88.080. Street grading--assessment of damages, procedure.
Street grading--assessment of damages, procedure.
88.080. 1. In all cases where the proper authorities inany city in this state have graded or regraded, or may hereaftergrade or change the grade or lines of any street or alley, or inany way alter or enlarge the same, or construct any publicimprovement, thereby causing damage to private property forpublic use, within the meaning of section 26 of article I of thestate constitution, without the consent of the owner of suchproperty, or in case they fail to agree with the owner thereoffor the proper compensation for the damages so done, or likelyto be done or sustained by reason thereof, or if by reason ofthe legal incapacity of such owner, no such compensation can beagreed upon, the circuit court having jurisdiction over theterritory embraced in such city on application by petition,either by the city authorities or the owner of the property forwhich damage is claimed, or any one on behalf of either, shallappoint three disinterested residents of such city, who shallmeet upon the premises at a time by them to be appointed, ofwhich they shall give personal notice to the owners, or theiragents, of the land affected, if they can be found, as well asfive days' notice by advertisement in the newspaper doing thecity printing; and the commissioners, having first been dulysworn to perform their duties justly and impartially, and a truereport to make, shall view the street or alley or improvementand premises affected by the change or enlargement orconstruction thereof, having due regard to and making justallowances for the advantages which have resulted or which mayseem likely to result to the owner or owners of property forwhich damages may be allowed or claimed, and after suchcomparison shall estimate and determine whether any, and if any,how much damages such property may have sustained, or seemslikely to sustain by reason thereof, and make report of thesame, and if no exceptions be filed within ten days thereafter,or in the event exceptions are filed and overruled, the courtshall confirm the report and enter judgment thereon with costs,from which judgment either or any party shall be entitled to anappeal or writ of error, as in other cases.
2. If the proceedings seek to affect the lands of personsunder conservatorship, the conservators must be made parties; ifthe lands of married persons, their spouses must be madeparties; if the possessor of lands to be affected has an estateless than a fee, the person having the next vested estate inremainder or reversion must, if known, be made a party. Itshall not be necessary to make any persons parties in respect totheir ownership unless they are in actual possession of thepremises to be affected, or have a title to the premisesappearing of record.
3. The petition shall set forth the general nature of thework or improvement causing damage to private property forpublic use as aforesaid, together with all the facts necessaryto give the court jurisdiction in the premises, the names of theowners of the several lots or parcels of land to be affectedthereby, if known, or if unknown, a correct description of theparcels whose owners are unknown. The petition may be presentedto the circuit court.
4. Upon filing the petition a summons shall be issued,giving the defendants at least ten days' notice of the time whenthe petition will be heard, which summons shall be served in thesame manner as writs of summons are or may be by law required tobe served. If the name or residence of the defendants, or anyof them, be unknown, or if they, or any of them, do not residewithin the state, notice of the time of hearing the petition,reciting the substance of the petition, and the day fixed forthe hearing thereof, shall be given by publication for fourweeks consecutively prior to the time of the hearing of thepetition, in the papers doing the city printing, and the courton being satisfied that due notice of the pending of thepetition has been given, shall make the above appointment ofcommissioners.
5. The city authorities shall, before the filing of suchpetition, define by ordinance the limits within which privateproperty is deemed benefited by the change, enlargement,grading, regrading or improvement aforesaid, and the owners ofthe private property within such limits shall be made partiesdefendants, as provided in this section, and served with noticeand process as provided in this section.
(RSMo 1939 § 7373, A.L. 1945 p. 1306, A.L. 1978 H.B. 1634, A.L. 1983 S.B. 44 & 45, A.L. 1990 H.B. 1070)Prior revisions: 1929 § 7222; 1919 § 8676; 1909 § 9553