Damn those homeowners' associations:
Let me state at the outset that while the general intentions of "CCRs"—codes, covenants, and restrictions—in various neighborhoods has certain appreciable logic, I can't really say that I like them. I know people who live just a couple miles from me, where the CCRs make it an offense to have the wrong flowers in your garden, or (seriously) leaving your garage door open for too long.
But in this case, it's not just the homeowner's association causing the problem:
Of course, the whole thing gets even more ridiculous. After all, how can it not? Mr. McDonel was, until July, a member of the homeowners' association; he resigned in a dispute with the board president and shortly thereafter received a debris notice for a treadmill on his porch. The notice for the Gadsden flag is the second he has received in a short time.
The ACLU has entered the fray on Mr. McDonel's behalf. Dan Pochoda, legal director for ACLU's Arizona operations, says the flag "meets the spirit of the law", and has asked the homeowners' association to resolve the dispute in his client's favor without requiring a lawsuit.
I rather quite disdain homeowners' associations and their silly rules. They are, in some ways, like petty legislatures that make and enforce dumb codes for lack of anything better to do. Imagine getting a parking ticket for parking your car in your own driveway. Yes, that can happen in that community near me.
To the other, they also have the power to keep the proverbial Chevy Nova on blocks out of your neighbor's front yard.
____________________
Notes:
Lacey, Marc. "Homeowner’s Fight Involves Flag Tied to Tea Party". The New York Times. August 31, 2010; page A10. NYTimes.com. August 31, 2010. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/31/us/politics/31flag.html
This year, Mr. McDonel began flying a yellow “Don’t Tread on Me” flag on his roof in this unincorporated area just outside Phoenix. The historic banner — which dates to 1775, when it was hoisted aboard ships during the initial days of the Revolutionary War — has been adopted by the Tea Party movement. But Mr. McDonel said that he had unfurled the flag for its historical significance and nothing else.
He notes that the banner, the Gadsden flag, has been widely used over the years and was even featured on the cover of a rock album. “Am I a Metallica fan because I’m using the flag?” he asked.
This month, he received a letter from the homeowners’ association ordering him to remove “the debris” from his roof. It threatened fines if the debris (i.e., the flag) did not go within 10 days. But Mr. McDonel, 32, a logistics operation manager, has vowed to fight the order.
“It’s a patriotic gesture,” he said of his banner. “It’s a historic military flag. It represents the founding fathers. It shows this nation was born out of an idea.”
The Avalon Village Community Association, which sent the letter, takes a strict interpretation of the state statute that allows Arizonans the right to fly a variety of flags — the Stars and Stripes, the state flag, flags representing Indian nations as well as the official flags of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard.
(Lacey)
He notes that the banner, the Gadsden flag, has been widely used over the years and was even featured on the cover of a rock album. “Am I a Metallica fan because I’m using the flag?” he asked.
This month, he received a letter from the homeowners’ association ordering him to remove “the debris” from his roof. It threatened fines if the debris (i.e., the flag) did not go within 10 days. But Mr. McDonel, 32, a logistics operation manager, has vowed to fight the order.
“It’s a patriotic gesture,” he said of his banner. “It’s a historic military flag. It represents the founding fathers. It shows this nation was born out of an idea.”
The Avalon Village Community Association, which sent the letter, takes a strict interpretation of the state statute that allows Arizonans the right to fly a variety of flags — the Stars and Stripes, the state flag, flags representing Indian nations as well as the official flags of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard.
(Lacey)
Let me state at the outset that while the general intentions of "CCRs"—codes, covenants, and restrictions—in various neighborhoods has certain appreciable logic, I can't really say that I like them. I know people who live just a couple miles from me, where the CCRs make it an offense to have the wrong flowers in your garden, or (seriously) leaving your garage door open for too long.
But in this case, it's not just the homeowner's association causing the problem:
The listing of acceptable flags stems from a dispute several years ago in nearby Chandler, Ariz., in which a woman with a son serving in Iraq was challenged by her homeowners’ association for flying the Marine Corps flag. State legislators intervened.
The Arizona law, says the homeowners’ association butting heads with Mr. McDonel, does not give residents authorization to fly anything else on their properties. That means no pennants bearing sports team logos, no Jolly Rogers, no rainbow banners celebrating gay pride and no historic flags showing a coiled rattlesnake bearing its fangs.
As Javier B. Delgado, a lawyer for the homeowners’ association, put it in a statement on the association’s Web site:
“Should the Arizona Legislature expand the Community Association Flag Display Statute to include the Gadsden Flag, the Association will accommodate Mr. McDonel’s desire to display it. Bottom-line, anyone considering residing in a community association should carefully review the association’s governing documents beforehand to ensure that the community is a good fit for them.”
(ibid)
The Arizona law, says the homeowners’ association butting heads with Mr. McDonel, does not give residents authorization to fly anything else on their properties. That means no pennants bearing sports team logos, no Jolly Rogers, no rainbow banners celebrating gay pride and no historic flags showing a coiled rattlesnake bearing its fangs.
As Javier B. Delgado, a lawyer for the homeowners’ association, put it in a statement on the association’s Web site:
“Should the Arizona Legislature expand the Community Association Flag Display Statute to include the Gadsden Flag, the Association will accommodate Mr. McDonel’s desire to display it. Bottom-line, anyone considering residing in a community association should carefully review the association’s governing documents beforehand to ensure that the community is a good fit for them.”
(ibid)
Of course, the whole thing gets even more ridiculous. After all, how can it not? Mr. McDonel was, until July, a member of the homeowners' association; he resigned in a dispute with the board president and shortly thereafter received a debris notice for a treadmill on his porch. The notice for the Gadsden flag is the second he has received in a short time.
The ACLU has entered the fray on Mr. McDonel's behalf. Dan Pochoda, legal director for ACLU's Arizona operations, says the flag "meets the spirit of the law", and has asked the homeowners' association to resolve the dispute in his client's favor without requiring a lawsuit.
I rather quite disdain homeowners' associations and their silly rules. They are, in some ways, like petty legislatures that make and enforce dumb codes for lack of anything better to do. Imagine getting a parking ticket for parking your car in your own driveway. Yes, that can happen in that community near me.
To the other, they also have the power to keep the proverbial Chevy Nova on blocks out of your neighbor's front yard.
____________________
Notes:
Lacey, Marc. "Homeowner’s Fight Involves Flag Tied to Tea Party". The New York Times. August 31, 2010; page A10. NYTimes.com. August 31, 2010. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/31/us/politics/31flag.html