ok need your thoughts: Am I being a jerk? (WARNING WORDS)

Situation: S&N Communication is on contract with Verizon to install new fiber lines throughout the area and our neighborhood....this involves trenching and burying cable. Today they came and marked up my yard...my NICE THICK GREEN BEAUTIFUL GRASS that I worked hard to get.... So I pull out the Plat for my property (cause I am a dork like that who has his property records handy) and read that I have a 10 foot easement from the roads edge into my property for drainage and utilities.... basically to the edge of my ditch and rock edging.... S&N markings are 17ft from the road edge....I already talked to them earlier before having my plat and voiced a complaint and asked for details of their digging plan...

I plan to call the manager back tomorrow and offer to her for me to remove all the rocks in the ditch so they can trench and dig their cable in the legal easement and not mess up my grass....and I will push back on them digging in my yard...thoughts???

4/17/2013 10:39:03 PM

if they aren't in the easement, then they are not allowed to do anything. If you have modified the easement such that access is not possible, then you can be held liable for some costs.

Short answer, no you aren't if they're outside of the easement.

4/17/2013 10:41:33 PM

No you aren't being a jerk. Also I would not consider rocks in a ditch something you should be expected to remove or cover costs of removing. The expectation should be that their work and "destruction" are confined to the easement. That's what it's for.

4/17/2013 10:47:12 PM

Sounds like they have to work inside the easement if you want to push them.

If the rocks are for erosion control they can move them and put them back. The ditch is also on the easement for a reason.

If they tear up your grass they need to fix it. If you had sod they need to put that back. If this was a neighbor dispute I would be more concerned about being diplomatic, you have to live next to your neighbor, and may need them in an emergency.

The cable company guys will forget you exist as soon as you move on down the road.

4/17/2013 10:52:56 PM

Depends, what kind of grass is it? If its St Augustine, don't let them fuck with it. Otherwise your grass is stupid and you are being a dickhead.

4/17/2013 10:54:33 PM

new fiber lines > grass that you can regrow

it's not even a debate

and this is coming from someone who is uber anal over his lawn\

also, won't they have to connect the main fiber line to your house somehow i.e. coming through your yard anyway

[Edited on April 17, 2013 at 11:31 PM. Reason : ]

4/17/2013 11:29:46 PM

I'd let someone blow up my lawn and just leave it as a pit of sod if they'd run 1Gbps fiber to me.

4/18/2013 12:00:28 AM

^,^^
message_topic.aspx?topic=572048

4/18/2013 12:16:01 AM

So my lawn is very important to me as O worked hard to get it where its at. We are selling our house this summer and the lawn will help it sell.

My oFfer on the rocks is meant as a nice gesture.....depending on. How things go today I may be calling the county

4/18/2013 4:08:16 AM

^x3 and x4

You guys are acting like this is an either/or decision for him. It sounds like the cable company is just being lazy because they don't want to mess with the rocks. Being firm and telling them what's up sounds perfectly reasonable to me.

4/18/2013 7:15:02 AM

Even if your yard was full of weeds the expectation should be that all utilities are in the easement. It will make things much easier in the long run.

4/18/2013 7:33:25 AM

are the markings in your yard construction markings or locates of existing utilities?

4/18/2013 7:41:37 AM

^+1

a picture would help if you are not sure

4/18/2013 7:47:17 AM

existing utilities should not be outside the easement either

4/18/2013 8:18:27 AM

the utility easement is typically not 10' off the road, it's 10' off the road easement. The line shown on his deed for the road most likely isn't the edge of pavement, but some point closer to the ditchline since that is what would be needed for road maintenance.

4/18/2013 8:20:55 AM

first world problems

4/25/2013 1:34:13 AM

^^ exactly

he needs to find his property corners, if he has a plat for the road easement it will show the width which will probably go a few feet beyond the pavement. If he is on a weird turn or something it may go many feet beyond the pavement. If he locates his property corners, probably a iron pipe that's buried a bit, he can measure from that line.

4/25/2013 7:13:12 AM

as someone who works in the telecom world, just let them dig within your property - then sue them. it happens a decent bit because some asshat didn't look at easement rights for a particular site.

4/25/2013 9:25:41 AM

I'm with the OP on this. My centipede still does not look quite right 18 months after TWC tore it up to bury their line to my house. Obviously that was my choice to have TWC so I live with the issues it created, but if I had a say in terms of some line being buried under my grass that I may not use, then I'd push back too.

