SCBD Petition Update
What is Happening?
A portion of Hillbottom Beach, which the community has been using for years, is owned by one of our neighbors. The end goal is to proactively secure community access to the area for the future. We have consulted with the appropriate county representatives regarding the county regulations and confirmed the property status as part of Carrollton Manor but not owned by CMIA.
There are several steps in order to be successful: update our Special Community Benefits District (SCBD) Charter, negotiate with the current owners as long as they are willing, and determine the best funding method. Each step requires that the Board seek approval from the community.
The Petition
Our original SCBD Charter created and approved in 1989 did not include the acquisition of property as a a valid activity. While the owners are not actively looking to sell the property at this time, updating our SCBD Charter now will give the community the flexibility to use SCBD funds if the opportunity arises and the terms are right. We want to be prepared and this process will take at least 6 months. We have printed petitions and we have volunteers going door-to-door asking property owners for their signatures.
The petition to change our SCBD Charter includes the old and new verbiage as follows. The purpose of the district shall be changed from:
“The district is established for the purpose of maintaining and improving community property, including the clubhouse and community beach; providing security for the community areas; and covering the expenses associated with the completion of the above purposes, including repayment of any loan and any necessary insurance costs.”
to:
“The district is established for the purpose of acquiring real property; maintaining and improving community property, including the clubhouse and community beach; providing security for the community areas; and covering the expenses associated with the completion of the above purposes, including repayment of any loan and any necessary insurance costs.”
That's it. This wording has been approved by the County. As you can see, the SCBD Charter is limited in scope and is only one document that governs our community. Other documents include the Constitution, By-laws and Restrictions also known as Rules and Regs (R&R). (These documents are also found on this site under the 'Resources' menu item, and then 'Official Documents'.)
We need to get a minimum of 51% of owners to approve -- that's about 300 petitions. Once collected, the County will review and approve them at a County council meeting. Only then will the charter be amended.
The Property
The property boundaries are shown on the Anne Arundel County GIS map. The property has been subdivided once as represented by the green line. The current idea is to subdivide the remaining portion. It remains to be determined with the owners where they want to subdivide. The whole process will take 6-8 months. Here is another GIS map showing more detail at the waterline. ANne Arundel County maps come with a disclaimer about warranty. Recently, we put up stakes and a caution tape to show the approximate property line. Take a look from the beach and from the pier.
The Funding
While amending the petition would allow us to use SCBD funds to purchase property, it bears repeating that the community must approve the final price, terms and conditions. Purchasing this property or any property does not mean that our dues will go up. Take for example the clubhouse - we spent 20 years accumulating sufficient funds to pay for the clubhouse without raising dues or going into debt. We may not have a twenty year window here but the bar has been set.
The Board is composed of your neighbors, just as you don't want dues to go up, neither do we. The Board is fiscally conservative. We will look at all our options that would allow us to acquire the property and pay over time.
Summary
As stated earlier, the goal is to secure future community access to Hillbottom Beach as we currently enjoy it. It's an important asset to Carrollton Manor. There are several steps along the way requiring approvals - County approval, the current property owner approval and approval from owners. Each step requires numerous steps and approvals all of which need to be successful if we are to meet the goal. The Board members think it's worth the effort to try. We hope you will join us and support the effort.
If you would like to discuss it further, please come to a community meeting or email us at cmia@googlegroups.com. You can also reach out to Jeff Rach, CMIA President at 202-430-2626 or jeffreyrach@verizon.net
FAQs
Question: Can you guarantee that none of the money is spent on the pier?
Answer: The pier is completely separate and not part of the SCBD charter. The pier has it's own budget completely funded through slip rentals.
Question: How are Carrollton Manor residents allowed to use that little left side of Hillbottom Beach that is "at risk"? And has there been any action to pursue a quieting of that right to use/enjoyment of the little slice of land?
Answer: That "little slice" of land ends up being about 50-60 feet at the water line. Feel free to take a measurement from the fence at the far side towards the Pier. It seems like more than a little slice to me but I could be wrong. Here is a link to a County GIS map soomed in at the water's edge. We've been allowed to use it because we have nice neighbors. The Board is exploring all options including right to use as well as purchase. The petition process takes 6-8 months so we are working this amendment in parallel with negotiations.
Question: Why should I sign up to authorize CMIA to assume debt in the way of potentially acquiring additional property and making me legally obligated to pay for it in the way of taxes?
Answer: That question really gets right to the heart of the issue. Please don't confuse the charter amendment with an obligation to pay for something. Even if this petition is approved, there are multiple steps between amending the charter and making the community legally obligated to pay for it.
The community must have sufficient funds. Our community budget comes up for a community vote at our December community meeting. Everyone in the community is encouraged to read the budget, attend the meeting, ask questions and vote. Any large increase in your annual dues should have everyone paying attention and asking questions.
Because the community participates in the County-run SCBD program, our finances are subject to review and approval by the County every year. The Board can't take out a bank loan without approval from the community and the County. The community doesn't have a process to levy a special assessment the way that an HOA might. Our community budget process is key and deserves everyone's review and attention. Dues are a line item on your property tax bill because that is the lowest cost way for the County to administer the SCBD program.
