By Mike Hazlip—
Construction of an 8-unit townhouse development on Auburn Boulevard briefly opened up the backyards of adjacent residents after a privacy fence was torn down, causing controversy that reached the ears of the City Council on Thursday.
Residents along Chivalry Way say crews took out a fence that separates a row of duplex units from the .7-acre construction site. One resident, Chris Medrano, spoke at the March 24 council meeting saying work crews removed the previous fence and replaced it with a chain link fence.
“I felt like everybody could see through the fence and into our backyard,” Medrano said, adding the work exposed his sliding glass rear door to the busy Auburn Boulevard. “It just felt like our privacy was a little invaded.”
Citrus Heights Mayor Porsche Middleton told Medrano she would have staff look into the matter.
On Friday, The Sentinel spoke with three residents along Chivalry Way and observed plywood boards propped up along the chain link fence, in an attempt to create a make-shift remedy. Resident Kim Hill said a foreman with the construction company told her the fence would be removed because it was six inches over on the construction site. She says the foreman could not give her an exact date the work would be done.
“I could have let my dogs out not realizing there wasn’t a fence,” Hill said. “And then what would have happened, would my dogs have gotten hurt?”
A worker at the site who did not give his name because he was not authorized to speak to media said Black Rock Masonry was the company contracted to build the fence. He said the company has acquired all necessary permits and has communicated with property owners. He said a chain link fence is temporary until a planned brick and wood fence is installed.
In an email to The Sentinel Saturday, Middleton said the issue is being addressed after she asked the city manager to look into the matter. City Economic Development and Communications Manager Meghan Huber also said in an email Saturday that staff are responding to the complaint.
“City staff immediately responded to our residents concern by visiting the site on Friday March 25 to assess the situation and confirmed the violation,” Huber said. “Staff then contacted the contractor and developer to ensure privacy screening would be installed as soon as possible to protect the privacy of the adjacent property owners while the shared masonry fence is completed.”
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Hill told The Sentinel in a followup phone call on Saturday that crews had installed a black privacy screen on the chain link fence that morning.
The Sentinel could not immediately confirm the property owners for seven duplex units bordering the East and South sides of the site, but all three residents contacted by The Sentinel Friday were tenants.
One resident said the company managing her unit, Sacramento based California Investors, did not give her notice the work would be occurring. A phone call to California Investors on Saturday was not immediately returned by press time.
For Hill, the lack of communication is more disturbing than the noise and dust typical of construction work. She said that while she regrets losing some trees on the site that bordered her yard, she doesn’t oppose the project itself.
“We need housing,” Hill said. “It’s fine as long as it doesn’t interfere in my backyard.”
A total of eight town homes will be built at the site. Each parcel will be 2,345-square-feet in size, along with a roughly quarter-acre common lot for access, parking and landscaping.
The townhouse development is believed to be the first to take advantage of the city’s Small Lot Housing Ordinance. The ordinance was passed in August 2018, and aims to encourage development of smaller lots.
