Youngstown outdoor rink on Friday night December 21, 2007 in Edmonton, AB.
A settlement appears to have been reached in the great hockey rink dispute of North Hatley Road.
After making headlines because he had to dismantle his backyard rink following a complaint from a neighbour, a Quebec man says he now has the proper city permit and will avoid disturbances by relocating the ice further away in his property.
The quintessential Canadian neighbour dispute involved two homeowners living in the outskirts of Sherbrooke, east of Montreal.
Jean-Christophe Bossé's homemade rink was an elaborate affair, 19-metre long with side boards, outdoor lights and safety nets.
The rink was next to the home of Normand Grenier, who complained of the nighttime glare and the sound of pucks striking the wooden boards.
Living a few metres downhill, Mr. Grenier said the view from his kitchen and dining room windows were spoiled by the eye-level sight of Mr. Bossé's rink and its nettings.
"It was visual pollution. It was noisy. You'd hear slapshots striking the boards," Mr. Grenier told Sherbrooke's La Tribune newspaper, adding that he feared losing value on his property.
Even though he was derided on social media as a killjoy with no appreciation for the national game, Mr. Grenier's complaint resulted in the city sending a legal notice ordering Mr. Bossé to take down his rink within 15 days.
The city of Sherbrooke does not have a by-law specifically banning homemade rinks, but officials told Mr. Bossé that he should have sought a building permit.
The rink was dismantled earlier this week, with Mr. Bossé vowing on his Facebook that we wouldn't "let toxic people control our outdoors activities."
By Wednesday, however, Mr. Bossé announced that he had obtained a building permit and that he planned to install another rink, elsewhere on his property so it wouldn't bother Mr. Grenier.
Mr. Bossé also extended an olive branch, offering to meet Mr. Grenier "to discuss options for future winters."