Quansoo Beach Association, Inc.

What Quansoo Beach Association, Inc.'s governing documents say

Quansoo Beach Association is a private beach community association in Chilmark, Massachusetts, whose members are the owners of property, beach rights, or legal access to Quansoo Beach. It is not a condo or standard HOA — membership and its rules attach to owning beach-area land, and the association's job is to protect the area's natural beauty and manage shared access, parking, and ways and bridges. This packet combines the 1971 by-laws and membership agreement (recorded at the Dukes County Registry of Deeds, Book 288), a 2026 amendment to the corporate purpose, and a 2011 grant of restrictions and easements covering three specific beach lots.

• Who the rules bind: Members are people who own property, beach rights, or legal access to the Quansoo Beach area and sign the by-laws, plus others elected by the Board of Governors. There are two classes: Class A members accept restrictions on selling their land (including the right of first refusal), while Class B members are not subject to those sale restrictions.
• Selling your beach property: A Class A member's sale of land or property rights only becomes effective if the property is first offered to the association on the same price and terms and the association declines, and the sale is then unanimously approved by the Board of Governors. The member must give written notice of any accepted offer (price, terms, buyer's name), and the Board has 30 days to act — if it does nothing, the sale is deemed approved. The buyer must agree to become a Class A member. Transfers by gift, will, or inheritance, and all Class B transfers, are exempt.
• What the association does: The association exists to protect and preserve the natural beauty of Quansoo Beach, and to maintain and control the shared means of entrance and exit, parking areas, and the ways and bridges used in common. Its purposes also include acting on members' behalf for safety, health, fire prevention, police protection, and general improvements.
• Dues & fees: Entrance fees and annual dues are not fixed in the document — the Board of Governors sets them from time to time.
• Governing & meetings: The corporation is governed by a Chairman of the Board of Governors (its chief executive), a Treasurer, and a Clerk, all serving one-year terms. The annual meeting is held at 9:00 P.M. on the second Saturday in August (or a place the Chairman designates). By-laws can be amended by a two-thirds vote of members at a properly called meeting, except the membership, sale-restriction, and amendment articles, which are harder to change.
• Walking access over the 2011 grant lots: Under a 2011 grant, Class A and Class B members have the right and easement to pass and repass on foot (but not by vehicle) over beach lots shown as Parcels 5, 6, and 7 on a 2010 plan, for any recreational purpose. These lots remain subject to the association's existing restrictions.
• 2026 update to the corporate purpose: In April 2026 the association formally restated its purpose: protecting and preserving the natural environment of Quansoo Beach, providing for members' safety and convenience (including controlling entrances, parking, and shared ways and bridges), and letting members act together on safety, health, fire prevention, police protection, and improvements. The association still may not apply for a license to sell alcoholic beverages.
• What this document doesn't cover: This packet is a set of corporate by-laws plus recorded agreements, not a full residential rulebook. It contains no rules on architecture, pets, rentals, noise, or use of individual homes — those may exist elsewhere, but nothing here sets them out.

Plain-language summary generated from the governing documents on file for this community. It may be incomplete and is not legal advice — read the full documents below or consult the official recorded versions.