Purpose

The Kingstonian is the primary means of communicating essential legal and community information to the owners and residents of the Kingstowne Residential Owners Corporation (KROC).  This monthly publication is a private instrument of Kingstowne, under the authority of the Board of Trustees, and not a commercial venture with free editorial discretion.  As such, the Kingstonian shall report community news and information on issues affecting Kingstowne residents and their responsibilities.  All information shall be reported in a nonpartisan, balanced, and objective manner.

General Guidelines

The Kingstonian will conform to the governing documents of Kingstowne as well as the policies and procedures as established by the Board of Trustees.

The Kingstonian will be written fairly and objectively to represent diverse opinions among residents.

A reasonable attempt will be made to verify sources of information and report facts accurately.

The Kingstonian will not actively endorse any religion, creed, or political candidate, though paid advertising can be accepted from places of worship and political candidates.

Name, address, email address, and phone number must accompany all submitted articles. The author’s name and affiliation are normally printed with an article.  However, if the individual requests, in writing, that the name is to be withheld, this request will be honored.

The Editor has the obligation and right to edit any and all submitted articles for length, form, style, accuracy, balance of presentation, and general adherence to these policies.  Priority for publication will be given to items of legal or financial nature that affect home ownership and other materials of significance to the majority of the community.

Executive Director shall be the final judge as to what material will be published in the Kingstonian.  The Editor may seek clarifications of policy from the Executive Director of KROC.

Content Guidelines
Board Highlights:  A summary of the previous month’s board meeting shall appear in the Kingstonian.

Trustee Articles:  Space will be provided, as needed, for information from the officers or members of the Board of Trustees.

KROC and Community Information:  A listing of the trustees shall be displayed in all issues of the Kingstonian.  This listing will also provide KROC office and staff information, and other helpful phone numbers.  Additionally, requests from groups wishing to be added to an important phone listing must be submitted to the Editor in writing.

Architectural Review Committee (ARC) Articles/Information:  Monthly space will be allocated to ARC articles and/or other ARC-related information.  Submissions will be accepted in writing from members of the ARC, Board of Trustees, and/or the KROC ARC staff.

Committee, Task Force, and Neighborhood Advisory Board Articles:  Each active committee, task force, or Neighborhood Advisory Board (NAB) will be encouraged to submit articles, notices, photos, etc., which will be published as space permits.  Submissions will be accepted in writing from the group chairperson or a designated group representative.

Kingstowne Time-Sensitive Notices and Information:  All applicable, time-sensitive Kingstowne notices/information will be published in the Kingstonian.  This includes meeting and trash collection schedules, Kingstowne events and registration forms, volunteer recruitment, and special trustee announcements.  Requests for the publication of additional time-sensitive material shall be submitted in writing to the editor.

Monthly Calendar:  The calendar will display KROC business meetings and events.

Pertinent County and State News:  Articles from county and state agencies and elected officials representing Kingstowne are welcomed, and may be accepted and published when pertinent.  There will be no publication guarantee for these submissions.

Routine County Regulations:  County regulations will be published in the Kingstonian periodically, and also upon request when pertinent.

Kingstowne Fitness and Activity Programs:  Space will be allocated for Kingstowne’s fitness and activity program announcements.  Class locations, times, dates, fees, and registration information will be published in addition to program descriptions.  Instructors wishing to publish additional advertising may do so at the regular advertising rates.

School News:  Monthly school news will be accepted, though it may be omitted from publication when space is limited.

Kingstowne Babysitting List:  Every effort will be made to publish a Kingstowne Babysitting list regularly.

Car Pool List:  Every effort will be made to publish a Kingstowne Car Pool list regularly.

Non-Kingstowne Clubs, Organizations, and Events:  Free notices and short articles about non-Kingstowne clubs, organizations, and events may be published for community groups, not for an individual person, as space permits.  These free notices are not available to businesses wishing to promote the sale of their goods or services.  Businesses wishing to solicit customers need to purchase paid advertisements.

Other:  Any other submissions approved by the Editor and the Executive Director will be published when space permits.

Classified Ads and Display Advertisements 

Paid advertising is the responsibility of the Publisher, Marlborough Publishing. Advertisers must submit display ads directly to Marlborough Publishing.  Placement of ads is at the discretion of the Publisher, in compliance with the KROC guidelines (herein) and the contract between the Publisher and KROC.  As a courtesy to residents, classified advertisements may be placed at the Kingstowne Business Office.

Who May Place Paid Advertising?  The Kingstonian welcomes paid advertisements from businesses, organizations, and individuals, to include political candidates and places of worship, using the following guidelines:

•  Distinction Between "Articles" and "Paid Advertisements"—If, during the proofing process, any member of the publication team or KROC staff indicates an advertisement could be mistaken for an article, the phrase "Paid Advertisement" will mark the bottom of the advertisement.

•  Negative Advertising—Advertising against a product, person, service, or group will not be accepted.

•  Other Types of Unacceptable Ads—Content the Publisher or KROC believes is obscene, libelous, slanderous, or inflammatory will not be accepted.   In addition, businesses advertising services in direct competition with KROC’s WTS programs may not include coupons with prices in their ads.

Decision-Making Process:  In situations where there is a question about whether a paid advertisement meets these guidelines, the Publisher will consult with the Editor and with the Executive Director.  KROC will have the ultimate authority to decide if an ad is unacceptable based on these guidelines.

•  Disclaimer That Printing an Ad or Article is NOT an Endorsement:  The following Disclaimer is printed on page 2 of every issue of the Kingstonian: "Kingstowne Residential Owners Corporation and Marlborough Publishing reserve all rights to exercise their sole discretion concerning the inclusion of all material herein.  The inclusion herein of advertisements, articles or references to the Web sites of third parties does not indicate an endorsement by Kingstowne Residential Owners Corporation or Marlborough Publishing of the goods, services, materials, or information of the third party.  Unless explicitly stated otherwise, Kingstowne Residential Owners Corporation and Marlborough Publishing are not affiliated with these third parties."

•  Suspension of Advertising Privileges:  KROC reserves the right to suspend advertising privileges for a period to be determined by the Executive Director once two written resident complaints have been made against an individual advertiser within a one year period and/or issues arise involving fraudulent activity or a breach of contract.

Display Advertising Rates: Advertising rates will be established by the Publisher and are available at the Business Office.  Rates will not change during the calendar year.

Letters to the Editor

Letters to the editor will not be published in the Kingstonian.

We encourage residents to submit questions to the Editor, to KROC, or to their NAB representatives. KROC members or residents in good standing may submit questions to the Kingstonian.  They must be accompanied by the author’s name, phone number, address, and e-mail address.

Depending on the question, the KROC staff or Kingstonian Editor will respond to the resident directly or will print a response to the question.  For complex questions, a feature article about the issue may be researched and published.  Every effort will be made to keep these responses balanced and fair. 

The Kingstonian will regularly print a disclaimer advising that we reserve the right to print and/or respond to questions at our sole discretion and that questions, like all other submissions, may be edited.