Managing editor

A Katy woman says she will fight a court order to trim trees and shrubs in her yard. 

Lisa Wright said she is working on getting an injunction to halt a Feb. 19 court order requiring her to clean-up her yard. She claims she is not in violation of the neighborhood's deed restrictions and said the area is designed to be a natural habitat. 

Wright, a 15-year resident of Sundown Glen subdivision, was in court fighting a suit filed by Crest Management, which operates the homeowners association in Sundown Glen. 

In August 2002, Wright was ordered by the court to prune trees and shrubs, place mulch in designated areas and keep the adjacent sidewalk and her driveway clear of growth. 

Once the work was complete, according to Wright, it was to be inspected by someone from the HOA. 

Wright said she contacted the HOA however, she said an inspector never visited her home. She was in court last week fighting a contempt charge that stemmed from the original suit. 

Judge Gary Block gave Wright 30 days to comply with the court order or she could face fines of $100 for each day she is found to be in violation. 

Wright, who has a degree in horticulture from Houston Community College, has worked in the landscape design business and twice served as president of the Houston chapter of the Native Plant Society.
 
 

She said her yard provides habitat for birds and provides shade and beauty to her property. "I don't have to turn on my air conditioner until June," she said. 

"I'm not some plant lover who stuck natives in my yard and called it habitat," she added. Tacked to her front door is a certificate from the Texas Department of Parks Wildlife, which declares the site as native habitat. 

Wright, who suffered a stroke last year, is out of work and hoping an attorney will take her case on contingency. Her attorney David Elmers has asked to be removed from the case. 

Carolyn Bond of Crest Management said the deed restrictions for Sundown Glen require residents to keep their yards to "community standards . . . properly mowed, trees trimmed, shrubs trimmed." 

She said HOA representatives have not been allowed to enter the property in order to inspect it. 

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