Please get out your covenants and read them for yourself!

In the following you will see that Burning Tree Plaza Certificate/Deed of Dedication is the only one that states that the HOA is  a member....even though  Burning Tree West and Burning Tree East can also be assessed.  


Recently a letter was sent by the Burning Tree  Master Association board of directors to  homeowners which states that homeowners are "covenant obligated" to pay assessments. It was also stated by a  director that since the Secretary of State did not show the corporations were tied together that it is within the Certificate/Deed of Dedication  that one will find if the HOAs were "approved by declarant".  

It is within the Certificate/Deed of Dedication where one will find if the HOA  was "approved by declarant".  That being said, all attorneys for homeowners who have read the documents, including an attorney who lives in Burning Tree have seen that:

• Covenants for Burning Tree One/Two and Burning Tree South do not give ANY authority to the Burning Tree Master Association.
• While Covenants for Burning Tree East, Burning Tree West, and Burning Tree Plaza do give the Master Association the authority to assess only the Burning Tree Plaza HOA is shown to be a member.
• The BTMA Articles of Incorporation states that the MEMBERS are the area associations that have been approved by declarant: Every Burning Tree Area Owners Association approved by the Declarant shall be a member of this corporation. (It does not say it is  homeowners who are. Each subdivision has their own incorporated homeowners association, except for one small area in Burning Tree East that never was set up.) Yet, it looks like those lots with houses have been assessed and some even liened!

Thus, only three areas (Burning Tree East, Burning Tree Plaza, and Burning Tree West) can be lawfully assessed and of those three, only the Burning Tree Plaza Association shows to be a member of the Burning Tree  Master Association.

Further,  the covenants state that every lot owner has an EASEMENT to use the facilities in their own subdivision and of the Burning Tree  Master Association as long as they abide by the rules and regulations. 

What are the rules and regulations that one must abide by to use the Burning Tree  Master Association facilities?   According to the Burning Tree  Master Association  by-laws rules and regulations govern the use of the common area and facilities, and the personal conduct of the members and their guests therein, and penalties for the infraction thereof.   (The apartments and duplexes are part of Burning Tree and have the same easement to use the facilities. )


Only members can vote, right? So anyone who votes (proxy or not) and is not a member would be doing so unlawfully. What happens at the meeting on Monday night will be recorded by several homeowners to verify for the court that the minutes match what is recorded. 

 The developer filed the documents as you read them today....Again, the covenants do not, and never have, given the Burning Tree  Master Association any right to assess in Burning Tree South or Burning Tree (" One") subdivisions. In fact, Burning Tree South never needed a petition to try to get away from Burning Tree  Master Association!  

Burning Tree  Master Association's own Articles of Incorporation state that the members are the owners association, not the lot owners, no matter how much the Burning Tree  Master Association board of directors tries to spin it. Further, several homeowners are in possession of  a letter written by a former President of the Burning Tree  Master Association who was an attorney and who stated that the homeowners are not the members. The covenants do state that  anyone owning a lot can prosecute at law anyone who attempts to violate or has violated the covenants.

Please get out your covenants and read them for yourself!   If you do not have a copy or if yours are too small to read: TeShauna purchased the maps of all subdivisions and the deed/certificate of dedication from Tulsa County (and has had them blown up). You are welcome to look at them to read it for yourself.


Click on these links to the attorneys  Thomas Affeldt and Scott Byrd  (with different law firms) to read their letters regarding Burning Tree  Master Association putting on liens without authority to do so.


Burning Tree Plaza Certificate/Deed of Dedication is the only one that states that the HOA is  a member....even though  Burning Tree West and Burning Tree East can also be assessed.  

Please read: http://neighbordialogue.blogspot.com/2012/04/dear-burning-tree-resident-on-march-26.html

Assessment questions

At one meeting the Burning Tree Master Association board said "their attorney" told them they had to assess everyone for them to be covered. 


First of all,  that is NOT the BTMA's attorney. That attorney is paid by the insurance company to protect the insurance company against acts of the BTMA board! For some reason, the BTMA likes to call her "their attorney". ROFLMFAO!  (The insurance is paid for with your assessments, even though they were only supposed to be bonded, according to the by-laws. When the records are obtained everyone will learn if an amendment was made lawfully to allow them to change it from a bond to the very expensive D&O insurance.) 

