Neighbor making request - wwyd?
party_music50
8 years ago
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Dash2
8 years agowildchild2x2
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How to make enemies and alienate your neighbors...
Comments (72)I don't think I would say no. I would say yes, but with conditions that it match in exterior material to the house and that roof needs to have the same pitch, and could be built at the same time as a residence or after. Not before as you don't want it to be the only structure go up. I'm the owner of a 2400 sq ft metal building in the greater general area of carsonheim. We have a lot of cars as a hobby and when we were lot shopping we made sure we could build a shop. In the end we had the harmonious bylaws issue in that we were told we had to do hardie siding and not metal as originally ok'd because it was so visible. Btw we didn't build your typical metal shop. We planned on a higher roof pitch than the low standard, along with roof overhangs which isn't generally done. We have to look at this building too, but we wanted metal siding for less maintenance, in colors that match the house, with some stone that matches the house. So we waited and saved up more money and got started. As they were working on the framing another neighbor was building a house and a metal shop and I get home one day to see them installing metal siding. They had been approved because theirs wasn't as visible. All very subjective as I could see it from our driveway a quarter mile away. You just don't see as much of it, but on the other hand it is in front of their house and you don't see the house at all from the road and roof pitch etc. Is more that of a typical metal building. In the end we have what we originally wanted. Can't allow one thing for one and not others, but I really wish we hadn't gone through the arguing that came with it in the end. Made us not care what others thought in the end. Anyways with that story I mean to say that you need to be careful in just saying no and provide some guidelines on what would be ok to do to keep things harmonious for this and future owners. Having a shop building of that size may sound large, but with no basements and a few extra cars, an Rv, boat, 4wheeler, lawn equipment etc. It isn't unreasonable on acreage and houses with the larger sq ft will make it look even smaller than the actual size. Ours is larger than our house sq ft without counting the 2 car garage and the house still appear much larger. All in how it is set back and placed....See MoreOT--Neighbors' trashy yards---WWYD?
Comments (42)This is an interesting subject, and I'll just throw my own story in, too. When we moved into the neighborhood, I pretty much thought the man across the street must be a hoarder. You know, the typical appliances in the driveway that never went away started creeping down the length of the house, the paint was chipped off the house and trim, lots of vehicles, etc. It was really an eyesore, especially for us across the street. A neighbor who had been in the area a long time spoke to me about it. He said that man had been in the neighborhood for 50 years and had done a lot to help neighbors out over the years. He was elderly now. We concocted a scheme to offer to buy materials and paint his home for him. Like many elders (and Americans), he was fiercely independent so it was touchy how to approach it. Luckily, I was painting my own home at the time and we could chalk the materials up to left overs. In any case, the man was very grateful and allowed us to freshen up his house. Meanwhile, another neighbor took up moving and fertilizing his lawn. Not so very long after, his adult son came to visit and realized his dad had advanced Altzheimers. (He was living with a relative, so we assumed his health was being taken care of). Adult son and his wife took over, taking care of dad and the disrepair found inside. Which is great, but I'll always wonder if we should have somehow known how bad things were and gotten his family involved somehow sooner. They are haunted by that question, too. I glad we were able to help out and take a non-confrontational, cooperative approach. Not that it always works out, I know. Things have to be desperately bad for the city to get involved and even then, there's a lot of ethical and legal tension between concepts of privacy, automony and freedom on one hand and welfare and safety and the good of the whole on the other. Not unlike what you see with child protective services... I came from a region in the country (small town Iowa) where the motto was "Do whatever you want, but do not disturb your neighbors". Here in Alaska, it seems a lot of people think they are homesteading even in an urban setting... I consider home and yard upkeep to be part of my civic and community contribution. Taking care of my own postage stamp (which is about the size of my house and yard) is the least I can do. Wish everyone felt that way, but I also realize some who do are faced with barriers and don't have the resources to do it. I hope that isn't me, someday....See MoreWWYD, feuding neighbors
Comments (37)Hi less-than-bossy, What? You've missed some of the criticisms, or unnecessarily critical comments that get posted here from time to time? Not frequently, granted ... and usually others jump to the defence of the targetted one. We can be thankful that, all things considered, there is a major measure of sweetness and light, here. I'm in the camp of invite 'em both, and count on them to be respectful. ole joyfuelled...See MoreMake a special request…
Comments (38)Jen, I turned 60 this past year. I look at age as just a number; it doesn't define me. now I'm facing 61! As for retirement, I retired young and I absolutely love it. I wish I had done it sooner!! Sue, I want to be like your dad. I am usually a "the glass is half full" kind of person. (He is darling!) I'm so sorry to those of you dealing with depression. I certainly understand not wanting to go the medication route, and I hope you find something else that helps. For those of you dealing with illness or loved ones with illness, that is so hard. My husband and I have lost 3 of our 4 parents. Two (and my husband's brother) to cancer. It's hard to pull yourself up from that hurt. For some reason, Thanksgiving but not Christmas, was hard for me this year. Maybe because it was so close to the first anniversary of my dad's death? Or the fact that our family is getting smaller and I have wonderful memories of so many family holidays? I don't know, but it passed and the Christmas season was wonderful. I think HCBM is right. Sometimes it IS okay to scream/cry, pitch a fit, whatever helps you get it out. I also agree with thinking about the good things. That seems to help. 2021 was good to my family in many ways and I still found joy. However, I have had much sadness for those who dealt with covid and those who lost their lives. We lost a friend to covid and I watch his wife grieve and struggle. It breaks my heart. We lost two long-time church members to covid. We had a couple of friends who were desperately ill with covid and I am so thankful they pulled through! It has been an up and down kind of year. I hope that 2022 brings much happiness and peace to my GW friends....See MoreSue_va
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