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In this case a massive power line and tower would go right through my neighborhood, on my next door neighbor's property, down our court, and across the street from my house. It would drastically lower the value of all of our homes. Would we all be compensated or do we all just have to accept a 40% decrease in our homes' values?
And how long does the process take for the power company's project to be approved and built? I want to know how long I have to sell my house and get outta Dodge!
If you're in the US, you can see a great deal with Google Maps; it usually shows the platting of an area (at least in urban areas) and it's 100 to 1 you'll see that power line right of way running right through there. If no, then go to the website of your county's appraisal office.
This is why you always, always, always READ the surveys, plats, restrictive covenants, and deeds.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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No public agency or utility is going to reimburse property owners for their infrastructure work that affects property values. When buying a house some considerations for us were all power lines underground, close to a mile from any major arterial so no traffic noise and no chance of widening a road taking some/all of our property, no plan for light rail expansion in the area, and no commercial development within a mile. Still, things happen, and you can never guarantee that some agency will do something. In Sequim, WA, for example, the local residents were all upset when an addiction treatment facility for opioid addicts went in near them.
Previous replies seem to be missing that this is a proposed new transmission line, not existing. The landowners whose properties will be directly crossed by the new line will likely receive payment for an easement. Usually a one-time payment. Payments to other landowners in the neighborhood for proximity or viewshed impacts are unlikely, unless they need to acquire an access easement to cross your property with construction equipment.
Depending on the size of the project, permitting can take a long time. It isn't clear from your post how far along this specific project is.
I agree that property owners will not receive any compensation. I live in a community with underground utilities and it is less apt to issues that can occur for pole-mounted utilities. It is a very good thing to have and the utilities don't charge owners extra monthly for that benefit/convenience. The neighborhood looks much nicer without utility lines hanging off utility poles.
The example given above about the addiction facility reminds me of the NIMBY (Not In My Backyard) attitude that many have.
Previous replies seem to be missing that this is a proposed new transmission line, not existing. The landowners whose properties will be directly crossed by the new line will likely receive payment for an easement. Usually a one-time payment. Payments to other landowners in the neighborhood for proximity or viewshed impacts are unlikely, unless they need to acquire an access easement to cross your property with construction equipment.
Depending on the size of the project, permitting can take a long time. It isn't clear from your post how far along this specific project is.
There's almost certainly an existing easement, albeit unused. My place in Texas had several spelled out for 'future use'.
... The landowners whose properties will be directly crossed by the new line will likely receive payment for an easement. Usually a one-time payment. ....
How do you know this?
Yes, it may be a new line, but you have no way of knowing whether there are existing easements, existing rights-of-way, or what have you.
Near my house, for example, the old interurban railway right-of-way is now owned by the electric company. If they were to decide to put enormous cross-country transmission lines there, the nearby homeowners can go pound sand. Similarly, down at the end of my street is a commuter rail track, but if the local agency decided to lease it for heavy freight traffic, 30 trains a day, the local homeowners could get as angry as they wished, it wouldn't mean anything.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
44,551 posts, read 81,085,957 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Seguinite
There's almost certainly an existing easement, albeit unused. My place in Texas had several spelled out for 'future use'.
Most people never actually look at their deed, but almost every home that's not off-grid will have a 10-12' easement across the front of their property. In the case of a corner lot, it's the front and one side. There may or may not be anything there but if the city or a utility wants to put in something like new sewers, fiberoptic or buried electricity, they can, so you can't build there.
Most people never actually look at their deed, but almost every home that's not off-grid will have a 10-12' easement across the front of their property. In the case of a corner lot, it's the front and one side. There may or may not be anything there but if the city or a utility wants to put in something like new sewers, fiberoptic or buried electricity, they can, so you can't build there.
True. My previous home was a new build, it has a drainage trench (big one, 5 foot diameter) in the backyard and the easement spelled out that the utility company has the right to access the 25 ft easement on the side of my yard to get to the trench. This caused me to think if I want to build a fence for privacy because they will bulldoz it down if they need to dig the trench up. One day, I saw 3 guys in my backyard so I went out to meet them, it turns out they're from the utility company. I asked how often do they need to dig up the trench, the two older guys smiled and didn't say anything but the younger guy said "never". So I went and put up a fence.
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