Publication Date: Wednesday Oct 11, 2000

NORTH FAIR OAKS: Homeowners upset by PUC plans

North Fair Oaks resident Carolyn Clebsch is in her third year of landscape architecture school, and planned to turn her front yard into a living experiment. But her plans may be derailed by a large bureaucracy that may demand she move her fence in 20 feet, essentially cutting her yard in half.

She and her husband, Bill, bought their Eighth Avenue home three years ago because they liked the big lot and planned to install a lovely garden. They realized the Hetch Hetchy water line travels underneath their yard, but after careful research, they determined their deed--which entitles them to agricultural use of the land--was safe.

Clebsch and her neighbors knew they had an an absentee landlord in their midst when they bought their homes. The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, since 1925, has had its main water pipeline (which starts in the Sierra Nevada) about eight feet below the North Fair Oaks neighborhood, wending its way north to the Crystal Springs Reservoir and northern Peninsula cities.

The line runs under the bay, hits land and cuts through North Fair Oaks starting at the corner of Marsh and Bay roads, and slanting northwest to Fifth Avenue.

Like any landlord who can't keep an eye on all its property at once, the PUC in recent years has decided to ensure its right-of-ways are easily accessible in case of an emergency or maintenance need. The problem assumed political importance after the Loma Prieta earthquake caused some minor breaks in the line and politicians asked the PUC to pay more attention to its water lines.

"We decided with the upcoming infrastructure upgrade, we needed to have more of a handle on our property," PUC spokeswoman Beverly Hennessey said.

Some North Fair Oaks residents have ignored rules and actually built structures like cottages and carports on the Hetch Hetchy right-of-way. These, in legal terms, are "encroachments," and the PUC has the right to have them removed immediately. Other residents have obtained permits (which are revokable) to plant gardens or put up fences. Some, like the Clebsch's, have deeds for their property that give them stronger rights, in perpetuity, to use the land for agricultural use.

Late last month, the PUC informed residents they plan to strongly crack down on the way their "right-of-way" is used, requiring that residents go so far as to take down fences between their houses and leave the areas free of even the most minimal landscaping.

Even those with agricultural deeds may be forced to take down fencing.

"It just won't work to say that all fences have to come down," Clebsch said as she looked across her emerald green lawn, surrounded by an array of flowers and plants she planned to plant in her yard.

"We completely understand that they have to have access," said Clebsch, who noted she has already welcomed nearly 10 Hetch Hetchy workers who have come to survey the pipe next to her home, gaining access through a nearly 20-foot-wide swinging gate and two large "trap doors" next to her house.

Clebsch sees a "wonderful opportunity" to create public gardens with some of the Hetch Hetchy easements that are scattered throughout the neighborhood. She also said the neighborhood, which has a long-established association already, could oversee the care of the gardens.

Clebsch and other neighbors express most concern about the idea of having all fences on the right-of-way torn down, leaving a 60-foot-wide unenclosed "corridor" cutting through back and front yards.

"They should have checked more carefully," Hennessey said of homeowners upset about having to take fencing down. They should have been aware of the rules of "encroachments" and easements, she said, before they bought their homes.

"This is one area that's been identified as one of the most heavily violated," Hennessey said.

"The main problem we have is fences," she said, especially high ones that don't allow crews to see over and inspect the right-of-way. Some residents even put in locked gates, she said, which is wrong.

Fair Oaks residents say PUC officials have told them they would be willing to deal with the North Fair Oaks neighbors--not individually, but as a group.

The group has turned for help to their county supervisor, Rose Jacobs Gibson, who at press time was trying to arrange a meeting with PUC officials.

Not only is the PUC asserting itself with residents, but it has begun to charge churches in Redwood City for use of Hetch Hetchy right-of-way that runs near their properties.

"It was really discouraging to hear from the manager who was there," said Gibson's aide, Juan Carlos Prado. He said that at the meeting, PUC officials did not seem concerned with the aesthetic issues of the Fair Oaks neighborhood, and was only focused on making sure their right-of-way was accessible.

Prado said PUC officials told residents that fencing and landscaping would not be allowed on Hetch Hetchy property. "They were very clear on that," he said.

Residents hope the water agency will change its mind.

Carol Poncia and her husband bought their Sixth Avenue home 27 years ago, raised their children, and now take care of their three grandchildren at the house. Much of their time is spent playing in their front yard, which is entirely in the Hetch Hetchy right-of-way.

The Poncias, who have a revokable land use permit to plant landscaping and use their front yard, have been very conscientious, Carol said, adding they have already removed a storage shed at the PUC's request.

The biggest impact of the crackdown, she said, would be if they had to take down their side and front fences.

"If they make us take down the fence, (her grandchildren) can no longer play outside," Poncia said. "Nobody will feel safe anymore."

"There are a lot of people in this community that have been playing by the rules," she said. "The biggest issues are the fencing, the gardening and what type of vegetation. We have to go in there with a willingness to cooperate.

"If they want nothing but chain link, I don't think this community would mind." 

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