it just ain't natural

Holy smokes - Thornton???? I know where that's at!!

I thought Thornton had good water.

Go figure! Why doesn't that surprise me.

As stupid as those rules are, if the home owner knew about them when he moved into the neighborhood, he should have known what would happen. Most neighborhoods like that have covenants that are made available to the buyer by his real estate agent or by the seller's agent.

Does he also live in a gated community? If so, he really just didn't pay any attention.

If you don't want to become part of the Stepford Wives culture, you have to carefully know what you are buying and whether there are rules governing atrocious things like hanging your laundry out in the back yard. Horrors!! One of the neighbors might see your underwear!!
If you don't keep your garage door closed, it could cause undue aesthetic stress on the neighbors.
If your house isn't a certain number of square feet, you simply don't fit in with the rest of the neighbors and should go find a place that isn't in such a nice neighborhood.
It's one reason I no longer sell real estate. I got so sick of finding just the right master bedroom in just the right enormous McMansion for childless yuppies that I started to gag.
The older I get, the less patience I have for that kind of elitism. I'm becoming a regular curmudgeon! But with a smile.

Diane you offer a very valid point regarding covenants and i agree its the buyers responsibility, on the other hand the cities involved are now closely monitoring water usage with rigid restrictions and heavy fines for (over usage) the City of Aurora on the other side of Denver is now experimenting in allowing use of alternative landscaping in contradiction of covenant regs. Currently here in Centennial as well is the City of Denver lawn watering is allowed before 10 a.m. 2 days per week for a maximum of 4 hrs per week.

I've never been one to be interested in having a home be accepted in the community standards / neighborhood, however I have seen odd things that really affect property values and neighbor relations. Why didn't the installing company point out to the homeowner the applicable zoning and at least question the installation? I find it hard to believe that no one would have stopped this in it's tracks in progress. Is there a chance this is an urban myth story?

I'd better call the family and see if they are short $9,000.

dys- Ya think that you have problems. I live in a deed restricted community. The developers, in their wisdom, planted Bermuda grass. Now Bermuda grass is wonderful on golf courses, where lawn service people can spray all sorts of nematode destroying stuff, and the grass is watered with grey water from lakes. A few years ago, the nematode chemicals were disallowed for homeowners.

To add insult to injury, Bermuda grass needs LOTS of water. When things were good, we were only allowed to water 2X weekly. Since the drought a couple of years ago, it is down to once a week.

Also, Bermuda grass needs lots of sun, so that in shady areas, there is nothing but sand. (By the way, there is very little real soil here, mostly sand.) I told my next door neighbor that we could go halvies on a beach umbrella and beach set!

Because of the covenents we can't change the grass, unless we all vote to change the whole shootin' match for the entire community. No way are 112 householders going to agree on ANYTHING that costs money.

So, I have just learned to ignore what is supposedly a lawn!

Editotial of the Denver Post on this

Turf war can waste water

"THORNTON, Colo. (KCNC) Deon Jachetta had spent $9,000 installing artificial turf in the yard of his Thornton home, then was told by city officials to take it out because the city allows only natural materials in residential landscaping.
He said code enforcement officers said the AstroLawn has to go because of city concerns over access to underground utilities and worries over fading and vandalism.
"I didn't think it was illegal. I was just trying to replace my turf with another turf that happened to be maintenance-free and better looking than any lawn in this neighborhood," Jachetta said.
Using artificial turf hasn't been a realistic choice for homeowners in the past, because it costs $3 and up per square foot, compared to $1.50 for sod. But as Colorado's drought has developed the cost of water has risen and some cities have banned its use on new sod, so the plastic grass has become more attractive."
This was not a covenant controled community regulation, this was a city code violation.

It's enough to make you want to live in a nice apartment in Manhatten! No lawn there. But, of course, lot's of co-op rules and fees. One can't win for losing sometimes.

It's too bad that common sense doesn't have more pull in these situations. At least, according to the links Walter and Dys provided, there are people willing to reconsider.

City codes are often used to protect property values. An example in Connecticut is the very common 'historic' district. When you buy an historic home, you must agree not to make any changes to the appearance of the house, including paint colors that would not have been used at the time the house was built. The inside of the house has no restrictions.

This serves to save most of the few remaining houses from the 1600's through the 1800's that are absolutely gorgeous and important to the history and character of the town. These are restrictions I can live with as they protect historical accuracy as well as beauty and keep property values high. However, the buyer knows from the very beginning what he or she is responsible for in regards to what can be done to the house and grounds. Most buyers invest in these homes because of the restrictions, knowing that the homes in the neighborhood will remain true to the original design and maintain/increase in value.

The only problem realtors have is disclosing the fact that ghosts occupy many of these old homes.... :wink:

It sure does feel great to live in a place with no such restrictions.

No lawns for me when I buy a house. Hate the damn things. As someone who grew up during the CA drought, the thought of maintaining a monocultural plot of defenseless plants that demand constant input of water and either labor or poisonous chemicals just to keep the heartier and better adapted plants is absurd.

Well, I'm not too attracted to artificial turf myself. Much has been done though in landscape design in the last few decades to get away from the power of the american lawn.

Dys
News is Boulder is thinking about lifting the watering ban.

Husker, yeah i read that, a few cities have their own water supplies but most in the Denver area buy their water from the City of Denver and the Denver water board has not yet determined whether they will ease any restrictions.