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Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Minnetonka: easements or land grab?

Star Tribune Sun, 09 Dec 2007 03:47:34 GMT
Shoreline buffers: Other side of story

The city of Minnetonka, in its proposed shoreline ordinance, would require lakeshore residents who make majors improvements to their property to install a 25-foot natural vegetation buffer zone, as recommended by the state Department of Natural Resources, between their shoreline and lawns. This area is to help absorb yard waste runoff. The article did not report, however, that the city would control this area of land through a permanent easement. This easement would be 25 feet back along the full width of the property along the shoreline. The city could eventually control the entire shoreline of all lakeshore properties in Minnetonka through this easement. That would be 2,500 square feet of property on a 100-foot piece of lakeshore. It was pointed out at the meeting that the city would literally control the entire lakeside yards of some smaller properties. This feels like a land grab. Property values, as pointed out by real estate experts, would definitely decline because the city would in essence own that shoreline property. Through this control, the city could potentially do as it wishes with that land in the future. This is a major fear of many shoreline owners as it affects future resale values.

[[keywords: LandUse;Legal;Metro;]]

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