[OKDXA] HOA antenna help needed.

Sat May 23 10:08:21 EDT 2020

Hello Jim and everyone,

Before several people say ‘you should not have moved into an HOA’, I must
say, many, many people begin in our hobby after living in their home and
HOA for a number of years..  I purchased my home when I was not licensed.

To seek ‘Architectural Change’ approval from any HOA I suggest the
following:
“Think of yourself as an HOA board member.”  These volunteers are required
to enforce the covenants and restrictions or face lawsuits from agitated
homeowners.

Timing: In the spring your volunteer HOA board is ridiculously busy trying
to open the neighborhood pool, ensuring HOA common areas have a contractor
showing up to mow the property, fixing broken playgrounds or trash in the
pond, etc.  Also very busy sending out notices to homeowners/renters
regarding weeds in the yard/flower bed tall enough to see from the street,
homes that are abandoned/bankrupt/in-foreclosure, etc and filing liens
against people who are delinquent on paying HOA dues.  Not to mention
dealing with the people who are complaining about stuff but not taking any
initiative themselves to talk to their next door neighbor.  They are also
busy hearing complaints from homeowners that received a notice of violation
because their fence has been down for several weeks, or weeds, or operating
an auto dealership or auto repair shop out of their driveway, people
draining their swimming pool into the street, dead trees, etc..We had one
guy send us a photo of his middle finger and a lot of derogatory comments
because we sent violation notice.

So my first suggestion:

have your lot in good shape with a good history.

My second suggestion:

Serve on your HOA board or volunteer to help and build friendly
relationships with them.

My third suggestion:

Don’t poke them with a stick in Spring, arguably the most busy time of the
HOA season.

Fourth:

Have sympathy for them - they are dealing with a lot of self-righteous,
narcissistic people and their demands with nobody offering to help.  Also
remember, they likely don’t care about our hobby and don’t want to hear
about it - they just want to be assured it will not be another problem to
be dealt with.  You can get ahead of this by talking to your neighbors and
asking how they would feel about a flag pole, then maybe how they would
feel about an antenna.  Make sure they are not going to interfere, or at
least know what their concerns are and work that into your plan.  Then when
you request approval from the HOA you can tell them you’ve spoken to your
neighbors and they are happy for you to move forward.

Fith:

It takes a lot of personal time to serve on an HOA board and usually comes
without any pat on the back (unless you loathe being told-off).  Consider
joining the board.  Use Gridmapper on QRZ to see if there are any other
license holders in your neighborhood.. (sometimes it’s accurate) and go
‘break-the-ice’.  Ask them if they have put up any antennas and if they
have had any interaction with the HOA.
https://www.qrz.com/hamgrid?lat=35.640643&lon=-97.534453&sg=N5ZY

In my request I addressed all their possible fears such as “is it going to
be a permanent eye-sore”, “will we have to look at it when it stops being
used and goes into a disrepair state or if the homeowner becomes ill and
can’t take care of it anymore”, “is this person running a business that is
going to cause more problems”, “has this person put any thought into
keeping their neighbors happy”, “does it benefit the neighborhood in any
way or the opposite”.

And now, here is my request for an architectural approval:

(granted, I should have asked before I put it in but originally I was only
using it in the dark hours to get 80/40/30/20 meters.)

2-Dec-2019

To: <name removed> HOA Architectural Committee

From: <removed>

Subject: Request for approval of antenna installation

I humbly seek approval of an antenna installation that is temporarily
erected when in use.  I have not requested approval before as I considered
it a temporary item.  This antenna is a vertical like the radio antenna on
a car but it is similar to a flagpole in length, however it is a
telescoping aluminum tubing that is merely the width of a pencil at the
top.  It is painted a battleship gray so it is difficult to see when it is
pushed up.  When it is not in use I take it down and it’s below the fence
where it cannot be seen.  It utilizes a tilt-base so I can stand it up and
take it down as needed and quickly, by myself.  It is located in the
backyard of my property.

The official covenants language is “No outside antennas shall extend beyond
five feet of the roof line”.  My single story roof peak is 30 ft and the
antenna is 41, however the view from the street is concealed by my home
except between my house and the neighbors house when approaching from the
south on <road> Rd.  There is a very minimal spot from where it can be
observed from  <street>th street but it’s very difficult to spot (and I
know where to look) due to the houses and trees obscuring the view.  The
telescoping section at 31 ft is about the diameter of your thumb (diameter
reduces every 3 ft).

This antenna is used for my hobby, Amateur Radio.  I am an FCC licensed
Amateur Radio (HAM) operator (license <CALL>) and I use the antenna to
communicate around the world.  Amateur licenses are prohibited from
receiving compensation for the use of Amateur Radio, this is simply a hobby
that allows me to learn about our Earth’s atmosphere and to experiment with
electronics.  I can also facilitate communications after a disaster if
needed by our community.  I currently provide many hours of public service
using my experience gained here to teach radio communications and
electronics to the public at the Edmond Community Center (free).
Furthermore, I use my experience to annually demonstrate our capability at
the Edmond Fire Department and Training Center for Edmond Emergency
Services and Edmond City Council.

The antenna is not raised often, it is only temporarily raised during a
weekday or an occasional weekend.  Sometimes people like myself travel to
South America, Africa, Europe or Oceania and I attempt to make contact with
them.  My equipment is approved by the FCC and will not interfere with any
of my neighbors.

Please contact me anytime for a demonstration or explanation.

Sincerely,

<Name, e-mail, address, phone>

 A photo of it when not in use and a photo against the spring sky.

Sincerely,
Marcus Sutliff/N5ZY
Edmond Amateur Radio Society President
License Class Coordinator.
ARRL Volunteer Examiner
http://www.k5eok.org
http://www.qrz.com/db/N5ZY
https://www.youtube.com/user/95PistolPete

On Mon, May 18, 2020 at 8:59 PM James Foster <jim.n1nu at gmail.com> wrote:

>
> Several have expressed that they have HOA approvals for antennas in Edmond
> OK.  I would like to make an application in Sheffield Glenn.
>
> I would appreciate any help that you could give me  pictures, Application
> letters, approval letters, list of HOA’s  that have made individual
> approvals. Anything that might help would be appreciated.
>
>  I would like to install a force five vertical antenna on a hinge, but
> with HOA approval if possible.
>
>
> Jim Foster
> N1NU
> jim.n1nu at gmail.com <mailto:jim.n1nu at gmail.com>
>
>
>
> Thanks
>
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