This is an update from the homeowner in Cypress Head whose children's butterfly garden remains under threat of destruction and legal action:
"This evening, I attended my first CTEC meeting.
CTEC is the Cypress Head Covenant and Traffic Enforcement Committee, according to Cypress Head communication, formed to allow residents "to present testimony and reasons as to why the fine should not be imposed."
Thankfully, the CTEC meeting seemed a lot calmer than the ARB meetings. However, it was unclear what the purpose of attending the meeting was if, it appeared, the CTEC cannot overturn decisions made by the ARB and Board. It was also unclear if there was due process if any CTEC members were friends and/ or associates of the Cypress Head Board and/ or leadership because these questions went unanswered in public and, earlier, in private communication.
The meeting followed a call from Parkland City Hall concerning the public outcry over the status of my children's butterfly garden.
The City Hall official reported that there were two options: To construct a 6-8 ft hedge around the garden or to remove the butterfly garden. I explained to him that there was no requirement of hedge height in the Covenants. I also stated that I submitted several hedge proposals to the ARB and each proposal was rejected. I also indicated that I may consider a hedge of 3 to 4 ft only. I would first need to know where and at what length. As an alternative to the hedge option, I also would consider removing mutually agreed items from the butterfly garden. Again, I reiterated the requirement to shown irrefutable evidence of the violation(s). To date, no time-stamped and date-stamped photographs were ever supplied to me despite repeated requests and promises. No itemization and specification of alterations were ever provided to me despite repeated requests. Yet, the Cypress Head Board continues to threaten me with thousands of dollars in fines over an existing butterfly garden.
A careful examination of the language of the violation notices reveals intentional vagueness and a complete lack of specificity:
1 September 2020 Cypress Head Violation Notice
Notice the "Correction Required: Cease and Desist all landscape alterations." There was no mention of removing ANY items from the butterfly garden.
24 November 2020 Cypress Head Violation Notice
There is reference to the 1 September 2020 violation notice. It is the same violation notice (with the same spelling errors) yet it adds: Correction Required: Cease and Desist all landscape alterations. Additional flower beds and alterations made on the side of the house will need to be removed."
Notice that 14 days are given to correct the violation yet, in the absence of any solid evidence of "additional flower beds and alterations" , there is NO way to correct the violation BECAUSE, drum roll please, THERE IS NO VIOLATION. The second sentence is obviously added from a seemingly angry leadership (concerning a survey about potential property damages) on the very same day.
25 February 2021 Cypress Head Violation Notice
Once again, there are false accusations in this correspondence. Where is the evidence to show that there any "alterations made to your lot" from 24 November 2020 to 25 February 2021? There is no evidence.
Sorry, folks. None of these notices hold weight in the absence of any irrefutable evidence AND documentation to support any wrongdoing.
A person cannot be threatened AND fined for a traffic violation without being shown that they sped a certain amount over a posted speed limit and/ or ran through a stop sign. Imagine if a person was handed violation after violation notice this way. That appears to be the Cypress Head way!
It begs the question: Who in Cypress Head is foolishly advising these Board members AND the management company representatives to invest so much time and energy to invent violations and aggressively pursue frivolous actions against homeowners (who maintain butterfly gardens)? Are these the feverish pursuits of the butterfly cops? These aggressive tactics appear to fail EVERY resident as they take a lot of time and resources away from where the funding really needs to go: Safety and security. It is also a travesty of justice.
Leave the butterflies alone and move unto the public safety threats that are also being censored and deleted from Cypresshead NextDoor: Eight-year-old golf cart drivers shuttling kindergartners on the roads. Seriously.
Nevertheless, this is the letter that I sent to L.B. of Campbell Property Management
this evening:
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Hi L.,
Thank you for the Zoom link.
I was unaware of the time constraint. This information was not supplied to me so I do not feel as if I was able to set everything on the table.
That said, I would appreciate the opportunity to meet with you onsite tomorrow to discuss the options that the City of Parkland official tried to broker between us today.
I do not feel comfortable submitting an application without meeting with you first.
I remind you that I am trying to resolve this issue without the need for legal recourse and within my rights as a homeowner according to the Covenants. I reread the Covenants and believe that all of the items to which you refer were grandfathered. I also sought legal counsel and the opinion was upheld.
I trust that you understand that I have repeatedly requested time-stamped and date-stamped photographs. Still further, it was unclear why I received a violation notice on 24 November 2020 if there were NO alterations made for which I was accused. Do you have any photos of the said site from 1 September 2020 to 24 November 2020 that can show what alterations were made without the submission of an application? The language seemed intentionally vague and unprecedented. I also received another notice on 25 February 2021 that also falsely claimed that I "...continued to make further alterations to the lot without prior approval." I now require video and/ or photographic evidence, as repeatedly requested, to ensure that it is clear that there was a cease and desist notice and that no alterations were made to the lot.
Please supply me with the itemization and photographs that you also noted in the 4 January 2021 email where you stated, "Tomorrow I will photograph and document the specific areas that are not approved by the ARB." Despite NOT ever receiving that information, I was asked and still supplied a "new plan for consideration", actually, several plans for consideration followed and all were rejected.
The Covenants are very clear, including the new Covenants for which this matter does NOT apply, on grandfathering. Furthermore, in the absence of any documentation that I was promised within 30 days, it is assumed that the matter was resolved. (The new Covenants allow 45 days though this does not apply.)
I also requested a record of all of the photos, time-stamped and date-stamped that I never received.
Therefore, it seems obvious to me as it does to others, including the public that is following this matter very closely and is outraged by all of these injustices, that all of these ARB exercises were moot.
That all said, for the sake of resolution, please supply the photos and the itemization that you promised on 4 January 2021 so that we can compromise and figure out a way to resolve this matter without further delay and without legal pursuit.
Please advise on your availability on Tuesday or Wednesday.
Thank you,
Please call and email your support for the C. children's butterfly garden
in Cypress Head that now faces destruction in Cypress Head, a premier community in Parkland, Florida. Tell them that it cannot be destroyed.
Thank you.
MAYOR RICH WALKER 954-757-4127 (rwalker@cityofparkland.org)
BROWARD COUNTY VICE MAYOR MICHAEL UDINE (mudine@broward.org)
CYPRESSHEAD 954-753-7900
CAMPBELL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT 954-427-8770
The destruction of this butterfly habitat cannot be allowed to happen in Cypress Head as it sets a negative precedent for other HOA communities to follow. Thank you.
Correction: Our apologies for any misprints. In an earlier version of this post, we erroneously indicated that the homeowner agreed to remove the butterfly garden if there was evidence supplied to show that there was/ were violation(s). The homeowner agreed to only remove certain items from the butterfly garden, subject to negotiation between both parties, if, in fact, irrefutable evidence was supplied to demonstrate non-compliance with the violation notices issued herein. There was also another error in an earlier version. The homeowner submitted at least two hedge proposals to the ARB and not a hedge. The homeowner also said that she may consider rather than would consider. This version (16 March 2021 at 19:30 EST) reflects the appropriate modifications. We apologize for these omissions. Thank you.
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