I'm reminded of this, meanwhile, because a friend of mine in Petaluma CA made the local news today.
I've heard about this little saga from him, but reading the article, I couldn't help but think of Grace Avenue as a comparison. In both cases, it's arguably petty stuff. Trees cut down, trucks using a residential street. In both cases, I would argue, the serious problem is pledges made and abandoned.
In Petaluma, though, residents have complained and met with a comparatively remarkable response. After a developer cut down trees which residents had been assured would remain:
How 'bout that.The city’s deputy planning manager, Kevin Colin, said it was a “clear violation of the terms of their permit,” and there will be a penalty and corrective action plan to extend the height of the boundary wall beyond the city’s six-foot standard, in addition to replanting trees.
The city also placed a red tag on the pool area, forcing remediation before construction can continue. If the developer doesn’t comply, Colin said “there are other remedies the city can seek,” alluding to the potential for litigation.
“We have legal authority to carry out our enforcement action and compel (the developer) to pay some form of money for the violation that occurred, and do (more) planting to obscure the views,” he said.
Based on my one visit, plus updates from my fellow ISU alumnus, Petaluma seems quite adequately Lakewood-like for it to be a meaningful reference. If that's the case, perhaps it's one more "lesson to be learned" re: Grace Avenue.
Things can be done better, even in an imperfect world of human failings.