Seeking the Holy Grail of ARC Transparency
By Joe Reynolds

One day there is a knock on your door and an OPA staff inspector says your property is in violation of the Ocean Pines Declarations of Restrictions or Guidelines. Maybe you plan an addition to your home, or decide to sell your property. What happens next involves the sometimes murky world of dealing with the Ocean Pines Environmental Control Committee (ECC), in recent years known as ARC or Architectural Review Committee.

“Good afternoon folks. I’m Joseph Schanno and I’m going to call this meeting to order. This is the ARC Procedures ad Hoc Committee which was put together by the Ocean Pines Association Board of Directors.”

With those words on 12/20/2005 the committee chairman, and former OPA Director, Joe Schanno, opened the first of what will be numerous meetings over the coming months, culminating in a March 15th report to the OPA board on recommendations for changes in how the ARC Committee and ARC staff handles and processes various permit applications, home resales, variance requests, and violations of the Declarations of Restrictions in each section of Ocean Pines. The board charge to the committee indicates a desire to make the process of dealing with ARC as transparent as possible for lot owners.

In addition to Schanno the committee members are Walt Boge (chairman of the ECC Committee), Carol Ludwig, Bernie McGovern, Diane McGraw, Marlene Ott, and Bill Rakow. Director Mark Venit, who first proposed the notion of reviewing ARC process, sat in for most of the meeting. Chief ARC Inspector Bill Nelson attended by invitation.

Rakow highlighted a transparency problem when he asked Nelson, “What’s going on with The Point? Why is the ARC collecting or trying to collect permit fees in The Pointe for some people yet not enforcing it for those who don’t?

Nelson replied, “We’re not trying to collect. If someone comes in and says they want to obtain a permit from Ocean Pines, we’ll accept that permit and payment.”

“So you’ll take their money but if they don’t apply for a permit, it’s ok?” Rakow quipped.

“I’m not saying it’s OK. I’m saying it’s not happening.”

“Are the people in The Point going to be penalized later on because they don’t have a permit?”

“I don’t know. That’s not my decision.”

“A letter went out in 2002 from the Association saying all permits would go through this organization (ARC), but they aren’t.”

The exchange clearly demonstrated but one area of murkiness where there should be transparency.

Schanno asked Nelson if his department maintained any internal written procedures, manuals or guidelines for his inspectors. Nelson replied, “No.”

“Are you currently operating or basing any of your activities on any attorney opinions that you may have received from Joe Moore or anyone else?” Schanno then asked Nelson.

“My department?”

“Yes.”

A pause of several seconds followed, and then Nelson said, “I’m thinking about it. There have obviously been some issues with Joe Moore (OPA General Counsel) in the last six months that obviously affect my department. But have they changed our process and procedures? I don’t think so.”

One of those legal issues was related to how the ARC Committee handles ARC Guidelines variance requests from lot owners, an issue that has raised some controversy. A change in process obviously took place, as ECC chairman Boge carefully explains to every lot owner seeking a variance since the legal advice was received.

Another legal issue was the incorrect perception among lot owners that to sell property in Ocean Pines required ARC paperwork and an ARC inspection at a cost of $250 – a perception fostered by ARC staff. Moore subsequently advised the board that the ARC requirements on resales could not be mandatory.

In an interview several days after the meeting Schanno said he hopes the board will allow Joe Moore to attend a committee meeting to discuss various legal issues in the Declaration of Restrictions and other OPA documents that impact the process used by ARC.

Nelson spent about 40 minutes outlining the current process his department implements to interact with lot owners. Nelson said his staff includes two fulltime inspectors, one part-time inspector, and an office permit coordinator. “Actually we will need to find a replacement for an inspector who is leaving,” Nelson noted. He added, “It is a hard job to keep filled. Those guys take a beating out there.”

ARC also employs two part-time scan operators. “We are in the process of converting all the paper files to digital files. It’s a long process with over 8,000 files and some of them are mighty thick. The mandate from my boss, Dave Ferguson, is have this completed by April 30th and I hope I can make it.”

Nelson said tree inspections for removal requests are “a burden” for staff, due to the sheer number of requests. “Tree removal permits work a little differently. I’m gonna put my foot in my mouth here because we have agreed to do this but we get hundreds and hundreds of these things per year. The burden on a volunteer ARC Committee would be unreasonable so I sign off on those permits with the blessing of the committee.”

The issue of ARC staff signing off on permits arises from the fact that the Declarations of Restrictions require the board-appointed ARC Committee (technically the ECC Committee) to approve all permits. Any appeals for variances from the ARC Guidelines, however, are referred to the committee.

McGovern asked Nelson, “As chief inspector, what, if anything, would you like to see come from this committee?”

“Consistency,” Nelson responded after a slight pause, “in the application of the guidelines and restrictions.”

No members of the general public or other news media attended the initial meeting, although Schanno welcomes input from Association members on important issues that could impact the relationship between every lot owner and OPA.

In the interest of transparency, Schanno invites everyone to attend the ad Hoc ARC Process Committee meetings, “We’ll have a period during each meeting for public comment, and folks can also send email comments to me at ocjoe@aol.com,” he said. The next two meetings are January 3rd and 17th in the OPA Board Room at 4 P.M.