Any first or second class municipality, county, township, or other governmental agency may acquire by gift, devise, or purchase, a fee ownership in real estate including right-of-way, for the construction and maintenance of the municipal, county, or township highway system, for the functional operation of the municipality, county, or township, and where, in relation to right-of-way acquisition, uneconomic remnants of land would be left to the original owner or where severance damages to a remainder make the acquisition of the entire tract or parcel more economical to the municipality or county. The Department of Transportation may acquire by gift, devise, or purchase, a fee ownership in real estate including right-of-way, for the construction and maintenance of the state highway system, for the functional operation of the department, and where, in relation to right-of-way acquisition, uneconomic remnants of land would be left to the original owner or where severance damages to a remainder make the acquisition of the entire tract or parcel more economical to the state. The department may not acquire fee ownership in right-of-way taken by condemnation proceedings.

Ask a legal question, get an answer ASAP!
Click here to chat with a lawyer about your rights.

Terms Used In South Dakota Codified Laws 31-19-42

  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Devise: To gift property by will.
  • Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
  • Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.

Source: SL 1961, ch 145, § 1; SL 1967, ch 116; SL 1983, ch 226, § 1; SL 1986, ch 238, § 1; SL 1992, ch 60, § 2; SL 2010, ch 148, § 1.