Shaw family, airport strike a deal, finally
Clear deed to be delivered before New Year
BY MARY LANCASTER INDEPENDENT WRITER
Aproperty ownership dispute between the town's Airport Commission and 58 Madequecham Valley Road resident Eric Shaw has taken eight months since last year's Town Meeting to resolve, but the land battle is finally over. While the resolution is not an outright gift to the Shaws, it comes in time to be a Christmas present of sorts.

The Shaw property near the airport on Madequecham Valley Road. PETER B. BRACE/The Independent

"It is the right thing. It took a while but it finally happened. We are happy that this got ironed out. It took longer than it should have, but we are happy that common sense seems to have prevailed in the end," said Shaw. "We are absolutely grateful for the support we got from the residents of the town. We were surprised and pleased by that. I think one of the most important things is that, for people in the future, the town realizes the importance of having its records straight."

"I am glad we were able to resolve it to everyone's satisfaction," said Airport Commission Chairman Foley Vaughan. "It was a not happy event for the Shaw family and a not very happy matter for us, but it has been resolved. We were all working in the same direction and we finally got there. I am pleased that the Shaw family's ordeal is over."

While the Airport Commission held that the Shaw property fell within an area of a 1941 eminent domain taking, Shaw said a records search when he was considering buying the property in 2003 did not indicate any cloud on the title. Previous owners had paid taxes to the town and Shaw bought the property from a woman who was granted building permits from the town to put up a house.

After a long and winding road of dead end discussions, Shaw submitted a 2007 Town Meeting article that was approved by voters without a whisper of dissention. The article sought, with the support of the Airport Commission, to declare the land surplus property, and that the commission could dispose of or convey the property with proceeds going to the Airport Commission for use in airport projects.

Although after the article's passage it appeared that a resolution would be forthcoming, it took several more months of wrangling over price until a Nov. 29 deal was struck. Under that arrangement, when Shaw is delivered a clear title to his property within 30 days of the agreement he will pay the Airport Commission $125,000. As part of the arrangement, both parties agreed to drop their Superior Court claims and are waiving rights to appeal the case.

The Airport Commission will have signed the deed transfer agreement by tonight's selectmen's meeting, when only the selectmen's signatures stand between the agreement

and its implementation. I