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Cambridge Place Restrictions |
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| The following is a copy of the restrictions for Cambridge
Place Subdivision. A recorded copy of this document can be obtained
from Cambridge Development. LLC. |
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STATE OF ALABAMA
DECLARATION OF RESTRICTIONS AND COVENANTS WHEREAS, Cambridge Development, LLC. hereinafter referred to as "Developer", is he owner of that certain real property located in Mobile County, Alabama, which is more particularly described as follows:
Said property shall hereinafter be referred to as "Subdivision"; and WHEREAS, Developer is desirous of providing restrictive covenants for all of lots for the purpose of ensuring that said lots will be used for single-family residential purposes only, to prevent nuisances, to prevent the impairment of the attractiveness of the property and to maintain the desired tone of the subdivision community, thereby preserving, as far as is practical, the natural beauty of each lot and to ensure the erection and maintenance thereon of attractive, well-designed, appropriately located and well-constructed homes, thereby securing to each future lot owner the full benefit and enjoyment of their homes, but with no greater restriction on the free and undisturbed use of their property than is necessary to ensure the same advantages to other lot owners. NOW, THEREFORE, KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, that Developer in consideration of the foregoing premises, does hereby declare as well as covenant and agree with each and every future owner of any lot and each and every future owner of any lot, shall, by virtue of becoming such an owner, agree with Developer and with each and other existing and/or future owner of lots that the following covenants, restrictions and limitations shall apply to Subdivision: 1. RESIDENTIAL USE ONLY: All lots shall be known and described as residential lots. No lot may be improved, used or occupied for any purpose other than private, single-family residential purposes. No duplex, apartment building, condominium or residential building other than one free-standing, residential building designed for use by a single family may be erected, placed, used or occupied on any lot. 2. ARCHITECTURAL CONTROL COMMITTEE: a. No building, garage, carport, playhouse, fence, wall, swimming pool or other above ground structure shall be constructed, altered, placed, permitted or suffered to remain on any lot unless two (2) copies of the complete, final construction plans and specifications and the plot plan therefore, showing the nature, kind, shape, height, materials, basic exterior finishes and colors, location and floor plan, showing the front, side and rear elevations thereof have been submitted to and approved by the herein created Architectural Control Committee, hereinafter referred to as the "Committee", as to the harmony of exterior design and the general quality with existing standards of the neighborhood and as to location in relation to surrounding structures and topography. In order to obtain Committee's approval, such plans and specifications and plot plan must include the following: (1) Proposed grading and leveling of lot in preparation for the installation of grass sod. Such proposal shall include complete coverage by grass sod of the entire front and side yards and at least 25 feet of the entire width of the rear yard, measured from the rear-most portion of the residential building toward the rear of said lot. (2) Specifications, locations and proposed surfacing materials for sidewalks and driveway. (3) Proposed landscaping plans for shrubbery and trees for the front and side yards. Such landscaping plans shall be designed to be similar to neighboring lots or in such other manner which may be approved by Committee. Approval by Committee shall be as hereinafter provided. b. Committee is hereby established for Subdivision and its initial members shall be Donald E. Perez and Donald Mark Perez. Except as otherwise provided herein, Committee may designate a representative to act for it. In the event of the death or resignation of any member of Committee, the remaining member thereof shall have authority to designate a successor member. Neither the members of Committee nor its designated representative shall be entitled to any compensation for any services performed pursuant to these covenants. A majority of the owners of record of lots shall, at any time, have the power to change the membership of Committee or to withdraw from or restore to Committee any of its powers and duties by written instrument signed by a majority of said owners and duly recorded in the Probate Court of Mobile County, Alabama; however, as long as Developer is the record owner of any lot, Developer shall have the exclusive right to appoint all members of Committee and must join in on any decision to withdraw from or restore to Committee any of its powers and