There's nothing like living next door to an idiot.

[DaveW]

So one of my neighbors has apparently taken grave offense to the decking being put into my garden. Instead of coming around and talking to us about it, they have instead decided to make a complaint to the local council, who have sent us a 'stop' letter halting anything from getting done.

However, i've just got all the stuff from the council website, and we don't seem to need planning permission for anything that's been built. Which means whomever complained may now be liable to pay a whole bunch of fees. :)

This is what they get for being assholes, if they'd just came and talked to us about it, then we could have come to a peaceful solution. Now this is not the case.

Unfortunately, as the council will not tell us who it is that submitted the complaint, we don't know who to talk to about this pathetic attempt at making our lives difficult. If it's the people next door then they are getting building work done. If it's the people to the other side, they have also had work done. The rest of the neighbors we already know, apart from this little old biddy who sits in her conservatory and glares at us.

Basically, someone we don't know is trying to make us miserable. The fact that they aren't willing to come and talk to us about it suggest that the person complaining knows fine well that what they're doing is frankly immoral. I just hope this blows up in their face and they get a fine. First thing I'll be doing is putting in a complaint against their own building work, but I need to ascertain which of my neighbors has made the complaint.

If it turns out we do need planning permission, then it could cost us up to £1000 ($1500). The person making the complaint is well aware of this, so this is no laughing matter. I just wish these people (whomever they are) weren't such complete dicks.

-Dave

[sirkillalot617]

We had one of those types complaing about the dog barking. he never bothered to come round he took out an injuction on us costing us 5000 pound if the dog barked but since we put a ton of trees in front off his house ruining his view he seems to have shut up about.

[Canadian Eh?]

I hate people like that. They are probably just a bunch of dicks like you said. I wouldn't mind if they came to me about it, but these guys went straight to the city about it? Morons...I hope everything goes your way, Dave!

[intergalacticman]

owned by trees, nice

anyways, dave, do you live in a housing association, if so there prolly are rules where you must ask permission first, england is a little strange to me so i dont know all the specifics but im sure you need permission since all the building codes and stuff.

[DaveW]

I have copies of all the council's rules, and we don't need permission for anything if it satisfies certain conditions. The work should fall outside of these conditions.

-Dave

[Eclecticos]

Do you live in a deed restricted community?

Let off some steam go out front honk the horn repeatedly and voice your opinion.

I dont know if your that type of person. . but I'd rather do that than stew about it.

Hell get a megaphone. . I Hate Narcs. .

Let everyone know whats going on. That how we get stuff taken care of in Florida.

[DaveW]

Nope. Just a normal house. They have no real grounds to complain and the council is making life difficult for us by making pre-emptive decisions. I'm going to go down and speak to them tomorrow. The idiot my mother talked to today told her she needs planning for everything including decking, which you don't.

If i want to fill my garden with concrete, then damn it, I'll fill my garden with concrete. Who are they to tell me what i can and can't do with my garden?

-Dave

[Eclecticos]

I guess its meet the neighbors time then. . Id walk door to door. . who ever did it is not going to admit to it. . Just tell them they can do whatever they want in their yards. . you know what i mean. . dont acuse anyone. . that will make it wayyyy worse! just have a civilized conversation and tell
them to have a great day, and hopefully they will withdraw the complaint.

[Airbozo]

I have issues like that in my neighborhood all the time. It comes from one person that refuses to talk to anyone else in the community. When I remodeled the front of my house a couple of years ago, I went through all the hoops the county required for me to get my permits. Once the construction trucks showed up, this person (whom we all kindly refer to as "The Crazy Lady") started calling the county on us and continued almost daily until the county told her to stop or they would fine her for false reports. When we tried to talk with her about it (not trying to intimidate her or anything, just trying to see what we could to do make her feel better about our work), she ran into her house screaming and called the cops on us for harassing her. The cops showed up, took her complaint, then ours and then told her not to file a false report again or they would arrest her and fine her.

