Really getting tired of having an easement on my land...

[ultrarunner]

Project is wrapping up... it started last September and then was put on hold during the wet months...

Had a nice mini excuvator on the property all winter... was hoping they had forgot about it... no such luck.

The last 10 days they are resealing/epoxy coating the inside of the manhole cones and replacing metal steps inside and new rings and covers... some are only about 5' deep with the deepest going down 29 feet where it crosses the ridge.

I already had them change one... even helped. It was about 9" above grade and I told them it would not last very long with me driving over it with the dozer and hoe...

Just will happy when things get back to normal...

Also, thinking of adding some type of pipe gate down the side of my place... not on the easment... just next to it.

the big Oak on the easment plus the gate will keep out vehicle traffic...

 

[Midniteoyl]

Other than the hose, if you didnt say anything last Sept and/or gave your permission, you have no complaints now. The time o complain was Last Sept BEFORE they used your land for access and tore up your driveway.

 

[ultrarunner]

True... the original scope was for 6 weeks and now it is 52 weeks and counting.

My driveway was in sad shape... 55 year old concete with no rebar.

My gripe was is more of a cummlative one... the project that never ends and coming home to find things missing (Which now have been returned)

I had a contractor lined up to replace my driveway last fall... put it off til the city project was finished.

Maybe someone here has more experience...

Early on, the city told me they can use eminent domain to obtain additinal easements if needed???

My thought was be helpful for 6 weeks, eliminate the raw sewage spilling into the creek from the old clay sewer mains... etc...

 

[Rayster]

A GoPro Hero 3 is a nice camera with time lapse capability. You may want to check them out.

 

[Midniteoyl]

True... the original scope was for 6 weeks and now it is 52 weeks and counting.

My driveway was in sad shape... 55 year old concete with no rebar.

My gripe was is more of a cummlative one... the project that never ends and coming home to find things missing (Which now have been returned)

I had a contractor lined up to replace my driveway last fall... put it off til the city project was finished.

Maybe someone here has more experience...

Early on, the city told me they can use eminent domain to obtain additinal easements if needed???

My thought was be helpful for 6 weeks, eliminate the raw sewage spilling into the creek from the old clay sewer mains... etc...

YA.. they could use eminent domain as a last resort, but still need a court to approve, if I recall. 6 week to 52 is big time period. If I gave permission and was told 6 weeks, I would have been asking at 8 weeks, and then every 2 weeks after. At prolly 12 I would have put a halt to it until they came up with a better plan.

I read they couldnt use their own easement due to trees... BS. They should have been cut. Its an easement/right of way after all

 

[ultrarunner]

Trees are sacrosanct here... especially Oaks and Redwoods.

Had a old Walnut planted by the previous owner that had to come out because it was failing and near the house.

Required getting a permit for $60 and several weeks of public comment before determination... all property owners within a certain radius received postcards with instructions to voice objections plus the ulitility poles in the area were posted.

I let all my neighbors know ahead of time... so no problems there.

The day the tree came down... someone tried to stop it... didn't even live in the area. My permit and public comment period were all in order.

A family couldn't add on to their home and sold it all because the city would not let them take out one tree.

 

[Jstpssng]

YA.. they could use eminent domain as a last resort, but still need a court to approve, if I recall. 6 week to 52 is big time period. If I gave permission and was told 6 weeks, I would have been asking at 8 weeks, and then every 2 weeks after. At prolly 12 I would have put a halt to it until they came up with a better plan.

I read they couldnt use their own easement due to trees... BS. They should have been cut. Its an easement/right of way after all

The other thing about using eminent domain is that they would have to pay fair market value... it sounds like they just were using the threat as leverage to get a free ride.

True... the original scope was for 6 weeks and now it is 52 weeks and counting.

My driveway was in sad shape... 55 year old concete with no rebar.

My gripe was is more of a cummlative one... the project that never ends and coming home to find things missing (Which now have been returned)

I had a contractor lined up to replace my driveway last fall... put it off til the city project was finished.

Maybe someone here has more experience...

Early on, the city told me they can use eminent domain to obtain additinal easements if needed???

My thought was be helpful for 6 weeks, eliminate the raw sewage spilling into the creek from the old clay sewer mains... etc...

As they say "No good deed goes unpunished"... it sounds like they've taken advantage of you. Unless you have something in writing though, it's probably too late to do anything except grit your teeth and wait for them to leave. Still, a little discussion with your selectman or other elected official might bring you some relief.


For future reference, you probably could have gotten something in return for letting them cross you; i.e, replacing your driveway.
a couple of years ago I let a local wood harvesting contractor use put a yard on my property to cut the lot in back of me; in return I asked only that he cut all of the trees off my 2 1/2 acre grown in field. I then had him cut another acre or so of my land; he then brought his escavator in, and reclaimed the field.
He also built a 600 foot road from gravel screenings... All told I got about 4-5000$ worth of work just for letting him land wood on me for a couple of months. :thumbsup:

 

[ultrarunner]

In hindsight... I should have put a chain or gate across my non easement drive.

At least this way I would have better control of the coming and goings...

Will look into the game camera... seems prices have come down/more features since I looked a few years back.

Appreciate all for letting me vent... might have gotten myself in trouble had I went with my first impulse and picked up everything they had back there not nailed down...

 

[Midniteoyl]

Hah
Would've been mine too.. 'least till they gave me back my stuff

 

[dstig1]

Wow. That isn't fair use of easement. Had a guy here I know second hand that was having a pipeline put through his land due to eminent domain. The crew was very reasonable and so was he. Talked with them a number of times. One time they were talking about another section farther off on the land, and he told the crew supervisor to hop into his truck and they would drive there. Guy said "no can do. If I leave the confines of this easement, I will be fired." While that seems a bit silly when invited, that is frankly the way it should be.

Tell them in no uncertain terms that they need to replace your driveway. They KNOW they were beyond the bounds of their easement. Make them pay for it. I bet they were planning for something as a contingency.

My $0.02