NEW FENCE NORTH FORT COLLINS

Kris Clagett

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Aug 15, 2023, 5:44:05 PM8/15/23

to jkef...@larimer.org

Hello,

We have had the privilege of living in North Fort Collins since January 2003. I was shocked to see the over 6’ fence topped with barbed wire installed along the ditch.

I have seen wild life flying in and out of the ditch and canal. We have blue herons, wood ducks, geese, etc. all that fly low in and out of the canal. When lucky we have fox that hunt along the canal too. I am sad just thinking about the impact this will have on the environment, wild life, and property values.

The Ditch Company has said this is to keep out homeless people and for liability. I don’t believe we have had any of those issues.

I also want you to know that there are no “no trespassing” signs along the ditch.

I do not live along the ditch but I have several friends who do and I cannot believe they could potentially have an over six foot fence topped with barbed wire in their backyards.

Please help keep our northern neighborhoods a place of community and beauty.

Thank you for your consideration, and for all that you do for Larimer County!

Kris Clagett

1811 Dayton Drive

Fort Collins, CO 80524

kjcla...@me.com

John Kefalas

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Aug 18, 2023, 7:19:44 PM8/18/23

to Kris Clagett, jkef...@larimer.org

Hello Kris,

Thank you for reaching, and here is a link to an article in today's Coloradoan (e-newspaper) about the chain link fence situation, https://www.coloradoan.com/story/news/2023/08/18/residents-protest-fence-going-up-in-northeast-fort-collins/70597423007/. The County has been responsive to residents' concerns about the fence and the lack of communication from the LWI Company. We've coordinated our efforts with the City as the west side of North Lemay is in the City and the east side where Country Club Estates is located is in the county. I am ccing Lesli Ellis, LC Community Planning, Infrastructure and Resources Director as she is the best point person from our county staff. The easements/ownership and issues related to building permits/land use codes and county/city jurisdictions/authority is complicated, and you and your Country Club Estates neighbors and the residents living in the neighborhoods west of North Lemay and perhaps in Nedrah Acres and along Linden Lake will have to determine the appropriate course of action. On Tuesday, I did go out to see the LW Canal, parked my car on Miramont Drive and walked along the ditch road to the east - saw the 300 feet of fence with barbed wire on top, but I did not have time to walk west. To date, we've not heard back from LWIC and Kimberly Nelson (manager).. I encourage you to reach out to Lesli for more detailed information and Kimberly Nelson - to voice your concerns.

Regarding easements and ownership. Larimer & Weld Irrigation Co. (LWI) is the fee owner of the property underlying the canal on the West side of Lemay Ave ( see Rec. 19920037368 & Pheasant Ridge Estates plat attached), according to our land agent. It is inconclusive, at this point, if LWI owns in fee on the east side of Lemay Ave., though he did find deeds (2241/1596 & 2241/1599) wherein LWI & Lindenmeier Lake Development Company swap several strips of land along the boundary of the Linden Lake Subdivision and the canal area. The existence of these deeds gives evidence that LWI owns the canal area in fee or at least claims to own it in fee. In these deeds there is also a reservation for a "joint easement 5 feet in width contiguous to and southerly from the maintenance road along the Eaton Ditch...for the purpose of installing cable television cables." Also, The plats for the subdivisions to the north (Club Estates) and to the south (Linden Lake) of the canal show the subdivision boundaries being to the edge of LWI canal property. Deeds prior to the developers of the said subdivisions, describe the boundaries as not including the LWI canal area. All that to mean, even if the canal area wasn't owned in fee by LWI, the subdivision owners on either side would also not be the fee owner. It would be some predecessor in title who initially split the property in the SW/4 of Section 31-8-68 into 2 distinct parcels - 1 being south of the canal area, and 1 being North of the canal area. Hope this is helpful, and here is the response that we provided to residents and neighbors on August 9th and the two photos I took when I was out in your neck of the woods.

Thank you for contacting Larimer County and Commissioner Kefalas about your concerns about the fence that's being constructed. We have received quite a few notes and phone calls and aim to be as helpful as possible. I am responding on behalf of the County to give you an update on our work and conversations at this point in time. A team of engineers, planners, attorneys, and code compliance staff have looked into the matter and find:

The County does not have authority to approve/deny, permit or stop a fence of this type either on private properties or the ditch easement.
County staff have tried to reach Kimberly Nelson at Larimer and Weld Irrigation Company and have not yet had an opportunity to discuss their reasons or plans and determine if there is an opportunity to facilitate a meeting or work collaboratively.
The City of Fort Collins also is attempting to engage with the irrigation company.
The County is doing more research to understand the type of easement here. If the ditch passes through a prescriptive easement, the property owners or HOA may consider working with legal representation to understand if LWIC should be getting permission from owners to build a fence.

We will keep the interested parties informed if or as we get more information about this matter. Please reach out to me if you have questions.