A resident complains that his neighbor's planned tree house overlooking his yard would be intrusive.
By TIM GRANT
Published May 2, 2003
KEYSTONE - County code enforcement officers are trying to determine how far a property owner can take his right to privacy.
They were prompted by a dispute between a nude sunbather and his next-door neighbor on Oakdale Road, whose kids have been building a tree house that would overlook a privacy fence.
"My neighbor behind me is in the process of building a tree house for his children," wrote Robert Campana in a March 18 e-mail.
"It is approximately 15-20 feet above ground and gives an eagle's view of my otherwise private yard. Yes, we like sunbathing and swimming in the nude . . . but having children viewing us is unnerving," he wrote. "Is there any way to insure our privacy?"
Ricci Teuscher, who lives where the tree house is planned, said her children are building it. She would not say how old her children are, but said the structure is for neighboring children as well.
"I think this whole thing is ridiculous," Teuscher said. "I'm very upset. This is my tree and my property. I don't think we've done anything illegal. If it was such a problem, he should have come to me and talked about it."
Campana's complaint has led the county's Community Improvement Department to research the legality of property owners having a tree house that might upset neighbors.
"Deed restrictions may prohibit tree houses, but there is no county code which prohibits them," said Jim Blinck, a county code enforcement supervisor. "You can have an accessory structure up to 15 feet high."
Campana said the tree house has not yet been built. Right now, there are only wooden steps that lead to the branches where the structure could rest.
"It's in progress," said Campana, who has lived in his home on Oakdale Street for seven years. "There's a platform up there now. I can see it from my living room, a bedroom, my kitchen and backyard."
After a reporter told Teuscher that her neighbor swims and sunbathes without clothing, Teuscher said she will reconsider the tree house project.
