Commissioners decline to declare private driveway a county road for title insurance; county law limits noted
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Summary
A landowner and a title company asked the county to pass a resolution treating a private driveway as a county-maintained road so title insurance could be issued; commissioners and counsel said the county cannot unilaterally take or declare private land a public road without landowner consent and declined to adopt such a resolution.
A request from a title company (Security First) and a property owner asking the county to issue a resolution confirming county maintenance of a driveway at 90 Fifth Street was discussed. The title company told county staff it needed a resolution to issue title insurance, because minutes alone were not sufficient evidence of county maintenance.
County attorneys and commissioners reviewed the legal limits: if the driveway has never been a public road, a unilateral resolution by the county could be a government taking of private property unless the landowners consent or convey a deed or easement. Commissioners noted that historically the county had performed some maintenance on private driveways (noted in prior minutes) but that action does not alone create an enforceable public road for title purposes. Several commissioners said they did not think it was appropriate to ask taxpayers to fund maintenance that primarily benefits a private property owner.
No resolution was adopted. Commissioners directed staff to advise the property owner and the title company that the county would not create a resolution to declare the driveway a county road and that landowners seeking title insurance should pursue a private easement or other legal instrument.