Commission tables Riverside Road vacation after months‑long property, boundary and maintenance dispute

The Christian County Commission on March 26 delayed action on a petition to vacate portions of Riverside Road after an extended hearing in which the petitioner, Michael Bloom, argued the east-side section in front of his property had been unused for years and should be vacated as 'useless' under Missouri law.

Amanda Calloway, Ozark city attorney, told commissioners the city formally opposes vacating the entire former right of way. She said the right of way still provides public access to Riverside Inn Park and a multimodal trail and argued the petitioner had not met the statutory elements needed to show the right of way is both "useless" and "unreasonably burdensome" to maintain. An Ozark Special Road District representative said the district is taking no position until current survey work completes because legal descriptions of ownership and boundaries remain unsettled.

Bloom, who owns property on the east side of the bridge, cited RSMo §228.110 and case law (including Corbin v. Galloway and Burrows v. County Court) to argue the roadway had been abandoned through long nonuse and that a maintenance easement — distinct from a road easement — could be negotiated after vacation. Bloom said he was willing to sign a maintenance easement negotiated with the county or road district once the vacation was completed, and said the disputed deed descriptions are clerical errors that should be corrected.

Commissioners discussed whether the petition could be considered in two parts (the bridge-adjacent portion versus the trail-adjacent portion). Multiple commissioners expressed concern that the county and Ozark Special Road District still need corrected legal descriptions and a map delineating precisely what would be vacated. Commissioner (mover) made a motion to table the petition until the survey and deed corrections are complete; the motion was seconded and passed. The commission asked staff and the district to expedite the corrective deeds and survey work so the parties can return with clarified boundaries.

The transcript records extended legal argument and public comment about access for heavy equipment, title insurance implications for adjacent landowners and the difference between vacating a road and establishing a separate maintenance easement; commissioners emphasized the need for accuracy before taking an irreversible action.