Jupiter Bay's Declaration, Bylaws & Rules
Florida Condominiums are governed by Florida Statute 718 and the Association's Declaration, Bylaws, and Rules & Regulations. Jupiter Bay's governing documents must be periodically reviewed and updated to reflect statute and Association requirements/changes.
Please visit the bottom section of this page for information on all Palm Beach County recorded changes to the Association's governing documents.
My Proposed Jupiter Bay Bylaw Changes
There are two Bylaw changes that should be considered. They would align the Association with Florida Statute default values for Bylaw approvals and Annual financial reporting deadlines. The proposed changes below would apply to the common set of association bylaws and would require approval by 288 (80%) affirmative votes of the entire membership.
- Bylaw Amendment Approvals – Currently, the Association’s Bylaws can only be amended with an 80% affirmative member vote. It is unusual to have bylaws that are this difficult to change. I propose that we change our Bylaws approval requirements to conform to the Florida statute default value, which requires approval of “not less than two thirds of the voting interests.”
- Annual Audited Financial Report Due Date – I don’t believe that our Association has ever had its Annual Audited Financial Report completed and mailed to owners within 60 days following the end of the fiscal year, yet this is required in section 9.13 of our Bylaws. I propose that we change this to the Florida statute language which requires a contract for the preparation and completion of the report within 90 days and mailing not later than 120 days after the end of the fiscal year.
Text for My Proposed Declaration & Bylaw Changes
The document available via the link below shows the specific changes to the Association's Declaration and Bylaws text required to enact the proposed amendments shown above. The full text of the current language is shown with underlining of inserted words and strikethrough of deleted words. (Note that this document does not include changes for the latest 10.4 Declaration amendments.)
Click Here to Download Document Changes File |
Amendment to Declaration 10.4 passed on 6/25/21
An amendment to Paragraph 10.4 (Loud Vehicles or Machines), renamed "Vehicle Restrictions", received the required 75% owner vote and passed on 6/25/21. Adjournment of the April 15th Owners' Meeting was delayed until June 25th, when sufficient votes for the Limited Proxy were obtained.
Following is the full text of the amendment, and below are issues with it: | Declaration Amendment to 10.4 |
Issues with Amendments to Declaration Paragraph 10.4
The Amendments to Paragraph 10.4 (Vehicle Restrictions) of the Association’s Declaration, recorded on 6/30/2021, gives the Board unlimited authority to allow most owner, renter and lessee trucks and passenger vans to park anywhere on Jupiter Bay property. This Amendment bypasses unit owner review and approval of each individual Board action.
Specific issues supporting this “unlimited authority” premise are as follows:
- Section 1 (Permitted and Prohibited Vehicles). Provisions (a) and (b) describe in detail characteristics that determine whether vehicles are acceptable or unacceptable for driving and parking on Jupiter Bay property. However, without a detailed vehicle review and approval procedure, the Association will not be able to avoid selective enforcement. Everyone knows what a pickup truck is, and our official rules and procedures do not issue parking permits for pickup trucks. Who will inspect every resident truck that comes onto the property and determine whether a parking permit is issued – office personal, board members, or someone else?
- Section 1, provision (f) allows the Board to adopt and amend additional rules and regulations addressing:
- (i) Parking on the street,
- (ii) The requirement of parking decals or other bar codes,
- (iii) Fees associated with the issuance of decals, and
- (iv) Traffic safety rules.
The Board should never be able to allow street parking, which is exclusively for the ingress and egress of vehicles, nor should the Board be able to set unspecified and unlimited fees for parking decals.
- Section 2 (Parking Area Restrictions and Exceptions), provision (a) has several major issues:
- (i) Does not clarify number of East and Villas truck parking spaces. Is it 3 total per area or 3 per building (24 total)? If 24 spaces, this would mean that 42 resident trucks could legally park at Jupiter Bay.
- (ii) Provides for overflow truck parking in the Jupiter Bay East long-term parking area effectively allowing an unlimited number of additional trucks to park on Association property.
- (iii) Allows the Board to increase the number of truck parking spaces per building without owner input. This could allow unlimited truck parking anywhere on Association property.
- Section 2, provision (b) grants the Board permission to utilize additional Association common areas for restaurant parking, providing that Jupiter Bay resident and guest parking is “not materially affected”. The Board should not have authority to grant non-resident use of association common property, and the parking lots are common elements as described in the Declaration (see adjacent article).
