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At Ritchie Risers, we are dedicated to making sure that Ritchie condominium owners understand that they have rights and they need to protect them.
Thoughts on the proposed amendment
Your Vote Matters
About the Proposed Amendment to the Declaration
This is not legal advice, just an opinion based on common sense:
Ritchie Condominium unit owners, the current article 20 of the Declaration is designed to protect your already limited rights with respect to your individual condominium unit and requires that any redecorating required to restore your unit as a result of the damage caused to effectuate the riser project shall be furnished by the Association as part of common expenses.
THAT JUST MAKES SENSE, DOESN’T IT? After all, when the government does something that damages or destroys people's property, say to build a road that benefits the larger community, the law requires the government to compensate those people for the damages. Section 20 of the Declaration that governs our building requires the same thing of the "Government" in our community, which is the Ritchie Court Board of Directors, but the Board is asking you to change that provision -- very likely to your detriment and to the detriment of your neighbors.
The Board’s proposed revision to the Declaration says that the Board (or, using the analogy above, the Government) gets to decide the “needed redecorating” which, though not explicitly stated, may or may not be in an amount that is required to repair your unit to its prior position. Does that feel right to you?
It also provides that the board has the option to either furnish the repair or to allow you to engage a contractor to do the repair. This may be helpful in expediting the repairs.
Providing the Board the option to decide what is "needed" as opposed to what restores you to your prior position gives the Board license to say things like, "You don't need tile there, all you need is a wall that is primed for tile." Then you are stuck with additional expenses just to get back to where you started, even though your unit was damaged for the common good. Why is that fair to you or, if not you, your neighbors and why would anyone say “yes” to that?
From an economic perspective, the value of your ownership in Ritchie Court is not only the unit itself, in one of the best zip codes in the city of Chicago, it is that plus your right to own your unit without undue interference from anyone, including the board.
ANY ACTION THAT LIMITS YOUR RIGHT TO OWN YOUR UNIT WITHOUT SUCH INTERFERENCE REDUCES THE VALUE OF YOUR HOME AND THE BUNDLE OF RIGHTS CURRENTLY PROVIDED FOR IN THE DECLARATION DOCUMENT.
Importantly, it is not necessary for the board to have such broad authority in order to complete the riser project or in order to efficiently and effectively restore affected unit holders to their prior position. If it was necessary, wouldn't the board have taken the vote before walls started coming down in the interest of being completely transparent with the unit owners about the potential implications of the riser project and wouldn't they have done that in the context of seeking your approval of the riser project itself, which, since it was not budgeted or reserved for, may have been required by law?
What has changed since the work has begun that we need to entirely re-write one of the most important provisions protecting every single owner's property rights?
If the Declaration has to be amended to facilitate quicker restoration of the affected unit holders, why can't it be amended more narrowly to ensure that unit holders get the compensation that the current Article 20 provides and WITHOUT transferring certain rights of the owners over to the board? For example, rather than REWRITE THE WHOLE THING, JUST ADD ONE SENTENCE that says:
IN LIEU OF THE ASSOCIATION FURNISHING THE REPAIR, THE ASSOCIATION MAY COMPENSATE THE OWNER IN AN AMOUNT NECESSARY TO SELECT A CONTRACTOR TO DO THE REPAIRS CONTEMPLATED UNDER THIS ARTICLE 20.
This ONE SENTENCE facilitates getting damaged units repaired quickly without creating a additional new rights for the Board.
So you know, I have already suggested to the board that they take this course. They seem to have ignored that suggestion and are pushing for a broader revision to our property rights...
It is disconcerting to say the least.
It is very important for every unit holder to vote and to send a message to the board about the riser project: We want more transparency, more planning, much better communication, and, most importantly, WE WANT OUR CURRENT RIGHTS!!!
VOTE NO TO THE PROPOSED AMENDMENT, which is overly broad with respect to the stated purposes, diminishes your existing rights and potentially weakens the remedies you might have in the event the board (not just this board, but any future board) deliberately acts contrary to your interests. And please input your e-mail address below if you want to updates from this site and to ensure that your voice is finally heard by the Ritchie Court Board of Directors.
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