At first, residents of the upscale cul-de-sac in West Lake Hills, Texas, didn’t know who had moved into the 6,900-square-foot, six-bedroom mansion subsequent door.
Then building employees arrived to erect a 16-foot chain-link fence across the $6 million property, which is one among 4 houses on the leafy avenue. In addition they put in an outward-facing digital camera. Subsequent, a fleet of automobiles — lots of them Teslas — started parking on the road. 3 times a day, a shift change signaled safety personnel coming and going on the home. As soon as, the motive force of a passing automotive shouted late at night time that he was searching for a celebration at “E’s home.”
Nobody preferred the commotion, or the visitors, or the keypad-activated gate opening and shutting for employees and automobiles in any respect hours. So even after they realized via phrase of mouth that their new neighbor was Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, that didn’t cease a few of them from grousing to the Metropolis of West Lake Hills about his mansion.
The complaints have since escalated into an uproar over metropolis ordinances, permits and exceptions generally known as variances — a lot in order that the matter of Mr. Musk’s home landed in a contentious Zoning and Planning Fee assembly final month. The talk is headed subsequent to a West Lake Hills Metropolis Council session, scheduled for Could 14.
“Transporting service staff to different homes, leaving their automobiles on our quiet streets, hauling laundry from side to side to different homes has to cease,” Paul Hemmer, a neighbor and the primary complainant, wrote to the Zoning and Planning Fee. The letter was additionally signed by the occupants of the 2 different homes on the road.
For the previous few months, Mr. Musk, 53, has bulldozed his way across Washington, flouting long-established traditions and hacking away at what he deemed to be pointless federal paperwork. However in his personal yard outdoors Austin, the tech billionaire has grow to be mired in a maze of native laws and crimson tape. Nobody, it appears, is wealthy sufficient to flee the neighbors.
Moguls together with Mark Zuckerberg have generally hit the boundaries of their wealth and connections in disagreements over their luxurious houses. So has Mr. Musk, who’s up to now shedding towards the municipal paperwork in West Lake Hills. He and his staff didn’t acquire permits for a steel gate and the fence constructed across the property, making the chain-link construction 10 toes taller than was allowed, native data confirmed. In whole, the development violated six metropolis ordinances. After some neighbors protested, Mr. Musk’s crew tried to realize retroactive permission for the initiatives.
However Jim Pledger, one of many six commissioners on the West Lake Hills Zoning and Planning Fee, mentioned he and his colleagues voted unanimously final month towards recommending that the house owner — he was cautious to not title Mr. Musk — be granted variances for the initiatives. If an exception was made, Mr. Pledger mentioned, “we’d incentivize folks to interrupt the foundations.”
Except the Metropolis Council disagrees with that call, Mr. Musk faces the prospect of tearing down the fence and gate or altering them to adjust to the city’s guidelines.
Mr. Musk didn’t return requests for remark. A home supervisor linked to the property declined to remark.
Mr. Musk’s historical past in Texas is comparatively latest. The tech mogul, who oversees six corporations, moved most of his enterprise operations to the state from California beginning round 2021. He has constructed factories for his electrical automobile firm, Tesla, his rocket company, SpaceX, and his tunneling enterprise, the Boring Firm, round Austin and neighboring Bastrop.
Mr. Musk additionally moved himself to Austin. He initially wished to construct homes for himself and his youngsters (he has not less than 13) on a whole bunch of acres that he purchased there. After the plan fell via, he checked out different properties.
In 2022, Mr. Musk bought the West Lake Hills house via a restricted legal responsibility firm, which was named after the road the place the property sits. The home is in the midst of a residential neighborhood on the backside of about two acres of sloping land off a slender public highway, making safety difficult.
“Castles are alleged to be constructed on hills, proper?” mentioned Anne Yeakel, a longtime West Lake Hills resident who lives across the nook. “These had been subtle patrons, and if safety was the prime directive, this was not the home for it.”
Mr. Musk and his employees didn’t introduce themselves to the neighbors. Few residents have seen him there. However phrase traveled quick in the neighborhood of three,400, and shortly everybody knew he had moved in.
“It’s widespread data right here,” Ms. Yeakel mentioned.
