‘Be a good neighbour’: Suspected vandal’s wild note to suburban boat owner

A war of words over a boat and trailer parked on the suburban Sydney backstreets has taken an ugly turn.

A family’s parked boat is turning into a community noticeboard of sorts as a neighbour dispute on Sydney’s Northern Beaches heats up.

Images emerged on Reddit show a boat and trailer parked on the backstreets of the oceanside suburb of Freshwater.

“F**k it off” is spray-painted in black over the boat’s silver tarpaulin cover.

The section of the road is among a densely-populated part of Freshwater with a series of apartments nearby, making parking spaces scarce.

A neighbour dispute in Freshwater, a suburb in Sydney’s Northern Beaches, has taken a new turn as a local vandal spray-painted ‘F**k it off’ over a parked boat. Picture: Reddit

The boat and trailer are parked on an untimed parking spot, which means the boat owner has the right to park it there around the clock. Picture: Reddit

The parking in the area in question, however, is untimed, meaning the boat owner has the right to park the vessel there around the clock.

The owners, a family who say they’re new to the area, pleaded with their new enraged neighbours.

“This is our family boat that we go fishing and wakeboarding on,” they wrote on a note plastered over the graffiti,” they said.

The owners of the boat are new to the area. Picture: Reddit

“The boat and trailer are registered, and we can thus park it legally in the street.

“We live in the street and haven’t just parked it here as it looks like a quiet spot.

“I have tried to be thoughtful by not parking directly in front of anyone’s house or next to their driveway.

“Hope you can understand and not graffiti or damage our family boat,” the letter concluded.

On Wednesday, the neighbour responded yet again, this time with a note of their own.

The neighbour wrote: “There are six blocks of flats within 50 metres.

“You are taking peoples (sic) night time parking. This is not a quiet area.”

The neighbour asked the owner to park the boat outside their own house.

“It is not fair to park there and take our parks,” they wrote. “Be a good neighbour and not just someone who just moved here.”

The back-and-forth continued with another note from the owner.

“The boat will be moved in the next few days,” they said. “Please do not graffiti or damage it.”

News.com.au understands the trailer is not the only trailer or car left long-term on the street, but it is the only one to have been vandalised.

The neighbour responded with a note of their own. Picture: News.com.au

A new law was passed in November 2021 in the New South Wales parliament that grants local councils and police increased powers and penalties regarding unattended property left in public places. Picture: News.com.au

In November 2021, a new law was passed in the New South Wales parliament that grants local councils and police increased powers and penalties regarding unattended property left in public places, such as streets. The law facilitates on-the-spot fines, higher court penalties, seizure action, and enforcement orders.

Local councils have different regulations regarding parking on residential streets. Some councils allow parking of registered caravans, motorhomes, and boat trailers as long as they are not heavy or long vehicles.

Others have laws allowing boat trailers to be impounded if they are parked on a road for more than 28 days.

Northern Beaches Council was contacted this week for clarification on long-term parking of cars and trailers on its streets.