duties. As long as Developer owns any lots, all Committee members, including the initially appointed members, shall serve at the pleasure of Developer. At such time as Developer ceases to own any lots or at such other time as Developer, in its sole discretion, deems appropriate, Developer shall assign to Association, as such term is defined in paragraph 16 hereof, the exclusive right to appoint all members of Committee, which said assignment shall be accomplished by Developer's giving written notice of such intent to Association. Upon the assignment of such exclusive right to Association by Developer, the terms of any members of Committee appointed by Developer shall expire and successor members shall then be appointed by Association. c. Committee's approval or disapproval, as required in this Declaration, shall be in writing. In the event Committee fails to approve or disapprove any plans and specifications and plot plan submitted to it within thirty (30) days after such submission, approval thereof shall be deemed to have been given. Submission to Committee shall be deemed to have been accomplished when such plans and specifications and plot plan are received by Committee. The same may be hand-delivered or mailed to Cambridge Architectural Control Committee at 3262 Demetropolis Road, Suite 6, Mobile, Alabama 36693 or such other address as may be designated in writing by Committee in the future. Should a building or other improvement be constructed on any lot in the Subdivision without approval of Committee in violation of this Declaration, such building or other improvement shall be disassembled and removed from such lot at the expense of the owner of such lot. d. Committee, in its sole discretion, may permit the erection of a dwelling on a lot or on portions of contiguous lots, notwithstanding the fact that said building may be smaller in area than the minimum square footage prescribed by paragraph 5. of this Declaration, provided that the covenants and restrictions contained herein are not otherwise violated. 3. BUILDING LOCATION: No building shall be located on any lot nearer than (a) ten (10) feet to an interior side lot line, (b) ten (10) feet to the rear lot line, (c) twenty five (25) feet to the front lot line on interior lots nor (d) twenty five (25) feet on one side and twenty five (25) feet on the other side on corner lots; however, a 5' minimum side yard shall be permitted for a detached garage or other permitted accessory building located more than 50' from the minimum front setback line. For the purposes of these covenants, eaves, steps, open carports and porches shall not be considered as part of a building, but this provision shall not be construed to permit any portion of a building on one lot to encroach upon another lot. 4. RESUBDIVISION: Except as hereinafter provided, no building or improvement or any part thereof may be erected or maintained on any part of a lot that is re-subdivided subsequent to the date hereof. If a lot is re-subdivided and all portions thereof are combined with all portions of an adjacent lot or lots, a building may, with the approval of Committee, be erected and maintained on the lots so combined, even though a portion of such building may be located on a part of each such re-subdivided lot. Each resulting combined lot shall be subject to these restrictions as fully and completely as if shown on the Subdivision plat as a single lot. If a portion of a lot constituting less than ten percent (10%) of the total area thereof is conveyed to the owner of a lot adjacent to such portion, a building may, with the approval of Committee, be erected and maintained on the remaining portion of the lot from which said portion was conveyed; however, the remaining portion of said lot shall be subject to these Restrictions as fully and completely as if shown on the Subdivision plat as a separate lot. 5. TYPE AND SIZE OF BUILDINGS: (a) Except as otherwise provided herein, no dwelling shall be erected, altered, placed or permitted to remain on any lot in the Subdivision other than one single-family dwelling. Additionally, no such dwelling shall be more than two and one-half stories in height nor shall it have less than 1,550 square feet of living area that is heated and cooled, exclusive of basements, open porches, garages and the like. Any dwelling that is more than one story in height shall have at least 900 square feet of such living area on the ground floor, exclusive of basements, open porches, garages and the like. A detached garage or other outbuilding may be erected or permitted on a lot if prior written approval of Committee is obtained. This provision shall not prohibit the construction of one residence upon two or more lots; however, if one residence is built on two or more lots, such lots shall thereafter be deemed to be one lot for all purposes of these restrictions, except for purposes of assessment by and voting in Association. (b) Each lot shall have at least a 9' wide driveway, which shall be paved with a concrete