Runnymede Estates Homeowners Association

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Dues-starved subdivisions aren't doing swimmingly

By REBECCA MCCARTHY
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 06/26/05
There's only one group enjoying the pool at the Creekside Crossing subdivision in Lawrenceville this summer.

Tadpoles.


JEAN SHIFRIN / Staff
(ENLARGE)
Arlene Knox looks at the frogs and tadpoles that inhabit the swimming pool at the Creekside subdivision.


NICK ARROYO / Staff
(ENLARGE)
Sharry Weiss has seen her pool dues at Rivercliff go up while the number of people using it has dropped. Her subdivision has removed the diving board and cut back on the hours a lifeguard is on duty.

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Thousands of the little critters swim happily through wisps of green algae. Tepid water is cooled by a blue tarp covering a few pool lanes. Brown slime covers the tile on the steps.

For the first time in 20 years, the neighborhood's homeowners association can't afford to open the Creekside swimming pool. An insufficient number of the 108 households have paid the voluntary $350 annual dues needed to maintain the Junior Olympic-sized pool, so the chain-link fence around it remains locked.

"It reflects the way the neighborhood demographics have changed," said Arlene Knox, the association president. "I know it will affect our house values, especially near the pool. But it's voluntary, and we can't force people to pay."

Other subdivisions across Gwinnett are having similar aquatic problems.

Nob Hill in Snellville reports dues are lagging behind. Pool president Karen Stymer has watched the pool membership drop from 132 in 2003 to about 70 this year.

Rivercliff resident Sharry Weiss says her subdivision has removed the diving board and cut back on the hours a lifeguard is on duty. The changes have made it difficult for her to relax and enjoy the pool when her grandsons accompany her and a lifeguard isn't there.

Residents of Plantation Swim and Racquet Club are holding a fund-raising pool party and barbecue on July 2 to raise money for their Lawrenceville subdivision and save their swimming pool.

The financial situation is only going to get worse for neighborhoods that don't make membership in their homeowners' association mandatory, according to attorney George Nowack.

His firm, Weissman, Nowack, Curry and Wilco, has 13 offices throughout metro Atlanta and represents over 1,500 property owners associations in Georgia.

Housing developments with voluntary pool memberships date from the 1970s and 1980s, he said. In the past 10 years, most new housing developments have required residents to belong to the homeowners' association — and to support whatever amenities are available, such as a swim and tennis club.

"The problem with these older subdivisions is that you don't have any comfort," said Nowack. "You have budgeting issues all the time. As subdivisions mature, kids grow up and move away and you have fewer people joining the association and paying the fees."

Without a set amount of money coming in, an association can't budget for expenses such as pool or tennis court maintenance. If things continue to deteriorate, in some cases an association may not be able to pay liability insurance or real estate taxes.

Nowack recounted a case from the Washington, D.C.-metro area. An individual bought the streets in a subdivision on the courthouse steps after the homeowners association didn't pay the real estate taxes. When the buyer threatened to put up a toll, the subdivision residents had to pony up enough money to buy back their roads.

"It hasn't happened here, but it's looming," Nowack said. "The message is that even if you're not going to maintain an amenity, you have to pay taxes for it or you may lose it."

Some subdivisions are taking steps to move from a voluntary to a mandatory system.

The Woods of Parkview in Lilburn was initially set up with a homeowners association and another association for the pool and clubhouse. As the neighborhood matured, fewer people chose to join the pool.

Working with Nowack, the two memberships voted to merge. Then the board set a budget, determining that a minimum of 150 dues-paying members were needed to keep the neighborhood attractive and the pool useful. They found more than 150 homeowners willing to join the association.

"A neighborhood swimming pool can add as much as $20,000 to the value of your house," Nowack said. "If people walk away, you're left with an eyesore that will detract from the value."

Arlene Knox knows her frog-filled neighborhood pool isn't helping house values. She also knows Creekside has changed markedly since it was built in the late 1980s.

International residents, many of whom don't speak English, have moved in. They may not understand how a homeowners association functions or why they should join. Older residents on fixed incomes can't afford the dues. Still other homeowners are dealing with tough economic times, such as bankruptcy or layoffs at work.

"There's an interest in making the membership mandatory, but that needed to happen when the neighborhood started," Knox said. "There's an interest in changing [to mandatory membership], but it's about a two-year process."

She was worried about the pool sitting idle this summer. So she called the Gwinnett Cooperative Extension Service, hoping to give the pool to the Master Gardeners. When the Extension Service declined, Knox tried the Gwinnett Parks and Recreation Department, but officials there said no. As did the Red Cross and several pool management companies. She also thought about filling in the pool and using it for a community garden or a playground.

Next year, the board of the homeowners association plans to sell memberships to people who don't live in Creekside Crossing.

"I understand why some people can't join," Knox said. "But I do think it's sad.

"The pool is in our neighborhood, and people should help pay for it."





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