Their Name Is Mud Right Out Of The Gate(d Community)

This happened to my family some years ago.

Our house was in a brand-new development, in a brand-new gated community, so while everything was complete by the time we moved in, the ground had been bulldozed for building on and was very loose. None of the landscaping or yard plants had been established with a good root system yet. If you don’t know what a silt fence is, you can look it up, but its purpose is to help retain soil on disturbed land. The builders had left the silt fence along our fence/stone wall, along with strong recommendations to leave it for a while so the ground could settle.

There was a heavy rainstorm that fall, and we were on a higher elevation, so a thin layer of mud soiled the concrete patio of the house behind us. Our neighbors complained and threw petty fits because their precious patio got all muddy. They demanded that our silt fence be removed.

We tried to explain that the silt fence should remain until some further landscaping could be done to hold back the earth.

They were having none of it and went so far as to get the HOA (Homeowners Association) involved, darkly hinting that they would sue if necessary. (For what, I don’t know, as mud on concrete isn’t exactly damaging.)

The HOA deliberated, and they even pointed out that the silt fence was highly recommended to be kept in place for some time longer. The HOA board was fully aware of the reason for the silt fence, and they distributed diagrams that showed why the fence was important in this newly developed area.

The neighbors weren’t interested in hearing the (unusually reasonable and practical) advice of the HOA board. There was mud! Mud on their precious, pristine patio! They didn’t want to hear about using a hose to just rinse it off! The mud was there because of the silt fence, and they wanted that fence removed!

The HOA board shrugged their communal shoulders and decided to give the order for us to remove it. I’m almost positive I saw some deviously evil smirks on the board members’ faces.

We obliged because it didn’t matter, and really, our neighbors were the ones who decided to f*** around. A board member came by to take pictures showing that we had, in good faith, followed directions.

The next rainstorm happened just a week after we removed the silt fence. This was the Finding Out part. With nothing to hold back the loose earth, their entire backyard and kitchen were flooded with mud and water.

They complained again to the HOA, who shrugged and pointed out that they were the ones who had demanded the silt fence be removed. They showed, again, the diagrams showing how the silt fence used to channel all that water and mud away from their house, and that the mess on the porch had been a very minor nuisance by comparison. This time, the HOA sided with us, pointedly referencing how this had already been explained to them and that all damages were now on the neighbors’ shoulders.

We left the HOA meeting grinning; nothing is better than malicious compliance, especially since we won’t suffer at all.