The Hillsborough Superior Court has ruled the Monadnock Rod and Gun Club must pay more than half a million dollars in damages to a neighbor, after filling wetlands on their property.
On Sept. 10, the court ruled in favor of Scott and Bridgette Perry of Peterborough, in a land dispute where the gun club claimed it had de facto claimed a portion of the Perry property by adverse possession. To claim property by adverse possession, the club would have had to prove they were using the property regularly and without contest from the land owner.
The court wasn’t convinced by the club’s arguments in the case that an outdoor archery trail and sporadic use of the property for events was sufficient proof that they were using the land continuously, or in a way the Perrys could identify.
On March 3, the court held a hearing to determine what, if any, damage claims the court should issue. No member of the Monadnock Rod and Gun Club was present for the hearing, according to court documents.
The Perrys claimed that the club had filled in wetlands on their property, that firing in the area had contaminated the soil with lead and damaged the land.
During the March 3 hearing, witnesses for the Perrys estimated remedying the soil contamination would cost $322,800. Wetlands restoration was estimated at $29,150. Excavation costs would be another $296,452.
The court granted the Perrys full damages of $648,402.
“That’s what it’s going to cost to clean up my land,” Scott Perry said in an interview Thursday.
Perry said the club filled a pond and relocated a stream bed, among other things.
“I don’t think people understand the magnitude of what they did down there. It needs to be cleaned up. Whether the club is going to step up, do the right thing, and clean it up, we’ll see.”
Perry said he is currently “playing the waiting game,” as the club has 30 days to appeal the court’s ruling. He said he has not had any contact from the club since the court ruled on the adverse possession case.
The court ordered that the individual parties were responsible for their own legal fees. The club is also ordered to allow equipment access to the edge of the Perrys’ property to do restoration work. If access were denied, and an alternate access had to be cut, the cost of the restoration would be much higher, as would the damages, the damages order noted.
The Monadnock Rod and Gun Club did not respond to requests for comment.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.