Deed Restrictions
THE STATE OF TEXAS
COUNTY OF HARRIS
KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS:
That FIDELITY TERRA CORPORATION, 1804 First City National Bank Building, Houston, Texas, of the county of Harris in the State of Texas Owner of Kempwood, Section 1, a subdivision in the A. T. MILES SURVEY Abstract Number 556, Harris County, Texas, the Map or Plat of which having been filed for record in the Office of the County Clerk of Harris County, Texas on June 11, 1964, under County Clerk's File Number 903125-B and recorded in Volume 118, Page 6, of the Map Records of Harris County Texas do hereby dedicate forever to the public the streets shown on the Map of said subdivision for the purpose of ingress and egress subject to the control of said streets by the City of Houston, Texas, and do further dedicate for the use of all public utilities the easements shown on said plat for the purpose of installing, using, repairing, and maintaining water and sewer lines, electric light and telephone lines and gas mains.
And for the mutual benefit of present and future owners of property in said subdivision hereby fix certain restrictive covenants and conditions on the purchase, ownership and occupancy of lots in said subdivision and do hereby declare that said property is restricted as hereinafter set forth, and all sales of lots in said KEMPWOOD, SECTION 1, shall be subject to the covenants, restrictions and conditions hereinafter set forth:
1. Said lots shall be used for residence purposes only, and no business, professional or commercial use shall be made of any of said lots, even though such business, professional or commercial use be subordinate to use of said premises as a residence, and by way of illustration and not by way of limitation, the premises shall not be used for carrying on the trade or profession of a doctor, lawyer, dentist, engineer, geologist or geophysicist, accountant, contractor, barber, beauty operator, chiropractor, osteopath, radio or television repairman, automobile repairman, boatbuilder or boat repairman. It is further expressly provided that no activity shall be carried on upon any lot which might reasonably be considered as giving annoyance to neighbors of ordinary sensibilities and which might be calculated to reduce the desirability of the property as a residential neighborhood, even though such activity be in the nature of a hobby and not carried on for profit.
2. No structure other than one single-family residence and its outbuildings shall be constructed, placed on or permitted to remain on any building site nor shall a residential structure be erected, placed on or permitted to remain on any building site having an area of less than 5,250 square feet nor a width of less than 50 feet at the front building set-back line; provided, however, that any whole lot according to the plat of the subdivision named shall be considered to have the requisite frontage and area, regardless of its dimension.
3. No building shall be located on any lot or building site nearer to the front line or nearer the side street line than the minimum building setback lines shown on the plat. No building shall be located nearer to a side lot line than five (5) feet. A detached garage or other permitted accessory building 70 feet or more from the front lot line may be located not nearer than 3 feet to an inside line of the site. (Architectural Control Committee will not approve plans that do not have ten (10) feet between houses.)
4. Except when built as an integral part of the main dwelling, no garage or other outbuilding or any part thereof, may be erected or maintained which is not wholly within 35 feet of the rear line of the site upon which such building is erected and if erected on any corner lot, no part of such garage or outbuilding may be erected or maintained nearer to any side street that the main residence on the building site.
5. No dwelling structure having a main ground floor area of less than 1,000 square feet, exclusive of open porches and garages, shall be permitted. Exterior walls of the main dwelling and attached garages shall be at least 51% brick, brick veneer or other masonry. In computing the percentage, all gables, windows, and door openings shall be excluded in computing total exterior wall area, but walls of attached garages shall be included. Detached garages or other outbuildings, located within the limits prescribed by Paragraph 4, above, shall be built and designed to harmonize with the main dwelling and the colors of paint and type of exterior walls and roofing shall harmonize with the main dwelling. No such detached garage or other outbuildings having frame or other type exterior walls which are normally painted when used on the exterior dwelling shall be left unpainted, but shall be painted with at least two coats of paint.
6. No trash, ashes, or other refuse may be thrown on dumped on any lot.
7. No building material of any kind or character shall be stored on any lot until the owner is ready to commence improvements, and then such materials shall be placed within the property lines of the lot or site upon which the improvements are to be erected, and shall not be placed in the streets, or between the curb and property line.
8. Vegetation on each lot shall be kept mowed at regular intervals so as to maintain a neat and attractive appearance, and trees, shrubs, vines and plants which die shall be promptly removed.
9. No signs, advertisement, billboards, or advertising structure may be erected or maintained on any lot except that a sign not exceeding 15 square feet in area may be erected on the premises advertising the premises for sale or for rent.
10. No cattle, horses, mules, sheep, rabbits, hogs, poultry, or other animals or fowl other than ordinary household pets may be kept on any lot and no person shall keep either cats, dogs, birds, or other household pets in such quantity as to be reasonably calculated to annoy the neighbors, it being the sense of these restrictions that reasonable keeping of pets shall be permitted, but that the increase thereof must be removed from the premises with reasonable dispatch, and none may be kept, bred, or maintained for commercial purposes.
