ZMotorsports Shop Projects 2.0

[PugetDude]

Didn't get any work completed in the shop last night as I mowed the lawns. Then just as I was ready to "fluff" my grass, the neighbor came over to talk. I don't get people. He wanted to know if I would have a problem with him putting up an industrial style of awning or cover to put over the motorhome he is looking to purchase. I don't think he appreciated my stance because I explained that the CC&R's clearly state the criteria for what any accessory building OR structure must meet, and neither an awning nor pole building is acceptable in our subdivision as per the CC&R's. He said they talked with the city planning commission and was told that they could circumvent the CC&R requirements IF the neighbors were ok with it. I simply told him the CC&R's needed to be followed just like I had to follow them.

What kills me is I remember the first day we looked at this house in the neighborhood and ran into these particular neighbors. Our realtor friend and I saw there was a footing, foundation and floor for an accessory building next to the properly line of the property we were looking to buy. Seeing as how he and his dad already had the beginnings of a detached garage, we had asked if they knew anything about the criteria for building such a detached garage and they gave us the whole CC&R lecture. Our realtor friend tried to convince me to look elsewhere so we could construct a pole building, but the wife and I really liked this area. The next day I went to the county to pull the CC&R's to read them for myself. They are very specific in what is required, which is one of the reasons we liked this neighborhood and especially the house and property. There was no HOA to contend with, however, the CC&R criteria is very specific and quite detailed in what is acceptable and what is not, right down to the construction and finish work on any accessory building. Due to what we had to deal with in our last neighborhood I was very impressed and drawn to the neighborhood specifically because of how detailed and explicit the CC&R's were. We had to change our plans somewhat from of a pole building which was my first thought when looking to move, merely to keep costs down on the shop. However, when I saw that they were not allowed, the wife stepped in and convinced me that we should look at what the cost would be to build a footing, foundation, stick and brick shop rather than a pole building because she liked the neighborhood and didn't want a pole building anyways. After going back and forth with my contractor and negotiating a price, we made the offer on the house, and the rest is history. Much of our decision was based on the fact of how specific the guidelines were and how we wouldn't end up in a **** show like the last neighborhood where everyone was just doing whatever they wanted.

I even remember the day we broke ground on the shop, January 31st, 2017. I had three neighbors, INCLUDING the one who came over last night, and they all were very explicit in explaining that the subdivision had very specific CC&R's that must be adhered to. I reassured them that I had a copy of the CC&R's from the county, had read them and memorized them front to back and sideways before buying the property so everything would be done to the letter.

Now 8 years later one of those same neighbors wants to piss backwards because I think he realized what it will cost to build something following the CC&R's. What hypocrites. I stood my ground and said I would not sign off on it. Not because I was trying to be a jerk, but because I completely understood the reasons why the developer wrote such detailed CC&R's, to preserve property values and maintain the standards of the neighborhood. I also want to be able to hand our property down to my son and his family and don't want it going the way of the last neighborhood so yes, I will continue to stand my ground. Plus, it cost me over $30k more to build what I have just to be in compliance and everyone else should be held to the same standards. I'm really not trying to be a jerk over this, but damn, it pissed me off that he thought I would be ok with him doing whatever in the hell he wanted yet he made certain I was held me to the criteria laid out in the CC&R's. I also explained that these particular CC&R's are EXACTLY why we bought here, because they preserve the standards of the neighborhood long term.

This is exactly why I chose to live in an HOA governed community with very specific CCR's regarding construction standards.

 

[zmotorsports]

I don't blame you ONE BIT on taking that stance Mike, I'd be equally irritated and pissed that a neighbor that lectured "the new guy" when you were moving in and now that you likely have the best looking property in the neighborhood they want you to sign off on some halfa$$ed solution.

Good on you for not backing down, he could have built years ago, when it may have been cheaper looking in the rear view, but gotta deal with what you have in front of you at the time.

