One morning, a few weeks ago, I arrived at the law offices of Skeen & Skeen, P.C., and was surprised to see half of our quaint, old fence lying flat on the ground. I first suspected that a car trying to "flip a U" on Seventh and Brownell Streets had accidentally backed into our fence. A quick investigation revealed nothing to indicate that the fence was hit by a car, but it did reveal a rotten post that simply gave way. I have been meaning to get the fence repaired, but so far I have not gotten the job done.

This is not the first such problem that I've had in Georgetown with collapsing fences. About six years ago, the ugly, modern fence that used to run along the north property line of our home blew over during one particularly strong spring windstorm. By the time I got to it, it was a pile of broken and splintered boards and posts. While I was out cleaning up the mess, my neighbor stopped by to see what was going on, and asked, jokingly I assume, "Did you get a permit to demolish that fence?" "Tell the wind to get a permit!" I replied. That fence hasn't been replaced either.

Recently I have been thinking about my fences, Georgetown's ordinance that prevents the demolition of a historic structure, some of the historic buildings of Georgetown-Silver Plume National Historic Landmark District that seem to be teetering on the edge, and the concept of demolition by neglect. If I had wanted to tear down my existing fences, I know that there is an ordinance on the books that would require me to get a permit. If I want to replace the fences, once again, I would need a permit. But if the wind or snow or passage of time does my demolition for me, then, apparently, no permit is required. This seems obvious, but looking at it from another perspective, it seems inconsistent and illogical.