Riding lawnmower input requested

[akirby]

Yea. That poor Rubermade cart must have been squished flatter than a pancake.

They were only 1 inch thick and after the first 500 or so I hired 2 college kids to haul the rest. They could haul about 50 at a time comfortably. Yes, that was 60 trips. The bad part was my wife and I then had to move them from the edge of the patio to the rest of the patio. I got smart and put a piece of plywood on a 4 wheeled dolly. We did it all ourselves - 20 x 25 concrete pad with 1/4 inch of sand then the 1 pavers. Took 3 days - I had to mortar in the outside course after they were all laid.

 

It was crap load of work but it only cost us $2K total, turned out great and helped us sell the house in a week. Worth the effort and expense.

 

[akirby]

I also rebuilt the deck and built the pergola from scratch.

[I'manedgeowner]

Nice work and a good looking yard. Why did you leave it?

[enigma-2]

Outstanding job. Very desirable outdoor area.

[akirby]

Nice work and a good looking yard. Why did you leave it?

We no longer wanted a basement - the new one will be our retirement home so we wanted everything we needed on one level including the back yard and a future pool.

 

Also wanted to get away from traffic and county politics so we built one county over.

[I'manedgeowner]

I can understand every reason you listed. Been going through an ordinance passing rage for about 10 years here now. I think of moving often and if it wasn't for the actual "moving" part I'd be gone.

[akirby]

Our old county has been among the fastest growing in the country the last 20 years running. We moved there 23 years ago. The county has 250K residents and growing every week. There is only one tiny city with a few thousand residents - the rest is run by the county board and the county board has almost always had a majority who favor the builders and developers and landowners and therefore approve almost every rezoning for more and more houses. Even though the schools and roads are already overcrowded.

 

We went from 3 high schools to 6 since 2009 and some of those still/already have trailers. School enrollment has probably tripled in that time period. Road projects when they do get approved take 2-3 years to finish just a few miles of roads.

 

One group tried to form a new city "light" that would essentially just control rezoning in the crowded part of the county to prevent more high density housing and promote more commercial development but it got voted down because people didn't want "more taxes" or "more layers of government". 2 weeks after they voted it down they got their property tax bills with a big tax increase. Idiots.

 

I'm sure there are some issues in the other county/city but nothing like what we left behind. Loved our old neighborhood and friends but they're close enough to visit.

[I'manedgeowner]

Have we stumbled in to another Lounge topic?

[akirby]

Yeah but I think we exhausted the lawn mower topic already.

[IWRBB]

the county board has almost always had a majority who favor the builders and developers and landowners

 

So you are a bit salty that private land owners were able to develop their own private property to it's greatest value, and your idealic country county is now all suburb-ed up n shit? Ehh, that's the way it goes. We got more people all the time- we need more houses.

 

Buy a bunch of land when you move further out, then you (or most likely your kids) can be the one making bank selling it to a developer in 30 years. Most important thing is gravity sewer service, or at least the feasibility of constructing one.

Edited July 10, 2018 by IWRBB

[akirby]

So you are a bit salty that private land owners were able to develop their own private property to it's greatest value, and your idealic country county is now all suburb-ed up n shit? Ehh, that's the way it goes. We got more people all the time- we need more houses.

 

Buy a bunch of land when you move further out, then you (or most likely your kids) can be the one making bank selling it to a developer in 30 years. Most important thing is gravity sewer service, or at least the feasibility of constructing one.

Not at all. The difference is responsible growth which includes a mix of residential and commercial, a plan for upgrading the infrastructure (roads, schools) before they get overcrowded and impact fees that cover the cost of infrastructure.

 

What has happened is a virtual carte blanche for developers to build super high density subdivisions in areas that are already overcrowded with impact fees that are too low. Usually against the recommendation of the planning committee and against the master plan. The builders and developers and real estate agents take their money and leave and the residents are left with severely overcrowded schools and roads and a tax increase to cover the infrastructure costs. Not to mention never ending road construction.

 

When my old subdivision was built 23 years ago it was low density - 1/2 acre+ lots. 2 houses per acre. Now they’re putting up to 10 houses per acre. That’s fine for specific areas but when you do that over and over in the same area you overload the infrastructure and the residents suffer.

 

There is a big difference between responsible managed growth and out of control growth.

[I'manedgeowner]

IWRRB,

 

That's harsh. You also seem to disregard what is suppose to be the function of the planning board. Allowing one area of development to overwhelm the remaining resources of some geopolitical area is poor planning and disregards one group(s) over another.

