Condo association's history effects its corporate structure and operations

We recently bought a condo in a large gated community association. We just learned that there is a 66-unit lease-hold apartment complex within our gates at our entrance (the land on which it sits is owned by a man in Hong Kong). They share our community facilities for a monthly fee per apartment unit. The problem: the apartment corporation is allowed to participate in our membership voting as if it belonged to our Condo Owners Association. They don't.

The County identifies their building as an apartment. Before 1991, 396 condos were noted in our Condo Association bylaws. In 1991, that count was increased by 66, the exact number of the apartment's units. Long-time owners report that in 1991 a large bank foreclosed on the apartment. That bank sued each condo owner individually. It would drop the lawsuits if the owners voted to annex the apartments. So they all did. The bank wanted a controlling voice in the Condo Association's fees charged for use of common areas. With 66 votes, they threatened to removed Board members if they didn't vote the way the Bank demanded. My question is, now that we know the situation, how can we get the apartment complex removed from the voting process without it costing a fortune in legal fees? How do we get our condos' total number corrected back to 396?

Our condo association bylaws definition of a condo clearly matches the legal definition pursuant to California code. The apartment building doesn't meet the definition. Because they are now part of our total numbers, our rental rate is too high. No HUD/FHA loans are allowed. We definitely need advice. Help.