GUTHRIE, Okla. – Daniel Gustafosn says the mulch piles in his neighborhood are a nuisance.
We found chunks of concrete, trash and sharp metal objects.
Some homeowners in the Hidden Oaks development worry about their kids getting hurt.
Parent, Michael Silamianos, said, “I’ve already seen kids on the top with their bicycles rolling down.”
Bottom line is they want the large mulch piles gone.
Developer, Rocky Clark, dumped the mulch on the property.
Right now he controls the Hidden Oaks Homeowners Association, which is a common thing for developers to do, until all of the homes are sold.
Clark didn’t want to go on-camera with us, but says another neighbor he appointed to the HOA board came to him with the idea to use the mulch for erosion control.
Technically the homeowners own the mulch and the lot were the mulch sits, but Gustafosn says there was never a vote or meeting for them to attend and voice their concerns.
He said, “Even as a board member, you can’t unilaterally decide to accept this much material.”
Gustafosn filed a complaint with the Department of Environmental Quality.
The DEQ says the mulch is just fine for erosion control and only found a minor violation which the developer was quick to correct.
The HOA doesn’t have the extra cash to pay someone to haul it off either.
So we’ve been going back and forth between the developer, the HOA board and neighbors.
Several companies want the mulch and should be coming to pick it up in the coming weeks.
That still doesn’t resolve things with the homeowners association.
Gustafosn and the others want the developer to hand over the board.
He said, “We want our own elected representatives and not the people he’s had placed in there for the last 5, 6, 7 years.”
We’ve learned Rocky Clark will hand over the HOA to homeowners real soon.
A meeting is scheduled for Saturday and the new board should be voted in early next month.
