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Lake Geneva, couple still battling over pier

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Gazette File Photo

The pier at Marina Bay Boat Rentals in Lake Geneva is 54 feet longer than the 100-foot limit set by city ordinance. The pier—and the enforcement of the regulation—are at the heart of a dispute between Marina Bay’s owners and the city.

LAKE GENEVA — The battle rages on between Terry and Pamela Johnson and the city of Lake Geneva over a pier that is longer than what city ordinance permits.

The Johnsons, who own Marina Bay Boat Rentals at 300 Wrigley Drive, were ordered last summer to reduce the length of their pier to comply with a city ordinance that limits piers to 100 feet. Their pier is 154 feet long.

The city April 24 filed for an injunction to keep the Johnsons from installing their pier for the season.

"Normally you can't get an injunction unless there's a continuing violation or there's an anticipated violation," City Attorney Dan Draper said. "And once I realized that they weren't going to get a permit (for a reconfigured 100-foot pier), I just said, well, I have to assume they'll put (the pier) in at 154 feet."

The judge refused to have a hearing without both parties present, and a hearing was set for May 6.

The Johnsons installed their pier April 25 and 26.

"Since they put the pier in, we couldn't really ask them to not put the pier in, so the issue became moot," Draper said.

The Johnsons on April 29 filed for an injunction to keep the city from citing them for violating the pier-length ordinance.

The parties have reached an agreement for the interim, Draper said.

The Johnsons will be allowed to leave their pier in the water unless a court order is issued, requiring the pier be reduced, and the city will not issue daily citations to the Johnsons.

The Johnsons also will have to post a letter of credit that would require them to pay the city $10,000 if—after the case is settled and all appeals are exhausted—they're required to bring their pier into compliance with city ordinance, Draper said.

"This is an important issue for both parties, so there's no point in trying to rush it," he said. "But it's like we're sitting here pointing guns at each other."

The Johnsons long have maintained that the city is unfairly enforcing its pier-length ordinance. Several city-owned piers are longer than 100 feet, they say.

The Johnsons in November filed a claim against the city seeking more than $1.4 million in damages for "attempting to selectively enforce" the pier-length ordinance.

The city did not deny the claim, but a determination will eventually be made now that the legal proceedings have begun, Draper said.

"We're probably in this for the long haul," he said.

Attorney Lisle Blackbourn, who is representing the Johnsons, could not be reached for comment Friday afternoon.

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