Warning: Tree forts are now illegal.

[casterway]

And they wonder why Vancouver is called 'No Fun City'.



Vancouver family forced to dismantle tree fort
Nicole Tomlinson, Vancouver Sun
Published: Friday, July 18, 2008

Two young boys stand to lose their custom-built "pirate ship" tree fort after a series of court battles with the city of Vancouver concluded Friday when a judge ordered it be removed from the front yard of the family's Kerrisdale home.

"They've been at sports camp all day ... I have to break the news when I go and pick them up," said Jayne Seagrave, mother of Jack, 9, and Sam, 7. Seagrave and her husband, Andrew Dewberry, were found guilty of failing to comply with the city of Vancouver's permit regulations and fined $250 each.

They've been fighting to keep the tree fort -- which was designed by the two boys and built by Dewberry -- since 2006 when confusion arose about whether or not it should be classified as a building under city regulations, she said.

"We had three [city employees] here while it was under construction and they didn't mention anything about a permit," Seagrave said. "But then we finished building it and they told us we needed to take it down."

Seagrave said the city's demand was prompted by a neighbour who complained about the tree fort. The couple then applied for a permit, but were denied because the structure had a "tree fort front" so it didn't fall under the "accessory building" category, she said.

"We've spent five days in court in the last three months ... we're going to take it down," Seagrave said. The couple now has 90 days to comply with the court order. Seagrave said they plan to auction the tree fort off and give the money to charity.

[Gibson]

I guess that's one judge who doesn't remember what it's like to be a kid.

[MMJeronimo]

Wow. I want to know who the person is that complained that their neighbors' kids had a tree fort. haha, absurd.

[evol04gt]

my response to the person that made the complaint......then to the judge that didnt throw it out.



plus




about 20-30 days later- $6000 dollar repair bill minimum. motor is totally destroyed. my brother is a mechanic. this does work. hint hint. all you need is about a quart in a 14 gall tank.

[getbent]

That is a BIG FORT! ha ha!

[brillocaster]

There is a special place in hell for people who would rat out a neighbor for building his kids a treehouse. I'm not sure what they'll be doing, but they will be doing it beside people who call the cops on kids selling lemonade.

[esteban]

What a d**che neighbor!!!!

"Hi, my neighbors' kids are having too much fun."

[studio1087]

My kids have a nice little tree fort. The gentleman in question built a rather large tree fort.

I'm getting a Swiss Family Robinson vibe from the Vancouver fort


News Story with video

[hondo76]

this is dumb i cant even rap my head around it. permits for a treehouse!!!.
all i can say is that never would have happend here in texas. the local judge here would have helped them build it.whats next its illeagel for little boys to dig holes or play with hot wheels.i feel sorry for that judges kids.

[garytelecastor]

I agree with the idea that taking the tree fort down is positively Stalinesque. The judge has a problem because all he can do is act according to the statutes of the city and state. If they didn't follow the city requirements they are stuck and so, unfortunately is the judge.
If the judiciary really followed the law instead of trying to write their own, all courts would function in this manner.
The best response is to get the boobs on the city council out of office, and have a friendly chat with the sh**bag neighbor. Poor kids!!!!!!!

http://www.cityofvancouver.us/contac...ubmenuid=10491

I don't know if this makes a difference but the above link
goes to the City of Vancouver telephone numbers, such as
uh....oh...I don't know....maybe the permits dept.?

[Telecaster Joe]

When I was a kid my next door neighbors made the town remove the slide from the local playground because their son broke his arm on it. The little jackass was trying to do cartwheels on his way down it. DUHHH!!!

[crawdad]

In my city of Sylvan lake, Michigan, some hack with nothing else to do decided to post a complaint to the the city about the cracked driveways. They said the driveways in question constituted "blight". Well, by my estimation, about 75% of the driveways in the city have cracks of greater or lesser magnitude.

In these hard economic times, someone is complaining about driveway cracks. You know what I say? If you can't handle the cracks--MOVE! We are good people trying to get by the best we can. I am thinking of going to the meeting on this issue. I am sick and tired of a few cranks trying to decide what is "best" for others. One day it is tree forts and driveways, and the next it will be witch hunts. Preserve freedom.

