Property Invasion

kg4jxt

New member
Mar 28, 2014
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A couple of weeks ago, some nefarious actor(s) entered my property in my absence and dug a couple of four foot deep holes! Maybe they were looking for buried treasure, who knows? (actually they appear to be a contractor working for a utility company of some sort - probably Claro). I decided it was not worth bothering the Sindico about such a minor matter and simply refilled the holes so nobody would accidentally fall into them. But this week, someone - perhaps the same one? - came back, re-excavated the holes, put telephone poles into them hacked up my fence line and scattered some of the brush around and piled some in the ditchline.

My surveyor told me when I bought the property, that my land extends to my side of the ditchline. The posts are just on my side of the ditch. The road is unpaved, so its course is somewhat variable over the years.

Is there any such thing as a utility easement? If so, does anyone keep track of where it is (such as a land court, for example)? Do utility companies (or their subcontractors) have right of eminent domain?

If someone constructs on my property without my permission, is it within my rights to simply "remove" the construction? I feel that it would be kinder to all concerned if I do this before the construction proceeds any further (say, by hanging wire on said posts). I am advising my sindico that I have been violated and I want the posts removed immediately. Anyone care to prognosticate?!

I should say that if I thought the placement of utility posts in front of my property was in the furtherance of some local community improvement, then I would cheerfully stand aside. But it appears that a fiber-optic cable is being strung up the mountain to a remote tower cluster some miles away. The local communities, which do not even have landline phone service, are certainly not about to have access to high speed data. Screw Claro.
 
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Cdn_Gringo

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Apr 29, 2014
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Easements for utilities do exist here as does the city's right to a sliver of your property adjacent to public access roads/property for things like ditches, fences or decorative palm trees etc.

Your Abagado can ensure that the location of these new additions are properly located. Yes, you are correct, you should investigate this before the project proceeds beyond the feasibility of correcting any deficiencies. If there is a hint of impropriety, first order of business is to get an order to cease work while the legal process stumbles along a tortoise speeds - otherwise the project could be finished long before you have your final say.
 

malko

Campesino !! :)
Jan 12, 2013
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A big dog, or 2, or 3 would solve your problem faster than any lawyer !!
Or at least would force claro ( or whoever ) to act like civilised folks and ring the door bell and ask for permission.
 

kg4jxt

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Mar 28, 2014
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Update: The alcalde says neighbors a mile down the road called the police when they ran roughshod through their avocado orchard and the police ordered them to relocate the post across the road. Several neighbors in the nearest village have also demanded post relocations and the local alcalde and I will visit the local Sindicos tomorrow if the project engineer has not resolved the issue by noon! Action! Many have complained because the crew cut down the full branches of productive avocados all along the route of their cable.

I spoke with the crew boss when I saw him driving through town and explained politely that he needs to remove the posts from my property. I told him very happily that I know he is just doing whatever his manager instructed and I regret if there is inconvenience to him personally, but he does not have permission. He said he has various "letters of no objection" from sindicos, but they are ancient browned paper and none is from the local sindicos.

Several neighbors with whom I spoke also said there is quite a different situation here. If Edenorte were installing a post, that is public utility; but this cable is strictly a private development with no special rights (but I am still waiting to hear from an abogado about this). Stand by for further news!
 

kg4jxt

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Mar 28, 2014
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Update (Wednesday): The alcalde has been harveting avocados all week and has not had time to address my issue. Today, the Claro contractor was putting cable on the posts, so I visited them again and said I still object and now I have to call the police. They said, no, no; we have a letter of no objection from the Sindico. I replied this letter only allows you access along the road, not on private property.

The police visited and kicked the post and talked to the contractor and a Claro guy, and they all decided the Sindico has to sort it out tomorrow.

So, here is more detail: I have a "blue" title and a DGPS survey plat. The survey plat appears to show that the property line of my property actually crosses the dirt road - like I own the road almost entirely (I should put up a toll booth, right?!). The mountain is gradually eroding, so the road is gradually moving toward the uphill direction and thus into my property. Realizing this some years ago, I hired a contractor to make a new massive concrete ditch since the road had none (or, it had been covered by road grading over the years). I heard there were plans to pave the road and I certainly did not want to obstruct paving, but I also did not want visitors on my property. I put up a temporary fence somewhat inside my property.

Claro has assumed the ditch I made is a public ditch and my temporary fence is my property line. Tomorrow, I will attempt to convince the Sindico that is not true and that my intention is to restore my fence line to near the edge of pavement once the road is paved (probably some time around the year 2030).

The Claro engineer can see that the "downhill" side of the road is not a very good place for a post - sooner or later it will slide down the mountain. It certainly is a problem, but I think it is rightly a Claro problem and not MY problem. Will truth, justice, and perhaps the judicious offer of a campaign donation; carry the day? Stay tuned! :D
 

DR Solar

Bronze
Nov 21, 2016
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We had a similar problem with the water company entering our fenced and locked property. I showed up with my legal guns and made it clear that I will shoot. The police arrived and stood next to me.

They have never entered again.

Edit: Property is dislindied (sp). If that helps.
 

DR Solar

Bronze
Nov 21, 2016
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I hear so often of people being taken advantage of. Dominicans and Gringos. More so the Gringos and in part is that they do not know their rights and have not protected themselves or have done so in the wrong way that makes them more vulnerable. Putting fencing inside YOUR property is almost giving your property away and will be very difficult to win in court; you set your property line with that temp. fence. Not knowing the language well enough or your legal rights is what some others count on. They intimidate you! They are Dominican that works for a XXX company and have the right to enter your property and do what they want. WRONG!

But YOU have to know the law and your rights and have the correct fence/wall in the correct location.

Get an lawyer.
 

ctrob

Silver
Nov 9, 2006
5,591
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Hire some of the neighbor boys to remove the posts (not cut them). Drag them down the road somewhere.

They're on your property. Move them. But don't destroy them, that would come back to bite you.
After that, you could always offer to sell them some right of way - thru a lawyer. But rip em out first.
 

DR Solar

Bronze
Nov 21, 2016
1,626
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Hire some of the neighbor boys to remove the posts (not cut them). Drag them down the road somewhere.

They're on your property. Move them. But don't destroy them, that would come back to bite you.
After that, you could always offer to sell them some right of way - thru a lawyer. But rip em out first.

My point. Know your rights and STAND YOUR GROUND.
 

kg4jxt

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Mar 28, 2014
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I visited the Sindico today, and he said it is an issue for the Fiscalia, and the Fiscalia's administrator said "get a lawyer" (after a three hour wait), so now I am an official 'DR Solar' fan! LOL. This weekend, I put up a new line of fence posts along the road to illustrate to the contractor where the boundary is located. If I connect the posts with barbed wire, they will not be able to reach their post and they will have some severe maintenance issues in the long run. I am not sure "the long run" is in their vocabulary, but they have not yet installed the cable-mounting hardware - only tied the cable to the tops of the posts. They will be back soon for the cable mounting if nothing else. Maybe I will just wait to see what they do - cheaper than a lawyer, and I am not really in a hurry about this.
 

kg4jxt

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Mar 28, 2014
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I finished my new fence near the road - the Claro post is about 15 feet inside the (live) fenceline. I will plant banana sepas in the intervening space and start a trinitario on the pole - they are so pretty when they are in full bloom, don't you think? It is mildly surprising to me that Claro did not move the post - but as I said before, the workers doing this project probably have no thought for long term complications. So this is "The End" . . . for now.