Dog area - with whom should I consult?
 

I am new to TV and one of my neighbors is planning on building a fenced area for his three dogs that is next to my small yard. Is this allowed and, if not, with whom should I speak? Thanks for any assistance with this potential situation. Mango 47

not allowed. contact VCDD Community Standards 352-751-3912

I agree. No fences or outbuildings.

Call and report this before he starts building.

Not that I enjoy doing this but....
 

If it is a direct neighbor, I would chat with them. I hate doing it, I would be nervous about how to bring it up, but it is better IMO than calling someone without first having that chat.

Really... BEFORE it is finished. It's easier to get it stopped mid build than have it reversed after it's a fait accomplis.

i would have a chat first...but if he is not happy i would make the call

This is so delicate and something that there isn't an easy answer for.

Most of us are usually very disinclined to tell a neighbor about rules or how to run things. The process here on deed restrictions is that before action is taken a person must report the situation.

I think that I would give the neighbor the number for ARC and tell them you think that it isn't allowed and that they should check first because you have heard that people had to remove items not approved at their own expense.

When we arrived in Hadley to find upwards of 30 statues, art, figurines and flower pots in a neighbors yard...I was very disappointed.

They eventually removed them. Someone reported them.

No one wants to be a snitch. We all wish that "they" (The Villages) would handle it but most of us like the deed restrictions very much and are very used to them from prior places to live. They are one of the reasons we chose to live here.

Good approach Gracie!:BigApplause:

Following the rules
 

Before we purchased our home in TV we found out what the rules were regarding pets, fences, lawn decorations, etc. So when we did purchase our home we had the limited number of pets, we bought a CYV so that we could have a fence and have not put a bunch of "decorations" in our yard. What we have found, especially regarding the lawn decorating, is that apparently some of my neighbors either don't know the rules or just don't think that they apply to them. :(

It is against his deed restrictions, he could be fined by big brother

I agree Gracie.

My priorities have changed over the years through my experiences dealing with neighbors who care for, and who care less about, their property. When I was younger I did not care to live in a deed restricted area as I did not want someone else to decide for me how I would maintain my home, what I did with my yard, or if I could have dogs or not. Perhaps the basis of that thought was that I knew that I would care for home, my yard, be a responsible pet owner, and I wanted the ability to make choices as I saw fit-especially after paying over 100k for my first home. My perspective now is that deed restrictions can be a good thing, but if I felt them too overbearing, I would choose to live elsewhere. When we purchased in the Villages, our sales rep did a wonderful job making sure that we knew and understood the impact of the deed restrictions here.

Fences are not allowed. I wish they were in a way since I have 2 dogs, but such is life. He cannot put up fencing.

I don't see how you can report somebody for "planning" to put up a fence. Why are you being so timid? I see nothing delicate or touchy about the situation. Walk over and ask him. Let him know it's against your deed restrictions and if reported, it would be a costly mistake.
I live in a patio villa, if my neighbor put up a small fence around his patio and didn't go past the back of our houses, I really wouldn't care.

On the other hand, I don't see why you have to go over and tell your neighbor what he's doing is wrong, starting bad feelings. He knows the rules, signed off on them at closing, and apparently just doesn't care. Doesn't seem like the kind of person that would take kindly to a nice neighborly chat with you, telling him what he's about to do is wrong. I don't see a good outcome to that chat.

If you then lodge a complaint with the district, he will know exactly who complained, and this could set you up for a long, frosty relationship with your neighbor.

The deal is, you're supposed to be able to lodge a complaint with the district, and I don't think they're going to tell who complained. If it's that important to you, for whatever reason, that you don't want his fence there, call the district. That's the way it's set up to happen.

From this site: VCDD Community Standards

Concerns about possible deed restriction violations may be provided to the Community Standards Deed Compliance Division by phone, fax, mail, electronic mail, or in person and may be made anonymously. The Community Standards Deed Compliance Division is entirely complaint driven.
Contact Us
1894 Laurel Manor Drive
The Villages, FL 32162

Community Standards
Phone: 352-751-3912



Business Hours:
8am to 5pm, EST
Monday – Friday
Excluding Holidays

back to the wisdom of gracie..there is no violation yet, and a chance to do this upfront by saying what gracie suggests..tell the neighbor you heard that's not allowed and not waiting til a fence goes up and reporting anonymously.

