Misinformation in “Residents’ Handbook”

Our Market Street at Town Center Condominium Unit Owners Association recently posted a “Residents’ Handbook” on the Association web-site. You can view that Handbook at this link:

http://www.marketstreetattowncenter.com/docs/ResidentsHandbook_June07.pdf

Pages 17 and 18 of that Handbook contain some false statements. One such false statement is this: “The governing documents are available on the Association web-site http://www.marketstreetattowncenter.com/” Although our Market Street at Town Center Condominium Unit Owners Association was incorporated in August 2005 as "Market Street @ Town Center Condos," the Articles of Incorporation aren’t on our Association web-site. However, you can view the (very brief) annual reports of our Association corporation at http://scc-internet.scc.virginia.gov/corporate/arfilings/corpfilings.asp?charternumber=06426175

Another Residents' Handbook false statement is this: “The Bylaws can only be amended at a regular or special meeting of the Association by 2/3 of the members of the Association (present or by proxy).” No meeting of the Association is required to amend the Bylaws! Not only is an Association meeting not required, such a meeting isn’t even mentioned in the law that pertains! Unit Owners evidence their agreement to any amendment of the condominium instruments by signing the amendment or ratifications thereof. My posts at the following links provide further explanation:

http://mstc-uoa.blogspot.com/2007/10/legal-underpinning-of-our-association.html

http://mstc-uoa.blogspot.com/2008/01/governing-documents-our-bylaws.html

I have two problems with the following paragraph regarding our Declaration: “The Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions ("Declaration") is a statement of legal rights, title and obligation. It describes the property, defines the Units and the Common Area, and the rights and obligations of the Declarant and the Owners. Generally the Declaration may be amended only with the approval of a majority of the Members of record.” First, the exact title of our Declaration is “Declaration of Market Street at Town Center Condominium”. I don’t see the benefit of introducing the common generic title (“Covenants, Conditions”, etc.). Second, the law states, “the condominium instruments shall be amended only by agreement of unit owners of units to which two-thirds of the votes in the unit owners' association appertain.” My post at the following link provides further information about our Declaration:

http://mstc-uoa.blogspot.com/2008/01/governing-documents-our-declaration.html