A Colorado judge ruled a shared easement cannot serve a separate solar project, protecting neighbouring landowners’ property rights during litigation.
Neighbours take the dispute to court
In a preliminary injunction issued on September 25, Mesa County District Judge JenniLynn E. Another report by The Grand Junction Source states that the lawsuit was filed on April 17 by James and Christine Murphy, Raven Novak, Cullen and Krista Howard, and James and Maureen Delany. The defendants include Sterling, Pivot Energy Development LLC, Pivot Solar 44 LLC, Sturgeon Electric Company and Public Service Company of Colorado, which operates as Xcel Energy. The court had previously issued a temporary restraining order in April before holding an evidentiary hearing on September 4.The judge found that the landowners had established a reasonable probability of prevailing on their claim that the easement could not legally be used to benefit the Summy property.
A judge has now stepped in, restricting how a solar developer and other defendants can use the route while the lawsuit continues, according to a report by The Business Times. Video evidence showed the defendants or their employees crossing the property before the shortcut was roped off, according to the judge’s findings. A shared road meant to provide access to neighbouring properties has become the centre of a legal battle in Colorado, where a dispute over a solar development has raised questions about property rights, utility infrastructure and the limits of private easements. If we go by the court’s findings, the Summy property has no rights under the easement. Lawrence prohibited the defendants from using the easement to benefit the Summy project, including installing the proposed power lines. Access to Sterling’s property through the designated route remains permitted, the online report explains. The injunction is intended to protect their property rights while the broader dispute proceeds. The injunction now prohibits the defendants from trespassing on the Howards’ land, including by using the unauthorised route.