Kokua Line June Watanabe

Condo board handing out parking tickets

Question: Is it legal for the Board of Directors at a residential complex to assess fines (incremental $50, $100, $150) to tenants who park in a "no parking" area on a public road? This is in addition to the board calling HPD to issue parking tickets to violators who illegally park on the public roadway.

Answer: It apparently depends on what's written in your association's bylaws.

We checked first with the state Judiciary, since its Traffic Violations Bureaus deals with parking tickets.

We were told to direct our question to an attorney who practices real estate law "because it deals with the board's authority or lack thereof."

An official with the state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs' Real Estate Commission (586-2644) said that, "technically," based on Section 514B-104 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes, the board could impose such charges or penalties if they were written into the bylaws of the association. But, he wondered how such penalties could be enforced.

HRS 514B-104(a)(11) says a condo association (made up of all unit owners) may: "Impose charges and penalties, including late fees and interest, for late payment of assessments and levy reasonable fines for violations of the declaration, bylaws, rules, and regulations of the association, either in accordance with the bylaws or, if the bylaws are silent, pursuant to a resolution adopted by the board that establishes a fining procedure that states the basis for the fine and allows an appeal to the board of the fine with notice and an opportunity to be heard and providing that if the fine is paid, the unit owner shall have the right to initiate a dispute resolution process ... or by filing a request for an administrative hearing under a pilot program administered by the department of commerce and consumer affairs."

You should check whether your association does have such bylaws.

Q: I bought a new gift -- a Boeing model plane -- at the Hawaii Business Center at Honolulu Airport to take as a present to my nephew on the mainland. But the plane is missing a wheel. I have not been able to find any contact information to get a refund. Hawaii Business Center is not listed in the phone book, there is no tax license listed, it was not an official "reseller," per Boeing, so Boeing will not refund the money. Is there anything I can do to get a refund?

A: You can reach the Business Center directly at (808) 834-0058 or via the Honolulu Airport switchboard at 836-6411 for information on obtaining a refund, according to the state Department of Transportation.

Business hours are 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

The DOT says the Business Center is operated by Paracom Inc., based in Seattle.

Paracom is the current "Disadvantaged Business Enterprise" for Lenlyn Limited, which holds the concession lease for traveler services at the Honolulu Airport, according to the DOT.