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Weston County staff identify conflicting deeds, locate 250-foot easement for Old Highway 85 ahead of bridge work
Summary
County staff told the Weston County Commission they found a 1950 recorded easement and a later deed that do not match, leaving a small final segment of Old Highway 85 mapped to a private owner. Staff and the landowner discussed a survey and a short-term fix to remove the parcel from the tax roll without delaying the bridge project.
County staff reported to the Weston County Commission that records for a short segment of Old Highway 85 are inconsistent and that recent mapping shows a 250-foot-wide easement from the new Highway 85 to the nearby railroad bridge.
The commission heard that a deed in Book 14, page 318, appears to convey a line of ownership from the state of Wyoming to Weston County but lacks a parcel description and width. Separately, miscellaneous Book 14, page 319 contains an easement recorded in 1950 from Leo Urban to the state that includes a width. Because the deed does not contain an acreage or width, county mapping shows the land remaining in private ownership for the final roughly 355-foot segment to the railroad, and the assessor continues to tax that parcel.
"There is a recorded easement for 1950 for 250 feet wide from the new Highway 85 to Roto Road right of way," a county staff member reported during the meeting when summarizing the surveyor and mapping findings. County staff said the mapping coordinator, Max, located the 250-foot easement the morning of the meeting.
County staff and the landowner discussed options to clear title for the small remaining parcel. Staff proposed obtaining a survey and having the landowner sign a conveyance or describing the 250-foot right of way in a recorded document so the parcel can be removed from the tax rolls and the county records updated. A county staffer said the attorney's office should review any document before recording.
Commissioners were warned that the Wyoming Department of Transportation (or a related highway office) has expressed concern that reducing the easement while a bridge staging plan is active could jeopardize the bridge project. "I'm being told you're jeopardizing the bridge project if you start messing around with these ones," one commissioner said, quoting concerns relayed from the highway office. County staff said they want to avoid delaying the bridge and to coordinate with the highway office and with Scott Taylor, who had raised objections when informed that a 100-foot width was being discussed.
The commission discussed a short-term path forward: order a survey to establish the 250-foot right of way clearly in county records, have the landowner sign a document to convey that portion to the county, and delay any permanent reduction of the easement until after the bridge project is complete. Staff said if the conveyance and recording occur before the end of the calendar year, the change would affect the 2026 tax year.
County staff said the attorney's office should draft the conveyance and confirm the correct legal description before recording. Commissioners asked staff to follow up with the highway office and to bring a proposed resolution or documents back to the commission for approval at a subsequent meeting.
The discussion closed with an agreement to pursue the survey and to coordinate with Scott Taylor and the highway office before taking steps that could affect the bridge project timeline.
