The Board is once again turning a routine records request from a candidate in the upcoming Board election into an unnecessary legal dispute, all on our dime. This chronological record shows what the candidate requested, how the Association responded, and when lawyers were brought into a matter that should have been handled as ordinary community business.
A written records request submitted through TownSq asked the Association for its current membership list for the stated purpose of election communications, voter participation, and proxy solicitation.
A public post documented that the request had been submitted and stated that the Election Preparedness page would be updated when, or if, the Association complied.
Management confirmed that the membership-records request had been received and documented. The response said it would be shared with the Board and Association counsel, and that management would not release homeowner information without Board authorization.
The reply stated that the statutory inspection right was not contingent on discretionary Board approval and asked for a clear record of when the request reached the directors, what action they took, and when access would be provided or decided.
A second portal submission provided the Board and management with the campaign’s proxy appointment form before completed proxies are delivered and asked that any specific concern be identified in writing in advance of the annual meeting.
The Association says litigation makes civil discovery the exclusive route to these records and suspends Chapter 55A. The statute says the opposite. Section 55A-16-02(d)(1) preserves a member’s litigation rights; it does not say filing suit extinguishes that member’s inspection rights. Jordan Price turns “this statute does not limit your litigation rights” into “litigation strips you of your statutory rights.” Its position is weaker still for the meeting-specific voter list, whose separate inspection right under Section 55A-7-20 is expressly preserved.
An August 28 request asked the Board to confirm when the October 15 annual meeting will be held and when the terms of newly elected directors will begin. It included Brighton Forest Bylaws Article IV §2 and N.C.G.S. §47F-3-103(e), which establish that the annual meeting is held on the third Thursday of October and that directors take office immediately upon election. The request also sought records identifying any legal authority or governing-document provision the Board would rely on to claim a different meeting date or a later start to the elected directors’ terms. Open the complete request.
Homeowners interested in obtaining this information themselves can download this Word template, update the homeowner information, submission date, and requested inspection date, and submit it through TownSq.
