Nearly 9 Years Later, Pebble Creek Turf War Still Entrenched: "TAMPA - After years of hearings, a weeklong jury trial, two appeals and costs running into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, a ruckus over who should pay to sod a lawn in a deed-restricted community is back to square one.
A three-judge panel in Hillsborough County Circuit Court has reinstated a lawsuit filed by Edward and Billye Simmons against the Pebble Creek Homeowners Association.
The judges overturned a jury verdict in favor of the association, a ruling awarding it $118,773.31 in attorney fees and costs, and a pending foreclosure against the couple's property."
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This account of a mind-boggling war of escalation and attrition was forwarded by Fred "Sky" Pilot. I just taught my condo law course at John Marshall Law School and talked about the Nahrstedt case, where a woman's refusal to give up three cats led to a major California Supreme Court decision. She lost. Some people say, "Why do these owners insist on fighting battles where the chance of winning is slim and they will lose a fortune in attorney fees even if they win? They must be crazy." But my view is that these folks are heroes and heroines who stand on principle, draw a line in the sand, and fight as long as the law allows. They keep the system honest--to the extent that is honest--and without them the lives of all those who live in CIDs would be more regimented, less free, and diminished in quality. The free riders enjoy an enhanced quality of life that is purchased by those who fight the system.
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