Thanks Mike. To be honest, I was a little reluctant to make the above post on Garage Journal. I know many on the forum feel that what they do on their property is no one else's business and they should be allowed to do whatever they want. And while I agree to a certain extent, I also am a firm believer in following the rules laid out before them. If someone wants to build any structure on their property without concern for rules, then I am ok with it as long as they do it away from immediate neighbors and out in the country. Personally, I like having curb and gutter so for me we set our sights on finding a property in a subdivision but out in the country. I feel I have the best of both, but rules are rules and we sought out such a neighborhood with these set rules.

Where his property is it is just behind my next-door neighbor's shop is. It is a father and son property, actually adjacent to the dad is the daughter and son in law's property as well. They have three properties in kind of a pie shaped area of the subdivision. The actual garage resides on the son's property immediately to my west next to my shop, whereas the dad's property is directly behind the son's to the south. When they built the garage next to mine, they installed drive through doors on each end, north and south, so they could enter the garage at one property and drive through and out the other. He wants to install the cover at the south end of the garage and even though it is not directly on the side of my property, I still share a small section of property line with him.

I asked him point blank, "don't you think that will be an eyesore?" Plus, I asked if he had given any thought about when he's gone and the property will be sold with a structure that is nearly connected to his son's property. Who would want to buy that? I swear people think about themselves in the now and give no thought to the future. When we bought our home, they informed me that they were put on hold to build their detached garage until after the dwelling was built. Their original plan was to build the garage first to store equipment and supplies in and then build the house afterwards. The city put a halt to it and said the dwelling needed to be built first. Personally, I completely understood the reasoning for wanting the shop built first and would have been fine with it, but the city didn't see it that way as the rules were "no accessory buildings on a property until the dwelling is first constructed." While in our small city, I do see on occasion the dwelling AND a detached garage being built simultaneously, but I guess that more closely meets the city's criteria so I can see that too. I reminded him that when I applied for my building permit that the planning commission told me I had to stay 3' off the property line which I was prepared to do, but being the "nice guy" that I am, I informed them that immediately on my west, the neighbor already had footings, foundation and floor poured for an accessory building and it is 3' off the property line. They informed me that no two structures could be closer than 10' apart so would need to stay 7' off the property line, unless mine would be built first, then I could go the 3' and they would have to move theirs when they began actual construction. I really didn't want to be "that guy" and start off our neighborly interaction in that manner so I moved my shop over another 5' so I am 12' off the property line ensuring there would be no issues when they built their shop, plus it gave me a trailer parking area if I ever needed it in the future, which I am so glad I did now.

And I agree with Marc's comment above, "good for thee, not for me." Really hits home in this instance. I also asked him point blank, "didn't you tell me that you negotiated with the developer to buy these three properties all sharing a property line on purpose because you said the CC&R's were so specific but didn't want to deal with an HOA?" I very distinctly remember him telling me that when we were building our shop. He just stood there not denying nor confirming, but I hope it made him think about what he was asking of me.

 

[zmotorsports]

This is exactly why I chose to live in an HOA governed community with very specific CCR's regarding construction standards.

I would agree to a certain extent, but I went looking specifically for a home that DID have very well-defined CC&R's yet absolutely NO HOA. I wouldn't even look at a property that stated HOA. There were quite a few that popped up on our search but as soon as I saw the box checked stating HOA, I deleted them and didn't even go look at any. I'm not trying to sound like a hypocrite because I didn't want to deal with an HOA, yet I am holding someone to the same standards that I was held to and to what I was drawn to. Around here CC&R's are totally different than what an HOA "can" impose. HOA regulations and rules "can" change with different people in charge, whereas CC&R's are written by the developer at time of inception and registered with the county, then governed by the county and city, not an organization made up of neighbors. Minor differences? Maybe, but distinct enough that we sought out what we did.

 

[PugetDude]

I would agree to a certain extent, but I went looking specifically for a home that DID have very well-defined CC&R's yet absolutely NO HOA. I wouldn't even look at a property that stated HOA. There were quite a few that popped up on our search but as soon as I saw the box checked stating HOA, I deleted them and didn't even go look at any. I'm not trying to sound like a hypocrite because I didn't want to deal with an HOA, yet I am holding someone to the same standards that I was held to and to what I was drawn to. Around here CC&R's are totally different than what an HOA "can" impose. HOA regulations and rules "can" change with different people in charge, whereas CC&R's are written by the developer at time of inception and registered with the county, then governed by the county and city, not an organization made up of neighbors. Minor differences? Maybe, but distinct enough that we sought out what we did.

