Tee Box Linked to Backyard Concerns

A family says their backyard is unsafe despite plans to fix a specific problem.

The Potocnjak's say they were promised change by the owner of their development.  He even went before the Greene County Commission talking about plans to make their home and neighborhood safer.  But months later, the Potocnjak’s backyard has become even more dangerous for their children.

When searching for a new home, the deer lake golf course development sounded just right for the Potocnjak family.

“We liked the fact that there was a great view out the back.  There weren’t any neighbors and the golf course is very picturesque.” says Bob Potocnjak.

But those golf course sounds now have a different connotation. 

Cara Potocnjak says, “We know the sound.  It's still unnerving because it's like there it goes again and what did they hit and what's broken.”

Not only was one of the Potocnajak’s windows broken by golf balls, but so was a table.  A car also had two balls recently bounce of it.

“You can clearly see the golf ball imprint.  It's frustrating.” says Bob Potocnjak.

Especially because the Potocnjaks say they were told it wouldn't be a problem.

Bob says, “They told us golf balls would hit the house, but that would be remedied by the fact they were moving the tee box.”

But a year later that still hasn't happened. 

“Several homeowners signed a petition that said the tee box would be moved because of a safety issue.” says Bob.

Even after one of the names signed to that document, which stated a decision had been made to move the tee box, belonged to the owner of the Deer Lake Golf Course development, Noel Spering.  That petition was even taken to the Greene County Commission during a meeting in December.

At that meeting, Spering appeared before the county commission and stated, “We're trying to address the concerns of the homeowners and the safety of children who are being bombarded with golf balls through the day everyday.  Deer Lake Golf Course will be moving the tee box and it will be expensive.  We don't take the proposal lightly and we ask for you to look at the long term benefits.  When the tee box gets moved, we're proposing to fill the space with residential housing."  

But when the commission denied Spering's request to add seven homes to the golf course development, Spering stopped plans to move the tee box.

Today Spering says, “We would be more than willing to move the tee box, if we had the approval to do the homes.”

Spering says he needed permission to build those seven homes in what would become vacant land here to fund the new tee box.

He says, “We actually want to do those two things.  The homeowners are for it, but Greene County denied it.”

Greene County's Presiding Commissioner Dave Coonrod says that's not the effect he was hoping his decision would have.

“It's unfortunate that the owner of the golf course didn't go forward with what they made a commitment to do, which was to move the tee box so there was a safer shot to the fairway and it stayed like it was before.” says Coonrod.

The Potocnjak's problem grew more serious after that commission meeting.  One of the many golf balls that land in their yard grazed the Potocnjak son's temple as he played outside.

“Fortunately he recovered.  It wasn't fatal.  But if something isn't done, who's to say it won't happen again.” says Cara Potocnjak.

Noel Spering says there are now no plans to move tee