An Australian man says he is being forced to pack up his Christmas lights after a "Grinch" made a complaint to the local council.
Jamie Lehmann has been decorating his house with elaborate Christmas lights and displays for the past three years, with his home becoming an attraction hundreds of people visit daily.
But this year, after a complaint to the Brisbane Council, Lehmann has been told he needs to pull the plug and take the decorations down, or face being fined $863 per day.
"It's a kick in the guts," Lehmann told 9News.
"I do this for the community, and it takes months to set up."
He said he's spent around $97,000 building up his Christmas light display, and now it all has to be taken down.
Lehmann said he received a notice from the council on Wednesday informing him of the complaint, followed by council officers visiting his home.
Brisbane residents are allowed to decorate the strips of grass in front of their properties, but conditions do apply: A 1.2 metre-wide thoroughfare must be maintained for pedestrian access. Lehmann said the complaint is that he did not leave the mandated space.
Lehmann said he received a similar complaint last year. Therefore, he left a 1.3-metre space.
Council officers found other problems with the set-up, stating that Lehmann had erected a platform that required a council permit.
He offered to remove the platform, but the council was adamant that the entire nature strip outside his property needed to be removed, or else he would be fined daily.
"I'm over it, I'm done because it seems like it's the same Grinch who has complained every year for the last three years. Even when the display was small, and we didn't have much on the nature strip, they complained," he said.
Lehmann said the council is going against its own ruling. The council created the Festive Footpaths programme, which allows "Brisbane residents [to] decorate their footpath and street trees during designated periods," according to the Brisbane Council website.
Brisbane Council chairman for city standards Kim Marx said the council supported residents decorating their homes, but public areas needed to remain "safe and accessible".
"Council did not advise this resident to completely remove their display but did require a minor adjustment so other residents could safely park and exit their cars," Marx said.
SHARE ME