Editing Sea Ranch Lakes, Florida (section)

==Government==
Sea Ranch Lakes has seven village council members and one mayor. All elected officials serve two-year terms. The village was incorporated on October 6, 1959, because residents in the original gated community feared that they would be forcibly annexed by [[Fort Lauderdale]], [[Lauderdale-by-the-Sea]], or [[Pompano Beach]]. By incorporating itself as a municipality within [[Broward County, Florida|Broward County]], it can remain indefinitely autonomous. The village is unique in that it owns no property within its municipal borders. All roads, streets, parks, and lakes are private property owned by the Sea Ranch Beach Club. Because all property in the village is private land, the Sea Ranch Lakes Police Department is legally allowed to deny access to residential areas of the village to non-residents through the use of the village's main gate.

The Sea Ranch Beach Club owns all property within the village, including the oceanfront property on which the actual beach clubhouse and pool are built. The beach club has members who are elected to serve on its board of directors; they are responsible for maintaining all of the beach club's property, such as roads, street lights, and street signs. All major issues that affect the beach club must be voted upon by its members, and all residents of Sea Ranch Lakes are allotted one vote for each parcel of property he/she owns. There are annual membership dues to the Sea Ranch Lakes Beach Club that all residents must pay in addition to their annual property taxes. These membership dues to the beach club are used for capital improvements such as street repaving, painting of the beach club, and salaries of the employees that manage the beach club and maintain its property.