SIGNS OF THE TIMES

September 6th, 2009, 11:59 am · 4 Comments · posted by Bill Vogrin

We’ve all see yard signs promoting political candidates. Or signs urging drivers to Slow Down, Drive 25 and Keep Kids Alive. Or advertising the landscaper/roofer/concrete company doing work at someone’s home.

But recently I noticed a new kind of yard sign in the Discovery neighborhood in Rockrimmon that could start popping up all across the Colorado Springs region.

discoveryweb

Here it is below:

discoverysign1

That’s it, you are asking?!? What’s so special about that sign?

It represents an end to phone calls from people wondering if their neighbor has approval for whatever is going on in the yard behind the sign.

That’s huge if you are one of the hundreds of volunteers who sit on a Homeowners Association, or HOA, board or an “architectural control committee” that governs improvements made in covenant-controlled communities.

discoverysign2

That simple blue and white sign with seven words will stop the phone calls.

It immediately tells people that the paint color being put on the trim is approved, or the roof meets ACC guidelines or the garish curbside driveway pedestals are OK, no matter how ugly and ostentatious you think they are.

The signs have another, perhaps more important, value.

If folks get used to seeing signs in front of houses where projects are underway, they will immediately notice when work is going on and the signs are absent.

In other words, it will be harder for people to get away with doing work without HOA approval.

The signs are going to be featured at an upcoming monthly meeting of the Council of Neighbors and Organizations, the umbrella group for the city’s HOAs.

cono

I suspect we’ll start seeing similar signs in neighborhoods across the region.

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Matt says:

September 8, 2009 at 4:02 pm

I love how many different ways people can utilize yard signs to get the word out - a lot of people think they are just used for political campaigns, yard signs, etc - but there is so much more to them. Great post!

401freddco says:

September 9, 2009 at 2:17 pm

Those signs are also a great way to warn potential homebuyers of which neighborhoods to avoid like the plague. Architectural control committees have a reputation for sticking their noses way too far into other peoples’ business for my comfort. We’ve read right here in the Gazette how some of them have made life miserable for homeowners who don’t “comply” on even the littlest things (removing Christmas lights precisely on the day after New Year comes to mind).

Thanks for the forewarning!

Art McDonnell says:

September 9, 2009 at 3:56 pm

You are correct if you have a Board or ACC that is “out of control” but, it also prevents a neighbor from putting up a carport on the side of his house or painting the house pink, purple, or Bronco colors. There needs to be a happy medium and these signs are a great idea and would warn buyers they are in an HOA community which unfortunately many times they don’t realize until the day their Christmas lights are up one day too long.

Linda says:

September 9, 2009 at 4:59 pm

I moved here from Florida where HOA’s were a four-letter word. I now live in a condo community and a member of the Board. I joined to learn how all this works and it has definitely been an education. We would all love to be able to do as we please with our homes, but when sharing common grounds, and HENCE common market value fluctuations, it’s even more apparent that maintaining the integrity of the community is of the utmost importance.