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Final Copy 288 Ga. 595

S10A1598. WALLER et al. v. GOLDEN et al. MELTON, Justice. Craig and Jena Golden's neighbors, the Wallers,1 appeal from a Superior Court of Henry County order denying their request for an injunction to force the Goldens to remove a swimming pool that the Goldens had constructed in the side yard of their own property. For the reasons that follow, we affirm. The record reveals that the Goldens reside in the Eagles Landing Country Club community ("Eagles Landing") in McDonough, Georgia. Eagles Landing is governed by restrictive covenants, one of which limits the construction of swimming pools to areas behind residential units. Prior to August 2009, the Goldens submitted a proposal to the Architectural Review Board (ARB) of the Eagles Landing Homeowners Association (HOA) to build a swimming pool in

The neighbors involved in this appeal include: William Waller, Peggy Waller, Michelle B. Deraney, Christian Baldwin, Kevin Johnson, Julie Johnson, William Sutton, Janey Sutton, James Atkinson, Ola Atkinson, Noreen Walker, Calvin Walker, Michael Roberts, Deana Roberts, Gene Babb, Nikki Babb, and Leandro Toletino. For ease of reference, these neighbors shall hereinafter be collectively referred to as "the Wallers."
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their side yard. Although the proposed plan was not in compliance with the Eagles Landing restrictive covenants, it was approved on August 7, 2009, because neither the Goldens nor the ARB was aware of the restriction. The Goldens signed a contract with a builder for the construction of the pool and made a $1,975 payment upon the execution of the contract. The construction was projected to be completed in 60 days at a cost of $39,500. On August 11, construction equipment arrived at the Goldens' property. At this time, at least one of the neighbors involved in the current appeal knew that a pool was to be constructed. On August 16, one neighbor voiced her objection to the pool's location to the Goldens, saying, "Oh my gosh, you can't do that." After other concerned neighbors began to realize a pool in a side yard was being built, they started lodging complaints with the HOA. On August 20, the Goldens made a $2,089 payment on pool construction-related expenses. On August 21, the HOA held a meeting regarding how to address the situation. Following the meeting, HOA members informed the Goldens of their neighbors' discontent and the pool's noncompliance with community restrictions. However, the HOA decided to allow the construction to continue because they feared a lawsuit if they told the Goldens to stop construction after
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the ARB had given prior approval. In fact, the HOA decided that the construction process should be expedited in order to minimize the negative impact of the pool's construction on the community aesthetic and informed all parties to this litigation of the same. In furtherance of the goal to minimize the impact of the pool construction on the community aesthetic, the HOA decided to use association funds up to $4,000 to help the Goldens purchase matured shrubbery that would hide the pool from view from the street. On August 25, the Goldens made a $15,800 progress payment on the pool. Some of the Goldens' neighbors attempted to resolve the matter outside of the HOA by holding a meeting with their attorney on August 24 and by privately consulting with the Goldens on August 30. Ultimately, however, the Wallers sent a letter on August 31 demanding that construction on the pool halt and filed a lawsuit on September 3. The Goldens were served with the lawsuit the following day. In the suit, the Wallers sought (i) an injunction against further construction of the pool, (ii) a mandatory injunction compelling the Goldens to remove the pool and return their property to its original state, (iii) attorney fees, and (iv) damages for injury to property values and misappropriation of HOA

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funds.2 The Goldens continued construction on the pool, including paying $8,022 to a landscaper on September 4 and pouring concrete for a patio area to restore the normal ingress and egress route to their home. On September 8, the trial court initially denied the Wallers' request for a temporary injunction, but on September 18, the trial court reversed its earlier decision and issued a temporary injunction preventing the Goldens from proceeding further on the pool construction. On December 17, the trial court entered a final judgment removing the temporary injunction and denying the Wallers' claims. The court reasoned that, although the pool's location violated the Eagles Landing covenants, the doctrine of laches prevented the grant of a permanent injunction because the harm that would be suffered by the Goldens through granting an injunction outweighed

The claim for misappropriation of funds was asserted only against HOA Board members Ron Pruett, Clyde Harrison, Mike Cavin, Sandy Baker, and Alvin Brown (collectively, the "Board Member Appellees")

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