MANHATTAN BEACH : Railroad Didn’t Own Land Strip, Court Says
A strip of open space that runs through Manhattan Beach did not belong to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad Co. when it sold the land to the city, the state Court of Appeal has ruled.
The court confirmed a lower court’s decision that sided with 67 heirs of the Redondo Land Co. The heirs claimed that in an 1888 agreement the land company gave an easement to the railroad but did not transfer ownership of the property. It should have reverted to them as soon as it was no longer used by the railroad, they said.
The 100-foot-wide strip runs from the northern border of Manhattan Beach through the city to the border of Hermosa Beach.
Early in 1986, the railroad removed the tracks from the land and sold it to the city for $4.2 million and two residential properties.
The Redondo Land Co. heirs sued the city and the railroad in 1987.
In 1992, Superior Court Judge William C. Beverly Jr. found the city and the railroad jointly liable. The value of the property has not been determined. City Manager Bill Smith estimated that the city has spent $1.5 million in attorneys’ fees on the case. Smith said the city purchased the land for open space and recreation, and never planned to build on it.
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