Rules

Document prepared by: The Colonies Board of Directors, c/o Realty Resource Systems, Inc., P.O. Box 51767, Knoxville, TN 37950

* Additional Rules as Established and Adopted by The Colonies Board of Directors. *

ARCHITECTURAL:

No exterior addition change or alteration to the grounds or to the unit may be made without prior consent and approval of the Board of Directors. You must fill out an “Architectural Request Form” (see attached) and mail or fax it to Management (RRS). Management will forward the request to the appropriate parties. It is the owner’s responsibility to verify that the form was received by Management. Owners are not to proceed with any exterior changes until they receive written approval on their form. If you do not have a copy of the “Architectural Guidelines” for The Colonies, contact Management for assistance.

FINES FOR ARCHITECTURAL NON–COMPLIANCE:

Owners, whose units are not in compliance with The Colonies Architectural Guidelines and/or that have not been painted in accordance with the approved paint rotation, will be issued two (2) written non-compliance notifications. Then, the owner will be fined $100.00 per month/per infraction, until the unit is in compliance (in other words, this fine accrues monthly). All appeals must be submitted in writing, with supporting documentation. This written appeal may be mailed or faxed to management. Management will give a copy of the appeal to the Board of Directors for their review.

NOTE: Once $400 in architectural fines has been assessed, a lien may be placed on the property. The homeowner will be responsible for all legal fees associated with a lien being placed. Once architectural fines reach $1,000.00 the Board, at their discretion, may pursue a personal judgment.

ATV’s, GO-CARTS, AND MOTORCYCLES:

No pleasure riding of motorcycles, ATVs, go-carts, and other recreational vehicles is allowed within the boundaries of The Colonies.

BASKETBALL GOALS:

Basketball goals and other sports apparatus must be stored inside your garage when not in use. The Covenants, Codes and Restrictions (CCRs), Article VIII, Use Restrictions, Section 14. Sports Apparatus., states, “No basketball standards or fixed sports apparatus shall be attached to any Living Unit or garage or be erected on the Lot of any Unit”. No basketball goals on common grounds or attached to structure etc. as per CCRs. In addition, as per rules of the community, residents are allowed to play basketball from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. This time frame applies to both community goals and personal goals. Portable goals must be stored in the residents garage or at the very back of the carport (out of sight from the road).

BOATS AND RV’S AND TRAILERS:

The parking of boats, trailers and RV's is not permitted in carports, driveways, yards, or common areas. These can be parked in the designated area in the RV Lot as space permits, on first come first serve basis. If you would like to be put on the waiting list for the RV parking lot, please contact RRS and request that an RV request form be mailed to you. This lot is reserved for resident homeowners. There is a charge for the use of a spot in the RV lot. If you have a garage, it is permissible to park your boat or RV there as long as the garage door will close.

CARPORT:

All property must be kept in a clean, uncluttered, and presentable manner; this includes carports, front porches, rear patio, rear decks, yards, driveways. Appliances are not allowed out where they can be seen.

CLUBHOUSE:

Rental of the Clubhouse is restricted to homeowners and authorized renters. A clubhouse rental agreement must be filled out completely and returned to RRS with two separate checks; one for (Dollar amount to be determined by the Board of Directors, check with Management for details) non-refundable rental fee and one for a damage deposit (Dollar amount to be determined by the Board of Directors check, with Management for details). The deposit is refunded if the clubhouse, restrooms, and parking lot are left in good and clean condition. Checks are accepted; cash is not. The person reserving the clubhouse must be present during the rental period and is responsible for the actions of his or her guests. During the summer months, the rental of the clubhouse does not include exclusive use of the pool. If you do not have a copy of the rental agreement form, please contact RRS and they will make arrangements to get one to you.

FENCING:

Fencing is only allowed to be built after an architectural request form is submitted to the Board of Directors for review. The size, type of materials, finishes, and location are controlled by the Association’s Board of Directors. No fencing is allowed to be built on common area property for any reason. If a fence is erected, added to, or changed without written approval, then the owner will be responsible for its removal or modification as per instructions from the Board of Directors. The owner will also be subject to architectural fines for non-compliance.

