How much trouble will I get in if I cut this down?

[myamoto1]

Come home to find this directly in front of my house:






It's around 12 feet tall and pefectly lined up w/ my front door. WTF!?!?! I know it's only temporary, but that could be several months. So what kind of trouble am I asking for if I pull this thing out of the ground or go George Washington on it and pretend it's a cherry tree?

[the]

I'd be more concerned about that serial killer white van parked in front of your house.

[porsche4life]

Hit it with ya car. They will be done with the work before they notice. Or you could find the job forman and politely ask him to move it a few hundred feet.

[HardDrive]

Meh....its a temporary thing.

[bell]

get some orange vinyl and make it say "road head"

[cl8ton]

In California...totally! check your umbrella bro before knocking it over

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Change it to read "guys leaning on shovels ahead". If/when they "fix" it, change it again. Eventually they'll get the hint and move it of their own accord.

[Danimal16]

Where is your property line compared to the back of curb? Your plot map can assist with this. I see no sidewalk. The sign may be an encroachment on your private property.

I had this happen to me a number of years ago with a similar sign. Idiots drove the post right through my irrigation system. I pulled the thing out and threw it in the middle of the street and called the city to come pick it up. Told them never to do it again. They cannot place a sign on private property without an easement and in the case of the temporary sign a temporary construction easement.

Verify the property line. If it is on your property, email the city and give them 24 hours. If they give you crap, rip it out and lay it in the curb. Why are they not using a temporary sign anyway?????

Just ask to see a copy of the traffic control plan as well as the construction easements.

[dmcummins]

I'll bet its still in the street easment. Usually the easment is wider than the actual street. Just run it over.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

In all seriousness, what Dan says is correct - there's supposed to be a formal traffic control plan showing signage types, locations, etc. They can't (well, they're not supposed to) just plop signs down wherever they please - the locations are determined based on traffic standards and property/easement lines. A superintendent should be able to provide you with confirmation that the sign is placed per the approved traffic plan. If you're still not satisfied, you can always contact the city and an inspector will verify it and make them move it if it conflicts.

dmcummins' point is valid too - if you pull up your parcel information online (most counties do this now) you'll probably be surprised at the width of the street dedication - they're pretty substantial in most cases and almost always are wider than the existing paved street + curb + sidewalks.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by the

I'd be more concerned about that serial killer white van parked in front of your house.

Good stuff!

[Rot 911]

Almost every easement goes another 3 feet past the edge of the curb so the sign is probably on the easement. Why not just go to the head of whomever is doing the work and mention the problem and ask them if they would move it? If they won't do it then dig another hole and move it yourself.

[myamoto1]

Thanks for everyone's feedback. (Un)Fortunately, the stalker van is my father-in-law's work van and he's staying with us for a while. It's usually gone while he's at work, but we had some "freak" sunny weather up here and he had his Porsche out when I snapped the pic. Maybe if the van had been there when they were putting up the sign, they'd have thought twice about where they put it.

The easement on the property line is 5 feet, so I know that technically, they have the right to put it on my property, but what I'm pissed about is the location. It's directly in line w/ my front door, not to mention that it's the biggest muther-f'ing sign I've ever seen. If they move it 40ft back, it's at the end of my property, 60ft forward and it's at the beginning.

They also have some temp/fold-up signs in the street, so I'm not sure what their overkill reason is w/ the Godzilla sized sign. I'd love to find out more about Dan's and Jeff's comments about the signage regulations. I don't have the time to go down to the permits office and their on-line functionality doesn't really exist as far as I know. Last time I pulled permits for anything, they told me to hang onto copies, since they purge everything out of their system every 6 months.

[TerryH]

It's always been my understanding the city/county own the property between the sidewalk and street. They plant and trim those trees and frown if you lay brick or cement in that area. I would imagine they can plant signs where they like also.

I would like that sign in my yard as it might slow down a few speeding morons.

[jyl]

Ask the road crew how long the sign will be up. If a long time, ask them to put it at the corner of the lot.

If they don't, have the white van knock down the yellow sign one night . . .

[myamoto1]

Terry - I don't have a sidewalk, and understand they probably have the right to put the sign on the easements on people's property. However, any maintenance of the easement property (5' from the curb) is my responsibility - not the city's.

Have I mentioned how huge this sign is? Keep in mind the stalker van is a full sized van and the sign dwarfs it. It's on a 4x4 post and is a 4' sign, the biggest they can get.

[maxnine11]

just be happy that there is still enough money in your local government's coffers to build/repair the road ahead !!

[austin552]

Couldn't they have just put one of these in the street?

[ruf-porsche]

Originally Posted by the

I'd be more concerned about that serial killer white van parked in front of your house.

LMAO

Thanks

[Dantilla]

Originally Posted by kurt v

why not just go to the head of whomever is doing the work and mention the problem and ask them if they would move it?

+1.