Updates on the last pages: Neighbor is threatening me and my chickens

[DickMidnight]

i read all 48 pages of this thread, and while it definitely sounds like the OP is dealing with a terrible neighbor (i’ve had my own experiences), some of the pieces of the puzzle aren’t exactly fitting for me.

OP was given great advice early and often about contacting an attorney, building a secure privacy fence, and i think someone may have mentioned having a land survey done (if no one did, they should have).

but all of these really good suggestions were met with concerns about prohibitive costs.

ignoring the fact that this dragged on for 5+ months where a cease and desist likely would’ve shut the neighbor up OR where a survey would’ve shown OP where the coop could be moved to to satisfy ordinances, somewhere in the midst of all this the OP and her husband bought a new truck, 300 ft of garden hose, and are renting a skid steer. all items ranging from a few hundred to at least a few thousand dollars.

i know what it’s like to have a terrible neighbor. they can make life borderline unbearable. but i’m sorry to say that a lot of this was self inflicted misery because the situation was mishandled from the jump.

OP, i hope you find a house and move. ultimately it’s what i ended up doing and my only regret is that i didn’t do it a year earlier.

however, in the future, if you find yourself in another mess, find the most direct route to making the problem go away and throw your resources at it. in your case, since your neighbor was harassing you, any capable lawyer could’ve painted your neighbor as an aggressive drunk and presented him with an air tight gag order. choosing not to go this way led to months of stress and drama. i hope it’s all behind you soon.

 

[Geena]

where a survey would’ve shown OP where the coop could be moved to to satisfy ordinances,

As future reference for OP or anyone else reading this thread - you can get a surveyor to come out and just mark the corners of your property or stake a property line for much cheaper than doing a complete survey.

 

[Smileybans]

County planning meeting was today, the 1st, and my husband talked directly to the planning committee chair. He told my husband that there was nothing on their agenda to talk about any zoning issues in the village. That the ZBA chair hadn’t submitted the right paperwork in time for it to be on their agenda. So come back in a month.

The paperwork the planning committee is talking about had to be submitted by the ZBA chair a week before the planning committee meeting. Otherwise the topic doesn’t make it into their agenda. This paperwork is also not the paperwork that I was given by the ZBA. The paperwork I was given is stuff for the village only. This just proves the ZBAs and villages incompetence more.

Finding a house is going slow but I decided I’m not going to be anxious about it. I have enough to worry about. I also decided no matter what these people try and pull I’m not rehoming or getting rid of my animals. I won’t allow them to bully me and let them think they can treat people this way.

 

[Smileybans]

@DickMidnight a lawyer was called. I actually called many lawyers. Because it’s a zoning issue I needed a zoning lawyer. But because I am not a big company looking to rip up a whole town they wouldn’t talk to me. So I didn’t mention it. The truck was not new. It is used. I will not mention how much it costs or who helps me pay for the things i buy. My neighbor was just the beginning of the issue. A cease and desist would not have helped because I was no longer fighting my neighbor at one point it has dragged on for 5+ months because of the village and the morons who run it. Sorry if that wasn’t clear in my scattered and emotional posts.

Anyway. We found a house. It only sits on an acre of property but meets my two criteria. My kids need to stay in the same school and I need to be able to keep my chickens. The set back for the chickens is 200ft instead of 300 and it’s do-able on this property. It’s in the town of Esperance and there is a person who literally, not figuratively, turned their whole 1/4 acre into a farm. With 60+ fowl of all type, a cow and goats. We are working with the, incompetent, ordinance officer to make sure 100% that we are reading the zoning laws correctly. And that we can be in compliance when we move.

There is also finally an actual hearing, for anyone who wants to keep their chickens in the village, with the ZBA. We had to tell two of the people in the village about the meeting because the ZBA chair didn’t. The ordinance officer is also coming out to measure again on Friday because he didn’t write down the measurements the first time. So he doesn’t have the numbers to tell the ZBA chair. And I’m not about to tell him the numbers. He wants to measure again, fine. It might fall in my favor. If it doesn’t, who cares. I’m leaving soon anyway.

 

[Painted Calls]

We found a house.

there is a person who literally, not figuratively, turned their whole 1/4 acre into a farm. With 60+ fowl of all type, a cow and goats.

Holy feedlot batman.

 

[DickMidnight]

@DickMidnight a lawyer was called. I actually called many lawyers. Because it’s a zoning issue I needed a zoning lawyer. But because I am not a big company looking to rip up a whole town they wouldn’t talk to me. So I didn’t mention it. The truck was not new. It is used. I will not mention how much it costs or who helps me pay for the things i buy. My neighbor was just the beginning of the issue. A cease and desist would not have helped because I was no longer fighting my neighbor at one point it has dragged on for 5+ months because of the village and the morons who run it. Sorry if that wasn’t clear in my scattered and emotional posts

your neighbor was the fuse that lit this powder keg.

your mistake was not dealing with him swiftly and completely at the beginning.

i would have had my attorneys up his ass from day 1, making his life absolutely miserable and dragging him through the mud until he decided it would be a good idea to stop bothering me about my chickens.

you didn’t do that. you allowed him to control the situation and that left you at the mercy of the incompetent gomers in your town.

 

[HappyClucker7]

@DickMidnight a lawyer was called. I actually called many lawyers. Because it’s a zoning issue I needed a zoning lawyer. But because I am not a big company looking to rip up a whole town they wouldn’t talk to me. So I didn’t mention it. The truck was not new. It is used. I will not mention how much it costs or who helps me pay for the things i buy. My neighbor was just the beginning of the issue. A cease and desist would not have helped because I was no longer fighting my neighbor at one point it has dragged on for 5+ months because of the village and the morons who run it. Sorry if that wasn’t clear in my scattered and emotional posts.

Anyway. We found a house. It only sits on an acre of property but meets my two criteria. My kids need to stay in the same school and I need to be able to keep my chickens. The set back for the chickens is 200ft instead of 300 and it’s do-able on this property. It’s in the town of Esperance and there is a person who literally, not figuratively, turned their whole 1/4 acre into a farm. With 60+ fowl of all type, a cow and goats. We are working with the, incompetent, ordinance officer to make sure 100% that we are reading the zoning laws correctly. And that we can be in compliance when we move.

There is also finally an actual hearing, for anyone who wants to keep their chickens in the village, with the ZBA. We had to tell two of the people in the village about the meeting because the ZBA chair didn’t. The ordinance officer is also coming out to measure again on Friday because he didn’t write down the measurements the first time. So he doesn’t have the numbers to tell the ZBA chair. And I’m not about to tell him the numbers. He wants to measure again, fine. It might fall in my favor. If it doesn’t, who cares. I’m leaving soon anyway.

That's great news! I'm so glad you found a new house!

 

[Smileybans]

That's great news! I'm so glad you found a new house!

The only downside so far, besides the train being so close, is the chickens still have to be setback pretty far from the house. There’s a hamlet next to the property and it’s a skinny lot. So one house is right against the property line on one side. I hate the idea of them being so far away but they’re already pretty far from my current living situation.

It’s not my ideal house. But all my ideal houses got bought up before we could even get a realtor or loan. We were slow in this process I’ll admit that. I had no idea how to go about buying a house and no one teaches you that in school. Either way nothing is set in stone yet until we are sure we can be in compliance with the ordinances and zoning laws.