Are there any zoning laws in Pattaya City

[tropo]

I live in a line of 5 adjoining residential townhouses. They were not built as shophouses, but just houses with a gated carport at the front entrance. Are there any laws to stop people for setting up shop style businesses in areas that SEEM to be residential only?

The reason I'm asking is because a laundry business set up next to us after 2 years of peace and quiet... and now there's no end of drama related to this.

[Don Mega]

Can only imagine the spin cycle of those wash machines are driving crazy.

[tropo]

Can only imagine the spin cycle of those wash machines are driving crazy.

No, there are no problems with noise. The wash machines are in the carport.

The perfumed products used are causing health problems for my wife as she is violently allergic to them. I also sneeze when I breathe them in. We live with our front entrance and windows tightly shut all day and night.

[JESSVANPELT]

there seems to be only 2 guidelines, A an entertainment licences, for bars etc , music, There are areas zoned residential, but this does not mean much as long as some one is getting paid

[KittenKong]

I'm not aware that Pattaya City Hall has any comprehension of the word "zoning".

"Planning" is equally unknown.

[tropo]

there seems to be only 2 guidelines, A an entertainment licences, for bars etc , music, There are areas zoned residential, but this does not mean much as long as some one is getting paid

As far as I know, no one is being paid off. I'm probably the only resident with any troubles over this laundry... apart from the Farang owner whose property value has dived because of it - it is an eyesore.

The townhouse on the opposite side is vacant and has been for years.

[tropo]

I'm not aware that Pattaya City Hall has any comprehension of the word "zoning".

"Planning" is equally unknown.

That's what I thought. Can't hurt to ask though...

[guzzi850m2]

That will be hard to do anything against I think, a very harmless business for most, expect for you and your wife.

You can hope they quickly shuts down again.

Maybe time to move on? At least you had 2 good years there

I even seen a few moo baans with mini mart on top of what you has to deal with.

[tropo]

That will be hard to do anything against I think, a very harmless business for most, expect for you and your wife.

You can hope they quickly shuts down again.

Maybe time to move on? At least you had 2 good years there

I even seen a few moo baans with mini mart on top of what you has to deal with.

We probably will be moving on. The main problem is not the laundry, but the crazy woman running it. Over nearly nothing she brought 4 guys around to intimidate me today and she threatened that she will call the police. I suggested she should, and she did. Lucky for me because I sensed that the 4 Thai guys would have been quite happy to beat me to death. They came over in a utility truck with 4 2x2's in the back. The guys were staring my wife and I down in a very intimidating manner and I sensed a anti-Farang hatred which had me really worried. One of the guys tried to attack me in front of the cop - 3 times.

[guzzi850m2]

We probably will be moving on. The main problem is not the laundry, but the crazy woman running it. Over nearly nothing she brought 4 guys around to intimidate me today and she threatened that she will call the police. I suggested she should, and she did. Lucky for me because I sensed that the 4 Thai guys would have been quite happy to beat me to death. They came over in a utility truck with 4 2x2's in the back. The guys were staring my wife and I down in a very intimidating manner and I sensed a anti-Farang hatred which had me really worried. One of the guys tried to attack me in front of the cop - 3 times.

That is bad news man.

I think if I had experienced that I would have moved long time ago.

Perhaps even to another country.

[fforest1]

Just move problem solved...

[tropo]

We probably will be moving on. The main problem is not the laundry, but the crazy woman running it. Over nearly nothing she brought 4 guys around to intimidate me today and she threatened that she will call the police. I suggested she should, and she did. Lucky for me because I sensed that the 4 Thai guys would have been quite happy to beat me to death. They came over in a utility truck with 4 2x2's in the back. The guys were staring my wife and I down in a very intimidating manner and I sensed a anti-Farang hatred which had me really worried. One of the guys tried to attack me in front of the cop - 3 times.

That is bad news man.

I think if I had experienced that I would have moved long time ago.

Perhaps even to another country.

The incident happened this evening - I'm still digesting it. I always avoid any trouble with Thais and my wife and I have lived peacefully here for 10 years, unfortunately this is a neighbour and it's hard to avoid when you open your gate (we were heading out to dinner) and are accosted by 4 goons.

[tropo]

Just move problem solved...

Possibly, but when you're been living somewhere you're comfortable at for nearly 5 years, it's not easy to just pack up and leave.

[toenail]

NO zoning or ordnance laws or enforcement of them makes Pattaya one of the ugliest modern tourist cities in the world.(The bay is beautiful at night with the lights.) What do I mean by stating Pattaya is one of the ugliest tourist cities with a modern facade? Kilometers and kilometers of utility wires (mostly telephone/internet) dangling around & down/ wrapped in coils on poles around the city; narrow; crumbling suicidal sidewalks that also hosts telephone and light poles, street signs, vendors, and sleeping soi dogs; an odorous, foul sewer system adding aroma into the city air; insufficient drainage system that overflows with a common tropical rain; buildings or walls (not inspected) built right to the edge of a street making it difficult to see who is zooming down the street as you slowly drive your car onto the main street; handicap sidewalk slopes that are not the width of a wheel chair (what a joke); open loud bars blaring out music until 2 or 3am in the morning; raw sewage piped into Pattaya Bay (no environmental rules to follow here?); unfinished city maintenance on sidewalks or streets ...too bad Thailand was not colonized by the Germans or Swiss. Helter-Skelter development is not the trend of the 21st Century (unless you live in Africa).

