Man tells HOA he won’t take down flagpole

A Cherokee County resident is refusing to quit flying the American flag atop a 14-foot pole, even though his homeowners association is taking him to court and threatening him with $25-a-day fines.

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Ron Tripodo was served Thursday with a lawsuit from the Bridgemill subdivision’s homeowners association, said his next-door-neighbor and attorney, J. Daran Burns of Canton.

Flags can fly in the subdivision, but the homeowners association insists they be on poles attached to the houses, Burns said.

Tripodo spent $900 installing the flag pole outside his Canton home, complete with landscaping and lighting.

“He believes that’s the appropriate way to display the flag,” Burns said.

Tripodo also believes he has that right under the Freedom to Display the American Flag Act signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2005, Burns said.

The homeowners association suggested as an alternative that Tripodo put the flagpole in his back yard, the attorney said.

“I found that to be completely unreasonable … a joke,” Burns said.

He said the homeowners association has not gotten any complaints from neighbors.

The lawsuit threatens to assess Tripodo $25 a day, dating back to December, as well as attorney’s fees, Burns said.

He said Tripodo is vowing, if necessary, to take his case to the Supreme Court.