I bet this guy is popular with the neighbors. Any legal rights here?

LAFAYETTE, Colo. — A backyard dispute is keeping residents of one Colorado neighborhood from getting an internet upgrade.

Lafayette resident Andrew O'Connor is refusing to allow Comcast access to his backyard to install fiber optic cables unless he gets paid. O'Connor said Comcast workers were unprofessional when the company first approached him several months ago to install the upgrade. Since then, Comcast told O'Connor's neighbors he's the reason they aren't seeing faster speeds.

O'Connor now says he wants much more than an apology: He wants cold hard cash.

According to O'Connor, Comcast was given exclusive rights by city officials to install fiber optic cables in Lafayette, Colorado. He does not want the company on his private property and said he is blocking workers on principle.

"It’s about a big corporation bullying people and trying to run over people," O'Connor said.

In a statement, Comcast said: "We have an existing franchise agreement with the City [sic] that gives us clear authority to access valid rights of way and easements to maintain or upgrade our infrastructure to ensure our customers’ broadband and communications services are not negatively impacted. We are working directly with the City [sic] to enforce those rights, and to educate this resident so we can complete our work in the area."

LINK: https://wgntv.com/2018/10/27/m...od-internet-upgrade/

I'm not a lawyer, but if the utility company has an easement, or the city has an easement and the utility company is under contract with the city, I don't see how he can legally bar them from accessing the area.

But I guess he can still be a pain in the butt and drag his feet until a court orders him to let them in. He'll probably be on the hook for legal fees and some fines or damages, though.

You know what? Good for him.

If there was an easement and equipment already there, I can see Comcast's point.
Based on the limited information and the holdup, I'm guessing there is not existing equipment, and agree with the guy standing his ground.

No easement = fuck off

quote:

internet upgrade.

Fuck comcast. There is nothing about them that would be an upgrade. I wouldn't let them on my property either

I actually like Comcast, because they've been a good ISP to me. That being said: If Comcast approached me for access with an attitude, which is what it sounds like happened here, I'd likely react the same way.

quote:

Originally posted by BigSwede:
Fuck comcast. There is nothing about them that would be an upgrade.

Sounds like you've had bad experiences with Comcast, so I can understand your attitude, but replacing coax with fiber is definitely an upgrade.

Truth of the matter is ISP experiences vary widely with region, and, sometimes, even locale w/in a region. As I noted, above: I've had very good luck with Comcast. Others: Not so much.

Which reminds me: They're offering to up me to 75Gb/s. I wonder what that's about?

My SSID is Comcast Sucks

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:
I actually like Comcast, because they've been a good ISP to me.

So you're the one!

I can't blame him, but it sounds like there is an easement.

quote:

Originally posted by Ackks:

I can't blame him, but it sounds like there is an easement.

That's what Comcast wants you to think, but is it true?

quote:

Originally posted by Ackks:
I can't blame him, but it sounds like there is an easement.

If there is one, they would have done the work already, unless the owner is using a shotgun to keep them out. But it does not sound like it.

I'm with the others; if no easement exists, screw Comcast, make 'em pay for being assholes in the first place.

I wonder why the lines are going in private property via easements rather than underground in public streets and roads.

Ultimately, they can condemn an easement, like might be done for other utilities.

quote:

Originally posted by JALLEN:
I wonder why the lines are going in private property via easements rather than underground in public streets and roads.

In both of the neighbourhoods in which I grew up, and the one to which my mother moved, later, all the utilities ran on poles that ran along the fence lines separating properties that abutted each other along the backs of the property lines.

Where I live now my property has two easements: One that extends 25' either side of the center line of the roadway, which means it runs about 15' or so into my front yard, and another that runs along the property line between me and a neighbour on one side.

The one up front would not require they enter my property, other than the easement, to work. The one that runs along the property line pretty much would. (I don't recall how wide that easement is, but not wide enough for heavy equipment.)

When I worked for a municipal utility, we had people put up fences on our easements. We would first ask them to either put up a gate that we could access or take down the fence. The majority of the time the people didn't realize they had an easement since they couldn't see the water or sewer line (but they should know). Only once did we go to court to have a fence taken down and a above ground pool moved so we could replace a sewer main. The yard was big and they could have moved it but wanted money from us to do it. We won, had the Real Estate agent testify in court that he made them aware of the easement when they bought their home.

quote:

Originally posted by oddball:

quote:

Originally posted by Ackks:
I can't blame him, but it sounds like there is an easement.

If there is one, they would have done the work already, unless the owner is using a shotgun to keep them out. But it does not sound like it.

I'm with the others; if no easement exists, screw Comcast, make 'em pay for being assholes in the first place.

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
I'm not a lawyer, but if the utility company has an easement, or the city has an easement and the utility company is under contract with the city, I don't see how he can legally bar them from accessing the area.

But I guess he can still be a pain in the butt and drag his feet until a court orders him to let them in. He'll probably be on the hook for legal fees and some fines or damages, though.

quote:

Originally posted by Gibb:
If there was an easement and equipment already there, I can see Comcast's point.
Based on the limited information and the holdup, I'm guessing there is not existing equipment, and agree with the guy standing his ground.

Y'all are assuming that Comcast already has an easement (article just said Internet upgrade) and if they do y'all are assuming they have multiple line rights. If whoever granted the original easement was smart they would not have granted multiple line rights.

Here is what I mean:

If the original internet through the neighborhood is somebody else's then Comcast needs to get their own easement

If the original internet through the neighborhood is Comcasts AND is old fashioned cable AND Comcast has multiple line rights then they could lay the fiber optic cable. They owe for damages.

If the original internet through the neighborhood is Comcasts AND is old fashioned cable AND Comcast lacks multiple line rights then Comcast either needs to get their own easement OR they could be dicks by removing the old cable (i.e. entire neighborhood loses internet) and install fiber optic cable in the exact old location.

The above is how it works in oil & gas. We must be very specific in our easements to build roads, power lines, gas lines, fiber optic cable, and pipelines when we develop a field. Landowners have become much more sophisticated and multiple line rights are harder to get.

As with any profession, there is a typically small percentage of bad apples and landmen are no exception. Most are likable people, but I've met a few that would give politicians the moral highground.

---

Ego is the anesthesia that deadens the pain of stupidity

DISCLAIMER: These are the author's own personal views and do not represent the views of the author's employer.

Ya'll can muddy the water all you want with your Internet legal advice , but at the end of the day Comcast is going to bury that fiber eventually .

quote:

Originally posted by JALLEN:
I wonder why the lines are going in private property via easements rather than underground in public streets and roads.

It's not unusual at all for residential developments to have electricity , phone , cable , buried across the rear of the properties .

quote:

Originally posted by selogic:

quote:

Originally posted by JALLEN:
I wonder why the lines are going in private property via easements rather than underground in public streets and roads.

It's not unusual at all for residential developments to have electricity , phone , cable , buried across the rear of the properties .

Around here, basically none of it's buried, it's all on telephone poles that run along the property lines lengthwise down the middle of each block.

Even without the added complication of doing it under a road, burying cable is about 10 times as expensive as running it on telephone poles - and harder to upgrade, maintain, and repair.

quote:

Ya'll can muddy the water all you want with your Internet legal advice , but at the end of the day Comcast is going to bury that fiber eventually .

The Comcast folks may have had a similar attitude with that guy and that is what pissed him off. If you have enough money, you can fight these things. Brett Farve who is not known for his intellecutal ability instituted suit regarding burial of fiber optic cable on his property without compensation.