DONT MOVE TO NAZI JERSEY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[daytonalo]

All I want in life is to build cars and boats for myself . Today the town I live in in N.J said I must be running a business of of my two car garage , I told them since when cant a guy tinker in his own shop ?. I have to go down to the f----ing township and prove to them I only work on my own cars . I have ten of them mostly in a poly building

[hemihead]

Here in SW Pennsylvania in my city, you can't have a car sit in your driveway or backyard unless it is registered, inspected , insured, etc. even if you are working on it.You pay Property taxes so the government can tell you what to do with it.The kicker is they wait for a neighbor who may not like you to report you.Just what the Nazis did in Germany,get neighbors to rat on each other.Maybe we should have lost WWII because the Baby Boomer generation is so anal.

[Shakey]

What happens if you don't comply?

Do they force you into the back of a truck and plumb the exhaust in and take you for a spin around town or do they simply take you to a camp where they burn you to death in an oven?

[Old Moparz]

What happens if you don't comply?

Do they force you into the back of a truck and plumb the exhaust in and take you for a spin around town or do they simply take you to a camp where they burn you to death in an oven?

I had that same problem of the town dictating what gets done on your property where I lived in Bergen County, NJ years ago, I solved that by moving.

[daytonalo]

Did you move out of state ?

[Old Moparz]

Did you move out of state ?

Yeah, about 50 miles north in Newburgh, NY. There were other reasons too, but I definitely can't stand the regulations, fines, laws, or other similar type BS that goes on.

EDIT: Also, there may be certain laws that will allow you to operate a business from your own home whether you are zoned for it or not. (Although I doubt it covers auto repair.) I had worked with, & sometimes for, a guy who ran a land surveying business from his home. I asked him exactly that question, since his business address was his house. He said it was okay since it had nothing to do with retail & such, but this was 12 years ago so I don't recall the details. I would check what the local zoning ordinances are to be sure before you go to the town hall to argue anything.

[daytonalo]

Let me be clear , I only work on my own stuff . They think because I have ten cars and a offshore race boat I do this for living . I had a cop buddy in the same township call and tell her that . I have an appointment with the Nazi's on Tue . I keep hearing that other states do not require a permit to take a shit !!!!!!!!!!!

[nh_mopar_fan]

No onshore boat racing?



Up here in the Live Free or Die state, we don't have these issues.

But, we do border the People Republic of Massachusetts so we have our own cross to bear.

Good luck.

[Old Moparz]

Let me be clear , I only work on my own stuff . They think because I have ten cars and a offshore race boat I do this for living . I had a cop buddy in the same township call and tell her that . I have an appointment with the Nazi's on Tue . I keep hearing that other states do not require a permit to take a shit !!!!!!!!!!!

I understood that you were doing your own thing, but I only mentioned it because the person issuing you the complaint might be totally clueless about the zoning laws that they're supposed to know. (Like that's never happened before, LOL.) One thing to remember is that you have to be "extremely nice" to whoever you speak with. I don't mean kiss ass, but afterall, it's all politics. You'll get a lot farther proving your point by not using too many adjectives.

Also, they probably won't give you the name of anyone who may have complained. They'll say it's against policy or something. Sometimes I think it's BS that anyone complained at all, & it's just an over zealous zoning officer that wants to generate money for the municipality, or prove his or her own worth. Be prepared when you go as well. Have info or documents on the vehicles proving they're yours. You may not need them, but have them with you just in case.

[BrianShaughnessy]

I doubt it's just a Jersey thing and I seriously doubt anybody is getting carted off by the Gestapo.
I can only have 1 unregistered vehicle on my property.    It's a town ordinance.

I got the same kinda threat that I was operating a junk yard or whatever a few years back when I got a parts car Shelby Z in the yard for parts for my project Shelby Z.   My neighbors called it in most likely but they won't admit it.   
I hear lots of stories of people with lots of cars laying around getting told to clean it up.

[skip68]

It's really bad in Cali.  Same sh!% X 10    One word, EYESORE   

[daytonalo]

I'm bringing my cop buddy to the meeting . I would love to hear about other states as far as breaking balls . I'm told jersey is one of the worst . I was in Del last week and I guy I know is erecting a 40x60 pole barn , all he had to do was get a permit and that is it , no inspection or site plan , just do your own thing !!!!!

