This post is my response to the discussion held at the last RA meeting (which I missed due to IRL conflicts).
It seems some individuals argue against enforcing covenants, as if (based on comments that I am reading):
1. the concept of covenants were a bad thing,
OR
2. covenants should be ignored in certain cases, but "certain cases" is ambiguous.
I will admit, when I first came to CDS at the behest of my friends who were already here, I had misgivings about any place with strict covenants. I personally suspected such a place would stifle creativity by placing undue limits on what one might do with one's own parcel. What I discovered instead, was that the limits gave me a fulcrum upon which I could lever my inspiration by problem solving how to achieve what I wanted while staying within the boundaries of covenant. I bought books on Roman construction and scoured the Internet for ideas. The CDS covenants set me on paths of creation that I might otherwise never have discovered, and made me a much better builder much faster than I would otherwise have become. I had a similar experience in another set of sims with covenants, the Duche du Coeur, based on pre-revolutionary France. I had wanted to open a dress shop there and so did some research and designed a line of clothing based on Regency styles, forcing me to solve the physics of an empire gown prim skirt, which turned out to be unique enough that it built my reputation as a dress designer.
The obvious benefit of covenants is they keep the sims attractive and pleasant for everyone, which is something newcomers appreciate as well. If the current covenants are too restrictive or out of step with what citizens prefer, then they can be changed, but I would not abolish them; which leads me to discussing the second point.
Covenants should be equally applied to everyone, otherwise the ambiguity comes across (& may actually be) preferential treatment. The appearance of preferential treatment makes people nervous; both for existing residents and potential citizens. Potential citizens visiting the sim and seeing a flagrant covenant variance will hesitate...and in the current climate of SL, where there are plenty of private sim communities to choose from, they may just quietly move on and we (CDS) never even know we lost a potential citizen.
That said, what I have witnessed most often is that people violate covenant because a) they don't know about it, and/or b) they don't have the SL-specific knowledge to know that there are better options. I have observed there is often an assumption that people "know better" and/or "know how" and it turns out they really do not. So perhaps the key is not so much a "policing" type enforcement but an educational approach. This is an approach that has been suggested often. I would also like to suggest this educational approach instead of the turning a blind-eye when the ambiguity suits.
Covenants are also - as I said before - an opportunity for education and creativity. For example, in 2010, one of my friends was uncomfortable with the umbrellas and volleyball net on the beach in Locus Amoenus and the discussion made it to the forums (http://forums.slcds.info/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=2784). Upon revisiting that thread, I thought I'd do some research.
It turns out that umbrellas as protection from the sun have been around for over 4000 years and umbrellas looking much like the ones we have today except made of leather or feathers, were QUITE common in Roman times (http://www.forumromanum.org/life/johnston_7.html#266). So it might have been nice to modify the umbrellas to look less like modern Italy and more like ancient Roman umbrellas, but the umbrellas could certainly have stayed on the beach.
Same with the volleyball net. Although there is no record of a volleyball type game specifically in Rome; ancient Romans loved to play with balls, especially games that involved keeping the balls in the air. It is easy to imagine someone stringing a line between two pillars and making up a game with a ball similar to our modern volleyball. (http://www.forumromanum.org/life/johnston_9.html#318)
When Gwyn suggested using the Thermae for her discussions and people were talking about bathing suits, I did some research then too. It turns out (as you probably guessed) Romans bathed nude and divided the sexes (women only - men only), which would not do for a CDS meeting, so I found a frieze from Pompeii and modified it into a one piece ladies swimming suit, just for fun. If you'd like one, just ask and I'll be happy to give you a copy.
So, in closing, I'd like to encourage seeing covenants as opportunities to learn. If covenants do not serve, they should be revisited. The goal, ultimately is for the Law to grease the wheels of neighborliness and friendships.
Speaking of which, I do have one change I would like to put forth, although it is a lot of work. At present, in Locus Amoenus and Colonia Nova, citizens are responsible for leaving specified easements on their parcels. For example, the parcel I own in Colonia Nova has a 5 meter wide easement requirement, which (since every parcel has 4 sides) means there is a 10 meter swathe between every parcel. I notice that all my neighbors have built nothing or very little, so I am guessing I am not the only one who finds this overly-restrictive. I suggest reparceling so that the easements are government land (as Linden did with Nautilus) and landowners can build to their property lines. Citizens already have to deal with the no-terraforming rules and that, combined with the easements, can make it well-nigh impossible to do much with a parcel except make a park.
If this is too much, might I suggest the easement be reduced and also made to be in sync with SL land parcel measurements, being in increments of 4 meters or fractions thereof (i.e. 2 meters, as they are in Locus Amoenus) because 5 meters is just too weird 
.
Thank you for your kind attention.
