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Mohave County board opens process to consider extinguishing easements in Santa Fe Ranchos after resident petition and public objections
Summary
The board acknowledged a petition to extinguish portions of ingress/egress and utility easements in Santa Fe Ranchos and directed public works to begin research and the noticing process. Residents at the meeting raised concerns that private interests and POA board members had sought easement changes to avoid enforcement.
The Mohave County Board of Supervisors on Feb. 18 acknowledged a petition to extinguish portions of ingress, egress and public‑utility easements in the Santa Fe Ranchos subdivision and directed county public‑works staff to begin the research and legal noticing required for an abandonment procedure.
Public Works Director Richard Letosky told supervisors the petition concerns a property at the end of a dead‑end road where the applicant seeks extinguishment of half of two ingress/egress easements and an adjacent utility easement. "Public works has no opinion on this because we have not done any research or noticing," Letosky said; staff will survey adjacent properties, notify nearby owners and utilities, and return the matter for a public hearing after the outreach process.
Why it matters: two residents who signed up to speak said they opposed the extinguishment. Randall Barrett, a Santa Fe Ranchos Property Owners Association member, told the board he objected because he said several POA board members had fenced inside easements and then sought the county process to avoid enforcement. "This is being done to avoid them having to pay consequences for having their fences in the easements," Barrett said. Applicant Carol Wilk said removing the gate and fence would cost more than $5,000 and that extinguishment would not block neighbors’ access.
Board action and process: the board voted to acknowledge the petition and direct staff to carry out the full research and noticing process, including surveying adjacent owners and utility companies and preparing a public hearing when staff has completed the record. Director Letosky told the board staff will not recommend extinguishment if the change would sever legal access to a property or otherwise violate state law.
Next steps: public‑works staff will complete field postings, surveys and statutory notices, compile feedback from adjacent property owners and utilities, and return to the board with the results and a recommendation under a public‑hearing agenda item. If the board later votes to extinguish any easement, that decision would be based on the record from the noticing process and applicable state law.
