Well we settled. Didn't get exactly what we wanted but the county significantly improved their offer.
Our first offer was rejected out of hand. They sent us a nasty letter saying that our property had been appraised by "experts" and that what they were offering us was fair. And that if we didn't accept their offer by 12/18, the would just condemn the property and take it. The mafia never had it so good! LOL
Anyway, I consulted with some people at work and revised our offer and sent them a nice reply. I pointed out that due to their negligence they had basically branded our area as a "come and steal" zone. A few weeks ago, when we came from the mini-roundup at Becky's house, we saw some people breaking into the house across the street. We called the cops and were absolutely flabbergasted when they let the perps go. It was then that we found out that the county had a "no prosecution" policy for these types of events. Nice hun?
So I reminded them of that. I also told them that my employer, a prominent homebuilder in this area, had offered me free use of their attorney's and pr resources and that I really didn't want to use them but would if I had to. I also let them know that I ran the farmers market and would let our customers know of our plight.
So I got a call yesterday and they accepted our offer and even sweetened the pot a little bit.
So it's all over except the blasting, the noise and the headaches.
BB
Ever had part of your property seized for a road project?
Well that at least some good news for you. Even if it not what you wanted, some better is better than none at all.
Good for you to sticking to your guns too and not going out like alamb.
I can't belive such a thing exsists on the books. That unreal. If that the case, how you supposed to protect your property from theives and yoru gardens.
I hoep you sell so many veggie s thi syear that you cna afford to get a bigger good place of your own where you don't have so many problems.
I not all sure what they gonna be doing to yoru property , but maybeif your boss has some extra wood or somethign laying around, I would consider putting up some sort of barrier, even though it may look bad for abit, before they begin construction, so they not totally destroying yoru yard or runnign heavy equipment and stuff on it or using it for a dumping or holding ground.
I hope that your headaches once they start wil be few and far between and that they get it all done fairly quickly with a minimum of fuss.
Way to go BB! Sounds like you were able to do the "speak softly/big stick" routine very well. I hope the construction isn't too disruptive to your farming. How long is it supposed to take? Please keep us updated. Becky
Good for you BB I moved from a congested area 20 years ago to live in the woods. But now the allmighty's that rule this place are aproveing left and right of new developments. I see 10 times more traffic and hear of more crime everyday I just look up and say "God" why don't they see what they are doing.
Thanks Star & Becky:
I am going to put up some fencing which is one of the reasons why we found their offer unacceptable. Most of the work will occur in the front so our gardens will not be affected. We were planning to put an orchard in the front yard so that will have to wait. But you can be sure that when they do move some heavy equipment in, that I will slip a worker a few bucks to dig me some beds. :-)
The no prosecution thing bugged me. On the day we called the cops, our neighbor across the street had actually went out to confront the people who were in the house. We were on the phone with the police and didn't know she was back there. (Can't be seen from street) Cop came out with guns drawn. Some of the police recognized my neighbor from previous calls and told her to go home.
She came over to thank us for calling the police. The people claimed they had permission to be there which wasn't true because we had contact with the owner. It was then she told me about the county policy. She said a couple of weeks before that, she had to call the cops on a teenage couple she saw go into the house. The police caught them stripping the last of the copper out of the house. In the case they made an arrest because a search turned up drugs. I told her under no circumstances should she approach anyone. Just call the police and be done with it. A couple of days later, someone put a nice pile of dog poop in their mailbox
I am going to write our county commissioner about that stupid policy.
BB
This message was edited Dec 19, 2008 9:35 AM
Harmony:
Are they actually still building by you???? Any developer in his right mind has stopped building. Where is Rutledge?
BB
It has slowed down the Applebys hasn't been built yet. But i still see the subdivisions i haven't noticed if they have stopped building in those.
But for a while they were springing up like spring buttercups.
BB, if you shot someone for breaking into your house during construction, would they prosecute you? It being a "no prosecution" zone and all. I normally am anti-gun, but I think, with the lax attitude of those cops, I'd go get one.
Well I hope I never have to find out. Our dogs tend to keep folks at bay.
I tell them repeatedly that they only work they have to do for the life of riley is to keep intruders at bay until I reach my guns. While I have rifles and shotguns, all of this has left my wife and I wondering if we should invest in some handgun training.
I think it was a decision made by some pencil pusher at the county. The cops were just as frustrated as we are because they have to keep coming out to deal with it. If the county buys a property that they are going to demolish, they should do it immediately instead of waiting a year or more.
BB
Great that you were able to get this settled before the holidays. Now you can take a deep breath and enjoy the holidays. We too have to say "thanks" that our chimney/fireplace is finished and we have a new roof. Have a meaningful holiday.
L
BB, that is really awful to have deal with. Maybe now you can relax a bit. I would slip those guys a $ or so to dig some beds too. sometimes if you just smile and give them a drink of water, they will do extra too. .. They aren't connected to all those idiot politicians...
L, nice new roof and chimney.
Elaine
Looks good Laurel. Congrats
Elaine:
We are planning to put a small orchard in the front yard so I plan to bribe those guys! :-)
Will do everything I can to turn lemons into lemonade!
