Oops

From the Record:

Ridgefield man wins wrong land
By SHAWN BOBURG

Ronald Leach thought it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity — a chance to buy a sprawling, tree-studded lot in the center of the densely packed town of Ridgefield, a quiet place where he and his wife could build a retirement home.

As soon as Leach heard the borough was accepting bids for the town-owned land, he rushed into Borough Hall with a promise to pay $350,000.

The 59-year-old trucking company employee also cut a $35,000 check, the required 10 percent down payment, which he borrowed from his retirement plan.

But days later, when Leach found out his was the winning bid — and the only bid — he was not celebrating.

By then, he realized he had made a “stupid, stupid mistake.” He had assumed he knew what lot the town was selling when an acquaintance in town said it was “next to the Community Center.”

He never bothered to look at the zoning maps for the “Lot 3, Block 907” described in the bid specifications.

Leach had not submitted a bid for the beautiful, vacant corner lot next to the town’s Community Center, but for the narrow, flood-prone parcel that sits on the other side of Slocum Street and straddles a creek.