From The Blog

KICA Covenant Changes Anticipated for a Fall 2024 Member Vote

KICA’s Governance Task Force is charged with reviewing and updating the association’s governing documents, which were created in the 1970s and have only been periodically updated. Last year, the task force accomplished a rewrite of the association’s by-laws. This year, the group is turning their focus to the KICA Covenants.

At yesterday’s KICA Annual Meeting, task force chair Kevin Donlon explained that the group has identified numerous areas in which the KICA Covenants can be improved, yet they will initially focus on four priorities that members have conveyed are the most pertinent. In the coming months, the following changes will be discussed as a community, with the goal of a fall 2024 membership vote.

1. Elimination of the Developer-Appointed Board Seat: KICA’s covenants currently grant the developer the right to appoint one seat on the association’s board of directors. Now that the developer’s master plan for the community is near fulfillment, the task force expects to recommend the removal of developer-appointed board seat, making all seats elected by the community.
2. Expand Authority to Operate an Architectural Review Board: KICA’s covenants currently allow KICA to operate an Architectural Review Board, but the authority is limited in scope. The task force seeks to broaden the language to give KICA more flexibility.
3. Expand Mechanisms for Rules Enforcement and Establish an Appeals Process: In 2018, the membership voted to approve a covenant change that authorized KICA’s ability to enforce violations to Rules and Regulations violations with fines, or in extreme cases, property liens and to establish an appeals process for enforcement actions. However, this covenant change was never formally recorded. Since this occurred six years ago, and a modification to the amendment is anticipated, the task force feels it is important for the membership to vote on this topic again.
4. Administrative Updates/Clarifications: This category of changes will include minor administrative updates primarily focused on updating terminology (ex. the board “President” is now called a “Chair”).

All changes to the covenants require a vote of the membership, with participation from a minimum of 60% of households, and approval by 75%. In a community of Kiawah’s size and primarily part-time resident demographic, achieving this quorum is expected to be a challenge. In-depth informational materials will be provided and several opportunities for input before any changes are formally recommended by the task force and put forth for a member vote.

Attend the Community Forum on Wednesday, April 24 at 11 a.m. in Beachwalker Center or via Zoom  to learn more.