Disharmony on Prospect Street: A Dispute Between Neighbors Strikes a Sour Note

Adam Buchwald is a luthier. He makes mandolins and guitars for a living in his garage on Burlingtons South Prospect Street. For the most part, his neighbors say they have no problem with the craftsman living and working nearby. But one Barbara Headrick, who resides next door has invested untold hours and resources in an attempt to shut him down.

Buchwalds goal is to be able to make instruments in his own home. Instead, hes involved in a protracted legal dispute that began a year and a half ago in city hall and has now made its way into the courts. A request for the case file at Burlington City Hall yields a hefty stack of documents, including correspondence dating back to July 2012.

By now, anyone in Vermont hoping to erect a wind turbine, build a Walmart or open a methadone clinic knows to expect governmental hurdles and not-in-my-backyard opposition. But smaller disputes inspire no less passion and can take just as long to resolve.

Whats so frustrating is that one person can drag something like this on forever and ever, and it could actually get to the Vermont Supreme Court and by law they have to take the case and that just boggles my mind, Buchwald said.

Headrick counters that the noise from Buchwalds power tools shatters her solitude, and his shop threatens to pave the way for more disruption as home-based businesses invade residential neighborhoods.

Simply stated, a growing commercial woodworking business does not belong in a low-density residential neighborhood, she wrote in a statement to Seven Days. Headrick declined requests to be interviewed for this story in person or over the phone.

This imbroglio has ensnared city officials, lawyers and neighbors. Last month, it landed in the environmental division of Vermont Superior Court, where the city plans to defend its decision to let Buchwald work where he lives.

David White, Burlingtons director of planning and zoning, said that the case has certainly taken a lot of time and effort on the part of the city.

Burlington Development Review Board chair Austin Hart concurred, I think that it is fair to say that this particular home occupation application was particularly contentious. People do, however, get emotional about their homes.

Adam Buchwald looks the part of a banjo-playing dad back in Vermont after a stint playing music in Brooklyn: plaid shirt, dark-frame glasses, well-groomed beard.

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Disharmony on Prospect Street: A Dispute Between Neighbors Strikes a Sour Note