Hi,
We recently raised our backyard block wall by one block with the agreement of all adjoining neighbors. The original neighbor, who was on the board, first approached us about this action and we did ask if that would be OK with the HOA and he replied with yes, as long as all surrounding neighbors agreed. That neighbor moved without us moving forward on the project and the new neighbor moved in with the same ask. We agreed and decided that for continuity, privacy and security (not just for us, but also for our adjoining neighbors), we would want to do all 3 walls. We hired professionals to do the work, they made sure the extra block was structurally sound and did a very nice job. Everyone was pleased with the outcome except for the neighbor directly behind us, who also did not participate in the cost. She said the one corner looked awful so we brought the workers back in to fix it, but in the meantime she went to the HOA board to complain and was told that we did not have approval. She didn’t like the fact that now her other walls were not the same height – like she hadn’t thought of that in the beginning. She stopped speaking to us and told us to deal with the HOA. They have sent us, along with several other families, a letter stating the wall needs to be taken down. Mind you a good portion of the neighborhood has raised walls and we have yet to hear if they all received HOA approval. The next HOA meeting is coming up and we are preparing to state our case, but it feels like their minds are already made up even though we appealed and asked for a variance. I have asked for meeting minutes for the past 6 months and have been told they are on the website, but can’t seem to find them. Was also told that meeting minutes from the closed session meetings of the board were not available to me? Is that true, even with redaction for personal information? Sorry this is so long, but would appreciate any input. Thank you.