Driven to Protest

Al Schlobohm was tending his backyard barbecue when an errant golf ball smacked him in the chest.

His 10-year-old Dalmatian, Babbett, took a hit another time. Schlobohm said he’s collected boxes and boxes of golf balls from his yard--about 600 in all.

Schlobohm and other residents who live near the 13th and 15th holes of the San Juan Hills Golf Course say they are dodging golf balls daily. Windows are broken. Cars are left with dents. The neighbors are, in his words, “shellshocked.”

The Loma San Juan Planned Community residents have urged the city to allow the golf course owner to erect large protective screens on the fairways behind some of the homes.

At a recent City Council meeting, resident Dale Wood donned a bicycle helmet to support the case for safety netting.

“This is how I dress in my own backyard,” she said. “I have to wear a helmet.”

But not all residents feel that way about living near the golf course.

Richard Hess, one of six residents who lives behind the 13th hole, said he has been relatively unscathed by the flying golf balls, compared to some of his neighbors. But he suggests that instead of a barrier at the golf course, homeowners just install awnings, patio covers and fencing.

“We want this problem solved as much as they do,” Hess said. “But when you buy a house on a golf course you have to count on golf balls.”

Some residents cheered in June when the golf course responded to their complaints by putting up a 163-foot-long safety net at the 13th hole.

But the jubilation was short-lived because other residents, who said the net was unsightly and blocked their view of the course, went to the city Planning Commission.

The commission ordered that the netting come down, saying the course operator failed to acquire a building permit.

Unwilling to give up, the other homeowners--the ones who feel they’re living under an artillery barrage--asked the City Council to reverse the commission’s decision.

The council upheld the commission’s ruling, but did urge the two sides to work together and come back in 60 days with proposals to solve the problem.

The golf course, built in 1964, was in place long before construction of the homes was begun in 1994. When the homes started going up, the 13th and 15th holes were moved to their present location, and the homes were placed around them.

The residents supporting the netting say they expected a few golf balls when they moved there, but not what they describe as a “war zone.”

Since moving to his home more than a year ago, Schlobohm said he has spent $3,057 to replace 16 broken windows, sometimes with expensive bulletproof or tempered glass. Some of the golfers pay for the damage. He’s taken others to small-claims court.

Russ Ethridge and Shana DeFries, who bought their home for $239,000 in 1996, have sued the neighborhood’s developer, Pacific Community Builders, alleging design flaws.

The couple has replaced 28 windows and installed wooden shutters, according to their lawyer, J. Cranor Richter.

“It’s a constant regular stream of golf balls coming at about 100 mph--leaving marks in metal,” Richter said. “If it would hit an individual’s head, it would be a potentially life-threatening situation.”

The lawsuit is set for trial March 16.

Rick Parillo, director of golf for San Juan Hills Golf Course, said Pacific Community Builders was warned the neighborhood’s design would place homes in a vulnerable position.

“We explained there was a problem with the way they designed the homes and asked them to put up nets before the homes were sold,” Parillo said.

Nelson Chung, president of Pacific Community Builders, said residents were warned, and signed a report approved by the Department of Real Estate outlining the potential golf ball hazard.

He said the housing project was actually designed by another developer that went bankrupt. His company took over the project, he said, and could not have known how many golf balls would hit homes.

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NEIGHBORHOODS / Loma San Juan Planned Community

Bounded by: La Novia Avenue on the west; Camino del Rio on the south; Vista Granda on the east; and Via de Costa on the north

Population: About 300 residents; 154 homes

Hot topic: Stray golf balls from a golf course are bombarding some homes. Residents with injuries and broken windows want safety netting installed. Other residents say the nets are ugly and block their view of the golf course.