Everyday Living
Rules and Regulations
Occoquan Heights Owners Association
GENERAL
1. Occoquan Heights Owners Association (“Association”), acting through its Board of Directors, has adopted the following Rules and Regulations (“Regulations”). These Regulations may be amended from time to time by resolution of the Board of Directors.
2. Wherever in these Regulations reference is made to “Owners,” such term shall apply
to the Owner of any Lot, to such Owner’s tenants whether or not in residence, and such Owner’s (or such tenant’s) household, servants, employees, agents, visitors, guests, invitees or licensees. Wherever in these Regulations reference is made to the Association, such reference shall include the Association and the managing agent when the managing agent is acting on behalf of the Association. The “Neighborhood” refers to Occoquan Heights, consisting of all Lots subject to the Declaration for Occoquan Heights and the Common Areas owned or to be owned by the Association thereunder. The “Common Area” refers to the Common Area of the Neighborhood as defined in the Declaration for Occoquan Heights.
3. The Owners shall comply with all the Regulations hereinafter set forth governing the
Lots and the homes thereon, patios, balconies, streets, alleys and driveways, parking areas,
landscaped areas and any other appurtenances.
4. The Association reserves the right to alter, amend, modify, repeal or revoke these
Regulations and any consent or approval given hereunder at any time by resolution of the
Association or the Board of Directors.
5. No part of the Neighborhood shall be used for any purpose except housing and the
common purposes for which the Neighborhood was designed. Each home on a Lot (“Home”) shall be used as a private residence.
6. No Owner shall obstruct any of the Common Areas nor shall any Owner place or
cause or permit anything to be placed on or in any of the Common Areas without the approval of
the Board. Nothing shall be altered or constructed in or removed from the Common Areas except with the prior written consent of the Board of Directors or the Covenants Committee, as
appropriate.
7. The Common Areas shall be used only for the furnishing of the services and
facilities for which the same are reasonably suited and which are incident to the use and occupancy of the Lots, The sidewalks, paths and driving and parking areas shall be used for no purpose other than for normal transit and parking of cars in designated parking spaces.
8. Nothing shall be done or kept in any of the Common Areas which will increase the
rate of insurance for the Home or contents thereof applicable for residential use without the prior
written consent of the Board of Directors. No Owner shall permit anything to be done or kept on
the Lot or on the Common Areas which will result in the cancellation of insurance on the Home or contents thereof or which would be in violation of any public law, ordinance or regulation. No
gasoline or other explosive or inflammable material may be kept on any Lot. No barbeque grill or other similar unvented cooking device, regardless of the type of fuel, may be used within the
Neighborhood, except that an Owner may use a barbecue grill on the patio or balcony of a Home if permitted by law. No waste shall be committed on the Common Areas.
9. All garbage and trash must be placed in the proper receptacles designated for refuse
collection and no garbage or trash shall be placed elsewhere on any Common Area.
10. No loitering shall be permitted, nor shall baby carriages, bicycles, playpens, wagons,
toys, benches, chairs or other articles of personal property be left unattended in the Common Areas of the Neighborhood, including parking areas, sidewalks or Jawns.
11. Each Owner shall keep his or her Lot and the Home thereon in a good state of
preservation, repair and cleanliness and shall not sweep or throw or permit to be swept or thrown therefrom, or from the doors, windows, patios or balconies thereof, any dirt or other substance.
12. Nothing shall be done on any Lot or in the Common Areas which may impair the
structural integrity of a Home or structurally modify a Home nor shall anything be altered or
constructed on or removed from the Common Areas, without the prior written consent of the Board of Directors.
13. No improper, offensive or unlawful use shall be made of the Neighborhood or any
part thereof, and all valid laws, zoning ordinances and regulations of all governmental agencies having jurisdiction thereof shall be observed. All laws, orders, rules, regulations or requirements of any governmental agency having jurisdiction thereof relating to any portion of the Neighborhood shall be complied with, by and at the sole expense of the Owner or the Board of Directors, whichever shall have the obligation to maintain or repair such portion of the Neighborhood, and, if the latter, then the cost of such compliance shall be a common expense. The Association and the Board of Directors must comply with all such laws and have the right but not the obligation to enforce civil or criminal laws; the Association and the Board of Directors have no liability to any Owner or other person for any violation of such laws by others,
14. No Owner shall make or permit any disturbing noises or do or permit anything which
will interfere with the rights, comforts or convenience of other Owners. All Owners shall keep the
volume of any radio, television, musical instrument or other sound-producing device on their Lots sufficiently reduced at all times so as not to disturb other Owners, Despite such reduced volume, no Owner shall operate or permit to be operated any such sound-producing devices on a Lot between the hours of eleven o’clock p.m. and the following eight o’clock a.m. if such operation shall disturb or annoy other occupants.
