Why our neighbor Jane probably hates our guts

I mentioned earlier having some trepidation regarding how our next door neighbor, Jane, would regard our project. (This is our good neighbor, not our Neighbor From Hell behind us.) There were a couple of reasons for this. The first is that our two houses share a driveway. I'm sure this was originally designed so as to maximize lawn space for both houses, but there are certain drawbacks to shared driveways, e.g., guests who park smack dab in the middle and don't realize they're blocking the other person's way, etc. We knew we would be having all sorts of construction trucks and equipment going in and out to the back garage area, and I stressed repeatedly to Wagner that he had to be careful not to block her car.

But the main reason I was worried about her reaction is that some months ago, the neighbor on her other side (i.e., two doors down from us) bought a tear-down and started a huge rebuilding project even more involved than ours. They left only one wall standing (to qualify as a "renovation" rather than "new construction" for tax purposes), and even that wall conveniently fell over in the middle of one night. This job was loud and dirty. Mud was everywhere, and the crew did things like urinate openly in the yard right in front of Jane. So she was often complaining to us about the inconvenience and mess and noise, and we would commiserate while guiltily aware that we were considering doing a construction of our own to add to her distress.

The aspect of the other job that got her most upset, though, was that it became clear that these neighbors were building a detached garage that was huge, with a full-size apartment on top, AND that would butt up right against Jane's fence, literally within inches. One day Jane flagged us down, said "Did you SEE that huge garage they're building right next to my fence?! I'm calling downtown to see if there's anything I can do about it!" We still hadn't told her that we were considering a detached garage of our own, because we didn't want to get her upset unless or until we knew we were renovating for sure. Uh-oh.

So Jane did some investigating, and she discovered that the neighbors had commenced building the garage WITHOUT obtaining a permit. However, when she spoke with the building inspector, she was told that the garage was technically within code, and the neighbors scampered off to obtain a building permit, albeit belatedly.

To top things off, about a month ago the house BEHIND hers was torn down, and construction began on a new very big house, complete with a detached garage that was going to be positioned--you guessed it--right up against her (rear) fence. This prompted a fresh round of complaints and despair on Jane's part, and the poor woman did not even know at this point that she would soon be surrounded on ALL sides by construction.

In drawing up plans with Wagner, I told him that Jane would not be happy about our renovation, and he assured me that all the proper steps would be taken and that we would not do anything we were not legally entitled to do. He also promised to keep the construction area as clean as possible and to consult with her prior to scheduling anything major that would block her driveway, like pouring concrete.

In the meantime, Jane could not help but notice that something was in the works, as we had staked out the area where the garage would be positioned and had the surveyor come do the survey. So after a bit of curious questioning on her part, I invited her over and told her that we had bad news for her. I showed her the tentative plans and explained what we were going to do. She took the news quite graciously, especially after I walked her out and showed her where the boundaries of the addition and new garage would be, and she could see for herself that she would still be able to get in and out of her garage easily. She also repeatedly said that one of the things that upset her the most about the other neighbor's construction is that they had not once come over to talk with her about it. I had Wagner exchange business cards with her, and he told her to call any time she had questions or concerns. So I'm hoping that open communication will make this a better experience for her.

But under the circumstances, I'm glad I got overruled on the position of the detached garage, as my initial preference would've put it right next to the OTHER side of her yard, which I am sure would have contributed greatly to her distress level. She was quite relieved to see the outline of the garage over by the gazebo and farther away from her property.

And, Wagner is going out of his way to make things nicer for her. When we had to take down part of the fence that separated our properties, he had his crew relocate her wood pile that was leaning against it for her. At the end of each day, he puts his tools and equipment away in our garage and has his crew wash all the dirt off the driveway. He goes over to talk to her every time he sees her and constantly asks if everything is okay with her. So I am confident our job will not be as annoying as the job on the other side of her, but there is a certain amount of noise and inconvenience that is inevitable.

Given that one of our main reasons for renovating rather than moving is that we love this street and our neighbors, it will sure be ironic and disheartening if we end up alienating everybody on the block. :(