RESOLUTION NO. 2017-033 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DUNCANVILLE, TEXAS, APPROVING AND ADOPTING THE POLICY AND PROCEDURE FOR ABANDONMENT OF PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY AND EASEMENTS AND ACQUISITION BY ADJACENT PROPERTY OWNERS, WHICH IS ATTACHED HERETO AND INCORPORATED HEREIN AS EXHIBIT "A"; PROVIDING A REPEALING CLAUSE; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; AND, PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. WHEREAS, the City of Duncanville City Council desires to adopt a policy and procedure for abandonment of public right-of-way and easements and acquisition by adjacent property owners. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DUNCANVILLE, TEXAS, THAT: SECTION 1. That the City Council hereby authorizes, approves, and accepts the City of Duncanville Policy and Procedure for Abandonment of Public Right-of-Way and Easements and Acquisition by Adjacent Property Owners, attached hereto as Exhibit "A", be and the same is hereby adopted. SECTION 2. That all provisions of the Resolutions of the City of Duncanville, Texas, in conflict with the provisions of this Resolution be, and the same are hereby, repealed, and all other provisions not in conflict with the provisions of this Resolution shall remain in full force and effect. SECTION 3. That should any word, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, clause, phrase or section of this resolution be adjudged or held to be void or unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of said resolution which shall remain in full force and effect. SECTION 4. That this Resolution shall take effect immediately from and after its passage.
DULY RESOLVED AND ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Duncanville, Texas, on the 20th day of June, 2017. APPROVED: David L. Green, Mayor
EXHIBIT "A" CITY OF DUNCANVILLE PROPOSED POLICY AND PROCEDURE FOR ABANDONMENT OF PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY AND EASEMENTS AND ACQUISITION BY ADJACENT PROPERTY OWNERS JUNE 6, 2017 INTRODUCTION Rights-of-way and easements are dedicated to the City of Duncanville (City) and held in trust for public use for the purpose intended. Public right-of-way and easement abandonment is the process by which the City releases the public's interest, if any, in excess City owned public rights-of-way or easements. An abutting property owner may apply to abandon public easements on his or her property or acquire public right-ofway/alley adjacent to his/her property. ABANDONMENT OF PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY AND EASEMENTS 1. Initiation of Procedure. Abandonment of public right-of-way or easements may be initiated by the owners of abutting property or by the City in accordance with the right-of-way and easements abandonment policy and procedure. Individuals/entities desiring to pursue an abandonment with the City will be encouraged to make an appointment with the Public Works Department to discuss the abandonment process and the specifics of their project. 2. Submission of Written Application Request to City. The abutting property owner (Applicant) must submit a written application to the Public Works Department on the form prescribed by the Department and pay the right-of-way or easement abandonment application fee. The following information and documents shall be included with the application: a. Reason the property owner is requesting the City abandon the public right- of-way or easement and how the property owner proposes to use the area if abandoned. b. Statement regarding how the public right-of-way or easement is currently being used. c. Signatures of abutting property owners who consent to the abandonment. d. List of abutting property owners who do not consent to the abandonment. e. The Applicant must determine the presence and location of utilities or. drainage systems, if any, within the public right-of-way or easement. If utilities or drainage systems exist in the area, Applicant must provide utility company letters agreeing to the abandonment. If the City and/or
utility determine the utilities must be removed or relocated, the Applicant will be responsible for paying the cost to remove or relocate the utilities before the City approves the abandonment. The City will coordinate with the utility for the actual removal of the utility. f. Metes and bounds description of the area proposed for abandonment. g. Legal survey identifying area to be abandoned. The boundaries of the public right-of-way or easement to be abandoned shall be described on a survey map. The survey map shall also display the names of all abutting/adjoining property owners to the abandonment area. Survey exhibits prepared by a registered public land surveyor shall also be provided for the Quitclaim Deed. The Applicant shall pay all survey costs. The City of Duncanville discourages partial street and alley abandonments within the same block. 3. Review of Written Application. The Public Works Department will review the application and preliminarily determine if the City has a continued need to retain ownership of the subject public right-of-way or easement to serve the public good. Factors which the City will consider include: a. Whether the abandonment of the described portion will better serve the public good. b. Whether the area is no longer required for current or future public use. c. Whether the public benefit of the area's use is insufficient to justify the cost of maintenance of the property. d. Whether future changes in conditions may increase public use or need for the public right-of-way or easement. e. Whether objections by other abutting property owners override the request of Applicant. f. Whether the abandonment is consistent with the City's Thoroughfare Plan, Subdivision Ordinance and other applicable requirements of the City. g. Other criteria as determined by the City. If the City determines it has a continued need to retain all of the public right-of-way or easement, it will deny the request and notify the Applicant. 4. Review of Original Public Right-of-Way Conveyance or Easement Document(s), Determination of Original Method of Dedication or Conveyance and Applicable State Law. The Public Works Department, in consultation with the City Attorney, will research the legal documents which conveyed the public right-ofway or easement to the City. For example, public rights-of-way or easements may have been acquired using different methods, including by plat, deed, or separate instrument. Typically, the easement would be abandoned in the manner in which it was dedicated. The Public Works Department will determine if the original
