Not an expert, but here's what I know:
1) You must be paid a fair price (subject to much debate)
Consider this...
Local gubm'et is widening street in front of your property installing traffic lights, stop signs, storm drains and sidewalks.
- They want to purchase a small strip of land from you... (I can deal wiff dat.)
- They want to install a drainage culvert with an 18" pipe and redirect waterflow collected by these new storm drains from the other side of the street onto your property. (I have a real problem wiff dat.)
I've already met with the slimy agent negotiating the offer and the "PE" responsible for the project. The "PE" is a real pencil dick who didn't have much to say... "The county's practice is to redirect runoff into 'natural' areas." Of course, my concern is the downstream affects caused by this redirected runoff. I suspect it will become an eminent domain issue if I refuse to proceed. What happens then? Will they condemn and take my entire property? Fishizzle...