Mysterious Bitchy Neighbor, should I do anything?

JohnRW1621 wrote: Did anyone recently put a house up for sale? This may have been done off the advise of a realtor. Though your fleet of cars ranging from '66 to '98 may be in good shape, they could be seen as too old to drive by someone who feels they need to get a new car (lease) every 3 years.

There is, but the guy who's selling it was always really cool and interested in what ever car I happened to be working on at the time, and he moved out of state for a job, so he hasn't even been in town for the last three months. I didn't think of the possibility of the realtor being responsible though.

And this neighborhood isn't really a new car every three years kind of neighborhood. I'd say maybe 5 cars on the entire block were made in the last decade.

Well, I'm not going to look up the law, but from what you posted, it says it pertains to cars that are in the view of the public. Put up a fence for the cars that are going to be in the view of the public then.

16vCorey wrote: ...he moved out of state for a job, so he hasn't even been in town for the last three months. He aint coming back. Burned bridges? Oh well!. I didn't think of the possibility of the realtor being responsible though. Who likely drives a leased car she can not afford if this damn house does not sell.

JohnRW1621 wrote:

16vCorey wrote:

JohnRW1621 wrote: Do you have two cars parked on the sidewalk in this picture? Is the 3rd car parked? If it is, does that make it hard for the house across the street to back out of their driveway?

It's hard to tell in the picture, but my house has a gravel parking spot instead of the sidewalk like the rest of the houses, so you can be double parked and not be out in the street any farther than any other car parked on the street. The neighbor across the street has plenty of room to get out of her driveway.

Why is yours different? Could it be that the sidewalk portion was removed to thereby allow for more backing-up room for the drive across?

Years ago there was a ordinance passed and this street had to have a sidewalk put in (at the owner's expense). The owners at the time didn't want to pay for it, and there was already an existing sidewalk in front of this house, so since they were technically compliant with the law they opted out. It's just a bonus that it gives me two extra parking spots.

16vCorey wrote: It's just a bonus that it gives me two extra parking spots.

Even if it is just out of jealousy, not all your neighbors may see this the same way. Is it possible that they see you as having a gravel front yard and do not like you parking cars on your front yard?

I don't suppose you got a copy of those emails?

16vCorey wrote:

JohnRW1621 wrote: Do you have two cars parked on the sidewalk in this picture? Is the 3rd car parked? If it is, does that make it hard for the house across the street to back out of their driveway?

It's hard to tell in the picture, but my house has a gravel parking spot instead of the sidewalk like the rest of the houses, so you can be double parked and not be out in the street any farther than any other car parked on the street. The neighbor across the street has plenty of room to get out of her driveway.

Technically .... the city/town owns from the centerline of the street out toward the curb XXXX distance. I have a sidewalk, 3 ft. of grass and then a curb. Town owns that strip of grass and the sidewallk. If push comes to shove I'm sure you're SOL. I can't have a car parked on the street or sidewalk without plates for more than 24 hours. I mostly get a pass but technically it can be towed.

Just to be "neighborly" I would make efforts to move cars around, neaten it up a bit but don't send letters, flyers et al to neighbors, it's not their business. This is between a whiner and the Town, you're just in the middle.

Check out the town ordinances, available at the town office, clean things up and see what happens next.

Dan

Write the letter. If they confront you or keep pulling the same crap make sure all your ducks are in a row code-wise and fire back a few shots of your own. I'm sure they have an un-permitted shed, pool too close to the property line, etc. Immature? Maybe, but I'm not one to take repeated crap from somebody, and being a City worker that sometimes has to respond to repeated BS complaints like the ones from your neighbor the enforcement officer will probably enjoy sending some of the poo back their way. 9 times out of 10 the complainer always has way more violations than the person they are complaining about. I think that calling in complaints on a neighbor should require an automatic review of your property too.

Damn dude, I didn't know you were from Evansville.......from my time down there, I gathered a general opinion that nobody gave a berkeley.....

Bring home a Semi complete with trailer and park it legally, moving it every 48 hours.

Mongo and a trailer would work...

In reply to aussiesmg:

Bonus points for painting mongo and said trailer in either camo or hippie flowers........ya know, for the effect

1988RedT2 wrote: When I read the thread title, my mind immediately conjured up an image of a tall brunette wearing a short black skirt and black cropped leather jacket and tall black leather boots with high heels. And a hat. Black, of course. And I was like, heck yeah, you should do something. This situation sounds far less interesting.

Too much time in the GGA thread there Red?

ahhh, passive aggressive bitchy neighbors. I do not miss those days... Getting letters about my 944 bringing the value of our community down and how my lawn should never exceed 3.5" in length to blend in with others...

