They’re putting in a pool, which means that they have a lot of heavy equipment now in their backyard.
Apparently, they have decided that they need to leave their backyard via my backyard. They took down my fence, churned up the yard, and have killed two lilacs and a patch of lilies. Stargazers.
Other than their bark bark barky dog and their habit of parking and letting their friends park in my driveway, they had been okay neighbors. Now I hate them and want them to turn blue.
Have you talked to them about the damage the construction is doing to your yard? Start off politely…it’s quite possible they were unaware of the path the builders were taking through your yard to get to theirs.
They may ask the builders to repair the damage, or maybe you can ask them directly.
No, I just found it. They’re having some sort of gathering and I didn’t want to barge into that.
And it’s probably best that I didn’t because I am pretty furious right now. I’ll calm down. Om.
Woooah wait…they TOOK DOWN PART OF YOUR FENCE?! Without ASKING first???
Holy smokes…I’m not saying go right for a lawsuit but they need to rectify the problem ASAP. Take pictures first (for your own records) and go speak with them as soon as you’re ready. Fences are expensive and in my experience they’re not always easy just to fix on your own.
If they refuse, take your pictures and a written report down to city hall or the police station.
I don’t live in the same city as you but I live in Ohio, and around here fences have to be at least 3’ into your property line. When I had my fence put up, I had to have the neighbor sign a paper that stated I could put my fence up to his existing fence. The builders definitely made a major boo-boo by coming anywhere near your property, let alone messing with your fence and ruining your yard.
Let’s hope that the neighbors are embarassed by the builder’s actions and realize it’s up to them to rectify it. If not, things could get messy 
Talk to them now. If the pool builders took down your fence and used your yard as a path, they would be responsible for all damages. I cannot believe they even thought to do that? Is this property you own or rent jsgoddess? If you own, take action now. If you rent, your landlord needs to know ASAP. Hell, I had a pool put in and the builders came and went from my property. Those builders should have done the same over at your neighbors.
Further, you can make whoever is responsible pay to replace your lilacs and Stargazer lilies. I sure would. :mad: Get those pictures taken, (Lots of them, including pictures of any tire tracks going from your yard and into theirs.) and dig up the sales tickets for the fence, lilacs and lilies. Do you have the records of your property and its boundaries easily accessible? You very likely will need that too. Good luck. What jerks! How on earth did they manage to kill your lilacs, did they drive right over them?
I think I would kill someone who tore up my lilacs. That totally sucks. I would demand COMPLETE restitution…and that means paying for new plants AND the labor to plant them.
Not to mention that I would ask that they get me lilac bushes that were mature enough to bloom, if not as large and established as the ones that were killed. Lilacs take time to get established. I would be most upset at the loss of them, over a fence. Fences don’t need nearly as much upkeep as things like lilacs, and they certainly don’t need years to establish them.
jsgoddess,
Just a couple of questions. I assume that you own, and not rent? If you rent, your landlord may have given permission without your knowing. If you own, are you completely positive that it is your property that has been damaged? And if so, is it possible that they have an easement or right of way on your property?
If you are sure that it is your own property, and that they have no claim to it, this is most definitely a legal issue that you should pursue. They are probably operating on the principle that “it is easier to apologize afterwards than to seek permission beforehand.” :rolleyes: That is an attitude that pisses me off to no end.
You are entitled to the quiet enjoyment of your own property, and this has compromised that right. You should seek legal recourse (and I am not a lawyer) sooner rather than later. The advice about documenting this damage is good advice. You and your attorney can stop this immediately, and it sounds like they need your property to complete their work. You can then bring their work to a halt until you get a written agreement of how they intend to compensate you for the inconvenience, your legal costs, and how they intend to rectify the damage you have incurred.
Best of luck.
The lilacs are completely gone. We had three back there, and two have vanished.
On the plus side, they were only a few years old each. They were a little over 3 feet tall and just starting to get bushy.
I’ll be honest. I’m not a big fan of the smell of lilacs and that’s why we put them in so far down the yard. But my stargazers! That makes me want to cry.
I’m a lot calmer now, though. I went back out and it’s still bad but it doesn’t look as bad as it did now that I’m over the initial freak out. The lilacs and lilies are definitely gone, and the fence is definitely down, and the yard is definitely churned up, so it’s bad, but it’s not as ugly as it was. Of course, I’ll keep having to go back and look at it. It’s like poking a sore tooth.
Oh, and to answer a few questions:
I own.
The fence was up when we moved in, though the lilacs and lilies were our own additions.
I don’t have a great plat of the property.
When I was just down looking at the carnage (sniff) I saw that they wouldn’t have been able to get the trucks in and out on their own property without cutting down a pine tree.
Our houses are on a hill. Mine is up the hill, theirs slightly down. Our lanes are side-by-side and our garages are lined up. But their property plunges down from the lane to their backyard. Mind is a steady slope. So, they couldn’t bring equipment in from the front very easily.
In the back, they have a row of pines across the back edge. I have a tree and the world’s biggest weigela on the right side, but the left used to have two trees that I’ve had taken down. That’s where the lilacs were, and the lilies were in an oval in front of them. So instead of their one tree, someone decided to go after my two shrubs and a couple dozen lilies, then jog to the left, through the fence line, and into their back yard.
Our yards are long but skinny, so I didn’t notice this yesterday, which must be when it happened.
Ohh, Boo Hoo. So they killed your lilacs instead.
So instead of asking permission, they just plowed right on through. Sounds like grounds for legal action if full and complete restitution isn’t made.
Because they have vanished, I choose to believe that the lilacs are in a better place. Some sort of lilac summer camp, or a lilac Club Med.
Seriously though, they are really gone gone. Is there any chance someone actually transplanted them and will be bringing them back?
Hell, just writing that made me lose IQ. Sorry.
I’d be mad, too.
On the other hand, these guys are going to have a pool. Play your cards right, and you can swim in it!
Or you could just ask them to rectify the issue first, and if they refuse, then seek legal counsel.
Geezopeter. I can’t believe they didn’t ask permission.
Can you get the name of the contractor, maybe from one of their trucks? Call them and tell them what happened, and that you expect them to repair the damage to your fence and lawn.
When a new library was built next to my son’s house, the contractor told him in advance that there would be disruption for sure, and possibly some unavoidable damage to his driveway and fence. The contractor visited at least once a week to check things out. There was damage and the contractor fixed everything.
Wow. What terrible neighbors. I can’t believe no one came over and asked your permission to go through your yard first. You have every right to be angry. When our neighbor put up a garage a couple years back–a project that didn’t affect us or our property in the least–he came over and told us about the project, apologizing in advance for any noise/inconvenience it might cause us. He’s a great neighbor though. You just don’t tear up someone’s yard without first asking nicely and offering to repair the damage. Part of me wants to tell you to skip being nice and asking them to repair the damage and just report them to city hall/the police, since they didn’t show you the same courtesy. However, that could create even bigger problems for you in the future. The point of all this rambling is that I’m very sorry you have to deal with this. What a difficult situation.
Invite them over to survey the damage. Tell them the pool company needs to pay for the repairs. If they don’t, you will sue them instead (but don’t tell them that, give the pool builders an opportunity to fix it.)
Hadn’t you heard? Ever since 9/11, dead lilics all go off to Afghanistan to live with with Osama bin Laden. Your neighbors are helping the terrorists win!
I’d seriously consider cutting down their pine tree, to see how they like being treated badly, but I know that would be wrong.