[hemi68charger]

I had a similar experience with a nieghborhood I was planning on moving to... I asked about garage expansion and portacache.. They said since I would have provision for 6 cars, I must be running a business.. I told them I had 3 Chargers and two daily rides and wanted them all protected and out of sight...... Well, needless to say, I don't them were to stick it and didn't move there......... Pays to do your homework..........

Troy

[BigBlackDodge]

Maybe you should move to that trailer park your always talking about? You can have all kinds of cars parked in your yard.....infact, most require them to be there. 


BBD

[jmanscharger]

There are bureaucrats everywhere worried that they be missing a tax dollar or zone violator. Be professional to them or they will try to make your life miserable. They will want to see documentation on all your vehicles and life. Try to get copies of any statutes or policies they say you are violating in advance put the burden of proof on them while maintaining your right to work on your personal property on your personal property. Don't tell more than you have to though- be careful my local tax assessor expressed to me off the cuff her disappointment that the county does not let them tax vehicles over 25 years old. I just smiled. (Thems Revenuers not Nazis!)

[Silver R/T]

they do that here also in WA. Depending on a neighbor they'll report you. You can't have car sitting on side of your property, has to be inside your property lines, in backyard, etc.

[Charger_Fan]

I had a couple non-registered cars on my property for a while (ok, I still do), a couple years ago. The city hired a guy to specifically drive around & make sure the neighborhood looked presentable...no dead cars, heaps of garbage, overgrowth of weeds, etc.
He left me a note stating I needed to clean up the cars in my yard, or else...so I built a fence. I haven't heard from him since.

[Old Moparz]

Years ago I had read a story in a car magazine where some guy wanted to add on a huge garage to his house. The town rejected his plan & said he couldn't have a garage that size because of zoning regulations. He changed the plan, reapplied, & stated he was adding on a "large bedroom" instead. They approved the plans & he built a "large bedroom" on his house. Of course he never put a bed in there, just a bunch of cars. 

I wish I could recall which mag that story was in, I probably saved it somewhere in my attic.   

[Charger_Fan]

Years ago I had read a story in a car magazine where some guy wanted to add on a huge garage to his house. The town rejected his plan & said he couldn't have a garage that size because of zoning regulations. He changed the plan, reapplied, & stated he was adding on a "large bedroom" instead. They approved the plans & he built a "large bedroom" on his house. Of course he never put a bed in there, just a bunch of cars. 

I wish I could recall which mag that story was in, I probably saved it somewhere in my attic.   

Did he make his garage doors look like windows?

[Old Moparz]

I forget what he did for the door, but I remember seeing the cars inside parked on carpet, & walls all painted with paintings hanging on them. Other than the cars & the fact the space was so large, it looked like a finished interior room.

[John_Kunkel]

Although the bureaucrats are ultimately to blame it's often businesses that lobby for such regulations.

I have a friend who used to own a repair shop and the association that he and other shops formed actively lobbied for regulations against residential auto repair/dismantling. They believed it took money from their pockets.

[Silver R/T]

I had a couple non-registered cars on my property for a while (ok, I still do), a couple years ago. The city hired a guy to specifically drive around & make sure the neighborhood looked presentable...no dead cars, heaps of garbage, overgrowth of weeds, etc.
He left me a note stating I needed to clean up the cars in my yard, or else...so I built a fence. I haven't heard from him since.

My aunts neighbor likes to sneak in her backyard when nobody's home and then report to the city. In a way I agree that neighbors should look presentable, but I do mind when someone asking me to move my project when its in backyard.

[Mean 318]

I don't see a problem with having one or two old cars, as long as you keep your house and yard looking decent. I cant blame some of these towns for cracking down a bit! I don't want to live next to a junk yard. If you want to have five ten cars, build a fence so everyone else doesn't have to look at it! I do think that those guys daytonalo is dealing with are asses! If they think you are running a business out of your garage it should be up to them to prove it, Not you! Good luck!

[daytonalo]

Exactly , I will admit if I was to walk in I would think it is a business . I have a lift , rotisserie , 10 ft tall oven , etc , etc

[Big Lebowski]

I learned the hard way. Hide the car. Out of sight , out of mind.