 

I don't read what was written as a complaint about development. It's a complaint about how it's managed. Furthermore, overwhelming an areas resources turns what's attractive about an area, unattractive and that suppresses the value of the development you are in favor of. There has to be a balance that is too often disregarded for personal gain instead of a planned greater good.

 

I could be wrong but I get the impression akirby's concerns for you involves your financial gain or loss? I also doubt akirby's concern's exist in a vacuum meaning he's not alone with what he thinks. There are many examples of where over aggressive development has backfired on what were good intentions. When local decisions don't serve everyone, they don't serve anyone.

 

EDIT: akirby, your last wasn't up when I started this but well put. Last year here we dealt with a proposed zoning ordinance that would have mandated everyone in residential areas to plant flowers. Unreal but it was tried and fortunately defeated. Anymore you can't keep your campers or car haulers in your driveway. A neighbor owns an excavating company an he can no longer come home in a dump truck. It's not allowed because some see it as an eyesore. Same for the equipment loaded pickup. They all have to be stored in an approved zoned area. How well would that go over with some others?

Edited July 10, 2018 by I'manedgeowner

[akirby]

Exactly. Nothing wrong with growth as long as it's managed properly. Approving 500 new homes in a district that is already overcrowded when it goes against the master plan and the recommendation of the planning committee and without enough impact fees to cover the required infrastructure upgrades is just insane. But it happens every day for the last 20 years.

 

The same group (cartel actually) successfully campaigned against the new "city light" by feeding on residents' fear of higher taxes and with lies such as "you won't be able to choose your own garbage service" - an outright lie.

 

Another common tactic is to get approval for a mixed use development with residential and commercial, then come back later and change the ratio so that it's effectively one or the other which would never have been approved initially.

 

There is too much power in the hands of essentially 3 people on the county commission. And rather than allowing all residents to vote on all 5 commissioners you can only vote for the one in your district. And those 3 commissioners are heavily financed by the builders, developers and attorneys who stand to profit from unbridled growth.

[IWRBB]

When the tax base gets significantly bigger every day there's no reason a fast growing community shouldn't be able to keep up. It's the areas with declining populations that are screwed.

 

We have tons of new houses going up in our county, as do the neighboring counties as well. Both are the fastest growing in the whole state. There's really no issues with traffic, crime, or schools in either county. If we need bigger roads, they get built. If we need a bigger school, it gets built.

 

All those new houses take agricultural land that generated jack shit for taxes and turned it into $20K per acre per year subdivided lots. You can buy a whole lotta shit with the property taxes from just 500 new homes. 500 homes @ $5000/yr taxes = $2.5 million *per year*. Homes that paid large separate up front impact fees to connect to the the water and sewer systems. All that new tax money goes to upgrading roads, building new schools and expanding emergency services.

 

If you guys are living in areas where growth is causing a bunch of problems, then you are 100% correct- the people running the show don't know what they are doing, or they are just flat out corrupt and are fucking everyone in the county to benefit their developer friends as you guys insinuate. Time to either move or get political.

[akirby]

The problem is the growth has been mostly concentrated in one quadrant of the county for the last 20+ years and they have not planned or executed road improvements ahead of time. Schools were a little better but still 2-3 years too late. The road project near our old house was 2 years late and the contractor only got a slap on the wrist and as far as I know was given new projects after that.

 

Everything is reactionary from roads to schools and there is at least a 3 year lag. Also the impact fees are not high enough to cover the infrastructure improvements.

 

The county we're moving to has had at least 2 medium and 3 smaller cities for decades and they have none of these problems.

 

Too much power was concentrated with essentially 3 individuals for too long. Allowing all residents to vote for all 5 commissioners will help.

 

I forgot to mention the city had the same mayor for 45 years - he was just replaced last year. There were a lot of shady deals between the city and county and county commissioners individually.

 

The swamp is being drained now and some good folks are in charge but the damage has already been done.

 

Glad to walk away from it in a few weeks.

[I'manedgeowner]

IWRBB,

 

I have to assume you're enjoying a sweet spot right now between growth and existing development. In Ohio it takes at least 2 years of permitting process to build a primary or secondary road. If a bridge is involved it's 3 to 5 years. All this is before the first road building machine moves. My best friend is the principal partner in one of the largest civil engineering firms in the upper Midwest. He's venting about this stuff all the time. According to him Ohio is one of the worst for permitting because the permitting process involves a lot of contingency planning for things like weather and the hauling of oversized loads just to name two. These things are on top of the usual projected growth and traffic patterns, emergency services or EPA approval. I'd go nuts if I had his job. His firm has legal and actuarial offices that contract out to other firms on top of the engineering they do because of permits.

