Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Conservation Deed Correction topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Conservation authority approves deed of correction to remove 400-foot setback on Buck Mountain Road parcel
Summary
The authority voted to accept a deed of correction removing an unintended 400-foot setback recorded in a 2015 conservation easement for an 11-acre parcel on Buck Mountain Road after staff said the restriction was a scrivener's error and the landowners were unaware of it.
The Albemarle County Conservation Authority on an unnamed date voted to accept a deed of correction removing a 400-foot setback from a conservation easement recorded in November 2015 for an 11-acre parcel on Buck Mountain Road east of Reunion.
Staff told the authority the recorded deed included a 400-foot setback barring structures within that distance of the road but that the donation proposal and the authority's review materials did not mention the restriction. The restricted clause first appeared in a draft deed from the landowner's attorney and was recorded without a response to staff's comment, staff said. On a recent monitoring visit staff found a large running shed for horses about 150 feet from the road, inside the recorded setback.
Staff recommended the authority authorize the chair to sign an amended deed (a deed of correction) removing the setback. Staff characterized the recorded setback as a scrivener's error and said the landowners did not intend the restriction. Board members discussed the history of setback language in easements, noting setback distances are typically drafted for specific properties (for example where properties front designated scenic highways) rather than coming from a standard template. Several members said they viewed the recorded clause as an unintended addition that had slipped into the recorded deed.
The authority moved and seconded a motion to accept a deed of correction removing the setback restriction and put the motion to a voice vote. The chair called for review steps to reduce the chance of similar errors in the future: staff said draft deeds will be reviewed by multiple staff (including the chair and designated reviewers) against the approved proposal before signing, and that written procedures are being updated to add that step.
Board members who raised procedural concerns asked staff to flag deviations from approved terms before the chair signs future deeds, even when the addition would be more protective than the original proposal. Staff agreed to add checklist items and multiple levels of review to the procedure update.
The authority approved the deed-of-correction motion by voice vote. No roll-call tally was provided in the transcript excerpt.
