Idaho Statutes

TITLE 40 HIGHWAYS AND BRIDGES

CHAPTER 2 GENERAL PROVISIONS

40-209.  HIGHWAY RIGHT-OF-WAY PLATS. (1) A public highway agency may file
in the office of the county recorder a highway right-of-way plat. The
highway right-of-way plat shall show by outline and identify by parcel
number tracts or parcels of land to be acquired and shall be prepared in
conformance with chapter 19, title 55, Idaho Code. The recording of a
highway right-of-way plat as provided in this section shall not excuse a
county or highway district from the requirements of abandonment or
validation of a public highway or public right-of-way as provided in
sections 40-203 and 40-203A, Idaho Code. The highway right-of-way plat
shall contain the following:
    (a)  Project name and number;
    (b) Monuments found, set, reset, replaced or removed describing their
    kind, size and location and giving other data relating thereto;
    (c)  Bearings, basis of bearings, length of lines, scale of map and
    north arrow;
    (d)  Section, or part of section, township, range and reference to
    adjoining plats or surveys of record; and ties to at least two (2)
    public land survey corners, or in lieu of public land survey corners,
    to two (2) monuments recognized by the city engineer or surveyor, or
    county engineer or surveyor;
    (e)  Outline of all parcels of land to be acquired, identifying them
    with parcel identification numbers;
    (f)  Acknowledgement of authorized agent of the public highway agency
    filing said plat;
    (g)  Certificate of land surveyor under whose responsible charge the
    plat is prepared.
 (2)  The highway right-of-way plat filed with the county recorder of any
county shall be assigned an instrument number and shall be bound or filed
with other  plats of like character in a book on file designated "Highway
Right-of-Way Plats."
 (3)  Any amendments, alterations, rescissions or changes in a highway
right-of-way plat shall comply with subsection (1) of this section and
shall be filed in  a like manner. The recorder may make suitable notations
on the appropriate highway right-of-way plat affected by the amendment,
alteration, rescission or change to direct the attention of anyone
examining the record to the proper plat.
 (4)  Highway right-of-way plats filed under this section shall not operate
to transfer title to the real property described therein but such plat
shall  be used for delineation purposes. Acquisition of real property for
highway right-of-way by conveyance or judicial decree may refer to said
highway right-of-way plat, project number and parcel identification number,
together with delineation  of the parcel as a valid description of the real
property for all purposes.
 (5)  The agency making the initial filing in a county shall reimburse the
county recorder the actual cost of the plat book required in subsection (2)
of this section.

40-203.  ABANDONMENT AND VACATION OF COUNTY AND HIGHWAY DISTRICT SYSTEM
HIGHWAYS OR PUBLIC RIGHTS-OF-WAY. (1) A board of county or highway district
commissioners, whichever shall have jurisdiction of the highway system,
shall use the following procedure to abandon and vacate any highway or
public right-of-way in the county or highway district system including
those which furnish public access to state and federal public lands and
waters:
    (a)  The commissioners may by resolution declare its intention to
    abandon and vacate any highway or public right-of-way considered no
    longer to be in the public interest.
    (b)  Any resident, or property holder, within a county or highway
    district system including the state of Idaho, any of its subdivisions,
    or any agency of the federal government may petition the respective
    commissioners for abandonment and vacation of any highway or public
    right-of-way within their highway system. The petitioner shall pay a
    reasonable fee as determined by the commissioners to cover the cost of
    the proceedings.
    (c)  The commissioners shall establish a hearing date or dates on the
    proposed abandonment and vacation.
    (d)  The commissioners shall prepare a public notice stating their
    intention to hold a public hearing to consider the proposed abandonment
    and vacation of a highway or public right-of-way which shall be made
    available to the public not later than thirty (30) days prior to any
    hearing and mailed to any person requesting a copy not more than three
    (3) working days after any such request.
    (e)  At least thirty (30) days prior to any hearing scheduled by the
    commissioner to consider abandonment and vacation of any highway or
    public right-of-way, the commissioners shall mail notice by United
    States mail to owners and operators of an underground facility, as
    defined in section 55-2202, Idaho Code, that lies within the highway or
    public right-of-way.
    (f)  At least thirty (30) days prior to any hearing scheduled by the
    commissioners to consider abandonment and vacation of any highway or
    public right-of-way, the commissioners shall mail notice to owners of
    land abutting the portion of the highway or public right-of-way
    proposed to be abandoned and vacated at their addresses as shown on the
    county assessor's tax rolls and shall publish notice of the hearing at
    least two (2) times if in a weekly newspaper or three (3) times if in a
    daily newspaper, the last notice to be published at least five (5) days
    and not more than twenty-one (21) days before the hearing.
    (g)  At the hearing, the commissioners shall accept all information
    relating to the proceedings.  Any person, including the state of Idaho
    or any of its subdivisions, or any agency of the federal government,
    may appear and give testimony for or against abandonment.
    (h)  After completion of the proceedings and consideration of all
    related information, the commissioners shall decide whether the
    abandonment and vacation of the highway or public right-of-way is in
    the public interest. The decision whether or not to abandon and vacate
    the highway or public right-of-way shall be written and shall be
    supported by findings of fact and conclusions of law.
    (i)  If the commissioners determine that a highway or public
    right-of-way parcel to be abandoned and vacated in accordance with the
    provisions of this section has a fair market value of twenty-five
    hundred dollars ($2,500) or more, a charge may be imposed upon the
    acquiring entity, not in excess of the fair market value of the parcel,
    as a condition of the abandonment and vacation; provided, however, no
    such charge shall be imposed on the landowner who originally dedicated
    such parcel to the public for use as a highway or public right-of-way.
    (j)  The commissioners shall cause any order or resolution to be
    recorded in the county records and the official map of the highway
    system to be amended as affected by the abandonment and vacation.
    (k)  From any such decision, a resident or property holder within the
    county or highway district system, including the state of Idaho or any
    of its subdivisions or any agency of the federal government, may appeal
    to the district court of the county in which the highway or public
    right-of-way is located pursuant to section 40-208, Idaho Code.
 (2)  No highway or public right-of-way or parts thereof shall be abandoned
and vacated so as to leave any real property adjoining the highway or
public right-of-way without access to an established highway or public
right-of-way.
 (3)  In the event of abandonment and vacation, rights-of-way or easements
may be reserved for the continued use of existing sewer, gas, water, or
similar pipelines and appurtenances, or other underground facilities as
defined in section 55-2202, Idaho Code, for ditches or canals and
appurtenances, and for electric, telephone and similar lines and
appurtenances.
 (4)  A highway abandoned and vacated under the provisions of this section
may be reclassified as a public right-of-way.
 (5)  Until abandonment is authorized by the commissioners, public use of
the highway or public right-of-way may not be restricted or impeded by
encroachment or installation of any obstruction restricting public use, or
by the installation of signs or notices that might tend to restrict or
prohibit public use. Any person violating the provisions of this subsection
shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
 (6)  When a county or highway district desires the abandonment or vacation
of any highway, public street or public right-of-way which was accepted as
part of a platted subdivision said abandonment or vacation shall be
accomplished pursuant to the provisions of chapter 13, title 50, Idaho
Code.