surface. Further, each lot shall have a 3' wide sidewalk which shall be paved with a concrete or such other surface as may be approved by Committee. Said sidewalk shall extend from the front door or porch of the residential dwelling to the driveway located on such lot or the street. Each lot shall be landscaped and covered with grass sod to the extent provided elsewhere in these restrictive covenants. (c) Committee shall, in its sole discretion, give approval to the construction or erection on a lot of one reasonably-sized storage outbuilding to be located near the rear lot line, unless, for the benefit of Subdivision, the circumstances of such lot indicate otherwise. (d) Each dwelling must be completed within six (6) months from the time that footings for construction are poured; however, Committee, in its sole discretion, may extend the construction completion deadline for up to two (2) periods of ninety (90) days each, if it deems the same to be reasonable. (e) All grass sod, shrubbery, sidewalks and driveways required by these restrictions and/or as approved by Committee must be completed not later than the time of substantial completion of construction of the residential dwelling. Under no circumstances shall any such residential dwelling be occupied until all such grass sod, shrubbery, sidewalks and driveways are completed. 6. NUISANCES: No noxious or offensive trade or activity shall be carried on or maintained on any lot and nothing shall be done thereon which may be or become an annoyance or a nuisance to the owners of other lots. No building, fence, wall or other structure or improvement shall be erected, altered, placed, permitted or suffered to remain on any lot which diverts or channels water onto an adjacent lot. No outside clothes lines shall be permitted on any lot, unless the same is screened in such a manner as not to be visible from adjacent lots or streets. 7. TEMPORARY STRUCTURES: No trailer, mobile home, recreational vehicle, basement, garage, garage apartment, barn, outbuilding or any building of a temporary nature shall at any time be used as a residence, either temporarily or permanently, on any lot. 8. GARBAGE AND REFUSE DISPOSAL: No lot shall be used or maintained as a dumping ground for rubbish. Trash, garbage or other waste shall not be kept on any lot unless the same is temporarily kept in sanitary containers, which such containers shall be kept in a clean and sanitary condition. No incinerators or other similar equipment for the disposal of trash, garbage or other waste shall be located or kept on any lot. 9. ANIMALS AND POULTRY: No animals, livestock, swine or poultry of any kind shall be raised, bred or kept on any lot, except that dogs, cats or other household pets may be kept, provided that they are not kept, bred or maintained for any commercial purpose. In no event shall more than four (4) household pets be kept on any lot at any one time. 10. FENCES AND TREES: No fence, wall or hedge shall be permitted along the street frontage of any lot or in the area between the front property line and the front of any building, unless a specific exception therefore due to desirable architectural treatment has been obtained from Committee. In no event shall a metal chain link, a similar type utility fence nor any fence in excess of eight (8) feet in height be permitted on any lot. All privacy fences must be of shadow box construction unless otherwise approved by the Committee. No living tree which is in excess of 10 inches in diameter, measured 4' from the ground, shall be removed from any lot without the prior approval of Committee, except for those trees which are located on or within ten (10) feet of the proposed dwelling site. Such approval by Committee shall not be unreasonably withheld. 11. SIGNS: No sign of any kind shall be displayed to the public view on any lot, except one professionally lettered sign of not more than four (4) square feet in size advertising any lot and/or any dwelling located thereon for sale or rent; however, an additional sign may be erected by a builder or real estate firm to advertise the lot and any dwelling located thereon during the initial construction and sales period. A small security service sign shall also be allowed, when applicable. 12. OIL DRILLING: No oil drilling, oil development operation, oil refining, quarrying or mining operations of any kind shall be permitted upon or on any lot nor shall oil wells, tanks, tunnels, mineral excavations or shafts be permitted upon or on any lot. No derrick or other structure designed for use in boring for oil or gas shall be erected, maintained or permitted upon any lot. 13. UNLICENSED VEHICLES: No vehicle without a current, valid registration or license shall be kept or stored on any lot in such a manner as to be a health or safety hazard or to create an annoyance or nuisance to the neighborhood. Further, no such unlicensed vehicle shall be permitted on any lot unless garaged or kept on a driveway or parking pad in the rear yard of such lot and screened in such a manner