Washington County:who controls regulation of people leaving trash on their porch (Johnson City: apartment complex, attorney) - Kingsport - Johnson City - Bristol - Tennessee (TN) -The Tri-Cities area - City-Data Forum

dreamofmonterey · 02-04-2011, 03:46 PM

Who does a person call to get this cleared away?

Is it a municipal ordinance? A house towards Jonesborough area, people have junk and bags of trash.... it is near an apartment complex off Antioch. Disgusting.

TNGal78 · 02-04-2011, 05:04 PM

We ended up living beside someone like this in Hawkins Co and there was nothing to be done about it since we were in the county. I was never so glad to move.

rccrain · 02-04-2011, 05:53 PM

Unless it poses a health problem or is in a ordinance governed city, I doubt you can do anything other than sue, and you would likely lose the suit.

kamoshika · 02-04-2011, 06:46 PM

Here's a complaint form you can submit online to the Washington Co. Zoning Office.

Josh Woods · 02-04-2011, 09:15 PM

Just my two cents....before you jump the gun on something, why not find out a little something about the property first.

Has it dawned on you that it could be an elderly person who can't get out to the trash can because of snow/ice or just cold weather in general and they could be sick?

You often don't know the problems of others and while it may be an eye sore to you, it may be all they can do just to get the trash out the door. Especially if this is just a recent thing. Never hurts to stop by and offer some human compassion if it really bothers you.

I've often heard if you want something done, do it yourself.

dreamofmonterey · 02-05-2011, 01:49 PM

I work for an attorney, hes taking care of it. Its in the city limits of Johnson City.

jchometeam · 02-05-2011, 05:18 PM

There was an article in the JC press a few months ago about this issue, apparently it is the number 1 complaint in the city. The mayor said that very little could be done in these cases. Whether that is the case or not I do not know, but apparently nothing is being done whether it could or not.

Just my 2 cents: I believe people should be able to do almost anything that they want to with their land. I intentionally bought property in a subdivision that does not have regulations regarding these things, and I see people every day who specifically ask to live in neighborhoods without rules governing these issues.

I almost see the point if you are a neighbor and are concerned about property values (though this rarely affects property values in this region), but if you are just a resident who is offended by seeing trash, get over it.

Again, just my 2 cents.

Josh Woods · 02-06-2011, 12:09 AM

If you work for an attorney, why are you asking us who monitors these things?

Swing by with some gloves and a pickup truck and grab the trash yourself. If you do it enough those fine folks will either start tipping you or will get the hint.

dreamofmonterey · 02-06-2011, 10:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jchometeam

There was an article in the JC press a few months ago about this issue, apparently it is the number 1 complaint in the city. The mayor said that very little could be done in these cases. Whether that is the case or not I do not know, but apparently nothing is being done whether it could or not.

Just my 2 cents: I believe people should be able to do almost anything that they want to with their land. I intentionally bought property in a subdivision that does not have regulations regarding these things, and I see people every day who specifically ask to live in neighborhoods without rules governing these issues.

I almost see the point if you are a neighbor and are concerned about property values (though this rarely affects property values in this region), but if you are just a resident who is offended by seeing trash, get over it.

Again, just my 2 cents.

Deleted

Trailers are not allowed in city limits here either Deleted. Its a fact people need to know if they want to buy a nice house in a clean neighborhood, and someone down the street lives like a pig, bringing rats into the area.

jchometeam · 02-06-2011, 11:02 AM

We simply have differences of opinion on this issue: which is fine.

I am aware of the city ordinances regarding trash and barking dogs, though I disagree with both.

It is true that if you live in a 300,000+ neighborhood and someone has 15 broken down cars in their yard, it will lower the property value of the surrounding few houses, but not as significantly as you imagine.

However, off Antioch this is not the case. The homes are generally 100k or so older homes, and it is much less of an issue. Having said that, if you were a neighbor, I would understand the concern. My simple philosophy is that if the neighborhood is ok with anything, I am ok with it. I dont have a problem with those who live in neighborhoods that find it offensive for neighbors to see a satelitte dish, the city trash can (many neighborhoods make you put it in your house so that the neighbors do not have to look at your red trash can), etc. If you want to live in that type of area, so be it. My problem is when those who live in outside neighborhoods come and tell another neighborhood what is best for them, because it is "disgusting".

By the way, I live in a neighborhood of 250-350k homes (not a dump), but which there are no restrictions at all other than the city zoning, etc. One of the residents has a rooster, which is against city ordinance. Nobody in the area has a problem at all with it though, and the resident should be allowed to keep it. One of the 20 or so homes is a nice 1980's mobile home which recently sold for over 100k, which has not decreased the value of the neighborhood at all. These things would bother one in 10 people or so, but there are always many more people who do not care- hence the less decrease in property value than is imagined.