Real Estate & Property Law

Hawaii Legislature Considering A Bill Requiring State Or Counties To Take Private Roads Upon Request By Adjacent Landowner

By Robert Thomas (inversecondemnation.com)

Check this out. The Hawaii Legislature is considering a bill requiring the State and the counties to take private roads, waterways, and water courses "upon request" of an adjacent landowner:

(a) Upon request by the owner of land adjacent to a privately owned highway, waterway, or watercourse, the State shall initiate condemnation proceedings for a public purpose pursuant to section 101-2, unless the State makes a written determination that a county is the more appropriate jurisdiction to initiate condemnation proceedings on the private property. For the purposes of this section "private property" means a privately owned highway, waterway, or water course.

(b) If the State declines to exercise its power of eminent domain to condemn the private property pursuant to subsection (a), then the county in which the private property is located shall initiate condemnation proceedings pursuant to section 101-14.

(c) In fixing the compensation to be paid for condemnation of the property, the amount shall be calculated using the methods for valuation under section 101-23; provided that if no real property taxes were paid in the ten years preceding initiation of the condemnation action and the private property owner can be located, the condemnation price shall be $10.

(d) Following the exercise of condemnation under this section, the STate or the county that initiated the proceeding shall be required to repair obvious defects on the condemned property not less than two years after condemnation. Beginning two years after condemnation, the State or county that initiated the proceeding shall be legally responsible for any damage to an adjacent landowner's property and any injury causes by negilgent maintenance; provided that failure by the State or county to bring the condemned property into compliance with state laws or county ordinances regulating the maintenance of property shall not constitute evidence of negligence in any subsequent civil action.

Read the entirety H.B. 836 here. Follow the bill's statuts here. Anyone know the story behind this measure? If so, let me know.

Full post as published by inversecondemnation on January 31, 2011 (boomark / email).