[simple1]

Has your wife any local Pattaya Thais as friends / family? if so she may be able to ask them to act as intermediaries to cool down tensions

[WitawatWatawit]

You mention "gated". Are you in a registered mooban?

[digbeth]

At least there's a planning permission law,

people can't build additions freely, but in practice it's rarely enforced, and once pointed out to the authorities, at most it would only ties up the owners of the building in red tape until they get it sorted and probably have to pay slightly more tax,

I had never seen case where buildings were torn down due to improper planning permission, only case where they encroach on other's land. It might be that the additions is built too close to the road but by the time your complaints is investigated and the people taken to court, they would have more opportunities to accost you with their goons.

I have also seen cases where there's an environmental monitoring unit placed at sites where there might be dispute, try calling city hall if you live within their jurisdiction, still don't know how much good that will do either

[tropo]

You mention "gated". Are you in a registered mooban?

No, it's just the gate of my carport. We are directly on a soi.

[tropo]

Has your wife any local Pattaya Thais as friends / family? if so she may be able to ask them to act as intermediaries to cool down tensions

No, she is not Thai. We called in the owner's Thai girlfriend to mediate. She was good, but hell will freeze over before we take her suggestion to apologize. The hardest part is cooling my wife down.

[tropo]

NO zoning or ordnance laws or enforcement of them makes Pattaya one of the ugliest modern tourist cities in the world.(The bay is beautiful at night with the lights.) What do I mean by stating Pattaya is one of the ugliest tourist cities with a modern facade? Kilometers and kilometers of utility wires (mostly telephone/internet) dangling around & down/ wrapped in coils on poles around the city; narrow; crumbling suicidal sidewalks that also hosts telephone and light poles, street signs, vendors, and sleeping soi dogs; an odorous, foul sewer system adding aroma into the city air; insufficient drainage system that overflows with a common tropical rain; buildings or walls (not inspected) built right to the edge of a street making it difficult to see who is zooming down the street as you slowly drive your car onto the main street; handicap sidewalk slopes that are not the width of a wheel chair (what a joke); open loud bars blaring out music until 2 or 3am in the morning; raw sewage piped into Pattaya Bay (no environmental rules to follow here?); unfinished city maintenance on sidewalks or streets ...too bad Thailand was not colonized by the Germans or Swiss. Helter-Skelter development is not the trend of the 21st Century (unless you live in Africa).

So I take it from that one can start a business anywhere one wishes?.. with the possible exception of gated communities.

[slipperylobster]

Property owners that know the local area (lived there for years) usually do as they please...and without permits. Found that out in Chiang Mai as well. Retired police man and his wife (friendly)...opened apartments with small stores below. We rented, for a restaurant...and found out (about 3 weeks later) ...that we were not exactly welcome by anyone on that soi. Nobody backed us up on anything...and everything we did was scrutinized with complaints.

Just not our turf..thats all. Not in the loop. We moved out and now are back in Isaan...in the family village. Wife's brother runs 5 of the village headmen. Everyone is polite..ane we have no issues...(ok...noisy right now near the main road....but moving to the brother's property. My wife can run any business she wants..and now we are on the other side of the fence.

[guzzi850m2]

We live in an nice village with house prices starting from app 5mill and go over 20mill and 75% are very friendly, a few <deleted> (Thais & expats) but we just ignore them completely.

App 100 houses in the moo baan so it's not a big problem.

No laundry/shops and other house animals than dogs & cats.

Biggest drama was when a married couple (Russian lady + Thai man) were drunk and fighting and she damaged his car badly and the police were called to quiet them down.

The landlord quickly kicked them out when he saw the state of his house but I fell very sorry for their kids having such parents.

[Pattaya28]

1 of many downsides living in Thailand. A foreigner can never win, let alone be given a "fair" chance.

My sympathy goes out to the OP. A no win situation.

[robblok]

I wish you the best sounds bad. Did you complain or anything like that that she brought over some goons ?

Did the cop do anything when the guy tried to attack you ?

Just sucks to have to move because of something like this.

[tropo]

I wish you the best sounds bad. Did you complain or anything like that that she brought over some goons ?

Did the cop do anything when the guy tried to attack you ?

Just sucks to have to move because of something like this.

Nope, I never complained about anything. She has been there since September 2013 and we were friendly (apparently) until quite recently. The complaints she made to the police were all lies or extreme exaggerations. Just as an example, one of her complaints was that my wife cooks dried fish outside in our carport very occasionally, like once a month. She pollutes the air with her chemicals, but we are not allowed to cook.

