TNCR Brain Trust Question
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Yes, I would say do whatever it takes to keep the relationship cordial, or at least peaceful.
But if it has gone this far, it may be too late.
I found this on nolo, it may not apply in PA
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/trees-neighbors-faq.html#answer-1743433Can I trim the branches of the neighbor's tree that hang over my yard?
You have the legal right to trim tree branches up to the property line. But you may not go onto the neighbor's property or destroy the tree itself.
In almost every state, a person who intentionally injures someone else's tree is liable to the owner for two or three times the amount of actual monetary loss. These penalties protect tree owners by providing harsh deterrents to would-be loggers.
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“I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.” ~Winston S. Churchill
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@mik said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
How much has to be trimmed to allow you to move forward with solar? That’s really the important thing here.
Not sure about that. Once the tree's branches cross the property line, it's up to the owner of the trespassed property how to deal with it. What he wants to do with it should be irrelevant.
My concern is whether the trespassed has any liability for damage to the tree that is trespassing, should it die.
"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08
The saying, "Lite is just one damn thing after another," is a gross understatement. The damn things overlap.
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Personally, I think everybody is going about this the wrong way.
May I suggest an escalating series of pranks leading to all sorts of crazy hijinks? It always works in the movies…
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They lawyered up. Which means if you pull a leaf off that tree, they're likely going to come after you. So yeah I'd lawyer the hell up.
Barring that, being a game theorist and all, I wonder what she knows about predictive analysis deriving from imperfect information, which in this case might include a flaming poo bag on their front porch or painting giant dicks on all property facing their windows.
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Actually no, I'd go full-on Ted Nancy on their asses. Every 2-3 weeks, draft up some insane bullshit you propose to do to the tree to remedy the situation (paint your side of it so it blends in with your yard, say), and get some yahoo, real or imagined, to provide a quote, just to make them jump through hoops to respond formally.
And there's always returning the leaves that fall on your side via registered mail.
EDIT to add: are CODs still a thing?
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Use a battery drill motor to dig some holes around the feeder roots on your side of the fence (feeder roots go as far out as the canopy) and pour the holes full of Round-up mixed at about four times normal strength. Wait a few weeks, then refill the holes with a more concentrated solution. Repeat as needed.
Hopefully, in about 90 days, this sad, diseased tree will die a merciful death
️️Always remember, Operation Valkyrie was an act of sedition.
Warning: I post things that interest me. Read and comment at your own discretion. -
@jolly said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
Use a battery drill motor to dig some holes around the feeder roots on your side of the fence (feeder roots go as far out as the canopy) and pour the holes full of Round-up mixed at about four times normal strength. Wait a few weeks, then refill the holes with a more concentrated solution. Repeat as needed.
Yeah, that'll kill the tree to be sure. It won't take a lot of detective work to figure out why that happened.
Better Call Saul.
"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08
The saying, "Lite is just one damn thing after another," is a gross understatement. The damn things overlap.
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May I suggest skunks?
I know a guy…
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@george-k said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
@mik said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
How much has to be trimmed to allow you to move forward with solar? That’s really the important thing here.
Not sure about that. Once the tree's branches cross the property line, it's up to the owner of the trespassed property how to deal with it. What he wants to do with it should be irrelevant.
My concern is whether the trespassed has any liability for damage to the tree that is trespassing, should it die.
It’s very relevant. If IT can trim back sparingly but enough to proceed without hurting the tree, the neighbor has no cause of action.
“I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.” ~Winston S. Churchill
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Get as many and as loud wind chimes as possible and hang them on your side of the tree.
Tell them you're looking into the possibility that a family member has come down with Quercus Poisoning from the acorns and demand they pay the medical bills.
Replace the Roundup with copious amounts of food coloring.
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@mik said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
If IT can trim back sparingly but enough to proceed without hurting the tree, the neighbor has no cause of action.
Agreed.
The important word is "If."
Leave it to some lawyer to attach blame for the tree's death to IT exercising his rights.
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My guess is their lawyer knows full well that his letter has no force of law, but sent it because that's what he was hired to do. My guess is he expects he will hear from your lawyer, they'll both make a little money, and then their lawyer will tell them they don't stand a chance in court and need to reach a compromise.
I know the type of people your neighbors are - get a lawyer, get a judge's ruling, and then once a judge clarifies the law to them, hire a couple of flunkies to trim the tree. The "value" they are assigning to that tree is ridiculous, by the way.
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@klaus When we had first met, a few weeks after JN died, she told me she had worked with Nash in some capacity ...
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@ivorythumper said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
@klaus When we had first met, a few weeks after JN died, she told me she had worked with Nash in some capacity ...
Bless her heart. I met Lawrence Welk at an airport, back in the day....
Nice story and totally irrelevant to your current situation.
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Buy yourself an assload of squirrel feed. Bird feed. Anything feed. Cultivate a woodland creature sanctuary.
Owls or large birds would be most ideal.
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@mik Look at the aerial map -- basically back to the building set back line -- 10' off the property line.
But I think it is better to not talk about anything except for the strict law against trespass. I shouldn't need to justify in any sense what is "the landowner's right to peaceably enjoy full, exclusive use of his property" Making such arguments only complicates things and gives grounds for emotional or aesthetic or environmental/tree hugging considerations.
It seems better to stick to: the neighbor is derogating my property right which is firmly established under common law and all subsequent case law regarding the inviolability against trespass.
no?
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@george-k said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
@jolly said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
Use a battery drill motor to dig some holes around the feeder roots on your side of the fence (feeder roots go as far out as the canopy) and pour the holes full of Round-up mixed at about four times normal strength. Wait a few weeks, then refill the holes with a more concentrated solution. Repeat as needed.
Yeah, that'll kill the tree to be sure. It won't take a lot of detective work to figure out why that happened.
Better Call Saul.
They hired a forensic arborist already... he's probably on their iphone Favorites list.
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@mik said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
@george-k said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
@mik said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
How much has to be trimmed to allow you to move forward with solar? That’s really the important thing here.
Not sure about that. Once the tree's branches cross the property line, it's up to the owner of the trespassed property how to deal with it. What he wants to do with it should be irrelevant.
My concern is whether the trespassed has any liability for damage to the tree that is trespassing, should it die.
It’s very relevant. If IT can trim back sparingly but enough to proceed without hurting the tree, the neighbor has no cause of action.
No cause of action does not mean no law suit to defend against.
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@larry said in TNCR Brain Trust Question:
My guess is their lawyer knows full well that his letter has no force of law, but sent it because that's what he was hired to do. My guess is he expects he will hear from your lawyer, they'll both make a little money, and then their lawyer will tell them they don't stand a chance in court and need to reach a compromise.
I know the type of people your neighbors are - get a lawyer, get a judge's ruling, and then once a judge clarifies the law to them, hire a couple of flunkies to trim the tree. The "value" they are assigning to that tree is ridiculous, by the way.
I have no need to compromise, and it is against my interests at that point: ""the landowner's right to peaceably enjoy full, exclusive use of his property"" That tree is now a source of my lack of peaceable enjoyment and I don't ever want to have to think about it again.
Once I have a judge's ruling there is no compromise.
I don't care what they do to the tree, or what happens to it, as long as it is not trespassing on my property.