BB
Peach orchard? Meyers lemons? lol
elaine
Peaches, cherries, apples. plums and pears
:-)
BB
Well, when you're ready, I have some peach seeds for you. Good for you to stick up to those guys!
Recently, my DH caught some teenagers at our local grocery store stealing stuff and they did not want to call the police or the parents. I said he should have whipped out his federal agent badge and told them to call the police instead. Then they won't have a choice. The store doesn't have to press charge, but I think parents should have been called to the store to get them. They said it was too much hassle.
A few years ago, my DH's badge and wallet were stolen out of his truck from our garage. Just a bunch of kids. When we called to report the crime, the police said they would just take the information over the phone. After I told them that my DH had a "search & seize" badge and he was a federal agent, they reluctantly sent an officer out. But after the police office came out, they had 2 other phone calls a couple of streets over from our with the same break-in incident.
Hi all--just reading this thread and am very interested. Hope I'm not being rude by writing! I also live in L'ville, BB. This county is truly doing some unethical things. In my area, we are dealing with the AAA Braves ball field that was a "done deal" before any property owners in the area were told about it. Plus, the Mall of GA is nearby, which brings in a less than stellar population of ne'er-do-wells. My truck has been 'visited' multiple times, although the visitor never really took anything--nothing to take. I just keep it locked now. But I do have a small note in the console that says "you've looked at all my CDs at least 5 times--we apparently have different tastes in music. So could you at least leave them in a neat pile rather than throwing them on the floor? By the way, I don't leave any loose change so don't trash my truck." After I wrote the note, however, it occurred to me that the visitor probably can't read.
Anyway, I'm glad you got a satisfactory resolution to the county's taking your property. That doesn't always happen. Things are actually better than they were some decades ago. My mom's family was ousted from their family farm back in the '30s by the Tennessee Valley Authority (in eastern Tennessee). They received nothing for their land (app. 50 acres), which had been in the family for generations. This was a farmer's family with 10 children. The TVA flooded the land. I'm sure the idea of a lawyer and protesting the move never crossed Granddad's mind. I was raised in TN and would move back in a heartbeat but that will have to wait until the real estate market changes. North GA would be nice, too.
By the way, no matter your belief on gun ownership, it might be a good idea to have one, if for no other reason that our rights in that matter are likely to change with our new president-elect. Good luck with your orchard!
Well Things just took a turn for the worse.
Someone broke into my neighbors son's truck Monday night and stole all his stereo stuff. This car was probably parked about 30 feet or so from my home. I was pissed when Mrs Bronx called me yesterday morning. My son had stayed home to work on our drip irrigation. I had to call him and have him check all the buildings on our property and our other neighbors. We didn't have anything taken but it sucks because now we have to lock everything up where we didn't before. One of my beefs with the county offer was that they were only considering the actual value of the land they were taking and completely disregarding the decrease in our quality of life and the fact that we now had to install fencing and security systems in places we didn't need to before. I felt they should pony up some bucks to help us defray these costs
I wrote a letter to our county commissioner about the county's irresponsibility in handling properties they purchase. If I don't hear from them by next week, I going to the press.
Hi Beth:
Welcome! Be sure to come see us at the L'ville Farmers Market this summer! I pass that AAA stadium on occasion when I'm out in the field. I'm surprised that they are going ahead with it in this economy. The latest screw up by the county has been this whole boondoggle with the garbage pickup. Garbage was the one thing that worked right and they had to go mess with that.
I do own guns and we also have dogs. What we have been giving some thought to however is whether to purchase some handguns. Never had anything against, just never had a need to own one. But I would hate to have some idiot walk up on my or my wife at back end of our property while we were working and try something stupid. Much easier to have a sidearm on my hip than have to tote a shotgun while we work. I hadn't given the matter much thought but then this latest incident happened. And MrsBronx, who was absolutely apathetic about guns, has been raising the issue. So we'll probably take some lessons and go from there. Better to have one and not need it than to need one and not have it.
Shame we even have to factor this into our planning for next year
I will definitely come by the Farmer's Market! Thank you!
You know, I've actually been thinking about investing in those outside security cameras--Sam's club has them for a good price, I think....Might not hurt to have them in place. It is a shame anyone has to do that, but Gwinnett is just growing faster than the law can keep up. The cameras would allow you to get a pic of the thief. Sounds like you've got someone in the neighborhood who thinks what's his is his and what's yours is his, too. Sad.
I purchased a handgun for my safety just a couple of months ago. Taking lessons to use it, too. All I had was a machete (family item), and while I'm sure that would hurt a bad guy, it would also be sort of messy. (tongue in cheek)
Yes, the stupid AAA Braves stadium is still ongoing--they've been building straight through all the economic woes and credit crunch. What a nightmare it will be! The garbage pickup thing is also a nightmare. Can't believe that was allowed to happen. Ack--I need to move!
Yes. I will look into some cameras.
The garbage thing is a mess. We got a bill from the new company which my wife paid only to be told about the injunction.
BB
Leave it to the govt to make a mess and not clean it up....
LOL!!
I got the bill from the new waste pickup company, too, but I didn't pay it. They do provide yard waste pickup which is good, but I don't like how the whole thing was done--no one knew until it was a done deal--just like the Braves stadium.