If the Audubon Commission were to build a fence, jogging path or a public restroom on part of their backyard, it's a safe bet that those homeowners wouldn't be happy about it.

Homeowners who've built patios, fences and walls on property that belongs to the park shouldn't be surprised, then, that the Audubon Commission isn't going to allow them to continue treating the park's land as their own property.

The commission has notified homeowners that they must remove constructed improvements by April 30. If they don't, the commission will lease them the land at $3.60 per square foot. But the leases won't be indefinite. At the end of 10 years, homeowners will have to clear off park land, and the leases will expire immediately if the property is sold.

That hardly seems unreasonable. Homeowners have options and time to weigh them. But Walnut Street squatters are acting like injured parties.

"It felt like a shakedown," said David Band, who has a fence and patio that extend onto park land. He would have to pay $3,000 a year to leave them in place.

"I resent the idea of having to pay money for something I'm used to," he said.

Jefferson Parker, whose fence is 13 feet into the park, said that he can't imagine that the land in question could be used for anything under the park's master plan.

But those objections completely miss the point. People can't simply take land that doesn't belong to them because they think the owners don't need it. As for Mr. Band's objections, being "used to" something isn't the same as owning it.

The Audubon Commission decided to address this issue because a complaint was raised at a public hearing last year.

"We are a public body with a fiduciary responsibility (to) all the people of New Orleans, not just our neighborhood," said Roger Ogden, a commission member.

That's clearly the right position, and the commission should stick to it.

Walnut Street residents can still enjoy backyards that extends beyond their property line if that's what they want; they just can't have it free of charge.

That's hardly a shakedown. It's a bill that's come due.