Stockbridge Slams Hood on Car Club

We received an interesting e-mail last night pointing us to a blog that details "a car club massacre in 3 parts." According to the writer, a friend and longtime mechanic in Stockbridge has been told he can't fix his friends' cars for free anymore.

Apparently his neighbors are upset with the number of "high end" cars making their way to Jeff, who built a garage at his home to work on his collection of classic cars — and help out any of the many friends he's made who share the same passion. The not-so-friendly neighbors thought the retired mechanic was running a commercial operation and called the building inspector.

Jeff got a cease-and-desist order. The blogger, "Just A Car Geek," accompanied Jeff to the ZBA meeting this past Tuesday along with a bunch of others in their informal car club. The ZBA, he writes, couldn't find anything wrong but still voted to order Jeff to stop doing what he wasn't doing.

While they agreed that everything was on the up and up, they seemed to feel, like the neighbors, that Jeff has too many friends with nice cars. We, the half dozen or so "club members," were too many acquaintances for Jeff to have. By a vote of 4 to 1, the ZBA upheld the cease and desist order. If anyone stops by Jeff's house, they had better not pop the hood on their car for any reason. (Including a jump start, which could be a problem for those with British cars, I suppose.) The city will impose a hefty fine on Jeff if we do.

Jeff, he wrote, is taking the issue to court. Read the whole story, starting with Post 1.

Now, we don't have the neighbors' side of this thing. Maybe there was too much noise, too much traffic. But we'll be first to admit that we've had our cars worked on by friends — in their yards or garages — and been thankful. When your engine starts making some weird noise it's nice to have a friend who'll say, "stop by and I'll take a look at it."

Says "Just A Car Geek":

If this decision is upheld, it's possible you'll see towns trying to pass ordinances and/or bylaws saying that you can't fix or restore your own car in your home garage, let alone help a friend or family member. ... The thought of what the outcome of this case could have on car geeks, collectors, hobbyists, amateur racers, etc., is chilling.