It may be a case for the birds, but a three-year flap over the ability to post plastic, ornamental birds on a mailbox has finally landed a verdict. The birds must go.
 Steven Grossberg and his birds (courtesy: Palm Beach Post) |
A judge has ruled that Steven Grossberg of suburban Boynton Beach, Fla., fowled his contract with the homeowners’ association at Oakdale Townhomes II by decorating his mailbox with the 6-inch mini-flamingo and woodpecker.
“The birds are not the point,” Grossberg told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, as he characterized his lawsuit as a battle against the association’s abuse of power. “I don’t feel I put [out] anything more than a simple decoration that had a utilitarian purpose.”
Grossberg said the function was to prevent real birds from perching on his mailbox and leaving their droppings. He argued he was the victim of selective enforcement and that the creatures were attached to the post, and not to the mailbox, itself.
The homeowners’ association mandates that all mailboxes have the same appearance.
Grossberg originally paid $12 for the ornaments with spinning wings at Kmart, but the legal battle could make the 55-year-old liable for the association’s attorneys fees, which have been estimated at $20,000. He’s vowing to appeal the decision.
As for the fate of the birds?
“Now they’re in the birdbath,” Grossberg told the Palm Beach Post. “Just kidding, they’re here in the living room.”