Out CCR's can only be changed with a 2/3 vote of the entire community. Virtually no chance of that happening. The HOA manages the architectural guidelines, maintains the roads, common areas, etc- they cannot change the CCR's that were put in place by the developer 20+ years ago. It's working well. Neighborhood looks great, property values per ft2are actually higher than surrounding communities (including the Country Club next door with very restrictive rules and a full-time enforcement staff) ...several of our residents belong to the club for golf privileges but chose to live on our side of the wall instead. One of them owns two lots and has a shop with a lift/ mini Don Long party garage... Only one of the 6 homes with RV garages/shops... so far. Couldn't be happier with our location and the investment protections we have in place.

 

[zmotorsports]

Out CCR's can only be changed with a 2/3 vote of the entire community. Virtually no chance of that happening. The HOA manages the architectural guidelines, maintains the roads, common areas, etc- they cannot change the CCR's that were put in place by the developer 20+ years ago. It's working well. Neighborhood looks great, property values per ft2are actually higher than surrounding communities (including the Country Club next door with very restrictive rules and a full-time enforcement staff) ...several of our residents belong to the club for golf privileges but chose to live on our side of the wall instead. One of them owns two lots and has a shop with a lift/ mini Don Long party garage... Couldn't be happier with our location and the investment protections we have in place.

Property values can be a double-edged sword. On one hand a high property value is good for resale, and bragging rights if you're into that, but on the other hand it means a higher tax burden annually. Ours has also outpaced the surrounding areas in terms of value and I am convinced that is because of the guidelines laid out which have kept the properties in line with the developer's original plan. I have no interest in selling as this is our forever/dream home, so I'm not so interested in the resale value per se, but I am very much invested in maintaining the integrity and standards of the neighborhood as our home will eventually be my son's and I want him to inherit something worth having, which is basically my life's work.

 

[zmotorsports]

I did arrive home last night to find one of my packages delivered, which contained my new Stewart Warner sending unit, some DEI form a barrier and some stainless steel tie wraps. I have used other DEI products in the past and have been extremely impressed with their products, but I have not yet tried their "form-a-barrier" style of heat barrier. This will be a trial run.

 

[fouckhest]

Thanks Mike. To be honest, I was a little reluctant to make the above post on Garage Journal. I know many on the forum feel that what they do on their property is no one else's business and they should be allowed to do whatever they want. And while I agree to a certain extent, I also am a firm believer in following the rules laid out before them.

I think in your situation/neighborhood, you bought for many specific reasons, wavering from that now negates many extra investments that you have made to ensure, if nothing else a quality of life. I certainly agree that many on the forum differently, from what I have seen on here, those folks go buy 10, 20, 50 etc., acres and build what ever they want and don't have to worry about any rules, they make their own and typically respect those that choose to find a way to have a shop, garage, man cave in a neighborhood.

Honestly, this was an interesting and meaningful story to hear....I am certainly curious to see how it shakes out in the end.

 

[zmotorsports]

I think in your situation/neighborhood, you bought for many specific reasons, wavering from that now negates many extra investments that you have made to ensure, if nothing else a quality of life. I certainly agree that many on the forum differently, from what I have seen on here, those folks go buy 10, 20, 50 etc., acres and build what ever they want and don't have to worry about any rules, they make their own and typically respect those that choose to find a way to have a shop, garage, man cave in a neighborhood.

Honestly, this was an interesting and meaningful story to hear....I am certainly curious to see how it shakes out in the end.

Agreed Mike. If someone wants to forego rules and guidelines and built in the middle of 10+ acres away from a subdivision, who am I to say otherwise. However, next door in a subdivision is a different story entirely.

After he left, I thought to myself that I probably didn't make any friends or if he was, he won't be any longer. But in the next thought I am not going to be a doormat and let someone circumvent the rules that are in place for a reason, plus those same rules they made damn sure I followed. In my mind that just isn't right. I did not leave any misunderstanding however, that I would not sign such a release or waiver of the CC&R's going forward so I hope he doesn't ask again. If the city comes to me for permission I will tell them the same thing. Beyond that I hope we can still be neighborly and get along. I may need to rent his scissor lift again someday.....

