One day last summer, workers for the Southern California Gas Co. were on a plot of land the utility owns that sits above the home of Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva in La Habra Heights. Some sheriff’s officials approached and asked about the possibility of the department building a helicopter landing pad on the property.

The utility declined the request, according to a letter its lawyer sent to L.A. County.

Despite the rejection, work on a helicopter landing area began, with a crew grading dirt and hauling in soil in recent weeks, according to the letter and the La Habra Heights city manager.

In the cease-and-desist letter, the attorney for the gas company demanded that the work on the helipad stop and that the county undo what was done to the land.

Read the full story on LATimes.com.