Earle moves fence to foster land deal

Earle moves fence to foster land deal

Baseball field fence encroaches on property line

news@theeveningtimes.com

Earle has agreed to move a fence on one of its baseball fields which has been encroaching on the neighboring lot over the years in order to help facilitate the sale of the property.

Terre Rodgers of First Delta Realty told the city council that they had the property surveyed and that the fence by left field, which has been there for a number of years, is about 15 feet too far over on the property.

“It’s not very much land,” Rodgers said. “It has a chain link fence and it just needs to be moved back.”

The baseball field was given to the city by the Anderson family over 40 years ago.

Rodgers said she initially thought the school district owned the baseball field and had been dealing with Superintendent Rickey Nix until they found out that the city actually owned the field.

“I dealt with them for a few months only to find out the school district doesn’t own it,” Rodgers said. “The city does. I’m asking the city move the fence off the property.”

Rodgers said the buyer plans to develop the property but won’t go through with the sale until the issue of the fence is resolved.

“It’s not going to affect the baseball field at all,” Rodgers said. “It’s not very much property. It will just ease the mind of the buyer from being willing to purchase it. He is planning on doing something with the property. So it is in the city’s best interest.”

Councilwoman Jimmie Barham said the city was supposed to put up a sign naming it Anderson Field when the property was given to the city but never did.

“We’ve neglected to do that,” Barham said. “That was a gift to us and that was Mr. Anderson’s request.”

“Let’s move the fence and put up a sign,” Councilman Donnie Cheers added.

City Attorney Davis Loftin said while he doesn’t object to moving the fence, the city might have some claim since the fence has been on the property for 40 years.

“I don’t have a problem,” Loftin said. “We probably are encroaching on that lot.

All I’m saying is we’ve been encroaching on that lot for a long time. I’m not saying we’re going to do anything. All I’m worried about is who is going to move the fence and who is going to pay for it.”

Loftin asked if anyone knew how much it would cost to hire a fence company to move it.

Councilman Robert Malone said it would be no trouble for the city to move it.

“It’s no big deal,” Malone said. “As long as the legality is out of the way. You just dig some holes and dig it up.”

Cheers said they probably didn’t survey the land when they put the fence up.

“I think they just put a fence around it,” Cheers said.

Councilman Bobby Luckett, Sr. asked Rodgers if there was a set deadline the city had to move the fence.

“Do we have a couple of weeks?” Luckett asked.

“Because we’re just hearing about this.”

Rodgers said she has been working on the deal for over a year, but asked that they get it moved within a couple of weeks.

“We’ve been dealing with it for a long time,” Rodgers said. “I will say I am sort of on a deadline. I can’t disclose why. But as quickly as possible. I would be thrilled to handle this in a couple of weeks. I don’t need it to drag on a month. A couple weeks we can bear with you.”

Barham agreed the city should move the fence.

“I think we ought to decide who we want to move the fence,” Barham said.

“Because whatever is it, they are buying land in Earle and is going to do something with it.”

Malone, Cheers, and Luckett agreed to donate their time to move the fence.

“That would be awesome,” Rodgers said.

By Mark Randall