My HOA is ordering me to remove my Egg from the property

JRWhitee said:

THEBuckeye said:

Speaking of HOA overreach, this is my 'hood:

5/22/2015 10:42:34 AM

On December 19, 2014, I filed a lawsuit in Fulton County Magistrate Court naming the Laurel Springs HOA, Inc. as Defendant.  My claim was that the HOA improperly fined me $750 for making left turns from Windsor Hill Passage onto Old Atlanta Road.  I considered it improper because the HOA’s authority to regulate traffic and impose fines ends at the Laurel Springs property line, and does not extend into the public right-of-way.  I pointed this out to the property manager, the HOA Board, and the HOA's attorneys multiple times, but the Board would not refund my $750.

On April 20, 2015, the case was heard at trial before Judge Walter Lovett in Fulton County.  The judge agreed with me and ordered the HOA to pay $750, effectively refunding the money I paid in fines.  I received a check on May 19, 2015.

If you were cited and fined for this alleged offense, you probably are eligible for a refund too. Please share this information with your neighbors who may not read this message board.   I expected the Board would inform everyone and proactively issue refunds, but I have not seen any indication of this, aside from my own individual refund.  I am happy to answer any questions or provide details, either on this message board or by private email.

Finally, please think about the expense the HOA incurred defending this lawsuit and the possibility of paying higher insurance premiums after losing at trial.  This was never even a close call, and it should not have required that I file a lawsuit.  The Board chose to rely on legal advice that was factually and demonstrably flawed, even though any neutral non-lawyer looking at the facts could see the error.   I politely pointed this out in writing and in person (including supporting documentation) several times but it had no effect.   The Board had established its position and apparently decided these facts were just too inconvenient.

I sincerely appreciate the hard work and good intentions of the volunteer HOA Board.   Unfortunately, I believe “groupthink” and emotions took over the Board’s deliberations.   Certainly the Board needs to address homeowner concerns about traffic, but must strive to operate within the limits of the HOA Bylaws, Covenants, and state law.  Dissenting or alternative opinions should not merely be tolerated, but actually be considered in a thoughtful and careful manner.  Legal advice ought to be challenged and questioned, especially when it does not sound right.  Please encourage the Board to exercise caution when creating new rules, imposing fines, and enforcing the covenants.  Preventable mistakes can be very expensive. Thank you.

Isnt Laurel Springs in Forsyth county?

fishlessman said:

SmyrnaGA said:

fishlessman said:

table 4 shows that 80 percent of bbq related residential fires are sourced from gas with 17.5 percent from solid fuels. eggs dont accumulate grease like gassers either, grease fires are horrible with gassers and those are the fires that send people to the emergency room, no mention of that in this report, had an 70 year old neighbor lose the skin from his elbow down to his finger tips when his daughter tried to pull him away from the grill fire, the skin just slid right off, nasty fire
https://www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/statistics/v11i1.pdf

also point out the fire screen on the lower vent and that you could build a fire arrester for the top even though its not needed, all you would need is a stack of expanded metal under the daisy to allow air flow and stop sparks, thats how they do it in camp stoves for use in a tent

What are 'Other Power Sources'???

lots of ways to light a fire near a grill, battery from fan unit melts a wire or comes in contact with steel wool whiskey drink in sun magnifies sunlight and lights papertowel on fire, someone leaves a propane tank in a bucket of gasoline and drops a match, can of starting fluid next to a citrinella candle gets punctured by a bbgun you should see what happens if you light a citrenella candle bucket and just drop it in a lake to put it out, it explodes with fire thirty feet high and lights everything on fire, thats the reason they put the tiny little sticker on the bottom of the can telling you not to do that

jonnymack said:

Curious, was that LinkedIn thing your neighbor? She described a run-in, any truth to her account? I can certainly respect not wanting to have smoke fill your house but that just sucks that they are messing with your freedom to cook great food. Maybe the garage/driveway workaround is the solution. 

Right now, I have no problems with any of my immediate neighbours, if anyone of them was to come over and complain about my egg I would try to be accommodating (As long as they were being polite in their request.  If they came over and were complete dicks about it, something completely different).  If you are not accommodating, then you are such being a **** yourself.

Legume said:

Good info @DieselkW but does that account for the % of home grills that are gas vs wood & charcoal?  I wonder if gas grills outsell charcoal in the home market and the rate is actually similar.  Either way, find the stat that presents the strongest argument and use that.

I haven't read all of the posts, but may want to consider asking the fire marshal for sources of reference info.

Also, I would consider asking HOA for listing of all variances they've granted in past few years.  In my experience, these are not usually visible to the casual homeowner, just a matter of record between the board and homeowner.

Hotch said:

Wow you can smoke pot and not a butt.

Class_of_75 said:

Trying to think ahead here: is anyone aware of a propane conversion kit for the BGE?