HOAs Detract From Sense of Community

The Shadowmoss Plantation subdivision Homeowners Association (HOA) members are embroiled in a battle over the board of directors’ actions and the practices of the management company that oversees the 647 homes in the neighborhood.
The controversy started brewing at the Nov. 2015 HOA annual meeting, when several members became aware of checks being signed by management company Marshland Communities. The HOA guidelines require all checks to be signed by the HOA board President and Treasurer, which was allegedly not being done. There was also a claim that the 2014 purchase of a vacant lot at Shadowmoss and Muirfield parkways was done without a vote of the membership.
Longtime Shadowmoss homeowner Rebecca O’Grady became concerned with the perceived lack of oversight and transparency within the elected HOA board and banded with other homeowners to gather signatures to hold a special election for the seven-member board. “Many of us had never met before (the 2015 HOA board annual meeting), and we decided to do something positive,” O’Grady said. “We want a mandate to improve the neighborhood.”
The group started the website Shadowmess.com and organized a door-to-door petition drive to gather petition signatures. It succeeded in surpassing the threshold of 162 signatures needed for a special election, which will take place at 6 pm  on Wed., Oct. 12 at Bees Landing Recreation Center, 1580 Ashley Gardens Blvd.
According to the Shadowmoss HOA bylaws, 325 homeowner votes are needed to remove current board members and replace them with new ones. One vote is allowed per household. The Register of Deeds office will verify that voters are registered homeowners. The bylaws also require that voting members have paid their annual $200 HOA dues.
The current Shadowmoss HOA board sued Marshland Communities in March for misappropriating funds, joining nearly 50 other Lowcountry subdivisions. Several months later, the board hired Community Management Group (CMG). At the September HOA board monthly meeting held at St. Andrews Parish United Methodist Church, O’Grady blasted the board for not investigating CMG. She noted that the management firm had settled two lawsuits on charges of fiscal mismanagement.
Some Shadowmoss homeowners have expressed reservations about CMG’s aggressive system of inspections and fines for citations many believe are not included in the neighborhood covenants.  These residents claim that CMG inspectors have issued fines for such violations as having a basketball hoop in the driveway or not edging their sidewalks properly.
At the September monthly meeting, the HOA board committed to suspending the aggressive inspection and fine system. The board also voted to sell the vacant lot purchased in 2014.
Former Shadowmoss HOA President Steve Taylor thinks that is a positive development.  “We need to focus on our priorities,” he said. “Our HOA should focus on the serious problems we face like drainage and road maintenance that are not getting addressed.”
Current HOA board member Mike Duck, who has been heavily fined for building an addition to his home, thinks the scope of the management company should be limited. “All they need to do is maintain the five entrances to the subdivision and let neighbors be neighbors,” he said.
Another issue some homeowners have with the management company is incurring large legal fees for placing liens on properties and initiating foreclosure proceedings. During the past two years, there were 18 documented property liens and 11 documented foreclosure proceedings, costing the HOA more than $39,000 in legal fees. Allegedly one of the homeowners being pursued is a disabled World War II veteran.
I personally live in Sandhurst, one of West Ashley’s older neighborhoods, which does not have an HOA. We do have the voluntary Sandhurst Civic Association. The neighborhood was built without formal entrances or common areas. Neighbors look out for each other.
We had a situation years ago with a renter who kept a Monster Truck in the driveway and burned leaves in barrels in the back yard. Neighbors confronted the tenant about the objectionable conduct and called the property owner to report it. His lease was not renewed.
What makes West Ashley such a great place to live are the great neighborhoods and neighbors who work things out among themselves. While I understand the role of HOAs in neighborhoods with common areas, they need to maintain a sense of community.
John Steinberger is the former chairman of the Charleston County Republican Party, a leading Fair Tax advocate, and a West Ashley resident. He can be reached at John.steinberger@scfairtax.org.