FLOWERBEDS:

In our continuing efforts to upgrade the appearance of our community, as well as our obligation to maintain and protect all of our homeowner values, owners are to maintain their front flowerbed in accordance with the standards of the community; you are required to manicure, trim, and weed as needed. If you, the owner, receive a letter concerning the appearance of your flowerbed, you have 14 days to do one of the following: do the work yourself; hire a landscaper of your choice. If the situation is not rectified by the deadline specified, the Board will direct our landscape provider to address the flowerbed(s) and you will be charged for the cost, plus a 25% administration charge. Any trimmings or weeds may be placed at the curb for landscapers to pick up; please do not dispose of this debris on common areas.

GUTTERS:

Your gutters need to be cleaned regularly so water will flow away from the unit in an appropriate manner.

HOUSE NUMBERS:

House numbers must be visible on the FRONT of the unit (and BACK for units that have both front and rear paved access). This is required by an ordinance adopted by Knox County. The house numbers must be displayed in the center of the double garage doors and to the left of a single garage door.

OWNERS RESPONSIBILITY TO NOTIFICATION REALTOR AND POTENTIAL BUYER AND/OR BUYER:

The Colonies is a Planned Unit Development with governing documents that delineate the restrictions, rules, and guidelines of the community. These documents are approved by the FHA and by Knox County. In some cases, these documents were not discussed with the new owners (homebuyers). Consequently, some new owners (homebuyers) were not made aware of how these restrictions, rules, and guidelines may affect living in this development, prior to signing an offer to buy. In addition, some were not made aware of the annual Maintenance Assessment, which is a lien against their property they agreed to when they accepted a deed. This is a serious problem, especially when an owner and his Realtor are aware of painting requirements or others needed repairs and/or replacements, (such as a needed roof replacement and/or other essential home repair) and fail to pass this information on to the prospective buyer. In fact, we understand, it is state law that this information be disclosed to a potential purchaser prior to the finalizing an offer to purchase, certainly prior to closing. The Colonies is a unique development, proud of its woods, its landscaped lawns, and distinctive architectural styles. It is the policy of this Board to protect and enhance these features with all of the power it has to do so. We will not hesitate to notify the Tennessee Board of Realtors, the State Licensure Board, the Knoxville, Knox County Better Business Bureau and others, or take any other appropriate action should we determine a Realtor or Realty Agent, or a seller failed to meet his/her obligation toward potential home buyers or The Colonies Homeowner’s Association.

It is the owner’s responsibility to inform the buyer (or any potential buyer) and the Realtor for your unit of all pertinent facts (as described above) relating to your unit at The Colonies.

PLANTING GROUND IVY:

Planting any variety of ground ivy is expressly forbidden in The Colonies. No residents are allowed to plant any kind of ivy on their property or common area property. Ivy can be very dangerous to the trees in our community and if it were to get into the woods, it would be impossible to root out and stop.

PAINTING:

Painting is one of the home maintenance responsibilities under The Colonies Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions you agreed to when you bought your home. Since we are a Planned Unit Development (PUD) and not a condominium, the responsibility for painting individual living units is the homeowner's. Homes are to be painted in rotation by phase on a schedule, now every five years. Owners that are included in the current year paint rotation will receive a paint rotation inspection sheet, delineating the required repairs for their unit. Repairs must be made per the inspection, by the date specified on the letter included with the inspection sheet. Owners will be sent reminder notices prior to the required completion date. You may obtain paint specifications for your unit from Management.

PARKING RULES:

All homeowners have a minimum of two parking spaces, which includes one in the garage/carport, and one in the driveway, as provided by the Covenants and Restrictions. NO Commercial vehicles are permitted to park in The Colonies community. See attached “Colonies Parking Rules”. The only vehicles authorized to be parked on the properties, common areas, or individual lots, are passenger vehicles, pick-up trucks, and vans; all vehicles must be 6000 lbs. or less. Watercraft, trailers, and RVs are not authorized.

All motor vehicles, motorcycles, jet skis, bicycles, toys, etc. cannot be left on patios and must be contained within the car port or garage.

PAVING:

No owner is allowed to prepare an additional parking area out of rock, wood, pavers, or ANY other material. Owners are not permitted to impact or change the ground surface from the existing appearance or construction without the Board’s approval. If you have an existing concrete driveway, you must use concrete for the driveway extension. If you have an existing asphalt driveway, you must use asphalt for the driveway extension.

Any owner that desires to extend their parking area must submit a completed Architectural Request Form for Paving and must receive full Board approval. Once the homeowner receives the Board’s approval, they must excavate the topsoil, place a minimum of three (3) inches of gravel, compact it down, and then apply two (2) inches of asphalt and compress roll it to 1.5 inches finished thickness.