It's not enough to have the money in the budget. Any expenditure by the Board over $2,000 has to have separate community approval. Some of you may remember the process and multiple meetings and approvals we went through to build the clubhouse.
Sorry for repeating community so many times but I want everyone to understand, the association is you and me - the community. We are the community.
Question: Are some residents invited to meetings or discussions where information not available to everyone is provided?
Answer: No. All meetings are open to residents and non-resident owners. We send emails and postcards reminding people of community meetings. For this petition amendment, we want everyone to have a chance to attend a meeting. We will have several public meetings. If a resident says they can't attend the scheduled meetings or requests a different time, we will do our best to host a public meeting to accommodate various schedules. We need at least a week to post and publicize the meeting. All questions and comments are turned into FAQs on this page. We anticipate that others have the same questions.
Question: When CMIA talks about "SCBD" they mean whatever the association "approves" in the way of a budget is what will snake its way into your property taxes. Isn't that the process?
Answer: The County established the SCBD program to allow communities to gather sufficient funds for the activities in their respective charters. It is a line item in your property tax bill - that is no secret. In the '90s, the community members made a decision to approve the use of this program. When you purchased in the community - post-SCBD approval which I think was around 1998 - you agreed to allow the community to collect fees using the County program.
All of you - owners and residents, who show up at the December meeting - comprise the association approving the budget. It's not a secret process. We would love to have more people attend and ask questions, make suggestions, volunteer. The budget is published in advance and mailed to every address - including non-resident owners.
Question: Regarding the statement that, “The Board must get approval at a community meeting prior to any purchase”, what constitutes “approval”? Is there a certain number of community members that must vote yes, is it a majority of those in attendance, or some other measure?
Answer: Approval is an affirmative vote from the majority of residents in attendance. Our By-laws require a quorum of 10 members. This is why we encourage everyone to attend meetings.
Question: If, in the future, there is other land that the Board seeks to acquire what will the process be for the community to agree or prevent this? While I understand the immediate desire/concern is the beach, this language change feels very open ended and I am concerned about the potential for future abuse of this ambiguity.
Answer: The Board cannot seek to acquire land without the approval of the community There are several steps to any acquisition even if this petition is approved. The community must have sufficient funds. Our budget comes up for a community vote at our December community meeting. Everyone in the community is encouraged to read the budget, attend the meeting, ask questions and vote. Any increase in your annual dues should have everyone paying attention.
Because we participate in the County-run SCBD program, our finances are subject to review and approval by the County every year. We can't take out a bank loan without approval from the County. We don't have a process to levy a special assessment the way that an HOA might. This is why our budget process is key and deserves everyone's review and attention. Any expenditure by the Board over $2,000 has to have a separate approval vote. It's not enough to have the money in the budget. Finally, there are BOD elections every October. Community members are encouraged to run, attend, vote. It is another line of defense against a rogue Board.
Question: What is to prevent the Board from increasing our dues astronomically?
Answer: Please see the answer to Q.2. You should review the annual budget and take notice of any increases. Come to the December community meeting and vote. Please keep in mind all Board members live in the community. Speaking only for myself, I don't want my dues to go up and I think my fellow Board members feel the same. And, if history is any guide, the Board has historically done a great job of managing costs.
Question: Is there an estimate at this time of the approximate price of the Hillbottom land?
Answer: The owner has indicated an interest in sub-dividing so until we know where the new property lines will be drawn, we are not clear about how much property we might acquire and how much that might cost.
Question: What if the property costs $1,000,000? I don't want to have to pay for it?
Answer: The community has to vote on any acquisition. If it's too pricey, if the numbers don't work, the community can vote no. Any purchase price will be divided among 550 homes. The plan is to use any savings from dues to pay for it so we don't have to raise rates. We may be able to spread the cost over 10 or more years. Yes, there is some uncertainty and that can be scary. The petition is one step in the process and not permission to raise dues or spend money.
Question: Is this going to be a lump sum - like a special assessment?
Answer: The budget process includes developing an annual budget, mailing it to everyone for review, discussion and vote on the budget at the December community meeting and sending it to the County for review and approval. There is no process to create a special assessment. The current plan is to use any saving from our current fees to pay for any acquistion.
Question: Why isn't there a limit on acquiring property? What prevents the Board from purchasing more and more property? Tulip and Laurel are private roads, what if the community purchases them?
Answer: Carrollton Manor Constitution already allows the community to purchase real property. The amendment aligns the SCBD charter with the constitution. The limit on acquiring property is you. Please pay attend to the proposed budget sent every year at the end of November. Any increase in dues should be a reason to ask questions. The community needs to approve any proposed acquisition. Watch for announcements on any votes pertaining to acquisition. The purpose of any acquisition should be to improve life for the community. There would be no purpose in purchasing the roads.
Question: Why not just have teh owners sell the property to the County and get and easment from the County?
Answer: We are evaluating multiple options. The charter amendment process will take at least 8 months and we want to be prepared.