I understand the reasoning about this, kitty, but what, then, if this person doesn't give a damn? Now you're between a rock and a hard place. I wish we were all as reasonable as we think everyone should be. But maybe it will work. Who knows?

As another poster said, maybe it just won't be that big a deal if he puts up a little fence to contain his dog(s).

I would hope that if I was doing something outside of the deed restrictions, my neighbor would politely suggest I check since I might be in violation. :sigh: Of course there will be neighbors who don't think the deed restrictions apply to them so a gentle message may not work and follow-up with the appropriate department may be needed.

True true. I am really "on the fence," so to speak, about the solution to this problem. It has so much to do with what kind of person the neighbor is. Maybe the OP knows the neighbor's personality and could judge what to do from that knowledge.

If he is a jerk, I would probably go the anonymous route.

Is this a neighborhood rumor, or did your neighbor tell you personally that he is planning to build a fence? Rumors have a way of growing warts as they're passed from person to person. Perhaps he is planning to have a hedge of some sort?

If he told you he is planning to build a fence, did you express surprise and say "Oh, I thought they weren't allowed"?

There is an invisible fencing company called "Dogwatch" in Ocala. They give free estimates. I'm sure they would drop a brochure off to your house if you call them, and you could ask your neighbor if he's considered that option.

Your right, Bare, there's a lot of warts growing in TV, lol... I was thinking that maybe he meant an Invisible Fence, just a thought.

Not sure you are really asking how to deal with this, since you simply asked whom you should consult, but.....if you do appreciate the suggestions, it would help if we knew a bit more about the situation, for instance...are you friendly with the neighbors and did they tell you about the fence? Did you simply hear it from a third party? Have you seen signs of construction?

Would other neighbors, or community watch, see the fence? If not, it may be painfully apparent you were the anonymous caller (if you go that route), so probably better, all the way around, to go face to face with your concerns. I do agree with a previous post, it shouldn't be your job to police your neighbors. They know they are breaking the rules. Why should you be put in an awkward position? On the other hand....better to save them the expense and trouble, if you plan to report them, anyway. BTW, if they acquired 3 dogs AFTER moving here, they are already breaking the rules. No way for us to know that, just an FYI, for your own info.

It was also suggested that maybe you could just live with it, but it's apparent since you posted here, that's not your choice. Have the other posters here considered the fact that neighbors are planning to have 3 dogs in the yard near the OP? What if the dogs bark, scratch up the yard, smell up the yard.....ew!! Are they big dogs that are threatening? Lots of factors, but in truth, none of that matters. IT IS AGAINST THE RULES!!

Maybe the neighbors frequent Talk Of The Villages, and have already seen this thread. Problem solved!! :)

I'm going through this situation now. I've had shrubbery planted to give my dog a perimeter, if you will, to stay in our yard. When we're outside on our leash she still tends to roam over the property line. I was discussing with my landscaper about gate options. Come to find out my neighbor was eves dropping and heard the conversation and came over and told him that gates were not allowed. I wasn't home at the time so when I got home I went over to ask my neighbor what was up. It was then that she told me that gates were not allowed because she applied for approval on one and was denied. And then proceeded to tell me that if she couldn't put up a gate then why should I be. Personally I'm offended that she was eves dropping on our conversation and that she called the committee on something that we were just discussing! It is my property and it's my consequences if I do something not allowed! This of course is my personal feelings on the matter.

Wow
 

you really feel you are within your rights to do something that you already know is not allowed?

This is probably why "they" say that most villagers move 3 times - probably half the moves are because of neighbor issues!

When you buy here, you are agreeing to the deed restrictions - why do you feel they can be ignored?

I understand no fences. Is a homeowner allowed to have 2 dogs? I see a comment above about the limit on number of dogs.

