HomeMy WebLinkAbout770656.tiff !emS .0"•\ Alt OF COLORADO
COUNTY OF WELD Bs.
•
mEmORAf DUM r'0 with the Clerk of the :ward
ul County Commissioners
JUW ., 1977
WilkTo Leonard Roe Date June 3, 19 7 COUNTY CLERK AND RECORDER
COLORADO From P. Kay Norton, Assistant County Attorney
Subject: Procedure for Opening of a County Road
The current law does not contain any requirement for a petition from property
owners in order to open a county road. The procedure set out in the statutes
for opening a county road which is not a part of the county primary road
system are very sketchy. Section 43-2-112, CRS 1973, provides that:
Condemnation for county roads. (1) the board of county com-
missioners on its own initiative may lay out, widen, alter,
or change any county road, and the board of county commissioners
shall cause the county road supervisor of the respective county
to survey the proposed road and make a written report to the
board of county commissioners of the county, describing the
proposed road to be laid out, opened, or changed, as the case may
be, and the portions of land of each landowner to be taken for
that purpose, said report to be accompanied by a map showing the
present and proposed boundaries of the portion of the county road
to be established, opened, or changed, together with an estimate
of the damages and benefits accruing to each landowner whose
land may be affected thereby. If, upon receipt of such report,
the board of county commissioners decides that public interest
or convenience will be subserved by the proposed change, said
board shall certify such proposal to the state highway commis-
sion and cause a plat to be filed in the office of the county
clerk and recorder in a book kept for that purpose.
No formal public hearing is required, unless the road to be opened will be
added to the county primary system. In such a case, notice of the inten-
tion to add the road to the county primary system must be published once
a week for at least two successive weeks preceding a public hearing held
by the board of county commissioners. Apparently, no roads have been added
to the county primary system since its inception in 1953. Therefore, all
roads which have been opened subsequent to 1953 have been secondary roads.
Since there is no formal procedure set out in the statutes, I would suggest
the following procedure:
1. Either on its own initiative or upon receipt of a petition
from surrounding property owners, the board of county com-
missioners shall direct the County Engineer to survey the
proposed road and make a written report to the board describing
the proposed road to be opened and any privately owned land
which may be required by the county for the opening of such a
road. Since the county reserved rights-of-way along all section
lines in 1889, rights-of-way will not have to be acquired in
every instance.
770656
Leonard Roe
June 3, 1977
Page 2
2. The board shall cause the matter of the road opening to be
placed upon its agenda at a regularly scheduled meeting.
The Clerk to the Board shall send a written notice to all
landowners of record in the county assessor's office abutting
the proposed road approximately ten (10) days before the
meeting in order to enable interested property owners to
comment on the proposed road opening.
3. The board shall consider the report of the County Engineer
and any comments of interested property owners at the meet-
ing and shall determine whether the public interest or con-
venience will be served by the proposed opening.
4. If the board of county commissioners finds that the public
interest or convenience will be served by opening the proposed
road, the board shall certify its decision to the State High-
way Commission and shall cause a plat to be filed in the office
of the County Clerk and Recorder showing the opening of the
new road.
I would also reccommend that the same procedure be used in the vacation of
road ways within the county. In addition, written instruments of vacation
should be recorded.
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