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Attorney for 'Save the Dips' urges council not to approve Veshi settlement without protecting public access
Summary
Dan Mueller, attorney for a community group called Save the Dips, asked Lafayette council members to delay signing any settlement with the Veshi family unless the agreement explicitly preserves public access to a pathway known as the Dips.
An attorney representing a community group called Save the Dips urged the Lafayette City Council to reject or delay any proposed settlement with the Veshi family unless the agreement clearly protects longstanding public access to a pathway known locally as the "Dips." The request came during the meeting’s public comment period on the council’s closed‑session item related to the Veshi lawsuit.
"We're respectfully asking that the council, please not agree to any settlement agreement ... unless it reasonably and clearly protects the public's longstanding access rights to the pathway that's known as the DIPS," said Dan Mueller, who identified himself as counsel for members of the public involved in the litigation. Mueller told the council he had submitted proposed language to the city's attorney and asked staff to engage with his clients before any settlement is finalized.
Mueller said the current draft settlement, as he understands it, risks leaving the public without enforceable protection of access rights and that the city appears to be deferring to the property owners on wording. He said his group had provided a short addition of roughly 20 words (he alternately joked it might be 18 or 26 words) to the city attorney and asked the council to avoid signing an agreement that could unintentionally preclude public remedies.
Council members asked clarifying questions about the proposed language and whether the group's suggested wording had been received by city counsel; Mueller said the text had been submitted to the city attorney handling the matter. The council then went into closed session; when it reconvened it reported no reportable action and the meeting adjourned.
Mueller's remarks underscore active public concern about access to the Dips. He urged the council to confirm that any settlement dismisses claims in a way that does not waive or imperil prescriptive or dedication-based public access without explicit protective language.
