Although four out of five roofs are asphalt, some insurance companies offer up to 30% reductions for homes with weather-resistant metal roofs, which can last up to 50 years; not many offer any for garbage-resistant fences though. Unfortunate, as one Santa Rosa-area business would be facing steep penalties if they neglect future fence repairs. Logan Devries is the property manager of Pace Station, a commercial business located on the backside of a residential neighborhood. The only thing separating the business and the families that live behind them is a wooden fence which encloses their retention pond and dumpsters.

Throughout the summer some of the neighbors have been in contact with city officials complaining about gaping holes and all-around fence repairs that were necessary, according to the local news source srpressgazette.com. Margaret Pendleton is one of the concerned neighbors. Her main fear was curious children that might try to explore the holes in fence (and accompanying broken pieces with rusty nails) and pond on the other side, but she also called the dumpsters that could be seen through the holes “eyesores” and noted the garbage that would occasionally fly from the overfilled receptacles into her yard.

This all occurred right before/as the county board stiffened their penalties for code compliance with enhanced fines. Devries made the call for handyman services before it was too late, but the head of code compliance, Randy Jones, wants to make sure the fence repairs stay up to par.

“I don’t know that I would call it a public safety issue per se, but it could certainly be a nuisance to someone living across the street,” Jones said. He also warned Devries could be considered a “repeat offender, potentially, if the repairs are not adequate.”

For his part, Devries said teh problems with the fence go back to damage caused earlier this summer by Hurricane Ivan. While he manages the property the fence sits on and takes care of any home maintenance tasks, a man named Nai Halford owns all of it.

“I agree if something keeps coming down, we need to do something different,” Devries said, but added that it would be Halford responsible for any future fines. “We take care of issues, but with claims that goes to the owner.”