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Property owner asks city to remove bus-stop easement; mayor vows cleanup and improvements
Summary
Robert Singleton, a local property owner, asked the Broussard City Council to abandon a 50-foot easement that contains a bus-stop shelter so he could maintain the lot; the city attorney said the easement benefits the public and the mayor committed to clean and repair the stop while the owner decides whether to pursue removal.
Property owner Robert Singleton urged the Broussard City Council on March 10 to abandon a 50-foot easement on his property that hosts a bus-stop shelter, saying the structure is dirty, poorly maintained and creates a nuisance for his property.
"I own the property at 100 Block Of Billy Square Drive where the bus stop cover is," said Robert Singleton, who told the council the cover has not been cleaned and that insects hide under the seating. He asked that the easement be lifted so he could maintain and alter the parcel as he wishes.
The mayor and city staff said the shelter is on an existing easement the city uses to provide a child-safe bus stop. "You gave an easement to the city for the specific purpose of putting a bus stop," the mayor said, adding the city has the authority to locate and maintain the stop. City Attorney Gerald Delone confirmed an easement is in place and said the city has an obligation to maintain easements granted in its favor.
Delone recommended addressing maintenance and reasonable improvements as the first step. "If you have concerns over the maintenance, that's what we need to address," Delone said, noting the city can cut grass, clean the shelter, spray, or put a concrete pad under the structure.
Ben (city staff) reported the shelter is listed on the school board website as an official stop used by elementary, middle and high school routes and that drivers use the shelter during inclement weather. Mayor said he would commit the city to clean and spray the shelter and to look at reasonable upgrades such as adding a bench or a cement slab so children do not stand in wet grass.
Singleton said he will speak with his wife about whether to press for removal, but emphasized that if the city will properly maintain the easement he would be willing to leave the shelter in place. The mayor said staff will pursue cleaning and minor improvements and will work with the owner on mutually agreeable solutions.
Next steps: staff will coordinate the cleaning and minor maintenance promised by the mayor and report back to the council; any formal abandonment of the easement would require separate legal and council action.
