People on My Stoop
I’ve had an issue lately with people sitting on my stoop. A few weeks ago 2 kids came out of THE FLEA and ate beans and rice on the stoop. Next thing there were 6 kids there and they left leaving the container and rice all over the steps. One day last week a guy…
I’ve had an issue lately with people sitting on my stoop. A few weeks ago 2 kids came out of THE FLEA and ate beans and rice on the stoop. Next thing there were 6 kids there and they left leaving the container and rice all over the steps.
One day last week a guy came 3 days in a row to drink his coffee and read the paper. Later that week two other guys showed up. Except for the kids, I eventually asked if they were waiting for someone and they left willingly. One guy was kind of bitchy about it.
Am I being too uptight? Should I let people sit there? I would never assume sitting on someone’s stoop is ok, but am I alone? What is the thinking from other homeowners.
What about a small sign? People should be more considerate.
oh, oh. Put the lawn sprinkler system next to the stoop so it will be wet when you are not around.
I don’t mind finding people occasionally sitting on my stoop. The food issue would upset me, however, and I agree that you have a right to post a sign, hang a chain, or use the wet stoop approach to keep that from happening. Or simply stepping out to say “I don’t mind you sitting here if you’ll be sure not to leave anything behind.” From the other perspective, we were walking home through B. Heights the other day and my sister and 80-year-old mother were with us from out of town and my mother had to stop and rest in a shady spot for a few minutes so I said it was okay for her to rest on a stoop. Shortly, a very grumpy older man came out and told us to get off his stoop and I was so embarrassed at his treatment of my family. We weren’t loud, no one was eating or drinking or smoking, and having some middle-aged people and one older lady stop briefly on a very hot day seems less disruptive than a possible ambulance in front of your house.
That’s why gates were invented – to keep the riff-raff out!
It’s all about r-e-s-p-e-c-t. I don’t mind my neighbor’s rather tough-looking adult sons sitting on our stoop because our families are friends. But I can’t abide the presumption by strangers that it’s OK — it ain’t! The temporary (or weekly) chain is a good idea; also, washing down the stoop.
The recording of a pump action shotgun is very effective.
The chain would probably work better than a gate. We have a gate and our stoop is set back from the street but ramdom people still wander in and sit there. If I see them, I tell them it’s private property because I don’t like finidng trash and cigarette butts strewn about.
I would put a little fake surveillance camera pointing at the stoop.
I would tell them to get the h**k off of the stoop. That’s just a lack of manners and respect. Especially leaving garbage behind… You are not being uptight. It’s your property. I would never sit on someone’s stoop.
You probably need to install a gate.