as not to be visible from adjacent lots or from any streets. All other vehicles must be parked on driveways, parking pads or parked properly at street curbs. No commercial vehicle [other than pickup trucks] nor trailers longer than 25' [unless otherwise authorized by Committee] shall be allowed to park or remain on any lot in any manner or on any street bordering any lot, except for use during development of Subdivision, construction of a building on any lot or in connection with deliveries or moving. Motor homes, campers or travel trailers may be kept on any lot, but only if kept in a fully enclosed garage or under a carport and not visible from any street. No boat larger than 25' in length may be kept on any lot at any time. Any boat smaller than 25' may be kept on any lot, but such boat must be kept on a trailer in the rear yard of such lot or within a garage or carport in such a manner to prevent its being visible from any street, unless otherwise authorized by Committee. 14. MAILBOXES AND WINDOW AIR CONDITIONING UNITS: Any mailbox located on any lot shall be of a standard design approved by Committee. The location of such mailbox must also be approved by Committee. Each lot owner shall be solely responsible for purchasing any mailbox approved by Committee. The use of window air conditioning units in any residential dwelling on any lot is strictly prohibited. 15. LAWN MAINTENANCE: Lawns must be mowed at least two (2) times per month between April 1st and September 31st of each year. 16. SATELLITE DISHES: All satellite dishes larger than two (2) feet in diameter must be screened from view from the street. 17. GARBAGE DISPOSALS: No garbage disposals may be installed or used unless written approval by South Alabama Utilities or its successor is obtained. 18. ATTORNEY’S FEES: In the event the Homeowners Association obtains a legal judgment or court order against an owner, then such owner shall also be liable for reasonable attorney’s fees and court costs and other directly related expenses incurred by the Homeowners Association in connection with such litigation. 19. Easements: Easements are reserved over and across all of the lots for the purpose of operating, maintaining, repairing, replacing and otherwise dealing with medians, landscaped areas, walls, detention pond or other common areas of Subdivision and for the purpose of installing, repairing and maintaining electric power and other utilities or conveying such easements to public or private utilities providers for the installation, repair and maintenance of electric power and/or other utilities for the lots and all contracts and conveyances covering any of the lots are hereby made subject to such easements. All easements shown on the recorded plats of Subdivision are hereby adopted as part of these covenants. 20. TERM: These covenants and restrictions shall run with the land and shall be binding on all lot owners and on all parties claiming under or through them, each of whom shall, by virtue of his or her acceptance or acquisition of title or other interest in any lot, accept and agree to be bound by and to abide by all terms and provisions of these covenants, all of which shall be and remain in full force and effect for a period of twenty five (25) years from the date of this Declaration. After such time, said restrictions shall automatically be extended for successive periods of ten (10) years each, unless otherwise provided in an instrument amending this Declaration in accordance with the provisions hereof. 21. HOMEOWNERS' ASSOCIATION: (a) Cambridge Homeowners' Association, Inc., referred to herein as "Association", is a non-profit corporation which shall hold title to the common areas of Subdivision, any prior or subsequent unit of Cambridge Subdivision whose owners are or become members of Association and any other common area acquired by such Association, including but not limited to retention pond, storm water detention system and medians, if any, street lights, if any, and concrete drainage ditches used or required for the control of surface water drainage. Association shall, among other things, maintain, service and repair said common area facilities. Further, in the event that the streets or rights-of-way, as shown on the plat of Subdivision or any prior or subsequent unit of Cambridge Subdivision whose owners are or become members of Association, have not been accepted for maintenance by the County or any municipality, Association shall have the obligation of maintaining and repairing said streets or rights-of-way. (b) All owners of lots shall be members of Association. Each owner of any lot, unless otherwise specified herein, shall, by acceptance of a deed to such lot, whether or not it shall be so expressed in such deed, be deemed to covenant and agree to pay Association the following:
All such assessments, together with interest thereon and the costs of collection thereof, including a reasonable attorney fee, shall be a charge and lien on each lot and shall be a continuing lien on the lot against which such assessment is made. Each such assessment, together with interest thereon and the costs of collection thereof, including a reasonable attorney fee, shall be the personal obligation of the owner of such lot at the time that such assessment became due. (c) The general assessment levied by Association annually will be used exclusively for the maintenance and operation of the retention pond, storm water detention system, median and, if applicable, streets, rights-of-way and other common areas as well as such other expenses related to all common areas, as it deems necessary. Each owner of a lot, whether improved or unimproved, shall be assessed in an amount equal to a pro-rata amount based on the total number of lots of the budgeted amount or actual expenses in excess thereof, whichever amount is greater. Developer shall not be required to pay any assessment to Association on any unimproved lot owned by it. (d) The Board of Directors of Association shall fix the annual assessment upon the basis described above, provided, however, that the annual assessment shall be sufficient to meet its obligations as budgeted. The Board shall set the date on which such assessment shall become due and payable and may provide for the payment of the same in installments; however, upon default in the payment of any one or more installments, the entire balance of said assessment may, at the option of the Board, in its sole discretion, be accelerated and declared to be due and payable in full. (e) In addition to the annual assessments authorized above, Association may levy, in any assessment year, a special assessment for the purpose of defraying, in whole or in part, the cost of any construction, reconstruction, maintenance, repair or replacement of the said retention pond, storm water detention system, median, streets, rights-of-way or common areas as may be required if the expenditures exceed the budgeted amount. (f) The lien for unpaid assessments shall be effective from the date of recording in the Records of the Judge of Probate of Mobile County, Alabama of a claim of lien stating the lot number, the name of the record owner, the amount due and the date such assessment became due. Such claim of lien shall include only sums which are due and payable when the claim of lien is recorded and shall be signed and verified by an officer or agent of Association. Upon full payment of all sums secured by such lien, the party making payment shall be entitled to a recordable satisfaction of such lien. All such liens shall be subordinate to any lien for taxes, the lien of any mortgage of record and any other lien recorded prior to the time of recording of the claim of Association's lien. (g) Upon any voluntary conveyance of a lot, the Grantor and the Grantee thereof shall be jointly and severally liable for all unpaid assessments pertaining to such lot, duly made by Association or accrued up to the date of such conveyance, without prejudice to the right of the Grantee to recover from the Grantor any amounts paid by the Grantee, but the Grantee shall be exclusively liable for those assessments accruing while such grantee is the lot owner. Any lot owner or any purchaser of a lot, prior to completion of a voluntary sale, may request from Association a statement showing the amount of unpaid assessments pertaining to such lot and Association shall provide such statement, in writing, within ten (10) days after any request therefore. The holder of a mortgage or other lien on any lot may request a similar statement with respect to such lot. Any person, other than the lot owner at the time of issuance of any such statement, who receives such statement shall be entitled to rely thereon and his or her liability for the payment of such unpaid assessments shall be limited to the amount set forth in such statement. (h) If a holder of a mortgage or other lien of record or other purchaser obtains title to such lot as a result of the foreclosure of such lien, such acquirer of title, his, her or its heirs, successors and assigns, shall not be liable for the payment of assessments pertaining to such lot that were chargeable to the foreclosed upon lot owner which became due prior to such acquisition of title as a result of such foreclosure. Such unpaid share of assessments shall be deemed to be the debt of the foreclosed-upon lot owner and, if not paid, shall be deemed to be an expense of Association and, therefore, collectable from all of the remaining lot owners, including such acquirer, his, her or its heirs, successors and assigns. (i) Any assessment not paid within thirty (30) days after the due date shall bear interest from the due date at eight per cent (8%) per annum or at such other interest rate as may be established by the Board of Directors, with notice of such change to be given to each lot owner in a manner to be designated by said Board; however, such interest rate may not exceed the maximum annual interest rate allowed by the laws of the State of Alabama at the time that such