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Appraisers to determine land value in condemnation case
Published 9/17/2008 in News : Area coverage
By STEPHANIE FARLEY
sfarleygctelegram.com
Property owners, attorneys and representatives of the Kansas Department of Transportation gathered Tuesday in Finney County District Court for a consideration hearing in the eminent domain case to acquire land and right of way for a four-lane project involving U.S. Highway 50 between Holcomb and Garden City.
According to an eminent domain petition filed and published earlier this month, there were 25 to 30 landowners unable to settle with KDOT. The inability to settle, said Chris Small, staff attorney with KDOT, stems from various reasons.
Small said that roughly a handful of landowners have settled since the petition was published.
What remained Tuesday during the consideration hearing were the landowners still going through the process. The hearing included a meeting with the attorneys representing the property owners and Small and other KDOT representatives to determine a list of names of suitable appraisers to view the land and property involved in the case and determine a fair value of the property.
Larry Johnston, Doug Moon and Jamie Jarnagin, mayor for the city of Holcomb, will serve as the three appraisers.
According to Small, KDOT spends about six months trying to negotiate with property owners before pursuing eminent domain, or condemnation. Eminent domain basically amounts to the state seizing a citizen's private or other property, or rights in property, while providing due monetary compensation without the owner's consent.
"We prefer to avoid condemnation if we can," Small said.
But the process of acquiring right of way and property for the project has come to the point of condemnation.
During the process, the three appraisers have 45 days by statute to evaluate all of the property and tracts of land listed in the petition. Small said the appraisers may request an extension if needed.
According to the court, the appraisers must be, among other requirements, non-interested parties, meaning they can't be employed or associated with the property owners or with KDOT; and they must be residents of Finney County.
Judge Michael Quint asked the group gathered Tuesday in the courtroom whether anyone objected to the names of the three potential appraisers in the case. No one responded.
An oath will be administered to the individuals willing to serve as appraisers, and then the process of viewing the properties and land starts.
According to Small, the appraisers are paid by the state and basically keep track of their time to determine the amount of money they receive. Small said the position is voluntary, and if an individual turns down the request to serve, KDOT turns to an alternate and then continues looking if that doesn't work out.
No further hearing dates have been set. While the appraisers have 45 days by statute to complete the job, Quint and attorneys present in the room stated that with the large amount of land and property to view, the appraisers might not finish within that deadline.
There's "a lot of work to be done," Quint said.
All three appraisers are required to view each piece of property and tract of land, Small said. They can either choose to work together or view the property separately but only one number is presented as the just price for the property.
Small said there eventually will be a meeting between the appraisers and property owners, giving the owners a chance to voice their opinion on what they feel their land and property is worth.
There is an appeals process, he said, after a just compensation price is determined and set by the appraisers.
The four-lane divided highway project stretches about 8.4 miles from Garden City to Holcomb. The four lanes will begin near IBP Road and taper off to two lanes just east of Third Street. The project's total cost is estimated at $83.17 million, with construction estimated at $66.9 million.
The project's bid letting is set for March 2009.
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