Due to the above issues, Jupiter Bay owners should have rejected these proposed amendments to paragraph 10.4 of the Association’s Declaration.
Changing Jupiter Bay's Governing Documents
75% To amend the Declaration of Condominium.
- Statutory default is 2/3 of units.
- May not materially change unit configuration, size, appurtenances, or percentage share of the common elements/expenses.
80% To amend the Association’s Bylaws.
- Statutory default is 2/3 of units.
- Proposals to amend must contain the full text of the bylaws to be amended with new words underlined and deleted words lined through with hyphens.
80% To materially alter the Association’s Common Elements.
- Statutory default is 75% of units.
Majority of Board Members To amend the Rules & Regulations.
My Proposed Jupiter Bay Declaration Changes
The Association’s eight Declarations have not changed appreciably since 2003, when the West C building approved changes to its Declaration to add rental restrictions. Most recently, the addition of a bocce ball court caused a minor update to Article 3, Section 3.6(c) of all eight Declarations, and relaxed vehicle restrictions caused updates to Section 10.4 of the Declarations. There are several additional changes that I believe need to be made to the Association's Declarations as well as consideration for a few other changes that have been proposed by owners.
The first eight proposed changes below would apply to all eight declarations and would require approval by 270 (75%) affirmative votes of the entire membership. The last two changes, rental terms and transfer fees, would apply to specific associations, requiring 75% affirmative vote of owners of the particular Association (102 votes for JB East and 24 votes for all others).
1. Bocce Ball Court – Owners have already approved a change to all eight declarations to include a bocce ball court in the Commonly Used Facilities section of the declarations. This change also needs to be made in the Recreational Facilities section, and both changes need to be recorded in Palm Beach County.
2. Recreation Facility – Article 5 of the declarations describes two recreation facilities:
- Restaurant, swimming pool and tennis club and
- Second pool, cabana, bath, and 2 tennis courts.
This article should be bifurcated into three sections: Restaurant & Tennis Club (5.1), West Recreation Facility (5.2) and East Recreation Facility (5.3). The West swimming pool should be reclassified as a common element with the West pool cabana, restroom and spa included; the Tennis Club’s number of courts should be updated to seven (7); and the sentence describing unit owner membership fees for joining the Restaurant & Tennis Club should be deleted.
3. Consent to Action – Although the “Consent to Action” process appears to be an acceptable means of amending an association’s governing documents according to the Florida Not-for-profit Corporations Statute, it is not included in the Amendment Resolution section of our declarations. I believe that it needs to be explicitly included.
4. Defense of Foreclosure – Because the Association’s declarations had no provision for us to charge attorney fees to the owner of a unit in foreclosure who was current in her quarterly assessments, we were ordered (via mediation) to pay the owner $20,287 in legal fees and $10,750 in settlement fees. Had this provision been contained in article 7 (Assessments) of our declarations, the Association would have saved considerable money. This provision needs to be added to all eight declarations.
5. Owner Insurance Requirements – In May 18, 2004 the Association recorded rule #39, requiring all unit owners to have homeowner's insurance and to provide the Association a copy of their certificate of insurance. This rule was created in response to FL statute 718.111(11), effective 1/01/04. However, this statute has since been changed, no longer requiring homeowner's insurance.
6. Unenforceable Provisions – The Arbitrator Ruling of August 26, 2002 prohibited the Association from enforcing the 1991, 1995, 1999 and 2001 amendments. These amendments have never been officially rescinded.
7. Pet Control – The section of our declarations containing use restrictions regarding pets (Section 10.4) needs to limit the number of domestic household pets allowed and to exclude the weight limit restriction for service and emotional support animals.
8. Vehicle Restrictions – The amendment to paragraph 10.4 (Vehicle Restrictions), recorded on June 30, 2021, is very poorly written and needs to be revised with clearer language. The "loud & noisy" vehicle restriction was erroneously removed and needs to be added back. Also, some of the paragraph's content needs to be removed and incorporated into the Rules & Regulations document.
9. Rental Terms – Seven of the eight association declarations, the exception being West C, place no restrictions on rentals. This leads to a more transient population and increases the Association’s insurance costs. I propose that we give the seven other associations opportunity to vote on a set of restrictions like those in the West C Declaration.
