Deed restriction changes fail in Pineloch

Proposals to loosen deed restrictions in Bay Knoll, Bay Glen and Bay Glen Manor failed to win homeowners' approval over the weekend, leaving leaders of the Pineloch Community Association to deal with violations that include improper repairs made in the wake of Hurricane Ike.
Amendments allowing taller fences and different-colored roofs failed during Saturday's vote, which drew less than 200 people, said Kathy Dooley, the association's manager.
Dooley declined to release the election's results, but said that 75 percent of the association's membership, which numbers approximately 1,700, would have had to support the changes for them to be implemented.
The deed restrictions stand as they are written," Dooley said.
The first proposal was whether to allow homeowners to have any color of roof. Currently, roofs are required to be weatherwood," but some homeowners have repaired or replaced roofs with shingles that are too gray or too brown.
The second proposal was whether to allow a maximum fence height of 6 1/2 feet. Currently, fences can only be 6 feet tall, but some homeowners have been installing a horizontal "rotting board" across the bottom that keeps the vertical pickets from rotting quickly where they meet the damp grass but which add an extra 6 inches to the heighth of the fence. Rotting boards are allowed, but only if the vertical pickets are cut down to size.
Approximately 40 to 50 homes are in violation of the roof requirement, and others are in violation of the fence requirement.
With both proposals failing, Dooley said it will be up to the association's board to decide how to proceed with those who are in violation of the deed restrictions. That could involve legal action.