Petition: Restore Safety and Residential Integrity to Lake Timber

TO: The Board of Directors, Babcock Ranch Residential Association (CCMC) CC: Sid Kitson, Greg Pankow, Kitson & Partners; Charlotte County Board of Commissioners; Babcock Ranch ISD

DATE: April 4, 2026

WE, THE UNDERSIGNED RESIDENTS AND HOMEOWNERS OF LAKE TIMBER, formally petition the Babcock Ranch Residential Association and the Developer to immediately cease the incompatible commercial use of The Lake Timber Lodge and restore the residential safety of our neighborhood.

The Issue: The Lake Timber Lodge was designed and marketed as a neighborhood-scale amenity for the 210 homes in the "Pioneer" phase. We all know that quickly changed, and Lake Timber Lodge now welcomes more than 15,000 residents and is growing. The issue is it’s currently being operated as a revenue-generating commercial-style event venue, hosting 150+ person weekly events with only 26 on-site parking spaces. These 26 spaces also serve Lake Timber pool, the community mailbox hub, the playground and overflow parking for residences without driveways, and No Parking Signs placed in front of their homes.

Lake Timber was marketed as the 'Founders’ Community'—the crown jewel and historic heart of Babcock Ranch. Today, that legacy is being eroded. These overcapacity commercial events have turned our beautifully landscaped green spaces into a parking lot, leaving behind a trail of property damage and infrastructure decay. Beyond the aesthetics, the overflow has created a gauntlet of Life Safety and ADA violations that put our most vulnerable neighbors at risk. What was once the most desirable neighborhood in the town is seeing its value diminished by an incompatible commercial operation that treats our front doors like a stadium entrance.

Lake Timber’s marketability and property values are being directly compromised by this mismatch of use. We are seeing a shift from a premier residential retreat to a high-traffic event zone, to the detriment of every homeowner’s investment.

Our Demands:

1. Immediate Reversal of Operating Hours: Rescind the extension of Lodge hours to 11:00 PM. Restore the original "Neighborhood Scale" hours to protect the quiet enjoyment of adjacent residents.
2. Cease High-Intensity Commercial Rentals & over capacity pool attendance: Limit the occupancy of the Lodge & Pool to its designed parking capacity (26 vehicles). The Lodge should not host regional organizations or large-scale events that force 50+ overflow vehicles into residential streets. We want the commercial-scale events moved to larger facilities (like the Field House) designed to handle them.
3. Enforce Life-Safety Standards: Ensure that pool gates are never propped open for events and that the Fire Apparatus Access Road (Lake Timber Drive) remains clear and navigable for emergency vehicles at all times.
4. Restoration of ADA and USPS Accessibility: The current overflow parking frequently blocks the designated ADA-compliant handicap ramps and the shared community mailbox hub. This creates a discriminatory barrier for residents with mobility challenges, in direct violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Furthermore, the constant congestion prevents the United States Postal Service (USPS) from safely accessing the neighborhood's centralized mail delivery point. We demand the immediate designation of "Mail Pickup Parking Only" zones specifically for mail delivery vehicles and the permanent clearance of all ADA access ramps to ensure equal access for all residents.
5. Remove Retaliatory "No Parking" Signs: Remove the newly installed "No Parking" signs in front of residential homes that lack driveways. These signs penalize residents, prevent guest access, and block essential maintenance services, while doing nothing to stop the event-driven traffic.

By signing this petition, we are notifying the Association that the current "Commercial Use” of Lake Timber Lodge is a violation of the Babcock Ranch Pattern Book, a breach of the Association’s fiduciary duty, violation of USPS and ADA standards and a creator of private and public Life Safety Hazards and nuisances.

1. Violation of the Babcock Ranch Pattern Book

• The Pattern Book is the "DNA" of the neighborhood. It’s the legal contract the developer made with the County to get permission to build.
• The Violation: Pattern Book #1 defines Lake Timber as a "Neighborhood-Scale" environment. This means the infrastructure (like the 26 parking spots) was mathematically designed only for the 210 homes in our phase.
• The Point: When this neighborhood was planned, the Lodge was approved as a quiet 'Resident-Only' spot. By turning it into a commercial event center, with a recent posted capacity of 230 people, this equates to a 77 parking space requirement if there are a minimum of 3 people in each vehicle, the developer is ignoring the very rules they wrote to get this project approved. They are literally breaking the blueprint of our neighborhood.

2. Breach of the Association’s Fiduciary Duty: Florida Statute § 720.303(1)

• The Law: The HOA Board has a "Fiduciary Duty," to its members, which is a high legal obligation to act in the best interest of the homeowners, not the developer’s rental business.
• The Violation: A fiduciary must act with "the highest degree of care" for the members. Prioritizing commercial rental income over the physical safety (Fire Access) and property rights (Parking) of the owners is a direct breach of this duty.

The Board is prioritizing the income from outside commercial renters over the safety and property rights of the residents who actually pay the assessments.

The Point: The Board’s only job is to protect our community and our property values. Instead, they are acting like a landlord for a commercial business. By letting outside groups take over our streets and damage our beautiful greenscapes, they are failing their legal duty to put us—the homeowners—first.

