Rules

•   $100 per owner violation with $1,000 max 14-day notice & opportunity for hearing before a committee of at least 3 members.
•   Owner can be suspended from using common areas if more than 90 days delinquent in paying monetary obligations.
•   Smoking ––$100 for 1 st occurrence, $500 subsequent occurrences.
•   Fines under $1,000 may not become a lien against the condo or parcel.
•   Owner can be sued by the association (sometimes after participating in arbitration or after receiving a mandatory demand for arbitration) with the judge issuing a court order enjoining the behavior. The judge could hold the owner in contempt for continued violation of the rules. Some or all legal fees could be granted to the association.
•   Association is allowed to undertake reconstruction work on items that are the responsibility of the unit owner, charge those costs to the unit owner and collect those costs through lien and foreclosure procedures.

Florida statute 718.303(1) says that: each unit owner, each tenant and other invitee must comply with the provisions of the association’s governing documents, and that actions for damages and injunctive relief for failure to comply with these provisions may be brought by the association against a unit owner or anyone else occupying a unit.  Paragraph 5(n) of Jupiter Bay’s Bylaws says that the powers and duties of the Board of Directors shall include “levying fines against appropriate unit owners for violations of the Rules and Regulations established by the Association to govern the conduct of such unit owners.”

Paragraph #3 of FL statute 718.303 provides the following remedies for failure of the owner of a unit or its occupant, licensee, or invitee to comply with any provision of the association’s declaration, bylaws, or rules:

• Levying a $100 fine for each day of a continuing violation up to a maximum of $1,000 in the aggregate.

• Suspending, for a reasonable period of time, the right to use the common elements, common facilities, or any other association property. The suspension, which does not apply to the unit’s limited common elements, parking spaces, elevators, utility services or access, can also be imposed if the unit owner is more than 90 days delinquent in paying a monetary obligation due to the association.

Statute 718.303 is administered via the following procedure:

1. Once the board or management office discovers, or is notified of a violation, they tell the resident about the violation and ask that it be corrected. Furthermore, the resident is warned that if no corrective action is taken, a fine or suspension may be issued.

2. If the violation is not corrected, a written notice is mailed (certified mail preferred) or hand delivered to the unit owner and, if applicable, its occupant, licensee, or invitee at least 14 days, but not more than 30 days prior to a scheduled hearing.  The notice describes the violation, lists any prior warnings given, and offers the opportunity for an appeal to a peer-group of other owners.

3. Alleged violators who do not request a hearing are presumed to concur with the fine or suspension, and the amount of any fine will be posted against the particular unit’s account.

4. Those who request a hearing are contacted by the Fining Committee who will provide the place, date and time of the scheduled hearing.

5. Fining Committee hearings will be noticed to association members at least 48 hours prior to the meeting with regular bulletin-board postings on the property.  Residents may attend the meeting, but are not allowed to speak.

6. Prior to the Fining Committee hearing, all letters and correspondence with the resident should be given to the Committee members for review.

7. The Fining Hearing is to be heard by a majority of the Fining Committee.  If a majority of the Fining Committee members concur with the proposed penalty, the Board, at their next Board of Directors Meeting, will charge the fine to the owner’s account or invoke the suspension of privileges.  If the Committee, by majority vote, does not approve a proposed fine or suspension, it may not be imposed.

8. Fines are considered as assessments and are collected in the same manner as other assessments.  However, a fine may not become a lien against a unit.  The goal of fining should be compliance, not revenue generation.

A Fining Committee, also referred to as a compliance, violation, grievance or rules enforcement committee, is made up of at least three unit-owners appointed by the board who are neither board members nor employees and are not relatives of a board member or employee. This does not exclude board members or the property manager from attending the fining committee meeting for purposes of answering questions related to the violation; however, they do not get to vote on whether the fine should be imposed. See the "Committees" page of this website for additional information.

The Fining Committee’s purpose is to assure that fines or suspensions are administrated reasonably and fairly.  They are not to debate whether the violated statute, bylaw, rule or provision is appropriate or reasonable.  Their commission is just to determine whether there was a violation, how long it continued, whether the violator was taking corrective measures, and whether there were any extenuating circumstances.

The Fining Committee is the last arbiter that a resident who is accused of rules violation has.  It provides a check-and-balance over the Board’s fine levying and suspension-of-rights abilities.  The Fining Hearing is an opportunity for both the Association and the person who is proposed to be fined to present evidence as to why the fine should or should not be imposed.  This is not a time for debate or to lecture the resident, and the Fining Committee should try not to engage in a back and forth with the resident.  Once the alleged violator has made their case, it is advised that the Fining Committee let them know the Committee’s decision via mail, which gives the Committee time to deliberate and also helps avoid an argument between the owner and the Committee at the hearing.

A typical Fining Committee hearing agenda is as follows:

1. Introduction of the Committee Members and owner/residents in attendance.
2. Reviewing of the Hearing’s purpose, the Fining Committee’s charter, and the objectives of the meeting.
3. Description, by the Fining Committee member(s), of the violation, citing the document, paragraph and wording of the rule(s) that were alleged to be violated.
4. Presentation of proof of violation and supporting evidence.
5. Presentation by alleged violator (owner/resident) of evidence and rationale as to why a fine should not be imposed.  Discussion of any extenuating circumstances and corrective actions taken.
6. Deliberation and review of evidence by the Fining Committee, either while the alleged violator is present or after they have been dismissed.
7. Determination of imposition of a fine and the amount of the fine.
8. Voting by the Fining Committee membership to determine whether the fine should or should not be imposed.  Afterward, the Committee will notify the Owner/resident and Board of Directors in writing of their decision and rationale.  The Committee’s decision will stand with no further discussion or appeals.

On August 2^nd, 2021, the Association started enforcing recently enacted Vehicle Restriction amendments to Declaration paragraph 10.4. Cars and trucks illegally parked on association property in violation of restrictions based on the following could be towed:

• Type of vehicle,
• Parking location, and
• Whether the vehicle has a valid permit.

According to the amendments, permitted vehicles include:

• Passenger automobiles without commercial markings,
• Non-commercial sport utility vehicles,
• Passenger vans with windows on all body panels,
• Pickup trucks ½ ton capacity or less, under 7,800 pounds gross vehicle weight, having only four wheels, and containing no cargo or personal property in the truck bed.

Resident pickup trucks can only be parked in designated “truck parking” spaces, a limited number of which are available in each major parking area: East, Villas, and West buildings A-F.

The Association office will continue to issue owner, guest, and tenant parking permits.  Illegal vehicle types or vehicles without valid permits are subject to towing after two warnings for the same violation.

Vehicle towing seems to be a recurring issue at Jupiter Bay.  Following are the Florida statutes addressing this:

• Must post "tow-away zone" signs with name and phone number of towing company.
• Towing company must notify police within 30 minutes of towing.
• When person owning vehicle shows up while in the process of towing, vehicle must be returned upon payment of reasonable fee of not more than one-half the towing rate.
• Tow truck must display the name, address & phone number of the towing company in at least 3-inch permanently affixed letters.
• Any towed vehicle must be stored within 10-mile or 15-mile radius (if 500,000 or more residents in county) at a facility open from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM.

2019 Form Updates

The Jupiter Bay Board updated Unit Alteration Approval requirements and form at the November 7, 2019 Board Meeting.  Changes included:

• Providing Form Completion Instructions,
• Including a Fact Sheet providing handyman/contractors/permits information,
• Adding an Insurance Coverage section, and
• Notation that "No work can be started prior to Board Member Approval whose signature confirms that the Association Office has received and reviewed the Unit Alteration Request Form ensuring it has been correctly filled out and submitted with all required elements of documentation met."

2023 Form Updates

The Jupiter Bay Board provided further updates to the Unit Alteration Approval requirements and form as a part of the Rules & Regulation changes at the October 12, 2023 Board Meeting.  Changes included:

• Adding requirement that "All construction materials must be hauled away by the vendor. No construction materials may be placed in the association dumpsters".
• Charging a $100 fee if sidewalks or elevators need to be cleaned as a result of work performed in a unit.
• Charging owners for their contractor damages to elevators.
• Requiring two to three business days for Board review and approval of the form.
• Charging a 100 fine for failure to abide by the document requirements.

Please click on the following link to obtain a copy of the new Unit Alteration Approval Form:

Unit Alteration Approval Form 10/12/23

Preferred Unit Alteration Form

Please click of the following link to obtain a preferred Unit Alteration Approval Form that assists the condominium owner in determining the level and type of approval needed for common condominium repairs and upgrades:

Preferred Unit Alteration Approval Form

The Jupiter Bay Board of Directors approved, at the 9/22/21 Board Meeting, changes to the Association’s Rules and Regulations and voted to record the new Rules with Palm Beach County’s Official Records.  These changes, developed without committee input, eliminated rules and parts of rules previously deemed important.