assessment becomes due and shall be uniformly applied to all lot owners. Association may bring an action at law against the owner personally obligated to pay the same or may foreclose the lien created against the property in accordance with the statutory provisions of the laws of Alabama then in effect for the foreclosure of mortgages. A money judgment for unpaid assessments may be taken without waiving the lien securing the same. (j) Cambridge Development, LLC. hereinafter referred to as "Cambridge Development", the Developer intends to develop adjoining and contiguous residential subdivisions under the name "Cambridge" or units or additions to the initial unit of Cambridge subdivision in substantially the same manner in which Subdivision has been developed. Developer reserves the future right to develop an adjoining and contiguous undeveloped parcel into one or more residential subdivisions, hereinafter referred to as "Additions", in substantially the same manner in which Subdivision has been developed. Developer agrees that any future development of Additions shall be limited to residential dwellings. Neither owners of lot in Subdivision, including Cambridge, nor Association shall, under any circumstances, have any liability or responsibility for any of the initial development costs for Additions. Upon the recording of the plat or plats of subdivision of any of such Additions and the recording of restrictive covenants similar or identical to these restrictive covenants, all owners of lots in any of such Additions shall become members of Association and shall be subject to all of the obligations of other members of Association and shall be entitled to enjoy all of the rights and benefits of other members of Association. All owners of lots in Subdivision and Cambridge shall have the right to use all common areas and easements in Subdivision on an equal basis and, except as otherwise provided for herein, shall likewise share equal liability and responsibility for the obligations of Association created by these Restrictions for the maintenance, repair and replacement of the common areas and easements in Subdivision. 22. AMENDMENTS OR MODIFICATION OF RESTRICTIONS: Any or all of the restrictions or requirements hereinabove set forth may be annulled, amended, or modified at any time by an instrument executed by the owner or owners of not less than seventy-five percent (75%) of the lots in Subdivision. Said instrument shall be acknowledged by each such owner signing the same and shall be filed for record in the Office of the Judge of Probate of Mobile County, Alabama. No such amendment shall place an additional burden, restriction or requirement on any lot in Subdivision if the owner thereof does not join in the execution of said amending instrument. If Developer owns any lot at the time that such amending instrument is executed or recorded, such amendment shall not be deemed to be effective as an amendment to this Declaration unless Developer joins in the execution thereof. 23. ENFORCEMENT. Any owner of a lot may enforce any of the provisions of this Declaration by proceedings at law or in equity against any person or persons violating or attempting to violate any covenant or restriction, either to restrain violation or to recover money damages or both. Developer does not and shall not be deemed to have any obligation to any lot owner or owners to enforce any of the provisions of these covenants. A violation of this Declaration, except as otherwise provided in paragraph 21 hereof, shall not be deemed to be a cloud upon the title of the property concerned and title shall not be forfeited as a result of any such violation, except that nothing herein shall prevent a sale of any lot in satisfaction of a judgment validly obtained. 24. SEVERABILITY. The invalidation of any one of the provisions of this Declaration by judgment or court decree of a court of competent jurisdiction shall not in any way affect the validity of any other provision hereof, which such other provisions shall be deemed to remain in full force and effect. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned have caused this instrument to be executed on this the _______ day of ____________________, 2005.
CAMBRIDGE DEVELOPMENT, LLC.
By___________________________________ Its: Member, Donald E. Perez
State of Alabama
I, the undersigned Notary Public in and for said State and County, hereby certify that Donald E. Perez, whose name as Member of Cambridge Development, LLC. an Alabama Limited Liability Corporation, is signed to the foregoing instrument and who is known to me, acknowledged before me, that, being informed of the contents of this instrument, he, as such member and with full authority, executed the same voluntarily for and as the act of said corporation on the day the same bears date. Given under my hand and notarial seal on this the _____ day of __________, 2005.
______________________________________ Notary Public,
This instrument prepared by:
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