You know what brings property values down? the methlab about 8 houses down. Not a rusty old car with faded paint.

Now I cannot see a road, another house, or another person without needing to walk down my 1/2 mile driveway. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

aussiesmg wrote: Bring home a Semi complete with trailer and park it legally, moving it every 48 hours. Mongo and a trailer would work...

Can't get the shiny happy people across the street to stop parking in front of my shop 8 hours a day, 7 days a week. They won't do anything, City won't do anything, Mama says not to beat the living E36 M3 out of the shiny happy person who owns the place. I'm really sincerely regretting not buying that $500 Cadillac Limo a few months ago. Passed on it because I didn't have anywhere to park it. Right in front of there place would've been nice.

Offer is still open to park Mongo there ANY TIME YOU WANT, my friend!!!

http://atlanta.craigslist.org/atl/cto/3630350493.html

It only takes one shiny happy person... I live in an old neighbourhood. Two and a half storey houses, most of which have parking in behind, accessed by a laneway. If the snow is too deep, it's hard to get to, and the city won't plow. Most of us park on the street. It switches from one side to the other every two weeks – however, the city reserves the right to ticket us at any time. They usually don't unless someone complains. Of course, we have one set of shiny happy people who don't talk to anyone on the street, and periodically call the parking guys to ticket us all. So frustrating.

Colleen and I did entertain the idea of parking our cars in front of other people's houses when we come home from work, and just rotating daily. You know, if they don't like 3 or four cars parked in front of our house, maybe they'd prefer it parked in front of theirs? It is public property and all.

My neighbours across the street each own an SUV, as do each of their two sons. That's four SUVs parked on the street, and they regularly have visitors. But they're good neighbours and big deal, so I sometimes have to park up the block. But the shiny happy people who call the parking guys have a driveway for god's sake!

poopshovel wrote:

aussiesmg wrote: Bring home a Semi complete with trailer and park it legally, moving it every 48 hours. Mongo and a trailer would work...

Can't get the shiny happy people across the street to stop parking in front of my shop 8 hours a day, 7 days a week. They won't do anything, City won't do anything, Mama says not to beat the living E36 M3 out of the shiny happy person who owns the place. I'm really sincerely regretting not buying that $500 Cadillac Limo a few months ago. Passed on it because I didn't have anywhere to park it. Right in front of there place would've been nice. Offer is still open to park Mongo there ANY TIME YOU WANT, my friend!!!

Like this

YEEESSS!!! Is there a little marquis sign on the front? Can we make it read "EAT E36 M3 AND DIE?"

In reply to 16vCorey:

I really like your 66 fastback.

Rob_Mopar wrote:

1988RedT2 wrote: When I read the thread title, my mind immediately conjured up an image of a tall brunette wearing a short black skirt and black cropped leather jacket and tall black leather boots with high heels. And a hat. Black, of course. And I was like, heck yeah, you should do something. This situation sounds far less interesting.

Too much time in the GGA thread there Red?

Who, me?

My neighbor across the street is parking right up to the edge of his next door neighbors driveway, it's some kind of pissing contest. That puts his SUV right at the end of my driveway. Sucks at 5;30am when I barrel over the snowbank to get out, or when I have to back a 30 ft. trailer up my driveway.

Corey, if those cars have plates, you can park anywhere parking is legal. In front of a whiner's house is just fine. Not a damn thing they can say.

914Driver wrote: My neighbor across the street is parking right up to the edge of his next door neighbors driveway, it's some kind of pissing contest. That puts his SUV right at the end of my driveway. Sucks at 5;30am when I barrel over the snowbank to get out, or when I have to back a 30 ft. trailer up my driveway.

Have you asked him not to park in that exact spot? When I was 15 and my brother 17, we were in a 3/4 Chebby long bed extended cab--the thing was 20' long bumper to bumper and had the turning radius of a city bus. The guy across the street from us would regularly park his brand new (and first model year?) Charger SRT-8 directly across from our driveway because that was the easiest spot to park it after pulling out of his driveway (2 car garage, single lane). We told him "hey, look, there are 2 inexperienced drivers in the biggest vehicle on the street. Might wanna park your car somewhere else". He did.

Corey, I suspect the house for sale is the problem. To fix that, I think you need a really nasty looking old ice cream truck. Register, insure it as a regular truck, whatever the minimum needed to be street legal. Wait for an open house at the property for sale. Park right out front. Later park it in the Realtor's office parking lot at random days/times during business hours.