COLUMN: Responsibility for gated community's infrastructure questioned

Q. I was surprised to learn that my gated community is responsible for the roads, sidewalks, lighting and other improvements within our gates. In the gated communities where I have lived in other states, the city or county was responsible for such things.

Why do associations assume responsibility for infrastructure that is usually covered by the city or county via property taxes? Why don't I receive a discount or exemption on my property tax statement for taking this responsibility from the city or county?

A city of Henderson employee informed me that developers do not have to build to normal city specifications regarding the width of roads, or types of curbs and gutters within a gated community. Why must roads be a specific width in a nongated community, but this same requirement does not apply to gated ones?

A. Many homeowners have been asking these questions for quite some time, especially during Nevada's legislative sessions. Homeowners have not been successful in lobbying the state to make changes to the property tax structure and formula, such as receiving discounts or exemptions.

To achieve this, an organized movement by homeowners would need to find state legislators and senators to sponsor such regulation. Obviously, there would be opposition, most likely from municipalities because their tax dollars would decrease if owners in gated developments received discounts.

A gated community is private property, and not open to the general public. That is why municipalities should not have any maintenance responsibility.

Regarding your comments on streets and curbs, all building plans must be approved by a planning commission and the city council or county commission, depending upon locality. Any variances to the rules must be approved by these agencies.

For example, if a developer proposes that all vehicles must be parked in garages per the governing documents, narrower streets could be approved based on the notion that emergency vehicles will be able to maneuver since no vehicles will be on the street.

Constructing narrower streets helps developers reduce their building costs and may also allow them to build more homes on a given parcel. Such parking regulations can be difficult to enforce and cause conflict between the board and homeowners. Again, it would take a lobbying effort of the local municipality representatives to reverse these variances, which would likely be met by opposition from developers.

Questions for Barbara Holland may be sent to Association Q. & A., P.O. Box 7440, Las Vegas, NV 89125. Her fax number is 385-3759.

Barbara Holland, Certified Property Manager, is president and co-owner of H&L Realty and Management Co. She is a member of the Institute of Real Estate Management and is the author of two books on the subject. Holland is a past president of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.

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