A couple from Michigan who have a villa that backs up to Morse Boulevard in The Villages made a plea for taller landscaping to cut down on traffic noise.
The wall that backs up to their courtyard villa in the Harlow Villas in the Village of LaBelle North was struck by a car Dec. 23 when a 66-year-old Villager suffered a medical episode.
The shrubs at the wall were removed as repairs were made to the wall.
Christine and Kevin Cummings, who live on Dolan Court, told the Community Development District 10 Board of Supervisors on Thursday they thought this might be an opportunity to plant something that could cut down on the traffic noise from Morse Boulevard.
The couple explained they made a quick fly-down trip to The Villages when they bought the villa in 2019 for $280,000.
“We really didn’t have a good visual of all of the traffic constantly driving by,” said Christine Cummings.
With the recent crash into the wall, the Cummings hoped this might provide a chance to put taller landscaping at the wall behind their home, preferably bamboo. The couple even offered to chip in to pay for the cost of landscaping that could help cut down on the noise from Morse Boulevard
District Manager Richard Baier reminded the supervisors to be “cautious.”
Special landscaping requests might please some homeowners, but disappoint others. Granting the special request would likely inspire other homeowners to make similar requests and that could become an expensive proposition. While the Cummings’ offer to help pay for the landscaping was appreciated, Baier said the offer could not be accepted because it would create a “pay to play” situation that would favor homeowners who could afford to make such offers.
The supervisors agreed to make no changes to the existing landscaping plan.
