Post by Poor Richard on Sept 8, 2020 19:52:20 GMT -7
The Glastonbury Platted Road Network - An Introduction
In the early 1980's, Church Universal and Triumphant (CUT) purchased two large parcels of land in Emigrant. One was to the north of Storey Ranch and that came to be known as North Glastonbury, and the other large parcel was south of Storey Ranch and that was named South Glastonbury. Together they formed the embryo for the future Community of Glastonbury.
Glastonbury was a planned development. The first task was to create a road system that could reach all future parcels. Surveyors and engineers worked hand in hand to design a road system that cost-effectively provided access to every parcel. Boundary lines and the road network were carefully designed and then meticulously documented on maps. Road and public utility easements were added. Then the maps were reviewed and approved by Park County in 1982, and became the legal record for the planned development known as Glastonbury. The approved maps, are called Plat Maps, and the initial road network as depicted on those 1982 Plat Maps, became the official Glastonbury Platted Road Network. You may access the Official 1982 Glastonbury Plat maps here.
Glastonbury was a planned development. The first task was to create a road system that could reach all future parcels. Surveyors and engineers worked hand in hand to design a road system that cost-effectively provided access to every parcel. Boundary lines and the road network were carefully designed and then meticulously documented on maps. Road and public utility easements were added. Then the maps were reviewed and approved by Park County in 1982, and became the legal record for the planned development known as Glastonbury. The approved maps, are called Plat Maps, and the initial road network as depicted on those 1982 Plat Maps, became the official Glastonbury Platted Road Network. You may access the Official 1982 Glastonbury Plat maps here.
The Platted Road Network, as drawn on the Plat Maps, represents the geographical place where the engineers and surveyors agreed the roads should be. They also represent the legal boundaries of the platted road easements. On the platted map section below, a long dash followed by a short dash or a solid black line (if the road follows a parcel boundary), delineates the center line of the platted road. That line is bordered by a series of short dashes and circles. Those lines made up of short dashes and circles, represent easement boundaries. Each circle represents a green T-post. Many of the T-posts have rusted, but still line the platted roads.
The easements are the legal pathways for the road, electric and telephone lines. Normally they are 60 feet wide. They are also the legal pathway for Glastonbury landowners to access their properties. As such, the Covenants 8.01c require that the platted road easements be maintained so every landowner can access their parcel.
An easement does not change the ownership of the underlying property. Glastonbury road easements almost always sit on private property and often straddle two privately owned parcels. The GLA does NOT own the property most roads are on. An easement simply allows the holder to access the property that is within the easement boundaries. If the easement did not exist, then anyone who drove the road, fixed an electric line or repaired a phone stanchion, would be trespassing. An easement holder bears no legal responsibility for the maintenance of the property the easement crosses. The electric and telephone companies are responsible for maintaining their lines; but not for anything else. The GLA legal responsibility for maintaining the Glastonbury platted roads within the easements, comes from the Restated Covenants section 8.01c; not from the easement.
Since 1982, Glastonbury has grown. Many large parcels were subdivided into four, five or more parcels. Private roads, actually like common driveways, were constructed so new landowners could access the smaller parcels. The private roads were NOT incorporated into the Platted Road Network. Thus, the GLA was NOT required to maintain or plow them. However, Covenant 9.08 does allow, but not obligate, the GLA to "maintain new private roads at the same level as the original roads." Landowners living on private roads could petition the GLA for regular maintenance. A simple majority GLA Board vote could enable regular maintenance and plowing. The process would likely involve the County, so a legal easement could be added so the GLA would not have liability issues when working on the road.
In 2004, the GLA paid for the asphalt the County used, to pave Dry Creek Road. Dry Creek is a County road and the GLA does not have an easement or any legal requirement to plow or maintain it. The GLA has also paid to maintain and plow private roads owned by CUT in North Glastonbury for 18 years. The GLA does not hold an easement nor have any legal requirement to service those roads either. Like Dry Creek Road, the North Glastonbury CUT private roads are not part of Glastonbury, and therefore, not under the jurisdiction of the GLA.
