View for sale: $30,000 New owner of a lake fences it off when homeowners wouldn't pay.

St. Petersburg Times ^ | May 14, 2002 | ROBERT FARLEY

[strela]

The fence is wood construction, eh? It would be an awful shame if every board-foot happened to catch on fire and burn one dark night. Lakes are fire hazards to begin with.

[Wolfie]

Hey, Homeowners: Learn to pay attention to what you own and don't own.

[luckyluke]

Not much room for controversy here. This guy sounds pretty obnoxious, but if he owns the land, he has a right to build a fence, bright pink or whatever color he chooses.

Unless he violates some kind of 'code'. Hint, hint.

[Charlotte Corday]

Geez, didn't even one of these people ever look at a survey of their property? The price of complacency has been defined in this case as exactly $30K.

[Chad Fairbanks]

I think the fence would make a neat raft for the neighbor kids... they can pretend they are whalers... "Thar She Blows! The Pink Whale, With sparkles!"

[AppyPappy]

He doesn't have the right to restrict another's enjoyment of their own property. Clearly the fence is only used to punish those who won't pay him.

in all cases, a hitman is cheaper than a lawyer.

[Poohbah]

Gosh, it would be an AWFUL shame if every single home on that lake caught fire after the fence burned down, wouldn't it?

It's called PRIVATE property for a reason.

[dhuffman@awod.com]

Look at the front beach on Isle of Palms, SC. Two and three story mansions were built across the street from the beach. Then the 'law' was changed to allow construction on the beach. Now there is a row of equivalent mansions (disposable houses, really, in the next hurricane) blocking the view of the older homes.

The conspiracy of ignorance masquerades as common sense.

[Charlotte Corday]

That sort of thing will happen, and it's why we live on seven acres of land.

Zoning has put a lot of city commissioner's kids through college, hasn't it?

[Poohbah]

He doesn't have the right to restrict another's enjoyment of their own property.

He isn't. He's restricting their enjoyment of HIS property.

Clearly the fence is only used to punish those who won't pay him.

Apparently the neighbors think they own the lake, even though a quick check of the survey would have shown that they didn't. They probably think they may have voted for Pat Buchanan, too.

[NittanyLion]

He doesn't have the right to restrict another's enjoyment of their own property.

Maybe he enjoys constructing pick fences on his own property. In that case, what gives others the right to restrict HIS enjoyment of HIS OWN property?

[peteram]

Geez, didn't even one of these people ever look at a survey of their property? The price of complacency has been defined in this case as exactly $30K.

I'm sure they did. And they agreed when they bought their homes that the lake was considered to be community property - owned by the developer. It's not their fault that the developer defaulted on his taxes. Many lakefront homes here in FL are sold with land up to (and sometimes out into) the lake itelf included. Apparently this was not the case when these folks bought their homes. All they had was "Lake Access", not deeded ownership.

[Wolfie]

The respect for private property rights seems to be a fickle thing 'round here, doesn't it?

[NittanyLion]

The respect for private property rights seems to be a fickle thing 'round here, doesn't it?

Just incredible; it's the same argument on the smoking threads. "I have a right to go wherever I want and never have to breathe in secondhand smoke, even if it isn't my property!"

[the]

Some homeowners blame the developer, Lloyd Ferrentino for allowing the taxes to lapse. At the very least, some said, he should have notified the property owners so they could have tried to buy it.

I'm sure they had notice by publication in their local
newspaper of record. Reading the "legals" classifieds
is boring, but not reading them can be costly.

[Glutton]

This is legalized extortion. It is a poor cousin to the canabalism we see in the stock market when holding companies and other corporations undertake hostile takeovers of other companies.

This is the fruit of a jackal of a land speculator who produces nothing but headaches and expenses for everyone else. Just like corporate pirates do.

People like this erode faith in the concept of private property, and are an invitation to revamp and change the very definitions of concepts like even that of what is or isn't private property, and what private property is defined as.

[hopespringseternal]

Sounds like they deserve each other. He is a jerk and the homeowners are socialists.