Property owner asks Washburn commission to vacate alley; commissioners seek written easement assurances

Mark Krieg, a Washburn property owner, asked the City Commission to vacate an alley easement between two parcels so he can regrade a collapsing hillside, remove trees and install drainage to make the area mowable.

"On the very front page, the x mark is the area that I'm requesting to be vacated," Krieg told the commission, handing out maps and photos that he said show deep holes, a steep depression and an easement alignment near a telephone pole.

Krieg said Midco technicians recently accessed a nearby line with bucket trucks to repair a broken cable, and Otter Tail Power has continued to use the route for service. He described plans to bring in fill, "create the hill and kinda bring it down and then make it so I can mow it," and to consolidate five downspouts into two drains that would run across the former alley to his property.

Commissioners pressed for concrete assurances that utility access would be preserved if the alley were vacated. "The only thing I would wanna see would be a legal written document with Otter Tail that would specify the easements," said the planning and zoning chair, who offered to visit the site with the streets portfolio holder and to coordinate with Otter Tail before any final action.

The commission did not vote on the vacation request. Instead members agreed to a site visit and to have the planning and streets commissioners coordinate with the utility to determine what written easement language or recorded agreement would be required before the commission could approve any vacate.

Next steps: two commissioners will inspect the property with staff, and they will report back with recommendations and any suggested easement language or conditions to preserve utility access.