A civic, citizens, or community association is a group of individuals who live in the same area or neighborhood. Because of their proximity, these neighbors often have shared interests and common concerns. An association may include homeowners, renters, apartment residents, business owners, school parents, religious congregations, parents and other caregivers, and members of nonprofit organizations.
If you are considering starting a neighborhood group, your first step should be to discover if your neighborhood has had an active community association in the past. Montgomery County maintains a list of contacts for homeowners and civic associations on its website. Its interactive map tool allows you to search for HOA/CA groups in the County and generate mailing lists. The link below will take you there.
There’s nothing like a perceived threat to a neighborhood to rally a community to action. Indeed, that is how many civic associations get started! If you don’t know how your neighbors stand on an issue, you first need to find out. This information should assist you in developing strategies for communication, outreach, and community building. You also can reach out to partner with existing groups that have similar goals or represent the same community.
How to do that? It’s laborious to conduct a house-by-house survey to identify neighborhood issues, but it can be done. Your best bet, if you don’t have a neighborhood listserv yet, is to set one up, then distribute by hand to each home a notice about the new association and how neighbors can join both the association and the new listserv. Some listservs include a simple survey form you can set up, or you can use a free online survey (samples linked below) to design and deliver an on-line survey, but you will still need a way to let your neighbors know about it. (See “Best Practices in Communication” link below.]
Respondents to your survey or who join your listserv can become the organizing committee, which can help with:
Carefully and clearly define your association’s goals. A list of goals is a simple, but important, statement of the organization’s purpose. Goals should be specific, measurable, realistic, tangible, and — most importantly — achievable. Remember to keep initial goals flexible enough to change as your membership grows.
Goals for a community association may include:
Identifying and developing neighborhood leaders will help spread the workload and provide continuity over time. People in leadership positions are responsible for coordinating the activities of a group, including activities designed to help the group achieve goals and feel good about working together. A leadership position within a community association is a serious commitment. A leader:
The task of recruiting and developing leaders is an ongoing activity for all members of the community association. Sometimes leaders are reluctant to share authority or delegate responsibility. Part of being a good leader is helping others grow into leadership roles.
Developing avenues of communication is your number one priority! If your neighbors don’t know what you’re doing, how can they participate? Here are a few ideas or use the link for further information.
Your association can use a website, listserv, newsletter (printed or online), online blog, podcast, text messaging, nextdoor, and livestreaming your meetings to reach as many neighbors as possible.
Once you’ve set up a website and listserv, you’ll need to let neighbors know about them. You can get the word out:
It is up to you to determine whether it makes sense to hold meetings annually, quarterly, bi-monthly, or monthly. Your community’s goals should help in this determination. Regular and predictable meetings will help your association and membership stay involved and focused on the organization’s goals. (See the Best Practices page for exceptions.)
Your conduct of association meetings matters. Efficient and organized meetings will help attract participants and keep them engaged. The following is a checklist to foster a positive meeting:
The purpose of the first meeting is to introduce the fledgling association to your neighbors. The format should motivate the community not just to attend, but to encourage continued involvement. Some ideas for a first meeting include:
Don’t inadvertently restrict your numbers by having membership forms and sign up sheets only at meetings. In order to maximize your membership potential, be everywhere your neighbors are.
The fundamental purposes of community associations are to provide a basis for protecting members’ equity in the community and a framework within which people can make decisions. Specific purposes of rules and regulations include:
Robert’s Rules of Order provides for constructive and democratic meetings, to help, not hinder, the business of the Board. Under no circumstances should “undue strictness” to these rules be allowed to intimidate members or limit full participation.
Community associations often charge fees to their membership. Depending on the association, the assessments may be paid monthly, quarterly, or annually. When determining dues amount, keep in mind that fees can be a barrier to participation for some in your community. At a minimum, fees should cover such costs as:
An annual budget report is usually approved at the annual meeting of the association and clearly identifies itemized expenses and income for the prior year. Many associations distribute the annual budget of the association and make it available through the Treasurer of the association, as required by the bylaws.
File for 501(c)(4) Tax-Exempt Status
A community association should consider tax-exempt status by filing for 501(c)(4) status with
the IRS. To be eligible, a civic organization must be operated exclusively for the promotion
of social welfare and not organized for profit. Unlike 501(c)3 status (below), an 501(c))4) organization may be politically active. Also, contributions to a 501(c)(4) are
not deductible.
Consider 501(c)(3) Tax-Exempt Status
A key reason communities choose to establish a 501(c))3) is to create a foundation for raising
money for a community improvement project or charitable activity such as:
Local bar associations may be able to direct associations to pro bono or reduced-cost legal services from lawyers experienced in the nonprofit sector. In Montgomery County, contact the Maryland County Bar Foundation (MCBF) Pro Bono Program at 301.424.7651 if you are looking for assistance.
The goal of consensus building is to get individuals who hold different views on an issue to share information and negotiate to arrive at a mutually acceptable course of action. Consensus is not always possible in every situation but is a desirable goal, particularly in communities. A majority vote does not represent a consensus.
Begin building consensus by asking each individual for their opinion. For consensus to work, each should be willing to accept less than everything they want in order to help the association toward its goal.
Keep in mind the following tips to help your community reach consensus:
Conflict can be daunting for a community association to address. Conflicts between neighbors can be particularly uncomfortable. Some community associations make it a point to avoid issues that split the community and pit neighbor against neighbor. It is important that any conflict is addressed immediately to prevent damage to personal relationships. Disagreements among association members can be an opportunity for growth, change and new understanding.
Many disagreements can be resolved with mediation. A few suggestions to help manage conflict include:
Issues emerge in every community, hence it is important to know the steps to address your concerns. If the concerns relate to county services, it is important to first document the concern by calling 311.
311 is Montgomery County’s phone number for non-emergency government information and services. For emergency calls, residents should continue to call 911. Complaints and service requests can also be completed online.
If concerns are not being addressed, the following resources are available to you: