The City of Shenandoah suffered another legal setback today in a lengthy battle over an easement dispute with Oak Haven Apartment Homes. The case originated when the city authorized and actually mandated the construction of a drainage line across Oak Haven’s property. Last fall the appellate court ruled largely in favor of Oak Haven and sent the case back to the trial court for further fact findings.

Soon after that ruling, the city joined two other parties who asked the appellate court to reconsider its ruling, but that request was denied. Undeterred, the city and other parties then filed a petition for review with the Texas Supreme Court, which was denied today.

In their petition to the Texas Supreme Court, the city argued that if the appellate ruling was left uncorrected, it “will permit any private property owner to deny the construction of key infrastructure in public utility easements.” The Texas Supreme Court was apparently not pursuaded by the city’s argument that the court of appeals’ opinion “threatens the ability of cities and local municipalities to regulate, manage, and establish certain public utilities, such as storm drainage…”

Oak Haven had taken a very different view of the case and argued the Supreme Court should not hear it because it did not concern municipal authority to pursue municipal drainage projects, but instead “concerns whether an awkwardly drafted plat allows a hotel to use its neighbor’s land for the hotel’s private drainage needs.”

The Sentinel will continue to report on further developments in this case.