11. No privy, cesspool, tank, or disposal plant shall be erected or maintained on any lot.
12. No operation of any kind shall be conducted on any lot to explore for, produce, store, treat, or transport oil, gas or other minerals.
13. No fence, wall, or hedges shall be placed on any lot nearer to any street than the building set back line provided for the main building. Any fence, wall or hedge violating this provision shall be removed at the cost of the offending party.
14. No trailer, basement, tent, shack garage, servant's house or other outbuilding shall at any time be used as a residence, either permanently or temporarily nor shall any structure of a temporary character be used as a residence. Provided, however, that after erection of the main residence on any building site, servant's house or servant's quarters attached to the garage may be occupied by bona fide servants employed on the premises, but no servant's house or servant's quarters shall be used for rental purposes.
15. No trailer, trailer house, or boat shall be parked on any lot in front of any residence or attached garage or between any residence or garage and an abutting side street, or upon any street abutting any lot. This shall not be construed to prohibit a mere temporary standing or parking of a trailer, boat, or trailer house for short periods preparatory to taking same to some location outside the subdivision for use or storage, but the habitual parking or standing of boats, trailer houses, or trailers within the area specified shall be a violation of these restrictions. The parking or standing of motor vehicles on any lot in front of any residence other than on the driveway is likewise prohibited.
16. No building (whether it be main residence, garage, servant's house or outbuilding) shall be erected, placed or altered on any building site until the building plans, specifications, and plot plan showing the location of such building have been approved in writing as to conformity and harmony of external design with existing structures in the neighborhood and as to location of the building with respect to topography and finished ground elevation by a committee composed of T. W. MOHLE, JR., JAMES H. TIMMONS, and U. L. EDWARDS, or a representative designated by a majority of the members of said committee. In the event of death or resignation of any member of said committee, the remaining member or members shall have full authority to approve or disprove such design and location or to designate a representative with like authority. In the event said committee, or its designated representative fails to approve or disapprove such design and location within 30 days after said plans and specifications have been submitted to it, such approval will not be required and this covenant will be deemed to have been fully complied with. Neither the members of such committee, nor its designated representative shall be entitled to any compensation for services performed pursuant to this covenant. The powers and duties of such committee, and its designated representative, shall cease on and after October 1st, 1975. Thereafter, the approval described in this covenant shall not be required unless prior to said date and effective thereon, a written instrument shall be executed by the then record owners of a majority of the lots in said subdivision and duly recorded, appointing a representative or representatives, who shall, there after exercise the same powers previously exercised by said committee.
17. No building whatsoever shall be constructed on any lot that will have a roof or any portion thereof to extend over any easement. Neither the owners nor any utility company using the easement, affecting the lots shall be liable for damage done by them, their agents, servants, assigns, to shrubbery, trees, flowers, or other property situated within the limits of any utility easement. Owners expressly reserve the right for themselves, their heirs and assigns to construct and operate, maintain, repair, remove and replace utility lines on the street and easements, and it is expressly provided that erection and installation of any such lines and appurtenances in such utility easements or streets shall not constitute a dedication of such lines and appurtenances, either private or public, and that conveyance of a lot shall not convey any right to any utility lines located in any easement crossing or abutting such lot.
18. If any person should violate or attempt to violate any of the covenants, conditions, or restrictions, herein set forth, then any person or persons owning any of the lots in said subdivision shall have the right to prosecute any proceedings at law or inequity against the person or persons violating or attempting to violate same, and to compel compliance by injunction, both mandatory and prohibitory and to recover damage for the violation, or to have judgment both for injunction and for damages. Failure by any person to enforce any restrictions herein set forth, at the time of its violation shall in no event be deemed to be a waiver of the right to do so thereafter. Invalidation of any of these covenants by judgment or court order shall in nowise affect any other, which shall remain in full force and effect. Imposition of additional restrictions by zoning ordinance shall be cumulative of those set forth herein and shall never operate to impair or diminish the force and effect of these covenants, conditions and restrictions. For compliance with the provisions hereof, the offending party shall be liable for damages for all expenses incurred, including reasonable attorney's fees, by the complaining party or parties in any suit thereafter files for enforcing compliance herewith.
19. Provisions hereof shall be deemed covenants running with the lands and shall be binding on the Owner herein named, and all persons claiming under it until the 1st day of May 2010 at which time same shall be automatically extended for successive periods of ten years each unless by a vote of the majority of the then owners of the lots covered hereby it is agreed to change same in whole or part.
WITNESS OUR HANDS this the 17th day of July A.D., 1964.
ATTEST: FIDELITY TERRA CORPORATION
By: President
James H. Logan
W. H. Logan