10. Transfer Fees – The West C Association charges a $100 transfer fee for the sale of a unit and a $75 processing fee for the lease of a unit. The Association expends considerable time and resources processing leases, issuing parking passes, and responding to tenant questions/issues. Consequently, many or most owners support this fee. However, there is the concern that a transfer fee implies the Association’s ability to approve or deny lease applications based on rule violations, owner delinquencies, background checks, etc. Regardless, I believe that it is important that all declarations require this fee to offset costs and provide additional income from sources other than owner assessments. I propose that we utilize language similar to the West C declaration for this amendment.
Jupiter Bay's Governing Documents & Amendments
Following are all Jupiter Bay Governing Documents and Amendments recorded in the Official Records of Palm Beach County over the past 36 years. Date recorded, applicable association, document type, book number, and page number are shown for each document. For all but the original Declarations, amendment details are presented. Since the 8/26/02 Arbitrator Ruling prohibits enforcement of 4 of the amendments, its conclusions are listed as well.
Documents are listed by date range beginning with the Association's founding in 1983. All relevant document types are included: CND (declaration of condominium), CND A (declaration of condominium amended), NOT (notice) and RES (restrictions). My notes, where applicable, are shown in red.
Date Recorded | Association | Type, Book & Page |
Declaration Purpose |
6/30/21 |
All |
CND A, 32642, Pg. 1226 |
Paragraph 10.4 of the Declaration (Loud Vehicles and Machines) is renamed and replaced with the following: 10.4 Vehicle Restrictions. 1. The following applies to vehicles in/on the Jupiter Bay Condominium Property, which includes the parking areas for the restaurant and tennis courts: (a) Permitted Vehicles: ONLY passenger automobiles, including pick-up trucks as limited herein, may park within the Jupiter Bay Condominium Property. Sport utility vehicles (defined for the purposes of this rule as private passenger vehicles which are primarily designed and used for non-commercial purposes, such as Jeep Cherokees and Ford Explorers) are permitted. (b) Prohibited Vehicles: Without limiting the general provisions set forth above, the following types of vehicles WILL NOT be permitted to park within the Jupiter Bay Condominium Property, except as provided by sub-paragraph (c) and paragraphs 2 (a) and (b) below:
(c) While engaged in making deliveries or service calls, trucks and other commercial vehicles, including delivery trucks to the commercial restaurant, may be parked in designated areas for short periods to perform the delivery or service, but not shall not park overnight. (d) All vehicles parked within the Jupiter Bay condominium property contrary to the provisions contained herein shall be subject to being towed in accordance with Section 715.07, Florida Statutes, as amended from time to time, or place a "boot" to immobilize the unauthorized vehicle at the expense of the owner of the vehicle. Towing or booting shall not be the exclusive remedy of the Association. (e) Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, but subject to sub-paragraph (c) above, no vehicle or other device shall be permitted to park within the Jupiter Bay condominium property for other than delivery purposes, if its dimensions exceed the dimensions of the parking space assigned or designated. (f) The Board may adopt and amend additional rules and regulations with regard to the parking of permissible vehicles not inconsistent with the Declaration, including, but not limited to, rules and regulations addressing parking on the street, the requirement of parking decals or other bar codes, fees associated with the issuance of decals, and traffic safety rules. 2. Parking Area Restrictions and Exceptions. The following shall apply with to limitations on parking of permitted trucks and which shall be limited to parking in permitted and specific parking spots on a first come first serve basis; provided, however, the limitations shall not apply to parking if the vehicle has a handicap/disability parking permit. (a) Permitted trucks shall be restricted to park in three spots per building available on a first-come first-park basis which shall be designated from time to time by the Board of Directors or may alternatively promulgate a rule to increase the number of spots per building which shall be approved by at least a majority vote of the entire Board. Additional truck parking shall be permitted in overflow truck parking areas designated as the Jupiter Bay East long-term parking area. (b) Patrons, employees, and staff of the commercial restaurant parcel are exempt from the truck restrictions and motorcycle restrictions stated herein when parking in the leased parking lot areas and specific common element areas as may be designated as additional parking pursuant to a lease. The Board of Directors shall have the affirmative obligation to use its best efforts to maintain adequate parking for the commercial restaurant parcel as necessary from time to time; provided, however, any additional parking or rules and regulations regarding additional parking for the commercial parcel shall not materially affect the parking of owners, guests, tenants, or invitees of the Condominium. |
Date Recorded | Association | Type, Book & Page |
Declaration Purpose |
5/18/04 |
All & West C Specifically |
CND A, 16978, Pg. 759 |
The following rule 36, as amended, replaces prior rule 36: (This rule contradicts and essentially eliminates rental restrictions imposed by Bylaw 5(u). It brings the Association’s rules into conformity with the 2002 Arbitrator Ruling.)
