Club West Conservancy v. Foothills Club West Community Association - CV2020-003577

The legal dispute in Club West Conservancy v. Foothills Club West Community Association centers on a homeowner association's unauthorized attempts to acquire declarant rights and amend land-use restrictions on a neighborhood golf course [1, 2]. In 1989, a Master Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions (CC&Rs) was recorded for the Foothills Club West master-planned community, requiring a 75% member vote for amendments [3-5]. In 1993, a separate Golf Course Declaration was recorded, strictly restricting the use of the Foothills Club West Golf Course Property to a golf course, driving range, and related clubhouse facilities in perpetuity [6-8]. In September 2010, the Foothills Club West Community Association (the HOA) executed and recorded an "Assignment of Declarant Rights" to accept developer control from Shea Homes [9-11]. Subsequently, in October 2018, the HOA's board executed a "First Amendment" to the Golf Course Declaration [12]. This amendment established a mechanism allowing the golf course property to be transitioned to non-golf uses via a simple majority vote of a 31% member quorum, effectively bypassing the Master CC&Rs' 75% supermajority threshold [13-18]. Crucially, both the 2010 assignment and subsequent amendments (including a Fifth Amendment in 2019) were voted on and executed by the HOA board during closed executive sessions [19, 20]. The litigation raised three primary legal issues: representational standing, the validity of property annexation under HOA covenants, and compliance with state open meeting laws [21-23]. First, the HOA argued that the Plaintiff, Club West Conservancy, lacked standing to sue because it did not own property itself [21, 24]. The court rejected this, ruling that the Conservancy had representational standing because its individual members owned homes contiguous to the golf course and would suffer immediate lifestyle and financial harm from non-golf development [21, 25-27]. Second, the court evaluated whether the HOA could legally accept the assignment of declarant rights [22]. The court concluded that accepting these rights effectively annexed the golf course under HOA control [28, 29]. Under Section 11.2 of the Master CC&Rs, any such annexation legally required a 75% vote of the association's members, which the board never obtained [30, 31]. Finally, the court addressed whether the board’s actions violated Arizona’s Open Meeting Law (A.R.S. § 33-1804) by conducting these votes and transactions in closed executive sessions [23, 32, 33]. The Maricopa County Superior Court resolved the case in favor of Club West Conservancy, declaring the HOA’s actions null and void [34, 35]. Following an initial preliminary injunction enjoining the HOA from holding any votes to alter the golf course usage [36-38], the court granted the Conservancy’s Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment and denied the HOA’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment in March 2021 [34, 39]. The court ruled that the HOA had no legal authority to accept the assignment or act as declarant without the necessary 75% member approval [31]. Furthermore, the court held that the board violated state law by voting and taking final actions in executive session, as Arizona law strictly limits executive sessions to discussions and legal advice, not voting [20, 40]. On November 10, 2021, the court entered final judgment, officially declaring the 2010 Assignment of Declarant Rights, the 2018 First Amendment, and the 2019 Fifth Amendment null and void ab initio (from the beginning) [35, 41]. The judgment required the ruling to be recorded to correct the public record [42], awarded the Conservancy $5,108.83 in costs [42], and denied a late motion to intervene by a third-party developer, The Edge at Club West, LLC [43, 44]. Case Details: Case ID: club-west-conservancy-v-foothills-club-west-community-association Docket: CV2020-003577 For more AZ HOA transparency resources visit https://azhoawatch.org Legal & Accuracy Notice - azhoawatch.org is operated by Hound LLC, a homeowner-run project, not a law firm. Nothing in this video is legal advice or creates an attorney-client relationship. We analyze public court, ADRE, OAH, and related public records and may express opinions. Not affiliated with any court, ADRE, or the OAH. Read the full Legal & Terms: https://azhoawatch.org/legal