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Taking flight: What to consider when deploying drones in your community

Drones have rapidly become useful tools for commercial and recreational purposes, including search and rescue operations, surveying damage after natural disasters, and aerial photography. Community associations, whether in a high-rise condominium or a community of single-family homes stretched over dozens of acres, also could benefit from the visual advantages offered by drones.

Drones can document before-and-after conditions, which can assist with insurance claims, as well as normal wear and tear and exposure to the elements, helping an association become proactive about repair work before it becomes an emergency. They also can inspect infrastructure for code violations or gather photos and video to market the community when it’s looking its best, says Bill Holderby, owner and founder of Eagle Eye UAS in Naples, Fla.

When contracting with a drone operator to provide services for your association, Holderby recommends making sure the operator has a Federal Aviation Administration Part 107 license, which shows compliance with safety requirements for commercial operations. All pilots who fly drones for a living must have taken and passed an FAA test, along with a background check by the Transportation Security Administration.

Holderby also suggests asking the operator about their experience flying drones; if they keep a flight log; how they handle emergency situations; who owns the images/video/data from the flights, how it’s stored, and for how long; and how they handle safety.

A community should do some due diligence on drone rules too. Hillary B. Farber, a professor at the University of Massachusetts School of Law, and retired attorney Marvin J. Nodiff, a fellow in CAI’s College of Community Association Lawyers, recommend the following:

  • Have some guidelines in place. Make sure that both hobby and commercial drone operators are cleared or approved to fly in the community.
  • Address privacy concerns. No drone operator should be flying outside of a resident’s window or over the pool, for example, unless they’re contracted specifically to do that work.
  • Communicate with homeowners. Before any association-approved drone operation, inform your residents what the project is, where flights will occur, and when you’ll fly.
  • Mitigate risk factors. Potential concerns include electronic component failure, hijacked controls, hacked video feeds and homeowners’ personal data, operator negligence or loss of control, and invasion of privacy.
  • Consider insuring against claims of bodily injury, property damage, or personal injury. Standard commercial general liability policies don’t cover aircraft, including drones. The board would need a separate aviation policy or endorsements for bodily injury and property damage, and personal and injury liability, which would cover claims such as invasion of privacy. Any person who operates the drone should be covered as an insured party. In addition, an operator should have specific liability insurance for flying the drone. Most will have a $500,000 to $1 million liability policy.

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Pump the brakes: How some communities slow drivers

When CAI’s Common Ground magazine asked readers whether they have problems with drivers speeding in their communities, a staggering 98% of respondents reported that they do, and nearly all (95%) use at least some form of speed control measures—from signs and speed humps to ticketing and cameras. 

The most effective solution to slowing drivers is probably unique to each community.

Bent Tree Community Association, a self-contained, gated community of 1,200 homes about an hour north of Atlanta, regularly uses radar to monitor drivers’ speeds. The 20-mph speed limit on the community’s 55 miles of roads is part of the association’s bylaws, as is the fine for exceeding that speed, according to Tom Fowler, CMCA, AMS, Bent Tree’s general manager.

If a homeowner doesn’t pay a fine levied for speeding in the community within 30 days, the bar code on his or her entry decal will be deactivated. Without automatic operation of the community’s lift-gates, the driver must enter and exit the community through the guest gates, which are manned and operated by security guards.

Dunes West Property Owners Association in Mount Pleasant, S.C., started using radar about five years ago to gather information about residents’, visitors’, and contractors’ driving habits within the community, according to General Manager John Watkins, CMCA, AMS.

Just north of Charleston and bordered by U.S. Route 17 on the east and the Wando River to the west, Dunes West covers 3,000 acres and includes 33 miles of tree-lined roads and 100 named streets. The roads throughout the community are intentionally curved, which—like Bent Tree— challenges even the most capable drivers to slow down.

The association shares radar data with local law enforcement, so police know when and where drivers are most likely to speed. It also encourages local law enforcement to issue tickets on the community’s private roads.

Dunes West’s radar also has been effective in controlling contractors who drive within the community, Watkins says. Several homes are still under construction in Dunes West; builders can purchase coded decals that open Dunes West’s automatic liftgates so contractors’ vehicles can come and go efficiently from the community. If radar indicates contractors are habitually speeding, the codes can be revoked, which could be costly for a builder.

A pilot Pace Car program has been slowing speeders down in the Riverview Community Association in Cochrane, Alberta, since 2017.

The program, which has been used successfully in other Canadian communities for years, relies on individual volunteer residents to commit to driving the posted speed within the community, to stop for pedestrians crossing the road, and to be courteous to cyclists and vehicles other than cars. Drivers place a decal on the rear window of their cars that says, “Community Pace Car—I drive the limit,” and signs are posted at either entrance to the community alerting visitors that “We are a Pace Car community.”​

“The idea is that any driver driving behind a Pace Car will notice the decal and … will drive the speed limit as well,” says Jennifer Foy, board president of the community of 400 single-family homes about 30 miles west of Calgary. She adds that to prevent road rage, Pace Car drivers are encouraged to pull over and let other drivers pass rather than confront them. “If (a Pace Car driver) gets someone on their bumper who’s honking or being aggressive, they just pull over and let them go around,” she says. “We’re not the police.”

