County says no camping on your own land !!

[Larry Caldwell]

They relocate Racoons, Skunks, 'Possum, Nutria and other critters. I believe the rats did not get to go to a happy place.

They relocate them to the landfill. They just call it a "relocating" service to keep the little old ladies quiet. It's illegal in Oregon to release any wildlife that has been trapped.

 

[powerpace]

That case sounds like an absent owner. I don't believe anyone was living in the house with 800 rats. I have to wonder what food source they had to sustain such a large population ? Possibly a silo half full with corn ?

The poster who speaks of "permanent" trailers and tents: How long does a tent last in your part of the world ? Around here with the rain and snow, I have not seen anything that stays together longer than 2-3 years. Trailers left exposed to the weather without maintenance are typically uninhabitable after 5-7 years. Pop-ups would be shot after 2-3 years or just 1-2 good storms. The only tent like structures I have seen that last longer are the commercially made "tent barns", but they typically run $7000+ for even a small one and are made in a far more robust manner that what I believe you are talking about. From what I have seen, they are considered "barn equivalents" in about every area I have seen and are permitted.

So if one can afford a $7000 tent, camping is OK, but a $250 tent is not OK ? This is the usual elitism at work.

Yep 100% occupied. I live about two miles from them. The neighbors said they couldn't trap or poison them fast enough on their own property. Dog and cat food in the area was the probably the main food source. They would come in neighbors doggy doors at times. Electrical wiring in the house and RV were affected. The inspector had to ok the occupancy after some repairs.

 

[NorTracNY]

I have trouble with laws or code that is not enforced equally. If they are not going to enforce them, change or delete the law. It seems that they like to add laws to legislate folks into doing things but only enforce where they feel like it.

This is only because they can't get the laws passed with the wording they really want. They all just want a single law that says, "Whatever I say goes." Just like many of the people here, they want to control what others do even if it doesn't affect them. If it "bothers" them they shouldn't be able to do it. You can't camp on your property because you might make too much noise after dark around your campfire, burn down the neighborhood, decrease my property value, not invite me over for Smores, not buy your camper from my buddy who's in the business,....

 

[jclaudii]

Wow, I am shocked so many people actively WANT the government/county(not city) to step in and say what you can and can not do on your own property. It has been widely known that if you want to do something like shoot a gun, ride four wheelers, crank up some Hank Jr at 1am and drink some with buddies, you do it in the country, aka outside the city limits...out in the rural parts of the county preferbly on 50-100+ acres of land where neighbors are farther away. I understand we don't really "own" our land, but if I want to build a non-traditional house on it like a yurt, or a really sweet earthbag home(seriously look them up they are nice or a low pressure dome build), I should have that right when I am on a parcel of land that is clear of any restrictions when I bought it. The OP already had a site from a previous Mobile Home and chose to park his travel trailer on it to be used if visitors ever need a place to crash. Here in AR, there is only a couple of restrictions, and the main one is septic systems...and that one is not even required if you own 5 or more acres and it don't interfere with neighboring properties.

I do hate to see area's go down hill with travel trailers being used as permanent residence, but I could care less as it is THEIR property and is not on my property. I do realize the main thing people are worried about is resale and home value, but this is not in the top of my list when I look for an area of land. Many of these people are lower class or are very poor and often disabled. I'm not sure where else they can go and I bet they are doing all they can do just to keep the electricity on and taxes payed. I am of the firm belief as long as your the landowner, you can do with it as you please....for better or worse.

I am also shocked at how many people who are quick to judge have not stopped and talked to any of these individuals to see what is the deal with the junk/trash in the yard. My family has a 80 acre farm and we have our fair share of junk. Heck, I have more than my share on my 2.2 acres I live on. But if someone seen my place and the pile of trash that was left behind when we took ownership of the land and actually asked about it I would tell them all about it and If help was offered I would be all for it. The relatives we got the place from had a huge trash pile...I have slowly been chipping away at it for 4 years and progress has been made A roll off and pay around $135 per ton plus rental of the roll off would be nice, or a nice dozer and just bury the whole thing. We just don't have the cash reserves to do much with it and I really don't want to bury it for someone else to discover in the future. On my parents place, we park most of our old cars out of site from the road just to keep thieves from knowing it's there. Alot of it IS junk, but you never know when one might want to take up the hobby of "demolition derby" and an old LTD is perfect for that! I also keep a small parts yard of IH Scout II's there for the one that actually runs/ran. Since my dad's death a few years ago, we have slowly been hauling off cars/scrap that we know we will never use in our lifetime and dump that money back into the farm. My family is not into farming, so when they see cultivator or plow, they see scrap iron, and I see a tractor implement. When they see an old brush hog that has not been used in 20 years, they see scrap, I see a good gearbox that will replace the one we currently use when it goes out.

