Right of Eminent Domain for Small Watershed Project; Conditions Precedent; Procedure

  1. Law
  2. Georgia Code
  3. Agriculture
  4. Soil and Water Conservation
  5. Soil and Water Conservation Districts
  6. Right of Eminent Domain for Small Watershed Project; Conditions Precedent; Procedure

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  1. When a small watershed project is instituted under the sponsorship of a duly constituted district alone or under cosponsorship with any political subdivision of this state and is approved by the state and federal governments for construction thereof, and when, as a condition precedent to the exercise of the rights conferred in this Code section, 90 percent or more of the separate property owners have gratuitously given in writing and delivered to such district the necessary easements and land rights, for the purpose of the small watershed project, and when the governing board of the district finds that it cannot acquire by voluntary contract the remaining necessary easements and land rights, the sponsoring district, upon such showing incorporated in a condemnation proceeding, is granted the right of eminent domain for the purpose of acquiring the remaining necessary easements and land rights to enable it to accomplish the completion of the small watershed project.
  2. Upon compliance with the conditions precedent set forth in subsection (a) of this Code section, a district may proceed to condemn such land in accordance with the procedure set forth by Code Sections 22-2-130 through 22-2-142 and other pertinent eminent domain statutes to acquire the remaining easements and land rights necessary. In any such proceeding, the condemnor shall be required to condemn the fee simple title to all land not otherwise acquired which will be covered by permanent ponding or permanent flooding. The condemnor shall tender to the condemnee the full sum awarded in the condemnation proceedings or shall pay the same into court, in the event of the refusal of the condemnee to accept the same, before entering upon, occupying, or subjecting to its use, by flooding or otherwise, any part of the lands or rights in land sought to be condemned.

(Ga. L. 1960, p. 973, §§ 1, 2.)

Cross references.

- Condemnation proceedings before assessors, § 22-2-1 et seq.

Condemnation proceedings before special master, § 22-2-100 et seq.

Authority of counties to exercise power of eminent domain for construction and operation of watershed projects, flood-control projects and other projects, § 22-3-100 et seq.

OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

Condemnation permitted by district or county under cosponsored project.

- Either the district or the county may condemn property for a small watershed project instituted under the cosponsorship of a soil and water conservation district and a county or counties. 1967 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 67-108.

Condemnor cannot appeal award without tendering amount of award to condemnee.

- It is not necessary for the agency bringing condemnation proceedings to place any appraised amount in trust prior to a court ruling; however, if assessors are appointed, the condemning authority cannot appeal the assessors' award without tender of the amount of the award to the condemnee or payment into the registry of the court. 1967 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 67-108.

RESEARCH REFERENCES

ALR.

- Condemnation of premises or part thereof as affecting rights of landlord and tenant inter se, 163 A.L.R. 679.

Condemner's waiver, surrender, or limitation, after award, of rights or part of property acquired by condemnation, 5 A.L.R.2d 724.

Admissibility, in eminent domain proceeding, of evidence as to price paid for condemned real property during pendency of the proceeding, 55 A.L.R.2d 781.

Admissibility, in eminent domain proceeding, of evidence as to price paid for condemned real property on sale prior to the proceeding, 55 A.L.R.2d 791.

Eminent domain: right of owner of land not originally taken or purchased as part of adjacent project to recover, on enlargement of project to include adjacent land, enhanced value of property by reason of proximity to original land - state cases, 95 A.L.R.3d 752.

Eminent domain: recovery of value of improvements made with knowledge of impending condemnation, 98 A.L.R.3d 504.

Eminent domain: possibility of overcoming specific obstacles to contemplated use as element in determining existence of necessary public use, 22 A.L.R.4th 840.

State statute of limitations applicable to inverse condemnation or similar proceedings by landowner to obtain compensation for direct appropriation of land without the institution or conclusion of formal proceedings against specific owner, 26 A.L.R.4th 68.


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