Trestle's Community Association Management Blog

Embrace Open Meetings for a Healthy Community Association

Within community associations, issues often arise that require sensitivity and discretion. It may seem as if discussing such issues in an open forum with regular members present would be awkward or violate another member’s privacy. As a result, the Board may be tempted to discuss the matter in a closed executive session. If not used solely to discuss matters that are truly private or confidential, closed meetings lead to suspicion, discontent, gossip and a general sense of distrust in the community. Consider the following before meeting in a closed session.

Statutory and Governing Document Requirements. The Washington Condominium Act  does not require open meetings. In contrast, the Washington Homeowner Association Act does require open meetings. Provisions of the HOA Act may foretell changes to the Condo Act on the horizon.

The Washington HOA Act states that “…all meetings of the board of directors shall be open for observation by all owners of record and their authorized agents.” The HOA Act allows for discussion of a very limited set of matters in closed executive session—a privilege that must be used sparingly and with strict adherence to the provisions of the Act.

While the Condo Act does not mandate open meetings, the governing documents of many condominium associations contain open meeting requirements including the sort of matters that may be discussed in closed session. Be sure you know the provisions of your governing documents before proceeding with a closed session.

Legislative Action. Boards that have acted on the temptation to discuss too many matters behind closed doors and the lack of transparency that results have led owners to seek relief from their legislature. As a result, new legislation introduced in other states mandate not only open meetings but enhanced disclosure requirements. The Connecticut legislature recently passed law that requires associations to announce all board meetings at least one week in advance and to provide to all members of the association the same material provided to the Board of Directors for each item on the agenda. Similar legislation has been introduced in other states.

Regardless of the provisions of statute or your association’s governing documents, holding open, transparent meetings is the right thing to do. The health and harmony of your community depends on it.

Look for a future post on guidelines for closed sessions.        

Trestle Community Management is a full-service manager of condominium and homeowner associations with headquarters in downtown Redmond, WA. Trestle’s serves associations in Redmond, Kirkland, Bellevue and other nearby communities.