[casterway]

This is the same city that banned people from sitting in the grass in the park and playing music, with acoustic guitars and bongos, and passed a bylaw preventing dancing in restaurants even though they had a live band.
Oh. They also canceled the city's official fireworks show on the country's birthday, because of rowdiness.

[Stevie 202]

We in Canada refer to this type of thing as "nanny-state" - ism.

The benevolent, all knowing masters protecting us from ourselves.

[e-merlin]

Sorry to be the voice of reason here, but that thing is huge! They wouldn't have had a complaint if they'd have built it in the back yard. That's no different than having some rusty old car on blocks on the front lawn.

I agree that there's a lot of overzealous enforcement going on, but there are a lot of things to think about here. I'm all for kids having fun, but you can't just ignore your neighbor's property values when you live in the city. What ever happened to "love thy neighbor?"

Besides, if their homeowner's insurance agent would have seen that thing, they would have been dropped like a hot potato.

[Ricky D.]

Don't blame the city. The city was willing to look the other way until a formal complaint was filed. Then the regulations had to be enforced. The boys' father is an architect and knows (or should know) the laws about building permits and land use.

This $3000 architect designed tree house is big, in the front yard, and near the property line. It's a big, elaborate structure. According to reports, it obstructed the view from the neighbors house. The neighbor told them they objected to it. Not "just a kid's tree fort". The neighbor has a right to stand up for his property rights. Shame on the father, typical architect from the "me generation", did you catch that smarmy, holier-than-thou TV interview in that link?

[JimiBryant]

well, only in America... hey now, wait a minute!

what kind of frickin' world are we living in???

I thought y'all Canadians had more sense, this is very disappointing to learn
that some of y'all can be just as stupid, mean, and petty as us 'Mericans.

[Colt W. Knight]

That's why I wouldn't ever live in a town. The thought of a neighborhood council, city, or subdivision owner telling me what or what I can't put on my property would irritate me to no ends. Especially since this is a supposedly free country. If I want cars on blocks, a massive tree house for my kid, or a goat on a clothes line, I better be able to have it in my own yard.

[blacklinefish]

This is why I live in a town. I appreciate the idea of people working together for mutual benefit.

I would never live out of town unless I had over 20 acres to deal with. I just can't rely on the good nature of my neighbors to keep them from blasting music at 3am, fireworks all day and all night, and loose dogs that bite people on the road.

The above are all things that I have heard colleagues complain about in the last year. None of it can be resolved because the county has no noise ordinance, no fireworks ban (okay, that one is pretty cool), and no dog laws. I also serve on a state commission that regulates mining. We hear from a lot of people that had no idea a quarry could open up on adjacent property and put a highwall 10' from their line. Give me a town with ordinances over that any day. I guess I am not as misanthropic as I had thought.

Besides, a real tree house is built from scraps, is in the back yard, and has at least three structural flaws that compete against common sense.

--gh

[Jakedog]

Originally Posted by blacklinefish

This is why I live in a town. I appreciate the idea of people working together for mutual benefit.

I would never live out of town unless I had over 20 acres to deal with. I just can't rely on the good nature of my neighbors to keep them from blasting music at 3am, fireworks all day and all night, and loose dogs that bite people on the road.



--gh

Well, in town isn't always the answer. I grew up out in the country, and I'd go back in an instant. Living in town is killing me. Eventually it may do so literally.

Everything you mentioned above, is business as usual in these parts. And this is right IN the city of Cleveland. Fireworks (not the innocent kid types, mortar shells like they use at ball parks. And no, I am not exaggerating.), loose dogs biting people, shots fired, car stereos (and back yard stereos) so loud they rattle your windows at any and all hours, car alarms that never stop, and the cops just driving by and waving at you as you try to flag 'em down. And I don't even live in one of the "bad" neighborhoods.

I'll go back to the country right now. anybody who lives out in the boonies, and would like to move to the city, I'll trade residences. Sight unseen. I don't care if you live in a cave.

