[SUNNYMARYANN]

Someone has told us that we cannot have a satellite dish in TV. I find that hard to believe. We have DISH network and would like to continue the service. Our dish is mounted on the roof here due to tall pine trees but we had one mounted on a pedestal in the back yard when we lived in the Panhandle. Can someone please set us straight on this question?

[ijusluvit]

The Federal government guarantees your right to have a dish.

Communities which have covenants, no matter how restrictive, cannot prevent you from having a dish. If you read the many covenants in TV, you will see prohibition after prohibition. But for satellite dishes there are "guidelines for installation".

[Bubbalarry]

I have waited to put in a dish this month to find my neigbor had to pay a fine of 550 to TV for putting in a dish in a courtyard villa. I don't have a copy of my covenants here in Florida, but this sounds ridiculous.

[rwcw]

Here's the wording from the Sumter restrictions regarding these dishes.

2.16 Aerials, satellite reception dishes, and antennas of any kind are prohibited within the Subdivision to the extent
allowed by law. The location of any approved device will be as previously approved by the Developer in writing.

[aln]

LOTS of people have dishes.
I have DirecTV
My neighbors have Dishnetwork
No problem

[Ooper]

Yeh... there are plenty of dishes around in TV... some on the ground, some on the walls... a lot of residences have 2 dishes... If it is against the law, they better build a bigger jail.

[Hancle704]

I believe the only restrictions imposed by TV Covenants are that they cannot be installed on roofs or, in front of home. Also believe that you are permitted to install them where they can pick up satellite signals and that may be on side of home instead of in rear.

[chelsea24]

We have Direct TV and most of our neighbors have Dish or Direct TV. Don't know of any problems encountered when putting them up. Ours is not on the roof though. Perfect reception.

[Jullie]

Hello,
We live in Mallory and lots of people have dishes in their yard. They are in the back or the side of the house. I have not heard of any issues with them
being installed.

[Bubbalarry]

Are they permitted in COURTYARD VILLAS ????

[OpusX1]

Yes they are permitted in CYV. We had our Direct TV installed last week. There are some rules but basically the dish needs to be installed behind the fence within the confines of the wall and not visible from the street. The Government law says that they can be installed anywhere needed to access the satellite signal. I have in fact seen a dish mounted on a roof of a CYV because of trees in the way.

[EdV]

Sorry to disagree with OpusX1, but if there is an association involved as in TV, the law does not say you can install it anywhere. The FAQ sheet published by the FCC states the following with regard to community restrictions:

“Some communities have written restrictions that provide a prioritized list of placement preferences so that residents can see where the association wants them to install the antenna. The residents should comply with the placement preferences provided the preferred placement does not impose unreasonable delay or expense or preclude reception of an acceptable quality signal.”

And here is a link to the Guidelines for Use of Satellite Dishes posted on The Villages Community Development District’s web site.

It’s pretty straightforward. If you hire a local professional who is familiar with the guidelines, they should have little trouble locating a site for your dish that is acceptable to you and the Architectural Committee.

[OpusX1]

Ed. Yes we need to follow the association rules but if you can not get a signal following the rules you may install the dish wherever needed to get a signal. The fed rules trump the association rules. This is mentioned in the association rules also. As I stated I have seen and see everyday a roof mounted dish, clearly against the association rules but nonetheless on the roof.

[EdV]

Indeed Opus, that's exactly what I was pointing out in my post. And by the way, it's not just "a" signal, but "an acceptable quality" signal that is the determinig factor in placement.

That can be easily quantified with the use of a SatMeter, which most qualified installers will carry with them.

Also, the link to the rules in my post isn't working so if anyone wants to see them, just copy and past the following text (without the quotes) into your web browser address box: "http://www.districtgov.org/vccdd/SatDishGuidelines.asp"

[Don H]

RWCW mentioned that under The Villages own agreement antennas would be permitted where allowed by law. Actually, the FCC and the Federal goverment hold preemption over antennas used to receive broadcast signals. In fact...a large number of ham radio operators have used that federal law when towns demanded they remove their antennas. The government states that no state or local goverment can deny the use of antennas on private property. The only exception that I know of is when such an antenna..tower or whatever causes an unsafe condition such as the possiblity of it falling onto power lines etc. I'm not sure how that effects agreements that private communities require buyers to sign. Particularly as regards to tv antennas, be they dishes or over the air roof antennas, if pressed I think a court would come down on the side of the antenna owner if the case was referred to federal ruling. In regards to ham antennas, the government views them as a potential emergency service resource but who knows how far the federal law can be pushed to defend a ham radio operator's antenna.