Item Coversheet



Staff REPORT
Action ITEM

Item # 6.b.

SUBJECT: 

Easements for Capital Projects-12th Street Improvements

DATE OF MEETING:  

July 26, 2022

Staff CONTACT(S):

Dale Lehnig, Director of Engineering, Planning & Development
Sally Hankins, Town Attorney

Jessica Keller, Capital Projects Coordinator




SUMMARY and RECOMMENDATIONS:

The Town’s Engineering, Planning & Development Department has undertaken several Council-approved construction projects, the completion of which require that easements be granted to the Town by private property owners.  This agenda item seeks Council approval of numerous such easements.  For efficiency, these deeds of easement can be approved collectively, in a single motion.

The deeds of easement submitted to Town Council for approval with this agenda item are routine.  The land subject to an easement remains owned by the private property owner, and not the Town.  As such, it is not truly a conveyance of real estate requiring Council approval.  Nonetheless, the Town’s long-standing practice has been to treat such easements as conveyances of real estate, requiring approval by the Town Council [1]  and signature by the Mayor.

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[1] § 15.2-1803. Approval and acceptance of conveyances of real estate.
Every deed purporting to convey real estate to a locality shall be in a form approved by the attorney for the locality, or if there is no such attorney, then a qualified attorney-at-law selected by the governing body. No such deed shall be valid unless accepted by the locality, which acceptance shall appear on the face thereof or on a separately recorded instrument and shall be executed by a person authorized to act on behalf of the locality. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any conveyance of real estate to any locality under the provisions of Article 6 (§ 15.2-2240 et seq.) of Chapter 22 or prior to December 1, 1997.

 
 


BACKGROUND:

The Deeds submitted for approval with this staff report further the following capital project:
 (a)  12th Street Drainage and Road Improvements
This is a VDOT Revenue Sharing and NVTA funded project on S. 12th Street, which includes sidewalk, curb & gutter, and drainage improvements.  Easements are needed from twenty-eight property owners. The deeds submitted for approval and attached to this report are:

-Feber

-Fiegel

-United Bankshares, Inc.

 


BUDGET IMPACT:

Acquisition of easements is negotiated between Town Staff and the property owner.  All such negotiations relative to the easements before Town Council for approval with this Staff Report have been concluded.  If Town Council approves and accepts the attached deeds of easement, those negotiated deeds, which have already been budgeted and appropriated as part of the capital cost of the project, will be recorded.

MOTION(S):

“I move that Town Council approve and accept the easements offered in the Deeds of Easement attached to this Staff Report, and authorize the Mayor to sign all such deeds on behalf of the Town.”
ATTACHMENTS:
Description
Feber Deed of Easement
Fiegel Deed of Easement
United Bankshares, Inc. Deed of Easement