Not in My Neighborhood: Dinosaurs and Flintstones

 

Tall dinosaurs² stand among unusual-looking plants on the grounds around a California home.

A statue of cartoon character Fred Flintstone stands near the front door and welcomes visitors. Nearby sits a large sign painted in orange, purple and red. It reads “Yabba Dabba Do,” the words Flintstone made famous in his 1960s television show.

Property rights vs. government rules

In a pricey neighborhood outside San Francisco, there is a battle between government rules and property rights.

A retired³ publisher has built a home that honors “The Flintstones.” There are Stone Age statues that look like animals from the show, along with space creatures and other strange things.

International media are following the dispute. Thousands of people have signed an online petition⁴ to save the property, which can be seen from a nearby road.

Florence Fang⁵’s 832-square-meter house is not at risk. It is the grounds around it that the town of Hillsborough says must change. The property is not as nice-looking as the neighboring properties, say the officials. Last month, they went to court to make her remove the garden statues. Fang does not live in the house, but uses it for parties.

Giving people joy

Angela Alioto, a former San Francisco supervisor⁶, is the lawyer for the 84-year-old owner. Alioto says the officials want to take away Fang's right to enjoy her yard and promises an intense fight.

“Mrs. Fang has made people smile, she’s giving them joy. What’s not to love about Dino, who acts like a dog?” said Alioto. “What is wrong with these people?”

The unusually shaped house, currently⁷ painted red and purple, was built in 1976. Fang, who once published The San Francisco Examiner, bought the property in June 2017 for $2.8 million.

Go through the legal process

Lawyer Mark Hudak is representing the town of Hillsborough. He says the town prides itself on its rural, woodsy feel. He added that rules are in place "so neighbors don’t have to look at your version of what you would like to have, and you don’t have to look at theirs… she still has to go through the process like everyone else."

Officials say Fang did not follow the town's stop-work orders. She also ignored an order to remove the statues by last December 5. She did pay a $200 fine, however.

Hide the dinosaur¹

Tim Iglesias is a property professor at the University of San Francisco School of Law. He said the owner has ignored the government rules again and again.

“If they let her get away, then all the other wealthy people in Hillsborough can say, ‘Hey, I can do whatever I want with my property. Who cares about the planning department?’”

The final decision will come after more claims are presented in court. Lawyer Alioto says Fang’s constitutional rights to free speech and religion were violated⁸.

“They want everything removed. They want the dinosaurs removed,” Alioto said. “They wanted her to put a tree in front of the dinosaur, so you couldn’t see the dinosaur.”

I’m Jill Robbins.

Words in This Story

dinosaur – n. one of many reptiles⁹ that lived on Earth millions of years ago

yard - n. an outdoor area that is next to a house and is usually covered by grass

cartoon - n. a film or television show made by photographing a series of drawings or an animated¹⁰ film or television show

petition - n. a written document that people sign to show that they want a person or organization to do or change something

1 dinosaur   

n.恐龙

参考例句：

• Are you trying to tell me that David was attacked by a dinosaur?你是想要告诉我大卫被一支恐龙所攻击？
• He stared at the faithful miniature of the dinosaur.他凝视著精确的恐龙缩小模型。

2 dinosaurs   

n.恐龙( dinosaur的名词复数 )；守旧落伍的人，过时落后的东西

参考例句：

• The brontosaurus was one of the largest of all dinosaurs. 雷龙是所有恐龙中最大的一种。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years. 恐龙绝种已有几百万年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

4 petition   

n.请愿书，申请书，诉状；v.请愿，正式请求

参考例句：

• Thousands of citizens subscribed the petition.几千名公民在请愿书上签名。
• The number of signers of the petition for a new school snowballed.要求增设新学校而签名的人像滚雪球似的越来越多。

5 fang   

n.尖牙，犬牙

参考例句：

• Look how the bone sticks out of the flesh like a dog's fang.瞧瞧,这根骨头从肉里露出来，象一只犬牙似的。
• The green fairy's fang thrusting between his lips.绿妖精的尖牙从他的嘴唇里龇出来。

6 supervisor   

n.监督人，管理人，检查员，督学，主管，导师

参考例句：

• Between you and me I think that new supervisor is a twit.我们私下说，我认为新来的主管人是一个傻瓜。
• He said I was too flighty to be a good supervisor.他说我太轻浮不能成为一名好的管理员。

7 currently   

adv.通常地，普遍地，当前

参考例句：

• Currently it is not possible to reconcile this conflicting evidence.当前还未有可能去解释这一矛盾的例证。
• Our contracts are currently under review.我们的合同正在复查。

8 violated   

亵渎( violate的过去式和过去分词 )； 违反； 侵犯； 强奸

参考例句：

• Note that thick, strong angles of tibia are not violated. 注意肥厚、结实的胫骨成角部分未受损坏。
• The soldiers violated the church by using it as a stable. 士兵们把教堂当马厩，亵渎了教堂。

9 reptiles   

n.爬行动物，爬虫( reptile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Snakes and crocodiles are both reptiles. 蛇和鳄鱼都是爬行动物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Birds, reptiles and insects come from eggs. 鸟类、爬虫及昆虫是卵生的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 animated   

adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的

参考例句：

• His observations gave rise to an animated and lively discussion.他的言论引起了一场气氛热烈而活跃的讨论。
• We had an animated discussion over current events last evening.昨天晚上我们热烈地讨论时事。