Measure for Measure

I was standing in my kitchen this morning, when I saw a stranger walking around in my garden, which is now under about 8" of snow, by the way.
In England, I would have called the police, but Naperville being what it is, I assumed he was probably going to plant some bulbs or landscape the lawn for free.
He took out a tape measure.
"Can I help you?" I asked.
"Just checking the steps of your deck are the correct depth," he said. "I'm from the city council. They're fine."
That's good. I thought he was there to measure the snow....