Foot traffic from soccer games has taken a toll on this common area at a Leesburg HOAIt’s an unfortunate paradox: the people who use a lawn are often its biggest enemies. Just one season of heavy foot traffic can turn a healthy green lawn into a patch of dirt. When a Leesburg-area property manager asked me to inspect the area in the photo above, the soccer goal was a clear indication of the problem. Kids are taking advantage of the common area behind their homes to get some exercise and have fun playing the world’s most popular game. It’s left the grass in need of a complete renovation, but that would be a waste of time and money unless the kids are banned from playing in the area.
And who wants to be the one to tell them that?
Unfortunately, this HOA will have to make a choice. The alternatives are: renovate the turf and ban soccer from the area (difficult to enforce and the games would probably just move to another nearby patch of common area); plant so many trees and shrubs in the area that it is unusable as a playing field; or just allow the games to continue and be happy the kids aren’t inside playing video games.
The tall fescue turf at this property is the most common type of grass here in Loudoun County and throughout most of Northern Virginia. Warm season grasses such as zoysia and Bermuda grass are more tolerant of foot traffic, and this is why many athletic fields in the area are switching to these types of turf. While warm season grasses might work for athletic fields, they are not practical for lower maintenance level spots like HOA common areas.
If you have an area at your home or business that is suffering from heavy foot traffic, please give us a call at (703)777-5596 so we can help you find a solution.