For someone like the pictures that were posted of all the cars and junk, it would be handy to get ahold of a mobile scrap hauler/crusher to swing by and try and offer their services and split with that person. A check for thousands of dollars may change their mind, especially since they wont' have to do any work to get it! For someone who has lots of trash, perhaps go talk and see if they need a trash bill paid and some volunteers to come and help out from the church. Some people need help and are only willing to get it when it is actually offered. Offer the use of your tractor to move some scrap metal for them to haul off and to generally help clean up. Offer your brush cutter to mow path for fire safety for both of you! I did this for my neighbor and it only cost about a gallon of diesel fuel and some time! It helped me with some peace of mind knowing there is a good buffer between them and I and help my neighbor relations. For those that see a "junk pile" stop and look it over, you never know what you might find in one, like the show American Pickers, sometimes one can find a diamond amongst the trash.

Now, to address the OP. I did send him a PM requesting some more information. It seems a few of the counties I looked at in VA did have camping ordinances, but the few I looked at did not describe his situation. Most laws are written for private landowners operating their land as a public campground for travelers to use. The private use of the land to camp on by the land owner or permission of the land owner seems to be allowed in most counties with a restriction on how many days a year it could be used. Also, depending on the definition of campground that his county used, he may already be in the clear and just have to speak up. Hopefully a bit of extra info can clear this land use deal up for the OP.

Just because we don't like the car/truck that someone drives or the clothes they wear (a good example is baggy pants and slightly sideways flat billed hats) does not mean we are right and they are wrong. We have to just "deal with it" and move on...it is not affecting us in a literal manner. If someone passes up your house because of the trailer at the beginning of your drive, then that is okay...they were not meant to live there. With this entire thread, I challenge all of you to reach out a bit and see what is up with the people that you are talking about and see if anything can be done. They may be all for getting some help to haul it off to the scrap yard and splitting the money or just pulling it further into the woods or over a hill so no one can see it.

 

[Midniteoyl]

For someone like the pictures that were posted of all the cars and junk, it would be handy to get ahold of a mobile scrap hauler/crusher to swing by and try and offer their services and split with that person. A check for thousands of dollars may change their mind, especially since they wont' have to do any work to get it! For someone who has lots of trash, perhaps go talk and see if they need a trash bill paid and some volunteers to come and help out from the church. Some people need help and are only willing to get it when it is actually offered. Offer the use of your tractor to move some scrap metal for them to haul off and to generally help clean up. Offer your brush cutter to mow path for fire safety for both of you! I did this for my neighbor and it only cost about a gallon of diesel fuel and some time! It helped me with some peace of mind knowing there is a good buffer between them and I and help my neighbor relations. For those that see a "junk pile" stop and look it over, you never know what you might find in one, like the show American Pickers, sometimes one can find a diamond amongst the trash.

Actually, in this case, the owner has been offered help and it got to the point where the county is being sued by him for over $400 billion dollars. He figures that is how much all that junk is worth.. :confused2:


edit: corrected millions to billions

 

[jclaudii]

Perhaps offer to build a privacy fence to keep everyone from looking at it. it would be cheaper than going to court for both parties!

 

[Midniteoyl]

Dunno.. :confused3: But its already past that stage anyways. Judge ordered it cleaned up 2-3x already. First one 15 years ago. Once it goes to court, its pretty much too late.

 

[TomSeller]

Wow, I am shocked so many people actively WANT the government/county(not city) to step in and say what you can and can not do on your own property..

Right. Usually too much lefty gubbamint for me. This guy went too far it sounds like in not keeping his place orderly, but a man's house is HIS castle. Not the lefty gubbamint's castle and not his neighbor's castle. Neighbors can always move.

 

[TomSeller]

Dunno.. :confused3: But its already past that stage anyways. Judge ordered it cleaned up 2-3x already. First one 15 years ago. Once it goes to court, its pretty much too late.

Your profile says you live in Indiana. One of those license plates says WA State. Where is the place in your pictures?

 

[NorTracNY]

Wow, I am shocked so many people actively WANT the government/county(not city) to step in and say what you can and can not do on your own property.

No, I think it's people that actively want the government to step in and say what someone else cannot do on their own property.