Valley View Owners Agree To Mow Grass

FILE PHOTO
The owners of the former Valley View Golf Course have signed an agreement with the city of Farmington to mow their property twice a year, in May and September. The city has been dealing with tall grass on the former golf course for more than two years.
FILE PHOTO The owners of the former Valley View Golf Course have signed an agreement with the city of Farmington to mow their property twice a year, in May and September. The city has been dealing with tall grass on the former golf course for more than two years.

FARMINGTON -- After dealing with tall grass and brush on the former Valley View Golf Course for more than two years, city officials hope an agreement signed with the property owners will take care of the issue in the future.

Under the agreement, the property owners have committed to mowing the property twice a year, in September and May.

The mowing agreement was signed by Mayor Ernie Penn and city deputy prosecuting attorney Jay Moore, on behalf of the city of Farmington, and by owners Joseph Stewart, Jennifer Stewart, John Lipsmeyer and Melissa Lipsmeyer, on behalf of Valley View Golf, LLC.

All parties entered into the agreement to avoid ongoing litigation regarding the property formerly known as the Golf Club at Valley View, according to the agreement reached July 20 between the city and the landowners.

Penn last week said he hopes the agreement means the problem is resolved.

"It boils down to being responsible and taking care of your property," Penn said. "It's not something that should be an issue."

The property is no longer a golf course and can just be brush hogged, Penn said, noting, "It's just like mowing a pasture."

He added, "This affects a tremendous amount of people and it's not fair to those people in Valley View."

The owners of the former golf course have been two times by the city of Farmington for violating city Ordinance 5.9 that deals with unsightly or unsanitary conditions on real property.

They were first cited for violating the ordinance on July 8, 2020, and found guilty in Washington County District Court, Farmington Division, by Judge Graham Nations.

The defendants appealed the court decision to circuit court, but they failed to show up for a pre-trial hearing, as ordered by Circuit Judge Mark Lindsay. Lindsay then dismissed the case with prejudice and ordered that the guilty judgment from district court be reinstated and the city be reimbursed for its costs to mow the former course.

The four defendants were cited a second time June 14, 2021, for violating the city ordinance and found guilty again by Nations in district court. This decision also was appealed to Circuit Court.

As ordered by the court, all four defendants appeared in circuit court on July 18 for a pretrial hearing on their latest appeal before Lindsay. At this hearing, Lindsay encouraged all parties to reach an agreement on mowing the property before the court date, according to Penn.

For the first two citations, city employees ended up mowing the overgrown grass and brush because it was not taken care of by the owners.

The city issued a letter to the property owners earlier this year that they once again were in violation of the ordinance. The city later contracted with Eric Hill to mow the overgrown grass for $8,100, according to Penn.

The city now has received all restitution for its cost to mow the property three times. The first payment was for about $8,500. An $18,000 payment has been made for the last two mowing bills.

According to the mowing agreement, the landowners own five parcels of the former golf course with a total of about 103 acres. The owners agree to mow between May 1-14 and between Sept. 1-14 of each year. The first mowing under the agreement will be in September.

If the property owners fail to mow the property within the specified time frame, they agree to a late penalty of $250 per day until the property is mowed. The agreement allows for a delay in the time frame for unpredictable events and occurrences, such as acts of God or breakdowns in equipment. However, if this happens, the property owners are required to notify the city about the cause of the delay and how long it should last.

If the landowners fail to meet the provisions of the agreement, the city retains the right to file criminal charges under the city's code of ordinances. The agreement also does not limit the ability of the property owners to mow more frequently for cutting and baling hay.

The agreement will remain in effect as long as Valley View Golf, LLC, owns the premises. If the property owners sell a portion of the land, the agreement says they still are responsible for mowing the remaining portion of what they own.

With the settlement reached, the city of Farmington filed a motion for the charges against the defendants to be nol prossed in circuit court. Lindsay signed an order July 21 vacating the judgment of the district court entered against each defendant.