No matter what solution your community develops, communication and transparency with residents are critical. Remind them about speed limits and the consequences of exceeding it frequently.

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Pothole Patrol: What community associations can do to maintain pavement

It’s that time of year again, when rain, snow, and changing temperatures cause potholes to form, wreaking havoc on roadways, parking lots, and driveways. According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), pothole damages cost U.S. motorists roughly $3 billion per year. On a per-pothole-incident basis that comes out to about $300 per driver. Additionally, AAA reports two-thirds of U.S. drivers are concerned about potholes on local roadways.

No asphalt or concrete surface will last forever, but it is easy to prolong the life of your association’s pavement. Community association managers and boards of directors have several pavement maintenance and repair options from which to choose.

Crack Filling
Cracks in the asphalt should be cleaned of dirt and vegetation and allowed to dry completely before filling. Cracks should be filled with emulsified asphalt slurry or a light grade of liquid asphalt mixed with fine sand.

Asphalt Patching
Patching is done in areas with severe alligator cracks and/or potholes. When the patch is cut out, the sub-base material should be examined and compacted thoroughly before patching. The patch should be tack coated, to ensure firm bonding between the old and new surfaces. Base course material is laid and compacted first, and new surface asphalt is laid and compacted on top of that. The patch should be rolled to a smooth finish, and all edges should be coated to minimize water penetration.

Overlays
Overlays are placed over existing asphalt to create a new surface. In recent years paving fabric, placed on the existing asphalt prior to the overlay, has gained popularity as an effective agent to bond the new asphalt to the existing asphalt surface. Once the existing asphalt has been prepared, the paving fabric is laid down and a new surface quality asphalt is laid over it. It is then rolled to a smooth finish to match existing grades of asphalt.

Sealcoating
Sealcoating is a controversial aspect of asphalt maintenance. Generally, sealcoating provides an additional 2-3 years of protection against the elements and use by providing an additional layer of protection. It is also cosmetic, in that it covers old and new asphalt to create a uniform look in the community and increases curb appeal. Sealcoating is best done approximately one year after a new surface has been laid. It should be applied by the squeegee method if possible to ensure the sealing of cracks too small to fill by the traditional method.

For more information on repair road and paving, check out The Road Repair Handbook, available for purchase at CAI Press.

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Winter is coming: Prepare your home and community now

Winter doesn’t officially start until Dec. 21, but it’s already making its presence known in many areas across the country.

The cold and wet conditions of the season can wreak havoc on unprepared community associations and homeowners. Whether you’re waiting for Old Man Winter to make its first appearance or you’re already cleaning up from a pre-season storm, you should take steps to winterize your home and community now.

Follow the simple checklists below and tackle the most time-sensitive tasks:

Indoor winterizing

  • Examine doors and replace weather-stripping as needed
  • Examine window caulking and reseal where needed
  • Examine and repair vents where needed
  • Clean chimneys and flues
  • Remove items near heat vents
  • Place nonskid runners or door mats outside to help keep water, sand, and salt out of the house

Outdoor winterizing

  • Cut back tree branches and shrubs that hide signs or block light
  • Examine outdoor handrails and tighten if needed
  • Turn off electrical breakers for outdoor equipment
  • Close hose bibs
  • Clean out gutters and downspouts
  • Clear yard drains
  • Spray outdoor locks and hinges with lubricant
  • Stake driveway and walkway edges that may be difficult to find under deep snow

You and your community also should assemble, stockpile, or refresh the following supplies:

  • Batteries
  • Candles and matches
  • Ice melt and deicer
  • Sand
  • Snow shovels
  • Generator fuel
  • Antifreeze

For more information and resources about community association living, visit www.caionline.org.

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Doggy DNA Testing Forcing Residents to Pick up after Their Pets

People love their pets. Regardless if you live in a community association, there is nothing worse than waking up to a pile of pet poop in your front yard. But the problem isn’t that the pets are out of control, it’s that residents don’t take accountability for their pets.

With a surge of residents disregarding signs and choosing not to follow mandated rules, communities now are turning to “doggy DNA” testing.

Dog owners provide the community association with a DNA sample of their pet, typically a cheek swab, which is then sent to a lab where it is registered. If the dog goes in the neighborhood and it isn’t disposed of, the community association can send the sample to the lab for testing. If there is a match, the pet owner is fined.

CAI’s Chief Executive Officer Tom Skiba, CAE, recently spoke to the Capital Gazette about this problem.

A “very small minority” of community associations have started taking these steps in the past five years to curb poop problems, especially as DNA testing has become more cost-effective and accessible, says Skiba.

“It’s not about not liking pets, it’s not about the dogs. It’s about pet owners acting disrespectfully to their neighbors,” explains Skiba. “The boards have already tried all that they can, and they have an obligation to address this for an aesthetic and health reasons. They finally will run out of options, and this DNA testing is the last technologically enabled high-tech option you can find.”

Community associations typically won’t dish out funds for DNA testing methods unless they’ve tried everything else, including putting up notices, posting pet rules on a website, mentioning it in board meetings, and more.

Should community associations have to take these extreme measures to solve this pet problem?

Think about it, and make sure to carry an extra bag with you on your walk.

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