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28-7095. Conveyance of property not needed for transportation purposes

A. The director may dispose of real property or any right, title or interest in the real property if the director determines that it is not needed or used for transportation purposes. After the establishment, laying out, substantial completion of a transportation improvement or abolishment of a transportation improvement by formal action of the transportation board, the director may convey the real property or any interest in the real property that was acquired pursuant to this article and that the director determines is not necessary for state transportation purposes.

B. Except as provided in section 28-7099, the director may convey the real property described in subsection A of this section to an agency of the federal government, this state or a county, city or town of this state without a public sale if the director considers the conveyance to be in the public interest and if the real property is to be used for such a specific public purpose. If the property is not used for a highway purpose, the agency shall pay the department for the conveyance based on an appraisal within twelve months of the date of conveyance establishing the fair market value of the property to be conveyed. If the property conveyed to an agency is to be used for a specific highway purpose, the agency shall reimburse the department for its expenditures for the property. If the property is not used for a highway purpose, the property shall revert to the department. If the director determines any property conveyed under this section is needed by the department for a transportation purpose, the department may acquire the property from the agency at a cost equal to the amount paid by the agency, or the fair market value at the time of the repurchase by the department, whichever is less.

C. The director may grant an easement to a state or local agency for property to be used for a specific highway purpose, on terms and conditions acceptable to the director, for no payment to the department. The agency shall bear all liability that may be attributed to the department for incidents that occur during the period of the easement and the agency shall bear all costs of maintaining the property. If the property is not used for a highway purpose, the department may terminate the easement as to any portion of the property that is not used for a highway purpose. The easement terminates if the director determines that the property is needed by the department for a highway purpose.

D. The director may convey other marketable property to the highest responsible bidder at a public auction or by direct sale after at least thirty days' notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the property is located. If the director elects to convey property by a direct sale, and receives more than one offer before the termination of the thirty day notice period, the director shall sell the property at public auction. At least one fee appraisal or one in-house appraisal is required for property that is offered to the public. The director shall disclose the amount of the low appraisal before a public auction. If at a public auction the amount of the highest responsible bid does not equal or exceed the amount of the low appraisal, the director shall advise the bidders that the amount of the low appraisal has not been met and shall continue the bidding until the amount of the highest responsible bid equals or exceeds the amount of the low appraisal. If the highest responsible bid does not equal or exceed the amount of the low appraisal, the director shall reject all bids. If the director is unable to sell real property pursuant to this subsection for an amount that equals or exceeds the low appraisal, the director may convey the real property by direct sale after at least thirty days' notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the real property is located at an amount that is at least equal to eighty per cent of the low appraisal, except that, if the director receives more than one offer before the termination of the thirty day notice period in an amount that is at least equal to eighty per cent of the low appraisal, the director shall sell the real property at public auction.

E. A sale pursuant to subsection B or D of this section may be made for cash or on terms of at least twenty per cent down with the balance payable in annual or monthly installments for ten years, and the unpaid balance bears interest at a rate determined by the director.

F. The director may dispose of property by quitclaim deed to adjacent property owners or the underlying fee owner if the property has no market value or a net value of ten thousand dollars or less without a public auction or thirty day notice period. The director may notify adjacent property owners or the underlying fee owner that the estimated market value of the property may be reduced by up to twenty per cent, that the director may accept an offer between eighty per cent and one hundred per cent of the estimated market value and that, if the adjacent property owner or underlying fee owner is interested in acquiring the property, the adjacent property owner or underlying fee owner must submit a written offer to the director within sixty days after the date of the notice. If the director does not receive an offer within sixty days after the date of the notice, the director may dispose of the property at the best price the director can obtain for the property pursuant to procedures established by the director. For the purposes of this subsection, "net value" means the estimated market value of the property reduced by the cost to sell the property and the cost of continued maintenance of the property.

G. The director may:

1. Execute all deeds or conveyances necessary to convey any real property or interest in the real property to be conveyed under this section and shall sell any real property or interest in real property for the highest responsible bid, the direct sale price or the appraised market value of the property, as applicable.

2. Assess a fee for the costs of preparing and executing any conveyance under this section.

3. Either:

(a) Insert in the deed or conveyance conditions, covenants, exceptions and reservations as the director deems to be in the public interest.

(b) Convey in fee simple absolute.

H. The director shall notify the county assessor and county treasurer of any property disposed of or quitclaimed pursuant to this section within thirty days after the close of escrow. Proper notice includes the legal description of property being conveyed, the name and address of the new property owner and legal description of the conveyed property and the name and address of a person or persons who are identified as the correct recipients of the property tax bill.

I. It is conclusively presumed in favor of any purchaser for value and without notice of any real property or interest in the real property conveyed pursuant to this section that the department acted within its lawful authority in acquiring the property and that the director acted within the director's lawful authority in executing a deed, conveyance or lease authorized by this article.

J. The director may contract with a licensed real estate broker to assist in any disposition of property under this section or pay a commission to a licensed real estate broker whose client completes a purchase of property under this section. The director shall determine the rate of commission paid to the broker. The director may pay the licensed real estate broker from proceeds received under this section unless the broker is the purchaser or lessee or the purchaser is another governmental agency.