These Boatwell and Dock Rules are the rules to be followed by members of the Westacres Community Association (WCA) in order to use property owned by the WCA. The WCA is responsible for regulating the use of Association Property.
Association Property includes all lake frontage property (as well as those adjacent portions of the lake) extending from the beach area on the east, along to the Boat well, around Boy Scout Point through to the end of Westacres Property bordering Tripp Subdivision.
The use of Association Property and facilities is reserved only for members in good standing and their guests
1. DUES: All WCA dues and outstanding assessments must be paid before stickers, dock-assignments and keys will be distributed. Boat registration forms must be submitted by the deadline posted in the Weekly. Requests made after that date will be fulfilled in the order they were received.
2. FEES: All watercraft (including power boats, sail boats, row boats, etc.) using WCA property whether for dockage or day use via the launch ramp, must prominently display a WCA Watercraft Registration Sticker. The registration fee as determined by the Board of Directors must be paid to the WCA before a sticker or key will be delivered or a dock space will be assigned.
3. WATERCRAFT REGISTRATION: If the watercraft is required by the State of Michigan to be registered with the State (MC #), then a copy of such Proof of State of Michigan registration must be submitted along with the application for the Registration Sticker. The registration must not be expired, and the watercraft must be registered to the name and address of a Westacres member in good standing.
4. PARKING: Parking is restricted in the Boat well and prohibited along the sides of the access road between the main beach road and the Boat well. Vehicles and golfcarts (without trailers) may park in the fork of the entering and exiting road. In the boat well area, golf carts must be parked in designated spaces. If spaces are full, the golfcart must be parked at the beach parking. A vehicle (without trailer) may utilize the handicap parking space provided a state issued handicap card is visible on the vehicle. All other vehicles and trailers must be parked at the Clubhouse parking lot and not on the approach road. Trailers, attended or not, must not be left in any area of the boat well. Exceptions and considerations will be granted at the beginning and end of the season to allow for boats/docks to the installed/removed. These regulations are required to provide access for emergency vehicles
5. GATE: The gate MUST be locked after each entry or exit. Keys to the launch gate may be purchased during the annual registration period. Keys are available for purchase only to those residents who have purchased a Westacres Launch Sticker.
6. DAY USE: Boats launched for day-use may use the community Day Dock (designated as the outer sides of the launch docks) but may not use a resident assigned dock, regardless of whether that space is empty. Boats using the Day Dock must be removed by sunset. No overnight mooring is allowed.
7. USE: The boat launch is for the exclusive use of WCA members in good standing with proper registration. No Access, keys or dock space may be provided, loaned, rented, or otherwise made available to non-Association members.
8. DOCK ASSIGNMENTS AND REGULATIONS: The number of and location of dock spaces available to Association members is limited by the Township of West Bloomfield to not exceed storage of (47) in-water crafts. Docks must be placed at the defined locations consistently with Westacre's state marina permit. The personal assignments to dock slips are provided at the discretion of the recreation Chairman and will be assigned in the order determined by the WCA Wait list.
a. Dock space is the property of the Association and not that of any individual member. Such member agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Association from any damages, costs and fees that might be occasioned by an injury associated with the use of the dock, dock space and/or watercraft by the member or his or her guests. Member owned docks are the personal property of their owner(s). Said docks are purchased, constructed, and installed by the member in a space designated by the WCA.
b. Requests for all dock spaces and changing dock spaces shall be submitted to the recreation chairman using the designated registration form. After the registration deadline has passed, the recreation chairman will assign dock spaces to returning members in the order of tenure who had been assigned a dock space the previous year. At the discretion of the Recreation chair, each side of the dock may be assigned. As space becomes available, the recreation Chair will consider move requests from existing boaters before assigning newly available dock spaces to member(s) on the waiting list in the order of tenure. For new requests within the most current boating season, members will be added to the waitlist as an annual group during the registration period and ordered based on seniority (defined by year joining Westacres). The sequenced group will then be added to the end of the waitlist from prior seasons. As such, the waiting list is determined based on the boating season in which your request was made, combined with the seniority that was established within that given season. Therefore, those with seniority will not impact the order of the list that remained from prior seasons. Please keep in mind that those on the Waiting List may enjoy Day Use privileges as long as the fee for day use is paid and a sticker is assigned. Special requests (such as moving to a different dock) may be submitted directly to the Reaction Chairman for review. No such requests are guaranteed to be approved, and the impact to others must be considered. Members must continue to register each year to maintain their position on the waitlist and show continued interest.
c. The Recreation Chair, with oversight from the Officers of the Board, will maintain a living waitlist tracking prior years additions in the order they were sequenced. As dock slips become vacated and available, the recreation chair will consider move requests of current assignees before an offer is made to the highest tenured member on the list. If the highest tenured member on the waitlist should chose to decline the assignment for various reasons (location of slip, water depth of slip, life circumstance etc.) the next tenured member will be offered the slip and the higher member will retain their waitlist position for the following year.