PETS:

Dogs must be on a leash at all times (a leash to which a human must be attached!!). When outside of the house, excessive barking and howling can result in the police being involved and the pet owner being charged with “Disturbance of the Peace”. Pet excrement needs to be picked up—be considerate and do not allow your dogs or cats to relieve themselves in residents’ yards. You must properly dispose of excrement or you will be fined $50.00 per incident. Dogs are not allowed to be tied up outside; Animal Control will be notified immediately.

Pets are to be maintained in a manner that is in accordance with the Knox County laws, Sec. 6-32. “Animals at large:

(a) No person owning or having possession, charge, care, custody or control of any animal shall cause, permit or allow the animal to stray or in any manner to run at large in or upon any public street, sidewalk or park or upon the property of another.

(b) Every person owning or having possession, charge, care, custody or control of any animal shall keep such animal exclusively upon his own premises; provided, however, that such animal may be off such premises if it is under the direct control of a competent person.

PODS:

Owners will be responsible for any damage done to common grounds by these storage units. PODS are only a temporary option and cannot be utilized as ongoing storage. PODS must be placed in owners’ driveway only. PODS cannot be placed on common property or roadway. The HOA reserves the right to tow and/or fine for non-compliance.

POOL:

Each owner will be issued one (1) pool tag. In order to obtain a pool pass, owners are required to fill out the Resident Pool Agreement (see attached) and a Renter Authorization Form. Owners will not be issued a pool tag if these documents are not completed.

In addition, pool passes will not be given out to an owner who owes the Association any monies. Also, you will not be issued a pool pass if you are deemed to be in non-compliance with the Architectural Guidelines.

PROPERTY ACCESS CONTROL MONITOR:

The Colonies has a PROPERTY ACCESS CONTROL MONITOR (PACM). Please be aware the PACM is not on call and not on duty 24 hours a day. You can reach the PACM (Kathy Yates (865)279-0150). It is not the purpose of the PACM to take the place of a law enforcement agency; so in cases of trouble such as burglaries, car break-ins, vandalism, domestic difficulties, etc., please call the Knox County Sheriff’s Department at 911. After alerting the Sheriff’s Department, then you can inform the PACM and RRS, so they are aware of the problem and can report the incident to the BOARD.

RENTAL UNITS:

Short term rentals (daily, weekly, and monthly leases) are not allowed in The Colonies. The Colonies defines short-term rentals as anything under six months.

If your unit is rented, written authorization must be given by you stating name and phone number of your renter, giving permission for the renter to use any facility owned by the Association. We have a Renter Authorization Form for you to fill out, giving us all the necessary information on you and your renter. Unless written permission is on file, a renter will not be able to use the swimming pool, clubhouse and other amenities. Renter authorization forms are available upon request as included within this package. Please furnish your renter with all policies and rules of The Colonies. You, the owner, will be held accountable for all the actions of your residents/tenants. You, the owner, will receive the designated fines if your tenant/renter is found to be non-compliant with the rules of the community.

ROOFING:

As a reminder, there are definite specifications that must be followed for roof repair and replacement. In addition, a “Shingled-Over Ridge Vent” (SORV) is required when replacing your roof; NO metal ridge vents are allowed. You may obtain roof specifications from Management (Realty Resource Systems, Inc.).

SAFETY AND HEALTH:

No owner or resident shall do anything to endanger the health or safety of another person. Under NO circumstance should any appliances be placed- in an area where they could endanger the health and/or safety of an individual.

SATELLITE DISHES:

The Colonies Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions, Article VIII Section 5 states, “No outside radio or television antennas shall be erected on any Lot or dwelling unit within the Properties unless and until permission for the same has been granted by the Board of Directors of the Association or its architectural control committee.” Satellite dishes should be located out of sight of the roadway, placed on the back roof or back side of the unit, on the back side of chimney if the chimney stack is on the back part of unit roof, etc.

SIGNS AND FLAGS:

ONLY AMERICAN FLAGS are allowed to be flown in the neighborhood. Small garden flags are allowed as long as they do not impede the ability of the lawn care crew to perform their duties and are not of any political signage. Nothing of a political nature is allowed to be displayed on the homes or windows.

