenants we all agreed to abide by when we purchased our homes.

Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, Restrictions and Easements. 

Please let us know if you have any questions, concerns or have a desire to assist with board activities.

Sincerely,

Your 2019/2020 Board of Directors and Architectural Committee,

Debbie Donaldson, president Jerri Hall, treasurer

Mark Knight, vice-president Ann Marie Ellis, secretary

As volunteers, your homeowners association board members are expected to abide by the organization’s by-laws in relying on professionals to handle the business of the association. We are simply volunteer stewards of the organization and your neighbors. 

The board members are not paid for their service and are not licensed attorneys, tax, financial, security or landscape professionals. We are your neighbors interested in assisting with regular communications within the neighborhood, maintaining the entrances and park as well as working within the changing state laws in upholding HOA covenants.

As good stewards we are questioning every expenditure and obtaining competitive bids for every contract that comes up for renewal. Should you have an interest in helping us vet vendors (including our attorney), we invite your participation. Just send an email to woldhoa@gmail.com.

Thank you for your continuous input. We only get better through open communication and your opinions matter.

Your friends and neighbors,

The HOA Board and Architectural Committee