She calls the county for everything, including us sweeping the streets and since I am the president of the road association, I get the letters in my name. I am on a first name basis with the county code compliance officer and the county epa official. Here is a typical conversation after one of our community road cleanup days;

ME: "Hello!"
EPA: "Good morning Terry, how are the wife and animals? Is Oscar still his loud self?"
ME: "Doing good Jeff (name changed for protection), how are things at the county?"
EPA: "Great, just following up on your road cleaning day that must have taken place this last weekend."
ME: "Yes we were doing roadwork Saturday, how many yards of asphalt did I dump into the creek this time?"
EPA: "No asphalt this time, just the two truckloads of debris?" (I can hear his eyes roll on the phone)
ME: "Sorry Jeff, but we were not using trucks this time."
EPA: "I took a drive by your road and everything seems fine to me. DO you want me to forward a copy of the complaint for your records?"
ME : "Yeas please, you know the drill"
EPA: "No problem Terry, I will have the paperwork to you by the end of the week, talk with you in a couple of months!"

Only twice have I ever reported an illegal construction complaint to the county. One was after talking to the owner who had also filed one on this tenant (after asking them to stop "fixing" their own house), and one was on the same tenant after he started construction again.

I will always talk with the owner FIRST since they may not know of what is going on and if they do, we work it out (if something really is bad). Otherwise it is really their property and unless they are infringing on my property rights or causing me harm, it is none of my business.

[DaveW]

It just pisses me off that the whole thing is clearly about Jealousy. I think it, the guys working in the garden think it, it's plain as the nose on Rudolph the damn Reindeer's face.

I'm going down tomorrow with my camera to prove to the council that they were wrong to send out a stop letter. They haven't carried out any kind of inspection, so obviously they're liable for any charges incurred due to them not checking their facts before taking action. I won't charge the council, but i'm not going to make their lives easy on this one.

Also, it's voting time over here. All the politicians will be desperate to make people happy. That could have something to do with the instant Stop letter, which apparently the council don't like handing out.

-Dave

[Spawn-Inc]

they where probably just jealous and tried to stop it.

[xRyokenx]

Well, I've learned that words are expensive, no matter how true or bull**** they are. Because of some jerks at school, I am now home, etc., I believe you guys know the story... and overall, it all cost over the $1500 you'd have to pay, just because some stupid kids decided to make my life hell for a week, and they didn't pay anything at all, except they now have to find someone else to pick on... I almost spent three weeks in jail because of them, who knows how I would have came out of there as?

But yeah, good luck with it all Dave, hope you stick it back to the jerks making your life hell...

[DaveW]

But yeah, good luck with it all Dave, hope you stick it back to the jerks making your life hell...

That's my problem, i end up making things personal. If it was me they were against, it wouldn't be a problem, but it's my mother that's getting this, so i'm pissed.

-Dave

[xRyokenx]

Ahh, yeah... I kinda know how that is... my dad was flat out pissed when he heard about what happened to me, and he still seems to be, and my other brother has been having trouble at school, so he's pissed about that... it seems to be that people don't mind it if the problem is with them, but instead, with someone they really care about.

If anything, take it easy, don't get too stressed about it, and review the situation and come up with a plan and some solutions... it may sound hard, but that has always seemed to be the logical way to do things from what I have seen and done...

[nil8]

Otherwise it is really their property and unless they are infringing on my property rights or causing me harm, it is none of my business.

Words to live by. If it doesn't affect or involve you, it's none of your business.
More than just property management would fall under that rule.

Go around and have a civil conversation with your neighbors. The one that looks to the left often while talking about the complaint is guilty. When people are lying they do a couple of things, they gesture incorrectly(either too much or too little), they look to their left(reflex action while creating, storing & processing false thoughts), or they don't go into complex detail. Liars have to remember multiple versions and link them to multiple people, so complexity is often overlooked in lieu of a basic story.

If they do any of these 3 things, consider them on your list of suspects. This isn't foolproof, but it's a good basic way to tell if someone is lying to you.

[DaveW]

Thanks guys. My fave personal tactic is to completely throw people off guard. I think of something that they will not expect, and I do it. Tommorow i plan to get a spare key cut for my 'gym' area and give it to the guys who live next door.

How will they react? Who knows.

If they're Jealous, it will piss them off like hell. If they're not, and they complained, then they'll feel guilty, and show some sort of sign. (Basically, if they're the guys, this is bound to cause a reaction of some sort.)

If, on the other hand, it's not them, then i just done something really nice and i'm pretty sure they'll appreciate it.

I can also ask them about all the wood that got delivered into their garden this morning, and tell them how nice everything is going to look. I'll tell them about the nutty guy behind us who built his shed around a tree.

