The Pond – the end is in sight

Quail Hollow residents,

You’ll be happy to know that the end is in sight for the pond dredging.  Chris Hollifield reports that he expects to finish in the next few days, weather permitting.

This has been an ordeal for everyone, and a recap is in order:

  • Chris was given the order in late 2019 and began work just as soon as he could in early 2020, with the expectation that he would finish in May.
  • Then came one of the wettest winters and springs in Northeast Tennessee history.  No one could have anticipated it, and Chris was helpless to do anything about it.  His equipment sat idle for a couple of months.
  • When he was finally able to get back to work, he rented an extended-boom digger to speed things up.  The result was a huge pile of smelly muck – the same as every time we’ve dredged the pond.  Before it can be spread out or hauled off, it has to dry out.
  • It was at this point that someone – we don’t know who – complained to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation about the situation.  It’s incomprehensible to me why anyone would do such a thing, because it’s obvious what was going on to anyone who gave it a moment’s thought.  To anyone incapable of understanding it, a conversation with me or any of the Board members would have cleared things up.  Instead…
  • It turned out that Chris hadn’t gotten the necessary dredging permit from TDEC. It was an honest misunderstanding – he thought the POA had gotten it, and the POA understood that he was supposed to do it.
  • TDEC ordered Chris to shut down the project, spread out or haul off the dirt, and seed the area.  He had no choice but to comply, and did so immediately.
  • QHPOA was served with a Notice of Violation, which was cleared up with a sincere apology and by providing a report on and photographs of the cleanup work.  Luckily, there was no fine.  TDEC then gave us the necessary permit.  This whole process unnecessarily delayed the work for over 2 months.
  • No sooner had Chris gone back to work than he got hurt, delaying things several more weeks.
  • And then the rains came again.

So a combination of bad weather, misunderstanding, bad luck and folly turned a 16-week project into 8 months of frustration which should, finally, be ending soon.  Proving that the best-laid plans oftimes go astray, and that good intentions count for nothing. 

Cross your fingers.

Ken Gough

Property Manager