Q. I live in an adult community. We only have one pool with a policy that children can only be in it for certain hours. Recently our manager extended the pool hours for children. Can management legally do this without a vote of the members or any input from the members?

J.O., Clearwater

The manager alone cannot alter the hours. Unless your documents have such hours for children, the board of directors can establish pool policy as long as it complies with state swimming pool laws. It would be my feeling that the board instructed the manager to change the hours. You need to address your question in writing to the board. Q. The president of our condominium has closed an entrance to our building. We have two doors and he closed one without any reason. The road in front of our building is being worked on but does not affect our building. Can the board legally close one of our doors without any notice to the members?

R.L., Altamonte Springs

Did you ask the board why the door was closed? Maybe there was a concern about the safety of the members with the construction. Perhaps workers from the road construction were entering the building. Maybe the door needed repair and it was closed to limit additional repairs. I would be more concerned about closing a fire exit than taking away the door as a convenient way to leave the building.

If you have a concern or question, write the board and ask the question directly. If you do not like the answer, then send the board the solution that you would like to see or take other action. Talk to your neighbors and find out if they have the same concerns as you. Keep in mind that the directors are volunteers, so the letter should not be too aggressive. Let me give you an example: “I have a concern about the closure of the door. It is an inconvenience as well as a possible fire exit closing. Can you please advise me how long this door will be closed as well as why the door was closed?” Most times that the board takes an action there is a reasonable answer. Q. I recently moved into a new condominium. To my surprise my neighbor has both a baby and dog. The condominium documents stress no babies and no dogs. I contacted the president but it does not seem that he took any action to correct my concerns. It seems that a father purchased the unit and is allowing his son and family to occupy the unit. What recourse do I have as an owner?

A.K., Sunrise

If your documents say babies are not allowed, then that is a violation of Federal Discrimination Laws. There is one exception; the Federal Law “Housing For Older Persons Act of 1995.” You do not indicate that you live in a 55 and older community. If your condominium is in fact one, then the board has violated requirements to maintain the adult community status. Such neglect would cause the condominium to invalidate the right to exclude children.

If your documents say that you live in an adult condominium, then you must send a letter to the board of directors and report that a child is living in the unit and demand that it take action to retain adult community rights. If you do not live in an adult condominium, then nothing can be done to evict the baby. The dog is another matter. Write the board of directors to report the dog’s presence and ask it to enforce the rules. If the board does not, then you have a right to take legal action. The board must take fast action or the condominium will face a possible loss of rule enforcement. In the long run, take action to elect a new board at the next annual election.