Articles

Yes, You Can Fight City Hall And Win:
New Roads Creating Havoc For Homeowners Of Condemnations

Just as bull dozers have ravaged 514 acres of trees to create new road for the residents of Anne Arundel County, they have also created havoc for the property owners whose land and homes are being condemned. Local environmentalists supported by the Maryland Conservation Council are shocked at the devastation and are searching for ways to handle our growth patterns without destroying our environment.

But who is speaking out for the property owners whose land and homes are being condemned? These people are being forced either to leave their homes or sell to the state portions of their property which is some cases changes their home from one bordered by trees, foliage and wildlife to a home with an interstate highway for a backyard.

During the construction phase, many of these homeowners live with diesel smoke, fumes, noise, and even the vibrations from constant bulldozing. As one property owner on Ridgely Avenue put it, “The yellow jackets are swarming everywhere.”

The power of eminent domain permits land to be taken by the state provided the property owner is paid fair compensation for the land taken. Unfortunately for many property owners, this is often a long and difficult time filled with uncertainty and anxiety and often resulting in the property owner receiving substantially less than fair compensation.

After the first knock on his door by a right-of-way agent advising him that a public authority requires his land, the property owner is given a pamphlet outlining what to expect. What the pamphlet does not tell him to expect is that often the plans for the highway will change many times and that he may live in a state of uncertainty for a period of years.

The state is required to have an appraisal done of the property to be condemned and then to negotiate a price with the property owner. The property owner is at a disadvantage since in the negotiation stage the state will not give him a copy of their appraisal.

The homeowner should not assume that the appraisal done for the state is simply accepted nor should he assume that the offer made to him on the basis of that appraisal reflects fair compensation.

Part of the State Highway Administration is a department called the Bureau of Appraisal Review, which reviews appraisals prepared for the state. If the appraisal does not satisfy the Bureau of Appraisal Review, other appraisals may be ordered until one is received that is acceptable to the state. Often this is the lowest of the two or more appraisals.

This low appraisal may be the basis for the state’s offer to the homeowner with no mention being made of the fact that one or more additional appraisals were obtained. Often the other appraisals are substantially higher than the amount offered to the homeowner. It is only after a condemnation petition has been filed and the homeowner, through his attorney, is able to obtain documents from the state that copies of all appraisals are obtained.

Frequently faced with the realities of a jury trial and forced to reveal the higher appraisals it has until then kept hidden, the state will increase its offer just before trial. Even so, the increased offer may not reflect fair compensation.

How can the property owner know what is just compensation? A simple appraisal of the property owner’s property will normally not be sufficient to determine fair compensation in the case of condemnation. Under condemnation law, the homeowner is entitled to receive what his property would be worth for its highest and best use and an appraiser is allowed to take into consideration potential uses and even, in some cases, possible changes in zoning.

In addition, the homeowner is entitled to be compensated for damage to the remainder where all of the property is not taken. Damage to the property can be caused by many factors, such as reduction in size, destruction of view, noise and restriction or re-routing of entrances to name but a few. This an appraisal done for the purposes of condemnation is different from an appraisal that simply determines the market value of an existing property.

If the state and the property owner cannot agree on fair compensation, the state files a condemnation petition and the matter proceeds to a jury trial. Under certain circumstances, the homeowner is entitled to a preliminary hearing before a board known as the Board of Property Review. This is an informal hearing at which both the state and the property owner present evidence and on which the board ultimately renders their opinion as to value.

Prior to and during this hearing, the property owner or his attorney is still not entitled to have a copy of the state’s appraisal nor to discover if other state appraisals exist. Either side may elect to proceed with a jury trial subsequent to the Board of Property Review Hearing.

How realistic is it to fight for fair compensation? One family on Route 3 was originally offered $287,000 for their land and was ultimately awarded $750,000 by an Anne Arundel County jury. Given the choice they would have preferred to hold onto their land, which had been in the family for 40 years but were, by going to trial, at least able to be fairly compensated for their land.

Another owner of commercial property was ultimately offered 10 times the original offer made by the state for a strip of land located in a median. although the piece of land taken was very small, it denied the property owner his access to all southbound traffic on a major highway. This settlement wasn’t reached until after the trial had begun and while it resulted in the owner receiving fair compensation it did nothing to avoid the years of frustration and uncertainty and the real concern that he would only receive a fraction of what his property was worth.

As a practical matter short of a change in the law, there is no way to avoid the frustration and often heartbreak of having one’s property condemned. Nevertheless those who have decided to fight the system seem to have faired best while those who feel they have to take the state’s offer are often paid much less than the fair market value of their property.