wrote in message
oups.com...


Vox Humana wrote:
wrote in message
oups.com...


Indeed, had the government appeared at
the hearing, one of my tactics would have
been to ask if the inspector lived
anywhere nearby, after establishing
that there was no citizen complainant.


I don't follow that logic. Does the code state that a citizen complaint
is
required to initiate an investigation? Does your code enforcement
agency
accept anonymous complaints? The problem with enforcement of such codes
is
that they generally lack an objective standard. Therefore, the

That's the point. My tactic would have been to
show that the inspector was basing his evaluation
on his own tastes. The odds are that they
would be along the lines of what that webcam showed
that was offered in one of the followups, i.e.
crewcut lawns, trees, and little else.

But first, I would want to establish that there
was no citizen complainant. The reason is that
the good will of my neighbors means more to me
than freedom to manage my property according
to my own esthetic standards.

If there was a complaint from a neighbor, I would
have stated the importance of my neighbors' good
will toward me and asked the adjudicator to grant
a continuance pending my talking to the neighbor
and offering to accomodate him. If there was a
privacy issue, I would have asked the adjudicator
to direct the inspector to get in touch with
the complainant and ask for permission to make
known his identity. By proposing to settle
directly with the complainant I would have indicated
my genuine desire for a just outcome and that,
after all, is what the adjudicator is paid to
achieve.

If there was _no_ complainant, then I would be
free to use my questioning of the inspector to
show that it was a matter of his taste, ultimately.
Because, as you said, weed laws are typically
vague. For example, some of the ordnances use the word
"cultivate" in a way that weakens them, legally speaking.
If they prohibit "uncultivated" vegetation, it's
a simple matter to show that one of the
dictionary definitions of cultivate is simply
to "favor the growth of" a plant. Then I can
correctly state that my yard is cultivated
because I remove tree saplings, poison ivy,
etc. specifically to favor the growth of what's
left.

That's the legal issues. As for the esthetic
issue, whether I can call my yard natural
landscaping, I'll try to post a followup to
Ferret's reply to Vox Humana and confine
it to rec.gardens. I have 15 minutes left...
how do you folks post multiple times in
24 hours? Do you write faster than I -- or
not work for a living?

I'm not sure I agree that the absence of a citizen's complaint is a sign of
goodwill or acceptance from your neighbors. Sometimes it is better to live
next to a mess than to live next to a mess AND have a vengeful neighbor who
becomes reactionary because a complaint was lodged. I figure that most
people move about every two or three years, so unless something is really
bad or has violated some rule that can be objectively evaluated (i.e., put
up a shed or fence that violates some covenant or zoning ordinance) I try to
ignore it hoping the next neighbors have higher standards. To condone or
ignore is not acceptance.