Interestingly, some large parcels were not included in the Restated 1997 Covenants, and thus, do not fall under the jurisdiction of the GLA. The original Plat Maps contain every parcel in Glastonbury. But the 1982 and 1997 Restated Covenants specifically exclude many of the original parcels from the scope of the Covenants. Assessments, voting rights, Project Review requirements, etc, ONLY apply to the owners of parcels specifically listed in the 1997 Restated Covenants Exhibit "A" and "B". The owners of parcels NOT listed in those exhibits are NOT subject to the authority of the GLA Board or the Governing Documents.
In South Glastonbury, parcels excluded were numbers 1 through 17. Those parcels were sold to Mountain Sky Ranch in 2016 by CUT. Although they were a part of the 1982 property that CUT purchased, they were deliberately excluded from the 1997 Restated Covenants Exhibit "B", and thus, were not under the legal jurisdiction of the GLA. Those parcels contained original platted roads, Cancer and Chalice Way, but they too, were outside of the GLA's legal jurisdiction after 1997. The road easements run with the property so they remain in effect. But the GLA bears no legal responsibility for their maintenance or plowing.
In North Glastonbury, parcels excluded from both the original 1982 Covenants, and also the 1997 Restated Covenants, were numbers 3 and 4. That is where Golden Age Village (GAV), Liberty Hall, the North Glastonbury Teaching Center and The Thomas More Schools now reside. Both parcels are fully owned by CUT. In addition, parcel numbers 13 through 21 were excluded from the Restated Covenants. GAV lots 1-49, located on parcels 3 and 4 in North Glastonbury, were added to Glastonbury with the 1997 Restated Covenants. The remainder of parcels 3 and 4 were NOT included in the Restated Covenants.
After 1982, new roads were built in North Glastonbury. The gravel portion of Sirius Drive was constructed from the Liberty Hall turnoff to what is now a four-corner intersection at Aries and Sirius Drives. The current paved section of Sirius Drive was built sometime after 1997 as a gravel road. In December of 1997, the GLA purchased a parcel from Storey Ranch in anticipation of building a new entrance road for North Glastonbury. The original access road from Storey Lane traversed private property on the Storey Ranch. The new road was named Sirius Drive. It made a sharp turn from the paved section of Storey Lane, climbed a steep hill, made another turn and then flattened out. It met up with the current gravel portion of Sirius Drive at the four-way intersection with Aries Drive. In 2004 part of Sirius and Aries Drive were paved at landowner expense. Both roads traverse CUT property and are outside the legal boundaries of Glastonbury as depicted in the 1997 Restated Covenants Exhibit "A".
After Sirius Drive crested the hill and made the turn, it left GLA property and crossed CUT property. The gravel portion of Sirius Drive, after the four-way intersection with Aries Drive, is also on CUT property. Neither CUT property is included in the Restated Covenants Exhibit "A". Like Dry Creek Road, Cancer and Chalice Way in South Glastonbury, the GLA is NOT obligated to maintain or plow roads that are outside of its geographic and legal boundaries.
After Sirius Drive crested the hill and made the turn, it left GLA property and crossed CUT property. The gravel portion of Sirius Drive, after the four-way intersection with Aries Drive, is also on CUT property. Neither CUT property is included in the Restated Covenants Exhibit "A". Like Dry Creek Road, Cancer and Chalice Way in South Glastonbury, the GLA is NOT obligated to maintain or plow roads that are outside of its geographic and legal boundaries.
In the below map parcel boundaries are in mustard. The parcels with bold black numbers were excluded from the 1997 Restated Covenants. Note that Sirius Drive, Aries Drive and even Taurus Road traverse property that is not within the legal and geographic boundaries of the Covenants and the Glastonbury Landowner's Association.
