Meeting Frustrates Lansdowne Residents

Residents on both sides of a dispute over home-based businesses in Lansdowne on the Potomac stood in common cause at a meeting Wednesday night, united in frustration over the subdivision's homeowners association board.

The meeting began at 6:30 p.m. and lasted into the early morning as board members pored over the text of a proposed amendment to clarify the restrictions on home businesses. The board announced last month that in-home businesses were barred under the covenants governing the community, a decision that would affect at least 12 day-care providers in Lansdowne.

At least 30 homeowners, including several day-care providers and residents opposed to their operations, gathered Wednesday in the ballroom of the Potomac Club for the association's monthly meeting.

In three-minute opening statements, residents on both sides of the issue said they wished they had been consulted before the board sent an e-mail May 30 announcing the process that operators of home businesses must follow to comply with the rules.

They also signaled disappointment that the issue was dragging on so long. It was high time, said Jim Lair -- an opponent of the day-care businesses -- for the board to turn its attention to other pressing issues, such as problems with the subdivision's pool.

"Nobody was part and parcel to the decisions," said one resident.

"I want to have an open forum discussion," added another a few minutes later.

Residents also expressed frustration that board members would not directly address their questions. Board President Eric Florence said the board was bound by the rules of order to wait until the end of the meeting to answer questions. But by then, most of the residents had left in exhaustion.

On Friday, residents said that a copy of the proposed amendment was still not available but that they had been told it would be circulated before a public hearing scheduled for June 27. The board's general manager did not return a phone call seeking comment.

In the May 30 e-mail, the board said the amendment would be sent to each resident by June 15. The e-mail also asked that all operators of home businesses submit an application to the board by July 31 and said that those found to be in violation of the covenants would have until July 1, 2008, to "come into compliance."

During the meeting Wednesday, board members discussed restrictions such as limiting to four the number of clients permitted in a home business, which would mean a day-care provider could take in no more than four children.

The board also debated what constituted "significant" traffic to a property. Some residents have complained in recent months about the traffic generated by the day-care providers. The providers have argued that traffic to and from their houses is staggered and minimal.