BOCA RATON (VINnews) — Some Jewish homeowners in a housing complex feel they are being treated unfairly because of their religion.
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The Avalon development in Boca is about a two-mile walk to the Boca Raton West Shul. Orthodox families used to walk a long distance, until a neighbor installed a gate into his fence and allowed shul-goers to use it as a shortcut.
Nearly a dozen Orthodox families live at the Avalon, and the gate has made the walk more convenient.
But months after it was installed, the Homeowners’ Association slapped the homeowners with a lawsuit, claiming the gate is a security risk because it creates a secondary access point into the semi-private community.
However residents told the CBS12 News channel the “security concern” does not jibe with the facts. “You have homes with no fences, homes with short fences and homes with metal fences,” said one resident.
In fact, the news crew found cracked fences and short fences on the same side of the development and multiple homes in other areas with no fences at all.
Neighbors say the gate being used by Shabbos-observers is securely locked when not in use.
“Once we knew this was nothing new to the community other than Orthodox Jews were using it then we knew it was more than just, ‘Oh, you can’t make an adjustment to your property,'” said another resident.
Avalon’s by-laws regarding gates and fences say in part, “No improvements shall be constructed, installed, painted, erected, removed, planted or maintained in or on any lot if the same shall be visible outside of that lot…”
The gate is not visible outside of the property.
“Why is it so widely accepted that we can voice concern for Orthodox families, but if you replace that with Muslim families or African American or insert race here and there would be an immediate distress call to the media,” said a resident.
CBS12 reached out to the attorney who filed the suit, Guy Shir, asking if properties with partial or no fencing are also being sued. In addition, they asked which bylaws the gate violates.
Shir replied that he would address the questions, but weeks later, he still has not.
Shortly after the lawsuit was filed, an anonymous letter from someone claiming to live in Avalon was sent to a neighboring complex saying that nearly a dozen Orthodox Jews are using the path and the gate right now and warns more will be moving in if it isn’t stopped.
On Friday, the homeowners’ association board said that someone had filed a complaint with the ADL, the board met with the ADL, and subsequently the complaint was closed. No further details were given.
Meanwhile, they have announced that the decision about whether gates should be allowed on the perimeter of the complex will be decided by residents’ vote this week.
I lived in Boca Raton years ago, and I can tell you that some of the secular Jews, and their attitudes towards observant Jews, are worse than the gentiles.
It is true that when Orthodox Jews arrive in a secular neighborhood in great numbers, it changes the character of the neighborhood. How can it not?
In the “old days” a community would advertise “near all churches,” or even “Jews not welcome.” That feeling has not gone away, but it’s now illegal to say that.
Jews in America often forget that we are in galus.
I’m a frum resident of Boca Raton and have been living in the community over 10 years, and have personally seen the community explode in growth.
The question no one is asking here, is why aren’t more shuls opening up to accommodate the influx of people who need to be reasonable walking distance to a shul? To do a part in avoiding problems exactly like this. We have the same congregations that have been around in the same locations for so many years. As another commenter mentioned, there is no longer any (relatively) affordable housing anywhere near a shul and whatever is available, is extremely limited. So as people are forced to move farther and farther away from what currently exists to buy/rent anything that they can, they come up with controversial solutions like this one.
Boca desperately needs several new Shabbos/Yom Tov minyanim in different places not close to where the current shuls are located, to service those that have had to move to places not walkable to those congregations. If it has to do with backdoor “agreements” to keep people from paying membership dues elsewhere, then that is just a sorry state of affairs.
Keep far away from every kind of HOA.
Since when is Anti-Semitism a new thing? What’s the fuss about, exactly?
funny thing is that a complex that borders another FL shul was required by Federal Homeland Security officials to make a gate opening so that the shul has a secondary emergency exit for escaping emergencies. The complex’s side has a shabbos friendly lock that only their owners have the code.
How does installing a gate shorten a walk,
Don’t mean to sound callus, but move closer to shul.