15. Except for limited home office use (no customers, employees or regular business
pick-ups or deliveries coming to the Home), no industry, business, trade, paid childcare, occupation or profession of any kind, commercial, religious, educational or otherwise, designed for profit, altruism, exploitation or otherwise, shall be conducted, maintained or permitted on any part of the Neighborhood. “For Sale,” “For Rent” or “For Lease” signs or other window displays or advertising may only be maintained or permitted on any Lot with the prior written approval of the Board of Directors, No Lot shall be used or rented for transient, hotel or motel purposes. The right is reserved by the Declarant and the Board of Directors or the managing agent, to place “For Sale,” “For Rent” or “For Lease” signs on any unsold or unoccupied Lots, and the right is hereby given to any Mortgagee who may become the owner of any Lot to place such signs on any Lot owned by such Mortgagee, but in no event will any sign be larger than one foot by two feet.
16. Draperies, curtains or venetian blinds must be installed by each Owner on all
windows of the Home and must be so maintained thereon at all times so that the exterior color will
appear white, off-white or beige.
17. No Owner shall cause or permit anything to be hung, displayed or exposed on the
exterior of a Home or in the Common Areas appurtenant thereto, whether through or upon the
windows, doors, masonry, patio or balcony of such Home, without the prior written approval of the Board of Directors or the Covenants Committee. This prohibition includes without limitation
laundry, clothing, rugs, signs, awnings, canopies, shutters, radio or television antennas or any other items. Under no circumstances shall any exhaust fan, air conditioning apparatus or other items be installed by the Owner beyond the boundaries of the Lot or the patio or balcony without the prior written approval of the Board of Directors or the Covenants Committee. An Owner may, however, use a central television antenna on the Lot and install an antenna permitted by Section 207 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 in accordance with the guidelines established by the Covenants Committee. No clothesline, clothes rack or any other device may be used to hang any items on any window, patio or balcony, nor may such devices be used anywhere on the Common Areas except in such areas as may be specifically designated for such use by the Board of Directors or the Covenants Committee, Patios and balconies shall not be used as storage areas. No patio or balcony shall be enclosed or covered by an Owner without the prior written approval of the Board of Directors or the Covenants Committee.
18. The garage located within any Home shall not be used in any manner which would
prevent the parking of the number of vehicles that such garage is designed to accommodate.
PET RULES
19. No animals, livestock, poultry or reptiles of any kind, regardless of number, may be
maintained, kept, boarded or raised on any Lot or within the Common Areas, except that the
keeping of orderly domestic pets (e.g., dogs, cats or caged birds) not to exceed two per Lot without the prior written approval of the Board of Directors or the Covenants Committee, and aquarium fish and other limited species of animals which do not normally leave the Lot and which do not make noise is permitted, subject to the Rules and Regulations adopted by the Board of Directors and provided that such animals are not kept for breeding purposes.
20. A pet may be maintained in a Lot only for so long as it is not a nuisance. Any such
pet causing or creating a nuisance or any unreasonable disturbance or noise may be permanently removed from the Neighborhood upon ten days written notice from the Board of Directors. Actions which will constitute a nuisance include but are not limited to abnormal or unreasonable crying, barking, scratching or unhygienic offensiveness.
21. Pets must be leashed or carried at all times while outside of the Lot; leashes may not
exceed a length which will permit close control of the pet.
22. Pet owners are fully responsible for personal injuries and/or property damage caused
by their pets and shall indemnify and hold the Association, each Owner and the Declarant free and harmless from any loss, claim or liability of any kind or character whatever arising by reason of keeping or maintaining such pet within the Neighborhood.
23. All pets which may leave the Lot must be registered and inoculated as required by
law and registered with the Association office and the Board of Directors may establish reasonable fees for registration, not to exceed the additional costs incurred by the Association resulting from the presence of the pets.