1. Did the BTMA assess all lot owners? First, are they  REALLY sure and second, why would would they do that when the only thing BTS and BTO have is an EASEMENT to use the facilities.   (Burning Tree South homeowners attorneys Thomas Affeldt   Scott Byrd , with different law firms,  letters regarding putting on liens without authority to do so can be viewed by clicking on those links.)
2. Did the BTMA give the Covenants along with ALL the Articles of Incorporation from all areas to "their attorney" so the attorney had a true picture of how they were different? 

A certain board member actually stood there and claimed that the BTMA has the right to assess lot owners whose subdivision incorporated their Area Association. He also stated that lot owners aren't assessed if they are not in an incorporated Area Association.  (That is VERY important to remember and yes, he was recorded.) The BTMA did, in fact, put liens on lot owners in the Burning Tree East Area 6, and that is certainly NOT incorporated. Go back and read the attorneys letters above.


Is "their attorney" aware that the BTMA failed to assess Burning Tree Area #2 at all and also the duplexes although the apartments and duplexes are in incorporated Area Owners Associations?  Yes,  it was incorporated in 1980 and Dennis Phillips is the registered agent! 

 
So, why aren't the Articles of Incorporation for Burning Tree Area #2 on line? And where are the Burning Tree Area #4 by-laws on the BTMA website? Are they  admitting that they FINALLY get it?



But even better and contrary to what that certain confused BTMA officer stated, It is only the OWNERS ASSOCIATION in your subdivision that has the legal right to assess/lien lot owners (NOT THE BTMA). Further,  the subdivisions association  can only assess for ACTUAL repair, upkeep and maintenance of the facilities and land in the subdivision.


   When a homeowner took Burning Tree Master Association to court in 2009 it was determined that covenants "run with the land".  BTMA has no authority over the covenants. The covenants authority  belong to the HOA and the BTMA is NOT an HOA. They cannot change it to make it fit them. Minutes from 2009 show that Julie Lindquist (current Burning Tree Master Association board president) was on the board at the time of the incident  

The covenants are very clear on what can happen to anyone who violates or attempts to violate the covenants.

Voting rights

Voting

• BTMA Articles of Incorporation state that a director need not be a member of the corporation---
• BTMA was to send out the agenda with annual meeting to know what was to be voted on (BTMA BYLAWS STATES MEETINGS OF MEMBERS 3. Written notice of each meeting of the members shall be given by or at the direction of the secretary or person authorized to call the meeting by mailing a copy of such notice, postage prepaid, at least ten (10) days before the meeting to each member entitled to vote addressed to the member’s last address appearing on the books of the Association or supplied by such member to the Association for the purpose of notice. The notice shall specify the place, day, hour and agenda of the meeting and in case of a special meeting, the purpose of the meeting.
• Voting rights   
• Who can vote? The BTMA Must allow all MEMBERS to vote. They MUST send out letters to all of owners....  duplex and apartment owners ARE lot owners.(Look at the covenants and check those lots against the Tulsa County Assessors site and you will see they are in Burning Tree. The duplexes and apartments were not removed by a vote of the people in the subdivision  because the covenants  could only be changed AFTER 1993, not in 1977 as some claim a vote was taken to exclude the apartments and duplexes!!! And it could not be done by a vote but by a written instrument, with signatures from a majority of lot owners and then filed at the Tulsa county. It was never done!   The BTMA  cannot exclude some lot owners just because they decide to! Read: Not assessing all when the covenants spell out whi...

NO AMENDMENT SHOULD BE VOTED ON UNLESS EVERY LOT OWNER HAS THE CHANCE TO STUDY IT

Although the annual meeting notice for 2012 said there would be a vote on amendments,there were no details given so homeowners really have no idea what they’revoting on or what they are handing off their proxy to be voted on.  The actual language of the amendment is critical.

  
WHY ARE THEY TRYING TO PASS ANYTHING WITHOUT LETTING THE APARTMENTS AND DUPLEXES HAVE A CHANCE TO VOTE? 

Even if the BTMA board hands out the actual language of the proposed amendments, lot owners need time to study them. If they just say we're going to vote on a amendment to do thus and so  a motion need to be made to "move that any action to amend the By-Laws of the BTMA be postponed to a future special meeting to consider the question, such meeting to be scheduled not less than ten (10) working days after the full legal text of each proposed amendment has been sent to each homeowner, to give themsufficient time to inform themselves and decide on their course of action.”