 

If you're not enjoying a sweet spot then count your blessings. Most counties aren't managed with the forward thinking needed for seamless growth. Until 2 years ago we went through maybe 5 years of the county trying to figure out trash collection because of growth and neighboring counties didn't want our trash. The only thing they've gotten close to right in 20 years is the county jail. The only reason they got that one right was because they planned it as a profit center where we house inmates from other counties and for the feds. But even this upsets a good part of the population. They don't like the idea of housing someone else's criminals.

Edited July 12, 2018 by I'manedgeowner

[akirby]

There is growth and there is overgrowth. When you go from one high school in 2008 to 4 high schools in 2019 in just the southern half of the county - that's overgrowth!

[enigma-2]

When my old subdivision was built 23 years ago it was low density - 1/2 acre+ lots. 2 houses per acre. Now theyre putting up to 10 houses per acre.

Well, that's what you get when you move into a Manufacturered Home community.

 

All kidding aside, we looked at buying a new home in Southern California back in the 60's. The tad was so small I could have cut the grass with a scissors. The home was so small had mirrors on all the walls attempting to make the home look larger.

 

I so pity anyone who buy a home with tiny, little yards and the neighbors are so close you can hear them talking in their homes.

Edited July 12, 2018 by enigma-2

[Chipster]

What the hell happened here? From riding lawn mowers to the Southern Cali. 60's land grab. That's today"s internet for you. Now let's bash BOZO the POTUS!

Edited July 12, 2018 by Chipster

[Chipster]

I should have bought this Honda to keep my S2000 company.

Edited July 12, 2018 by Chipster

[I'manedgeowner]

Chipster, I brought up hijacking the topic but a moderator said the topic was already exhausted. Go for it.

[akirby]

Well what did you expect from a lawnmower topic on a car website?

[IWRBB]

IWRBB,

 

I have to assume you're enjoying a sweet spot right now between growth and existing development. In Ohio it takes at least 2 years of permitting process to build a primary or secondary road. If a bridge is involved it's 3 to 5 years. All this is before the first road building machine moves. My best friend is the principal partner in one of the largest civil engineering firms in the upper Midwest. He's venting about this stuff all the time. According to him Ohio is one of the worst for permitting because the permitting process involves a lot of contingency planning for things like weather and the hauling of oversized loads just to name two. These things are on top of the usual projected growth and traffic patterns, emergency services or EPA approval. I'd go nuts if I had his job. His firm has legal and actuarial offices that contract out to other firms on top of the engineering they do because of permits.

 

If you're not enjoying a sweet spot then count your blessings. Most counties aren't managed with the forward thinking needed for seamless growth. Until 2 years ago we went through maybe 5 years of the county trying to figure out trash collection because of growth and neighboring counties didn't want our trash. The only thing they've gotten close to right in 20 years is the county jail. The only reason they got that one right was because they planned it as a profit center where we house inmates from other counties and for the feds. But even this upsets a good part of the population. They don't like the idea of housing someone else's criminals.

I wouldn't say permitting is any worse here than other places, and I'm in the same business. Depends on what you mean by "road". That covers anything from a 25 MPH residential street to a new Interstate highway. Depends on what agencies are involved, are their stream impacts, etc. If the county I lived in wants to expand a local county road, they put it on the CIP list and it goes out to the planners and traffic engineers when funds are available. Typically its a 6 months to a year to get plans drawn up and approved from the time they say go. Could be built in 2 years from the word go. That's not unreasonable considering the amount of work involved.

 

We are located just north the the Cincinnati metro area, so there is plenty of existing capacity for things like trash. We built a new jail before is was needed for capacity. It's wasn't a huge waste of money because Hamilton County (the County Cincinnati is located in) has a jail that is old and completely overflowing, so they pay our county to house their prisoners there. Once we have the need for that space we can tell them no, and use it ourselves. Maybe we are just lucky and are in the right spot at the right time. Physical barriers are few, there are no mountains or huge rivers. Soils are good, generally no rock to deal with when putting in gravity sewer lines. We are the high point the area, so flooding is not an issue.

[enigma-2]

Need to mention something about the local John Deere dealer to stay on topic.

[Chipster]

Well what did you expect from a lawnmower topic on a car website?

Whine reviews?(spelled correctly)