You are most certainly allowed to have two dogs. Two pets is the limit, and both can be dogs. You are allowed to move to TV with more than two pets, but as they pass on, you cannot replace them. This has been discussed many times on the forum.

That's pretty sad for a neighbor to do. At the very least go directly to you first and not just jump straight out to authorities on something that hasn't even happened.

dreamer61 - i missed the part in your post that explained that your neighbor 'called the committee'. i did get that she already applied and was denied for the same intent as yours. as far as evesdropping - it's sorta hard to avoid, doncha think?, unless we hold our conversations indoors? and as far as consequences - your actions create consequences for all - some will be pleasant i am sure - breaking the covenants/restrictions would not be.

I think it is shabby of your neighbor to call the authorities about a conversation she overheard, before talking to you first about your plans. Of course if you do something now that is against the covenants, you can be sure she'll have the Backyard Police at your house.

We have invisible fencing which works very well to identify our boundaries to our dogs. I thought it was inhumane before we explored the option with Dogwatch. However I learned that with proper training, they will react to the signal from the fence, and never get a correction (which is a tingle .. I tried it on my arm).

I think your facts are mixed up. She applied and was denied, you say she called just now? Was she advising you on what happened to her? Isn't she right in saying if I cannot put up a gate then you can't either.....right?
If you are not planning on moving, I would bake a cake and ask your neighbor over for coffee. Or haven't you talked in the past? Living with neighbors is a two-way street.

Sorry, I don't think eves dropping is hard to avoid, or at the least you don't have to act on everything you hear. I would never break the restrictions and I would have run it by the committee if I'd had the chance before she called them. I've met with Dogwatch and are planning to install the invisible fence. We are very excited about our girl having some free roam. Thanks for the tip, Barefoot!

Boogie, no I don't agree with you. Are you serious??? I think each individual situation is different. While you're out riding around, look around people's yards. There are all types of different fences,gates,plants etc. So no I don't think just because she can't have something means I shouldn't. I don't know or care where she was going to put her gate. And vice versa for her. Some small gates are allowed in certain areas. Read the covenants!

You are so welcome. Evan, from Dogwatch, was just great at helping us with the training. Please be sure to always supervise your dog, because even with invisible fencing, predators can come on your property.

The critical thing about invisible fencing is to do the training. Even if it doesn't makes sense to you, it makes sense to the dogs. They learn the boundaries marked by the flags, and then they connect the boundary lines with the warning signal. We turned the system to the lowest level so a correction would be a surprise tingle, not a shock. I tried the collar on my arm before purchasing the system from Dogwatch. Our dogs required only one correction each, and thereafter avoided the boundaries when they heard the beep warning.

And here is (to me) an amazing thing .... After being away for six months, I let the dogs out in the yard because I didn't realize that Fireboy hadn't activated the system yet. And both dogs totally avoided the boundaries, even without warning beeps! Not that I'm recommending that ... it was stupid on my part. But it just shows how they memorize the boundaries.

May I add that when we discussed the layout with the invisible fence people I let the neighbors know,as a courtesy, that the yard would be marked by dig safe the work would be done to ensure there would be no surprise calls or interuptions of work. Just a thought.

What a lot of hoopla. Go over and discuss it with the neighbor and let them know your concerns and if needed that it is not allowed per the deed restrictions . This could save everyone some money and anguish over trying to stop it while at the same time being afraid to discuss it openly. If it still proceeds call in the lawn cops and don't think about it twice. If they are frosty to you afterwards they were not much of a neighbor anyway... Years ago they might have put it this way, grow some and act like a man..:boxing2:

Mango's post was August 6. Hopefully the problem has been happily resolved.

Doubtful......and no doubt there are others with similar problems....afraid to say anything, good grief....

Dreamer61. His name is Bogie.

I am pretty sure that he is right. I don't recall seeing any fences or walls except around villa neighborhoods. I don't think gates are allowed except MAYBE north of 466 in some neighborhoods. But don't recall seeing them there.

GG, I think Dreamer lives in Santo Domingo, north of CR 466.