The bus is on the lot!
It cost us $850 to get it here, and they broke an axle doing it, but it's here! The first thing we noticed when we got inside the bus a week or so after we towed it here was that it wasn't nearly as hot as we thought it would be, even sitting in full sun. The cross breeze coming in from the windows kept it pretty tolerable inside. Being painted white helped, I'm sure.
We did a bunch of planting while waiting for the rain to come, and when it did we took brushes and rags and soap and started scrubbing on the top of the bus. It was covered in tree sap and algae from being under the trees in the woods for so long, but it was coming off pretty easily. We didn't finish cleaning it that day because it's planting season and we had a lot to do. We'll work on it during the rainy days. Then we'll paint it - cuz it really needs it!
But on the sunny days we plan to start working on the bump out. It won't be attached to the bus as originally thought because there's a 2ft space between the bus and the grassy area, so we'll cantilever the roof out to cover at least the south half of the bus, so that the rain hitting the north half of the bus will roll off the north side, and the cantilevered roof will catch the water on the south side and add to the collection tanks.
We've reconsidered adding the water from the drain to the greywater trench. It's too risky letting the driveway water hit the greywater because vehicles are so toxic - especially old ones. So we'll fill that drainage ditch with mulch inoculated with King Stropharia mushrooms to clean up any runoff from the driveway. Fortunately it still ends several feet before the grey water treatment area.So as soon as we got the bus parked, the zoning inspector came by to take a look. I'm guessing we've got a Mrs Kravitz in the neighborhood who couldn't wait to let him know something was up.
He asked if we'd planned to stay in it, and we said yes. He said if we did, we were only allowed to stay in it for 3 months then we had to not stay in it for a month before we could stay in it again. He said he had to check to be sure, but we may even have to move it after that 3 months.
I could see that being the case in a public park but not on private land. Turned out later he checked with the county prosecutor and no such law existed.
Some time later the zoning inspector got a complaint, probably from that same neighbor, that we had a disabled vehicle on the property and a bunch of junk in the yard. We were told that we couldn't have a disabled vehicle in a residential area for more than 2 weeks unless it was kept in a building, like a pole building or garage. The problem with that was that the front of the bus was less than 40ft from the road. No permanent structures are permitted less than 40ft from the road. So the solution of building a pole barn around it would require asking for a variance.
That's when I asked for a 3rd time for a copy of the zoning ordinances. He printed one out for me on his home printer and stapled them all together for me for $10.
Upon discussing the matter the next visit I explained that the 'junk' the neighbor was talking about was a bed frame we were using as a trellis for out cucamelons and that people use them in trendy areas of the city all the time. I've even seen a bed frame used as a gate in Olde Towne East in Columbus. He was willing to let that go. But he asked if I'd like to come to a town meeting of the zoning committee and I agreed.
I was the first to be able to bring up my concern at the meeting. I explained how we were building a food forest and were planning to fix up and live in the bus while building our house. I told them if they wanted to go ahead and send me the formal charge in the mail I'd be happy to appeal it, which involved them posting something in the local paper (for which I'd be charged $10) and having a meeting with whomever in the township had anything to say about it, and they'd make their decision after that.
Some weeks later I received a phone call from the zoning inspector stating concern that I might not have enough room to put in a septic system and still build a house and a garden in the only level ground on the lot. We were beginning to think we weren't wanted here. I'll cover my plans to deal with that subject in a later post.
I'm posting all this here because these are the hurdles that occur when trying an alternate lifestyle. The laws are on the books for a reason. The trick is to understand first the spirit of the law, keep your cool, and just ask how to go about obeying the rules and still being able to do what we want to do. To us, the bus isn't a vehicle. It is being repurposed for a 'tiny home'. People do the same thing with shipping containers and train cabooses. I have a bedframe in my garden - doesn't mean I sleep there. So I'm ready to take it to court if need be.
That was all in June of 2019. Fast forward to June of 2020 and we have yet to be formally charged with any violation. So we don't plan to move the bus off the property or further into the lot. There's too little room to maneuver and we want to keep the east-west orientation to maximize solar gain for the attached greenhouse.
So plans to work on the bus have resumed. The plan now is to set 2ft long PVC pipes in cement in the ground beyond the 40ft mark, then bolt PVC pipes to it for a frame and stretch plastic across that frame - opaque on top and clear on the south wall - and attach the other end of the frame to the bus to secure it on the north side. So now the greenhouse won't be a permanent structure and neither will the bus.
We've been going down to the property on weekends and painting. We've been raising Andrea's grandson since November so with the coronavirus pandemic daycare had been closed for a couple months. They just reopened last month so we've had more time. I finished adding the blue earlier this week, after painting the roof white last weekend while Andrea painted inside.
It's looking much better, we think.
