Music

Their dream home is already a neighborhood war.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have a new home that the NFL star bought months before their July 3 wedding. The couple has not yet made the mansion their primary residence. However, they are certainly making several changes to it for their privacy. As they strengthen security at the property, some neighbors have raised objections to the proposed changes.

Reports previously revealed that Kelce bought a $5.35 million Ohio mansion in Bratenahl. Spread across 21,140 square feet, the mansion is situated on the southern shore of Lake Erie. According to the Daily Mail, the couple’s neighbors are not exactly elated to have them in the neighborhood. The couple’s need for privacy has also led to a community dispute, involving the installation of a fence and the planting of scores of tall trees. 

Several neighbors raised their voices against the couple’s security plans last month in a board meeting. While they were allowed to install a six-foot-tall fence after the board reached a unanimous decision, the residents continue to slam the “absentee” owner. 

Several neighbors put forward their concerns during another meeting on Tuesday. Katherine Bolton, a longtime resident, fumed at Swift and Kelce’s security plans. She said, “There’s a new owner, who is an absentee owner, who is not going to be here.” 

Bolton continued to speak against the mansion owners and shared one of the major problems that the trees could cause. She said, “Planting 50 evergreen trees just ten feet from a 100-year-old clay sewer line is virtually guaranteed to cause severe root intrusion, pipe structural failure and catastrophic sewage backups.” 

She also shared that the cost of lining the sewage against the trees’ roots will be about $75,000. “This applicant may decide to sell her house next year, maybe move on and buy another house,” Bolton added. She then asked the board what she would do with “50 evergreen trees on my sewer line,” when the owners are gone. 

Another neighbor, Chuck Bauernschmidt, a resident of more than 39 years, brought in another argument. He targeted Kelce and Swift’s decision to remove the shrubs and trees from the property. Therefore, he expressed the fears that deer would stab themselves on the fence. 

Jacob Kutz, the planner behind the mansion, defended his celebrity clients. He claimed that Swift and Kelce were merely seeking “privacy and security” after “one of the largest sales in Cuyahoga County.” He also pointed out that the couple abide by the board’s plan and scaled down the fence from eight feet to six feet. 

The planner also noted that the newlyweds will have the sewage line jetted and cleaned to prove they are good neighbors. Moreover, they have also agreed to add a gate for Bauernschmidt. They are also set to present a plan later. However, the board approved the landscaping plan. However, on one condition: that the plan would give trees enough space to mature.

According to Page Six, Swift and Kelce have already installed voice alarms on the property. These alarms warn people getting too close to the property. “A neighbor approached the house and got a voice warning about not passing onto the property after getting too close to the house,” a neighbor revealed.