in operable Vehicles in West Memphis

[MossRoad]

Well, I can see the issues from both sides. I live in the county, with virtually no code issues in regards to vehicles. The cities in our county have code ordinances regarding vehicles, and some subdivisions in the county AND cities have HOA rules regarding vehicles.

I guess it's all perspective. I drive through the city every day. There are several junk-yard-looking houses with multiple cars on the lawns, in the alley, in the back yard, etc... that look like h***. The yards are all mud, there is no grass to speak of, and it really, really puts a damper on anyone that wants to sell their home and get out of there, because no one wants to live next to that. So to those that say "if you don't like it move", I ask, why is it OK to run down the neighborhood? When living in close quarters inside a city, there has to be some rules to get along with each other, protect property values, etc.... That applies to subdivisions with HOAs, too, as people want to protect their investment.

The farther you get away from cities and out into more rural areas, the issue becomes less important. Where I live, its quite common to see unrunning vehicles in people's back yard (I have one). And while it doesn't bother my direct neighbors (I've asked), there is a point when how many unrunning vehicles would it take to bother them comes into play. Two, three, 10? There's a house a couple blocks over that has had as many as 20 vehicles in various states of demolition derby. And the house next door has another half dozen (they are buddies). But the folks on either side cannot sell their houses because of all the junk just over the fence.

So when do my personal rights infringe on the personal rights of my neighbors?

 

[ultrarunner]

My lot is pentagon shaped with side access that was originally for an previous owner's RV

It is fully fenced with Tongue and Groove 6' high redwood and the highest elevation as the end of a cul-de-sac...

Currently I have two Model A Ford projects, 68 Mustang Convertible, 57 Ford, 50 Plymouth, Box Trailer... plus my cutting torch/tanks... surface is concrete and partially covered car port...

I can see where some would say I have a wrecking yard... thankfully, by all outward appearances no one can see it... not neighbors or from the road... and I wouldn't do that to my neighbors anyway... plus none of my vehicles are ever on the street... unlike others here...

I'm the go to person for the neighborhood so I certainly have paid it forward when it comes to helping out.. plus they have seen my projects go from rust bucket to show...

The other property has the Deere and my trailers... no way to fence... not allowed but I strategically planted oak trees to augment the oaks already there and over the last 15 years they have filled in nicely... out of sight and out of mind...

 

[Doofy]

I enjoy my freedom to do as I please on my own property but still keep things picked up and presentable. My junkers are well hidden and can only really be seen from the air. Most air traffic consists of "Bush" planes of the local hunting guides and air taxi operators.

 

[aczlan]

In a simplistic way... it might be that you can clean up 80% of the problem at 20% of the cost. The final 20% may never reach 20% but the cost is often 4 to 5 times what it cost to clean up the 80%.

Yep. I would bet that the air pollution was cleaned up by the "cheap" 80%. IMO, if you removed the DPF/EGR from a Tier 4 Diesel engine and just ran the engine that way (on ULSD), you wouldn't see an appreciable increase in emissions.
If you remember, the reasoning behind Tier 4 engines and the DPF/EGR was based on flawed math (they overstated how much it would help by 1000% or something like that).

Aaron Z

 

[crazyal]

A guy who I use to work with started doing occasional work (usually replacing timing belts on Subaru's for a used car dealer) on the side on cars. It was maybe a car a week, so no big deal. But he was cheap and the dealer realized that it was cheaper to have him do the work because he was reliable and does good work than pay for an extra mechanic and increase the shop. So what was once car a week turned out to usually be two or three a day. That left his guys to do things like tire changes and exhausts which they already had the equipment for (like a lift and balancer). I don't know how other people in that neighborhood felt about it but I can guess some were happy because he would repair their cars for half the price of a garage while the rest didn't like it. So I'm sure that the intent was to limit the work prevent eyesores.

I'm lucky because where I live the only zoning is statewide septic. If I want to build a new shop, I just do it. I'm not the type of person that conforms well to rules. When younger I felt that rules and laws were put in place so you could break them. If it says 50mph that means do 60 and see how much beyond that you can push it for example. I didn't go around murdering people or driving drunk. There is something in my deed that says more two unregistered vehicles must be kept out of sight and I can't open a junk yard but that would require a neighbor to sue in civil court.

 

[Dftodd]

There's only two restriction on the deed for my property. No mobile homes. And no goats
Not sure what the reasoning was behind the goats. Neighborhood was built in the 80's. But honestly I know for a fact, if someone on the street wanted to get a couple, no one would say anything.

I don't think someone would raise a stink about a mobile home either.