08-29-2006, 02:27 PM
Got this from the Daily Herald...
http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/191447/
Land Swap [url "javascript: void(0);"] PDF [/url] [url "javascript:void(0)"] | Print | [/url] [url "javascript: void(0);"] E-mail [/url]
The Associated Press
UDOT seeking federal approval of deal first
UINTAH -- A land swap deal approved by the city council would give anglers access to the lower Weber River in exchange for land for a park, but the Utah Department of Transportation is seeking federal approval of the deal first.
UDOT is asking for federal approval to give 8.84 acres of riverfront property to the Division of Wildlife Resources because the land was paid for with federal money.
But a lawsuit filed in May on behalf of the former owner's estate claims the land isn't UDOT's to give because it belongs to the estate of Edwin Higley.
The estate claims that an agreement made in 1974 for a right of way for Interstate 84 didn't include land north of the road.
No court date has been set to hear the lawsuit, but UDOT says it needs only federal approval and not a final resolution of the dispute to transfer the property to DWR.
Access to the Weber River was virtually eliminated last fall when the Utah Highway Patrol, under orders from the Utah Department of Transportation and federal highway officials, began enforcing a ban on parking on the shoulder of I-84.
Officials from the Division of Wildlife Resources, Trout Unlimited and Weber Pathways have been working to find alternate public access points ever since.
The 8.84-acre parcel is along a one-eighth-mile section of the Weber River on the southwest border of Uintah.
Residents of the neighboring subdivision objected to the transfers, citing safety concerns if the winding route near their homes became popular with anglers. Despite those concerns, the council approved the land transfer last week, and DWR began the process of acquiring ownership.
In response to the traffic concerns, Robert Hasenyager, supervisor of DWR's northern region, said his office may delay opening the area to the public until one or more other angler options are available.
Once federal approval of the land transfer is obtained, the Uintah property could be DWR's within "a couple of weeks," said Dian McGuire, who works in UDOT's property management section. This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page D5.
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http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/191447/
Land Swap [url "javascript: void(0);"] PDF [/url] [url "javascript:void(0)"] | Print | [/url] [url "javascript: void(0);"] E-mail [/url]
The Associated Press
UDOT seeking federal approval of deal first
UINTAH -- A land swap deal approved by the city council would give anglers access to the lower Weber River in exchange for land for a park, but the Utah Department of Transportation is seeking federal approval of the deal first.
UDOT is asking for federal approval to give 8.84 acres of riverfront property to the Division of Wildlife Resources because the land was paid for with federal money.
But a lawsuit filed in May on behalf of the former owner's estate claims the land isn't UDOT's to give because it belongs to the estate of Edwin Higley.
The estate claims that an agreement made in 1974 for a right of way for Interstate 84 didn't include land north of the road.
No court date has been set to hear the lawsuit, but UDOT says it needs only federal approval and not a final resolution of the dispute to transfer the property to DWR.
Access to the Weber River was virtually eliminated last fall when the Utah Highway Patrol, under orders from the Utah Department of Transportation and federal highway officials, began enforcing a ban on parking on the shoulder of I-84.
Officials from the Division of Wildlife Resources, Trout Unlimited and Weber Pathways have been working to find alternate public access points ever since.
The 8.84-acre parcel is along a one-eighth-mile section of the Weber River on the southwest border of Uintah.
Residents of the neighboring subdivision objected to the transfers, citing safety concerns if the winding route near their homes became popular with anglers. Despite those concerns, the council approved the land transfer last week, and DWR began the process of acquiring ownership.
In response to the traffic concerns, Robert Hasenyager, supervisor of DWR's northern region, said his office may delay opening the area to the public until one or more other angler options are available.
Once federal approval of the land transfer is obtained, the Uintah property could be DWR's within "a couple of weeks," said Dian McGuire, who works in UDOT's property management section. This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page D5.
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