Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Rights Of Way Acquisition topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
City seeks permission for possession/use and potential eminent domain for Dublin and Mark Sheffler road projects
Summary
City staff asked council to authorize possession-and-use agreements — and eminent‑domain authority if necessary — to secure easements and small parcels needed to finish Dublin Boulevard and Mark Sheffler Road improvements using PPRTA funds.
Gail Sturdevant, city engineer and deputy public‑works director, asked council June 9 for permission to proceed with property acquisition for the Dublin Boulevard improvements and the Mark Sheffler Road project, both funded with Pikes Peak Rural Transportation Authority (PPRTA) money.
Sturdevant said the city has negotiated appraisals and made offers but that two private property owners — Walmart Real Estate Business Trust and PRD Real Estate LLC — have recently become nonresponsive after earlier discussions and offers. She told council staff would continue to seek settlements but requested authority to use possession‑and‑use agreements and, if necessary, eminent domain to keep construction moving.
For the Dublin Boulevard item involving Stetson Ridge Metro District No. 1, the appraisal value totaled about $80,000; additional payments to the district for landscaping and irrigation damages raised the total to $129,400, which requires council approval because it exceeds the city’s $100,000 administrative threshold.
Sturdevant said neither the Walmart nor PRD acquisitions, as currently estimated, exceed $100,000 individually but that could change if settlements or valuation committee decisions increase the amounts. She said the owners have been nonresponsive since April 30 and that staff will notify them the council will consider possession/use and eminent‑domain authority at the June 24 meeting; owners may appear at that meeting to address council.
Sturdevant emphasized staff’s preference to reach negotiated settlements. “Proceeding with this today … gives us tools in the toolbox to help move things along if we’re having a harder time getting to a resolution,” she said, describing possession and use as a temporary mechanism that preserves the right to settle before formal condemnation proceedings.
Council members had no further questions at the work session. Sturdevant said staff expects to return the item on the consent agenda for the June 24 meeting and that, if an owner appears, council could pull the item to hear comment.