Basically, if it's the guys next door, i'll know. If it's not, then there's only one other possibility, and then I'll know exactly who it is.

I'm also going down to the council office tomorrow to tell them that I don't need planning permission according to their own legislation. If they wish to send someone out to take a review they're welcome, but as it stands, I'm going to politely point out that they have no right to stop us.

-Dave

[jdbnsn]

To hell with the neighbors, it's go time...

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f395/jdbnsn/misc/bfxsfbs.jpg

[xRyokenx]

To hell with the neighbors, it's go time...

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f395/jdbnsn/misc/bfxsfbs.jpg


...and it works because Dave lives in Scotland(not England)! :D:D:D

[DaveW]

Just got off the phone to Town Planning. They know it's not going to be easy for them.

-Dave

[XcOM]

Just got off the phone to Town Planning. They know it's not going to be easy for them.

-Dave

GO FOR IT!!!!!!!!!
i had sim problem two weeks ago, was digging garden up to plant flowers, got a "STOP" letter also, checked council webby, found i was in the rite, and phoned them up, told them where to shove it (Politly of course)
Last week had council inspector come round, basicly i shadowed him asking if it was OK, good, NOW SHOVE OFF.

FInished garden now. For now anyway.

Hope you see the council off!

[Slug Toy]

haha, we're actually having a similar issue too amazingly. our neighbor's house burned down about a year ago, and hes rebuilding now.

heres the kicker though. the guy dug a big hole in the yard to build a basement, and didnt put in any retaining wall, so our driveway is slowly falling into his yard. we managed to get something "done" about that, but then the city went over to him and told him that our shed and such are too close to the property line. basically... as far as we can tell the city is trying to start some trouble right now.

there havent been any complaints on us, and the only way our shed is coming down is if our neighbor who is rebuilding feels like complaining and having some rules enforced. he said he doesnt care, so we're alright. unfortunately... theres been lots of complaining about what he's doing right now. i kind of feel sorry for him... he botched up the foundation to top it all off and now has to rip it all out and start again.

[dannyqball_817]

I read this post and had to register to send a reply. Newbee to this site. I came across another thread on a different forum that I seriously think might be your neighbor.
I won't name the forum site as I have just registered here and haven't read the rules yet but here are a couple of post from the guy.

"Without going into too much detail (just yet), I am anticipating a very hostile situation with a neighbour tomorrow. I'll explain why after tomorrow (I'm paranoid...) but in short he will be getting something through the post in the morning, that if I were to say it will be likely spoil his breakfast, I would be massively understating things.

Not really knowing this neighbour terribly well, I'm rather unsure as to what the reaction is going to be. I suspect he may choose to confront me about this and I was hoping for some advice on things to do to avoid getting a slap, and/or keep the situation as calm and civil as possible.

I've no intention of getting into... a difficult situation but I have a horrible feeling he might not feel the same way. At the same time I have no intention of hiding behind the sofa and would rather get it over with face-to-face.

Any suggestions welcome."

I found it ironic that I read his post yesterday and then today stumbled upon yours.
btw, this site is pretty cool so far. :up:

[XcOM]

it could be him, but theres also a HUGE chance it might not be. It prob someone in a diff country.

Eitherway, i would assume Dave will pm you if he is interested.

[Aero]

haha, the wonders that are the internet. XcOM is probably right. Odds are its not him, there are literally hundreds of people on the internet at any given time. It could be anyone of them.

That being said...I did use the internet to track down one of my friends boyfriends who I didn't really like [before you say "STALKER" it was completely random and I was like.."no..its not...oh wait...IT IS"] and learn some amazingly private information about him...you would be surprised what non-thinking teenagers will post on random forums to feel accepted. [and no I'm not blackmailing him or anything to that extent, I just thought it was funny as to what people will put out on the internet :p]

[public_eyesore]

there are literally hundreds of people on the internet at any given time.

WHAT?!?! That many?

[xRyokenx]

WHAT?!?! That many?


Nah, there's exactly 3.1415... average people on all the time, lol jkjk. :D

Yeah, you really do need to be careful what you post though...

[dannyqball_817]

it could be him, but theres also a HUGE chance it might not be. It prob someone in a diff country.

Eitherway, i would assume Dave will pm you if he is interested.

I don't think it's the guy, reading more of the other forum he said that he has since talked to the neighbor and that he didn't get beat up. haha
Still pretty amazing that I read one yesterday and then saw this one.