The following rule 36A (Application Process for Sell or Lease) was adopted for West Building “C” and shall apply to any other condominium that subsequently approves the declaration amendment that was approved on February 7, 2003:
The following rule 39 is added to the rules: Effective January 1, 2004, the Florida statutes, section 718. 111(11), requires every condominium unit owner to have insurance for all real or personal property located within the boundaries of the unit owner’s unit that is excluded from the Association’s policy. And in keeping with the new law, all unit owner policies are to provide:
Regardless of the language in the declaration, the Association coverage must exclude floor, wall and ceiling coverings, electrical fixtures, appliances, air conditioning or heating equipment, water heaters, water filters, built-in cabinets, countertops, and window treatments, located within the boundaries of the unit and serving only one unit, and all air-conditioning compressors, regardless of location, that service only an individual unit. (Note that FL Statutes no longer require condo unit owners to carry property insurance for their unit and its contents. Therefore, this added Rule 39 is unenforceable.) |
12/05/16 |
All |
NOT, 28747, Pg. 0010 |
Records the voting, by execution of a written consent, to opt out of the fire sprinkler retrofit requirements of FL Statute 718.112(2)(l). All eight (8) of the Jupiter Bay Condominium Associations obtained a majority vote to opt-out of the fire sprinkler requirement. (Note that there is some ambiguity as to whether this statute applies only to high-rise (over 75 feet) buildings of which Jupiter Bay has none.) |
Date Recorded | Association | Type, Book & Page |
Declaration Purpose |
12/21/00 |
All |
NOT, 12211, Pg. 1143 |
Records in PBC an updated set of Rules and Regulations dated October 1, 2000. These rules address the following 9 areas:
|
12/19/01 |
All |
CND A, 13217, Pg. 1274 |
For all associations, amends Article 5(u) of the Bylaws, eliminating holiday rental exceptions to the lease terms. (Note that the 8/26/02 arbitrator ruling prohibits the Association from enforcing this amendment) |
08/26/02 |
All |
----- |
Arbitrator Ruling. The arbitrator ruled that the Association is prohibited from enforcing the 1991, 1995, 1999 and 2001 amendments (shown above). Specifically, the arbitrator determined the following: 1. Minimum Rental Periods: The validity of the minimum rental periods provided by the amended bylaws was deemed invalid. The rationale for finding the amendments invalid was inconsistency with specific rights granted in the declaration. 2. Occupancy Limits: The occupancy limits contained in the amendments are not deemed inconsistent with the declaration but are expressly contemplated by section 10.1 of the declaration which says, "The number of persons occupying a unit will at all times be reasonably related to the size of the unit." In other words, the Association can impose unit occupancy limits. 3. Approval of Leases: The Association's Articles of Incorporation say that the Association has the power to "approve or disapprove the leasing, transfer, ownership and possession of Units as may be provided by the Declaration." However, since the Declaration does not create the right of approval, this power "rings hollow without specific accompaniment in the declaration." In other words, the Association cannot approve or disapprove leases. 4. Copies of Leases: The association is deemed to be authorized to require that leases be in writing and filed with the association prior to occupancy by the tenant, not less than 3 business days in advance of the intended occupancy. 5. Transfer Fees: The association cannot charge a transfer fee or a "processing fee". |
2/28/03 |
West C |
CND A, 14856, Pg. 1483 |
Amends Section 10.1 (units use, leasing and sales) of the Declaration of Condominium of Jupiter Bay Three (West C Building) as follows:
|
Date Recorded | Association | Type, Book & Page |
Declaration Purpose |
1/10/91 |
All |
CND A, 6697, Pg. 884 |
Amends Article 3.6 (Proxies) of the Bylaws. Deletes the following: “Holders of proxies need not be unit owners, but no person other than a designee of the Developer may hold more than five (5) proxies” and replaces it with “There shall be no limit on the number of proxies a person may hold”. (Note that the 8/26/02 arbitrator ruling prohibits the Association from enforcing this amendment) |
9/13/93 |
All |
