DSM-Stormwater Inspection

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September 27th, 2008, 01:37 PM
tiredofbs

DSM-Stormwater Inspection

I received a letter from County of Erie Dept. of Development and Planning, Sewer District No. 6 demanding an inspection of my property. They threaten compliance through Section 801 of the "Rules and Regulations for Erie CountySewer Disticts".

They are welcome to inspect the outside of my property. However, they want to go inside my house. There is no sump pump, which I understand can be illegally connected into the sewer system.

I haven't applied for any building or plumbing permits.

I feel this is an infringement of my rights. If they believe I'm doing something illegal, then they should charge me and get a warrant. The police cannot search your home without a warrant, why should they Dept. of Sewer Management (DSM) be allowed to?

Does anyone have any comments on this subject?
October 1st, 2008, 10:30 PM
LaNdReW

hmm

Quote:

Originally Posted by tiredofbs

I received a letter from County of Erie Dept. of Development and Planning, Sewer District No. 6 demanding an inspection of my property. They threaten compliance through Section 801 of the "Rules and Regulations for Erie CountySewer Disticts".

They are welcome to inspect the outside of my property. However, they want to go inside my house. There is no sump pump, which I understand can be illegally connected into the sewer system.

I haven't applied for any building or plumbing permits.

I feel this is an infringement of my rights. If they believe I'm doing something illegal, then they should charge me and get a warrant. The police cannot search your home without a warrant, why should they Dept. of Sewer Management (DSM) be allowed to?

Does anyone have any comments on this subject?

Is it a sanitary sewer inspection or storm sewer inspection or both?
You are connected to their sewer, aren't you required to meet their codes? Kind of like having your car inspected to be able to drive it on the road?
October 2nd, 2008, 01:19 AM
Pete Moss

Quote:

Originally Posted by LaNdReW

Is it a sanitary sewer inspection or storm sewer inspection or both?
You are connected to their sewer, aren't you required to meet their codes? Kind of like having your car inspected to be able to drive it on the road?

When the home is built, the home is inspected for code-compliance.

Comparing a home inspection to an annual car inspection is a little ridiculous, unless of course you are driving your home around about 10,000 miles annually.

Perhaps the electric utility company will want to start inspecting your home, and then the telephone company, and then the cable company, and you may as well hold an open house for the police and irs as well.

Complacency is never a good thing.
October 2nd, 2008, 06:42 PM
LaNdReW

yes, but

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pete Moss

When the home is built, the home is inspected for code-compliance.

Comparing a home inspection to an annual car inspection is a little ridiculous, unless of course you are driving your home around about 10,000 miles annually.

Perhaps the electric utility company will want to start inspecting your home, and then the telephone company, and then the cable company, and you may as well hold an open house for the police and irs as well.

Complacency is never a good thing.

So, if you hook your sump pump, yard drains, and gutters to your sewer isn't the cost to treat that additional water paid by everyone in the area?
What if I live next door to you and you fill the sewer and mine backs up because there is not enough room in it?
What if the extra water bubbles out a pipe down the street and the area gets fined? Who pays for that?
October 3rd, 2008, 08:00 AM
Pete Moss

Quote:

Originally Posted by LaNdReW

So, if you hook your sump pump, yard drains, and gutters to your sewer isn't the cost to treat that additional water paid by everyone in the area?
What if I live next door to you and you fill the sewer and mine backs up because there is not enough room in it?
What if the extra water bubbles out a pipe down the street and the area gets fined? Who pays for that?

Perhaps people like you violate the laws of the land, but not everybody is like you.

The bottom line is that the sewer authority has no right to enter anybody's home. If the sewer authority has cause to believe that an illegal connection exists, let them get a warrant, just like anybody else.
October 4th, 2008, 02:39 PM
LaNdReW

me?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pete Moss

Perhaps people like you violate the laws of the land, but not everybody is like you.

The bottom line is that the sewer authority has no right to enter anybody's home. If the sewer authority has cause to believe that an illegal connection exists, let them get a warrant, just like anybody else.

What does this have to do with me?
I am my own sewer authority. I maintain my system at no cost to you.

The fact of the matter is, when you live in one of these districts you pay for the sewer service. Not the county, not the state. All costs incurred are absorbed by the district. If you put in more than you should, you should pay more than your neighbor. Water that should not be in the system should be removed.

http://www.erie.gov/DSM/district_info.asp

How often do they come out and do an inspection? In the many years I owned in the city, they came out once that I recall.
October 5th, 2008, 10:08 AM
Pete Moss

Quote:

Originally Posted by LaNdReW

What does this have to do with me?
I am my own sewer authority. I maintain my system at no cost to you.

The fact of the matter is, when you live in one of these districts you pay for the sewer service. Not the county, not the state. All costs incurred are absorbed by the district. If you put in more than you should, you should pay more than your neighbor. Water that should not be in the system should be removed.

http://www.erie.gov/DSM/district_info.asp

How often do they come out and do an inspection? In the many years I owned in the city, they came out once that I recall.

You decided that you were going to suggest that other people allow the sewer authority to inspect their homes.

