North Douglas Highway - ROW/Boundary Opinion - 2014

This was a small assignment from the DOT&PF Southeast (Now SouthCoast) region ROW Engineer.  A property owner along the North Douglas Highway was questioning the width and validity of the highway ROW asserted by DOT&PF.  Part of his confusion relates to the acreage stated for his lot 111 according to the plat of U. S. Survey No. 3273 (2.37 Acres) that appears to conflict with the Assessor's taxable area of 2.12 acres.  There is also a conflict as to whether the lot is subject to an existing ROW of 50-feet from centerline or a wider 75-feet from centerline.

The opinion was not conclusive due to limitations on the research materials.  This scenario is all to common with clients who desire to get  an answer suitable to their needs while maintaining a cap on costs.  Often our reports must be conditioned on the fact that our review and conclusion was restricted to client provided research materials, other materials available on-line and those we maintain in our research library.  Sometimes a conclusive answer will require a more in-depth investigation into agency records that are not readily available.  This of course would take additional time and funding.