The cop pushed him back twice. After the third time he took his photo and checked his ID and asked him to stand well away. I must say he was rather half-hearted about doing his job though.

Yes, it does suck to move. We have decided not to and will stand our ground. You can't just keep moving whenever shit happens as it can happen anywhere. I will take precautions to avoid the goons and carry some weapons just in case. If they come back I will try to photograph them and make a police report. They can't get us in the house, so they'd have to ambush us. We don't go out much, so they will have to be very patient.

[tropo]

1 of many downsides living in Thailand. A foreigner can never win, let alone be given a "fair" chance.

My sympathy goes out to the OP. A no win situation.

Yes, it doesn't take long before the "this is Thailand, this is not your country - <deleted> off" comes out in any confrontational situation. We really are nothing more than barely tolerated garbage in their eyes.

[Tolley]

I couldn't continue living in a place where there is angst and conflict and of course stress.

I would take this as an opportunity to make a change and move.

Heck 10 years is a long time to stay anywhere.

I know you have a good deal there and you are comfortable but the beauty of renting is that you can move whenever you like.

The issue of the chemicals should also not be taken lightly.

Chemicals from laundries are very toxic and people who are sensitive to them can develop serious health issues from long term exposure.

[robblok]

I wish you the best sounds bad. Did you complain or anything like that that she brought over some goons ?

Did the cop do anything when the guy tried to attack you ?

Just sucks to have to move because of something like this.

Nope, I never complained about anything. She has been there since September 2013 and we were friendly (apparently) until quite recently. The complaints she made to the police were all lies or extreme exaggerations. Just as an example, one of her complaints was that my wife cooks dried fish outside in our carport very occasionally, like once a month. She pollutes the air with her chemicals, but we are not allowed to cook.

The cop pushed him back twice. After the third time he took his photo and checked his ID and asked him to stand well away. I must say he was rather half-hearted about doing his job though.

Yes, it does suck to move. We have decided not to and will stand our ground. You can't just keep moving whenever shit happens as it can happen anywhere. I will take precautions to avoid the goons and carry some weapons just in case. If they come back I will try to photograph them and make a police report. They can't get us in the house, so they'd have to ambush us. We don't go out much, so they will have to be very patient.

Had the same thing with my neighbor he called the cops on me without ever complaining to me (he is not liked in the neighborhood). The cops really did not want to get involved they see it as none of their business. In the end I just solved the problem by buying headphones. Had he told me before he had problems with me I had done solved it faster. The guy himself makes a lot of noise but I don't need to imitate him.

But my experience cops stay out of domestic stuff, but he should have done more for the guy that try to assault you. Still he could not do much more as nothing had happened yet.

Anyway I wish you luck.

[aussiandrew]

What a very emotional situation that has developed on ones door step.

The time for being e rational I am afraid had passed. In the mean time while you have to make the hard decision on your immediate future. Please install CCTV covering your property. Best of luck maybe the future will be for you to rent and may you be happy again. As Thailand can be a decent place to live/retire.

[tropo]

I wish you the best sounds bad. Did you complain or anything like that that she brought over some goons ?

Did the cop do anything when the guy tried to attack you ?

Just sucks to have to move because of something like this.

Nope, I never complained about anything. She has been there since September 2013 and we were friendly (apparently) until quite recently. The complaints she made to the police were all lies or extreme exaggerations. Just as an example, one of her complaints was that my wife cooks dried fish outside in our carport very occasionally, like once a month. She pollutes the air with her chemicals, but we are not allowed to cook.

The cop pushed him back twice. After the third time he took his photo and checked his ID and asked him to stand well away. I must say he was rather half-hearted about doing his job though.

Yes, it does suck to move. We have decided not to and will stand our ground. You can't just keep moving whenever shit happens as it can happen anywhere. I will take precautions to avoid the goons and carry some weapons just in case. If they come back I will try to photograph them and make a police report. They can't get us in the house, so they'd have to ambush us. We don't go out much, so they will have to be very patient.

Had the same thing with my neighbor he called the cops on me without ever complaining to me (he is not liked in the neighborhood). The cops really did not want to get involved they see it as none of their business. In the end I just solved the problem by buying headphones. Had he told me before he had problems with me I had done solved it faster. The guy himself makes a lot of noise but I don't need to imitate him.

But my experience cops stay out of domestic stuff, but he should have done more for the guy that try to assault you. Still he could not do much more as nothing had happened yet.

Anyway I wish you luck.

Yes, it does sound similar. A brewing resentment bursting out after years. There was some weird tension between her and my wife which had been going on since she moved in which I was not aware of until recently. They never said a word to each other since she first moved in - she totally ignored my wife as though she didn't exist. She got a shock yesterday when she did finally speak up. There's a lot of issues here that would take too long to go into in detail and are beside the point, because I believe this woman is not of sound mind, or suffering from depression/anxiety and blaming us for all her problems.

As it turns out, she had made enemies with 2 other THAI close neighbours over the past 2 years - they have both since moved out.