The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Eleven proposing “middle ground.” LIC contends easement is clear
by Mark Reaman
The dispute over a public easement connected to the Eleven and Scarp Ridge LLC property above Lake Irwin that leads to the Scarp Ridge trail remains up in the air.
Representatives of the Lake Irwin Coalition (LIC), a group of Irwin area homeowners and outdoor enthusiasts, claim it is clear that Eleven illegally placed boulders on the right-of-way (ROW) before the end of the easement. Eleven attorney David Leinsdorf said the easement document is very ambiguous and could be interpreted several ways, so they will be proposing a “functional solution” that gives clear public access to the Forest Service trails around the old Irwin Lodge while at the same time keeping people out of the lodge parking lot.
The U.S. Forest Service is continuing to dig into the matter and has sent up its own surveyor, who is now analyzing his data to develop a formal plat.
Before the Fourth of July weekend, Eleven contracted a private surveyor, Norm Whitehead, to mark the easement. Based on his conclusions, Eleven then placed boulders and a chain at the edge of the parking lot and the road while creating a visible path that intersected the Scarp Ridge trail. Hikers parked within the 60-foot ROW of the road and it became very crowded at times. The LIC contacted the Forest Service and local law enforcement personnel, demanding that the boulders be removed.
The Forest Service surveyor went to the Irwin site on Thursday, July 9. His pin placements were clearly marked beyond the boulders placed at the edge of the parking lot by the Eleven Group. But that doesn’t mean the Forest Service is ready to tell Eleven to move the boulders.
“The Forest Service surveyor and the licensed surveyor for the LLC will discuss the surveys and any discrepancies and interpretations they find. A plat will be developed at some point. Pending that outcome, we will look at the situation and determine what actions are appropriate,” said Forest Service spokesperson Lee Ann Loupe. “No action will be taken until we are confident in the survey/plat and then we will work with the LLC to implement any action that may be appropriate.”
That is troubling to the LIC and its president David Gottorff who said it is very clear to the LIC where the public has a right to go—and it is beyond where Eleven placed its boulders.
“From the LIC perspective Mr. Whitehead’s survey is not part of any legal record and USFS surveyors did not agree with Eleven’s determination of the end of the 826.1c (road) easement or its boundaries. What is reflected in the current legal record and on file with the Gunnison County Assessors office is a map called ‘Exhibit A’ showing the easement continuing another 60-feet from where the boulders were placed. The USFS survey also reflect what is depicted with the Exhibit A map,” Gottorff said.
“From the LIC perspective Eleven has no legal basis for the location of their boulders obstructing the legal ROW of 826.1c. Eleven’s obstruction of the 826.1c ROW is illegal and the USFS must inform Eleven to fully restore the 826.1c easement ROW immediately. The LIC has clear and compelling evidence that shows Eleven has unilaterally decommissioned FS trail 426 (the trail to Lake Irwin) and obstructed the 826.1c ROW since 2013, with no action from the USFS,” Gottorff continued.
While the LIC claims a clear easement is in place, Leinsdorf said the easement document is ambiguous at best and there are several conflicting elements regarding where the easement actually ends.
“The document states the easement is 4,224 feet long and that would end the easement at about the last switchback a quarter mile from the top of the road,” Leinsdorf explained. “If that is the case, then the easement ends there and the road is considerably longer than the easement. Another section in the document states the easement is for the existing road. The road ends at the parking lot and Norm [Whitehead] believes that’s the best evidence of the intent of the easement. The map throws in another possibility with a ‘Y’ from the road to the intersections with the Forest Service trails.”
Leinsdorf said Eleven is not trying to prohibit public access to the Scarp Ridge trail. “The most restrictive interpretation would be to end the easement at the switchback well before the road ends,” Leinsdorf said. “The LIC wants another 60 feet of access through the parking lot. We think a good compromise is to end the easement at the parking lot and provide a path to both the Scarp Ridge trail and to the Forest Service trail that comes up from the lake by the lodge. That intersection would end about 60 feet before where the USFS pins are. That seems a functional interpretation. It provides public access and we get to control our parking lot. We will propose that as a middle ground.”
Gottorff believes this is just one more instance of Eleven trying to nudge the general public out of its sight. And he believes the company should adhere to the easement as is currently stands.
“Mr. Leinsdorf and Eleven owe the public and the LIC an apology for willfully creating a public access and safety issue at this popular Trailhead during its busiest time of year,” Gottorff said. “This is just one more instance of Eleven taking illegal and unethical actions to try to force the public to stay away from its operations.”
In the meantime, the Forest Service will not take any definitive new action until a final conclusion is reached. “The public has access to the trails and parking within the ROW as long as the flow of traffic is not impeded,” said Loupe. “I really can’t speak to the timeline. There is a lot of work to be done this field season and we will work as expediently as we can; however, I don’t have a timeline to share about when all this will occur. If we determine a need for change or action, we will work with the LLC (who have been responsive to our requests) to implement any change. We prefer to work cooperatively with permittees to resolve issues that occur.”
In one other twist, the Mt. Crested Butte police department said there was a “report of mischief occurring in the area near the Irwin Lodge.” Apparently someone took down the chain part of the obstruction by the boulders. The police department reported, “This case is still under investigation, and further information is not available at this time.”
