Mich. Comp. Laws § 560.226 — MI Code / Chapter 560 / Act Act-288-of-1967 / Section 560.226
Trial and hearing; order to vacate, correct, or revise recorded plat; exceptions; plat recording resulting in loss of public access to lake or stream; reservation of easement; operation and maintenance of property by state or local unit; effect of noncompliance with subsection (4); closure of road ending; proceedings.
Status: in_force

Sec. 226.

Upon trial and hearing of the action, the court may order a recorded plat or any part of it to be vacated, corrected, or revised, with the following exceptions:

A part of a state highway or federal aid road shall not be vacated, corrected, or revised except by the state transportation department.

A part of a county road shall not be vacated, corrected, or revised except by the county road commission having jurisdiction pursuant to chapter IV of Act No. 283 of the Public Acts of 1909, being sections 224.1 to 224.32 of the Michigan Compiled Laws.

A part of a street or alley under the jurisdiction of a city, village, or township and a part of any public walkway, park, or public square or any other land dedicated to the public for purposes other than pedestrian or vehicular travel shall not be vacated, corrected, or revised under this section except by both a resolution or other legislative enactment duly adopted by the governing body of the municipality and by court order. However, neither this section nor any other section shall limit or restrict the right of a municipality under sections 256 and 257 to vacate the whole or any part of a street, alley, or other land dedicated to the use of the public.

If a circuit court determines pursuant to this act that a recorded plat or any part of it that contains a public highway or portion of a public highway that borders on, crosses, is adjacent to, or ends at any lake or the general course of any stream, should be vacated or altered in a manner that would result in a loss of public access, it shall allow the state and, if the subdivision is located in a township, the township to decide whether it wants to maintain the property as an ingress and egress point. If the state or township decides to maintain the property, the court shall order the official or officials to either relinquish control to the state or township if the interest is nontransferable or convey by quitclaim deed whatever interest in the property that is held by the local unit of government to the state or township. The township shall have first priority to obtain the property or control of the property as an ingress and egress point. If the township obtains the property or control of the property as an ingress and egress point and later proposes to transfer the property or control of the property, it shall give the department of natural resources first priority to obtain the property or control of the property. If the state obtains the property or control of the property under this subsection, the property shall be under the jurisdiction of the department of natural resources. The state may retain title to the property, transfer title to a local unit of government, or deed the property to the adjacent property owners. If the property was purchased from restricted fund revenue, money obtained from sale of the property shall be returned to that restricted fund.

A judgment under this section vacating, correcting, or revising a highway, road, street, or other land dedicated to the public and being used by a public utility for public utility purposes shall reserve an easement therein for the use of public utilities, and may reserve an easement in other cases.

If interest in the property is conveyed or control over the property is relinquished to a local unit or this state under subsection (2), the local unit or this state, as applicable, shall operate and maintain the property so as to prevent and eliminate garbage and litter accumulation, unsanitary conditions, undue noise, and congestion as necessary.

If a person shows substantial noncompliance with the requirements of subsection (4), the circuit court may order the local unit or this state to close the road ending in a manner to prevent ingress and egress to the body of water for a period of up to 30 days.

If a person shows substantial noncompliance with the requirements of subsection (4) and the circuit court has previously closed the road ending for up to 30 days under subsection (5), the circuit court may order the local unit or this state to close the road ending in a manner to prevent ingress and egress to the body of water for 90 days.

If a person shows substantial noncompliance with the requirements of subsection (4) and the circuit court has previously closed the road ending for 90 days under subsection (6), the circuit court may order the local unit or this state to close the road ending in a manner to prevent ingress and egress to the body of water for 180 days.

If a person shows substantial noncompliance with the requirements of subsection (4) and the circuit court has previously closed the road ending for 180 days under subsection (7), the circuit court shall order the local unit or this state to show cause why the road ending should not be permanently closed in a manner to prevent ingress and egress to the body of water. Subject to subsection (9), the circuit court shall permanently close the road ending unless the local unit or this state shows cause why the road ending should not be closed.

After a road ending is closed under subsection (8), and unless the property has been conveyed or relinquished to the adjacent landowners under subsection (10), the local unit or this state may petition the circuit court to reopen the road ending. The circuit court may order the road ending reopened if the local unit or this state presents a management plan to and posts a performance bond with the circuit court, and the circuit court finds that the management plan and performance bond are adequate to ensure compliance with subsection (4).

After a road ending is closed by the circuit court under subsection (8), 1 or more of the adjacent landowners may petition the circuit court to order the local unit or this state to convey any interest in the property that the local unit or this state holds to the adjacent landowners, or, if the interest is nontransferable, to relinquish control over the property to the adjacent landowners.

Proceedings under subsection (5), (6), (7), or (8) shall be initiated by application of 7 owners of record title of land in the local unit who own land within 1 mile of the road ending to the circuit court for the county in which the road ending is located. The applicants in proceedings under subsection (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), or (10) shall give the persons described in section 224a notice of the application by registered mail.

History: 1967, Act 288, Eff. Jan. 1, 1968; Am. 1978, Act 367, Imd. Eff. July 22, 1978; Am. 1978, Act 556, Imd. Eff. Dec. 22, 1978; Am. 1996, Act 219, Imd. Eff. May 28, 1996