24. Owners of pets walked upon the Common Areas must promptly clean up their pet’s
droppings in all areas.
PARKING AND STORAGE
25. An Owner may not direct employees of the Association on personal errands. Should
an employee of the Association at the request of an Owner move, park or drive any automobile
placed in the parking areas, then, and in every such case, such employee shall be deemed the agent of the Owner. The Association shall not be liable for any loss, damage or expense that may be suffered or sustained in connection therewith.
26. Trailers, campers, recreational vehicles, boats and other large vehicles may not be
parked in the Common Areas. All vehicles shall be parked wholly within parking space lines;
provided, however, that no Owner may use more than one Common Area parking spaces at any
time. No junk or derelict vehicle or other vehicle on which current registration plates are not
displayed shall be kept upon any of the Common Areas. Except in areas designated by the Board of Directors, vehicle repairs other than: (i) emergency maintenance, (ti) ordinary light maintenance (excluding fluid changes and other operations which might soil the Common Areas) and (iii) normal cleaning (in areas designated by the Board, if any) are not permitted on the Common Areas.
27. No vehicle shall be parked on the Neighborhood with conspicuous “For Sale” signs
attached.
28. No vehicle shall be parked on any portion of the Common Area for more than
seventy-two consecutive hours.
29. All Owners shall observe and abide by all applicable parking and traffic regulations
posted by the Association or by municipal authorities. Vehicles parked in violation of any such
regulations may be towed away at the Owner’s sole risk and expense.
30. Parking so as to block sidewalks or driveways is not permitted. If any vehicle owned
or operated by an Owner shall be illegally parked or abandoned on the Neighborhood, such Owner shall hold the Association harmless from any and all damages or losses that may ensue, and any and all rights in connection therewith that the owner or driver may have under the provisions of state or local laws and ordinances are hereby expressly waived. The Owner shall indemnify the Association
against any liability which may be imposed on the Association as a result of such illegal parking or
abandonment and any consequences thereof.
31. No personal property may be stored in the Common Areas. Any personal property
placed in Common Areas in violation of these rules shall be at the sole risk of the Owner and the
Association shall in no event be liable for the loss, destruction, theft or damage to such property.
ENTRY INTO HOMES
32. The Association or managing agent shall not cause a master key system to be used
for Homes in the Neighborhood,
33. Employees and agents of the Association are not authorized to accept packages,
keys, money or articles of any description from or for the benefit of an Owner. If packages, keys
(whether for a Home or an automobile), money or articles of any description are left with the
employees or agents of the Association, the Owner assumes the sole risk therefor and the Owner,
not the Association, shall be liable for injury, loss or damage of any nature whatsoever directly or
indirectly resulting therefrom or connected therewith. The Association shall have no responsibility
for loss or damage in such cases.
MOVING
34. Except during the initial move-in period, move-ins and move-outs are restricted to
the hours between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Each Owner is responsible for the proper removal of
trash, debris, crating or boxes relating to that Owner’s move-in or move-out.
ASSOCIATION
35. All charges and assessments imposed by the Association are due and payable on the
first day of each month unless otherwise specified. Payment shall be made at the managing agent’s office by check or money order, payable to the Association. Cash will not be accepted.
36. Complaints regarding the management of the Neighborhood or regarding actions of
other Owners shall be made in writing to the managing agent or the Board of Directors.
37. No Owner shall direct, supervise or in any manner attempt to assert control over or
request favors of any employee of the managing agent or the Association.
GENERAL,
38. All persons shall be properly attired when appearing in any Common Area of the
Neighborhood.
39. No electrical equipment shall be installed in a Home which causes interference with
the normal operation of electrical equipment in other Homes. All electrical equipment of any kind
or nature installed or used in each Home shal! fully comply with all rules, regulations, requirements
or recommendation of the Board of Fire Underwriters and the public authorities having jurisdiction, and the Owner alone shall be liable for any damage or injury caused by any electrical equipment in – such Owner’s Lot.
40. The planting of plants, flowers, trees, shrubbery and crops of any type is prohibited
anywhere on the Common Areas without the prior written consent of the Board of Directors. No
fences may be erected around or on the Common Areas.
41. Commercial solicitors are not permitted in the Neighborhood. If any Owner is contacted by a commercial solicitor on the Property, the managing agent must be notified
immediately.
