Samantha Carlson, of Selinsgrove, sits in a partially built tree house outside her home that her father began building for her as a gift for her 11th birthday. The Selinsgrove Zoning Hearing Board on Thursday night said the structure must come down.
A couple weeks ago, I shared some reaction to the story about a girl and her treehouse – and the borough codes office.
John “J.C.” Carlson was preparing to finish building a tree house for his daughter, Samantha, last Saturday when he received a notice from the borough zoning office informing him the structure is illegal.
He began building the eight-foot, by six-foot wood structure on a tree stump in the front yard of his 701 W. Spruce St. home a few weeks ago for his daughter’s 11th birthday.
Carlson didn’t give zoning regulations a second thought when he began construction.
“A tree house is a tree house,” he said. “What possible harm can it do to build one for an 11-year-old.”
Carlson’s tree house violates the zoning ordinance because it is located on his front lawn on a lot that doesn’t accommodate its large size, said deputy zoning officer Janet Powers.
I wrote that social media reaction took off like a rocket. And after a zoning hearing last night which solidified the borough’s decision to make the family knock down the treehouse, the debate is still going strong.
Make sure you read the latest here – and then go to our Facebook page to add in your thoughts.
I’ll be curious to see where this ends up. It could have the wings to make it a big issue.
Suquehanna Reporting 