Letter from Brian Kegelman
Property Owners Not Consulted
At the August 14, 2024 Town of Otsego Board meeting, officials serving on the Highway Committee announced a major drainage project. In 2025, and possibly starting this year, the town will be undertaking extensive changes to the drainage system for managing stormwater runoff.
The town just completed its initial project on Tripp Hill Road. This resulted in the installation of new ditches and the replacement of existing ditches that measure at least six feet wide and three feet deep. This approach has the potential for personal harm to anyone driving into a ditch when expecting a shoulder to be there and financial harm to property owners.
There already is a history of drivers sliding off of the road due to snow and ice. Now, consider how such a large ditch could damage a car and its occupants, starting with the inability to drive out of the ditch and making it safely onto the roadway.
The financial value of every property owner in the town will decrease from diminished curb appeal as most town roads are 16-20 feet in width; add six feet of ditches to either side, and you are now up 32 feet of roadway. The town has the legal right to “open” an existing road to at least 49.5 feet, but not a legal right to property between the existing roadway and 49.5 feet. They have to legally obtain that land.
According to New York Highway Laws, in order to legally obtain the right to do this, the town has to be granted permission by the property owner, pay the property owner for the right or institute eminent domain proceedings. The town doesn’t plan to do any of those options, they plan to simply “take the property.”
When Councilwoman Pat Kennedy was asked if the town was going to ask the permission of the property owners to use their land, she replied “No, we are just going to tell them what we are doing.”
Why should you care?
Well it’s unconstitutional. The Fifth Amendment states “nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.”
Consider the impact to your property. Chances are, if you have a ditch on your property, it is a foot or two wide. Many of us can step over the existing ditches to access our property; at six feet, it is a long jump. You most likely have a culvert under your driveway, and most are usually 12 inches wide. I have to guess they haven’t thought of that nor will they pay for larger culverts to be installed. Consider a heavy rain storm filling a six-foot-wide ditch, moving its runoff down the road.
Now think of the increased volume and velocity that runoff will have. Driveway culvert or not, imagine all of that water flowing over your driveway and what will be left of it. Think of the excess water flowing onto your property and into your homes.
Most of us have landscaping along the road that will be gone, as well as the privacy it offers.
What options do you have? You can speak up and tell the town that you object to their approach to governing and that you want to have a say in what happens to your property. I have tried that, to no avail.
Or you can always sue for inverse condemnation for taking the property to open the road or for creating ditches that deprived you access to all of your land. You can sue for the town flooding your property and taking larger or newer easements.
How do I know this? I have two lawsuits against the town. The first is for flooding our property and taking easements. The second suit is for widening the roadway, installing ditches that deny access to our property, and denying us our privacy.
Keep in mind, the taking of our property on Tripp Hill was limited to our home. We filed a lawsuit. You might think that would have discouraged the town from doing it again. Nope, they just did again for at least a half mile of roadway—right next to us.
I am willing to provide additional information regarding how this would affect you, and I would be pleased to organize a joint response to the Town Board. If anyone is interested, please e-mail me at tripphillroad@gmail.com.
Brian Kegelman
Fly Creek