4/25/2013 9:31:53 AM

Quote :

"as someone who works in the telecom world, just let them dig within your property - then sue them. it happens a decent bit because some asshat didn't look at easement rights for a particular site."

haha. That conversation in a courtroom would be hilarious.

Judge: Did you know they were going to dig there?
Plaintiff: Yes
Judge: Did you take any action to stop them?
Plaintiff: No, I just let them do it so I could sue them

4/25/2013 9:49:01 AM

Could argue that you did not know where the easement was until after the work was done.

4/25/2013 10:44:43 AM

I think a conversation with a manager at the utility should be a first step. I would keep it civil and try to work out a solution.

4/25/2013 10:48:42 AM

This shouldn't even be a question. The developer of the subdivision conveyed the typical easements and rights-of-way for utilities of a public nature. If they're trying to run shit through your property outside of the dedicated easement, you need to say hell no...

4/25/2013 6:04:12 PM

Count your blessings, bro. The lady that owns the 14 acres behind me sold all her trees for timber, so now I have an awesome view of what looks like a nuclear bomb explosion off of my back deck. On top of that, a good majority of the trees were a buffer between my property and a nasty ass trailor park, which is now in plain view. To top it all off, they dropped a tree on my carport (which they have since settled with me for in cash).

Grass grows back quick, 100 year old trees......not so much.

4/25/2013 7:42:24 PM

^ That REALLY sucks.

4/25/2013 8:10:27 PM

You have no idea. The only good news is that the lady that owns the land offered to sell it to me DIRT cheap, now that she's gotten her money out of it. Once they are done clearing it I plan to buy it.

[Edited on April 25, 2013 at 8:23 PM. Reason : a]

4/25/2013 8:20:59 PM

I hate when people bitch about the scenery after someone harvests their timber.
You should've bought the damn timber rights yourself.
100 year old trees? Lol, unless you live in a swamp or your neighbor owned a state park I doubt they were that old.

4/25/2013 9:23:05 PM

Bitching? I responded to a thread about a guy bitching that a small chunk of his grass has been marked to be dug up, only to illustrate how much worse it can be for him. I followed said response with the positive angle that I will, in fact, own the land for pennies on the dollar now that all it's value has been removed.

I don't blame the old bag for getting what she could out of the property that had been in her family for decades. I didn't start my own thread complaining about it. Shit, I even asked the company that is clearing the land to come make me an offer on some of the trees on my property.

Anyway, sorry I offended you when I overestimated the age of the trees. I won't let it happen again, tree guru.

[Edited on April 25, 2013 at 10:07 PM. Reason : a]

4/25/2013 9:56:05 PM

not at all

thats a big deal...not to say that you may or may not be correct

but claims to property and the defense thereof is never being a "jerk" especially with the nature of that sort of work.

and why should YOU have to move the rocks, thats not your property unless im reading it wrong, thats their problem.

[Edited on April 25, 2013 at 9:59 PM. Reason : e]

4/25/2013 9:58:28 PM

if they wont stay the fuck off your property show em what for

4/25/2013 10:03:16 PM

wow i cant tell if that guy is white or Samoan.

it really could go either way

4/25/2013 10:07:44 PM

He's Caucaoan

4/25/2013 10:08:34 PM

if you don't want someone cutting down their trees, live somewhere its not allowed

4/25/2013 10:58:41 PM

I'm all for you standing firm on your property rights.

But fuck grass. Grass is fucking stupid.

4/25/2013 11:19:38 PM

that's just like your opinion man.

4/26/2013 7:55:17 AM

Grass is so mainstream. Raise some chickens in your front yard instead.

4/26/2013 8:00:58 AM

and get a goat. that shit will keep whatever grass you have left short. just make sure it's not a rabid goat. http://www.wral.com/goat-in-orange-county-tests-positive-for-rabies/12380917/

4/26/2013 8:30:53 AM

Quote :

"The only good news is that the lady that owns the land offered to sell it to me DIRT cheap, now that she's gotten her money out of it. Once they are done clearing it I plan to buy it. "

I seriously doubt the woman is going to clear it after she just had the timber cut; she's not going to incur expenses on a piece of property she intends to sell. you might end up getting offered a trashy piece of cutover that you'll have to pay out of pocket to have them burn and replant.