dedication or conveyance provides specifics regarding subsequent sale or abandonment of the public right-of-way or easement. Current State and/or Federal public right-of-way or easement abandonment statutes which could impact the proposed abandonment will be reviewed. 5. Quitclaim Deeds. The City Attorney will prepare a Quitclaim Deed to convey public right-of-way and/or easement property to abutting property owner and to reserve a public easement therein (as necessary) for all public utility companies and the City of Duncanville. Execution of Quitclaim Deed shall be contingent upon the City Council's final approval of the public right-of-way or easement abandonment and the Applicant's and other abutting property owners' payment to City for fees and costs associated with acquiring the property. 6. Notification of City departments, abutting property owners and affected utility companies of request to abandon the public right-of-way or easement. The Public Works Department will provide notice of the proposed abandonment to other City Departments, abutting property owners and affected utility companies for review and written comment within 30 days of notice date. 7. Appraisal of the Property Proposed for Abandonment. The appraised value of the public right-of-way or easement to be abandoned will be determined based on Dallas Central Appraisal District (DCAD) records with regard to alley abandonments or by an independent fee appraiser with respect to more complex areas to be abandoned or if a DCAD appraisal does not exist. The Applicant will pay the cost of the independent appraisal. 8. Duncanville City Council Adoption of Ordinance to Abandon Public Right-of Way or Easement. If the City Council deems abandonment of the public right-ofway or easement is in the best interest of the City, the City Council must adopt an ordinance in order to abandon the public right-of-way or easement. The City Council may authorize the Mayor to execute an appropriate Quitclaim Deed(s) to convey the abandoned property to the Applicant and other abutting property owners. The City Council may conduct a public hearing for receipt of the abutting property owners' comments regarding the proposed abandonment. The date of the public hearing shall be determined by the City Council. The City Council may reserve for the City any portion of the public right-of-way or easement deemed necessary for the construction, repair and maintenance of public utilities, drainage and other services and may impose such other conditions or limitations as it deems necessary and proper to preserve any desired public use or benefit. The City Council may determine that a smaller portion of the area requested be abandoned.
The Duncanville City Council shall consider approval of the conveyance or sale of the abandoned property. Texas Local Government Code, Title 8, "Acquisition, Sale, or Lease of Property", Subtitle C, Chapter 272 "Sale or Lease of Property by Municipalities, Counties, and Certain Other Local Governments" states that land may not be conveyed, sold, or exchanged for less than the fair market value of the land or interest unless the conveyance, sale, or exchange is with one or more abutting property owners who own the underlying fee simple interest in the property. These pricing provisions apply to narrow strips of land, or land that because of its shape, lack of access to public roads, or small area cannot be used independently under its current zoning, and streets or alleys owned in fee or used by easement, etc. Acquisition of abandoned easements property whereby the Applicant owns the underlying fee simple interest in the property may not require compensation in excess of county filing fees and other fees as determined by the City. In lieu of payment of monetary compensation, the Applicant may grant or dedicate to the City, for street purposes, real property useful for that purpose. The property to be acquired by such exchange must have a fair market value which is at least equal to the amount of cash compensation that would otherwise be required. The City shall not be obligated to accept such an exchange. 9. Recording of the Public Right-of-Way or Easement Abandonment and Quitclaim Deed with Dallas County. Duncanville will ensure the abandonment ordinance and fully executed Quit Claim Deed(s) are recorded in the real property records of Dallas County, Texas. The Applicant shall be responsible for the cost of all Dallas County filing fees. 10. Notification of Applicant, Other Abutting Property Owners and Affected Utilities of Approved Abandonment. The Public Works Department will provide copies of the Abandonment Ordinance to the Applicant, other abutting property owners and affected utilities. Copies of the property deeds will be provided to each abutting property owner upon payment of designated costs associated with acquiring the abandoned property. The abutting property owners will also be notified that a replat would be required in the future if they want to build on the newly acquired property. 11. Reservation. The City reserves the right to deviate from these abandonment procedures in any public right-of-way or easement abandonment matter, in its sole discretion and in the public interest. The City Manager shall be delegated the authority to revise these procedures.