Jeanie Watson is frustrated that her neighbor, Warren Hogancamp, is building a garage that will block her view of the neighborhood, particularly because she believes it violates the restrictions of their Lone Oak subdivision, and nobody will do anything about it.

Hogancamp is frustrated because he believes he's doing nothing wrong, but his neighbors are upset and trying to get him to stop, even though the concrete floor of the garage already has been poured. They have even raised the possibility of retaining a lawyer to take legal action.

"If they do, I guess I'll have to sue the county because they issued the permit," Hogancamp said.

County Building Inspector Randall Boggess, whose office issued the permit, is frustrated because he's getting pulled into a situation over which he has no control. The garage conforms to county regulations, and he has no legal authority to consider subdivision restrictions when issuing permits.

And County Administrator Steve Doolittle is frustrated because he gets calls about similar situations from people wanting him to fix problems that he has no power to fix.

Subdivision restrictions, drawn up when developments are divided into individual lots, are generally much more stringent than city or county zoning regulations. They can mandate anything about how a property is developed: how large the house can be, where on the lot it can stand, whether there can be a detached garage, or a garden, or even what percentage of the exterior is brick. The restrictions are also private legal covenants, meaning the only way to enforce them, government officials and lawyers agree, is through civil courts.

"The restrictions are enforceable by any lot owner in the subdivision," said Lisa Emmons, an attorney who specializes in property issues for Denton and Keuler. "They are not enforceable by any governmental entity. The governmental entities have their own restrictions they impose. Those are zoning laws."
(Read Lisa's article on Residential Real Estate Purchases and Neighborhood Restrictions)

In the case of Hogancamp's proposed garage, it meets all the county's requirements, including its distance from the property lines. That's why Boggess approved his permit.

"The only thing we enforce is countywide zoning restrictions," Boggess said. As for restrictions, "Sadly, it's up to them to enforce them, and the only way to do that is that they have to get an attorney to deal with it."

Hogancamp said he did just that, and was told his garage was acceptable under the restrictions. Watson believes it isn't. At issue is a clause that requires, "where possible, each dwelling shall be erected in line with the front of other dwellings."

The garage will stick out in front of the Watsons' home, but Hogancamp's is a corner lot, making it his back yard. There's also the implication in the restrictions that detached carports aren't allowed, but it isn't an explicit ban. It's exactly the type of situation for which lawyers are around, to figure out an answer to a complicated legal question. Unfortunately, that could mean suing your neighbor, something most people, including Watson, aren't inclined to do.

"People who live in subdivisions are going to think, what good does it do to have (restrictions)? We were all amazed you can get a permit to do something like this," she said. "I don't think it's right. Something should be done about it ... This is going to be awful."

Hogancamp said he's sorry his neighbors are upset, but he has already paid to have the concrete floor poured in the location he said was recommended by three contractors.

"If somebody wants to come up with some money for me to relocate that thing, I might do it," he said. "At this point, I can't eat that loss to move the location of the garage."

Even if he did, it would have a domino effect. A fence, berry bushes and the swimming pool in the back yard all might come into play.

Watson said she and her husband are concerned the garage might lower their property value, exactly the opposite of the intended effect of subdivision restrictions, said John Davis, a developer and part owner of Re/Max Realty Group.

"Homes are becoming more expensive every day you build them," Davis said. "We just want to try to protect the value of what everybody is building. You can overkill everything, and sometimes I think some of these go too far. You have to try to be fair ... A number of factors have to be taken into consideration when you're drawing these up."

Then, of course, the homeowners have to read the subdivision restrictions. Doolittle, who also oversees zoning for the county, said he commonly gets two kinds of calls: people asking if the county will allow them to do something, or people who want the county to make their neighbor stop doing something. With the former, he usually tells them they can do what they want as far as the county's concerned, but they have to check the subdivision restrictions themselves. As for the latter, "I have to tell them that all I can do is clear up the confusion but leave them unsatisfied with the result," Doolittle said.

A key problem is that people often buy homes without realizing they are in subdivisions, Doolittle said.

"A lot of people don't know they have these," Doolittle said, holding a two-page document outlining restrictions in another subdivision. "They don't even know they exist."

Another issue is that some restrictions can become outdated. Many subdivisions, for example, specifically ban mobile homes.

"In 1976, everybody knew what 'mobile home' meant," Doolittle said. "In 1996, nobody was sure anymore because the industry had changed. Is it a mobile home because it can be split into pieces and put on a truck?" he asked, shrugging.

As for Hogancamp, he plans to finish the garage as soon as his contractor returns from a trip.

"If I knew there was going to be a big flap, I might have considered another location," he said. "Legally, there's no problem with it."

Watson said she's not sure what her next step is.

"I don't want to sue anybody," she said. "I just wish somebody would do something to help people in subdivisions."

As published in the Paducah Sun on November 17, 2003
By C.D. Bradley cdbradley@paducahsun.com--270.575.8650