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Oliver County commissioners rescind earlier motion after landowner raises legal concerns over BNI road relocation
Summary
A landowner objected to a proposed BNI road relocation, citing a coal lease and North Dakota statute; the county attorney urged caution and the commissioners voted to rescind an August motion approving written findings related to the relocation.
During consideration of written findings connected to a BNI road proposal, a landowner who identified himself in the meeting record as Mr. Dresser read a letter from his attorney and urged the commission to rescind a prior August motion. Dresser said a 2009 coal lease covering the southeast section includes relocation language but argued the county is not a party to that lease and therefore cannot rely on it to avoid the statutory process for relocating a county road.
"Road closures and relocations in coal country are governed by section 38‑0107.1 of the Century Code," the landowner read aloud and insisted the county must obtain landowner permission or follow condemnation statutes; he warned that proceeding without easements could create legal liability for the county. Dresser said he and others had spent time and money on legal advice and that the county should demand easements or rescind action that treats the lease as authority.
The county attorney responded that the commission is not a party to the private lease and cautioned that moving forward might amount to an unconstitutional taking of private property. The attorney said he would not provide a full legal analysis in open session but advised the commission to "get as far away from this issue as possible" and recommended rescinding the motion and taking no further action without additional legal steps.
Following that advice, a commissioner moved to rescind the August motion; the motion was seconded and the commission voted in favor. The meeting record shows the commission rescinded the prior action and agreed to pause further steps pending appropriate legal review and—where applicable—landowner easements or formal statutory processes.