 

[aka Larry]

After he left, I thought to myself that I probably didn't make any friends or if he was, he won't be any longer. But in the next thought I am not going to be a doormat and let someone circumvent the rules that are in place for a reason, plus those same rules they made damn sure I followed. In my mind that just isn't right. I did not leave any misunderstanding however, that I would not sign such a release or waiver of the CC&R's going forward so I hope he doesn't ask again. If the city comes to me for permission I will tell them the same thing. Beyond that I hope we can still be neighborly and get along. I may need to rent his scissor lift again someday.....

Any idea what all the 'other' neighbors said Mike? Were they OK with it?

 

[ntsqd]

He required that you hold to the CC&R's, why would he expect anything different from you? That's not being mean or being an A-H, that's everyone playing by the same set of agreed upon rules. All of you agreed to those rules when you bought. If he didn't fully understand them when he bought that's not on you.

Are there maximum lot coverage limits? We've run into that. I can't put any sort of shade structure over where Ms ntsqd parks because of this.

 

[zmotorsports]

Any idea what all the 'other' neighbors said Mike? Were they OK with it?

Seeing as how two of his neighbors he shares a property line with are his kids, I would assume they would agree to sign. It will come down to me and the neighbor immediately to my south, which I don't know what his feelings are.

 

[aka Larry]

Seeing as how two of his neighbors he shares a property line with are his kids, I would assume they would agree to sign. It will come down to me and the neighbor immediately to my south, which I don't know what his feelings are.

So only five lots in your subdivision? I thought my ten lot one was small!

 

[zmotorsports]

He required that you hold to the CC&R's, why would he expect anything different from you? That's not being mean or being an A-H, that's everyone playing by the same set of agreed upon rules. All of you agreed to those rules when you bought. If he didn't fully understand them when he bought that's not on you.

Are there maximum lot coverage limits? We've run into that. I can't put any sort of shade structure over where Ms ntsqd parks because of this.

I completely agree and that has been my stand, I am merely upholding him to the same guidelines/rules that I was held to. Nothing more.

As for max. coverage limits, we have what is called "non-permeable" limits. Things like concrete and structures can only cover a certain percentage of the property, then the structures themselves have size limitations set in place by the county. I know in order to have a 3k ft/2. detached structure the property must be .75 of an acre. A .5 acre property is required for a 2k ft/2. detached structure. Anything larger than 3k requires a minimum 1-acre lot. I only wanted (and could afford) a 3k square foot shop so we specifically went looking for a 3/4 acre lot, but I would have taken an acre if absolutely necessary and it checked all the other boxes. My fear was that I didn't want to bite off more than I could chew and knew that as I aged, maintaining a large property would be more problematic. I figured I could continue to maintain a 3/4 acre property so that is what we set our sights on finding.

 

[PugetDude]

Seeing as how two of his neighbors he shares a property line with are his kids, I would assume they would agree to sign. It will come down to me and the neighbor immediately to my south, which I don't know what his feelings are.

So is the pole barn approval decision based on a majority of the adjoining neighbors or can it be denied based on a single objection?
If he's surrounded by family members you might be fadiddled...

 

[zmotorsports]

So only five lots in your subdivision? I thought my ten lot one was small!

Vincent, there are 20-lots in our immediate subdivision. Basically four separate but connected cul-de-sacs comprise those 20 lots. There are 4 lots of 1-acre size, 4 lots that are 3/4 acre size and the remaining are all 1/2 acre lots.

The neighbor in question is the cul-de-sac behind ours so he shares a property line with the neighbor directly behind me, his daughter and SIL to his west and his son to his north. The section he and I share is only about 5 or 6 feet because there is a slight offset at the back fenceline so technically he only shares a property line with four others.

 

[LXCam]

So is the pole barn approval decision based on a majority of the adjoining neighbors or can it be denied based on a single objection?
If he's surrounded by family members you might be fadiddled...

There might be an out. Mike you stated this guy bought all three lots to begin with I believe. Is he still the registered owner? If so that might be able to be conveyed to governing agency to disallow those votes.