4/26/2013 12:38:36 PM

I guess I used the wrong terminology. I know they won't clear it, I meant to say that I plan to buy it after they are done harvesting the trees. I haven't even decided what I want to do with it yet, so I will cross that bridge when I get to it. All I know is that it is landlocked, so if I buy it I would own the only road access to it.

[Edited on April 26, 2013 at 12:56 PM. Reason : a]

4/26/2013 12:55:48 PM

we ended up working it out with the area manager...had them bring in a sod cutter, cut the grass in 2 areas, shoot the line between the 2 holes, and mix compost and put the grass back in...now to water and hope it survives.

So I found out there is the county record, then there is something else recorded by the state that allows utilities further into my property....

4/26/2013 1:34:58 PM

now if they have to do any upgrades or repairs they will have to dig up your yard anyway. my neighbor has had his front yard dug up 3x in as many years by AT&T.

4/26/2013 1:57:01 PM

Wait, so did the manager offer a reason WHY they couldn't or would't go through the legal easement?Like Smath just mentioned, my concern is now this might happen again (and again).

4/26/2013 2:06:00 PM

^^yeah but he's moving so, he don't give a fuck about a year from now.

He just needs the grass to be nice through the summer

4/26/2013 7:35:14 PM

you made this big of a deal about someone directional boring through your yard?

Quote :

"So I found out there is the county record, then there is something else recorded by the state that allows utilities further into my property...."

how'd you determine where the existing recorded easement is? Did you find your property corners or a description of the easement for the road? The state doesn't just grant blanket statements for eminent domain, and what you're describing is incredibly strange. Like I stated before, the edge of pavement is not the same as edge of road easement and is almost never shown on a property deed.

4/28/2013 7:33:08 PM

this thread reminds me of....

4/29/2013 11:43:47 AM

I am in this situation now with TWC. They showed up and knocked on the door and said hey your neighbor decided to get cable and so we are gonna lay cable through your yard and just wanted to know if we could go through the transition joint in your driveway or if we needed to drill a hole under your driveway. Granted I dont have some super nice grass or lawn but I would rather them not tear it up. We decided we would prefer running through the transition joint rather than boring under the driveway.

We live on a corner lot in a culdesac and our actual yard is probably only something like 20 feet from road to house. I asked them why they couldnt run it directly through basically the back yard straigt to the box and they said because it wouldnt be on land the state owns and if it got cut it would be our responsibility. Does that mean if they run it in whatever easement there is and it gets cut its no fault of mine? I try to keep the driveway and such edged and chances are at some point I may forget its there and possibly cut it if its running through that joint. Also, they claimed they would be tearing up the foam type substance layed in that joint and putting the same stuff back in (as in the same stuff they are tearing up) Is it not their responsibility if they are going to tear stuff up to at least redo that brand new. My concern is it is going to break up into like foot long pieces (per what they told me) and be shoved back down in there and I am gonna end up with dirt filling those cracks and weeds constantly growing in the driveway.

Also is it possible that certain lots are setup to be run to certain boxes like if there is another one across the street and TWC is just taking the easy way out and running a cable across my entire lawn to a box they already said was in a place it shouldnt have been installed?

5/16/2013 9:04:14 AM

They would replant the grass.

You have them the easy way out, and the way that would be more inconvenient for you in the long run. Should have made them dig under the drive way.

That way, you never have to worry about cutting the cable, don't have to worry about messed up filler, and will get a new small patch of grass. That type of drilling, in my experience, is very noninvasive too. It would have been a tiny patch of dirt you probably wouldn't notice a month later.

5/16/2013 10:16:23 AM

yeah i would not want a cable running through my driveway, especially with edging and whatnot.

5/16/2013 10:19:33 AM

Even if you cut the cable while edging, they will have to come out and fix it. They may try to get you to fix it, but if you refuse then they lose a customer.

5/16/2013 10:23:00 AM

Yeah we really should have told them to let us think about it and come back. I am sure I could try to call up there but they didnt leave any information. They told us drilling would require them to get a permit and they would end up tearing a big part of the grass up in that area... no mention of them bothering to do anything about it afterwards just like they told us they will do nothing with the area they dig to lay the cable. "You will never even notice 2 weeks from now"

5/16/2013 10:27:59 AM