PRESCOTT ARIZONA REAL ESTATE – DOMAIN

Matt Hinshaw/The Daily CourierThe City of Prescott plans to begin work soon on its portion of the Williamson Valley Road widening project – from Sidewinder Road to Shadow Valley Ranch Road – which will be near the work that currently is under way on Yavapai County’s stretch of the road.

By Cindy Barks The Daily Courier

But before the project can begin, Prescott needs more than two dozen pieces of right-of-way along the route. While Engineering Services Director Mark Nietupski said the city has negotiated most of those acquisitions successfully, five still remain.

In several of the cases, the city and property owners are at odds over whether a previous subdivision plat granted a 17-foot-wide piece of right-of-way to the city, or whether the plat merely reserved the right-of-way for a future road project, with the understanding that the city would pay for it.

Under eminent domain, the city could ask the courts to grant it immediate possession of the property. The court would then determine the land’s fair market value, which the city would pay to the owner. The court also could resolve the disagreement over the meaning of the original Shadow Valley Estates plat.

But council members were reluctant to start the eminent-domain proceedings until city staff could assure them that they had exhausted every other possibility in acquiring the land.

The council ultimately agreed to postpone the matter until its June 8 meeting to allow for further negotiations with the property owners.

“I am dead-set against taking people’s property, so we need to do everything we can (to avoid eminent domain),” Councilman John Hanna said.

Councilman Jim Lamerson also was hesitant to condemn the land through eminent domain. “I’m not convinced we’ve taken this to the mat,” he said. “I’m hearing there might be some other options. I’m not prepared at this point in time…to pursue eminent domain.”

Nietupski noted that the city has been discussing the matter with several of the property owners, and he reported some progress.

But on two of the parcels, Nietupski said the city has been unable to make any progress. In fact, Nietupski said the out-of-town owner, who owns both parcels, has had no contact with the city on the matter.

“We think we know where he is, but he has refused to communicate with us, period,” Nietupski said.

Kidd added that city staff members had made “numerous efforts” to reach the owner of the two parcels, including letters and certified letters.

Nietupski said in the case of the out-of-town owner, “We will do everything short of litigation, but if somebody just flat-out refuses to work with us, we don’t have any other choice.”

Until the city gets all of the necessary right-of-way, Nietupski said it cannot advertise for bids for the widening project. In addition, he said, necessary utility relocation cannot begin.

City Manager Steve Norwood pointed out that staff members were moving the Williamson Valley Road project forward “at the direction of the council.”

He added that city officials hoped to begin the project soon to take advantage of the current favorable construction market.