Losing Yardage: Most of Front Lawn Owned by the City

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By Lena Vargas

Summary

Beyond "not in my backyard”, how about "don't take my front yard?" That's the plea made by a couple in Walla Walla to city engineers after learning that most of their lawn belongs to the city. The city plans to begin digging next week.

Story Published: Sep 3, 2010 at 6:01 PM PST

Losing Yardage: Most of Front Lawn Owned by the City
WALLA WALLA-- Beyond "not in my backyard”, how about "don't take my front yard?"

That's the plea made by a couple in Walla Walla to city engineers after learning that most of their lawn belongs to the city.

Many of Frank Ramirez's dreams are laid out in his property title and the other paperwork that documents the purchase of his home on 13th Avenue. But what isn't spelled out is that his property line starts pretty much at his doorstep and does not include most of what he thinks is his front yard.

Frank says it’s very emotional for him because he grew up in this neighborhood and his mom lives close by.

The true property line is detailed in a so-called "Public Facility Construction Agreement" signed by a previous owner fifteen years ago. Frank says the first he learned of it when the city mailed it to him last summer.

"It's surreal. One day you own your home and the next day, they can be coming in with back hoes and bulldozers,” said Ramirez.

Tom Purcell with the City of Walla Walla says it appears the agreement was not disclosed to Frank Ramirez when he bought the house. Frank’s girlfriend lives in the house and is also affected.

"I believe them, they weren't aware," said Purcell.

With most of Frank's lawn planned for city projects, all that he has left of his front yard is about three feet from his front door.

But there is some potential good news for Frank. In the course of our story and taking action for you, the city made a decision that could help him.

It's now considering not putting in a bike/pedestrian lane so frank can still keep about half his yard.

“Our next stop is to sit down with them and show them what we think we can do,” said Purcell.

That's a possible solution for frank, but there's no guarantee the same can happen for you-- if you're caught in a similar situation.

Frank advices you check with the Assessor's Office. Also don't go by what the property looks like, or what you think is detailed in your paperwork, measure the property yourself.

Frank says he didn’t measure because the front yard was in when he bought the house and there was nothing to suggest that his property line did not include the yard.

In talking to the city, we learned you should also check the Auditor's Office to find out if anything is in the works for the property you are considering. That's where that "City Facility Construction Agreement" was filed.

When we left Frank this afternoon, he was going to meet with a lawyer about his options. We will let you know if our story brings about any solution to his case.