San Benito residents press commission on easement dispute; one speaker criticizes local media tactics

Two residents used the public-comment period at the March 18 San Benito City Commission meeting to raise local concerns.

Mike Travis (1695 Russell Lane) criticized reporting and media tactics around a lawsuit he said involved “our good friend, mister Wayne D'Cicfino,” and told commissioners he supported using city funds to defend against the reporting. Travis said the journalist employs "bluster" and makes broad information requests, and that he would privately discuss contributing to a legal fund. Those remarks were delivered as part of general public comment and were not part of a staff or commission report.

Eddie Loa (248 Charles Barber Road) spoke about an ongoing easement dispute involving what he described as "Fund and Son" and what he called the "Eastman situation." Loa said he has been raising the matter for about two-and-a-half years, that Fund and Son has not produced documents showing ownership of the easement, and that a company representative had emailed city officials about securing a gate on Loa's property. Loa quoted a response he said came from the company: "the gate currently our paperwork clearly shows dedicated alley to the rear of the residence, only the property owners along Charles Barber Road. They have the right to access the alley at any time because it's city property. We have not received any documentation from your team that states otherwise." Loa said he will return to the next commission meeting with additional information he said many residents are not aware of.

Both speakers were in the public-comment portion of the meeting; commissioners did not make motions or take action on the matters during the meeting based on the comments.