 |
 |
|
Fight building over fence A Dunedin homeowner vows not to move the fencing he put uparound his yard and pool in the Barrington Hills neighborhood. |
|
By
MEGAN SCOTT,
DUNEDIN - They say good fences make good neighbors.
But in one Dunedin subdivision, a wooden fence has created a dispute so contentious that the homeowners association has sued one of its own residents. His crime?
The fence is too close to the sidewalk.
It may sound frivolous. But not to the Barrington Hills Homeowners Association, which has spent thousands of dollars to hire a lawyer to force John Gracy to move his fence back. According to deed restrictions, fences must have a setback of at least 25 feet.
"Originally all we wanted was for him to move the fence back," said George Switak, president of the association. "If you walk down the corner of the block, you can see the way the fence sticks out. We're talking about moving it back 8 feet."
So far, Gracy has refused.
He and his wife, Wendy, moved into the 235-home neighborhood off State Road 580 a few months ago. They built the fence because they have a swimming pool in their back yard and small children.
Gracy said he checked with some of his neighbors and none of them said the fence would be a problem.
"I'm being a great neighbor," he said. "I asked them before I put it up. No one else has complained. This whole thing is just ridiculous."
Barrington Hills has been a deed-restricted community for more than 30 years. The rules, however, are pretty loose: no shacks in the yard, no garbage cans in plain view, and no boats permanently parked on the front yard.
And of course, the fence rule.
"No one wants to have their property value decreased," said Jack Burr, the resident who first noticed the fence. "When you buy a home, you enter into a contract with the other homeowners to obey the rules. If we don't enforce this, we're double-crossing our neighbors."
Although he is invoking the association's rules, Burr is one of several residents who in the past has opposed tougher deed restrictions. He filed suit against the homeowners association in 1998 when the organization wanted to implement tougher restrictions, such as house color and mandatory charges for things like private security.
He contended at the time that the association did not have the standing to enforce the old rules, much less the new ones. The stricter rules were never adopted.
But Burr, president of the National Seniors Benevolent Association, also a plaintiff in the suit, is now enforcing one of the old rules. At least with Gracy.
He said he warned Gracy that the fence was too close to the street. "I said, "You better not do that,"' Burr said. "He kept putting it up."
Even the association's attorney, Joseph Perlman, sent Gracy a letter telling him to move the fence within two weeks or else face a lawsuit.
The fence stayed.
And the two sides found themselves in a judge's chambers Tuesday.
Gracy was on one side of the table, with his father and brother, both lawyers representing him pro bono. Ironically, their firm is the same one that drafted the defunct deed restrictions in 1998. They have two weeks to convince the judge that their previous involvement is not a conflict of interest.
"There are seven other fences that have been in violation of the deed restrictions," said Gracy's brother, Andrew. "They just picked this one. If you don't enforce deed restrictions, then you waive them."
But the others haven't received complaints.
On the other side were Burr, Switak and Perlman.
Burr and Switak are hoping that if they win, Gracy will pay their legal fees. Membership in the homeowners association is voluntary, but most residents donate $25 a year.
"This is the first time we had to use some of our money to get a lawyer," said Switak. "Normally when an attorney writes a letter, it ends there. We thought he would move the fence." Perhaps the two sides can work it out.
But it doesn't look that way.
"I'm not moving it," Gracy said. "Let the court decide." |
|
|