d. The recreation chairman will mark dock spaces on the shore. All docks shall be installed perpendicular to the shore, on-center of the designated dock marker and in a proper position to allow for adjacent boat assignments. In the event of a spacing issue those with dock assignment in question will correct the position of the dock installation. Dock owners are required to maintain their docks in a safe condition. Unsafe conditions must be repaired at the owner’s expense. Dock owners shall keep their dock area clean of trash and debris. Tires may not be used as fenders/bumpers.
e. All docks must be a minimum of 24 inches and not more than 36 inches in width and must be straight in shape. The length of each dock shall not exceed the maximum length allowed by WB Township Ordinance is 50 feet. It is the member’s responsibility to be sure the dock is placed and removed in accordance with Township ordinances and Association rules.
f. Each Association member assigned dock space must install their boat to the assigned slip no later than July 1st and keep a boat in the assigned space for a majority of the boating season (May 1 - September 30) otherwise this space may be reassigned. Additionally, if the dock space is unoccupied for extensive lengths of time (30 days), the space may also be reassigned at the discretion of the Recreation Chairman. When and if the dock space is reassigned, the member forfeits all rights that may have been associated with such space.
g. The Marina Permit provides for (80) Boats/Slips and (6) Hoists/lifts. Based on the Township enforced limit to 47 Boats, by ratio hoists/Lifts are limited to (3) in total. Requests more than the limited # of hoists will be tracked via a waiting list in the same manner as the dock assignments are granted. Ease of access, water depth, location, and seabed condition to facilitate hoists/canopies will not play a role in slip assignment. The Hoist and Boat must be capable of fitting within the available slip assigned by the Recreation Chairman. If the assigned location is not suitable, the shareholder may elect to "decline" the slip and continue to wait for a future opening that meets their needs. Members requesting to be added to the hoist waiting list must be already assigned a dock slip. New applicants for the existing hoists/lifts require a written proposal that includes hoist specs (primarily width, height & length) be submitted to the WCA Recreation Chair as part of the registration process. The application must be approved prior to installation. Hoists must be removed at the end of the boating season (Nov. 1) and may not be stored on WCA property. Further detail regarding allowable hoists can be found in the temporary hoist request form.
h. A limited number of non-motorized watercraft (rowboats, canoes, sailboats, etc.) may be stored in the designated area by the pipe rack. Residents looking to store on the shore must request an assignment. Assignments will be made based on the same process as outlined in section 8.b of these boat well rules. Any non-motorized watercraft must display a current WCA sticker. Untagged craft will be removed.
9. WINTER STORAGE: No docks, poles, hoists/lifts, etc. are to be left in the water after Nov. 1st. All member owned docks and associated hardware must be stored in areas designated by the WCA Board. Docks stored in the boat well area shall be stacked neatly in the woods or as close to the woods as possible. Dock users are responsible for the clean-up of the areas around their assigned dock space. Hoists may not be stored in the boat well area.
10. COMMUNITY SUPPORT: Cleanliness and order in the boat well (and other locations with Association Property) area are the responsibility of the boat owners and their guests. Members are expected keep the areas related to their dock assignments free of garbage and boat related debris. Each boater is asked to volunteer a minimum of one hour per season participating in the maintenance and clean-up of Westacre's waterfront property including the boat well, Boy Scout Point, and/or the beach.
11. VOLUNTEER SHARING: Residents who are assigned a dock space have a great privilege, and with it comes great responsibility to ensure that opportunity is being efficiently used. Those members are encouraged to reflect annually on their seasonal boat usage and determine if they can offer periods of inefficiently used time to share on their dock with members of the waitlist.
The methodology for Volunteer Sharing is as follows:
a. The Recreation Chairmen will solicit those assigned to dock spaces to offer opportunities known at the beginning of the season.
b. Dock assignee will define what periods they "anticipate" not utilizing their slip.
c. The sharing opportunities will be documented and offered to those on the waitlist starting from the highest tenured member. That member may choose 1 dock-assignee who's seasonal sharing opportunity they would like to accept (if any). The process will continue down the waitlist until all early known sharing opportunities have been claimed.
d. Both parties involved in a sharing partnership will coordinate logistics, timing, and terms independently without involvement of the Recreation Chair.
e. During the season should a sharing opportunity become available, the Recreation Chair will offer to the highest person on the waitlist who has not otherwise accepted a sharing opportunity during the season. If declined, the offer will move to the next highest tenured member who has not benefitted from sharing during the season. Etc.
All decision-making lies with the dock assignee volunteering to share their space and reserves the right to change their mind any time. Members benefiting from a shared opportunity must accept and react accordingly to the dock-assignees requests (ie: early removal from slip).
12. FINES: Failure to comply with the WCA By Laws and ALL Boat well and Dock Rules and Regulations stated above may result in loss of member privileges. In the event of violation, each case will be reviewed by the board and appropriate course of action determined which could include loss of all Westacres membership privileges (including but not limited to launch usage, dock assignment, dock waitlist position, and beach access).