CND A, 7883, Pg. 663 |
Amends Article 9.4(g) of the Bylaws, changing the dates when annual budgets, for both Class A (association/building) and Class B (common) expenses, are to be completed and transmitted to unit owners. The budget due dates were changed from September 1st to December 1st. |
3/01/95 |
All |
CND A, 8638, Pg. 1517 |
Amends Article 5 of the Bylaws, adding 5(u) rental restrictions as follows: (Note that this change should have been made to Section 10.1 of the Declaration. Regardless, the 8/26/02 arbitrator ruling prohibits the Association from enforcing this amendment)
|
1/25/99 |
All |
CND A, 10891, Pg. 1643 |
Amends Article 5(u) of the Bylaws, changing the lease terms to “a period of not less than one calendar month or 30 days whichever is less.” (Note that the 8/26/02 arbitrator ruling prohibits the Association from enforcing this amendment) |
6/30/99 |
All |
CND A, 11203, Pg. 118 |
Amends Article 12.2 (Resolution) of the Bylaws of the Association and Article 12.2 (Adoption) of the Articles of Incorporation of the Association. After control of the Association has been turned over to Unit Owners, both require a resolution for the adoption of a proposed amendment to be approved by not less than 80% of the votes of all the Members of the Association represented at a meeting at which a quorum has been attained. |
Date Recorded | Association | Type, Book & Page |
Declaration Purpose |
1/07/88 |
All |
NOT, 10172, Pg. 1412 |
Amends Article 9.5 (Assessments) of the Bylaws, requiring assessments to be paid on or before December 31st in 4 equal installments on the first day of January, April, July, and October of the calendar year. |
11/18/88 |
East |
CND, 5877, Pg. 1086 |
Establishes East Condominiums |
1/24/90 |
East |
CND A, 6333, Pg. 70 |
Adds an additional phase to Jupiter Bay East (Phase 2 – Building C). The Amendment adds additional land and improvements, making each owner share of the Common Elements, Common Expenses and Common Surplus equal to 1/120. |
5/24/90 |
East |
CND A, 6464, Pg. 208 |
Adds an additional phase to Jupiter Bay East (Phase 3 – Building D). The Amendment adds additional land and improvements, making each owner share of the Common Elements, Common Expenses and Common Surplus equal to 1/135. |
6/29/90 |
East |
CND A, 6504, Pg. 926 |
Designates D Building’s Unit 105 as Common Area and Unit D-104 as a condominium unit, amending the original floor plans. |
Date Recorded | Association | Type, Book & Page |
Declaration Purpose |
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2/01/83 |
West A |
CND, 3873, Pg. 516 |
Establishes West "A" Condominium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
3/02/83 |
West B |
CND, 3892, Pg. 129 |
Establishes West "B" Condominium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
12/28/83 |
West C |
CND, 4119, Pg. 9 |
Establishes West "C" Condominium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
4/30/84 |
Villas |
CND, 4225, Pg. 1689 |
Establishes the Plantation Villas | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2/04/85 |
West D |
CND, 4459, Pg. 1785 |
Establishes West "D" Condominium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
4/10/85 |
West D |
RES, 4514, Pg. 74 |
Amends Declaration Paragraph 3.6 (Improvements – General Description): Changes the numbering of units on the second and fourth floors as follows:
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10/01/85 |
Villas |
RES, 4666, Pg. 1798 |
Amends Declaration Paragraph 3.6 (Improvements – General Description): Changes Units 1 & 5 to B type and Units 2 & 6 to A type in each of the 4 Buildings. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2/18/86 |
West E |
CND, 4795, Pg. 672 |
Establishes West "E" Condominium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
3/20/86 |
West E |
CND A, 4825, Pg. 1273 |
Amends Declaration Paragraph 3.6 (Improvements – General Description): Changes designation of unit numbers for consistency with the West D building. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
3/28/86 |
West F |
CND, 4831, Pg. 1655 |
Establishes West "F" Condominium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
5/27/86 |
Clubhouse & Tennis Courts |
NOT, 4888, Pg. 1650 |
Memorandum of LEASE between:
The Lease is for two parcels of land situated in the town of Jupiter, County of Palm Beach, State of Florida:
The term of said lease is ninety-nine (99) years, commencing on November 1, 1982, and ending upon October 31, 2081. |