Courting Trouble?

[marvholly]

Oct 4, 2014 9:07:50 GMT -5 Peace77 said:

Did they tell you what school they work for?

The amount of money they are spending isn't your business. Maybe they have a trust fund or inheritance.

Can you put a drain pit, water barrel or water garden on your property?

I am aware of which school district they work for.

The ONLY reason I am concerned about their spending is I MUST wonder if all their income is legit the way they are spending, esp in light of their IGNORING the inconvienet zoning law.

It is NOT my responsibility to PAY to have a drain pit or water garden (illegal here due to bug issues).  Since this water problem is at ground level a water barrel will do NOTHING.

[midjd]

There are a thousand reasons they could be spending -- inheritance, medical settlement, or just living beyond their means. The zoning board is not going to care.

It sounds like you have a legitimate and grounded reason to oppose the variance. For your own sake, please don't muddy the waters with your opinion of their spending habits. 

[marvholly]

I FULLY realize their spending does NOT impact a zoning variance request AND will NOT be mentioned. My concern is only if it is legit income/spending. I do NOT want druggies, a meth lab or other illegal activities living next to me.

[happyhoix]

Oct 6, 2014 5:15:10 GMT -5 marvholly said:

I FULLY realize their spending does NOT impact a zoning variance request AND will NOT be mentioned. My concern is only if it is legit income/spending. I do NOT want druggies, a meth lab or other illegal activities living next to me.

Well, I live in a county that has a lot of meth activity (one of our mountains is called "meth mountain" and people who have meth labs typically don't have nice houses into which they sink a lot of time and money on improvements like nice patios.

Meth houses, at least around here, are ratty trailers or small rental houses that are not well maintained because their owners are meth heads, and meth heads only care about obtaining and using more meth, not about home improvements. So I don't think you have to worry about that.

Could be they are involved in other illegal things - maybe the guy is a hit man for the mob, for instance - but hey, as long as they maintain their property and don't try to bury bodies on your property, it won't impact the value of your home.

If they divert their stormwater run off onto your property, though, that could impact your home value, so I hope you do follow up with the public hearing to make sure they can't do that.

[swamp]

Oct 6, 2014 5:15:10 GMT -5 marvholly said:

I FULLY realize their spending does NOT impact a zoning variance request AND will NOT be mentioned. My concern is only if it is legit income/spending. I do NOT want druggies, a meth lab or other illegal activities living next to me.

You'd know if they were selling from the house. The steady stream of visitors, especially in evening/night is a big tip off.

[Deleted]

Definitely calm down before the hearing.  State your case, and stick to the facts about the patio.

My dad had a next door neighbor who wanted to do auto body work on his property.  Dad went to the zoning meeting and did just that.  Dad got what he wanted, and the neighbors remained civil to him.

[swamp]

Look up mug shots for people arrested for running a meth lab. They pretty much all look like tweakers.

[Wisconsin Beth]

Good luck and please keep us posted on how the meeting goes. 

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

You'd know if they were selling from the house

And if they are cooking you'll smell the lovely odor of cat urine and other various unlabeled chemical compounds.

I don't think most dealers/cookers are worried about spending money on a patio.  Unless maybe they plan on entertaining their tweakers before purchase?

[Wisconsin Beth]

Oct 6, 2014 12:54:15 GMT -5 NomoreDramaQ1015 said:

You'd know if they were selling from the house

And if they are cooking you'll smell the lovely odor of cat urine and other various unlabeled chemical compounds.

I don't think most dealers/cookers are worried about spending money on a patio.  Unless maybe they plan on entertaining their tweakers before purchase?

Could be this is the house they live in, not the house they cook in.  Separation of personal and business life? 

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

She  listed meth lab as one of her concerns.   She'd know VERY quickly if a meth lab was next door.   It's not like meth is made with summer flowers and febreze.   Meth makers don't care about proper ventilation and waste disposal either.

The whole neighborhood will start to smell very strongly of cat pee if there is a meth lab. If her neighborhood doesn't smell she's being paranoid over nothing.

If they were dealing then it would be as Swamp said, the OP would see strange cars coming and going at all hours of the day.   Dealers of any drug don't have scheduled hours when tweakers come to pick up their daily stash.

[midjd]

I'm still mystified as to how new cars and home improvement spending on teachers' salaries must = illicit sources of income. Seems like a pretty big leap to make, especially with zero evidence of illegal activity. And aren't Chicago teachers some of the highest-paid in the nation?

[muttleynfelix]

Go to the hearing.  State your concern - the additional impervious area drains directly onto your property.  This increase in flow directly to your property lead to flooding in your house which you have never had even though you have lived there so many years.  

BTW- Making rain garden's illegal because of bugs is ridiculous. All studies on them show that if properly designed, constructed and maintained, they reduced the bad bugs (mosquitoes) because either the water is gone before eggs can mature or they wash them out with the next rain.  Rain gardens should not be holding water for than 48 hours.  If they do, they were either designed improperly or constructed improperly.

[swamp]

Oct 6, 2014 12:59:38 GMT -5 Wisconsin Beth said:

Oct 6, 2014 12:54:15 GMT -5 NomoreDramaQ1015 said:

You'd know if they were selling from the house

And if they are cooking you'll smell the lovely odor of cat urine and other various unlabeled chemical compounds.

I don't think most dealers/cookers are worried about spending money on a patio.  Unless maybe they plan on entertaining their tweakers before purchase?

Could be this is the house they live in, not the house they cook in.  Separation of personal and business life? 

