Neighbor has elected to damage over 20 trees

[747driver]

I understand why ROW are needed. For further construction if necessary, water lines,cable and telephone lines,power poles etc. We have a 50' ROW for the power lines that run through our other property where our home is. It has to be kept cleared from any obstructions for the power company to have access. Even though there is a 50' ROW for the road I would think another property couldn't come on your property and take dirt and then put it on their property.

 

[mapper]

I understand why ROW are needed. For further construction if necessary, water lines,cable and telephone lines,power poles etc. We have a 50' ROW for the power lines that run through our other property where our home is. It has to be kept cleared from any obstructions for the power company to have access. Even though there is a 50' ROW for the road I would think another property couldn't come on your property and take dirt and then put it on their property.

You complained about the stumps he left, perhaps he thought you might object to a pile of fill dirt as well? A non-hostile conversation about his plans and intentions may go a long way in defusing the situation.

 

[/pine]

In some states property owners can maintain private roads without typical (public) Right of Way...all that is needed is an accepted "easement" that gives the local power company (and utility companies that lease pole space) access...
Right to use is usually limited to adjacent owners and stated in legal docs as "right to ingress and egress"...which means all adjacent homeowners can use the road even though it is on private property with no ROW...

Sometimes property lines in the above scenario are deeded to the "center of the road"...other times they are deeded to one side or the other defined...

 

[two_bit_score]

I understand why ROW are needed. For further construction if necessary, water lines,cable and telephone lines,power poles etc. We have a 50' ROW for the power lines that run through our other property where our home is. It has to be kept cleared from any obstructions for the power company to have access. Even though there is a 50' ROW for the road I would think another property couldn't come on your property and take dirt and then put it on their property.

Still it's in the ROW. But you may have a (weak) point. It seems like he has decided that asking forgiveness is better than asking permission. Y'all should probably try to talk about solving the problem with the road in a mutually agreeable fashion. And, give him a chance to ask forgiveness. Since you have some Texas history you may recall an old east Texas saying that you don't want to kill a cow to save a cat. I know it's often easier said than done. Good Luck!



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[747driver]

You complained about the stumps he left, perhaps he thought you might object to a pile of fill dirt as well? A non-hostile conversation about his plans and intentions may go a long way in defusing the situation.

So why didn't he clean up his mess....because all he wanted was the dirt ! We have talked to him twice nicely, his response is ' its an access road and I can do what I want.

 

[daybreak1998]

So why didn't he clean up his mess....because all he wanted was the dirt ! We have talked to him twice nicely, his response is ' its an access road and I can do what I want.

Howdy,
Clean up a mess?

How long has he been working on it? He might not be done. Not everything is done in a day, or week. He does not need permission from anyone. Whomever had the property, divided up the property, made the roads in the first place, marked the ROW and property lines and sold the property.
So, if you get 2 feet of snow, and a guy is hired to plow the road, how many persons live off this road? say 10 homes, then 10 bills. That is a group interest, and permission. Sounds like you have a mini HOA agreement set up from the original parcel cuts.

 

[747driver]

Howdy,
Clean up a mess?

How long has he been working on it? He might not be done. Not everything is done in a day, or week. He does not need permission from anyone. Whomever had the property, divided up the property, made the roads in the first place, marked the ROW and property lines and sold the property.
So, if you get 2 feet of snow, and a guy is hired to plow the road, how many persons live off this road? say 10 homes, then 10 bills. That is a group interest, and permission. Sounds like you have a mini HOA agreement set up from the original parcel cuts.

There is no HOA, just covenants. Covenants say...ROAD MAINTENANCE. The cost of the road maintenance shall be prorated between all property owners in the subdivision. The extent of road maintenance and/or improvements shall be determined by a majority of the subdivision property owners.
He started this project in early April before we bought the property on April 30th. We couldn't say anything as we didn't own the property when he started. He started by cutting trees down then hauling them over to his property where he cut them up. But he left the stumps on our property !

 

[goeduck]

I have 12 foot easement but no ROW beyond the 12 feet. So there does not have to be additional ROW on the side of the road where I live.

I would let the whole situation go, not worth it. You could be forced to remove your roots from his ROW.

 

[dmccarty]

...
He started this project in early April before we bought the property on April 30th. We couldn't say anything as we didn't own the property when he started. He started by cutting trees down then hauling them over to his property where he cut them up. But he left the stumps on our property !

What did he do with the trees he cut up? Just burn them or use them for firewood?

How big are the trees?
Are they pines?
Did he just cut the trees off at ground level and left the stumps or did he pull the stumps out of the ground?

Later,
Dan

 

[mikester]

Thanks all the feedback ! We live in a private development with a private road that each home owner uses to access their property. We live in a remote part of the county where the local gov't has very little oversight. The covenants for the development state if any road work is to be done all the property owners need to be notified and come to a agreement for the work.

Glad I have posted this thread as everyone keeps asking me what the "right of way or easement " is. So I went into our files of the development survey and there it was in fine print 50 ft R. O. W !! Now that clears up a main question. That being said.....I don't think the neighbor has a right to come across the road and widen it and damage the trees, so in his own words he said...I need a bigger area to turn into my property. He never sent notification to all the land owners on what his intentions were.

We are not going to rush into anything and the lawyer agreed. Like replies here have said....make sure you have all the facts and data !! This isn't the only problem we have had with him....as he likes to provoke confrontation. The lawyer wants to serve him with a temporary injunction to stay off our property. Also said we need to be careful how we handle this as it may lead to further and bigger issues.

Its the principal of what he has done with no regards for other peoples property. That being said ...I don't want to drain my retirement away over 25 trees ! So hopefully we can get to a happy medium.

Bottom line is he did work on the side of your road within your easement. Its not like he went into the middle of your property and started cutting firewood for his own purposes.

Yes he probably should have talked to you about doing the work before you started. I think starting a pissing match over this by calling the sheriff or lawyers will do nothing but escalate bad feelings and bad blood.

Treat this like he did you a favour and cleaned your ditch. Suck it up and stop whining . In 5 to 10 years your ditch will fill up with scrub again and you won稚 remember this incident as anything significant.