 

[zmotorsports]

So is the pole barn approval decision based on a majority of the adjoining neighbors or can it be denied based on a single objection?
If he's surrounded by family members you might be fadiddled...

That is my fear, my vote may be a moot point, but I'll provide it one way or another. He's actually not wanting a pole building, he merely wants a covered top, like those pole industrial pole structures with a metal roof. THAT will be hideous in our subdivision.

The pole building style is denied because it doesn't meet the initial criteria of being of exact same construction style and type as the main dwelling. It must be footing, foundation, stick and brick or rock as most of the houses in the subdivision such as ours have both rock as well as brick along with the stucco exteriors.

The CC&R's state must match the house exactly including materials and construction techniques. Also any accessory structure must use matching asphalt shingles, must have rock or brick 50% up on the front to match the house and 3' up on the remaining three sides, the rest is to be matching stucco. I did get a variance on the back wall of my shop which I had to get approved from the planning commission though. Seeing as how the back wall of my shop is only 40" off the property line and with the fence is there I requested the ommission of requiring brick on the back wall. I did however, request 4' brick on the east and west side because I felt 4' would be a much better height in conjunction with my window placement and the fact that I had such tall walls. The planning commission was very accommodating and even made the variance state that I did not need brick on the west side either as the fence will be 12' from the structure and would not be visible from the street. I opted to forego their suggestion as I wanted to stick as close to the CC&R's as possible to avoid any "issues with the neighbors", plus I wanted brick alongside the area which is my trailer parking area between my shop and the neighbor.

 

[aka Larry]

Vincent, there are 20-lots in our immediate subdivision. Basically four separate but connected cul-de-sacs comprise those 20 lots. There are 4 lots of 1-acre size, 4 lots that are 3/4 acre size and the remaining are all 1/2 acre lots.

The neighbor in question is the cul-de-sac behind ours so he shares a property line with the neighbor directly behind me, his daughter and SIL to his west and his son to his north. The section he and I share is only about 5 or 6 feet because there is a slight offset at the back fenceline so technically he only shares a property line with four others.

I guess I was asking if ALL the people in the neighborhood would need to sign off, nit just the adjoining ones? If so, getting 20 people to agree on anything sounds like it would be a huge challenge for him.

 

[zmotorsports]

There might be an out. Mike you stated this guy bought all three lots to begin with I believe. Is he still the registered owner? If so that might be able to be conveyed to governing agency to disallow those votes.

I don't know the details about that Cam, but I would almost bet that his name is not the legal one on all three properties. I would think his son and DIL would be the sole owners of the one and son and DIL on the other if for no other reason than financing from the banks.

I think the negotiating with the developer alone was just to allow him to sell three adjoining properties the way I understood it. The developer built every other house in the neighborhood with the exception of those three in which they built but according to the developer they had to adhere to the same guidelines/CC&R's as the others. Things like colors of the house being natural, same color fence, etc.

 

[zmotorsports]

I guess I was asking if ALL the people in the neighborhood would need to sign off, nit just the adjoining ones? If so, getting 20 people to agree on anything sounds like it would be a huge challenge for him.

Gotcha, I must have misunderstood the question Vincent. I'm not sure who all has to sign off, he just casually mentioned last night property lines so that was an assumption on my part.

I know in my last neighborhood when I wanted to get my "conditional use" permit for my business, I had to get any neighbor I shared a property line with to sign, but I went one further plus the three across the street just to ensure there would be no hard feelings and everyone was on board. Not sure who all has to be in agreement here but like you say, getting 20 people to agree on anything is more than a challenge, it may prove to be impossible.

 

[PugetDude]

I guess I was asking if ALL the people in the neighborhood would need to sign off, nit just the adjoining ones? If so, getting 20 people to agree on anything sounds like it would be a huge challenge for him.

It should be all (or2/3 depending on how the CCR'S are written) since the structure visible from the streets would not be in common compliance..
Time to re-read your governing docs carefully, I am willing to bet that a couple of members cannot unilaterally change rules that affect everyone. That's why they were there in the first place.

