The village of Fredonia is paying a $10,000 settlement over a pool fence.

Village trustees were set to authorize Mayor Michael Ferguson to sign the settlement agreement Monday. It was for a lawsuit that was listed only by its index number on the meeting agenda.

However, the OBSERVER found that it was a case filed by village residents Mark and Joanne Lotter in 2023, over a fence that they alleged Fredonia forced them to put around their pool. The Lotters sued the village and its chief code officer, Charles LaBarbera.

The village issued a permit for the pool’s installation in April 2009 followed by a certificate of occupancy upon its completion several months later. At the time, the Lotters claimed their pool was not required to have an enclosure. Instead, the couple utilized a power safety cover.

The village contacted the Lotters in June 2022 to inquire about the absence of a fence around the pool. By telephone, LaBarbera insisted on the “prompt” installation of a fence. The fence wound up costing about $10,000.

“Interestingly, there are plenty of pools surrounding Plaintiff’s residence that similarly lack fencing,” the Lotters’ lawsuit stated.

The lawsuit also alleged the Lotters were singled out for their pool due to “political pressure” from a nearby neighbor. That neighbor, not named, had expressed safety concerns regarding the lack of an enclosure.

The $10,000 settlement means Fredonia will not have to answer any of the Lotters’ charges in a judge’s hearing on the lawsuit.