III. Community concerns sent to board, again

Several 6B Neighbors sent the following letter to the DBPOA Board when we received a mis-directed response from the board's attorney. Their attorney did not address our legal position that the DBPOA should continue the "course of practice" of maintaining our roads. 6B property owners now have a growing concern for several other neighborhoods without sub-associations on so-called private roads where the board intends to charge property owners for the maintenance of their roads.

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DBPOA Board,

As requested, we are responding to your attorney's letter sent to our attorney from Smith + Malek, dated February 19, 2025, but have chosen to send our response directly to the board.

Our initial November 11, 2024 letter was predicated by a lack of timely and clear communication from the board. Our letter indicated that the long-term “course of practice” of the care and maintenance of roads, trails and common areas should remain the status quo. Our points in this response are as follows:

1. The Smith + Malek attorney's recent response letter did not address our concerns for the long-term "course of practice" of the DBPOA's maintenance of 6-B roads and common areas.  

Our attorney stated in our November letter  that the DBPOA’s “course of practice” over the last 18 (now 19) years “is expected to continue going forward.” DBPOA’s responsibility to maintain 6-B’s roads and common areas was understood when we purchased our properties and has been reinforced for nearly two decades. This course of practice is, as our attorney has described to us, an “equitable application of the law,” and is our unified, legal position.

The Smith + Malek letter also included a misdirected response regarding an “option” of becoming a sub-association and the idea of invoicing 6B property owners for services. We found this confusing as it did not address the primary context of our letter.

2. Our initial letter sent to the board was signed by ten long-term 6B property owners. It was not intended to imply representation of all 6B homeowners or the other owners of the 60-plus lots on so-called “private roads.”

However, as with block 6B, DBPOA has been the de facto board for all the aforementioned lots/owners. One can only conclude that if the course of practice is not maintained, there would be a compounding, negative impact on many neighbors who have faithfully paid a considerable amount of dues over the course of multiple years with the understanding their dues would be providing maintenance for all roads in Dover Bay.

We are good neighbors and want to promote the betterment of the community as a whole. Our November letter was an affirmation for maintaining the course of practice in our neighborhood. But, we also have a growing concern for a universal care and maintenance system of all roads as it is in the best interest of the community.

3. At the July 2024 meeting of the Roads and Trails committee, a committee member made a recommendation for a universal road maintenance plan (including sub-association roads) in Dover Bay. The recommendation received unanimous support. At that meeting, the DBPOA president said he needed to investigate this recommendation with the Association’s law firm, Smith + Malek. After repeated requests for a legal update on the committee’s recommendation, eight months later, neither the DBPOA president nor the board have communicated a legal response to the recommendation from the committee they formed to help with solutions.

The recommendation from the committee supports the “course of practice” that has been in place for 19 years in our own 6B neighborhood and in several other neighborhoods. It would also help sub-association neighborhoods by lowering their road maintenance costs (excluding private driveways and parking spaces, etc.) Why not help everyone, equitably? That is fair to all "friends and neighbors."

As requested in your attorney’s letter, the following is our recommendation for a solution:

Our Recommendation: The Roads and Trails Committee has submitted a recommendation for universal care of Dover Bay roads, trails and parks that we support. The committee, with a broader representation of the entire community, should continue their work to hammer out the details required for the recommendation’s application to equitably benefit all property owners in Dover Bay.

Respectfully,

Ten 6B Dover Bay Property Owners