Boulder City, resident near pact on waterfall

Dan Kulin

Monday, Oct. 27, 2003 | 11:01 a.m.

Boulder City's dispute with a man who built part of an 80-foot waterfall on city property may be coming to an end.

Under an agreement the City Council is scheduled to consider Tuesday, Craig Tillotson's multimillion-dollar hillside home overlooking Lake Mead would be able to keep the waterfall. But Tillotson would have to pay $10,000 to a city nonprofit group of his choice and move two gazebos near the waterfall that also lie partly on city property.

Mayor Bob Ferraro said he hopes this is the end of the legal wrangling that has gone on most of the year since neighbors complained that Tillotson was being allowed to break the rules.

Tillotson could not be reached for comment, but his construction manager, Michael Bangerter, said the agreement is one the owner will go along with.

Bangerter was frustrated, though, that the waterfall had become such an issue. He said that while the waterfall and gazebos crossed into city property was the issue that neighbors raised, he believes they were upset about the years of construction on the property. The waterfall was the only matter neighbors could use to cause Tillotson some problems, he said.

For about 3 1/2 years there has been ongoing construction on Tillotson's property, which has buildings fronting on both Lido Drive and Yates Lane in the pricey northwest corner of Boulder City, where homes overlook the lake. Bangerter said construction on the property should be finished in about six months.

Lido Drive resident George Rudberg, 70, said that while the construction has been bothersome and unsightly, the real issue is one of fairness.

"The city has a responsibility to treat all residents the same," Rudberg said. "And the city has to protect city lands."

Rudberg said he's concerned that if the council approves the agreement with Tillotson, others would be encouraged to tread onto city property.

"It says if you encroach, you can negotiate later with the city," Rudberg said.

"Does it look ugly? No," Rudberg said of Tillotson's waterfall. "But it's about what is right and what is wrong, not aesthetics."

City Manager John Sullard and City Attorney Dave Olsen said that if the council does not approve the agreement, they would have to restart negotiations with Tillotson over the encroachment.

When flowing, Tillotson's waterfall drops 400 gallons a minute down the ridge line behind his home. The waterfall has been there for about 10 years, and apparently no one noticed the city property line cut through a piece of the waterfall until neighbors raised the issue about a year ago, Olsen said.

Olsen said parts of the waterfall and two gazebos protrude onto a 15-by-30- foot city parcel. The city owns the top of the hill above the homes.

The city could have ordered Tillotson to move the waterfall off city property, but that would leave a scar on the hillside, Ferraro said.

Ferraro said he thinks the $10,000 donation from Tillotson is a good penalty because it shows that the city considers Tillotson's encroachment a serious matter.

"It had to be something more than just a verbal warning," the mayor said.

Ferraro said city officials considered selling the land to Tillotson, but decided that could set a bad precedent.

"The reason that didn't go anywhere was because it would have been rewarding someone for creating the problem," Ferraro said. He said the city did not have an appraisal done on the property, which isn't easily accessible or developable.

Bangerter said he thinks the $10,000 penalty is too much and that the issue has been affected by politics. But he said Tillotson will go along with the agreement, in part, because the money will go to a local charity, possibly something to do with children or seniors.

"Craig is just trying to be a good community neighbor," Bangerter said.