~ Retired and Starting My Future In The Foothills ~

[The Sheriff]

Good grief Linda, what a nightmare! I just heard about your dilemma this morning and wanted you to know how sorry I am. I hope that you can get it worked out soon. I expect that you are a nervous wreck. When we were looking for property my realtor refused to even get involved in the issue of whether or not we could have chickens on the property. Every time we found a property we wanted to make an offer on, she would march me into the planning department to get it in writing that it was zoned for chickens, how many were allowed, and that there was no exclusion for roosters. She made me do this even if the surrounding neighbors all had chickens.

I just subscribed to this thread so I can follow your saga. Unbelievable!

Mary

 

[HorseFeatherz NV]

 

[speckledhen]

Quote:
And that is what she should have done. I was a realtor for 8 years. Public record is usually entirely up to the buyer to find out and even realtors can be misled by officials, so not always their fault, except in the sense that they should not have taken on that responsibility in the first place. Hope this works out for you, Linda.

 

[Happy Chooks]

Linda, I'm sorry you are going through all this. I hope it works out for you.

 

[HHandbasket]

Quote:
I believe it will all work out in her favor.

She took copies today of the letters she got from the county with the specific alleged zoning ordinance violations listed to her real estate agent, who has been really helpful with the situation. Afterward, Linda stopped by here & we got online and went to the county's online database of zoning ordinances and looked it up. The zoning ordinance listed is SPECIFICALLY relating to stables and the number of horses one can have within a certain number of feet of any residence either on or off the property. Had NOTHING to do with chickens.

So to further see what we can find, we find ZERO... not one... county zoning ordinance that specifically relates to chickens, and most certainly not the one listed on the paperwork that Linda was provided.

It is going to cost her several hundred dollars just to file the appeal that is required to appear in court and point out the county's error in citing her in the first place.

In the interim, she is not taking this lightly and is fighting back. She's a pretty tough cookie.

 

[welasharon]

Well I would first see if the realtor can clear up the issue without having to go to court. If the zoning doesn't apply to chickens then the zoning violation should not exist...The right person can make it disappear.

 

[pokey]

Quote:
X2. I think this also.why can you be served a warning for an offense you can't find? That seems weird to me

 

[HHandbasket]

Quote:
And I believe her real estate agent may just be the "right" person.

 

[welasharon]

Quote:
And I believe her real estate agent may just be the "right" person.

I'm thinking that too...things work here much like that LOL

 

[gryeyes]

Well, even with all this bother, life does go on. I have piddled around doing little tasks which please me. Hung two "Chicken Xing" signs, one on the back fence kinda visible from one half of the circular driveway and the other on the street light pole ON my property, very visible from the other half of the driveway. Take THAT, people! Chickens are crossing here!

Set up and FINALLY planted a Deluxe Topsy Turvy TomatoTree. Four tomato plants, and two types of basil. Set up the sprinkler to wave completely across a wide swath of the terraced front yard, including the terrace where the apple tree is growing.

Talked three pullets "home" through the gap under the back fence when they couldn't find where they exited the yard.

Named a few more of the younger chickens.

Charged and installed the LiveSnap baby monitor system; there are two cameras in the coop feeding video to a handheld monitor which sits and is charged in a small stand. Sound and video, day and night. Works very well! Only local, so I can't watch from anyplace not on the property.

Talked the very last, late pullet back through the fence and watched fondly as she ran across the yard in the dusk to scoot through the open pop door. It closed not five minutes later.

Made some toast and buttered it, then spread some homemade peach jam given to me by my broker this afternoon, which she said was
an exchange for the dozen eggs I brought her. However, it was sitting on the dining room table where we sat and chatted for a couple hours, and she hadn't known I was bringing her eggs.

There's been a deer skeleton on the side of the road by the small lake owned by the broker and her husband. In the last couple of days,
there's been a fresh deer carcass which was obviously struck by a car on the OTHER side of the road. Directly below her house and yard. So I teased her about the "puffy" deer which I noticed was gone today. "Yes," she said, "she used to eat all my roses."

Now that I live up here, I have started feeling just as inured to the death of deer on the roadway. Gosh, a doe and her fawns, or a buck, sure is pretty standing in a field, or alongside the road, but they're HAZARDS up here in the mountains. My contractor recommended I get a deer whistle installed on my car. "They're not expensive, so you're not out much if they don't really work. But I believe they do."

Remembered to drag the garbage can down the road to the collection of neighbors' trash containers. Only the second time I've remembered to do it so it will be emptied on Monday morning.

My new washer and dryer are fantastic!

Mostly, today, I watched chickens and the pair of geese. They're exploring the property. A parade of pullets, roosters, and geese made its way across the veranda, from one end to the other, starting from side with the shallow steps and ending with jumps down the "high" end off the steeper steps. Hi, how ya doing? Nice day for a stroll, huh? Glad you could make it, hope you enjoyed the visit.

The geese don't like pecking order tussles, or the roosters mounting the hens. They break up such activities by rushing at the combatants or mounted hens, honking and flapping their wings.

Yah, a simple, enjoyable day. It will be so much more comfortable when I have my goods and furniture up here, too.