[Jakedog]

I just watched the video. What a load of crap. That thing wasn't blocking anybody's view of anything. It's halfway up in a dense stand of trees. The neighbor couldn't see through them before it was there, and won't be able to after it's gone. She also declined to talk to the news folks. I've seen this do-gooder goody two shoes crap before. She had no legit complaint, she just wanted to cause trouble becuase somebody was having fun. Looks like somebody needs a glass of lemonade, and an afternoon in a tree house.

[studio1087]

Don't blame the city. The city was willing to look the other way until a formal complaint was filed. Then the regulations had to be enforced. The boys' father is an architect and knows (or should know) the laws about building permits and land use.

I'm glad that I'm not the only wet blanket on this one. Getbent posted a funny photo of a huge fort and the tree fort in question is nearly as big as Getbent's photo.

$3000 Canadian. I can buy a kit garage for two cars for $3000 USD at Menards.

I love my kids and I would do anything for my kids but this would be the equivalent of having a ham radio guy move in next door and construct a 100' ham radio tower and a 14 foot Unimesh satellite dish on the property line without asking the town first.

C'mon. There are courtesys to neighbors and there is a place for common sense.

This is why I live in a town. I appreciate the idea of people working together for mutual benefit.

Another view; this is why I have land in the country. It is always peaceful and serene. I cannot see a neighbor from anyplace on my property. I know every car that should come down my road. It's green and quiet and beautiful. I love people....I'm a sales manager and I truly love people but I come home at night from my office to my little slice of heaven and I have the city airport 40 minutes away.

Are you familiar with Rainbow Play Systems? They build swing sets for the children of millionaires. We have three or four news stories every summer in Milwaukee where a dad in a spendy subdivision who has a massive house on a small 1/2 lot will just pay for one of these things without consulting the city or the homeowner's guild.......



Some of these sets reach 35+ feet on the air and the home owner will spend $9000 to have one of these built in 150' x 200' back yard. The thing will be right in the face of every neighbor.

The news teams always get a shot of a kid crying and the dad ripping into his neighbors because the neighbors are selfish...and not him.

If I still lived in the city and a neighbor put $3000 of lumber 35 feet up in the air near our property line where my little 7 year old might walk around....I would call the cops.

C'mon. It's not reasonable for someone to build something like that without consulting neighbors or the town.

John

[bobthecanadian]

My first reaction was to say "Hey, and my family wonders why I don't want to move back to Canada!" However, after reading the article on CTV news I think I have to agree that it be taken down.

The kids dad is an architect and spent $2500 to build it. It's not like it was a couple of boys hauling boards up a tree and using rocks to bang the nails in with. This 'tree house' really looks like a house in a tree. The guy that built it is an architect and should have known better.

Cheers,

Bob

[Larry F]

It sounds like the dad just went ahead and did it his way. Why not compromise and make something smaller? Or consider an alternative structure in the backyard? If the neighbor complained about something as big as that in the front yard, why did the dad still go ahead with that Swiss Family Robinson thing? Why couldn't he have talked to the neighbor and try to come up with something they both could live with?

How did this story get on TV? Did the dad call the news station trying to drum up sympathy? Why didn't he just quietly obey the law and take it down? Quite a message he is sending to his kids. Imagine what kind of attitude they will grow up to have.

[Zhurh]

No matter. I live in an unorganized borough, closest law enforcement is over 200 miles away and road is closed half the year. No zoning, regulations, permits, local taxes, heck we don't even have property taxes. Only law is that we have a dry town which isn't enforced; bootlegging is a time honered winter seasonal occupation. All this promotes freedom in ways you all can't imagine. Isn't that how it was suppose to be in America?

If you have a problem with a neighbor, you figure it out amongst yourselves. Over the years, there have been a few cabins burn down, a few people move away from neighbors but for most part it works pretty well.

Everybody thinks they run the place and everybody is always telling everyone else how it's going to be, but that's just the old pecking order. Nobody ever even thinks about cops, comprehensive planning, lawsuits ect, they would be laughed outta town for that, ha ha. What a man does in his own house is his own business, an Alaskan tradition. Couldn't imagine somebody telling me about a treeshack, no matter how elaborate.