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Holmes County landowner urges clearer dirt-road right‑of‑way rules after directional‑drilling boxes placed on private property
Summary
Daryl Baxley told commissioners he lost property to repeated grading and last year found directional-drilling boxes placed on his half-acre without permission; county staff advised survey and said right‑of‑way determinations are on a case-by-case basis and often prescriptive after long-term maintenance.
During the public‑comment portion of the Holmes County commission meeting, resident Daryl Baxley asked the board to define county right‑of‑way for dirt roads and described repeated instances where road grading and recent directional drilling placed utility boxes on his property without prior coordination.
Baxley said he has maintained the roadside for years and has seen about six feet of property eroded by motor graders; more recently, contractors installed boxes where he explicitly asked they not be placed, interfering with plans for a well and an ice machine. “Who gives a private entity permission to put stuff on my property?” Baxley asked.
Commissioners and county staff told Baxley that right‑of‑way determinations for dirt roads are case‑by‑case; staff generally use the ditch‑bank-to‑ditch‑bank prescriptive standard in many rural areas but encouraged him to obtain a legal survey for civil remedies where parcel lines are disputed. Staff and a commissioner suggested asking the Florida Department of Transportation or reviewing historic deed conveyances for how roads were deeded to the county.
Baxley said he would seek answers elsewhere if the board could not provide clarity; road and planning staff acknowledged similar disputes elsewhere and urged property owners to secure surveys when boundaries are unclear. Commissioners also noted that private utilities providing public services (a TriTech-style company discussed later in the meeting) may have statutory allowances to perform work in ROWs but that easements and surveys govern legal rights.
Next steps: staff advised Baxley to obtain a survey or consult counsel for civil relief; county staff reiterated they would review permitted work and the property-appraiser maps if provided.
