Montgomery residents should use this as an example of BIG BROTHER taking over the last few rights we have and make sure they vote the "dictators" out!!

Unfortunately I have to agree with whiney Aaron, I mean, Brenda.

The City of Montgomery is right, Decatur needs to take the effort to clean its blighted areas up.

Everyone in Decatur parks in their yard, at least those who don't park on the street. Whether or not the occupant of a particular residence can afford some kind of pavement to put in their yard seems to be the telling factor here. Decatur is such a prissy, wannabe municipality. How like "The Decatur Daily" and our city's leadership to stick it to the little guy one more time.

i understand wanting decatur to look better. however, i pay the mortgage on house & land! not you the city of decatur. if you would like to pay it for me, then no, i won't park in the yard! some people have no choice. you park in the street, then you take the risk of being hit & now adays, people don't stop & say, i'm sorry, i hit your vehicle, they just keep going as if it never happened! you have idiots that have nothing better to do than vandalize other peoples vehicles (bb guns, egging...etc).

what happens when everyone parks in the street on BOTH sides of the road? then you have to "wait your turn" to drive down the street because 2 vehicles cannot fit thru at the same time!

kimberly from decatur

Kimberly: Using your logic (that you can do whatever you want with your property and the city has no right to set reasonable regulations because you, not the city, pay the mortgage) is a slippery slope I would wish to avoid. Suppose someone buys the property next to yours and wants to open a convenience store. Or an automotive repair shop. Or a junk yard. Or a steel mill. Or a strip club. Does that mean the new owner should be able to do it just because he (or she) owns it and pays the mortgage?

Reasonable zoning and use regulations are good for property owners. In my opinion, prohibiting parking on the lawn is not unreasonable. If it is really that important to you to park in the yard, maybe you should consider buying land where it is a legal activity.

If I completely concrete my yard, does it then become a driveway that I can park on. Reasonable zoning IS needed to regulate junk yards and types of dwelliings. Saying someone can't park in there yard is crazy. There are already ordinances in place that prohibit somoene from parking junked vehicles in there yard, enforce those.

To: LINDA from Decatur,

You will know "whining" when the city tells you when you can drive to the grocery store, what day you can go to Wal-Mart or what day you can purchase gasoline. As long as you let BIG BROTHER rule your life without putting up a struggle, then you desreve whatever you get!! However, I'm not ready to give up the right to speak out when I see the cancer creapin into our personal lives. I will also not let someone try to intimidate me into keeping my mouth shut.

If I want to "whine" as you call it, that's my right my dad died in Normandy for. If you don't like it move, move to North Korea or Iran where they tell you how to think or throw you in jail for speaking out.

Should have been "creeping into our personal lives." a little typo there. I wanted to correct it before you could point it out.

To: bobb of Decatur,

Bob, most neighborhoods and housing projects have a "covenant" that they have to abide by. I have bought 3 pieces of property in the 60+ years I have lived in Decatur. Each one I purchased when we were at the "closing" I was given the deed and a "covenant" relative to the area. That covenant was quite clear as to the care and appearance of the property. When you purchase the property, and you sign the agreement, you are agreeing to the terms of the covenant. If you break the "rules" of that covenant, you can be held liable for any damage and the city can enforce that covenant if you insist on it. Therefore, you could not install a "chicken farm" or even set up a "lemonade stand" by the children. Read your covenant and see what is allowed on the property in your neighborhood. If parked cars on the grass is against the covenant, then have it enforced. If you are not sure, go to the courthouse and see if there is one for the subdivision where yuou live.

I am not making excuses for it and I'm not trying to justify it. I don' tlike it anymore than anyone else does. The covenant here where we live addresses this issue and it is clearly against the "rules" where we live. However, the only person that parks a vehicle in the grass is a neighbor that has a motorhome but he keeps it neat and clean with no grass growing around it and a lot of the times he parks his second vehicle on the street.

Priceville should enforce the "no parking" in the yards and "not mowing" the grass laws. Some of the newest subdivisions in Priceville have people parking their work trucks in their yards and not mowing their grass until it is so overgrown. I don't think that is "Big Brother", it is just having pride in your property. It is amazing that people pay a lot of money for these homes and then it looks like the Beverly Hillibilies have moved in. Just Laziness.

What is next?

Basketball goal, tricycle, ball,

get the picture

good one

taking a sun bath

Blighted areas ? What about all the slums and drug houses around Moulton St. . There are more drugs going thru Decatur than in Huntsville .And the bad thing is the Mayor and police know about them

Well said, Rebecca.

bob...i understand exactly what you are saying...i would not want that either...i was just simply venting..i do NOT live in the city. grew up here, but do not live in the city limits, nor would i ever want to move back here. i don't think you should park vehicles or what have you in the yard. nor would i want my neighbors too. thanks...

Rfggyygg

Next will be dogs/cats?

THis is exactly why I am starting to hate decatur it your own damn property your paying for it not them and they are going to tell you how your stuff should be done and how it should look. My house is perfectly fine but what pisses me off is my coworker just got a summons to court no letter no nothing which was bull shit for a damn weeds ordinance what kind of crap is that?? ok i understand if your grass is 1 foot tall but it was 1/2 foot if that!!. Come on now ..... I am sorry this council members are corupt and this is bull shit that is exactly why i am moving so i don't have someone telling me oh you cant do this or that or park in your own damn yard , you cant have lumber saved and laying in your yard. I never had this problem in Hartselle and I wish I would have stayed that way!!!

Penny it's already here with the mailman.We had one on Sherman St.that would not get out and put the mail in the box if a car was blocking easy acces to box. Notice I did not say blocking the box but easy access.

In my opinion, parking a car on the lawn shouldn't be a problem if the car is legal & road-ready: licensed, insured, and operable. Parking appliances or scrap metal there, on the other hand...

Personally, I'd be happy if they would enforce the "no reverse parking" rule. I can't tell you how many times I've almost crushed someone standing behind an open passenger door at night with their headlights blinding me.

reply to cats dogs

NExt

Children not allowed in their yard

When my kids are home from college, there's no other place to park than on the yard. Parking on the street would block the view of drivers making a turn at our corner. Maybe there could be a limit to how many are parked in a front yard? I agree - 6 or 7 or 8 cars parked around a house every day is a clue that there are WAY too many people living in a house.

Yeah for Montgomery

Maybe you could move to Montgomery

I personally like this idea. This proposed law would not upset someone who takes pride in their home, neighborhood, and just has a basic respect for their neighbor. If you want to raise roosters or pit bulls or park on the front lawn, move outside the city limits. This law would not apply to the average person who needs to park in their front yard for brief amounts of time, it would, however, benefit hardworking people who take pride in their homes and are trying to keep the value of it up in a time where it is very important. I wonder how someone would look at this if it was their neighbor? I know I would be upset.Should I lose value in my home or should I have to look at someone elses crap everyday? If my neighbor was elderly or in bad health, I would be glad to help them out with yard work, otherwise , be considerate of each other. What is BAD, is that a law has to be passed to get people to do what they should do on their own.....We are all entitled to our opinion, that is why I wrote mine, please don't turn it into a discussion...it is an opinion ..and yes I know what they say about opinions....and youve got one too.