Dealing with Neighbors

We continue to get reports from Henry that the neighbors behind us are expressing their unhappiness with the tea house project in various indirect ways, including knocking over things that he had leaned against the back fence and putting various items (he didn't specify what) in the port-a-potty in the yard. So I've decided to send them a letter, hoping to smooth things out. I'll send this out tomorrow, and post their reponse, if I get one (I'm expecting to get a rant):

Dear Neighbors,


We've become aware of some unhappiness with the garden pavilion that we are building in our garden. So it is probably helpful if we explain it a little further, with the hopes of relieving some of the concerns you may have. We are confident that you won't find it so bothersome once it is completed. All of the steel beams will be painted, and the landscaping will include foliage behind the structure, that should block most of your view of it. We will install a fence along the back side of the property so that nothing will be growing into your fence. But I do hope you realize that it is fairly common to see some kind of utility building at the back of one's lot, such as garages or tool shed, which can be fairly large and not particularly attractive looking.

The contractor working on the project should not have been attaching anything to your fence, nor leaning anything against it. We found out about this after the fact and have told him not to do it in the future. And yes, the flapping tarp is extremely annoying. We certainly didn't expect that the project would get held up by bad weather before he could get the structure enclosed. The covering is temporary and it will be removed as soon as the weather improves and the contractor can enclose the structure. We would be happy to discuss any of this with you, and to work with you on any concerns about it. You can contact me at *********, though it might be best to discuss the issues in person rather than sending me a list of complaints by email.


Sincerely,

Andy