Posted on 07/29/2004 6:38:18 AM PDT by Doctor Wu
Man Puts Pigs in Yard Over Denied Zoning Request
Tue Jul 27, 6:36 PM ET
PACE, Fla. - When neighbors raised a stink over Scott Teston's request to change his property's zoning from agriculture to business, he responded with a bigger one — he put 17 pigs in his yard.
Scott LaCoste moved his nearby construction company Monday because of the stench. Mary Preston wants to sell her home, but potential buyers flee when they get a whiff.
Santa Rosa County officials say the pigs are legal because the neighborhood is zoned agricultural.
"I had raised some hogs. I know how bad it was," Teston said. "I knew it was going to get nasty."
Linda Brown, whose yard is next to the pig pen, said the swine have attracted rats and flies, and slop overflows onto her property and a neighbor's retention pond when it rains.
"God as my witness, that was his plan: to stink us out," Brown said. "It will literally take your breath away."
Teston, owner of Pace Plumbing, said he initially sought rezoning in November for a day care center, but neighbors complained about traffic and stormwater runoff.
The county's planning board offered a compromise — restricted commercial zoning that would permit a day care center but not most other businesses. Teston said he turned down that idea in case the day care center didn't work out and withdrew his request.
Teston also must put up with the stench because he lives on the property with his wife and two young sons. He has listed it for sale or lease but may renew the rezoning request because some neighbors now are willing to drop their objections.
"If it doesn't go through this time," he said, "I'll just put about 500 head of hogs out there."
Gotta love it.
Interesting that you would mention pigs Dr Wu. (deadwood reference)
John Edwards should be able to do something about this.
Just Damn!
Excellent!
A guy in my city has some beefs with the city council regarding local zoning. His protest was to paint his house purple with pokadots and line his front yard with old toilets and American flags.
Perhaps those NIMBY neighbors will rethink their objections, do ya think????
LOL Seriesly
This could go both ways...my township answered a similar situation with extremely strict agricultural zoning. One cow per acre, 2 chickens per acre, no pigs at all etc.
Pigs are great for such things. One large landowner in my former area wanted to sell a piece of his property, which is adjacent to two shopping centers and across the road from the community's Auto Row area. The buyer? Walmart.
The city said "No way. Your property is zoned agricultural and we're not changing the zoning."
The owner said that was fine and that he would immediately convert the land, which had a few head of cattle on it, to a pig farm. He could build his ag buildings with no permits, so he said he planned a major pig farm, with several thousand pigs, for the area.
The city thought he was joking. Next thing they knew, the owner, who is also a major contractor who builds roads all across California, had heavy equipment on the property and began grading operations for his hog pens, etc.
The Walmart goes in soon.
This is awewome. Maybe people should think twice before they tell someone else how to use their own property.
zoning=gov't regulation=less freedom
Cool!
I like rebels and I like pigs.
Good story.
I wouldn't have bothered with all fuss of live pigs. Instead a few posters of Michael Moore would have done the same thing.
Nothing in that zoning about raising peacocks or buffalo is there?
Peacocks are great for irritating neighbors. When they start calling to each other it sounds like women screaming.
One of my immediate neighbors (directly across the street from an obnoxious subdevelopment) has a bunch of peacocks for exactly that reason. The sound reminds me more of cats fighting. I love it...because it irritates the people it is meant to far more than me.
Another ag neighbor now has a bunch of ostriches. They were taken to court and were allowed 2 per acre. 2 Chickens is nothing. 2 Ostriches are something. Both were dairy farms, but driven out by the zoning.
I figured for sure this would be in Arkansas.
Paging Emril Laggasse- pork fat rules!
You must be talking about San Luis Opispo versus Alex Madonna.
>>>"zoning=gov't regulation=less freedom"
not only that...
zoning=payoffs
They also like to crap on cars and dissect windshield wipers.
What is the nature of private property?
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