HOW TO SPOT A GROW OP

B knows a thing or two about marijuana grow operations. In the past
eight years, the home down the block has been busted twice for growing
pot.

For instance, just because kids are celebrating birthdays upstairs,
doesn't mean the parents aren't growing pot in the basement.

(B doesn't want his named used, because his neighbours have so far
eluded arrest and have not sold their house, despite B's co-operation
with police. According to a list of former grow homes obtained by the
Times, his story checks out.)

General dilapidation of the property is one of the most obvious signs
that something is going on inside the home, according to B. At his
neighbour's house, a boat has sat unused in the driveway for years and
a picket fence is decaying from lack of upkeep.

"It was a lack of maintenance. Things were falling apart," he told the
Times. "After the first bust, they wore off the roof, the tiles. You
know, when there's snow, and everybody's roof has snow except theirs?
Hmmm . . ."

It was the condensation running down the windows that alerted B to the
fact that the neighbours had started growing pot again.

Sometimes the cues aren't too subtle.

"One time, when he was living here, he wasn't taking care of the lawn.
So this car pulls up in front and these two dudes get out of the car,"
said B. "He hadn't taken care of the lawn, so he's making a notice of
himself, so they went in. Fifteen minutes, they were out and he was
outside mowing the lawn."

Another time, a person who had crossed the growers and ended up in the
hospital came to B's house to tell him about another house the
neighbours had bought and which they had also reportedly turned into a
grow-op.

Other things could throw a neighbour off, if he or she isn't vigilant.
The birthday parties for the neighbours' small children are one
example. The grow-op also didn't steal power; instead the operators
used power from outlets normally used for appliances like a stove or
washing machine. And aside from the occasional police raid, they keep
to themselves.

"Our neighbours are quiet, I'll give them that credit," said B.
"There's less chance of losing my house with a big blow-up than if it
was a meth lab."