Chapter 4 - A Ribbon Above the Trees
On Saturday, Nia brought an orange survey ribbon and a telescoping measuring pole. Celia arrived with Peter Hale and a third board member, Evan Cho, a soft-spoken retired teacher who carried a notebook instead of a folder.
Celia stopped at the bend. “From here you'll see the upper roof.”
“Yes,” Nia said. “About a three-foot band during leaf-off season, depending on the final grading.”
“That's the problem.”
Peter raised his phone. “Residents moved here for untouched views.”
I looked past him at the gray-shingled house on the next ridge. It was visible from the same bend, chimney and all. I didn't point it out. Owen squeezed my hand before I could.
Evan asked Nia whether the house could be rotated. She moved a transparent overlay against the plan and showed how a rotation would affect the septic area.
“So there's a real cost to each shift,” Evan said, writing something down.
“Real cost and sometimes a real environmental impact,” Nia answered.
Celia adjusted her scarf. “The board isn't obligated to select the cheapest option for the applicants.”
“No,” Owen said, “but you can tell us what standard an option is supposed to satisfy.”
There was a silence that felt less like defeat than hesitation.
We finished at the yellow stakes. Nia extended her measuring pole and lifted the ribbon to indicate the roofline. Against the bare trees, it looked both higher and smaller than I'd imagined. An actual home would have texture and shade; the ribbon was a warning-colored line in the sky.
Celia took photographs. Evan asked her to photograph the surrounding houses for comparison.
“I know what the houses look like,” she said.
“Then the board should be able to compare them,” he replied.
After they left, Nia packed her pole away.
“He's trying,” she told us.
“Is that enough?” I asked.
“Not by itself.”
The following Monday, the committee requested a revised visual study, a different siding sample, and an explanation of why we hadn't considered a lower site.
Owen read the list twice. Then he pointed to the final sentence.
The committee reserves the right to request further materials before making a new determination.
“How many times can they do that?” he asked.
May you like
Nia had no comforting answer.
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