I am working with a small City in PA trying to have match funds with Penn DoT. My problem is that the Sanitary Line to be relocated does not have a recorded easement and has been in place (approximated from sewer department) since the 1920's. The DoT will not give match funds unless ownership can be proven and its easement belongs to the City. the only thing i can find at this time is from my “Boundary Retracement Principles and Procedures for Pennsylvania” by Knud Everrett Hermansen, Third Edition:
10.1.9 Easements
10.1.9.2.2. Use and Occupancy
If no valid monuments or documented dimensions exist that will fix the width or boundary of the easement, then the boundary shall be determined from long-standing possessory monuments that clearly indicate the permissible (acquiesced) width. Possessory monuments may include such fixtures as fences, walls, tree rows, and other linear, possessory objects, provided such objects allow a reasonable use within the intent of the original grant.
Our possessory monuments I believe are the Man Holes and Sewer Lines.
Any help would be appreciated.
Terry
Terry,
Check the city's municipal ordinances and meeting minutes circa the 1920's and forward for a start. You may have to expand your search and go to property deeds that the sewer line runs through for the same time period. Next, check the municipal employee work records and expenditures for maintenance of the sewer line. Concurrently, check with the current solicitor and prior solicitors for any information that they may have regarding ownership of the lines AND for their suggestions for what may be necessary to aid in proof satisfactory to PennDOT. Consider that it might have been a private utility at one time and has been taken over by the municipality, if not in fact, but by action.
Our possessory monuments I believe are the Man Holes and Sewer Lines.
That gets you the C/L, Need to pop the lids to make sure the manholes are not offset. Now you need room to replace and maintain the line. How many owners do you need to acquire an easement from or will be part of a city taking of some sort? Dealing with other peoples property to obtain enough width to allow for the upkeep and maintenance or even replacement may be a long process but is something that can't happen without getting all the owners involved and in agreement, unless the City can get the Courts to make a ruling. Bettered just forget about matching funds on this one, by the time the required conditions are meet, the funds will probably not be available.
jud
There may be no easement if the current owners took possession of the property with no notice of there being a sewer line on the property. Where manholes at least visable on the subject parcel, or are they on adjacent property?
It is hard to find any good paper work down there. We do have old as-built plans but the DoT wants a recorded document. We will do the research they are willing to pay for.
Man holes are visible and run through many property owners before reaching the Sewer Plant. We have also looked in, they are pass through type and not offset in this area. We are only looking at the portion that crosses the state road.
We have also researched the adjoiners back and didn't find anything in the area.
Well....it sounds like the City has an easement by use and occupancy. However, is it up to you to decide that it is an unwritten easement? Can you locate the manholes and the mainline and just show them on a map? It still isn't a written deed. It seems like it is up to "the City" to make a claim of an easement by use and occupancy, but for it to be a written deed, it seems like they would have to get new deeds by agreement by the land owners, or to get it declared in court.
I would assume that the DOT has a lot of roadway easement by virtue of Prescription. You might ask them how they handle prescriptive easements. But still....I don't understand exactly. If they are going to relocate the line anyway, it seems more important that they get the new easement in writing. Why would they need a written easement for a line they are going to relocate? (Maybe a new temporary easement to come on the land and dig up the line only.)
It sounds like you have some advise on where to look for written easements. A lot of times, from my experience, they might have a written easement in the dark dungeons of the municipality that never got recorded.
Obviously I am not an expert.
Mark,
The reason is for match funding. If the City proves they own the line then the DoT will match a percentage of construction costs to relocate. The City is strapped for funding and can not afford to do the relocation on their own.
Relocate? From Where? To Where?
If a PennDOT ROW is involved be sure to ask them for a written recorded document that they own their Right of Way.
Also ask for the design, redesign and right of way plans. If your sewer line is on those plans and the plans were properly recorded (choke, gurgle, laugh) you have all you need.
Paul in PA
Relocate? From Where? To Where?
Thanks Paul, I need to try that one. They are doing a bridge replacement so I'm sure they would need that on their plans. In one area the sewer line and a man hole are in the approach apron so they want it out.
Relocate? From Where? To Where?
Here in the SE corner of PA many of the older PennDot Highway plans are recorded in the county Recorder of Deeds Office. Generally large map books covered in a half inch of dust and stuck in an almost inaccessible corner. I suspect that many counties have moved then to "Remote" storage to clear up room in the recorders office.
Northampton County Lost Almost All Of Them
And the Railroad Val Maps to boot.
You pretty much have to take what PennDOT has as gospel.
Got a call from a neighborhood businessman a few years ago. PennDOT wanted to shut down his used car dealership as not having proper access. I quoted him a price to survey what was needed to apply for a Highway Occupancy Permit. In the process I got the 50+/- year old road widening plans which showed the driveways and a commercial use. I tied in every highway improvement on said plans within sight distance both ways. There was no doubt it is where it was. Took a copy of the PennDOT plan and several copies of my survey and had a 1/2 hour sitdown with the gentleman's attorney leaving it all with him. Got a check for my fieldwork and never got a call to complete an H.O.P.
If it is within the right of way there is no doubt you will have to relocate it, you just want to make sure it is at their expense.
Paul in PA