3. Creator of "Life Safety" Hazards (Public Hazard)

• A "Public Hazard" is an activity that threatens the health or safety of the general public (or the whole street).

The Hazards:

1. The "20-Foot Rule": Florida Fire Prevention Code (NFPA 1) § 18.2.3.4.1.1

The Law: "Fire department access roads shall have an unobstructed width of not less than 20 feet (6.1 m)."

The Violation: Lake Timber Drive is a standard residential street (only 22 feet wide). When cars park on both sides—or even one side with a large truck—the remaining gap is often narrowed to 12–14 feet.

The Point: Florida Law says a fire truck needs 20 feet of clear pavement to save your house. When the Lodge hosts these 230-person events, the street narrows to 12-14 feet. If there’s a fire or emergency medical situation during one of these large events, the truck can’t get down our street or is greatly delayed, and our houses burn, or someone could die if emergency medical assistance isn’t given in time.

2. Residential Swimming Pool Safety: Florida Statute § 515.27

This addresses the "propped open gate" issue.

The Law: All outdoor swimming pools must have a barrier that is at least 4 feet high and have self-closing and self-latching devices that open outward away from the pool.

The Violation: Propping the gate open for event guests "disables" the safety device required by state law.

The Point: The HOA is legally required to keep those gates latched to prevent drownings. Propping them open for a wedding or other large event is a criminal level of negligence under the Residential Swimming Pool Safety Act.

When they allow renters of the Lodge to prop the pool gates open for 230 guests to gain access and leave it open well after the event is over, they are creating a drowning hazard for every child and vulnerable residents in this neighborhood.

4. USPS Access: Postal Operations Manual (POM) § 632.14

The USPS is a federal entity, and they have strict "Clear Approach" requirements.

• The Statute: "The customer is responsible for keeping the approach to the mailbox clear to facilitate delivery. Where the approach to the mail receptacle is temporarily obstructed by a parked vehicle... the carrier may withdraw delivery."
• The Requirement: When a community is "platted" (the official map), the mailbox hub is designated as a Common Area. Under standard planning practices, these hubs are intended to have "temporary passes (15 min)" access or a“pull-in” or “pass-through” lane like Cypress Lodge has.

The "Lake Timber" Reality: Because the Lodge events force 75+ cars into the street, the "approach" to the centralized mailbox hub is routinely blocked and especially not accessible for ADA Compliance or the Mail Carrier.

The Point: Infrastructure Disparity and Design Negligence: The Developer has established a safe standard for amenity access at Cypress Lodge by providing dedicated 'pass-through' lanes and mailbox parking to ensure USPS and ADA compliance. The failure to provide similar infrastructure at Lake Timber Lodge, while simultaneously over-scheduling the venue with 230 person commercial events, proves a reckless disregard for the safety and federal access rights of the Lake Timber residents.

5. ADA Compliance: 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design

• The Statute (§ 206.2.2): At least one accessible route shall connect accessible buildings, accessible facilities, accessible elements, and accessible spaces that are on the same site.
• The Statute (§ 502.7): Access aisles shall not be obstructed by poles, posts, or parked vehicles.
• The Violation: With only 2 Handicapped parking spaces at this location for a facility with a 230 person capacity and a pool with a 37 person capacity, the spaces are rarely available to handicap residents that actually live in Lake Timber and need them to access our Mailbox Hub, while guests parking on the street or trucks unloading and loading for events, often block the curb cut sidewalk access to the mailbox hub.
• The Point: We have neighbors who use walkers or wheelchairs. When the Lodge overflows, those neighbors are physically 'locked out' of their own mailboxes and the pool because cars are blocking the ADA ramps. That isn't just rude—it's a federal civil rights violation that exposes our HOA to massive lawsuits.

The Lodge has 26 spaces. According to the ADA Table (Section 208.2), a lot with 1 to 25 spaces requires 1 van-accessible space. A lot with 26 to 50 spaces requires 2 spaces.

The Problem: With the HOA only providing 26 spaces, they are in violation of Zoning Occupancy. You cannot legally host 230 people with only 26 spaces. If they "allow" 75+ cars to park on the street/grass to accommodate the 230 people, they have created a de facto parking lot. Under the ADA, if you provide "overflow" parking, that overflow area must also meet ADA standards, including firm, stable surfaces and designated accessible routes.

6. Creator of Private and Public Nuisances

• Private Nuisance: Something that interferes with your specific right to enjoy your home (noise/lights). It’s all Something that interferes with a common right (like the right to use the street or the mailboxes.
• The Nuisance: The "No Parking" signs in front of some of our homes are a retaliatory nuisance. They have effectively "stolen" our street access to benefit their rental guests.
• The Point: A 'Nuisance' is when someone uses their property in a way that makes yours unlivable. Between the 11:00 PM party noise and the HOA banning us from parking in front of our own homes, we’ve lost the 'Quiet Enjoyment' we paid for. We’re being penalized at our own front doors so they can make a profit at the Lodge."