Revised Design Standards for New Subdivision

Attention BVRI Class A members, whose property in Bear Valley’s “New Subdivision” is controlled by the First Restated Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions (CC&Rs) for Bear Valley, covering Tract Nos. 1 through 7 and 9 Inclusive (Lots 1-411 and 416-426).   

Our Bear Valley Design Standards, which govern building and lot standards, are among the governing documents controlled by the CC&Rs and administered by our Architectural Review Committee. Periodically, the BVRI Board reviews the Design Standards for necessary changes. 

During our BVRI Board meeting in August 2024, we made a motion to engage Kyle Sproul, Esq., of Sproul Trust LLP, to draft suggested revisions to our Design Standards to be consistent with new laws regarding Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs). (Fun fact: Kyle’s father, Curt Sproul, wrote the original documents to create the Bear Valley “New Sub”.) With Kyle’s support and that of our Architectural Review Committee (ARC) and other board members, we have completed our review. The Bear Valley Design Standards have been finalized, amended, and restated. 

The changes are in two specific areas; the changes can be found in the following sections:

1) Providing regulations and standards for Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU) and Junior Accessory Dwelling Units (JADUs) to align with California requirements: 

• IV Regulations and Standards for Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU) and Junior Accessory Dwelling Units (JADU) 
• Section 20 for general requirements
•  IX Other Agency Permits and Inspections 

2) Installation of Starlink Antennas: By federal law, owners can locate satellite dishes where necessary to receive adequate signals, but the CC&R’s can (and do) require adequate screening of structures. The board recognizes the difficulty of getting adequate Internet access in Bear Valley, and owners have a right to get adequate signals. Our previous Design Standards required satellite receivers to be mounted on the house, which may not be possible for Starlink in every situation. We have revised Section 14 to allow this exception; however, structures will still need to be submitted to the ARC for compliance.    

Board Vote 

During our upcoming meeting on March 16, 2025, at 4 pm, the Board will vote on these amended and restated Bear Valley Design Standards. Only Class A Board Members (owners in the “New Sub”) are eligible to vote on the changes. Since the changes are necessary to bring our Design Standards into compliance with California and Federal law, the Board has the power to make these changes. 

As required by our governance standards, we are providing 30 days to review and direct any comments or questions you may have to ARC@bvri.org. You may also attend the March 16 meeting (please fill out the form). This notice will be posted in the General Store and an electronic PDF is available for your review on the Forms page, or you can go straight to them here.