ONLY ONE (1) garage sale sign is permitted at the entrance and ONLY ONE (1) garage sale sign in the yard is allowed on the day of the sale. The signs must be removed at the end of the day. Residents are permitted to hold one garage sale every six months.

ONLY ONE (1) “For Sale” sign is allowed in the yard of the unit for sale. The sign must be a professional sign; NO cardboard, paper product, or handwritten signs. The sign must be removed as soon as the unit is sold. You are allowed one sign; it can either be a “For Sale” or “For Rent” sign, NOT BOTH.

ONLY ONE (1) “Open House” sign is allowed the day of the open house at the entrance and one sign is allowed in the yard. The signs must be removed at the end of the day.

SOLICITING:
The Colonies is a “No Soliciting” community. Soliciting within the community (including drive throughs, door-to-door, etc.) is expressly forbidden in the neighborhood. Those who are found soliciting within the community will be asked to leave the property.

SPEED LIMIT

The speed limit on the county roads of Olde Colony and Olde Pioneer Trail is 25 mph, and on all side streets the speed limit is 15 mph.

TRASH PICK UP:

Waste Connections (522-0078 and 522-8161) picks up the garbage on Wednesday. Effective 5-1-26 our waste collection provider WCI will start bringing in the 96-gallon toter. Residents will have to turn in their old trash cans and will not be allowed to have more than 1 new blue WCI 96-gallon toter (anything else will have to be kept indoors). WCI will provide stickers for you to place on the old cans to be picked up and recycled. Two (2) stickers will be in each letter to residents. The purpose of the new can is so WCI can use their new side-mounted can picker on the garbage truck. The new side picker truck will not be able to pick up the old smaller cans; this is why they have to go. The HOA will fine units that continue to leave old cans out on Wednesdays after June 1st, 2026.

As a reminder: You are not permitted to leave trash cans out in the driveway or turned over/upside down on your property. Once the trash has been picked up, you must take the trash can(s) and put them away. Also, there is NO dumping trash in the clubhouse dumpster.

Wednesday is trash day, and you must have your trash can put away by 12:00 noon on Friday, at the latest.

To re-cap:

* Only the new 96-gallon cans to be used for weekly garbage pick-up

* One time chance, via “sticker" to dispose of old cans. Afterward, disposal is the responsibility of owners/occupants.

* New can has to be facing the street with arrows on top for the new truck to get them.

* Owners/occupants aren't required to dispose of old cans, but NO garbage cans other than new 96 Gallon cans can EVER be stored outside or the HOA can issue a fine for too many cans.

* Those with two car garages should store their garbage cans inside their garage except Wednesday 4pm to Friday noon window.

* No garbage cans should ever be stored on the front porch or at the front of the house (exception for those with only a carport).

* All garbage, including BROKEN DOWN boxes and packing materials must be inside the can for pick-up day. No plastic bags or unbroken down boxes, outside of cans, will be collected.

* With fewer workers on trucks, anything which isn't in the 96-gallon can will be the responsibility of the owner/occupant to dispose of. (Haul to dump)

New Routes:

811-839 Olde Pioneer Trail will be picked up behind your house. WCI will NOT go on your property.
8600-111 thru 117 cans will be picked up behind the house.
804-151 thru 159 cans will be picked up in the rear
804-134 to 139 leave cans in grass in the rear
804-140 to 144 leave cans in rear area marked “no parking”

Items that are not garbage can appropriate may be left out on Tuesday evening for Wednesday pick up. However, you, the resident, must contact Waste Connections and give them 24 hour advance notice prior to Wednesday or the items will not be picked up. You are not allowed to place items out at any other time and there will be a fine for non-compliance.

Please note that if you do rent a receptacle, the fee will be at your individual responsibility and cannot be included in the garbage pick-up payment that is part of the monthly maintenance fee. Yard refuse will be picked up by our lawn maintenance company if left neatly at the curb. This is usually done once a week. The dumpster at the Clubhouse is reserved for Clubhouse use only.

VEGETABLE GARDENS:

Vegetable gardens are not permitted on any property. However, you are allowed to have "potted" plants on your deck, i.e., tomatoes, strawberries, etc.; just not any type of outdoor garden in the yard. This is due to that fact that it can create a problem for the landscapers as well as creating an "eye sore" in the event that a garden is not well taken care of, weeded or maintained properly in order to keep a pleasant appearance in the community.

Note: Please refer to The Colonies Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions for a complete list of restrictions.