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Man ordered to remove 4-story tree house
upi ^ | Oct. 20

Posted on 10/21/2009 1:27:47 PM PDT by JoeProBono

WORCESTER, Mass.- A Worcester, Mass., man said he will not appeal the city's order to tear down the $12,000 four-story tree house he built on his property .

Michael Chapman, 48 -- who built the tree house over the course of three months from more than a ton of pressure-treated lumber, 1,000 feet of rope, about 500 lag screws and 48 feet of rebar -- said the city ordered him to remove the tree house by Nov. 2 and he intends to abide by the order, The Boston Globe reported Tuesday.

Officials from Worcester's Department of Inspectional Services said they visited the property after receiving complaints from neighbors and determined the tree house violated city ordinances by extending higher than 15 feet and reaching within 5 feet of the property line.

"It came out bigger and more conspicuous than I expected, and I'm saddened by the controversy," Chapman said. "If I had done it over again, I would have tried to be more detailed in my pre-negotiations with my neighbors. But hindsight is 20-20."- A Worcester, Mass., man said he will not appeal the city's order to tear down the $12,000 four-story tree house he built on his property .

Michael Chapman, 48 -- who built the tree house over the course of three months from more than a ton of pressure-treated lumber, 1,000 feet of rope, about 500 lag screws and 48 feet of rebar -- said the city ordered him to remove the tree house by Nov. 2 and he intends to abide by the order, The Boston Globe reported Tuesday.

Officials from Worcester's Department of Inspectional Services said they visited the property after receiving complaints from neighbors and determined the tree house violated city ordinances by extending higher than 15 feet and reaching within 5 feet of the property line.

"It came out bigger and more conspicuous than I expected, and I'm saddened by the controversy," Chapman said. "If I had done it over again, I would have tried to be more detailed in my pre-negotiations with my neighbors. But hindsight is 20-20."


TOPICS: Hobbies; Weird Stuff
KEYWORDS: massachusetts; tree; treehouse; worcester
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To: Ingtar

21 posted on 10/21/2009 2:27:02 PM PDT by JoeProBono (A closed mouth gathers no feet)
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To: RetSignman

22 posted on 10/21/2009 2:29:35 PM PDT by JoeProBono (A closed mouth gathers no feet)
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To: GeronL

23 posted on 10/21/2009 2:32:10 PM PDT by JoeProBono (A closed mouth gathers no feet)
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To: Daffynition

It’s going around:

DALLAS, Oct. 21 (UPI) — Officials in a suburban Dallas city have ordered a resident to tear down the tree house in his front yard because it violates municipal codes.

The University Park City Council voted 4-0 Tuesday, with one council member not present, to order Matthew Johnson to take down the tree house he built for his two sons in the front yard of his home, The Dallas Morning News reported Wednesday.

Council members said installing a permanent structure in a front yard violates city codes.

“It’s a slippery slope you go down when you start making changes to an ordinance that’s been studied and around a long time,” council member Sydney Carter said.

The council has not given Johnson a deadline for when the structure must be removed.


24 posted on 10/21/2009 2:47:08 PM PDT by JoeProBono (A closed mouth gathers no feet)
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To: JoeProBono

25 posted on 10/21/2009 2:51:50 PM PDT by Daffynition (What's all this about hellfire and Dalmatians?)
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To: thefactor

26 posted on 10/21/2009 2:54:37 PM PDT by Daffynition (What's all this about hellfire and Dalmatians?)
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To: JoeProBono
Most P&Z groups are corrupt and stupid. Butt heads with P&Z and you'll soon find out how wrong-headed they can be.


27 posted on 10/21/2009 3:02:45 PM PDT by Daffynition (What's all this about hellfire and Dalmatians?)
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To: Daffynition

28 posted on 10/21/2009 3:18:53 PM PDT by JoeProBono (A closed mouth gathers no feet)
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To: Disambiguator
It was like deja vu all over again.

...Thanks Yogi!
29 posted on 10/21/2009 7:27:49 PM PDT by Tainan (Cogito, ergo conservatus)
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To: Daffynition
Most P&Z groups are corrupt and stupid. Butt heads with P&Z and you'll soon find out how wrong-headed they can be.

Probably just looking for a bribe, My father was told by an assistant building inspector to vacate a job he was doing some trim work on because he didn't have a construction supervisor license (he was the only person there so he needed a license to supervise himself.) The clear implication was "crush my palm with silver and I can make this terrible infraction go away." My dad bought a copy of the state code and brought it to the little weasel and showed him that anybody can do trim, flooring or painting without a license. Unfortunately he decided not to bring charges.

30 posted on 10/30/2009 10:55:24 AM PDT by Gordon Pym
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To: Gordon Pym

You’re dad is cool! That’s all it is with these people. Grease their palm or get out of the way. Then when they come within striking distance they run like the wimps they are.

Hero tag for your dad!


31 posted on 10/30/2009 11:12:10 AM PDT by Daffynition (What's all this about hellfire and Dalmatians?)
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To: scripter

take a look at these tree houses...


32 posted on 10/30/2009 11:39:58 AM PDT by latina4dubya ( self-proclaimed tequila snob)
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