40-203A.  VALIDATION OF COUNTY OR HIGHWAY DISTRICT SYSTEM HIGHWAY OR
PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY. (1) Any resident or property holder within a county or
highway district system, including the state of Idaho or any of its
subdivisions, or any agency of the federal government, may petition the
board of county or highway district commissioners, whichever shall have
jurisdiction of the highway system, to initiate public proceedings to
validate a highway or public right-of-way, including those which furnish
public access to state and federal public lands and waters, provided that
the petitioner shall pay a reasonable fee as determined by the
commissioners to cover the cost of the proceedings, or the commissioners
may initiate validation proceedings on their own resolution, if any of the
following conditions exist:
    (a)  If, through omission or defect, doubt exists as to the legal
    establishment or evidence of establishment of a highway or public
    right-of-way;
    (b)  If the location of the highway or public right-of-way cannot be
    accurately determined due to numerous alterations of the highway or
    public right-of-way, a defective survey of the highway, public
    right-of-way or adjacent property, or loss or destruction of the
    original survey of the highways or public rights-of-way; or
    (c)  If the highway or public right-of-way as traveled and used does
    not conform to the location of a highway or public right-of-way
    described on the official map or in the public records.
 (2)  If proceedings for validation of a highway or public right-of-way are
initiated, the commissioners shall follow the procedure set forth in
section 40-203, Idaho Code, and shall:
    (a)  Cause the highway or public right-of-way to be surveyed;
    (b)  Cause a report to be prepared, including the survey and any other
    information required by the board;
    (c)  Establish a hearing date on the proceedings for validation;
    (d)  Cause notice of the proceedings to be provided in the same manner
    as for abandonment and vacation proceedings; and
    (e)  At the hearing, the commissioners shall consider all information
    relating to the proceedings and shall accept testimony from persons
    having an interest in the proposed validation.
 (3)  Upon completion of the proceedings, the commissioners shall determine
whether validation of the highway or public right-of-way is in the public
interest and shall enter an order validating the highway or public
right-of-way as public or declaring it not to be public.
 (4)  From any such decision, any resident or property holder within a
county or highway district system, including the state of Idaho or any of
its subdivisions, or any agency of the federal government, may appeal to
the district court of the county in which the highway or public
right-of-way is located pursuant to section 40-208, Idaho Code.
 (5)  When a board of commissioners validates a highway or public
right-of-way, it shall cause the survey to be recorded in the county
records and shall amend the official map of the county or highway district
system.
 (6)  The commissioners shall proceed to determine and provide just
compensation for the removal of any structure that, prior to creation of
the highway or public right-of-way, encroached upon a highway or public
right-of-way that is the subject of a validation proceeding, or if such is
not practical, the commissioners may acquire property to alter the highway
or public right-of-way being validated.
 (7)  This section does not apply to the validation of any highway, public
street or public right-of-way which is to be accepted as part of a platted
subdivision pursuant to chapter 13, title 50, Idaho Code.