The fact of the matter is that the US Constitution provides us security in our own homes, and nobody has the right to entry unless they obtain a warrant first.

Before you start advising other people to give up their Constitutional rights, why don't you invite the electric company, gas company, police, irs, cable company, building inspectors into your house first, so they can verify that you are not breaking any laws.

Then you can suggest other people do it. Let us know when your open house is completed, then we'll entertain your notion that we do it. :p
October 5th, 2008, 07:14 PM
LaNdReW

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pete Moss

You decided that you were going to suggest that other people allow the sewer authority to inspect their homes.

The fact of the matter is that the US Constitution provides us security in our own homes, and nobody has the right to entry unless they obtain a warrant first.

Before you start advising other people to give up their Constitutional rights, why don't you invite the electric company, gas company, police, irs, cable company, building inspectors into your house first, so they can verify that you are not breaking any laws.

Then you can suggest other people do it. Let us know when your open house is completed, then we'll entertain your notion that we do it. :p

What if you put in a cheater pipe in place of your gas meter?
How about pulling the electric meter or tapping off on the feeder?

I don't see it as being any different.

I am just giving you my opinion. Seems pretty straight forward. Don't let them in then. What happens then? They plug the pipe coming from your house? Start fining you via your taxes?
I would think that if everyone met the code, then your taxes would be minimized.
I will see what else I can dig up on this.
October 5th, 2008, 07:24 PM
winfield31

Quote:

Originally Posted by tiredofbs

I received a letter from County of Erie Dept. of Development and Planning, Sewer District No. 6 demanding an inspection of my property. They threaten compliance through Section 801 of the "Rules and Regulations for Erie CountySewer Disticts".

They are welcome to inspect the outside of my property. However, they want to go inside my house. There is no sump pump, which I understand can be illegally connected into the sewer system.

I haven't applied for any building or plumbing permits.

I feel this is an infringement of my rights. If they believe I'm doing something illegal, then they should charge me and get a warrant. The police cannot search your home without a warrant, why should they Dept. of Sewer Management (DSM) be allowed to?

Does anyone have any comments on this subject?

don't let anyone in w/out a warrant which no judge would EVER give them.....I don't care if they show up with sheriffs , DO NOT alllow entry w/out a warrant.........this would be like you calling the electrical inspectors of some town & because you're mad at you next door neighbor or the guy across the street & telling them that the people next door or across the street are doing illegal work w/out permits , if the inspector shows up , the people should just say no , if they ask if they can come in to verify , just say NO , let them go & try to gain entry , this isn't Russia OR Canada last time I checked , I mean we're still the USA right ?
October 23rd, 2008, 09:03 PM
LaNdReW

Well?

Quote:

Originally Posted by tiredofbs

I received a letter from County of Erie Dept. of Development and Planning, Sewer District No. 6 demanding an inspection of my property. They threaten compliance through Section 801 of the "Rules and Regulations for Erie CountySewer Disticts".

They are welcome to inspect the outside of my property. However, they want to go inside my house. There is no sump pump, which I understand can be illegally connected into the sewer system.

I haven't applied for any building or plumbing permits.

I feel this is an infringement of my rights. If they believe I'm doing something illegal, then they should charge me and get a warrant. The police cannot search your home without a warrant, why should they Dept. of Sewer Management (DSM) be allowed to?

Does anyone have any comments on this subject?

What did you end up doing?
October 23rd, 2008, 11:43 PM
tiredofbs

Quote:

Originally Posted by LaNdReW

What did you end up doing?

I called because their letter was so threatening. I set up an appointment. After waiting 1/2 hour past the appointment time for them, I called the office, spoke with the person I'd setup the appointment with. She gave many apologies, then had the nerve to tell me I had to call back and speak with "Bob", I think she said. She said he was some supervisor and that I had to call her back to get his phone number and setup another appointment. I told her she should put something in the mail to me as a reminder since their inspection is not foremost on my mind. I did what they asked and they simply wasted my time. I will tell you I agree with Pete Moss on this. I have nothing to hide and I told them so when I setup the appointment. If they believe I've done something illegal they should get a warrant and when they are proven wrong, I may have a lawsuit against them.
October 24th, 2008, 10:30 PM
zanna vaida

Make sure you keep records of your calls: what, when, where, who, and why. Don't forget how.
October 27th, 2008, 08:31 PM
LaNdReW

yeesh

Quote:

Originally Posted by tiredofbs

I called because their letter was so threatening. I set up an appointment. After waiting 1/2 hour past the appointment time for them, I called the office, spoke with the person I'd setup the appointment with. She gave many apologies, then had the nerve to tell me I had to call back and speak with "Bob", I think she said. She said he was some supervisor and that I had to call her back to get his phone number and setup another appointment. I told her she should put something in the mail to me as a reminder since their inspection is not foremost on my mind. I did what they asked and they simply wasted my time. I will tell you I agree with Pete Moss on this. I have nothing to hide and I told them so when I setup the appointment. If they believe I've done something illegal they should get a warrant and when they are proven wrong, I may have a lawsuit against them.

That sucks they didn't show. Did you have to take the day off?