[AJ@PR]

I don't think it's the guy, reading more of the other forum he said that he has since talked to the neighbor and that he didn't get beat up. haha
Still pretty amazing that I read one yesterday and then saw this one.

Well, in any event...

Welcome to TBCS!


Now, back to planning how to send Dave's neighbor's to outer space using some Corn Oil, a half-dead 9v battery, a chewed #2 pencil, and the intake-side scroll of a truck turbocharger.

((we're thinking Dave... we're thinkin' :) ))

[jaxspades]

McGyver anyone??

If you're in the right, there should be nothing to worry about. I like the gym key idea though--be civil about it, and you'll find out who it is. You could honk your horn all day, until you are blue in the face, but in the end, all that does is make you look like the a**hole, and can get you a fine or two.

Also....planting flowers? REALLY? That's odd--my mom plants a garden all the time, I've never heard of anyone sending stop letters about it.

Then again I live in Wisconsin....nothing really angers us.....unless it's spilt beer or milk.

It's all really ridiculous if you ask me. You pay the property taxes, you bought it in the first place, if you want to put a deck in, so be it. Heck, if you wanted a 25ft. monument to yourself, go ahead, I think it's your privilege as the owner of said land.

But that's just me.

[Bucko]

McGyver anyone??


I was thinking The Professor from Gilligans Island myself.:p

[Aero]

It's all really ridiculous if you ask me. You pay the property taxes, you bought it in the first place, if you want to put a deck in, so be it. Heck, if you wanted a 25ft. monument to yourself, go ahead, I think it's your privilege as the owner of said land.

But that's just me.

amen

[Omega]

I am totally going to make my house WoW-themed (when I get a house, anyways).

my front door, the Dark Portal...

[GT40_GearHead]

the Dark Portal.....


i thought that was good for the toilet :D

[xRyokenx]

the Dark Portal.....


i thought that was good for the toilet :D


Alright, there's an idea for those of us that aren't modding anything at the moment, lol. :D

[XcOM]

............
Now, back to planning how to send Dave's neighbor's to outer space using some Corn Oil, a half-dead 9v battery, a chewed #2 pencil, and the intake-side scroll of a truck turbocharger.

((we're thinking Dave... we're thinkin' :) ))

Ok, let breakout Sketchup, Ahh stuff that, paint will do.

Lets get designing. Can i use some 2x4?

[intergalacticman]

I am totally going to make my house WoW-themed (when I get a house, anyways).

my front door, the Dark Portal...

:dead:
:dead:
:dead:

[GT40_GearHead]

man we are gonna so get in trouble for go way of topic here lol !

o whole bloody page, but it was worth the laugh :D

[simon275]

*Ring *Ring

A)Is the central planning department?

B)Yes how can I help?

A)Yes could you tell me the local bylaws associated with turning my house into a miniature version of Lordaeron castle from World of Warcaft complete with drawbridge and sewers?

B)Umm..

[armadilloben]

Nah, there's exactly 3.1415... average people on all the time, lol jkjk. :D

Yeah, you really do need to be careful what you post though...


im the .1415 the other .9575 of me is pure modder

[Bucko]

im the .1415 the other .9575 of me is pure modder

So there is 1.099 of you?

[armadilloben]

im the .1415 the other .9575 of me is pure modder


So there is 1.099 of you?


im confuzzled...... :think: :think: :think:

if you look at my dna my chromosome x turned out to be 2 dremels diagnoly of eachother

[progbuddy]

That's bullcrap. They can't do anything, and they know they can't. They're just jealous as hell. My dad is one of three on the architectural review committee here in Evan's Mill. He doesn't care what you have in your back yard, unless it's a six foot high fence or a deer slaughter stand. The only reason your neighbors care is because they can't get their lazy asses out to do it themselves.

[GT40_GearHead]

lol =)

[Eclecticos]

Ive found the perfect solution for those pesky neighbors.

http://newmedia.funnyjunk.com/pictures/funny-04.jpg

[tybrenis]

Ive found the perfect solution for those pesky neighbors.

http://newmedia.funnyjunk.com/pictures/funny-04.jpg

LOL

[GT40_GearHead]

Eclecticos deserves a +rep

[Ichbin]

if only it were real :(

[Redundant]

Now it only needs a built in water sprayer! lol

That neighbor would be so mad. :twisted: