OK, the neighbor from -ell has "turned me in" to the township for running my business from home.

I seem to fit the description of a "no-impact" home based business, which is permitted.

I have no signs, no large deliveries come here no employees come here, I store minimal inventory in my garage, and I only have one truck (mine).

Anyone have any insight?

What kind of problem could your neighbor possibly have with you running your business out of your house? Seems to me you're running your business like alot of other electricians do, out of their homes to save money on overhead. Nothing wrong with that, IMHO.

He is mad because I installed an above-ground pool. (With permits & inspections).

Time to start wearing a speedo at the pool and bending over in his direction.

Seriously it may be time to get an attorney before this spirals out of hand.

Your business sounds low impact to me.

^^

*spits up drink in laughter*

Speedo, lol

"Seriously it may be time to get an attorney before this spirals out of hand."

Good advice.

Sounds like your neighbor, needs something to keep him busy, a pile of respond to letters, from your lawyer may be just the thing he needs!

Thanks, I'm seeing an attornet Tuesday.
I think I'll be OK, but I am pi--ed off.

Has anyone ever dealt with this sort of thing?

You should be able to resolve this with the city, maybe without an attorney. The main question will be what the definition of a low impact business is. If you don't have customers calling and you don't have any external signs of your business visable from the street I don't think they have a leg to stand on. I know some people get their panties in a wad if you park your truck in front of the house, even in your driveway. It is illegal in a couple of cities around here.

Redsy: I hate to play the "devil's advocate" here because a rational person would find nothing offensive in the home business setup you described (and I'm downright envious about the pool ...It's hotter than fire down here in SE Texas) BUT, does operating a business or even having a swimming pool violate any kind of municipal ordinances or deed restrictions in your area? I'm assuming that if there was a problem with the pool, the permit would have been denied by the powers that be. I know of some "Nazi-style" homeowners associations which have absolute hissy fits if your grass is one milimeter too high or the color of your house is some unallowable color.

LK has the right idea. A few finely worded cease and desist letters from your attorney would provide your "neighbor" with a good pasttime activity.

There is also a lot to be said for the phrase, "good fences make good neighbors".

Best of luck to you in your situation. Please let us know how it turns out.

Mike (mamills)

Turned you in? Ok, what did the township have to say? If it's obvious that you "fit the description of a "no-impact" home based business, which is permitted" then you have nothing to worry about.

I would wait to hear from them. If they disagree then it would be time to spend some money on an attorney.

-Hal

Hal,

I went thru this, belive me the lawyer was the correct choice, as Bob noted, before it gets out of hand, and it can, at this point the neighbor is most likely romming the neighborhood with horror stories, the intervention of a third party will not only squelch this situation, but he will get advice on how to avoid any future problems.

Oh by the way, my neighbor from ell is gone, sold home shortley after his rain of terror in the neighborhood.

[This message has been edited by LK (edited 07-30-2006).]

Thanks everyone.

I'm calling the township Monday AM.

I'll probably be OK as far as "no-impact" business, but my weekend has been upset... POOR ME!!

It is unfortunate that aggravated assault is a crime, or I would have had an enjoyable "Weekend Activity".

You know... Half a bottle of Wild Turkey 101 to get me "in the mood", a couple 18" pieces of copper 250 kcmil as an "helper", etc.

Anyway,
I may not NEED a lawyer yet, but I will keep my consultation, and pay for an "official" letter, or two. Money well spent, I believe.

I agree with Hal and Greg. Did the town actually say that you were violating a city ordinance or did they just inform you that someone complained? Hiring an attorney may be throwing money away. I have a couple of GC friends that have received letters from their city’s that a neighbor has complained about an illegal home business and their businesses need to be shutdown immediately. Both of them called the city departments that sent the letters to find out what the problem was. After explaining the type of business being done the city’s told them to ignore the letters. About a year later on of them received another letter from the city with the same complaint. They called and explained that they went through this a year ago were again told to ignore the letter. I think the city finds it much easier and cheaper to send a form letter and let you come to them to find out if there actually is a problem.

Curt

Wow I am sorry to hear about the problems with your neighbour... My boss runs his business out of his house as well but none of his neighbours complain as my boss owns the house on each side of him and basically got to " choose" his neighbours.... Yard backs onto a railway line with a tall fence so no one behind can see in to where the shop and parking "lot" is...

Sounds like you have one of them neighbours that likes to whine and squak about everything... just a PITA if you ask me..

A.D

Redsy ---

It is difficult to tell if you have a right to run a business from your house or not.

I suspect you are doing more than you admit.

Perhaps your truck with logo sitting in the front yard is not typical of the rest of the neighborhood.

Perhaps you make a lot of noise at 5am when you are going out.

---

I run a "home occupation" from my house. Businesses are not allowed.

Maybe I'm playing Devil's advocate here...

Supposing you worked for someone else and were issued a company service vehicle to take home with you. Surely you would not be running your own business, but you would have a considerable piece of advertising in the driveway.

I have noisy diesel-powered transportation and what could be termed an addiction, (or at least a particular gravitation) to less-than-pristine-condition vehicles. This is far more obvious to my neighbours than my self-employment venture.

I think your neighbour just has an axe to grind, or maybe a touch of jealousy. Either way

George,

What is your basis for not believing me?
I have no reason to be deceptive on this site. I am looking for advice.

I don't do much from home.
I accept no deliveries, with an occasional (1-2 X month) exception of a standard van or pick-up truck drop-off. I have all materials delivered to the job.
The extent of my "home business" is a fax machine, computer that I share with my family, and a pick-up truck that leaves with me at 7:30 - 8:00 everyday.
There is no Homeowners association prohibiting work vehicles, and there are several self-employed neighbors doing as much, or more than me. Additionally, there are several other neighbors who work for contractors and they bring their vehicles home.
I have checked township ordinances, and I believe that I fit the "no-impact" rule.
Interestingly, nobody from the township came by to inspect before issuing the "cease & desist" order.
If they would have, there probably would have been no violation notice.

The problem is the pool.

We used to say that a man's property was his, and let him do as he pleased. No more.

Now, it seems everyone except the owner has a 'right' to say how the property is used.

As for this being the "land of the free," we seem to delight in setting up deed restrictions, neighborhood councils, etc. for the express purpose of ensuring that nobody has any freedom!

As with the electric trade, you need to know the exact rule you're accused of violating. In Reno, even James Michener, writing a novel in the privacy of his home, would be in violation of the ordinance- as it is worded.

hey redsy, maybe he's just jealous because you have a pool & he doesn't.heck maybe ya need to invite him over for a barbecue.that way you could see what's bugging him. i agree with reno too,you couldn't put me in a subdivision, of course some of us have no choice.too many rules,people minding your buiss. as for me i live in the country with only a few people around , never had a complaint.except for a brother-n-laws wife once,the wild turkey or some jim beam would have been good.but like someone else said it's just not worth it!good luck & keep us posted!

reno,

I have a citation with the pertinent Township Code article.
I found the "no-impact" subsection in the same code section as the basic rule.
That is why I believe that if they investigated first, no citation would have been issued.

Circuit man,
That's the best suggestion I've heard yet,
it's always better to get some dialouge happening between the two parties, rather than let things get all blown out of proportion by lack of communication.

If you guys knew the story behind this guy, the BBQ idea would not work....unless he was on the grill....

Some people think they own the world, and should be able to tell everyone what to do and when....like this knucklehead..

John, my ideas are still open for review

If it turns out you must "cease & desist" you could always run your business from your truck. What could they say then?

What they say is "where is your place of business" on the license. That will be what the city bases the complaint on. Then you have to establish you are not causing an impact on your neighbors.
I understand the neighbor should have to establish you are causing the impact but code enforcement/zoning law is upside down.
It is a complaint driven agency and the person who has the complain lodged against them has the burden of proopf. Hopefully Redsy lives in a city where they are not against small businessmen.

On the flip side of this, if he does have to rent an "office" the city gets more property tax money so they can be co-conspiritors. Cape Coral is like that. You can't park a truck with a logo overnight in a residential area anywhere in the city.

Revenge. Best taken cold.

Friday afternoon, after the township offices close for the weekend, erect a big sign out front.

"SITE OF PROPOSED PIG FARM"


When the township office calls you, say it's just a proposal and you haven't finalised enough details for a consent application yet.

Alan

I suggest to watch each step of your neighbor, and for example when he starts to drill, apply for a silence-law at the police, or how to say.
Another idea, if he comes to you to ask for a favour, tell him you cannot do it without issuing an invoice and get paid officially.

I have a citation with the pertinent Township Code article.

Ah! Now that is different. You have been given a citation that you have to answer to. In that case I would suggest a lawyer, he or she will carry more weight than you will.

-Hal

John (Redsey)
Just a thought....do you belong to any contractors association?
Mine provides basic legal service from a real lawyer.

John

Redsy ---

I did not intend to say I did not believe you.

I intended to say your neighbor's side of the story has not been told.

Perhaps you should ask your neighbor what you can do to relieve his concerns.

(My nephew moved into a real nice neighborhood. Had a 3 car attacked garage. Wanted to build a 3 car detached garage to keep his business tools in - he is a general contractor. Could not understand why his neighbors complained.)

George, your comments about folks seeing the same thing differently was first explained to me with the following story.

In the city, a man had his sleep disturbed by noise from the liquor store across the street. Folks coming and going, the tinkle of the door bell, the 'ka-ching' of the cash register...

His solution was to buy the liquor store. Now tha same sounds lull him to sleep....

Reno, are you saying he should ask the guy to be a silent partner?
-------------------------------
I think I know this guys type, not enough to do..... I have a few of those in my neighbor hood. When I first moved in, got a cease work notice from the city, turns out a NAMELESS neighbor (who everyone stopped by to warn me about), had called the city to complain of unpermitted work at my address, for the sole reason of seeing my truck out front. We also have some landscape design nazi's who'll leave you a nasty-gram about the dandilions in you lawn, or un-kept hedges.... They are also keen on quoting no existant laws about what you can and can not do in the front, side, and rear set-backs of your house. If they had thier way, I'd have park away from my house outside the gates they would love to install. http://www.miralomapark.org/
(FYI - they will remove any contrary remarks from thier forum pages...)

They would kick me right out.

I happen to like the brown weeds I call my front yard.

My garage is a combination of peeling paint and moss covered stucco.....it looks very 'organic'

I am often out putting supplies in and out of the billboard that is the company van at 4:30 or 5 AM.

Not once have my neighbors complained.

Bob

My neighbor runs an excavation business out of his house. Right now he is devoloping a lot down the road, you could hear his dump truck tailgate slam at 10 oclock pm the other night. Do I care, no, other than that he is a great neighbor, why, he leaves me alone . Gotta love rural Maine when I hear about the crap you guys have to put up with.

e57, I had not looked at it in quite that way...but if it keeps him SILENT... :-)

We used to have a local radio show, where a local lawyer fielded questions. I never, ever heard a caller say "I'm an unreasonable busy-body who like to make trouble." No, it was always the other guy being 'out of touch.'

For example, I have heard two new residents complain about 'all the mobile homes around here'.... when they just moved into what was once listed by Guines as the "Worlds' largest trailer park!" And both of them thought I was being unreasonable for suggestion they go back where they came from!

Maybe, just possibly, YOU are the one who unwittingly violated some local taboo. After all, I've seen all sorts of silliness.
(Writing from Nevada, we have some trouble believing that gambling, full auto firearms, 24 hr drinking, or brothels would be outlawed anywhere. It just doesn't seem right...)

It is also quite possible the neighbor is a miserable busy-body, who would love to lord it over all. Which, perhaps, is why our Assembly only meets every other year... less opportunity to pass silly laws!

I took a pro-active role in my community. I ran for president of the home owners association and won. My platform was "mind your own business" and I respond to complaints with "get over it" a lot.
Most of our residents support me, 14 hate my guts. I sleep fine with that.

I'm surprised my neighbors don't complain to the trailer park I live in about my dad's work/Comcast Truck being parked in the empty lot across the street! The guy who lived behind that lot used to always complain about our porch not being "as perfect as can be." Guess what? His 1988 singlewide was just demolished last Friday! (Reasons unknown.) I got some weird looks cheering on the excavator driver's kids as they threw cinderblocks through the walls and windows.
Here, it has everything to do with how far from the main office you are. I'm right down the street from it, so I have 100s of additional, unofficial restrictions. If you go to the section down the small highway, they can and do do anything!
I want to move out of this place due to these crap restrictions, but my mother doesn't for some stupid reason. Plus, I don't want to be the one to sell a once $107K doublewide for scrap. (My father paid $29K for this 1973 singlewide back in 1986. It’s now worth scrap, if that.) When we move, we’re stripping it, down to the copper wire in the walls. Oh what an eyesore they'll have then, a trailer stripped of its siding and skirting. That excavator will be here in no time flat.

Ian A.
Morrisville Pa/Falls Twp.

[This message has been edited by Theelectrikid (edited 08-01-2006).]

You really have to meet these things head on. Our deed restrictions expired and the dozen little old ladies who ran this place assumed they could simply ram them back through in a board meeting that nobody would attend. I walked the neighborhood and knocked on everyone's door. We had several emergency meetings and each time the biddies were hoping they could get the votes but each time more people showed up saying no.
At the annual meeting the deed restrictions were finally voted down by a 4 to one margin in the highest turnout in the history of this 40 year old community.
You just have to ask people what they realy want and most will say they want to be left alone. Of course there still are those 14 people who hate my guts ;-)

Another simular SF story, which happened more times that can be counted here....

For instance: Some jerk flush with cashola decides he wants the "urban life", and goes to see his RE agent. Who then takes him to go see some stupid Live/Work loft one day. He shucks over $1M!

Moves in, and the first night realizes that that non-descript door across the street is a nightclub, or bar. (Reason #1 why live music is dead here now....) They can kill the music, but can't kill the bar....

Anyway, the moral of the story:

Some people like neighborhoods, but don't like neighbors.

Your neighbor needs to be taught a lesson and you are the one who needs to teach it to him/her. You cannot allow this to go without harsh and severe retaliation, because if you do your hell will only get worse. Don't listen to the appeasers, that you should try and make peace and all that. Your neighbor is vermin.

Renosteinke is SO RIGHT about a man's property being his, and should be able to do with it as he pleased. And even more to the point, regarding the "land of the free," and our taking delight in setting up deed restrictions, neighborhood councils, etc. for the express purpose of ensuring that nobody has any freedom couldn't be more DEAD ON!

Here's what you need to do to fix your neighbor:

1). Hire an attorney to protect your interests.

2). Obtain a survey of your property. If anything of your neighbors is even 1/64" on your property, start the ball rolling with lawsuits, etc.

3). If you've considerd adding an extension to your home, now is the time to do it. Get all the permits you could possibly need, and be sure all the I's are dotted and T's crossed. Do whatever you have to to ensure any such work is long, loud, and dispruptive -- within the limits of laws and codes. Start as early as the law allows, be as loud as noise ordinaces allow, finish as late as the law allows and use the brightest generator powered (loud) temporary lighting as lighting ordinances allow.

4). Upgrade you electric service, and demand the POCO shut down the power for your safety even if you always work live. Make sure you take as long as possible. Try to make some mistakes so power needs to be shut down for another day or more. Oh, and make sure you have a really loud generator (again within the law) to supply you and your family power, and be sure to flaunt the convenience, like air conditioning and ice cream on a hot day.

By the way, exercise the generator as often as possible.

5). Upgrade your gas service such that the street needs to be dug up and creates maximum disruption. Ditto for your water and sewer service.

6). Make sure you have cameras pointed at all angles of your neighbors house. If you see any repair trucks or work going on at all, check with the AHJ that all appropriate permits were filed. If not, send them the video and insist upon enforcement. Of course, if it’s a big project, let them finish first, so they have to start all over when the plans weren't filed.

7). If they do any work on their own vehicles, make sure all fluids are properly disposed of. If they do any HVAC or MVAC work, check to see if they’re recovering the refrigerant as required by law, and rat them out to the EPA as appropriate.

8). If fireworks are legal, make sure you celebrate 4th of July in a zealous and partriotic way, i.e. LOUD! And don’t limit yourself to the 4th either if the law allows.

9). If you’re subject to recycling laws, go through you neighbors garbage (this is legal) and make sure they’re recycling everything in accordance with the law. If not, get your camera out and document everything, making certain the house address shows in all photos.

10). If your neighbor has cable TV service, next time there is an outage, disconnect the cable from you house at the demarcation point (or from inside your house where no one can see) then hook up your meg tester to the provider side of the demarc and then crank away. Delight in hearing the pop and poof of expensive electronics exploding. You'll damage other neighbors components too, but that’s the collateral damage of war.

11). Try to create as much RFI interference as possible to screw up cordless phones, wi-fi, and other wireless devices.

12). Always make sure you use lawn maintenance equipment during the earliest and latest hours of the day as allowed by law.

13). Be sure to rub all of the above in your neighbors face every time you see him/her.

This is only a small sampling of what you can do to make your neighbors life miserable. Hopefully, others here will chime in with additional ideas. Of course, anything you do must be 100% within the law. Your success will be measured by:

a). Moving truck in front of your neighbors house.
b). Ambulance in front of your neighbors house.
c). Having your neighbor knock on your door begging for mercy.
d). All of the above.

And no, this is not coming from some 18 year old kid. I am 40 years old, and have spent too many years trying to make nice with my enemies and giving myself ulcers. Life is too short, so you should have fun and enjoy sticking it to others who so justly deserve and need it. Heck, you might even be the hero of the neighborhood.

Joe

If you decide to follow Joe's advice be sure you don't scrimp on #1.

I don't want Joe as an enemy.

If you follow Joe's advice also be ready for hoardes of angry neighbors with torches arriving at your front door...

"All's fair in love and war"... but Joe proves that war is more interesting.

Thanks for the laughs, Joe. I like your style and I'm with you on this one 100%.
I don't think I have ever hated a person more than the village idiot that lives next to me. A few years back he tried to give me problems about my van being parked on the boulevard. The city called me and said I have to move it, so I moved it to the street - only requirement is it has to be moved once every 24 hours. Since then, I bought a 14 foot cube van and it's now parked on my property, and conveniently blocks their view from their dining room window . He's on a "disability pension" (I won't even go there) and I know he likes to sleep in, and since "quiet time" is from 11pm to 7am, we intentionally make lots of noise in the morning when we start at 7. I've even thought about putting a timer on on the stereo just outside my garage, tuning it in to some ethnic music station, and cranking the volume up loud enough for them to hear it on their patio which is about 15 feet away. Haven't done it yet, but that will be the next trick up my sleeve

I guess it's a bit strange if someone's doing something to do someone else bad.

I think it is a waste of life to find out more and more tricks to make sy's neighbour angry.

Anyway, they'll move sooner or later, and then you can start over again, when this guy's possibly assimilated more or less to your and your family's lifestyle.

Neverending story. Just forget it.

The "get even" merntality seldom works, it only escalates a minor problem into a major one. You really do not want your late sleeping neighbor keeping you awake all night do you? Waking him up in the morning only makes him a little groggy while he is catching up on his Flintstones. If you are groggy at work you could get killed. Bear in mind if you are up and out at 7 you probably go to bed before "quiet time" starts.

I wouldn't count on them moving. I've seen generations die in the same house. He could be planning to live there forever. People on disability feel very entitled, no reason for him to change when he can complain to the city.

Silly me! I didn't take into account Redsky's financial and home situation concerning those "neighborly" tips, or maybe his house is new or otherwise in perfect shape not needing any major renovation. So here are some other low cost, legal, and highly effective tips:

When you're dealing with vermin like this neighbor, it is virtually guaranteed they suffer other anti-social and sub-human tendencies, like bigotry. You have a pool right? Perfect! If you're white and your neighborhood is white, extend an invitation for a small busload of African American, Hispanic, or Arabic inner city children for a day at your pool, complete with ice cream and refreshments. Play some ethnic music too. (I like your idea Sixer at 7AM with the timers, LOL!). What will it cost you? A box of popsicles: $7.99. Two gallons of ice cream: $9.99. A case of juice and soda: $6.99 each. Look on your neighbors face: PRICELESS! Not only will you be doing a good thing for the less fortunate, you'll really PO your neighbor. Win, win! And make sure you have item # 6 set up first (cameras) – very important, which I’ll explain next.

And really what is your neighbor going to do? If the neighbor makes so much as one racially disparaging remark (try to egg it on, like inviting them over), turn the video over to the local news stations and to Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson. If your neighbor files a complaint with the police or other agency, file a FOIA request to obtain such report and turn it over to Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson. Then sit back and enjoy all the protests surrounding your neighbors house.

Do you own any guns? If not, buy some and make sure they’re registered if required by law – shotguns and hunting rifles usually do not need to be registered in most states, and license are not required. Again make sure you have #6 (cameras). Then pick a spot on your property with the best view for your neighbor to observe you dissembling, cleaning, polishing, and putting back together the guns… and do so with a slight grin on your face. Of course, you must do this in a non-threatening manner.

You see most of these people are SWINE and COWARDS, so if they see you have weapons, they’ll likely back off. But if they don’t and instead call the police – who likely won’t even respond to the call – in all likelihood your neighbor to lie or exaggerate to prompt the police to come out. If the police come out to you, be cooperative and respectful, and do not resist if they want to take you in (all the better). Now with the video evidence, you got your neighbor for filing a false report, where he or she can be prosecuted CRIMINALLY.

In summary, I do not know why people today can’t be civil, let alone neighborly. When I was a kid, neighbors were like extended family. Even now, a number of my neighbors have keys to my house, and I have keys to theirs… to feed pets if someone is away, turn off an false alarm, etc.

Yesterday, I checked on some elderly neighbors to see if they needed anything with all this heat, or if my wife could take them shopping or something, and I noticed on of them had a broken door bell button. So I went back home, got a new one, replaced it, and rang the bell. My neighbor was surprised to hear the side door bell ring because it was broken for a while, and I mentioned she has a new one now (of course no charge), and asked if she needed anything else.

Why can’t it be like this with everyone? The world would be a much nice place.

Joe

Even hinting that you are introducing guns into the conflict can cause you serious problems. It is called "brandishing" (automatic revocation of your concealed carry license among other things) and if this ever does precipitate into violence you could end up being the one in jail. Nothing brings the cops faster than "man with a gun" calls.
Remember your "crazy" neighbor may have a gun too.

If your neighbor is making you think this hard about getting even he already won the war. He can just sit back and watch you stew in your own juice, laughing his ass off. If it does escalate into this "blow up his stuff with a megger" stage he might just burn your truck and put you out of business for a while.

Remember your neighbor might not limit himself to legal retaliation, what if he has some friends come, at 3:00 A.M., wearing ski masks, and they slash your tires, put a potato in your tailpipe, key your van and personal car's paintjob, then shoot out your cameras, your cars' windows, and throw some bricks through your first floor window? insurance might pay for most of it, but you'll lose time on whatever job you're working on, and your premiums will go up, retaliation might end in your neighbor leaving, or it might end with you sleepless at night looking out your bedroom window for vandals, with financial difficulties.

I agree with gfretwell, not a good idea, deal with this via normal routes, with an attorney, through the city.

Getting even is, IMO juvenile and will most likely not end well, the megger trick may end up with you paying for several grand of electronics, and may even land you in jail, your other neighbors will dislike you for waging this personal war at their expense.

JMO
-Will

Just a little message.
Please keep your posts within the sensible boundaries of this Forum.
Some of the suggestions are getting a little bit carried away here, and we don't want to ruin the thread.

We are here to cure problems, not cause them.


[This message has been edited by electure (edited 08-03-2006).]

So I guess just sending him a Vermont Teddy Bear is out of the question?
Joe

Test Eng, a Vermont Teddy would be nice...except they discontinued the one with a straitjacket!

Misery does love company... no profit letting this sad sack make you miserable too!

Otherwise, it is also true that you catch more flies with honey than vinegar... all you can do is keep the 'welcome mat' out, and hope they either come around, or find a new target for their angst.

Rather than dwell on this loser... use him as an intro to your many fine neighbors. Them concetrate on them, and your happy experiences.

If there's one thing a loser can't stand, is the sight of others ignoring him, and having fun!

You go Joe!My dad also named Joe had the same problem.Did a survey and found the nasty neighbors fence and driveway was 3 feet on our property.In comes the Doser and there was not a thing the guy could do about it.The city would take it down at his own expence if we wanted.Also cut every branch off this trees on our side of the property line and tossed them on his lawn with his fence and these were huge trees.The guy was told to shut up or his driveway was next.Have not heard from him since,wont even look at us.Still LMAO when i think about it.



[This message has been edited by frank (edited 08-03-2006).]

"Even hinting that you are introducing guns into the conflict can cause you serious problems. It is called "brandishing" (automatic revocation of your concealed carry license among other things) and if this ever does precipitate into violence you could end up being the one in jail. Nothing brings the cops faster than "man with a gun" calls.
Remember your "crazy" neighbor may have a gun too."

Would you mind pointing out what statute the crime of "brandishing" is located in? Nevermind, because there is no such thing. Not trying to be an *ss but misinformation when it comes to firearm laws is a pet peave of mine. Heres an exact copy and paste of the statute that deals with "brandishing" a firearm.

790.10 Improper exhibition of dangerous weapons or firearms.--If any person having or carrying any dirk, sword, sword cane, firearm, electric weapon or device, or other weapon shall, in the presence of one or more persons, exhibit the same in a rude, careless, angry, or threatening manner, not in necessary self-defense, the person so offending shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.

I regularly open carried in my former place of business and have opened carried on my property, there is not a thing anyone can do about it. I'm not suggesting bringing firearms into this dispute, in fact I'm against it as it's not a serious enough threat to warrant that type of action but I have done something similar in the past.

Found out a registered sex offender moved across the street from me, I made it a point to walk outside with a loaded AR15, FAL or H&K91 (depending on the day or what I was taking to the range) whenever he was outside, I am sure I got my point across. Now I did not point the weapon at him or say anything to him and I had witnesses that would testify to that if they were needed.

I'll tell ya, I'm always learning sometin' here. For years, I wondered what," Is that a seven niner zero dot ten ya got there? Or are you just happy to see me?", was supposed to mean. Enlightenment sometimes comes from amazing sources.
Joe

Lone, the word "brandishing" is used in the documentation that came with my concealed carry permit and was also used in the education course that we take.

The point I was making is if you take a war of words and even hint that you are going to escalate it with a weapon the cops WILL take it seriously. You can quickly change from the victim to the accused if the cop gets the wrong idea. The wrong person may end up handcuffed in the back of the car.

Confucious say:
"He who seeks revenge, had better dig two graves."

Hey- let's look to the rest of the world for advice! Nothing lobbing a few rockets won't fix..... or, better yet, strap a bomb to kitty and send him over!

We see where THIS road leads.

WOW!!!!
Joe: I just read what you posted, I would NOT want to peeve you off!! Although I really like the Megger thing, that I would love to see!

My neighbourhood has had its share of bad apples and still has the odd one but that one keeps to themselves.. In general my neighbourhood is like a big family... Everyone looks after everyone else, and occasionally get together just to see whats going on ( And yes we even have the neighbours that we only see at Christmas Thank God)... Same thing as well, We have keys to other neighbours places, they have keys to ours.. They can use our pool when they want, We can borrow their air compressor when we want, That sort of thing! NOT a problem with anyone at all!!

Oh ya Joe: Here is one to add to your list... If anyone peeves you off real bad AND owns a POOL...... Lob in excessive amounts of Chlorine Stabilizer... Chlorine will not work no matter how much is added because its now " locked".. Pool changes to green and they will have no choice but to dump water and add fresh ..
Oops, I think I have said enough!

A.D

Hmmm.... The evil chlorine atom. Given a little time on a nuetral bus it can go a long way....

All in favor of adding some chlorine to the gene pool say "Aye!"

This whole problem started when I put in my above ground pool.
The neighbor who used to be friendly (he even snowblowed my driveway once, without my asking) explained that his inground pool was a "focal point" of his yard, and that my pool would cause a drop in his homes "curbside appeal".

He called the township because I was cutting a 10' wide path in the weeds of some township-owned open space behind my yard. This was so my 11 & 8 year-old girls could walk out back to see the neighbors horses.

Whats he doing peeping into your yard anyway??? Perhaps ask him if he wants to fo 50/50 on a large privacy fence, some trees, plants or shrubs of some kind are in order to keep his eyes in his own yard on his OWN pool that is the "focal point" of HIS yard... And that YOUR pool is the focal point of your yard, and that having a neighbour like him is going to degrade the quality of the neighbourhood in general so he best be buggering off and keeping to himself from then on!!

A.D

[This message has been edited by Rewired (edited 08-07-2006).]

I would just make sure I was OK with the local code enforcement folks and ignore this jerk. After a few more baseless complaints the town will too. They might even tell him to stop making false complaints.

I thought up one for you, non-destructive..

Set up 2 or 3 fake cameras pointing at his house. Let him see them. or better yet, let his wife see them. Make his wife feel you are video taping every moment of their day....Point one at their pool.

LOL..

Invite your cool neighbors over for a BBQ, but "accidentally" put a flyer in his mailbox advertising a video party....

That will get her panties in a ruffle, and she will drive him crazy.....

I've found that talking with neighbors, buying their favorite brew, and inviting them to backyard BBQs keeps everyone pretty happy.

My lawyer charges $55 per phone call, and we always play phone tag. I can buy a lot of brew for $110.

Dave

"Your vision of vengeance will destroy you" - Kwai Chang Caine to an Apache warrior, TV series Kung Fu, 1970's. Never a truer word spoken. The eye-for-eye mentality is alive and well in a certain part of the world right now, and just look what it is achieving - NOT!!!
Bad behaviour on the part of your neighour does not excuse bad behaviour on your part. Better to just ignore him. He will soon get the message and find someone else to annoy.

Just my 5c worth.

Mark Monson

quote - Kwai Chang Caine to an Apache warrior, TV series Kung Fu, 1970's

they even had paperback novels about this show.I used to wait in anticipation for each release .

