Abandonment goes to Genoa Tuesday

Ron and Ann Funk are returning to the Genoa Town Board to seek abandonment of a portion of the easement for Carson Street in front of their home.

An effort in April resulted in a packed house and a contentious disagreement over the Funks' request that the county abandon 25 feet along the south side of the street.

They are seeking a recommendation from Genoa before going before county commissioners in October.

The Funk home's family room and garage sit right on the county's easement for Carson Street, according to a survey prepared by Resource Concepts.

Funk said that when he purchased the property in 1981, the house had a landscaped circular driveway that occupied the county right of way.

In 1994, the Funks added the garage and family room to their home after obtaining building permits from the county.

He said he wasn't aware that the garage and extension were right on the line.

Carson Street has a county easement of 85 feet.

Ron Funk's emphysema is forcing him to sell his home and move out of the area.

Genoa Town Board members meet 7 p.m. Tuesday in their offices in the Genoa Town Hall.

The Funks sought abandonment of the easement before, in 2000, when then-chairman Steve Hollister said there would be no more abandonments in Genoa as long as he was chairman.

While Hollister is no longer chairman, one of his comrades on that board, Bill Donohoe spoke against the abandonment.

"The town owns a piece of land and it has value," he said. "The streets of Genoa are covered with encroachments of property owners. By his own admission, Mr. Funk has been encroaching on the Carson Street right of way for some years. The fact that this encroachment has been going on for so long doesn't make it right or deserving of reward."

Another former town board chairman who opposed abandonments, Bill Brooks, estimated that the land being sought by the applicants could be valued at $382,000 based on sales that occurred in Genoa before 2000.

Funk disputed Brooks' value of $20 a square foot, saying the land would be worth no more than a few dollars a square foot.