Following are the most significant changes:

1. Definitions Section – This entire section, added in 2015 because of owner confusion and lack of understanding of terms used in the rules document, was removed.

2. Vehicles & Parking (#24) – Major changes addressing “towing”, “owner placards” and “trucks/pickups” were made:

Towing – Any vehicle that does not display an authorized parking permit is subject to towing, after two warnings. If the violation is not resolved by 4 p.m. of the business day following the second warning, the vehicle will be towed at the owner's expense.

Owner Placards – Owner placards can be requested. This placard is for the sole use of the owner and is not to be given to guests or tenants. The placard will be displayed by hanging it from the rear-view mirror. If an owner violates the use of the placard, the placard will be permanently revoked or a fine levied for the improper use. Also, a “weekend pass placard” can be issued by the owner or rental agency for weekend walk-ins.

Trucks/Pickups – Parking of prohibited trucks, prohibited pickups, shall only be permitted during the time necessary to provide or deliver goods or services during normal business hours.

These changes do not mention that truck-parking is restricted, per Declaration paragraph 10.4, to three spots per building available on a first-come first-park basis. The purpose of an “owner placard” is not defined, nor does the rule say how many placards an owner can receive. The reference to Rule #32 should be to Rule #31. Finally, “period of occupancy” was removed from the Registration Form description.

3. Pets (#25) – The following was added: “Proof of vaccination and a picture of all dogs is required when submitting the Guest/Lease Registration Form.”

No language was added to address 2020 changes to section 27 of FL Statute 760 dealing with “emotional support animals”. As a minimum, additional information should be provided which defines emotional support animals and required resident’s supporting documents.

4. Leasing/Rental Restrictions (Other than West C) (#29) – The words “leases must be submitted in writing and filed with the Association not less than three (3) business days in advance of the intended occupancy” were omitted and need to be added back per the 2002 arbitration settlement agreement.

5. Sale or lease of building C West (#30) – Information was removed which was copied from the 4/27/04 West C Declaration amendment and 1) discloses transfer and processing fees and 2) states the Association’s right to review and approve applications for sell or lease of units in building C West.

6. Unit Maintenance & Repair (#32) – The following text was removed: “FL statutes allow a condominium association to undertake reconstruction work on items that are the responsibility of the unit owner, charge those costs to the unit owner and collect those costs through the lien and foreclosure procedures”.

7. Building Restoration (#33) – The following was removed: “Any extra material cost or labor required by the Association in accommodating owner modifications is the responsibility of the owner.  If the Association’s contractors need to remove and replace owner-installed shutters, glass enclosures, patio flooring, etc. to perform concrete restoration, the unit owner will be wholly responsible for all associated costs, and these will be charged back to the owner.”

8. Website (#43) – The following text was removed: “The content of the website is strictly controlled by the Association.  The website will not contain information that violates generally accepted privacy standards, is political in nature, is offensive to individuals or organizations, promotes any non-affiliated commercial establishment, or violates community standards.  In publishing any information, consideration will be given to the fact that all of our unsecured website pages are available to all users of the worldwide web.”

9. Form Changes – Changes were made to the Guest/Lease Registration Form and the Condominium Unit Alteration Form:

Guest/Lease Registration Form – The following text was added: “A copy of a government issued picture identification is required for the Primary Lessee. A copy of Identification should be provided for each additional adult (18 years of age or older) occupying the unit.” Text was changed to prohibit “certain pickup trucks” and pets over 20 pounds and to add that parking permits are required.

Condominium Unit Alteration Approval Form – The following contractor information is no longer required: Copy of Current Driver’s License & Auto Insurance Coverage, Certificate of Current Workers’ Compensation Insurance Coverage, and State of Fl. Certificate of Exemption of Workers’ Compensation Coverage, if eligible.

10. Rules that were Removed – The Following rules were removed in their entirety from the Rules document: Unit Owner Insurance, Owner Delinquencies, Inspection of Records, Owner Inquiries, Recording & Speaking at Meetings, Committees, Financial Policy, No Waiver of Rights, and Actions Against Tenants. The removal of these rules limits the Association's ability to influence resident behavior at a time when increased violations and vandalism are occurring.

11. Forms that were Removed – The following forms were removed from the Rules document: Insurance Claim Form, Owner Information Sheet, Sales Application, Unit Assignment of Responsibility, and Parking Violation Form.

12. Failure to Include Changes – Several updates, based on current FL statutes, were omitted in the new rules document including reference to “vaping” every place that lists “smoking” in rule #21 (smoke & dust) and reference to small religious objects allowed on doors in rule #11(unit external appearance).