Wealthy homeowners in one tiny Fort Worth suburb say their neighbor’s decision to park a World War II-era tank in front of his multimillion-dollar home is making them nervous.
At least that’s what attorney Tony Buzbee, a history buff who purchased the WWII tank for $600,000 earlier this year, learned when his neighborhood homeowners’ association sent him a letter saying the tank “impedes traffic” and causes a “safety issue” and “serious concerns for neighbors."
Buzbee says he’s temporarily storing the tank at his River Oaks, Texas home before moving it out to his ranch in East Texas later this year. But even though he’s made it clear that the tank’s presence is temporary, his neighbors are pressing him to remove the tank as soon as possible, according to Houston’s KHOU television station.
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Unfazed by his whiny neighbors, Buzbee is pushing back against what he described as NIMBYism run amok, telling local media outlets that his neighbors need to “lighten up” and that the tank isn’t going anywhere unless he decides to move it. Buzbee said the tank “took a year to get here, but now it’s on River Oaks Boulevard,” according to Fox. “This particular tank landed at Normandy. It liberated Paris, and ultimately went all the way to Berlin. There’s a lot of history here.”
"It's not violating any ordinance, but for some people it makes the homeowners association uncomfortable," said Buzbee.
They sent Buzbee a letter saying the tank "impedes traffic", causes a "safety issue" and is causing "serious concerns for neighbors".
"If you're offended just lighten up, my goodness it isn't hurting anyone," said Buzbee.
Buzbee says he's not losing too much sleep over that HOA letter. For now though, he's keeping his new tank right where it is.
"The problem is there is no action they can take," said Buzbee. "They can ticket it or they can try to tow it, but the truth is unless I decide to move it, it's not going anywhere."
Buzbee says the tank will eventually end up on his ranch in east Texas.
The irony is, with the tank easily visible to any would-be criminals, Buzbee's block is probably the safest in the town.