Woman fined $200 for dry grass in drought

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DENVER, July 16 (UPI) -- A Denver woman said her homeowner's association is fining her $200 for having brown spots on her yard amid drought conditions.

Lori Worthman said she has been trying to get her grass to grow, but her attempts have been unsuccessful and the city has declared a Stage 1 drought and imposed watering restrictions, KMGH-TV, Denver, reported Monday.

"I'm glad to try to reseed again when it cools off, but we're in the middle of a heat wave," Worthman said.

However, the Green Valley Ranch Homeowner's Association wants her to pay a $200 fine for failing to make her grass grow.

"We would much rather have her fix the problem than collect the fine," association president James Tanner said. "If your house looks like trash then it's going to depreciate the value of everything around you. That's what an HOA is for is to establish and maintain property values."

Tanner said Worthman was warned about her brown grass last year and given a 9-month extension to deal with the problem.