Temporary Easement In North Carolina

[Tarheel]

We have been informed that the state of NC Dept of Highways will exercise eminent domain on part of our property which is next to a state highway. They wish to obtain 13 ', " which will take out 25 cyprus firs that are 20-25 ft tall, and which provide a privacy screen from the road. Our problem is more with the " easement " portion of the claim, which comes within 4 ' of our house! This easement is temporary while they rebuild a bridge. They claim that " the easement will be put back the way it was". However, they will be removing about 75 trees and a 13' bank that elevated us from the road. The OTHER side of the highway is county property, and is just woods.
We feel this is an " undue burden" on us, as it takes away all our privacy, and makes it impossible to sell! We couldn't find much info on temporary easements, and would appreciate some advice. We were not notified about all this until the surveyors came on our property. We are talking about a 1/4 mile stretch along our 2+acre lot. Angry in NC

[LandSurveyor]

1. The state has the right to do just what they have proposed to do.

2. You have the right to fair compensation for both the "take" and the temporary.

A temporary easement for construction purposes will generally run for a year or two after the project begins. Some DOT right of way agents will characterize it as a "rental" of your property. You can probably get more information on the purpose of the temp from your DOT agent. The DOT will be looking to negotiate these items with you after they have had an appraisal done. Feel free to differ with them if you feel that their offer is too low. You will need to get your own appraisal for the property and the trees. If you feel that this project will materially reduce the value of your property, and you can support that claim, you may get additional compensation.

[seniorjudge]

Try negotiating with the bureaucrats.

Sometimes it works.

By the way, if they do want an easement, make sure there is a DATE for the easement to end.

I have seen easements which say something like, "This easement shall end 6 months after the project has been completed."

That screws up things forever.

[lwpat]

I agree about the length of time issue. If there is a problem the project could go on for a year or two past the completion date.

[LandSurveyor]

Yes, the temp should be for a time certain period starting with the commencement of the project. All of the ones I do for the DOT are written that way. If the project runs over schedule, they need to negotiate with you for more "rent".

Commencement of a project for easement purposes usually means the first day the easement is entered on and used. You can document this with a digital camera with the date function turned on.