Hello Friends,
Thursday of last week there was a knock at the front door. It was our local police. Hmmm, I wondered what was going on. I opened the door and he asked if I called in a complaint about our backyard neighbor.
No, I did not.
He went on to share that someone called in a complaint about all the garbage, vehicles and stuff that is piled everywhere, but did not leave their name.
Hmmm, I shared with him, our backyard is fenced in, but I can see through the fence and yes I do see the "collection of items". But we did not call.
He shared that they were asked to clean up the yard last summer by the leadership of the village.
Hmmm, the memo must of gotten lost in the mail, because instead of cleaning up they added to the collection.
He asked me who might have called in?
I said most of us have put fence up so we do not need to see the disaster that has taken several years to make. And that most of our neighbors that do have a relationship with each other have decided it no longer pays to call to complain because nothing gets done about it anyway. And we do not want to get on the bad side of this neighbor, because he already had some words with a different neighbor across the street.
I think this surprised him, because he said, we are here to help.
I know you are I said.
He was a young police officer, reminded me of our military son, eager to help.
He told me he hopes the village will enforce the ordinance.
And he left.
Hmmm, I closed the door. Will the village enforce the ordinance?
To Be Continued...
Note: I usually do not share the ugly stuff around my neck of the woods. Our neighborhood is fairly nice, we do have neighbors who help us without even asking.
I usually am an optimistic person, but with this matter I am rather discouraged. How do you get someone to move piles of trash? Two campers, six cars, washing machines, freezers and refrigerators. This collection has been on going for several years. And earlier complaints go on deaf ears.
Does your community have a way to deal with such things, or do they pretend not to see and hear?
I'm sorry to hear you're dealing with this. UGH! At least you don't have to see all of the junk due to your fence. We have had some inconsiderate neighbors on our street but nothing too bad and nothing regarding "things" left in piles or an accumulation of things. I am curious why the police cared about who called it in. I mean, why does it matter? It sounds like anyone with eyesight can see the mess of the yard. It seems like instead of knocking on doors in the neighborhood asking who called the police, the police needs to be knocking on ONE particular door and asking why there is so much stuff and explaining violations to the people living there.
ReplyDeleteThese sorts of neighborhood issues are so maddening. Maybe one of your neighbors thought they'd try going through channels once more. I hope the officer follows through. Maybe youth and optimism are on his side.
ReplyDeleteoh goodness! I'm so glad you have a fence so you aren't staring at all of that junk. I hope they make them clean it out. I always worry about critters living in all of that junk. We are in a neighborhood with covenants and so most things get handled BUT we did have a former neighbor on our street who let his yard grow wild (ridiculously so). Also, his front porch steps rotted. The HOA kept sending notices to him to repair and clean and it didn't happen. At that point, the HOA is supposed to pay to have the work done and then bill the homeowner, but for whatever reason, that didn't happen. Finally, the home owner decided to move. The house was sold to a young couple. Before it went on the market, the original home owner had to pay to have all of that work done - supposedly the inside was in worse shape than the outside! If the original home owner had done a little work along things could have been different.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first moved to my house, when I got close to my driveway there was my future neighbor changing his boat oil in my driveway. I had to wait for him to finish and move his boat. Then later after moving in he would go on my property and put that same boat in the back and even a camper. He even trained his dog to do its business in other neighbors yards. I finally had enough and told him this was my property now...and not his. His response was that the elderly lady who lived here before me did not care. Well I cared and wanted to use my property the way I wanted, the want he wanted. He ended up moving and renting the house out...but then went bankrupt I was told...because he kept buying toys and
ReplyDeletestoring them at his new house and lost it all. Karma I say. Good luck with your situation. It is always hard when you have a neighbor like that. Janice
Oh Carla so sorry you have this going on. We have always had laws that prohibit this going on and they do enforce it. Fines start which usually money talks and if they do not pay the fines they will be arrested and the village then goes in and takes all the stuff away and charges the home owner. They can legally put a lien on the house to pay the fines. I not sure if that ever went that far around here. We have not had that going on so not sure if all of this works or not. Our properties are our biggest assets and our sanctuary and we all should honor and respect that with neighbors. Sometimes there can be that one person. If he were nice and just can not handle the clean up I am sure your community and neighbors would pitch in to help but since he is angry and defiant I guess you have to hope that the city or village you live in will do something. Hugs. Kris
ReplyDeleteOh dear, Carla, I’m so sorry that you and your neighbors are dealing with this and that nothing has been done about it. I have an Home Owners Association where I live and although it’s annoying sometimes, they do handle such matters. Maybe this time, something will be done? Here’s to praying for a solution. Love, Kitty
ReplyDeleteGosh...I know this was a bit scary to see them at your door. I don't understand why people do this and have no respect for neighbors. There is a rent house on the other side of "Dotta" my dear neighbor friend. This person not only has ALL kinds of junk, but he and his wife also sublet rooms in the house. I feel so bad for Dotta, because she never knows what strangers are staying there...sometimes for a few months and sometimes for a few weeks or so. Our town does have an officer who is supposed to take care of these kind of things, but NOTHING is ever done. The guy even has a rooster in his back yard, which is against the city ordinance. Why doesn't the city do anything?? I would love to know. I hope something gets done in your case as well as the one down the road from me. Hugs to you..
ReplyDeleteWell Yes, they come out and are right on it, but like you said, it's so hard to get neighbors to clear out all their things. I never call either, Carla, but it seems that some of the neighbors just get fed up. I don't blame them. You are such a good person, and I do hope that your neighbors clean it up a bit, cause it does affect the neighborhood. There's a house in the neighborhood that's nice and tidy and groomed, and then another with the exact same thing you are talking about. It just depends on the person I guess. Keep us updated, and thanks for sharing your story today, Carla. Good neighbors are few and far between.
ReplyDeleteUgh! This does sound frustrating and seems a little silly that the police are taking time to find out who called it in instead of going to the root of the problem. Thank goodness you have a fence up so you don't have to see the rubbish.
ReplyDeleteSadly, I think there are at least a few hoarders in every neighborhood. It would make me crazy, but I try to remind myself it's a sickness. Still, it would be extremely difficult to live next door to. What can you do, I don't know. The young police officer sounded like a good soul.
ReplyDeleteYou must keep me posted on this! Across the street, there was a man who had his chicken coop too close to the next door neighbor's herb garden. So she could not use any of her herbs. The police warned him several times, then threatened him with court. He finally moved it. But you always are afraid of retaliation.
ReplyDelete