POA attorney staying busy with lawsuits
Lawsuits related to the fire in a former stump dump are keeping the POA’s attorney Doug McCash busy. So far there are two active suits, but others could be filed at any time.
In November 2018, two residents, Curtis and Tiffany Macomber, who live near the stump dump filed a law suit alleging that Brown’s Tree Service, the POA and Blue Mountain Storage were responsible for the underground fire that created hazardous conditions.
The stump dump was operated from 2003 to 2016 by the POA on land that was leased from Blue Mountain Storage. The stump dump was a convenience for builders and residents in the area who needed to dispose of organic matter including fall leaves.
When the fire was discovered burning underground in July 2018, Brown’s Tree Service had purchased the land.
The Macomber’s lawsuit claims that smoke from the fire was harming them and their children. A trial is scheduled for April 2021, McCash said.
The POA contacted their insurance carriers, but Philadelphia Insurance denied the claim, so the POA is suing them. General Manager Tom Judson reported the claims to the board of directors in July 2019.
In May 2019, the POA learned
from the state that they were considered a “potential responsible party” and would be responsible for some of the costs of extinguishing the fire. They took over the project in order to save both time and money. In early June the fire was declared out.
The POA did not accept responsibility for the fire, McCash pointed out; they only accepted the responsibility of putting out the fire. It may take a lot of time to determine responsibility, he said.
Last month a new lawsuit was filed by members Michael and Amie Armstrong against former board members. Only one current board member, Chairwoman Ruth Hatcher, was on the board when the stump dump was operating. The lawsuit contends that the board members made a series of bad decisions about the stump dump. Although they didn’t file the lawsuit or even know it was about to be filed, the POA will benefit if the suit is successful, McCash said. The association might be reimbursed for the $4 million that was spent to put the fire. That money could come from insurance policies that protect board members from liability associated with board decisions.
The POA sent a form to the former members named so they could alert the insurance company that provided coverage for the board decisions. One of the former directors, Jim Parsons, refused to sign the form.
“I am not signing your document request dated January 7, 2019, because, I was never officially a member of the Bella Vista Property Owners Association (BVPOA) Board of Directors,” he said in a written statement on Jan. 15. ‘To be an official board of directors member, a newly elected candidate is required to sign a loyalty oath pledging allegiance to the officers of the POA and Cooper Communities Inc. (CCI)”
Parsons was elected to the board in 2011 and was removed from the board a few weeks later when he refused to sign a conflict of interest statement.
He had also filed a lawsuit about the stump dump, but his was dismissed and the judge ordered him to pay the court costs.
The lawsuit that names the former directors is a “derivative suit,” McCash said. He doesn’t know the Armstrongs and doesn’t know why they decided to file the case. They won’t personally benefit from the settlement.
Some of the former directors have moved out of state and were surprised to find themselves involved, he said. There’s no timeline for settling the case.
Although McCash has invested a lot of time in the law suits, he’s not the only attorney involved. The POA has also hired outside counsel, Kutak Rock. They are a large firm with experience in environmental law, he explained. They have resources they can draw on, he said.