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Resident Ashley Atkins tells council she has been wrongfully denied building permits, cites easement and Iowa law
Summary
Ashley Atkins told the Eldridge City Council she has been repeatedly denied building permits without code citations, accused staff of harassment and asked the council to compel issuance of a permit based on recorded easement language and Iowa statutes.
Ashley Atkins, a resident at 880 South First Street, told the Eldridge City Council during public comment that the city has denied her building permits for years without citing any planning or zoning code and has instead relied on what she described as an unresolved easement dispute.
Atkins presented a recent permit-denial letter and said the letter cited an easement dispute while failing to reference any applicable city planning or Iowa law. “This administration single-handedly has threatened to get me fired from my job, threatened to bulldoze my building,” she said, adding that she has experienced “continued harassment, violation of my rights, and intentional actions to create financial problems.”
Atkins referenced two Iowa statutes in her remarks, Iowa Code section 564.4 and Iowa Code section 354.19, and said a plat map and her deed include language she interprets as a dedication of land and public access easement to the city of Eldridge. She said the neighbor who raised the easement dispute had three months by statute to file a civil action but had not done so in four years, and she questioned why the city continues to deny permits based on what staff called a dispute. “If you notice, he continues to state in these building denial letters that it's outside of his authority, yet it's within his authority to deny it,” she said.
Atkins asked the council to review the documents she provided, require the city to issue a permit consistent with the recorded easement, and address what she characterized as improper use of code authority. The council did not take immediate action on her request during the meeting and moved on to the next agenda item after applause from those present.
The council's packet included the denial letter Atkins referenced and staff were not recorded offering a substantive response during public comment. The meeting record shows the council proceeded with agenda business after her remarks; no formal referral or staff direction on Atkins's complaint was noted on the record at this meeting.
What happens next: Atkins asked council to have officials review the submitted documents; the council did not vote or direct staff on that request during this session.
