About a week ago, one my neighbours, Wayne Sloop, dropped by the house. Wayne and I both live in Twin Lakes, a community in Federal Way, WA.

The Twin Lakes community is governed by a homeowners association, like many modern communities. Theoretically at least, the Twin Lakes Homeowners Association (TLHOA) is a democratic body. Each household in Twin Lakes has one vote, and a say in governing the community.

However, like many homeowners associations, the TLHOA has been taken over by a small band of folks–9 people in total–who have nothing better to do than insert their opinions and preferences on the 1000+ households in the association. There is no due process, no true democratic process. The Association–and by extension all the homes in Twin Lakes–are not ruled by law, and not by the restrictive covenants we all signed up for when we bought our homes in Twin Lakes, but at the whim of nine board members.

They arbitrarily issue rules and edicts that are not part of the covenants, not voted on by the majority, and typically do not reflect community norms and values.

When my neighbor Wayne came over, he showed us documentation of an ongoing dispute he has had with the Board. The gist of the dispute is that Wayne owns a pickup truck. On that pickup truck he has a metal rack, the sort used by tradesmen for carrying lumber, pipe, metal siding, etc. In this case, Wayne uses this rack for carrying his BOAT!

The TLHOA board has threatened Wayne with fines of $50 per day for each day he has the truck on his property. They cite CCRs prohibiting the operation of businesses from private homes within the association. Wayne is not in violation of any of the restrictive covenants. He sells insurance. He is not a tradesman. He uses his truck/rack to haul his boat!

When Wayne visited by wife Jan and I, he had a request. He is collecting a little over 100 signatures of support for him to be able to keep his truck on his property. It looks like he’s well on his way to getting them. His aim is to strike down 100+ rules and edicts issued by the TLHOA board, without the consent of the majority of TLHOA homeowners.

He has our support. The blog is the first in a series of steps we are taking to support Wayne and others who have been bullied and victimized by the TLHOA board, their crooked lawyers, and the small elite who look at Twin Lakes as their own personal fiefdom.

If you have been hurt by the TLHOA and their gang of thugs, feel free to comment on this blog. I’ll be getting a hold of Wayne this weekend, to comment and contribute. If Wayne knocks on your door, please invite him in for coffee, listen to his story and give him your support.

Here is a link to a resource to another group of people who are trying to take back their HOAs

http://www.ahrc.com/new/index.php/src/home

Regards,

Gerry Wieder
Twin Lakes Home Owner