Yes, they set up an LLC so their personal assets are not subject to forfeiture

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

Yes, they set up an LLC so their personal assets are not subject to forfeiture

Is the LLC in the form of a car wash?

[CarolinaKat]

Oct 6, 2014 13:38:53 GMT -5 muttleynfelix said:

Go to the hearing.  State your concern - the additional impervious area drains directly onto your property.  This increase in flow directly to your property lead to flooding in your house which you have never had even though you have lived there so many years.  

BTW- Making rain garden's illegal because of bugs is ridiculous. All studies on them show that if properly designed, constructed and maintained, they reduced the bad bugs (mosquitoes) because either the water is gone before eggs can mature or they wash them out with the next rain.  Rain gardens should not be holding water for than 48 hours.  If they do, they were either designed improperly or constructed improperly.

My guess is the 'properly' part is the hard part

[muttleynfelix]

Oct 6, 2014 15:52:15 GMT -5 CarolinaKat said:

Oct 6, 2014 13:38:53 GMT -5 muttleynfelix said:

Go to the hearing.  State your concern - the additional impervious area drains directly onto your property.  This increase in flow directly to your property lead to flooding in your house which you have never had even though you have lived there so many years.  

BTW- Making rain garden's illegal because of bugs is ridiculous. All studies on them show that if properly designed, constructed and maintained, they reduced the bad bugs (mosquitoes) because either the water is gone before eggs can mature or they wash them out with the next rain.  Rain gardens should not be holding water for than 48 hours.  If they do, they were either designed improperly or constructed improperly.

My guess is the 'properly' part is the hard part

Yes and no. We do a lot of infiltration basins (depressions with below ground rock storage, with top soil, so the majority of the storage isn't open to the air).  The big thing we've noticed around here is specifying that the topsoil be a mix of top soil and sand so that the water can get through that top layer.  We have a lot of clay, so that can be a problem.  Of course we came across a problem on one this summer, where either there is a water line leak or a perched water table next to it and water is constantly in it.  We have a soil scientist dig test pits and he didn't notice a problem during the design process.  I didn't like that basin to begin with because it was so deep and my boss was like oh well and now we have problems with it.  

I can see outlawing rain gardens if you have a real high water table.  But outlawing them because of bugs...   You have to give property owners in a developed area a way to treat runoff on their property or you can't fix flooding problems. 

[TheOtherMe]

We have told Holly to take pictures of the flooding in her home and go the hearing and discuss it calmly in the Smart Spending Chat thread.  

We can't drain directly to the street where I live because the new subdivisions do not have proper drainage.

[Peace77]

Holly,

A rain barrel would hold the water coming off the roof, which would mean LESS water on the ground.

Why do you say a drain pit or water garden would be illegal? Do you mean it's illegal to have standing water? There does not need to be any standing water.

[marvholly]

I will NOT go to the expense of putting in a drain pit or water garden to make my property habitable after they put in an ILLEGAL patio.

I suspect I will not even need to speak at the hearing. Reason: the village will be against it because of the precedent it will set and the law suits it will engender in the future from every other Tom, Dick & harry who wants to cover all their permiable land in non-permiable materials like concrete or blacktop.

[muttleynfelix]

Oct 8, 2014 5:22:20 GMT -5 marvholly said:

I will NOT go to the expense of putting in a drain pit or water garden to make my property habitable after they put in an ILLEGAL patio.

I suspect I will not even need to speak at the hearing. Reason: the village will be against it because of the precedent it will set and the law suits it will engender in the future from every other Tom, Dick & harry who wants to cover all their permiable land in non-permiable materials like concrete or blacktop.

No one is saying that you should.  I'm throwing it out there as a a possibility for your neighbors to retain all the water on their site. If your area floods that badly, then the Village and/or neighborhood could look into doing community rain gardens to help with the flooding.   

[Peace77]

I suggested doing something to your property because you said flooding was a problem on your property BEFORE the neighbors installed their patio.

I understand that you were used to the flooding that you had before and I get that you don't want to spend money on the problem, but when I have been in similar situations, I did what was necessary to help correct the problem.

[marvholly]

Peace
I had corrected the patio/Family room flooding MANY years ago (1988 or 1989) by regrading my patio which I DID pay to have done. That is what is NOW a problem. The alley flooding into the far rear of my yard is not an issue for me.

[marvholly]

Zoning board meeting was last night. First case took 30 minutes. Mine went 45.

The zoning board seemed very divided over granting the variance. However, a couple members suggested some possible solutions. I did end up speaking about the problems I had 10/3 & 10/14. The case is continued until December to see if a couple suggested fixes by them on their property solve my issues. I actually think a barrier (dike) needs to be built between us although that was not suggested.

[CarolinaKat]

Oct 16, 2014 5:23:30 GMT -5 marvholly said:

Zoning board meeting was last night. First case took 30 minutes. Mine went 45.

The zoning board seemed very divided over granting the variance. However, a couple members suggested some possible solutions. I did end up speaking about the problems I had 10/3 & 10/14. The case is continued until December to see if a couple suggested fixes by them on their property solve my issues. I actually think a barrier (dike) needs to be built between us although that was not suggested.

What solutions are they going to try?

[marvholly]

not quite sure of the possible solutions. Neighbors are to meet w/the town engineer next week (he is on vacation this week). Putting in a drainage pipe along their side of the fence & digging a deeper pit filled w/gravel & w/o the black plastic barrier were among the suggestions.