 

[Mr.zippy]

If just one of those cheap carport's goes up, rest assured, they will multiply like rabbits. We have those things, along with shipping containers throughout the town. I applaud you for sticking to your guns.

 

[Mr.zippy]

Another thought, how can the County change or modify the agreements? Is that even legal?

 

[zmotorsports]

If just one of those cheap carport's goes up, rest assured, they will multiply like rabbits. We have those things, along with shipping containers throughout the town. I applaud you for sticking to your guns.

Agreed. All it takes is one and then the flood gates will open I'm sure.

Another thought, how can the County change or modify the agreements? Is that even legal?

Not sure at this point. I'm really not sure the county is doing anything at this point; he just informed me he met with the city planning commission. I think he was feeling me out, so I hope that with my response last night the issue gets dropped. I really don't want a falling out with neighbors over this, but I also don't want an eyesore in the neighborhood either.

 

[Mr.zippy]

I'll bet he didn't meet with them. Sounds fishy to me.

 

[PugetDude]

I'll bet he didn't meet with them. Sounds fishy to me.

Might just be feeling you out to decide if he should attempt an end-around with the county...
Put it up, then claim the neighbors don't care when he gets caught.

 

[zmotorsports]

There's a possibility that he didn't actually meet with them and was just feeling me out. I'm just going off what I was told.

I really hope it just gets put to bed because I love this neighborhood and really don't want "feelings" between us to interfere with that. For the most part they are great neighbors and just kind of keep to themselves, much like the wife and I.

 

[rd65]

When I build my shop (32 x 28 x 10 pole building) I sent my info to our HOA (not a terrible group, $300/yr), they said No to any metal siding. CC&Rs state No metal roof materials, but only Similar Appearance for siding. I talked with my one neighbor (green belt along back and one side) about metal siding in the same color as house, they were fine with it. They even consulted with their daughter, they are in their mid/late 80s. I had a lawyer write up a letter to the HOA, they never responded so we went ahead with metal siding on the sides and back, front is lap like the house, comp roof. The shop is almost 100 yards from the street with 6' cedar fence around the back yard. There are a couple houses in the neighborhood that flaunt the rules, mainly the no gravel driveways clause and a few travel trailers that arent behind fences.

 

[zmotorsports]

There are a couple houses in the neighborhood that flaunt the rules, mainly the no gravel driveways clause and a few travel trailers that arent behind fences.

I didn't even bring that point up to him last night. We also have a no gravel drive rule, which both the dad and son have on either side of the shop. I didn't push the issue about 5 years ago when they completed the shop because they made it a point to mention that they are only putting gravel down because they were running out of money building the shop and that they would be pouring concrete as soon as they could afford it. I understood the money thing because I almost decided to go with asphalt rather than concrete because I too had exhausted my budget building the shop. However, the wife didn't want asphalt and insisted that I just go ahead and have the concrete poured and be done with it the way we planned.

I really haven't pushed it, and I didn't think to mention it last night when we were discussing the CC&R's. I did notice that they had the money to purchase two new boats since then as well as the son bought a motorhome 2 years ago. I guess the home expenses/budget comes out of a different bucket than the play funds.

 

[ntsqd]

Not sure about anywhere else, but shipping containers in my city & county get an interesting bye. They are considered to be trailers, therefore portable and are NOT included in lot coverage calculations. I can pave my backyard with containers and they don't count for lot coverage.

 

[PugetDude]

I didn't even bring that point up to him last night. We also have a no gravel drive rule, which both the dad and son have on either side of the shop. I didn't push the issue about 5 years ago when they completed the shop because they made it a point to mention that they are only putting gravel down because they were running out of money building the shop and that they would be pouring concrete as soon as they could afford it. I understood the money thing because I almost decided to go with asphalt rather than concrete because I too had exhausted my budget building the shop. However, the wife didn't want asphalt and insisted that I just go ahead and have the concrete poured and be done with it the way we planned.

I really haven't pushed it, and I didn't think to mention it last night when we were discussing the CC&R's. I did notice that they had the money to purchase two new boats since then as well as the son bought a motorhome 2 years ago. I guess the home expenses/budget comes out of a different bucket than the play funds.

