Approve agreement with Lori A. Carter for the purchase of a public road and utility right-of-way easement and a temporary construction easement in the amount of $10,750 for the County Road 96 Over Dry Slough Bridge Replacement Project; and authorize the Director of Public Works to take all actions necessary to complete the easement acquisitions, including approving payment, opening escrow, accepting the easements, and recording the deeds once the signed deeds have been received and escrow has closed. (No general fund impact) (Cormier/Aleaf)

Permanent roadway and utility easements and temporary construction easements are required on properties for the County Road 96 Over Dry Slough Bridge Replacement (Project).  Independent appraisals were prepared by Bender Rosenthal, Inc. (BRI), the County’s on-call appraisal consultant, to determine the value of the property interests the County must acquire for the Project.  County staff worked with the property owners to come to mutually acceptable agreements for the purchase and compensation of the property interests.

Background

The purpose of the Project is to replace the existing County Road 96 bridge over Dry Slough, which Caltrans determined is functionally obsolete as recently as 2013 and currently has a sufficiency rating of 46.5. The existing bridge (Bridge No. 22C0127) was constructed in 1929. The structure consists of single-span reinforced concrete T-girders. The bridge has longitudinal and shear cracking along the girders and evidence of damaging water penetration through the deck. Additionally, the bridge railing is in poor condition with concrete spalling and exposed, deteriorating steel rebar. 

The Board of Supervisors adopted the Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration (IS/MND) and Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program (MMRP) for the Project as the appropriate level of environmental review in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines; and approved the following bridge replacement strategy on November 8, 2022:  an approximate 60-foot long, single-span, cast-in-place, post-tensioned slab structure with 26 feet of clear width between concrete barriers. The new bridge will be constructed along the same roadway alignment. The roadway and bridge profile will be raised slightly to clear the 100-year storm event.

On December 12, 2022, Caltrans concluded that a Categorical Exclusion was the appropriate determination for the project under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

Right of Way Acquisitions

Caltrans authorized the County to initiate the right-of-way (ROW) phase on March 21, 2023.  In late 2023, BRI performed appraisals and developed appraisal reports for all of the Project acquisition areas to determine the fair market value of the necessary property interests.  In April 2024, all property owners were contacted and presented with written offers to acquire the property interests and right-of-way needed for the Project.

Relevant here, the County requires the following easement interests from the Grantor (Carter) on her property located at 25540 County Road 96 in Davis, APNs 037-010-028:

BRI worked with the property owner to come to mutually acceptable agreements for the purchase and compensation of the property interests (see Attachment A). The initial appraisal indicated a value of $5,200 for these interests. The Grantor rejected the first written offer of $5,200 for 10,859 square feet (0.25 acres) of a Public Utility Easement and a Temporary Construction Easement area of 1,471 square feet (0.03 acres), with a 36-month term.  After some negotiating and in the spirit of compromise, Grantor and County agreed to settle at $10,750. Should this acquisition have gone to condemnation, additional taxpayer dollars would have exceeded the final agreed-upon amount. BRI supports this counteroffer and requests the use of an Administrative Settlement of $5,550 for a total compensation offer of $10,750, as provided in Attachment A. The total settlement for this transaction represents a fair and equitable settlement paid to the property owner and additional costs and project delays will be completely avoided.

County Counsel has approved the agreement as to form.

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