The mansion was one among three that Mr. Musk purchased within the space during the last three years to create a compound for his youngsters and their moms. At one level, Claire Boucher, generally known as the musician Grimes, lived with Mr. Musk and their three youngsters in the home. Shivon Zilis, a mind expertise govt who has 4 youngsters with Mr. Musk, lives a few 10-minute stroll away. Mr. Musk additionally bought one other Tuscan-style mansion a few yr in the past.
Neighbors quickly grew pissed off with the fixed hubbub on the home. They noticed folks coming and going carrying gun holsters, because the security team ballooned together with Mr. Musk’s security considerations. Although Texas has permissive gun laws, the exercise stood out.
“I name that place Fort Knox,” mentioned Mr. Hemmer, a retired actual property agent who lives throughout the road and is president of the neighborhood householders affiliation.
The home was quieter on days when Mr. Musk was not on the town, neighbors mentioned, particularly in latest months, when he lived principally in Washington to advise President Trump. Now residents are bracing for Mr. Musk’s return, after he mentioned he would spend less time in the capital.
Some neighbors turned notably aggravated on the hulking fence in entrance of the mansion, in addition to the enormous steel gate on the different finish of the property, which seems to function an worker entrance.
Mr. Hemmer, who has lengthy owned a Tesla, grew so pissed off along with his neighbor that he started flying a drone over the home to verify for metropolis violations, and he retains a video digital camera educated on the property across the clock. Final yr, he complained to West Lake Hills officers about Mr. Musk’s fence, the visitors and the way he thought the proprietor was working a safety enterprise from the property.
Mr. Musk’s safety crew additionally contacted the West Lake Hills Police Division about Mr. Hemmer, in response to metropolis data. One safety official accused Mr. Hemmer final yr of standing bare on the street, in response to the data.
Mr. Hemmer denied that he was bare and mentioned he was on his property sporting black underwear. On one other night time, he mentioned, he was strolling his canine totally clothed and stopped when he out of the blue wanted to urinate — which Mr. Musk’s digital camera captured.
“The cameras received me,” Mr. Hemmer mentioned. “It’s scary they’ve guys sitting and watching me pee.”
After repeated remonstrances from Mr. Hemmer, West Lake Hills officers discovered that Mr. Musk had violated metropolis ordinances with the fence and the gate. Final month, the Zoning and Planning Fee debated whether or not to grant him variances for the initiatives.
Earlier than the assembly, Tisha Ritta, a allow skilled working for Mr. Musk’s restricted legal responsibility firm, wrote a letter to the planning fee asking for reduction from the town guidelines.
“As a high-profile public official, the property’s resident faces ongoing safety threats, making proactive security measures crucial,” she wrote, in response to a replica of the letter. Ms. Ritta didn’t reply to requests for remark.
Mr. Hemmer and different residents wrote their very own letter to the planning fee, admonishing their neighbor for facilitating “unhealthy conduct on our quiet little cul-de-sac.”
For a time, Mr. Musk appeared poised to win the neighborhood battle. Planning and zoning officers advisable that his property be granted “hardship variances,” which might enable him to maintain the fence and different initiatives with solely small adjustments to the property, in response to metropolis paperwork.
However on the planning assembly, the commissioners refused Mr. Musk the variances. Once they questioned Ms. Ritta, she blamed a former home supervisor for failing to get permits for the development.
“I simply met the property proprietor final yr, and sadly they had been below the steerage of the property supervisor,” she mentioned, in response to a recording of the assembly.
Mr. Hemmer additionally spoke up on the assembly to say he doubted the house owner had been misguided.
“If you happen to comply with him in any respect within the information, he’s at all times responsible of constructing stuff after which asking for permission later,” he mentioned.
One commissioner, who was not recognized within the recording, mentioned she couldn’t imagine West Lake Hills employees had advisable that the house owner obtain any exceptions.
“I’m astounded the employees is placing forth any type of solutions we bend primarily based on who’s asking,” she mentioned.
The planning fee’s choice doesn’t finish the method. On the upcoming West Lake Hills Metropolis Council assembly, members should determine whether or not to stay with the commissioners’ advice on Mr. Musk’s mansion.
If the Metropolis Council votes towards him, Mr. Musk may sue the city. And if that doesn’t work — and given his observe file in backing candidates — there’s at all times the subsequent native election.
Kirsten Noyes contributed analysis.
