One Lancefield ratepayer has proven the worth of a second opinion after challenging a Macedon Ranges Shire Council edict.
John Matthews was one of 12 High Street residents told to move their fence and garden to accommodate a new council footpath last year.
The council notified residents last May their properties were within the road reserve, ranging between 300mm-800mm, and they would need to foot the bill to correct it. Twelve residents of the 14 fronting the works would be impacted.
Mr Matthews and others challenged the claim, and the council reviewed construction plans for the work to proceed without moving fence lines.
Those footpath works are now complete but the possibility of any similar future request regarding his property boundary didn’t sit well with Mr Matthews.
Since then, he and another neighbour have engaged an independent surveyor to confirm the boundaries of their properties. They said the council’s report was inconsistent with the result.
“I was quietly confident that my fencing was in the right place,” Mr Matthews said.
“For peace of mind I needed to ask a surveyor myself. They found my fenceline is within about 100mm of the boundary.
“I felt the need to do this because the letter to residents was clear that ‘at this time’ they would not be seeking changes to the fences.
“There has been a lot of stress for residents around this whole situation. I was quoted about $25,000 to remove and replace my front fence. That would be in addition to gardens and or moving the water meter.”
When the Express asked the council why the independent and council survey results differed, director of assets and operations Shane Walden responded:
“Council identified there were a number of properties that have fences encroaching on the road reserve – the largest of which was approximately 800mm encroachment. Council did not indicate that all were 800mm.”
Mr Matthews said the council was not forthcoming with information at the time of its initial contact and created stress for residents.
He said he had to request a copy of the council’s survey just to learn how far they believed his property encroached the road reserve. The shire survey of the area that he obtained indicated his property was about 600mm out.
Mr Matthews has now registered his independent property survey to title. He encourages other ratepayers to conduct their own research if they feel something is not right.
