Oct 20, 2009 8:06 am US/Eastern
Worcester Man Says Goodbye To Tree House Dream
WORCESTER (WBZ) ―
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The tree house is 50 feet tall. It took two months to build.
WBZ
"There's spectacular views from up there."
Worcester resident Michael Chapman, you can say, is a kid at heart.
He's built a tree house in his backyard he calls the "Heart of Oak."
"When I moved in 12 years ago I took notice of this tree. There are five trunks that are ideally situated to hold up a platform, so it struck me that this tree needed a tree house," Chapman said.
But his next neighbor next door says the tree house is an invasion of privacy. "It's illegal. It's over property lines and it's unsafe," neighbor Rudy Cepko said.
The tree house is 50 feet tall, it took two months to build, and Chapman says its 99 percent complete. But now he's been asked to take it down for safety issues. The City of Worcester also says it's illegal.
Worcester Inspectional Commissioner Joe Mikielian says Chapman failed to obey zoning laws and he built the structure too high. "This is a public safety issue. It's like a pool without a fence around. It could be a major liability," Mikielian said.
Although he's only enjoyed it for a few days Chapman says its time to take it down. "So (I) built it too high, but it's better to have built and had it for a little while than ask permission in the first place and not be able to do it at all," Chapman said.
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