You be the judge

A year ago the house uphill from us was sold. It didn't take long for the new owners to start to make major renovations both inside and outside the house. We came home from a 2 week trip last fall to find that all of the landscaping in the rear yard (that borders our rear yard) had been taken out, a fence put in and a construction on a swimming pool had started. It was a surprise to say the least. Since we live in an area with an HOA, I figured everything had been approved by the HOA. It was not that big of a deal.

Last Spring, the new owners (I'll now refer to them as the "Nimbys" as in "not in my backyard") started on the new landscaping. The HOA CC&R guidelines, among other things, require that fences be screened. The Nimbys new landscaping didn't quite provide enough screening given the fact that they now had a pool, huge kid's swing/climbing set. So we planted some trees across our back lot line to give a little more screening. We were careful to follow HOA guidelines as to mature height of the trees. We also did not plant the trees in our uphill neighbors "view corridor".

You'd think that most people would like some trees - you know, a little contribution to combat global warming. But the Nimbys seem to think that they had a home on a VIEW lot and made a complaint about trees in our yard, and in our next door neighbor's yard, blocking their view. They demanded that all of the trees in these two yards (32 in all) be removed. Most of the trees have been around for 5 years or more!

Here's the view the Nimbys have from their yard:



And these views:



Yep. I agree. Our trees are blocking their view......OF THE BACK OF OUR HOUSE!!!

However, our trees provide screening for us and from the views into the Nimbys yard. Here's a "view" we've had this summer of the Nimbys yard.

A flock of pink flamingos took roost for about two weeks. They'd probably still be there if I hadn't made a complaint to the HOA.

And this one is really special:


When I first saw this on the Nimby's back deck on a Sunday morning, I thought that someone didn't quite make it back into the house after a pool party the night before. But on closer inspection, I realized it was a blow up doll wearing a t-shirt with a message just for us. The poor thing hung out on the deck in the blazing sun for almost a week.

Anyway, because the Nimbys didn't like the idea that the HOA Board said no trees had to be removed, they've hired an attorney. That means that the HOA Board has had to hire an attorney. This is where the whole thing gets ridiculous. Every homeowner in our subdivision, INCLUDING THE NIMBYS, will have to a pay a special assessment to the tune of about $1000 per homeowner so that the HOA Board can have legal representation. So the Nimbys are technically suing themselves.

This whole situation is really gathering steam. A meeting with the HOA Board, the Nimbys, us and our neighbors, and attorneys for both sides, will be held in the near future. I just can't wait.

In the meantime, you be the judge. Trees or views?