Drought Mismanagement

In times of drought, conservation is the prevailing idea, or should be. One North Carolina homeowners' associations didn't get the memo. Check out this story that ran in the News & Record.

Or just read the gist:

Ultimately, the association decided that Fontaine can keep the mulch in her backyard, but that the front needs grass.

If she doesn’t plant it, Fontaine could find herself invited to a formal violation hearing. The board could impose fines beginning at $25 a day and rising to $100 a day, Sluder said.

It remains to be seen how the current drought recommendations bill that just passed in the short session will affect this situation, though the bill does limit the ability of homeowners' associations from fining constituents that conserve. Also, according to the story, the association's statutes don't expressly include anything approaching "must have lawn."

According to Christa Wagner, a lobbyist for Sierra Club, that fight involved a contest “between common sense and aesthetics.”