‘This wasn’t their property’: Entitled neighbors use garbage bins to block mom and son from sledding on HOA public property, resulting in a trash violation

The best thing about the winter season is getting to take your kids sledding, some for the first time ever. There's nothing more exciting than watching your little kiddo's face light up as they catch some speed down a bunny hill and glide over the white, powdery landscape. In this day and age, getting your children outside and active is integral to giving them some time in nature and getting them off the iPad (for once!)

In an HOA, it's tricky differentiating what is HOA community property and what is a homeowner's private property. If you intend to bring your child on a winter wonderland excursion, you should know where you're bringing them and if you're allowed to hang out there.

Once you've figured out that you're on public property, everything is fair game. The user who posted this story was sledding near a neighbor's home (but not on their property) and having a grand old time with their child. That was, until, one of the homeowners told them to stop sledding down the hill. Their reasoning was that the road was near the bottom of the very small hill this user's kid was sledding down, but the user was watching their child the entire time and decided there was no threat to their safety. The user takes their child and leaves to avoid further arguments, but is surprised to see later on that the neighbors have blocked the bottom of the hill with miscellaneous garbage items. Sounds like a violation to me…

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This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.
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The neighbor's concern makes sense. A sledding hill that leads to the road isn't very safe, but the user who posted the story confirms later on that the hill was small enough to prevent her child from sledding out onto the street. Not once did her child go too far, and she was there the entire time to stop her kid if necessary. Landing on the sidewalk, on the other hand, is perfectly fine and the mother would be there to warn any passersby if need be.
Their concerns, though, take a turn for the worst when they take it upon themselves to block the small hill with garbage, bins, and shopping bags. Keep in mind that this hill exists on HOA community property. HOAs do not play about their picture-perfect aesthetics, so the user lets her HOA board know that the neighbors' garbage is littering the hill.
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