§ 136-19. Acquisition of land and deposits of materials; condemnation proceedings; federal parkways.
§ 136‑19. Acquisitionof land and deposits of materials; condemnation proceedings; federal parkways.
(a) The Department ofTransportation is vested with the power to acquire either in the nature of anappropriate easement or in fee simple such rights‑of‑way and titleto such land, gravel, gravel beds or bars, sand, sand beds or bars, rock,stone, boulders, quarries, or quarry beds, lime or other earth or mineraldeposits or formations, and such standing timber as it may deem necessary andsuitable for transportation infrastructure construction, including roadconstruction, maintenance, and repair, and the necessary approaches and waysthrough, and a sufficient amount of land surrounding and adjacent thereto, asit may determine to enable it to properly prosecute the work, by purchase,donation, or condemnation, in the manner hereinafter set out. If the Departmentof Transportation acquires by purchase, donation, or condemnation part of atract of land in fee simple for highway right‑of‑way as authorizedby this section and the Department of Transportation later determines that theproperty acquired for transportation infrastructure, including highway right‑of‑way,or a part of that property, is no longer needed for infrastructure right‑of‑way,then the Department shall give first consideration to any offer to purchase theproperty made by the former owner. The Department may refuse any offer that isless than the current market value of the property, as determined by theDepartment. Unless the Department acquired an entire lot, block, or tract ofland belonging to the former owner, the former owner must own the remainder ofthe lot, block, or tract of land from which the property was acquired toreceive first consideration by the Department of their offer to purchase theproperty.
(b) Notwithstanding theprovisions of subsection (a), if the Department acquires the property bycondemnation and determines that the property or a part of that property is nolonger needed for highway right‑of‑way or other transportationprojects, the Department of Transportation may reconvey the property to theformer owner upon payment by the former owner of the full price paid to theowner when the property was taken, the cost of any improvements, together withinterest at the legal rate to the date when the decision was made to offer thereturn of the property. Unless the Department acquired an entire lot, block, ortract of land belonging to the former owner, the former owner must own theremainder of the lot, block, or tract of land from which the property wasacquired to purchase the property pursuant to this subsection.
(c) The requirements ofthis section for reconveying property to the former owner, regardless ofwhether such property was acquired by purchase, donation, or condemnation,shall not apply to property acquired outside the right‑of‑way as an"uneconomic remnant" or "residue".
(d) The Department ofTransportation is also vested with the power to acquire such additional landalongside of the rights‑of‑way for transportation projects,including roads as in its opinion may be necessary and proper for theprotection of the transportation projects, including roads and roadways, andsuch additional area as may be necessary as by it determined for approaches toand from such material and other requisite area as may be desired by it forworking purposes. The Department of Transportation may, in its discretion, withthe consent of the landowner, acquire in fee simple an entire lot, block ortract of land, if by so doing, the interest of the public will be best served,even though said entire lot, block or tract is not immediately needed for right‑of‑waypurposes.
(e) Notwithstanding anyother provisions of law or eminent domain powers of utility companies, utilitymembership corporations, municipalities, counties, entities created bypolitical subdivisions, or any combination thereof, and in order to preventundue delay of highway projects because of utility conflicts, the Department ofTransportation may condemn or acquire property in fee or appropriate easementsnecessary to provide transportation project rights‑of‑way for therelocation of utilities when required in the construction, reconstruction, orrehabilitation of a State transportation project. The Department of Transportationshall also have the authority, subject to the provisions of G.S. 136‑19.5(a)and (b), to, in its discretion, acquire rights‑of‑way necessary forthe present or future placement of utilities as described in G.S. 136‑18(2).
(f) Whenever theDepartment of Transportation and the owner or owners of the lands, materials,and timber required by the Department of Transportation to carry on the work asherein provided for, are unable to agree as to the price thereof, theDepartment of Transportation is hereby vested with the power to condemn thelands, materials, and timber and in so doing the ways, means, methods, andprocedure of Article 9 of this Chapter shall be used by it exclusively.
(g) The Department ofTransportation shall have the same authority, under the same provisions of lawprovided for construction of State transportation projects, for acquirement ofall rights‑of‑way and easements necessary to comply with the rulesand regulations of the United States government for the construction of federalparkways and entrance roads to federal parks in the State of North Carolina.The acquirement of a total of 125 acres per mile of said parkways, includingroadway and recreational, and scenic areas on either side thereof, shall bedeemed a reasonable area for said purpose. The right‑of‑wayacquired or appropriated may, at the option of the Department ofTransportation, be a fee‑simple title. The said Department ofTransportation is hereby authorized to convey such title so acquired to theUnited States government, or its appropriate agency, free and clear of allclaims for compensation. All compensation contracted to be paid or legallyassessed shall be a valid claim against the Department of Transportation,payable out of the State Highway Fund. Any conveyance to the United StatesDepartment of Interior of land acquired as provided by this section shallcontain a provision whereby the State of North Carolina shall retain concurrentjurisdiction over the areas conveyed. The Governor is further authorized to grantconcurrent jurisdiction to lands already conveyed to the United StatesDepartment of Interior for parkways and entrances to parkways.
(h) The action of theDepartment of Transportation heretofore taken in the acquirement of areas forthe Blue Ridge Parkway in accordance with the rules and regulations of theUnited States government is hereby ratified and approved and declared to be areasonable exercise of the discretion vested in the said Department ofTransportation in furtherance of the public interest.
(i) When areas havebeen tentatively designated by the United States government to be includedwithin a parkway, but the final survey necessary for the filing of maps asprovided in this section has not yet been made, no person shall cut or removeany timber from said areas pending the filing of said maps after receivingnotice from the Department of Transportation that such area is underinvestigation; and any property owner who suffers loss by reason of therestraint upon his right to use the said timber pending such investigationshall be entitled to recover compensation from the Department of Transportationfor the temporary appropriation of his property, in the event the same is notfinally included within the appropriated area, and the provisions of thissection may be enforced under the same law now applicable for the adjustment ofcompensation in the acquirement of rights‑of‑way on other propertyby the Department of Transportation. (1921, c. 2, s. 22; 1923, c. 160, s. 6; C.S., s.3846(bb); 1931, c. 145, s. 23; 1933, c. 172, s. 17; 1935, c. 2; 1937, c. 42;1949, c. 1115; 1953, c. 217; 1957, c. 65, s. 11; 1959, c. 1025, s. 1; cc. 1127,1128; 1963, c. 638; 1971, c. 1105; 1973, c. 507, ss. 5, 11; 1977, c. 464, s.7.1; 1989 (Reg. Sess., 1990), c. 962, s. 2; 1991 (Reg. Sess., 1992), c. 979, s.1; 2009‑266, s. 7.)