City attorney Tony Condotti says the disputed land is public, but says that old subdivision maps from the mid-1970s caused the land-use confusion. The next question this civil conflict pivots on, Condotti said, is interpreting the meaning of those decades-old maps.
According to Condotti, the old maps list the disputed property as “fee simple absolute,” meaning the city had the right to develop them. But the maps also list the property as “right of way,” meaning the city had, at best, an easement on the land.
 The children and cousins of the Acosta family enjoy a sunny afternoon at play in Oak Park, Half Moon Bay, California. |
The civil suit, originally filed on June 18 by the Cypress-by-the-Sea Homeowners Association, seeks more than $1 million in damages from the city on charges that the Oak Avenue Park was built on private land.
Steve Wilson, attorney for the plaintiffs, has previously said that the city excluded the Cypress homeowners from planning for the park, particularly not notifying them of public meetings.
George Kovacevich, another attorney working on this case on behalf of the city, says that the complaints filed by Wilson criticize a lack of notice from the city, but no allegations are made of specific wrongdoing on that matter.
“They’re not making any claim based on that,” Kovacevich said. “However, they make noise in their allegations about never having received notice.”
The civil case is scheduled for a November conference. The case could move to a court trial or be settled through mediation.
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