The parents of an 8-year-old boy in New Hampshire are being forced to take down the treehouse they just built for him after complaints from neighbors about its size.
Portsmouth resident Jill Maloney didn't intend for her son's treehouse to cause such a problem, initially saying that neighbors were not opposed.
"My family and I never set out to anger our neighbors or make enemies," Maloney told WGME.
John Raczek built the treehouse and said that Maloney made sure to check with everyone in the neighborhood that it would be ok to build a treehouse for her son.
"Her neighbors were fine with it. They didn't have an issue," Raczek said. "She bent over backwards trying to make everybody happy."
Although, it's unclear if the size of the treehouse was told to neighbors.
The building is 25 feet long, 8 feet high, with a 168 square-foot platform. WGME reports that neighbors began to get upset after seeing how big it was going to be.
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"Its size is imposing and dominates the field of view in our backyard and from our house," neighbor Mark Moses told WGME.
The Portsmouth Board of Adjustment ruled last week that the treehouse was more like a deck structure, and therefore, it requires a 5-foot to 8-foot setback from the fence.
"My objection to this has to do with the fact that it is so intrusive on the other property," Phyllis Eldridge of the Portsmouth Board of Adjustment said.
Plenty of other backyards in the neighborhood have treehouses, and Raczek added that he's never had issues building treehouses in the past.
"Usually do not need a building permit for a treehouse because they're not regulated," Raczek said.
They now plan to move the treehouse away from trees, fences, and other people's property. Raczek plans to move the entire 168-square-foot platform to where it won't be an issue to neighbors.
"I'm going to get specifics from the building inspector on how far away from the fence line it has to be,” Raczek said. “And we're going to try to actually move the whole platform."
Although, Maloney doesn't understand what moving her son's treehouse will do, pointing out that the large structure will still be visible in their backyard.
"What does it solve by moving it?" Maloney said. "They're still going to see some sort of play structure in our yard."
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