03-27-2013 Council Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

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RELEVANT LINKS: A.G. Op. 396 -G -16. (Oct. 22, 1958). A.G. Op. 396 -G -16 (July 22, 1953). A.G. Op. 396 -C -18, (August 5, 1948). A.G. Op. 346 -G -1. (Mar. 4, 1963). Etzler v. Mondale, 123 N.W.2d 603 (Minn. 1963). conceming vacation of plats pursuant to Minn. Stat. § 505.14. Bainieh v. Harvey, 277 N.W.2d 355 (Minn. 1979). c) What constitutes an ownership interest in abutting land? An ownership interest in land does not include mere easement interests and implicates actual fee ownership. While easement holders may not sign a petition for vacation as abutting property owners, the city should carefully consider the concerns of easement holders — particularly easement holders with water, sewer, and electrical lines —prior to granting a vacation. d) Is a city with property abutting a vacation considered an "owner of land" for the purposes of signing the petition? A city that has a fee ownership interest in land abutting a street to be vacated may choose to join in signing a petition for vacation. 2. Public hearing and notice requirements The city must conduct a public hearing to solicit public input on a proposed vacation prior to granting a vacation. a) Notice requirements Notice of the hearing must be published in the city's legal newspaper and posted at least two weeks prior to the hearing. In addition, written notice of the hearing must be mailed to each property owner affected by the proposed vacation at least 10 days before the hearing. The notice must contain, at minimum, a copy of the petition or proposed resolution as well as the time, place, and date of the hearing. Certified mail is not required by the statute. Unfortunately, the statute does not define who is considered to be an "affected" property owner entitled to notice. The implications of the term "affected" are broader than the term "abutting" used elsewhere in the statute. As a result, the group of "affected" owners comprises a group larger than the abutting owners, but smaller than the general citizenry of the city who will receive published notice of the vacation. The Court has established that when platted streets are vacated, due process requires, at minimum, that notice be sent to all owners or occupants of land within the platted area. Owners and purchasers of platted land are presumed to rely upon access to the areas dedicated to public use in a plat and are deemed to be "affected" owners. Cities may adopt a more generous standard as appropriate to their fact situation. League of Minnesota Cities Information Memo: 7/9/2010 Vacation of City Streets 20 Page 3