Does it really take an act of Congress to buy a right-of-way for a road in Cook County, Minnesota? Yes, sometimes it does.
U.S. Representative Chip Cravaack has offered to help Cook County obtain a right-of-way it needs from the Cook County Airport to complete the next section of County Road 8 (Devil’s Track Road) slated for reconstruction.
The portion of County Road 8 currently under construction is 2.4 miles long. The next quarter mile, which begins near the airport road, is the portion the county needs to purchase. It marks the beginning of the 1½-mile Phase II portion of the road project.
According to County Engineer David Betts, County Road 8 was relocated in the 1950s. At that time, the deed to the land it traversed was transferred from the federal government to the state and then to the county. The deed stated that if the land that was transferred were not used for an airport, it would revert back into federal hands. An act of Congress is needed in order for the airport (which is actually owned by the county) to transfer the land to the county and not have it revert back to the federal government. This will allow the state, which is funding the project, to approve reconstructing this portion of the road.
The needed right-of-way is 1,320 feet long and 100 feet wide and is expected to cost around $39,000, which the Highway Department has in its coffers. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requires that the county purchase the land from the airport department and that the airport place those funds in reserve for airport improvements.
The bill was introduced in September and is sitting in a parks subcommittee of the Natural Resources Committee. Not everything the House introduces is making it to the Senate, Engineer Betts said, but Senator Amy Klobuchar’s office seems to be supportive of this bill (HR 2947 of the 112th Congress) and is working with Senator Al Franken’s office to create a companion bill in the Senate. It might get attached as an amendment to a priority bill, Betts said.
A November 4 letter from Representative Cravaack to County Board Chair Jim Johnson says, “As many of you well know, our state’s transportation infrastructure has been in need of repairs for several years. Any project that already has the funds to proceed should not face regulatory or legislative roadblocks to improving the ability for Minnesotans to travel and move goods and services.
“That is why I introduced H.R. 2947, which requires the Secretary of Agriculture to release Minnesota from the conditions imposed on it in regards to a parcel of land in Cook County intended to be used to expand the Grand Marais/Devil Track airport. That airport never used the land, but the federal restrictions on how the land could be developed remained. This prevented the land from being allocated for any other use. Hopefully it will become law and the land will finally be free of restrictions and Cook County will finally be able to finish the County Road 8 highway reconstruction project. This project had been in development for a decade while waiting for Congressional action to end the federal restrictions.”
Cravaack’s letter quotes Engineer Betts: “‘By passing H.R. 2947, Congress will enable the Cook County Highway Department to purchase the final piece of right-of-way from the Cook County Airport for the reconstruction of County Highway 8 (Devil Track Road). This bill will benefit the residents and visitors of Cook County by allowing the Highway Department to improve the safety and ride quality of this heavily traveled roadway. Congressman Cravaack and his staff have been very helpful to Cook County while we try to resolve this unusual issue.’”
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