in being annoyed that all my neighbours are putting in drives

[southeastastra]

and leaving me the lone front garden .

you know the answer sea!!

No - as it means that you've got no real drainage other than the gutters when it rains so you're more open to the drains overflowing when it rains hard. A lot of localised flooding where it hasn't already happened or wouldn;t be expected can sometimes be linked to areas where lots of people have taken out their front gardens with drives or gravel etc - noone seems to realise the purpose they serve other than looking nice!!!

Agree with countto10

My garden floods now - nearly all neighbours have put in drives over the last year or two - I am sure this is not a coincidence.

Also practically the only on-street parking space left is outside my house... which means I can rarely get parked nearby, because some other bugger is parked there

I feel your pain SEA.

are they allowed to?

I remember a thing on the news a while ago about an estate that was planned with green areas and everyone built drives

the council made them rip them up and put flowers in again

I don't blame them either it all looked like an out of town shopping centre

if yours is a new estate it might well be worth checking

that's another thing, it would just leave a couple of parking spaces, mine included.

the gardens slope a little towards the house too and the water is high just before the door in heavy rain. grr why can't they just leave them alone.

My two neighbours have monoblocked their gardens recently even though they had parking for 2 cars outside each of their houses. They now have 7 cars between them parked outside now and I think it looks awful like a car park outside your house.

We're also one of the few houses left on our street with a front garden. I can see why people do it. In London, at least, parking is horrenous and people want to be assured of a space near their home. I still think it's a shame. Our front garden is lovely - full of pretty mature shrubs and wonderful herbs (still trying to work out what half of the plants in my front garden are, actually!). It's such a big part of our house. I would hate to replace it with concrete.

it's a small close, next door had one put in last week, i imagine it's all above board. just found out the other side is planning one too.

cos if they don't get it done before september they will need planning permission

so they are probaly rushing to get it donme now

SEA, come the floods you will be high and dry, surrounded beautifuly greenery and flowers.

Start a sandbag business. Sounds as though you'll have plenty of customers

so they'd be allowed to do it without planning permission now? even though it will take 2 parking spaces away?

my garden is lovely and west facing so i sit in it in the afternoon in the summer

I feel annoyed about this too but for different reasons - I live in London and everyone who owns their own house has ripped up the front garden and put in a drive so they don't have to pay for a parking permit.

Meanwhile the poor sods in flats and rented accommodation aren't allowed to do this, so are fighting over the remaining spaces and paying through the nose.

I find it totally unfair that it's only the poor on the street who are being hit by parking charges.

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