County Takes Ownership

Pros and Cons of Living Near or On a Private Road Versus a Public Road

Private Road:

- Privacy and Control: Living on a private road often provides more privacy and control. You may have less traffic passing by your property.

- Community: Private roads can foster a stronger sense of community among residents who share the same road.

- Customization: You may have more flexibility to customize the road's maintenance, landscaping, and rules.

Cons of Private Roads:

- Maintenance Responsibility: Homeowners on private roads are responsible for maintaining the road themselves. This can be costly and time-consuming.

- Easements and Agreements: Easements (legal rights of way) are crucial for private roads. Understanding their scope and responsibilities is essential.

- Loan Eligibility: Some home loans require a written road maintenance agreement. Lack of one can affect loan eligibility.

Public Road:

- Government Responsibility: Public roads are maintained by government entities (local, state, or federal). They receive public services like snow removal, and repairs.

- Standardization: Public roads follow established standards for safety, signage, and infrastructure.

Cons of Public Roads:

- Traffic and Noise: Public roads can be busier, leading to more noise and congestion.

- Less Privacy: Living on a public road means less privacy due to increased traffic and passerby visibility.

- Limited Control: Residents have less control over road maintenance decisions and regulations.

Requirements and cost if Lewis County were to take Ownership

The TRA Secretary reached out to the Transportation Planner for Lewis County Public Works, and he provided the following information on 2024-02-26:

• The county only maintains public county roads. In order for the county to maintain Tanglewood Dr, it would have to be reconstructed to county road standards, at the expense of the property owners on the private road and accepted into the county road system.

Following is the process to turn a private road into a county road:

• All of the land (minimum required 60 feet, 30 feet each side of centerline of the road) necessary for right of way or other purposes in the construction or improvement of any road needs to be acquired by the County either by gift or purchase at the expense of the property owners on the private road.

• The improvements to the private road need to be constructed to current County standards and will be a paved road. Refer to Road Development Standards (Lewis County Code Chapter 12.60) 

• All costs (engineering, right of way, permits, construction) to improve the private road to meet Lewis County Code will be at the expense of the property owners on the private road.

• The construction design, by a licensed engineer, would need to be reviewed and approved by the County Engineer. See Lewis County Code 12.60 for details.

This is commonly done through a Road Improvement District (RID), which is a legislative process (below).  The RID provides for the improvements to be paid by an assessment on the lots, tracts or parcels specially benefited by the improvement.  The Board determines the number of years permitted for payment of the assessment (usually 5 to 20 years) and sets the interest rate of the repayment by the landowners.  Annual payments for the road improvements are billed and paid along with property taxes.

Cost Estimates

All costs (engineering, right of way, permits, construction) to improve the private road to meet Lewis County Code have not been rigorously estimated. The table below is intended to provide a sense of individual costs versus a total estimated cost.