Shaw, airport still at odds over property settlement
BY MARY LANCASTER INDEPENDENT WRITER
When Eric Shaw's citizen's article seeking a financial settlement with the town over an ownership dispute regarding his Madequecham Valley land passed with Airport Commission support at the April Town Meeting, he anticipated that the matter would be resolved in a couple of weeks. Three months later, Shaw and the Airport Commission have yet to agree on a price for the property or the manner in which an agreed upon amount will be established.

ROB BENCHLEY/The Independent file Eric Shaw and two of his children on the property of his home.

In the spring of 2003, Shaw bought a house on a 0.14 acre of land at 58 Madequecham Valley Road after having a title search performed. That search, according to Shaw's title examiner, did not reveal any cloud on the deed. Previous owners of the land were assessed taxes, and the last owner before Shaw was per- mitted by the town to develop the property.

Much to Shaw's surprise, in October 2005 he received a letter from a Boston law firm informing him that a 1941 eminent domain taking in the area made the airport the owner of the property beneath his home. Shaw was subsequently told that the airport would buy his house or he could move it. Because he only had six months from the date of the letter to clear the title issue, Shaw filed a suit against the town in the Boston Land Court.

(A similar Land Court case is pending involving the town's appeal of a Nantucket Superior Court judge's ruling that there was no proper recording of a 1968 airport taking of property claimed to be owned by William Devine in the same area as Shaw. Devine sued the town after he was prohibited from building on the land in 2001 and the judge ruled in his favor.)

Shaw, who has a wife and three children, said he cannot afford to buy another parcel and move the house, and wants to stay put where he feels he rightfully belongs.

After Town Meeting, negotiations began between Shaw's Boston attorney, Gordon Orloff, and Rob Hillman in Town Counsel's office. Shaw had the land appraised and, through his insurance company, made an offer of $75,000. Foley Vaughan, chairman of the Airport Commission, said the town assessed the property at more than $1 million. Shaw suggested mediation to seek a price agreement, but said that idea was rejected by the commission in favor of continuing negotiations.

Shaw then made a second offer of $125,000, the amount he estimated it would cost him to complete his litigation in Land Court. About two weeks ago, Shaw received a counter-offer from the Airport Commission that he said was still close to the original $1 million-plus amount. Shaw next suggested arbitration, with both sides hiring someone to appraise the land's value and then settle the matter at a percentage of the established value.

"What we're trying to do here is get unbiased third parties to sit between the two groups," said Shaw. "It seems to me it would be a good way to settle the problem. We're just frustrated that the airport said it would be two weeks and it's almost three months and we are nowhere near settlement as far as I can tell."

Vaughan maintains that Shaw's insurance company started negotiations by "low-balling" its offer, and that even the second proposal represents 10 percent or less of the town's assessed value.

"They are not negotiating in good faith, and they are charging us with negotiating in bad faith at the same time," said Vaughan. "We want this property to stay in the Shaw family, but we're not going to roll over on the price."

Vaughan said Shaw's proposed arbitration is flawed in that there should be three appraisers brought in, not two, who would then determine the average assessed value of the land, with the third appraiser evaluating their work and establishing a binding value. Vaughan further said that Shaw is suggesting each party submit a percentage of the cost to the arbitrator which reflects the town's likelihood of success in the Devine litigation.

"You cannot evaluate the percentage of success until the case pending with the court is decided, which will affect the outcome of this case," he said, explaining that the Devine case entails a resolution as to whether the town performed adequate due diligence during a taking from unknown owners. Vaughan added that this week the Airport Commission will be submitting another proposal to Shaw's insurance company outlining a process to establish fair market value of the land in question.

"He (Shaw) ought to understand that the airport is serious about this property staying in his hands," said Vaughan. "We are not taking the property away from him. There is no desire or intent to do that, but we don't want to be screwed by the

insurance company." I