It's a wonder clients think we just go out and stake corners of property. I got a call 3 weeks ago to survey an advertisement sign lease parcel in a city 90 miles from home. No problem but I'm 350 miles from home. Won't be back for 2 weeks. That's fine! Traveled to the county seat to do research last Tuesday. Called and emailed the DOT because a old US Hwy was one of the boundaries. All the deeds were part of a 1980's subdivision, re-subdivided in the early 1890's. Never good when old meets older. My wife asked me what I was going to do? I'll walk around it until I trip on it! That's just what I do. But not without a plan for the path. Last week I called the city surveyor because one of the streets were closed and deeded 1 half north and south. He said he had been with the city for 20 years and has never been anywhere around that area. He didn't want to play. Started looking at additional deeds I was going to need. All were in Block 14, lots 1 thru 18. The resurveys of 1890 and 1892 were for the East Half (lots 1 thru 9) and the West Half (lots 10 thru 18). All the lots are 40 x 160. Can't read the original survey. Don't know the reason for the resurveys. I just might trip on that too! I now know the original row width for the closed street was 60 feet, because lots 16, 17, and 18 = 120 feet, and the dimension given on the tax map is 150 feet. Is that correct? Don't know, I'm going to have to trip on that too. But it gives me some kind of an reason to start with. The US Hwy took a large part off of the east half of the east half of bk 14. Now where does that fit to what I'm doing? I just looked and the row revisions were from 1988. I know the centerline of survey is in a 1980 foot curve. The PT is in my block 14. There is a station offset at the southeast corner of my property at 17th street. The hwy is a busy urban hwy that is now maintained by the city. Oh lord I'll have to trip on that on too. But I have a plan before I ever step on that project with nothing more than a tape, screwdriver, shovel, and a metal detector to trip on something that will make me scratch my head and smile. Clients have no idea.
If it was easy, ANYONE could do it. And, do it cheaper than you.:-@
What you described is what makes what we do so interesting. One puzzle after another, sort of like a Russian nesting doll but each doll is actually a three-dimensional jigsaw puzzle. You don't know how many puzzles you will need to tackle between the start and the finish.
With junior/senior rights involved it is a four-dimensional jigsaw puzzle.
Well after 2 trips to this site I found 2 right of way markers, a mixture of pipes and iron rods on the street side of the block. Some fences and retainer walls, and a concrete parking lot along the center of an abandoned street. Yep! You got it, a mess! All the evidence is along the west and south sides of the block. There's a retainer wall built along the center of the block. Highway construction and parking lot killing all evidence on the east side. I found a railroad spike at the southwest corner of the block, being the southwest corner of the parcel. I found a pipe at the northwest corner of the block bent over. Don't like it at all. Northerly from the railroad spike, I found a iron rod at the northwest corner of the parcel that fits well at 80.08', record is 80'. Continuing north I found a old pipe at 39.83', record is 40'. Continuing north I found a smooth rod at 79.81', record should be multiples of 40'. Continuing north I found a pipe at 241.11' feet, but is 8.72' west into the row. 320.05' from the railroad spike I found a pipe that could be called as good as it gets. My problem is, this is a lease survey for an existing sign structure. No matter what I decide on, the cat walk on the sign overhangs the property to the north. Bad news for the client.
I have made my decision. I have an iron rod at the NE corner. A rail road spike at the SW corner. A Right of Way Monument at the SE corner. I will parallel the North line to the South line 80', with the Hwy Row being the East line. Seems so simple, now. The cat walk is over the line. The bad thing about the cat walk is it's the second time this year I have found one over the line. The first one killed that lease. This just might kill this lease. I'm just the messenger. These signs are big money. This sign has been here since the late 70's. The south face is digital, and the north face with the cat walk is static. Lots of traffic passing ever day. As much as I know it's not my fault, I don't need the to shoot the messenger.
Called the client. Told them about the cat walk. They're sending a crew to cut it off. Their big money maker is the digital side. My guy said, "they should have had a survey before building the sign.".
The messenger lives for another day! B-)
I love puzzles like this. And I really love when I finally get the piece that drops into place and makes it look all nice and pretty and I can step back and say, "Oh, now that wasn't so difficult after all!"
