A swim spa gift from the Special Wish Foundation to a wheelchairbound little girl has resulted in an upsetting homeowner’s association dispute.
Harper Christner is an 8-year-old with McCune-Albright syndrome, a rare bone disease that softens joints and requires metal rods to improve stability. A doctor at the National Institutes of Health recommended water therapy to allow her temporary freedom from her wheelchair and pain relief.
Harper’s parents couldn’t afford the cost of the water therapy treatments, so they were thrilled when in September 2022 the Special Wish Foundation, an Ohio-based non-profit group, helped to get her a swim spa. The organization split the cost of the $16,000 Premium Leisure ES-14 swim spa with North Factory Direct.
The Christners live in Newell Creek, a subdivision in Mentor, Ohio, where the rules of the homeowner’s association prohibit swimming pools. But Harper’s father, Ray, persuaded the HOA to bend the rules and obtained the necessary permits for both the concrete slab and electrical wiring. Harper and her family have been enjoying the swim spa ever since.
But according to the homeowner’s association, the family has been enjoying it a little too much. The HOA has now brought a series of accusations against the Christeners, claiming they’ve been using the spa for uses outside of Harper’s physical therapy needs. They say that it’s been the source of “loud noises” and has been a nuisance to their neighbors.
The first sign of the problem occurred last March, after a neighbor complained that the spa users were too loud during a birthday party.
Then in August, the family got a letter from Continental Management, the company that oversees the actions of the Newell Creek residents.
They were told that their swim spa was larger than what had been proposed in the original plans. Furthermore, they were given special compensation for the spa solely because of Harper’s bone disease but not “for parties.”
Ray Christener wrote back.
“You realize you gave me special approval, and are now grandfathering in rules that never were there before,” he wrote, “and you're just kind of telling me, like, who's allowed to play with my daughter in this swim spa? What?”
In October, the family received a response. They were told the swim spa could be used only “by those living in the home,” “one friend” or Harper’s “therapist.” And, if the Christeners were to move, the swim spa 'shall not be listed or sold with the home.”
“Failure to comply with these guidelines,” they were told, “will result in penalties” — up to $400 — “including the removal of the swim spa at the owner’s expense.”
“The board understands and is empathetic toward the unique medical condition and needs of your daughter, but it is imperative that the swim spa be used in the manner for which it was approved,” the HOA wrote.
Eileen Beudert, the executive director of A Special Wish who helped provide the swim spa gift, was told about the HOA dispute.
“It’s just wild to me,” she said. “It’s wild that an HOA is acting like they have all this power and this authority to tell the family who can dip their toes in the water of a swim spa that's in their own backyard. It's baffling. I have never heard of anything this outrageous.”
Ray says he feels infringed upon and that he feels like people are spying on the family, keeping track of who is entering and exiting the spa.
More importantly, he feels angry and disappointed for his daughter.
“She doesn't get to play with friends like a 'normal' kid would,” Ray said. “She's always in a chair, always shorter than everyone else, and always trying to keep up. In the swim spa, she's equal. They swim, laugh, and play without the typical barriers that my daughter has to go through on a daily basis.'
He said he doesn’t feel like the HOA understands any of this.
“If they understood,” he said, “they would understand that the swim spa is more than just a place for my daughter to kick her legs. It's a place for her to feel like a normal kid for an hour or two throughout her day.”
