Aurora – On the city map, Dave and Jessica Reed’s 2 1/2 acres is a small island of unincorporated county land amid the mighty urban sea.
The couple depend on well water and a septic tank. If there’s an emergency, they must call the Arapahoe County sheriff or the volunteer fire department to find them within the eastern part of Colorado’s third-largest city.
“Communities don’t always develop in perfectly straight lines,” Mayor Ed Tauer said. “We just have to deal with it, that’s all.”
Enclaves of unincorporated land are common throughout metro cities, small tracts that were never annexed. But not many are as small as the Reeds’ parcel, and few have stirred up as much fuss.
When the Reeds moved six years ago into their $250,000 ranch-style home on East Jewell Avenue, they remember foxes, deer and antelope in the wide-open fields of wheat – hardly another home in sight.
They could mow their lawn once a year and not fret about neighbors or city codes.
“We moved here with retirement in mind, to be able to sit out on our front porch and watching the sunset …,” Dave Reed said.
But the couple didn’t know that one day their next-door neighbor would be the Murphy Creek subdivision with a golf course, rec center and homes from the low $200,000s.
Soon, houses started popping up all around, and before the Reeds knew it, developers wanted a half-acre of their front yard to expand East Jewell Avenue.
The couple have battled the city, developers and various private companies who have sought access to their property.
“We thought we were buying a piece of heaven, but we bought a piece of hell,” Jessica Reed said.
There were condemnation threats, and the fight eventually led to the courts, with the developer suing the Reeds and the Reeds countersuing.
“Our house sat on the market for nine months” before it was purchased, Jessica Reed said. “The developers knew they needed that land. Why didn’t they buy the house and save us the misery?”
The developer offered the Reeds $5,000 for a half-acre in front of their house. The Reeds rejected the offer.
The developer raised it to $20,000. Still, no deal because losing a half-acre would have made the land nonconforming under county rules, posing problems if the Reeds ever wanted to sell or build, Jessica Reed said. The Reeds asked the developer to buy the entire property for $1.5 million. The developer refused.
Eventually, all parties worked out a settlement in which the developer would give the Reeds $75,000 for the land in front of their house and an additional half-acre to the east to keep their property conforming. The deal is close to being finalized.
“It’s an interesting case,” said Aurora City Attorney Charlie Richardson. “That size is typically not very common; it’s basically one residential unit. But it’s so small, it doesn’t give the city a problem with access or service. It graphically demonstrates the tension between the city and county land-use regulations.”
In the end, city officials say a trip to the planning department by the Reeds before they purchased the property could have saved everyone a lot trouble.
The Reeds would have learned that the city annexed the land around their property in 1985 and that plans to develop Murphy Creek were approved in 1998.
“This is a lesson for everybody,” Tauer said. “It is very important when you purchase a property to know what is around you.”
Still, the Reeds say they never expected they would be fighting to keep their land.
“You can always do more homework,” Jessica Reed said. “But it wouldn’t have prepared us for them trying to condemn that half-acre of property.”
The Reeds plan to continue to live their dream. They won’t have to play by city rules, and, in fact, they don’t want to be in the city that surrounds them.
That’s just fine with Aurora.
“We probably wouldn’t want to annex,” Tauer said. “There isn’t any benefit to the citizens to do that.”
“I know growth happens,” Jessica Reed said. “It’s their land. They can do whatever they want. Just leave us alone. Leave our 2 1/2 acres alone.”
Staff writer Jeremy Meyer may be reached at 303-820-1175 or jpmeyer@denverpost.com.
