Roughly two dozen Lorette residents have been notified that their recent yard improvement projects have been built on property they do not actually own.

In recent months many homeowners living along Settler’s Landing have widened their driveways and added landscaping to frontage that, in reality, belonged to the Rural Municipality of Tache.

“We love to see people beautifying their yards, but it does leave us in a bit of a bind,” remarks Chief Administrative Officer Christine Hutlet. “Some people don’t understand that their property line does not extend to the curb.”

As a general rule, the RM of Tache owns roughly 20 feet of property from the curb. In the case of these Lorette homes, Hutlet says the primary issue is less so that homeowners accidentally staked a claim on municipal turf and more so that underground infrastructure is at risk. Any project built over that frontmost section of land runs the risk of blocking or damaging the emergency water shutoff valve or curb stop, as they are sometimes called. Official notices were sent out to residents, informing them of their mistake.

“We are just trying to be proactive on this and not only protect the municipality but also the property owner,” states Hutlet. “If a curb stop breaks and then they have a water leak in their house, we cannot shut the water off to their home. That could cause fairly significant damage.”

Anyone who increased the width of their driveway to create more space is now being advised not to use the addition as frequent vehicle traffic could break the water valve if it happens to be beneath. Hutlet adds the recently landscaped sites that trespass onto municipal property also pose a bit of a problem.

“Those right-of-ways are our snow storage areas so in the wintertime we run the risk of damaging the landscaping that residents may have spent the money on. We will make every effort not to damage it, but there is that possibility.”

Hutlet understands the desire of many homeowners to do the most they can to increase the appeal of their small urban lots but says, unfortunately, many folks did not do enough research before proceeding with their home improvement plans. While residents were technically in the wrong Hutlet says Tache Council has chosen to approach the situation with grace.

“Council has decided, at this point, that they would rather proceed with education than any sort of enforcement.”

In the future, Hutlet says the RM will try to be more clear with these policies and bylaws to ensure this kind of predicament does not occur again.