Earlier this morning, tech billionaire Elon Musk pushed for local LA resident Lou Alvarez, 47, to cede his backyard to his neighbor, Timothy Harris, 70.
“It’s the right thing to do,” Musk tweeted. “There’s already been a lot of conflict over the backyard. Yes, Mr. Harris was the aggressor. But I think it’s only fair that Mr. Alvarez allow his neighbor to push the limits of his property over a few more feet, at least past the azaleas.”
The dispute over Mr. Alvarez’s backyard began months ago when Mr. Harris entered Mr. Alvarez’s backyard and claimed that he was “liberating” the backyard, “allowing the tomato plants to finally express their free will.”
Mr. Alvarez disagrees with his neighbor’s assertion.
“He just showed up and claimed it was his. He said that my rosebushes were ethnically descended from the ones in his backyard. But they’re not. I bought them at Home Depot. And even if they were, he doesn’t get to take my property.”
Still, Musk continued to side with Mr. Harris.
“There’s a historical claim on the backyard that goes all the way back to when the land was mapped out for development in 2005. This is an age-old conflict that really destabilized the entire cul-de-sac, and I think it’s best that Mr. Alvarez do what is right and just give up the land.”
When asked if Mr. Alvarez’s ownership of a Tesla car would put added pressure on him, Musk was uncertain.
“Who can say? I mean, if I was in the same situation, I know I wouldn’t want to bite the hand that feeds me.”
Upon hearing reports that Musk had previously spoken with Mr. Harris months earlier at another backyard barbecue, Musk went on the defensive.
“I reject all reports that Mr. Harris and I spoke at that barbecue. It was just a group of neighbors at a potluck, doing some grilling.”
Musk also denied his affinity for Mr. Harris, but did describe him as a “very masculine man” who made Musk feel like a very “special boy”.