#534-G, Hunting Woods Homeowners Association v. Muravchik (July 10, 2002) (Panel: Stevens, Maloney, Subin)

The homeowners association (HOA) complained that the homeowner (HO) was parking a commercial vehicle on his property in violation of the community rules.The HO responded that he was unaware of the rules and that he needed to park in his driveway out of business necessity and because the vehicle would not fit in his garage.

The evidence at the hearing showed that the HO owned a closed van that had a commercial sign and a ladder rack on it, and sometimes it also carried ladders.The HOA Declaration also states that "No commercial vehicle.....shall be permitted to remain on any property within the Property, unless placed within an enclosed garage or carport...."The parking rules further define a "commercial vehicle" as "any vehicle greater than 1 Ton GVW (Gross Vehicle Weight) and with commercial lettering or signage on the body."

The hearing panel ruled that the Declaration was sufficiently clear to require the unit owners to refrain from parking commercial vehicles on any property within the boundaries of the development.The panel further ruled that in this case, the Declaration did not intend to regulate parking on the publicly-owned streets within the development.(However, the panel suggested that under relevant court cases, a homeowners association might have the right to regulate parking on public streets as well as on community-owned streets.)

The panel ordered the HO to stop parking any commercial vehicle on his driveway.