An HOA in a Florida community is being accused of antisemitism after it filed a lawsuit against a homeowner who installed a gate on his fence to make it easier for Orthodox Jews to get to shul on Shabbos.
The Avalon development in Boca Raton, Florida, is about a two-mile walk to the nearest shul, posing a lengthy walk for Orthodox Jews who want to daven there on Shabbos. Those who wanted to get there had to walk down Highway 441, until one day, a resident of the development installed a gate on his fence and allowed Jews to use it, significantly cutting down the walk time.
But the Avalon development’s HOA responded by slapping the homeowner with a lawsuit, claiming that it’s illegal because it adds an unauthorized access point into the community – despite numerous homes having broken fences, or no fences at all.
“Once we knew this was nothing new to the community other than Orthodox Jews were using it then we knew it was more than just, ‘Oh, you can’t make an adjustment to your property,'” an unnamed Avalon resident told CBS12.
CBS12 says it emailed the attorney who filed the lawsuit on behalf of the HOA, who said he would address their questions poking holes in their complaint. He never got back to them.
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
11 Responses
Most HOA are run with an anti-Jewish bias. As an example, they spend communal funds on xmass decorations without any holiday representations reflecting the Jewsh residents. Indeed, the HOA fees contributed by Jewsh residents are used to pay for the xmass decorations!
Goldenpick: That’s a non-issue. Yidden are in golus; do not expect to have goyim celebrate Jewish holidays.
The issue in this article, OTOH, is a real problem.
Most HOAs seem to have an anti-resident bias, so it might not be anti-Semitism. You have to see if similar requests by other groups, particularly Christians, get granted. Remember that each HOA is a separate body, though overall they seem to be jealous of “cracking down” on anything residents want to do.
HOA, just lost their hold….shame on them and anyone who is so hateful
I live in a gated community in West Boca. It is called Boca Greens. We have issues with a HOA board that is half goyim and the other half non religious secular Jews who despise Yiddishkeit. We are lucky that the local Chabad is just outside our front gate and only a 5 minute walk. We also have a rear pedestrian gate and the board refused to put a Shabbos friendly lock on it and put on one that requires an electronic FOB to open. There are 2 other developments right outside our rear gate and people who live there were using our development as a shortcut to get to shul on Shabbos. The HOA, by installing an electronic lock, made these people walk an extra hour to get to shul.
HOAs are not just antisemitic, they are anti human.
Good article. Worth noting that in a pro-HOA state like Florida, these types of unreasonable restrictions are par for the course with the ever powerful HOA bylaws and rules. However, believe it or not, anti-semitism is not always the answer to a difficult situation.
Kol Tuv,
Tuvia
ujm – I expect that all residents be treated equally and that the HOA not favor a select group of residences over others. If a significant portion of the residents celebrate the fictional holiday of Festivus – then the holiday decorations paid for by the residents’ HOA fees should include Festivus too. It doesn’t matter if the people that keep Festivus are in “golus” or not. They are people. They should be treated fairly and equally. Ignoring them and pretending they don’t exist – until the monthly HOA fees are due, is unfair. The call of “taxation without representation” applies to HOA fees too!
But what I write falls on the ears of the deaf, the eyes of the blind and definitely the mouthpieces of the dumd. In your view, “Yidden are in golus; do not expect to have goyim celebrate Jewish holidays”, that “logic” extends to voting! Yidden are in golus, they should be denied the right to vote. In fact, because Yidden are in golus, they should be denied the right to use public transportation, be served in stores, or open a bank account. The catch all phrase you promote leads down a dangerous road – which you cannot hear, see or comprehend.
The Rav of the shul has called for a public demonstration tomorrow at a park adjacent to the community. Members of the media have been invited.
If the owner does not object to a short cut, it becomes an easement. It has happened in Monsey more than once. I be leave there is a perek in Bava Metzia that deals with the same issue.
I don’t know the situation there (I was in Boca for a few hours once about 16 years ago), but why can’t people just buy in developments near shuls (even if it means somewhat less fancy homes) where they wouldn’t have such problems? I had visited someone in a gated community in Hollywood near a shul and I was let though the gate just on the strength of my frum appearance.