68-1401. Reconstruction of bridges in counties over $90,000,000 valuation; bonds; railroad grade separation structures, apportionment of cost; special assessments, when.
68-1401
68-1401. Reconstruction of bridges in counties over $90,000,000valuation; bonds; railroad grade separation structures, apportionment ofcost; special assessments, when.Whenever in any county having an assessed valuation for taxationpurposes of over ninety million dollars the board of directors of anydrainage district organized under the laws of this state, under the powersvested in them, shall prescribe, regulate or fix the height of any publicbridge located within said district or the length of spans and the locationof piers or abutments of any such bridge, or shall locate harbor lines foror establish the channel of any stream within such district, and shallnotify and request, in writing, the board of county commissioners tochange, alter or reconstruct any such bridge or bridges to conform to suchharbor lines, channel or requirements; or whenever in any county thesecretary of war of the United States, or any other competent authority,shall request, order or direct, in writing, the reconstruction, raising orlengthening of any public bridge, or the spans thereof, over any navigablestream, or shall request, order or direct the reconstruction or relocationof the piers or abutments of any public bridge over a navigable stream, orshall establish harbor lines or otherwise designate the channel for anynavigable stream, and shall request, order or direct the reconstruction ofbridges to conform thereto; the board of county commissioners of the countywherein such public bridge is located is hereby authorized and empowered toreconstruct such bridges and approaches thereto, and grade separationstructures connected therewith, raise, lengthen and repair such bridges,and to reconstruct, remove and relocate the abutments and piers thereof,and to improve such bridges in any other respect required, and to do anyand all acts necessary to conform to such requirements, in the mannerhereinafter provided, and for the purpose of paying for such improvementsmay issue bonds of such county without the same being authorized by anyelection, and subject only to the limitations contained in this act.
The amount of bonds so authorized to be issued shall not exceed theactual cost of such improvements: Provided, That whenever any bridgeis reconstructed under the provisions of this act and said bridge is or maybe connected with grade separation structures over the tracks and rights ofway of any railroad company or companies, the cost of constructing orreconstructing said grade separation structures shall be paid for in thefollowing proportions:
The county shall pay one-half of the cost of constructing orreconstructing said grade separation structures and issue its generalobligation bonds to pay the cost of the same; the remaining cost shall bepaid by the railroad company or companies over whose tracks and rights ofway such grade separation structure is constructed. When two or morerailroad companies own and operate separate lines of track to be crossed byany such grade separation structure, the proportion of the cost thereof,including the approaches thereto, to be borne by each shall be determinedby the board of county commissioners. Such cost to any railroad company asdetermined by the board of county commissioners shall from the time ofnotification to such company constitute a lien against all of itsproperties in favor of the county and may be collected by an action broughtin any court of competent jurisdiction.
The bonds for which provision is made in this section shall be issued asnow provided by law; or in lieu of enforcing the cost of such amount by asuit at law the county may issue special improvement bonds of the county topay for said improvement and levy special assessment against the propertyof such railroad company or companies to pay such bonds and interest.
History: L. 1909, ch. 64, § 1; R.S. 1923, 68-1401; L. 1949, ch. 348, § 1;April 15.