Clearly, your priorities are not his priorities...
Why does it always seem to be the case that those who cheap out on stuff like this are so concerned about having the latest motorized toys, high-end clothes, jewelry, fake *****, etc. ? If they are so concerned a bout putting on a good front, wouldn't that start at the front of their house??? SMFH.

 

[rd65]

We can have gravel parking areas, but no gravel driveway. I only have a gravel apron around the shop with grass the rest of the way. I am sure I could have a gravel driveway leading to the shop from the fence back except the county code is if the disturbed area is over 2,000 sq/ft you need to have a drainage engineer draw up surface water plans. To the county, gravel is an impervious surface and an engineer would be required. I wanted no part of that expense.

 

[madison069]

I go either way. If it was up to me, I would just be in the woods. But I'm not the only person in the house.

The rules are in place and people voted on them for a reason. Luckily there are ways to get around the rule in special situations here in the municipality. Unfortunately, I'm held to a higher standard, so I have to follow the rules to a T.

 

[zmotorsports]

I go either way. If it was up to me, I would just be in the woods. But I'm not the only person in the house.

The rules are in place and people voted on them for a reason. Luckily there are ways to get around the rule in special situations here in the municipality. Unfortunately, I'm held to a higher standard, so I have to follow the rules to a T.

Our house is probably the inverse of yours Cody. The wife could get away with being in the middle of nowhere with 50+ acres. In fact, when we were looking at houses, she found several out much further west from where we are in much more rural area with several acres, natural landscaping and even a few with corrals and places for animals or whatever a person would want, maybe even multiple outbuildings. For me, growing up on a dairy farm and being in such an environment with no curb & gutter and having outbuildings strewn about the entire back 40 and weed control ALWAYS being something needing attention, when I moved off the farm, I wanted OFF the farm and wanted no form of farm life for good. I craved curb & gutter with defined property lines. There's something about those precise straight lines of a well manicured sidewalk and driveway that just do it for me. It just screams clean and tidy.

That being said, I too hold myself to a higher standard, but I realize not everyone else does that. However, rules are rules and my neighbors bought into a subdivision with very detailed rules so they should be followed accordingly. Or they could move out further west and do whatever they please. I went through this in my last neighborhood when the city stopped enforcing certain things and I'll be damned if I want to go down that path again.

 

[SilverJimmy]

“The rules are in place and people voted on them for a reason.”

Actually there was no vote. By agreeing to purchase a home in Mike’s neighborhood the purchaser agreed to abide by the CC&R’s, if they didn’t like them they were not forced to buy their home. Allowing them to change them after the fact is a road to Hell in my opinion.
When my wife and I bought our new home we gave our realtor very specific guidelines, no dirt roads, no hauling water, no pine trees, no shoveling snow, and NO HOA or CC&R’s that would tell me what I could or couldn’t do on my own property!
@LXCam has been by a couple times checking out my new shop build and he can probably attest to the fact that our hood is very nice and most of the homes are well maintained but there are a few that could use some tuning up. I don’t know those homeowners, but maybe their situation doesn’t allow them to take care of their homes themselves or the expense of having it done for them.
Mike, I‘m with the others, stand your ground. I was always told that “Right is Might” and you’re correct here!

 

[rd65]

An edit to my post as I'm almost old and certainly forgetful... or rules state no metal roofing, no T111 siding.
When they denied approval it was over using metal siding, that would be same color as the house. I asked about all the T111 that had been used on sheds. Jerry from the architectural committee said those were grandfathered in. I said slack enforcement doesn't = grandfathered in. Don't get me wrong though I'm all for rules, as long as they are equally enforced.

 

[madison069]

“The rules are in place and people voted on them for a reason.”

Actually there was no vote. By agreeing to purchase a home in Mike’s neighborhood the purchaser agreed to abide by the CC&R’s, if they didn’t like them they were not forced to buy their home. Allowing them to change them after the fact is a road to Hell in my opinion.
When my wife and I bought our new home we gave our realtor very specific guidelines, no dirt roads, no hauling water, no pine trees, no shoveling snow, and NO HOA or CC&R’s that would tell me what I could or couldn’t do on my own property!
@LXCam has been by a couple times checking out my new shop build and he can probably attest to the fact that our hood is very nice and most of the homes are well maintained but there are a few that could use some tuning up. I don’t know those homeowners, but maybe their situation doesn’t allow them to take care of their homes themselves or the expense of having it done for them.
Mike, I‘m with the others, stand your ground. I was always told that “Right is Might” and you’re correct here!

