Montpelier Council Seeks Resolution on East State Street Right-of-Way
Montpelier city councilors are attempting to broker a truce in a dispute that stalled an $8 million road reconstruction project earlier this year. The conflict centers on a newly filed land survey that residents insist misinterprets historical records and places municipal right-of-way boundaries directly through their East State Street homes.
Questions regarding the right-of-way first arose over a year ago when resident Jon Anderson raised concerns, which resurfaced as the city finalized designs for the multi-million-dollar project. Tensions escalated earlier this month when a survey required to secure federal funding was formally filed in the city’s land records. The project itself was originally approved by a voter bond in 2022, but historic flooding the following year delayed active pursuit until 2025.
To secure a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to fund water and sewer line replacements, paving, and sidewalk rebuilding, the survey had to be completed and recorded before the project could go out to bid. Montpelier City Manager Kelly McNicholas Kury told The Bridge that while the road project does not require all the land within the right-of-way, the city documented the broader boundary to preserve property interests for potential future municipal needs.
Resident Pushback and Property Concerns
Property owners have sharply criticized the city’s handling of the survey, arguing that recording a boundary running through historic structures renders their homes unsellable and creates a cloud on their titles. During council discussions, Marie Arsenlis questioned the reliability of the survey by referencing local history dating back to an 1868 survey. Her husband, David Ory, described the publication and filing of a survey showing a right-of-way through the middle of an 1865 house as an administrative and moral failure.
Other residents, including Patrick Coyle, expressed frustration that the survey claims part of his mudroom and front wall lie inside the right-of-way. Miah and Vanessa Sargent noted that the boundary cuts through the kitchen, living room, and foyer of their home at 54 East State Street, creating uncertainty about home marketability and property taxes on land the city claims.
In a September 15 letter to Mayor Marc Gwinn and city councilors, residents representing eight affected properties proposed that the city survey and document only the land strictly needed to rebuild the road, negotiating separately if extra land is required.
City Officials Seek Resolution While Deadlines Remain
Following a private consultation with attorneys, the surveyor, and staff, Mayor Marc Gwinn emphasized the city’s desire to work toward an amicable resolution and rebuild fractured trust. Gwinn stated that the city has never intended to take anyone’s property. Councilors unanimously agreed to explore narrowing the right-of-way and entering into use agreements with property owners rather than voiding the survey or embracing a wholesale mistake acknowledgment.
However, strict deadlines remain in place. In a letter read by resident Chris Owen, Jon Anderson indicated he plans to appeal the survey if a final signed agreement settling the right-of-way is not in place by January 20, writing that he will not sign a memorandum of understanding limiting appeal rights or be coerced into giving up unneeded property rights.
