Broadmoor enforcement dispute over tree heights continues; council gives HOA four more months to act

San Clemente’s City Council on Sept. 16 continued a long‑running dispute over enforcement of tree‑height limits in the Broadmoor community and on the adjacent Calle Felicidad tract, directing the Broadmoor Homeowners Association to continue its enforcement process and returning the matter to the council on Jan. 20, 2026.

The conflict centers on a condition of approval tied to the Calle Felicidad development that limits certain trees to 17–20 feet and requires Broadmoor to enforce landscaping standards in some locations. Felicidad residents have repeatedly told the council that Broadmoor has not enforced the height limit across multiple properties and that untrimmed and noncompliant trees are blocking views, creating fire‑hazard conditions and diminishing property values. Broadmoor’s board and its legal counsel said the association has pursued a formal enforcement process since the council’s prior direction in March 2025 and provided updates and photographs showing work already completed and ongoing compliance processes.

At the Sept. 16 session homeowners in Calle Felicidad presented a detailed list of outstanding complaints, including photographs and records they said show trees 30–45 feet tall, bamboo in easement areas and dead or diseased vegetation. Felicidad residents argued that the association’s process has been slow and selective, and asked the city to exercise the authority contained in Article 12 of Broadmoor’s CC&Rs to step in and abate the violations directly. Association representatives said Broadmoor opened investigations, held hearings, issued letters and performed some trimming of HOA‑level street trees; they noted that the enforcement process includes statutory and CC&R‑required notice periods, internal dispute resolution and potential alternative dispute resolution before the HOA may pursue legal remedies.

City staff reminded the council that the March 18 directive asked the association to act and that staff had received status updates showing a mix of compliance: Broadmoor reported 11 complaints covering nine properties, with four owners in full compliance, two owners in the process of compliance following fines, and other cases in informal dispute‑resolution or scheduled enforcement stages. The staff report reiterated that Article 12 of the CC&Rs gives the city authority to determine if the association has failed to perform its duties and, if the city finds failure, to enter properties to abate on a special‑assessment basis. Several speakers urged the council to use that authority and to abate remaining violations; other speakers — including Broadmoor board members — urged patience with the HOA process and said some compliance had occurred only after the city’s prior interventions.

Given the complex, partly private nature of the dispute and the association’s report of ongoing enforcement, the council voted to continue the public hearing to Jan. 20, 2026, giving Broadmoor additional time to complete its procedures and abatement work. Councilmembers emphasized they expect continued, timely progress and said staff should return with updated documentation and photographs before the Jan. 20 hearing. Several Felicidad speakers warned that continued failures would prompt city action; Broadmoor said it has expanded enforcement steps and was coordinating work on common‑area trees and notices.

Ending: The council did not itself order city abatement at this hearing; instead it extended the timeline and will revisit the matter with updated evidence in January 2026. Staff and Broadmoor were directed to document further progress, and residents were told the council retained the right to order direct city abatement if the HOA fails to meet its duties.