Parents in a South Carolina neighborhood voiced their concerns after their HOA banned any sports-related activities in common grassy areas. They even went so far as to plant trees in the middle of the largest common area where kids play sports like football.
The HOA claims that any “organized” activity in the common area can become a liability while parents say the actions stop their kids from getting outdoors and having fun. The Creekhaven neighborhood has five grassy common areas, the largest one located off of Wind Whisper Circle.
“It’s just a bunch of 5- to 9-year-olds coming to play,” resident Camila Denshuick told WMBF News. “There’s nothing organized about it. There is nothing sponsored about it.”
One resident said the common areas were spaces for community and conversation where neighbors could chat, get to know each other, and have their kids play together in the fresh air.
“The whole environment becomes like this nurturing community for your kids to come up in. The parents all get along, and it’s what you always dreamed of, honestly, when you think of a neighborhood,” Resident Marty Whitten said.
Parents told the outlet that the frustration started after a handful of HOA members and residents banded together to ban kids from using the space for sports-related activities. Some parents were notified through a cease-and-desist letter; others found out while passing by and watching as trees were planted.
“It’s an egregious use of power, I believe,” Denshuick said. “The fact that the HOA can just come out here and say, ‘you’re not using this land, you’re not using this property.’”
While no one from the actual HOA has commented on the issue, HOA president Jimmy Walsh sent a letter to residents, which residents shared with News13.
The letter claimed that the common area was being used for activities it was not “designed” for children and their parents holding sports scrimmages with music and food.
Walsh stated after four failed attempts to talk with parents, the board decided to regulate the area, which it has a right to do.
“Being outside, being in a common area, we are paying for the upkeep of the common area,” resident Karl Eversmeyer said. “We have just as much right as anybody else to be here.”
Parents said the best solution would be to come to a compromise with the board or to take a vote. Many said they would continue to let their kids play, even with trees in place.
“[It] makes us feel really upset because, if we can’t play here, it’s like that we’re not welcome,” said Charlotte Messer, a young resident.
What are parents supposed to do when society is telling them to get their kids outside but no, no not like that! Damned if we do and damned if we don’t!
