Medina Trail To Lake Leads To Lawsuit

MEDINA

A DISPUTE involving a swath of public land between the pricey waterfront homes of two prominent residents, Charles Pigott and Charles Simonyi, has put the men at odds with the city of Medina.

It's not much of a park, really, just a few car stalls, a narrow, weed-covered path and a dock.

But this nameless public watering hole is at the heart of a lawsuit pitting the city of Medina against two of the biggest local names in business.

On one side of the trail, former Paccar Chief Executive Charles Pigott owns a waterfront home with a neatly manicured lawn and dock. On the other, Microsoft executive Charles Simonyi has built a sprawling villa that has earned international acclaim for its architecture and electronic gadgetry.

Exactly how much, if any, of those properties belongs to the people of Medina is at the heart of the legal action.

The city asserts that a 60-foot-wide public right of way continues beyond the end of 84th Avenue Northeast directly to the water, cutting into the properties.

The avenue dead-ends at the unmarked entrance to the park. The path to Lake Washington winds behind a wooden fence that no one is quite sure who built.

If the city wins its claims in court, Pigott could lose much of his waterfront and all of his private dock, while the new addition that Simonyi plans to build might come within inches of public land.

The lawsuit has both sides poring over deeds and property records that dredge up nearly a century of history along Lake Washington.

For Simonyi and Pigott, the confrontation with the city - a long-simmering dispute that recently was rekindled when Simonyi purchased a lot that abuts the park - is as mystifying as it is worrisome.

"I am terribly sorry to have awakened the sleeping giant," Simonyi said. "I apologize to Mr. Pigott for causing this calamity. It's brutal."

The story began when ferries plied the waters of Lake Washington and the Eastside was dotted with landings and piers. Eighty-fourth Avenue Northeast was first entered into a surveyor's report on Nov. 17, 1898, and King County acquired the title from Roland Denny, son of Seattle pioneer Arthur Denny, on May 5, 1909.

Around that time, King County installed a public dock at the southern terminus of the street to serve ferry passengers.

In 1917, construction of the Lake Washington Ship Canal lowered the lake approximately 9 feet, exposing about 30 feet of shoreline at the ferry dock.

After the floating bridges were built, ferry service became extinct. New homes began to crowd the landing, which was handed to the city of Medina when it incorporated in 1955.

Five years later, Pigott purchased his waterfront property. The King County Assessor's Office has placed the current value of his home at $3 million. In the late 1980s, Simonyi began building his home over several lots on 84th Avenue Northeast.

`Sleeping giant' awakes

Simonyi awakened the "sleeping giant" of the 3,000-resident city earlier this year when he bought a home that abuts the northern side of the path. He plans to demolish the house and build a residence architecturally similar to the one he now owns, which was assessed at $16.6 million.

Simonyi knew that the previous owner had built part of a driveway on the road. He discussed the boundary with the city, but the two parties failed to reach an agreement on the precise property lines. Two months ago, the city sued, saying it had discovered that public land extended much farther than originally believed, and included large portions of Pigott's waterfront.

The city's claims also include a portion of Simonyi's recently purchased tear-down house. He has painted a thin white line down his property to show the extent of the city's claims.

Pigott was largely in the dark about Simonyi's talks with the city and found out about the dispute when he was named in the lawsuit, said his attorney, Jerome Hillis. Pigott would not comment about the legal action, but his attorney said he was concerned as any property owner would be about the possibility - however remote - that he could lose his land.

Lawyers for Pigott and Simonyi say they will contest the city's claim that public land extends 30 feet on either side of the middle of 84th Avenue Northeast, from the parking area to the lake.

A search for records

They have searched for decades-old maps and photographs stored in the King County Courthouse to prove the city's property cannot be extended farther than the small path of the public park.

That much of the disputed territory was once underwater makes any definite judgments difficult.

As for the future use of the former ferry landing, city officials say it's too early to speculate. If the lawsuit fails, the park dock will continue to be a remote hideaway for neighborhood kids to cool off in the summer. If it succeeds, the city could negotiate an agreement with the adjoining homeowners, or develop a larger park.

The latter scenario doesn't please Simonyi.

"I would certainly oppose a park, not because parks are undesirable, but it's not the place or the method to acquire park lands," he said.

Unless a settlement is reached, the case is to be heard in King County Superior Court in 2000.

Alex Fryer's phone message number is 206-464-8124. His e-mail address is: afryer@seattletimes.com