This one's straight from my parents in our neighbor and office wars:

Crank up any motorcycle, especially an old Harley, as early and as late as possible, and then go riding off into your neighborhood. Or, just let it sit and idle.

Ian A.

Hey Ian, you out of school yet?

There are some local guys on this board, maybe you can hook up with one of them...

ROTFLMAO!! Reno you sound like my father when he wants to deal with our one neighbor's 10000 cats.


Yeah I'm out and back the 30th. Fire me off an email so we can talk.

Ian A.

[This message has been edited by Theelectrikid (edited 08-07-2006).]

Wow... with all the criticism of my ideas on how to deal with the neighbor from hell, the flyer in the mailbox will positively subject Redsky to a Federal offense. Other than perhaps my "meg test" idea, most everything else I suggested was perfecty legal. This is not:

18 U.S.C. 1725:

"Whoever knowingly and willfully deposits any mailable matter such as statements of accounts, circulars, sale bills, or other like matter, on which no postage has been paid, in any letter box established, approved, or accepted by the Postal Service for the receipt or delivery of mail matter on any mail route with intent to avoid payment of lawful postage thereon, shall for each such offense be fined under this title."

This law has been on the books since 1934 and withstood a Supreme Court challenge for Constitutionality in 1981. (U.S. Postal Service v. Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations, 453 U.S. 114)

Since Redsky as a business could be considered an organization, he is subject to up to a $10,000 fine, as per 18 U.S.C. 3559 and 3571. Individuals are subject to up to a $5,000 fine.

Joe

[This message has been edited by JJM (edited 08-08-2006).]

So, we can cram as much crap as we like into someone's mailbox as long as it has a stamp on it!?

Alan

Yup and there are people who prove that at my house every day.
If you like getting mail, just buy something from a catalog or online.

---

Edited by self.

[This message has been edited by Theelectrikid (edited 12-03-2006).]

Hmmm. What was on your laptop?

-Hal

Ian,
You definitely DON'T need some of the advice that's been dished out in this thread.

Find a better way than a cowardly revenge.

Go get a girlfriend that's twice as pretty.
If you're doing what's right in the first place, let them be mad. Being mad doesn't make them right. If the cops are around, all the better. Have THEM get your laptop back.
Winning a battle through the proper channels and with a clear conscience is an infinitely sweeter revenge.

No, I have my laptop, I was using it out back when they showed up. A good friend of mine was here, and she was watching those two while I got a soda. I come back, and see that they were all IMimg my girlfriend, cursing at her and everything. Well, her mother came on, and now I have three people in that part of the neighborhood against me. BTW, it was a joke that I'm using this advice. Oh, and said idiot from down the street will be moving anyways. I got front row seats and a popcorn machine to watch his house meet its fate after he moves.

Thanks,
IA

[This message has been edited by Theelectrikid (edited 08-14-2006).]

I suspect my advice on the matter was generally not welcomed...

All I can say is throughout human history, appeasement and making nice nice with people who wish you ill or worse has never worked and never will. All you do by this is embolden your enemies to do even greater ill or worse to you. With the fifth anniversary of 9/11 approaching, this should be painfully obvious.

Let's say you've bid a big job, filed plans, got your approvals, and now some inspector is demanding things that aren't even on any of the plans, and the cost of "complaince" is sure to turn the job from a profit to a big loss? What to you do, take food away from the family? Or do you do battle with the inspector -- preferably nailing him to the wall legally?

If you don't stop such an errant inspector, you can be sure every other job from your company is going to be held up. How many of you have gotten shaken down like this?

Funny how when once you initiate proceedings that results in an inspector losing his job and pension, all your other inspections... building, plumbing, fire... all seem to go quite smoothly. Even things that shouldlegitimately get tagged aren't. Sometimes, you need to set an example.

It would be great if we could all get along and sing "Cum Bah Ya" but unfortunately the world doesn't work that way.

Joe


word edited out

[This message has been edited by electure (edited 08-15-2006).]

Joe
What happens when the AHJ backs his inspector and doesn't fire him like you want?
Most of the time these things come down from the boss, they are not made up because the inspector doesn't like you.

With all do respect to the inspectors out there, BUT...

Sometimes inspectors have it out for companies.
It happens, and the cases I know, I support..

When the ones I know get a call for an inspection, from the said companies, the first thing they grab are the red stickers.
Look hard and long enough, and most everyone could fail for something.


Us in this area know who they are, and why they get such a hard ride. They are not your everyday, honest, hardworking outfits.