I should have clarified, the rules in my Municipality was voted on.

 

[zmotorsports]

“The rules are in place and people voted on them for a reason.”

Actually there was no vote. By agreeing to purchase a home in Mike’s neighborhood the purchaser agreed to abide by the CC&R’s, if they didn’t like them they were not forced to buy their home. Allowing them to change them after the fact is a road to Hell in my opinion.
When my wife and I bought our new home we gave our realtor very specific guidelines, no dirt roads, no hauling water, no pine trees, no shoveling snow, and NO HOA or CC&R’s that would tell me what I could or couldn’t do on my own property!
@LXCam has been by a couple times checking out my new shop build and he can probably attest to the fact that our hood is very nice and most of the homes are well maintained but there are a few that could use some tuning up. I don’t know those homeowners, but maybe their situation doesn’t allow them to take care of their homes themselves or the expense of having it done for them.
Mike, I‘m with the others, stand your ground. I was always told that “Right is Might” and you’re correct here!

Correct Sterling, the rules weren't voted on but established by the developer when he was submitting the plans to the city and county for the subdivision. The neighbors may not have "voted" for them, but they surely agreed to them when they purchased their home. Now how in depth they read them at the time is another story, but they should be forced to adhere to them solely due to the fact that they purchased the home in the subdivision.

There are other guidelines that are not fully followed such as no RV parked forward of the front plane of the home and garbage cans must be behind the front plane of the house as well. Are those two ruled followed? Not by everyone, but I'll let someone else worry about those....

My neighbor across the street will park his motorhome and flatbed trailer with his side by side and ATV on it for a week at a time before disconnecting and parking it in his yard and even then he is too lazy to pull it into the backyard where the I helped the previous neighbor pull wiring before he poured a nice RV pad in the back yard. I just try to follow the rules to best of my ability such as garbage cans are in the backyard and when we pull up from vacation, I disconnect the Jeep, pull the Jeep into the garage and have the coach in the back yard behind the gate on the shop apron until we unload it and I have time to wash it, then it goes into the shop out of sight.

I was informed last summer that another neighbor called the city on my neighbor across the street for parking his motorhome and flatbed trailer on the street in front of his house for extended periods of time, but I figured it didn't concern me so I was not involved nor did I want to be involved, so there are others that do take the CC&R's serious and to the letter.

Are there neighbors that I feel could do a better job of mowing their lawns and taking better care of their yards? Absolutely, but again, not my concern as I just try to stay in my lane and maintain my property the best I can. I don't know their situations, nor do I really care if I'm being honest, I've got enough of my own to worry about. We all have matters that come up in life at different times and I try to be empathetic to that, but purposely building a structure that goes directly against the rules is something of a different matter altogether.

 

[zmotorsports]

Last night my adapter and street elbow arrived so I tackled the sending unit on the Jeep.

Mocking up the angle of the dangle to see how I will mount the new sending unit to the billet Derale adapter.


That should work to keep the sending unit down and away from that heat pocket up near the block and manifold.


The sending unit is now approx. 6 inches from the exhaust manifold.


Whereas before it was right up in the pocket approx. 2 inches from the manifold.


I shortened the wiring a bit and installed new abrasion sleeving to match the previous.


Installed and connected.


Some heat barrier installed. I didn't use the DEI form a barrier as I had this in my stash of barrier and figured it would be adequate. If I'm being honest, now that it is approx. 6" from the heat source, additional heat barrier probably is not necessary, but I have it so why not.


That should address the issue.

Thanks for looking.

 

[Duker]

Just catching up on Mike's travels and latest projects! Is it just me or does anyone else think Mike needs to write a blog/book on his dining adventures... Maybe a "Wheeler's Guide to Culinary Dining!" Every time I look at those dining pics I have to go raid the fridge...! I am going to travel to some of these places just to eat!

Always enjoy the travel adventures!